Holding Out For A Hero: An Original Superhero Quest

...
Kachuusha got you ready for your "Interview" while Morphic prepared the plane for takeoff, including taking the time to coach you how to sit down. "You look like you're slumping. With that armor, you almost look dead. Sit up straight… now you look too tense. Try to loosen up… not that much… hold on, do what I do…"

After that, she insisted on making sure your armor was polished. You appreciate that she wants you to look your best, but you feel like a little kid again, and not in a good way. You start to get flashbacks to your mom trying to make sure you looked enough like a girl before you left for school, even as your muscles started developing. The fact that Kachuusha is younger than you makes it even worse. By the time you're up to Kachuusha's standards, you're already up in the air.

She's taking a seat across from you. It looks like you're just two people talking casually. If not for the fact that you don't dare move from your posture else she'll scold you again. Or the fact that one of the camera crew is over her left shoulder, filming you, and another one over your right shoulder filming her. "So, The Vigil, right. Or do you want to just call you Vigil?"

"Doesn't matter" You say truthfully. "Whatever makes you feel more

"Alright, Vigil then. I heard about you did on that highway. Why did you decide to become a hero, anyway?"

You pause for a moment. You're fighting to keep your family safe. You don't want to give away that you have a family. "Because 9 times out of 10, the cops couldn't find their couch in the living room. Other times, they don't get to the scene of the crime until after the criminal is half way to… Addison or somewhere. Vigilantes get a bad rap. And some of them deserve it, but sometimes, a… a man needs to step up and do something for his city."

Kachuusha's face twitches. Apparently that was the wrong answer. But she does not stop. "So, I heard you fought a wolf-morph the first time you fought crime."

"Yeah. I know it happens, but I didn't expect it when he started to transform." You say.

"Really? What were you thinking when you saw him start bulking up? Kachuusha asks.

The conversation continues for another 15 minutes, and you give your honest answers. They can be a little blunt at times, but you're satisfied with them. Eventually, as you're talking about why exactly you choose your knight theme, you see out of the corner of your eye, the camera guy giving you a disapproving look.

"What?" You say to the cameraman.

That's when Kaauucha's eyes narrow. "Don't look at the camera." She says in a stern voice.

"I mean, I have a feeling we're not gonna use any of this, so it doesn't really matter" M says, shrugging. Kachuusha when wheels around to face him.

"And you, don't talk while filmin..." Kachuusha starts to say. "...Though I guess we really aren't using that take... Sorry… maybe we should take it from the top. Remember, your opinions could reflect on me. So if you could please phrase things in a... less confrontational way, I'd appreciate it."

"Are you asking me to lie?" You ask.

"I'm asking you to maybe… tone down the more controversial opinions you may have." Kachuusha says. "Even if it's true, there's going to be a lot of loyal viewers that may not like what you have to say. And I don't want to lost any viewers, you know? And try to project more confidence when talking. We can't be indecisive, either here, or when we're fighting"

You do the second take, and this time, you're a little more comfortable. You answer her questions in a more… diplomatic way, and you even start talking about local sports, challenges you faced, and even a heavily redacted time you fell off of a waterslide and discovered you were super tough by not dying when you hit the ground.

All in all, by the time you land in a grassy field, lit only by the setting sun, you're in a good mood. You almost forget that you're going to be fighting for your life in a 30 minutes.

....................................................

Cutter leaned back in his seat as the black armored car drove on the dirt roads to their destination. He was wearing a wrinkled black suit, a red dress shirt whose colors conveniently hid some stains earned earlier that night, a tie that had come loose and he had barely attempted to straighten, and a pair of expensive dress shoes that were heavily scuffed. A pair of sunglasses sat in an outside jacket pocket, it being too dark to wear them.

His disheveled appearance hid the fact that he was one of Ordinance's top operatives.

He wasn't at the level of Lieutenant. Not yet. But he knew that he was on a short list of candidates to replace Artillery after she ate shit up north. Which meant his next few missions needed to go off without a fucking hitch.

He took a drag of his cigarette. He didn't normally smoke, but the discomfort on the three other occupants faces whenever he puffed out some smoke was worth it. Especially since they couldn't do anything about it.

