The Force of Justice - IC Thread

[Purr]

Dreamy folds her hands as she listens to Nisha's sage advice, nodding to Chaser as she provides it. Then Dreamy sends to Chaser across a Mind Link he's not in, except this time, she catches herself. "Nisha appears to be one of the--" "Oh, I've the brains of an asteroid!" Dreamy says, twirling once in embarrassment as she floats on the air. "Chaser, I think Nisha is one of the wiser Carbonites I've met in my short time here." She grins at the mysterious mystic.

"My Boy, the rest of the Force of Justice has been communicating in the way of my people. Even Blue Bolt! Would you reconsider giving it a try? You have full control over what you express, we can communicate far outside Carbonite hearing range, and I promise not to use the link for anything you don't expressly give me permission to!" Dreamy holds up her hand and sticks out her pinky finger. "See that?" she points with her other hand to her pinky. "It's the Almighty Pinky Swear. That means I really mean it! I know it's true because the Hole in the Wall Gang taught me." Dreamy nods proudly yet looks to Chaser with a hopeful expression.

 

[Silanon]

Is it wise to meddle with powers like these? Some might call it incredibly foolish. Nisha's eyes focus on the chained arm in thought; and yet, the compliment is received with a reluctant smile. Wisdom is what she's seeking, after all. Perhaps in time, she'll prove Dreamy right. The swear, however - a throwback to primary school, it seems. Gosh, those times - hard to be imagine not to be able to read a book. Or to believe in swears like these, as a matter of fact. Unless it's Dreamy, there's no way Nisha's new ally would ever deceive anyone, it seems - for now. If only the rest of the world would be so innocent...

"If it's any help, Chaser: It hasn't killed me - yet. And it has been useful. Thoughts can pierce through my darkness, words usually don't. And if you ever do your stream thing, and need to say something that people shouldn't hear - it'd come in handy as well. Maybe. Not that I'd know."

 

[Sherwood]

As you are discussing the benefits of being in the mind link together, Blue Bolt sends the thought of, "Standby. I'm teleporting in." A sudden crack of lightning and a boom of thunder signals the arrival of the Force of Justice member. He walks over to where everyone is standing, with a wave. "Hey everyone." He looks around at the clusters of police milling about, then says, "Well. It looks like you took care of things here quite well. Now, is there any reason that we can't go take a look at the warehouse at the address the one suspect told to Dreamy? If there is, let me know so I don't make a bigger mess of things by ordering you out of here before you are ready."

 

[Purr]

Dreamy's reaction to the sudden lightning and thunder is at first to tremble in surprise at the majestic power of it all. Then, she looks up to the Earth's sky to look for thunderclouds.

"Hello, Blue Bolt! Is that why you are called Blue Bolt? Because you have thunderbolt-like powers?" Dreamy clasps her fingers together and peers at her fellow superhero with all new interest. "Oh! In case you are wondering, I'm using my mouth, throat, and lungs to communicate because Chaser won't be able to understand if I don't. And because that's the nice thing to do!"

Now, is there any reason that we can't go take a look at the warehouse at the address the one suspect told to Dreamy? If there is, let me know so I don't make a bigger mess of things by ordering you out of here before you are ready."

"His name is Harry," Dreamy kindly and proudly declares. "Nisha here had an idea that I couldn't quite follow - that's because we Kairissians have no concept of 'magic' - but Nisha certainly does! Isn't that terrific? Something about finding out all by herself?" Dreamy curiously smiles at the enigmatic Nisha, still impressed by the mystic's knowledge of many-things-unknown-to-young-Kairissians.

 

[QuickSmasherEXE]

"There's no way is how things tend to go wrong, in general. There's a good chance that they'll be prepared - for visitors, and for our kind. The world at large knows what Chaser does, right? A few weeks might be plenty to take precautions." A shrug. The chain rattles. "If you want to risk your neck, that's fine by me. I'll tag along to stay in contact with Dreamy and the others; if you get caught on your own, we wouldn't know what happened."