"Looks like we're almost there." One of his bodyguards said, looking at the large hanger in the distance. It was lit up by a pair of bright lights near the top, the runway was flanked by a series of yellow-tinted lights on either side, making it stand out in the absolute nothing that they had driven through to get here. There were also several vehicles, including one technical, parked near the hanger, with several people waiting outside of them.

"Looks like there's… 10, 11, 12… looks like there's about 14 guys out there" The other bodyguard, the driver said. Both bodyguards were wearing their black and white "Tank" armor. Armor padding on their entire upper body, helmets, pants, and armored boots. "I'm starting to feel a little outgunned, boss" She says.

"They aren't stupid enough to try anything" Cutter says. "They know they try and kill us, they get wiped off the map. You both just worry about holding the briefcases and looking intimidating. And Speece, you just worry about making sure that plane is in working order. That plane is worth a lot, and I wanna make sure we get what we pay for."

"Don't worry, boss. I'll get it done." Robert Speece was an outside contractor brought in to verify that the jet was everything the Bullet Farmers promised.

"Alright, now let's do this and get out of this shithole." Cutter says, putting his cigarette out on a slab of metal he had next to him. As the car came to a halt, he grabbed the slab and got out of the car.

....................................................

For most people who lived in Hartford, they didn't have much of a concept of "dark". Sure, night came, but most of the city had streetlamps, neon signs and the like to keep things illuminated.

Right now, walking through a large field of grass that's up to your thighs, with the faint lights of the airfield in the distance being your only landmark. K's summoned a small ball of energy to provide a little light, but after about 4 feet, everything around you is an inky blackness. And with the five other people around you to keep track of, you get the sinking feeling that if someone went missing, or if someone was following you, you wouldn't notice.

"Shit, I'm gonna be itching for a week… did we walk through poison ivy?" R asks.

"Isn't that a moss or something? I'm pretty sure it grows on trees, so you should be fine." Morphic says.

"I'm pretty sure it grows near trees, not on it. Where's you hear that it grows on trees?" You ask.

"I don't know. I think I read it somewhere" Morphic says.

"Pretty sur it's just the bugs. They're not a big deal." C says. "We should be watching out for snakes."

"I just hope I don't get any grass stains on my costume." Kachuusha says. "These things aren't easy to clean..." She says that she can't teleport too many people at once, and not over the distance you'd have to walk in order to not be seen by the bad guys, so you're all stuck walking. Even Kachuusha, since she doesn't want to be spotted by anyone while floating above ground. She may be able to teleport away, but the rest of you aren't so lucky.

"I don't think I've ever seen you wear the same outfit twice anyway" Morphic says. "You might as well throw it in a fire after this. Who cares if it gets a stain or two on it"

While Kachuusha is explaining that she wanted to look good on camera in the upcoming fight, you start to feel a tingling in the back of your mind. You can sense something. Something in that hanger.

It's a common myth that magic users can sense other magic users and magical objects. A lot of old comic books and movies have that trope to move the plot forward in magic heavy stories. In reality, you could sense a magic user when they are using a spell. You'd have to get stronger to sense other magic users all the time. As for objects, you could sense them if you were nearby, even if you couldn't use their effects unless you activated it manually. The more magic poured into an object, the easier it was to sense over long distances.

And here, about half a mile from the hanger, you can sense something from inside of it. Something powerful.

[] Bring it up.
-[] Write in how you want to bring it up.
[] Don't bring it up.
- Write in your reasons.
 
[X]Bring it up.
-[X] "There's something magic at the site. Very powerfully magic - because I can sense it from here."

Because the fact that we can sense it from this distance is very important information along with the fact that there is something magic up ahead.
 
[X]Bring it up.
-[X] "There's something magic at the site. Very powerfully magic - because I can sense it from here."
 
[ ] Potent Magicks ahead. I am not yet able to sense fellow mages yet but that hanger has enough active magic for me to detect it.
EDIT: Saw the bandwagon, decided to join it.
[X]Bring it up.
-[X] "There's something magic at the site. Very powerfully magic - because I can sense it from here
 
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[X]Bring it up.
-[X] "There's something magic at the site. Very powerfully magic - because I can sense it from here."

Doesn't let on any limitations we might have. Provides a valid warning, like saying that you can smell something from a long way away.
 
Hey so, something to note: if we can sense active spells, at some distance their magic user will detect our disguise spell. Maybe it won't matter if we get teleported in, but something to consider.
 
Hey so, something to note: if we can sense active spells, at some distance their magic user will detect our disguise spell. Maybe it won't matter if we get teleported in, but something to consider.

I think that the problem there is not just the disguise spell in that case and more the sword enchanted to prevent chipping and other damage, alongside the summoning enchantment we have on armor and sword. If someone can detect the disguise spell (which is honestly probably a small smell comparatively to some of the thing we end up throwing around) they can probably detect everything else.

Also the information we have doesn't point to a magic user - but an extremely powerful magic object.

And another goal for the board - endgame having us with our best gear being something other magic user can sense coming before they see us.
 
Alright time for an actual action scene again. I just need to make a few rolls first.
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Camera Crew Stealth 1 Total: 4
1 1 2 2 1 1
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Camera Crew Stealth 2 Total: 10
1 1 3 3 6 6
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Camera Crew Stealth 3 Total: 8
1 1 3 3 4 4
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Junior Fright Check Total: 10
3 3 3 3 4 4
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Cutter Fright Check Total: 9
1 1 5 5 3 3
 
No wonder the camera crew survives. Nobody knows they're _there_ to target them, and then it's just a simple case of dodge death.
Yeah. I made them hard, but not impossible to find and hit. With the average baseline HP of 10 and a pistol doing around 2d6, normal humans tend to have a short shelf life when guns are involved.
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Specialist Con Total: 11
4 4 3 3 4 4
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Junior Mystic Arts (12-2) Total: 15
6 6 4 4 5 5
 
So I'm going to be hoping that Junior failing the mystic arts role by 1 is a good thing for us.
It was him sensing you nearby because of your disguise, which he failed.

Also, I neglected to put what the specialist's constitution was. It's 10, which means they failed as well.
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Recognition (Junior) Total: 8
4 4 1 1 3 3
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Recognition (Cutter) 11=1 Total: 16
4 4 6 6 6 6
Agent 99 threw 3 6-faced dice. Reason: Recognition (Mooks) 8 Total: 6
2 2 1 1 3 3
 
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Ambush Part 1
"Uh... hey guys" You say.

"Something wrong?" Kachuusha asks.

"I got bad news. Well, it's some kind of news. There's some magic in the hanger. I don't know what it is, but it's powerful" You explain.

"How strong we talking here?" Morphic asks.

"I can sense it from here and I'm pretty sure it isn't even active." You say. "I haven't studied Thaumaturgy, but I know that whatever is over there, it's powerful. And it's not even active. If -"

"Wait." Kachuusha says. You're sure that she's about to ask questions, but she then motions to a member of the camera crew. He immediately turns on his camera and starts filming. "Could you start over? That was great, but we weren't filming"

You sigh, but you start over.

------------------------------------
Cutter walks towards the hanger, flanked by his bodyguards and trailed by the specialist. The Bullet Farmers were dressed like they worked on farms. Jeans, button down shirts and jackets. Many wearing cowboy hats and boots, which could have either been a uniform, or just the clothes they happened to be wearing.

"Junior! It's a pleasure to finally make your acquittance. Personally, I was hoping that your father would make it here, but... eh. I'm sure he's a busy man." Cutter said with a mocking smile.

Junior narrowed his eyes at the man. "Hey, I didn't risk my ass getting this plane just to take this shit from a shit like you. Now, do you want this thing, or are you gonna just stand there yapping all night?"

"Personally, I'd rather stand here talking all night." Cutter said. "But we both have jobs to do. I assume that the jet is in the hanger?"

"That's right. I put it there myself. Even got some notes about that technical stuff they put on board." Junior said, with no small amount of pride. "And it's got everything I said it did"

"It's not that I don't trust you, but I need to verify with my own methods." Cutter says before turning to Speece. "So, does he have what we're looking for?"

"Ye-yeah. I could sense it on the car ride up." Speece said. He was shaking his head and blinking rapidly, trying to get his eyes to focus again. The raw power he was close to, it was like it was kicking him in the head repeatedly. "I'll need to take a look up close to confirm, but I think this is it."

"You gonna be alright?" Cutter asked the man. There was some slight concern in his voice. "Because if you don't get your shit together, none of us can get paid."

"No, I'm... I'm fine." Robert said. "I just had to get used to that. It's... it's a lot more powerful than I thought."