"C'mon, where's your positive expectation of good? It's fine if you want to come along, but don't be such a downer. It's not healthy to talk like that."

"My Boy, the rest of the Force of Justice has been communicating in the way of my people. Even Blue Bolt! Would you reconsider giving it a try? You have full control over what you express, we can communicate far outside Carbonite hearing range, and I promise not to use the link for anything you don't expressly give me permission to!" Dreamy holds up her hand and sticks out her pinky finger. "See that?" she points with her other hand to her pinky. "It's the Almighty Pinky Swear. That means I really mean it! I know it's true because the Hole in the Wall Gang taught me." Dreamy nods proudly yet looks to Chaser with a hopeful expression.

"If it's any help, Chaser: It hasn't killed me - yet. And it has been useful. Thoughts can pierce through my darkness, words usually don't. And if you ever do your stream thing, and need to say something that people shouldn't hear - it'd come in handy as well. Maybe. Not that I'd know."

Chaser looked at his hand for a second. "Oh, uh...you know, I still got that condition, probably oughta check with my shrink first."

"But hey," he continued, breaking back into his characteristic smug smile, "I got a better idea. Why don't I give you my phone number? Then you can call me any time. Got it hooked up to bluetooth, so I take the call whenever." Chaser tapped his ear- the earpiece was covered by his suit but it was at least there. "Don't worry about saying stuff people shouldn't hear, chat gets that I gotta go on mute sometimes. I might not be able to sign up for this 'mind-link' stuff, I've got no problem giving my number to a pre-" Wait. Was it Levitically permissible to flirt with aliens? Probably not? Damn it. Bless it. "-erson who wants it. You know, if any of y'all need it too."

"Nisha here had an idea that I couldn't quite follow - that's because we Kairissians have no concept of 'magic' - but Nisha certainly does! Isn't that terrific? Something about finding out all by herself?"

No magic? "Yo, what do you mean? Do y'all not have stuff, uh-"

...what exactly was magic, again?

"-that you can't explain?"

 

[Purr]

Chaser's question is enough to grasp at the cosmic explorer inside Dreamy. "Oh, sure we do!" For one moment, Dreamy takes the time to behold everything about her - the concrete streets and buildings that held up the city of Sacramento, the individual Carbonites and creatures that filled the city, and the ever-beautiful blue and whiteness of the skies that kept the living city alive. "What we do not understand, we simply call 'the unknown.' These realms here on Waterworld - that's what we've long-called this planet - the solar system that turns with it, the other solar systems that twirl ever-moving inside this galaxy - which it too is just one of many galaxies that make up the known universe."

Lovely Dreamy in her Earth-made bikini regards each of the Force of Justice with open compassion and curiosity. "We are a race of cosmic explorers - for every known we discover, there come more unknowns. Take magic for example - Nisha is the very first example of a magic-wielder I've ever met. She can reach beyond the grasp of science and apparently manipulate the energies that are always around us. In my three long months here in California on Waterworld, I must have heard a dozen very different definitions of the word 'magic.' Harry Potter-magic. Gandalf-magic. And now... Nisha-magic. Magic is not a Kairissian concept, yet in San Francisco, some young Carbonites there have wondered if what I do is a form of magic. Lacking a clear definition of the concept, who am I to tell them yes or no?

Dreamy smiles sheepishly, her alien blue eyes turn to Chaser, examining him from head to toe. "If I understood you correctly, you seemed to say you have a condition that prohibits you from sharing your mind and emotions. Is that a form of magic too? Would you explain it to me sometime? And in the meantime..." the superhero reaches underneath her flaming hair and takes out her fireproof neck-pouch, producing and unlocking her smartphone. "... may I take you up on your offer of gaining your phone number, please?"

When this transaction is complete, Dreamy's body begins to do a little back-and-forth groove as her ever-active mind jams to some beat only she can hear at the moment. Dreamy looks to the Force of Justice, Blue Bolt especially. "I am prepared now. I look forward to going to the realm Harry told me about. Surely there's something good there to be discovered!"

Spoiler: What Dreamy is bopping to this time

"Color Theory - In Space, No One Can Hear You Cry" - Dann here. I really dig this song! The guy who put it all together (Color Theory) seems to be a pretty cool guy too! =)

Partial lyrics
In space
no one
can hear
you cry
A satellite
to resupply
I’ll survey the galaxy
Hitchhiking from rover
to rover
Take me
to the stars

Self-conscious of
their naked eyes
If you join in my fantasy
I promise to accept you."

So very cooool! =)

 

[QuickSmasherEXE]

"If I understood you correctly, you seemed to say you have a condition that prohibits you from sharing your mind and emotions. Is that a form of magic too? Would you explain it to me sometime?"

"Naw, it's not magic or anything, it's a medical condition. I got a, uh, chemical imbalance."

"And in the meantime..." the superhero reaches underneath her flaming hair and takes out her fireproof neck-pouch, producing and unlocking her smartphone. "... may I take you up on your offer of gaining your phone number, please?"

"Yeah, let me get yours too." And so the exchange was made.

 

[Purr]

"Yeah, let me get yours too." And so the exchange was made.

"Certainly! But... I think you will have to show me how to do that."

Dreamy concentrates as she watches Chaser make use of the highly-convenient digital soul that he works so expertly. When he is finished, Dreamy practices his steps using her Eidetic Memory as guide. Finally, she says, "Communicating with these devices... well, it's kind of like a very, very basic form Mind Linking... but with.... what do you call them-- apps!" Dreamy giggles, grateful to have remembered the word.

 

[Silanon]

"C'mon, where's your positive expectation of good? It's fine if you want to come along, but don't be such a downer. It's not healthy to talk like that."

"I'd say it's very healthy to be aware of risks." A shrug as well as the hint of a smile- the latter doesn't quite match a certain weariness in her eyes as she continues. "If you think being realistic will be my end; trust me, there are plenty of words that sap away one's life force within mere seconds, and one of those will probably get me first."

"Nisha here had an idea that I couldn't quite follow - that's because we Kairissians have no concept of 'magic' - but Nisha certainly does! Isn't that terrific? Something about finding out all by herself?"

"We are a race of cosmic explorers - for every known we discover, there come more unknowns. Take magic for example - Nisha is the very first example of a magic-wielder I've ever met. She can reach beyond the grasp of science and apparently manipulate the energies that are always around us. In my three long months here in California on Waterworld, I must have heard a dozen very different definitions of the word 'magic.' Harry Potter-magic. Gandalf-magic. And now... Nisha-magic. Magic is not a Kairissian concept, yet in San Francisco, some young Carbonites there have wondered if what I do is a form of magic. Lacking a clear definition of the concept, who am I to tell them yes or no?

"It depends; what children call magic is simply things they can't explain. But true magic, at its core - is more than just that. It doesn't simply follow laws that others don't know yet; it breaks the laws of nature - or rather, it bends them to make the impossible likely. It's pure chaos, really; often enough, the hard part isn't to change the world, but to keep the change under control. The words, and gestures - they form a cage; a barrier that leaves most of the laws intact, and only adjusts a minor thing here and there. That shadows can form in blinding light, for example; that they can have a solid mass that can knock down a foe. That hundreds of ants might die without an actual reason." Linda, her cousin, still blames the neighbors and their fondness of pesticides for the latter. A convenient, but far-fetched accusation; really, it was a beginner's mistake, weaving a cage that was not tight enough. Never happened a second time, after that. Careless mages don't grow old. A shrug - she learned her lesson.