"Looks like city living didn't do you too good. Made ya soft" Junior says with some mock pity. Some of his men chuckle with him, but most kept their eyes on the four.

Speese glared at the man, but Cutter raised his hand. "You still got a job to do. We need to make sure the jet itself is working. Come on. Let's get to the hanger."

"Hold on!" Junior says. "You said ten million dollars for the plane. Now I don't know about you, but I don't see ten million."

Cutter nods to his bodyguards, who each lift up the briefcases they were holding. They walk the briefcases to halfway between Cutter and Junior, set them down, and walk back. "That's one million. That gets us access to the plane. Once we confirm everything we need is there, we'll wire the other 9 million to your account."

Junior thinks about it. His men tighten their grips on their guns. A collection of rifles, shotguns and pistols. They don't think about how if they kill Ordinence's men, they'd all be dead in a week. They only consider whether or not their boss would give the order to open fire. Finally, Junior smiles and nods. "Alright. One million gets you access to the jet." He says before turning towards one of his men. "Billy! Open the hanger."

A second later, the hanger doors open, revealing what was inside. The jet was large, painted a dark gray with model numbers and the US AF emblems still painted on the wings. It's a smooth craft as if it was carved out of metal rather than assembled in a factory. The armaments were withdrawn into the jet, leaving what it was armed with a mystery. And deep within it, was a powerful source of magic that could be felt by all three magic users among the people there. Even as powerful as it is, it's still dormant, waiting for it's power, whatever it was, to be unleashed.
...............
You start to break into a sweat as you approach, concealed in the tall brush and outside of the shinning lights. Your group is approaching from the north, the hanger entrance is facing away from you, But you can hear the sound of the hanger doors opening. From where you are, you see two groups of people meeting in front of the hanger. There's a man in a suit that looks like it rolled down a hill with him in it with a metal pipe slung over his shoulder. Behind him, are in familiar looking heavy armor, with someone else right behind him, a man in a purple jacket. The man is looking very pale, like he's a few seconds from falling over.

The rest of the people are dressed in more casual clothing, they're probibly working for the Bullet Farmers. There's about... a dozen, maybe a few more in front of the hanger, forming a line between the Gunrunners and the hanger with their vehicles. One of note is leaning against a machine gun mounted on the back of a truck.

"Alright, once the camera crew is in position, we'll get started." Kachuusha says. On cue, all three people take off in different directions, sneaking around the soon to be battlefield. They all stay out of the light. You lose them in the darkness, but after a few seconds, Kachuusha seems satisficed about where they are. "So, Vigil, I'm teleporting you first. Go for the man in the suit. I think he's the heavy that Ordinance brought. Ready?" Kachuusha asks.

"As I'll ever be" You answer.

"Good. Morphic. You ready?" Kachuusha asks

Morphic takes a rock out of his costume pocket and squeezes it. His skin then starts to change to match the rock, gray and jagged, but still human. "I was born ready"

"Good. We're going on 1...2...3" Kachuusha then touches your shoulder.

And then your world goes white.

You didn't know what to expect when you teleported. But it feels a lot like being drunk. Through a silly straw. You feel yourself compacting and being flung through space and time. You barely have time to comprehend anything else, because as soon as you get your bearings, you're in the air, back in reality. With another flash of light Kachuusha teleports away, leaving you 15 feet above the two people in the middle, the man in the tattered suit, and the apparent leader of the Bullet Farmers.

They both seem shocked at your sudden arrival, mouths agape. As you fall, you see the man in the tattered suit look up at you. You get ready to strike when the slab of metal he's holding starts to change. It starts to elongate and two scythe blades start to form at the end of it.

[] Attack him with your fists. (Brawl)
[] Use your sword skills to fight him. (Broadsword)
[] Use your magic to attack him. (Mystic Arts)
- [] Choose your spell.
 
So 2 to 4 versus 0 to 5? Still sticking with Brawl. Brawl is not only the higher skill and therefore more likely to hit, but it deals more consistent damage.
Actually, it's plus and minus the result.

So if I rolled Brawl and got 4, 2, and 5, that's a total of 11. Then I'd add 1 to it and get 12.

For Broadsword, if I roll 1, 3, 4, 2, 2, and 4, that's a total of 16. Minus 1 is 15.
 
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