"But since magic is chaos, it's hard to describe. Trust me - there's a hundred different descriptions for one single spell, and they all only work for a single person. If I were to write down how to call forth a shadow to darken the sun; the next mage reading it would have to make adjustments, simply because he or she isn't me." That's most of the work, deciphering the old texts; figuring out what works for her, and what doesn't. That, and the old tongues, of course - but she knows those quite well. "Anyways; if you bend the world's laws, it might be magic; if you're simply following them in a way we don't understand - then it's not, really. But it's hard to say, from the outside. And if you ask the Lady - well, she might have an entirely different definition. There's few of us, and we all see the world through different eyes."

"Communicating with these devices... well, it's kind of like a very, very basic form Mind Linking... but with.... what do you call them-- apps!"

"Only that we need to actually speak; which comes with its own problems, especially if one were to attempt to infiltrate a place - a warehouse, say - and wishes to not be caught while making a phone call." She can't quite hold back a grin - even though she was as reluctant as he was, in the beginning. "But whatever works, Chaser; we've all been dealt a pretty specific hand by fate, I'd say. A phone call is better than no communication at all. I'll let Dreamy or Luminary know if there's something I need; that way, I don't need to say a word. Blue Bolt - I volunteered to look at the place before we all run into a trap - I'm back out within a thought, so there's less risk for me than for others. Chaser's overconfident that he'll be fine as well, so the two of us planned to go in first, if that's alright. If something happens, we'll let you know. If not - well, then we might have the wrong address after all."

 

[QuickSmasherEXE]

"I'd say it's very healthy to be aware of risks." A shrug as well as the hint of a smile- the latter doesn't quite match a certain weariness in her eyes as she continues. "If you think being realistic will be my end; trust me, there are plenty of words that sap away one's life force within mere seconds, and one of those will probably get me first."

"There you go being all negative again. Life and death in the power of the tongue, you know."

"Only that we need to actually speak; which comes with its own problems, especially if one were to attempt to infiltrate a place - a warehouse, say - and wishes to not be caught while making a phone call." She can't quite hold back a grin - even though she was as reluctant as he was, in the beginning. "But whatever works, Chaser; we've all been dealt a pretty specific hand by fate, I'd say. A phone call is better than no communication at all. I'll let Dreamy or Luminary know if there's something I need; that way, I don't need to say a word. Blue Bolt - I volunteered to look at the place before we all run into a trap - I'm back out within a thought, so there's less risk for me than for others. Chaser's overconfident that he'll be fine as well, so the two of us planned to go in first, if that's alright. If something happens, we'll let you know. If not - well, then we might have the wrong address after all."

Chaser rolled his eyes and scoffed. "I could just, you know, send a text." He stretched impatiently and took a deep breath. "Look y'all, we'll both be fine. Something goes wrong and I'm out faster than a thought."

 

[Sherwood]

Blue Bolt looks over at Chaser and says, "No worries. No one will force you to open your mind to any kind of intrusion that you are not willing to accept for yourself. That is final. If you ever change your mind on this, then we can revisit the issue. In the meantime, if the four of you have already come up with a plan to investigate, I will step back and follow your lead. Show me what you have in mind."

 

[Purr]

Dreamy is briefly befuddled at Blue Bolt's parental declaration. She feels it is clear that no one was attempting to forcibly gain access to Chaser's mind or trying to talk him into surrendering to anything of the sort. Quite the opposite, actually. Hers was a request. For that's what friends do.

But Dreamy also notes that Blue Bolt had arrived mid-conversation. He probably does not understand all that actually happened. Seeing that Blue Bolt was willing to change the topic of conversation, so too was Dreamy.

"Um, perhaps we should learn what we can about the realm Harry mentioned prior to our arrival there?" Dreamy holds out her smartphone and wiggles it.

 

[Silanon]

"I doubt there's much to be found that way." Nisha nods in the phone's direction. "Whatever's out there - they've read it as well. And likely adjusted it accordingly. This kind of organisation doesn't survive too long without a certain level of competence."

A shrug. "That said - you could give it a try, of course. It'll take us a bit to get there, after all." She points in Chaser's direction, but it's mostly her; even if he didn't try, Chaser would probably arrive first. "In case there's something, it doesn't hurt to know. But with every passing moment, they'll be better prepared. They just lost a team here - they'll make sure to use their time well. I'd like to get there in person before they have everything in place."

 

[Purr]

"Oh! I hadn't thought of it that way." Dreamy rubs her arm. "In that case, shall we proceed there now? Hmm. This is why Kairissians use leaders." Dreamy brightens. "Oooh, wait! We have a leader! Blue Bolt, sir? Are we leaving now?" She puts her phone away and rises about 3 feet off of the ground in eager preparation.

 

[Sherwood]

Blue Bolt nods. "If I were them, I would already be aware that the attack/rescue team had failed, and that there was a chance that the heroes would be tracing their way back to me. I feel that if we don't move quickly, whatever that is in the warehouse will be long gone by the time we do manage to show up. Take it nice and easy, though. We don't have any idea on what we will be walking into there."

At this point, he pulls out his smartphone and brings up a satellite picture of the address. "Here, this building is just the ticket to rendezvous at. It is just a block away from our target site, and has a good vantage point to observe what is going on outside the building. Mark this location in your phones." He quickly shows Dreamy how to perform that task, and says, "Once everyone is in position we can start a recon into the place. Is everyone set?"

 

[Purr]

Dreamy focuses her fullest attention on Blue Bolt's smartphone lesson so that it may be recorded in her eidetic memory. Once complete, the Kairissian shouts, "I'm ready! Let's go do the hero thing!"

 

[Psychie]

Luminary gives a smile and a thumbs-up. "I say hell yeah! Lets go do this. Between us, there are few threats that we can't handle, and if we can give this group of baddies a black eye in the process, lets do it."

 

[QuickSmasherEXE]

Chaser saves the address on his iPhone and smirks. "All set, my man. Let's go and get this done with, then maybe we can move on to a mission I can actually livestream."

 

[Sherwood]

With the rendezvous point set, everyone moves out.

Once everyone reaches the building across the street from the warehouse, you can see that there is a bit of activity going on at the loading dock of the building. There are three large unmarked panel trucks being loaded up by men and women using forklifts to haul heavy pallets into the back of the three vehicles. At the moment, you can see anywhere between eight and twelve people coming and going in and out of the warehouse. None of these people appear to be armed or armored. There are, however, four people - two men and two women - that are armed with what look like AK-47's or some other large assault rifle. From where you are, you don't have any visual input into what or who may be inside the warehouse.

It is clear that the people there are bugging out, and will be on the move in a matter of a few minutes.

What do you guys do?

 

[Silanon]

"Seems like the news spread." Sticking to the shadows and staying away from any light source behind her that might give her position away, Nisha eyes the scene in front of them. Four, with a few more ready to grab guns, likely... doesn't seem like too much of a task, really. Leaves the question what more there is; especially after the fight just now. They were prepared, then - are they prepared now? Better to find out before there's no way to prepare.

"Should have a few more moments to spare, and we can always stop the trucks if it's necessary. I'd say we take a closer look. See what's there. Then stop them from leaving once we know it's not a trap."

'We' means herself, mostly, though Chaser was eager to help, before. Her eyes search the area around them; is there a better hiding spot in sight that'd allow her to see more?

 

[Psychie]

Luminary crouches down, trying to keep her glow to a minimum so as to keep from being spotted. "I am hardly stealthy; with my glow, I don't do sneaky. Do any of you have some means of sneaking in without being detected? If someone discovers something important that needs the team to deal with, I can easily handle the guards outside and move in."

 

[Silanon]

"Shadows and sneaking go hand in hand; and if things go badly, I'll be alright." For a moment, Nisha interrupts her search for a better hiding spot, and focuses solely on the darkest corner of the building they're on. Stepping through shadows - not the easiest task. But one that was certainly worth the effort.

I'd like to put one of my floating teleport locations there, just in case.

 

[Sherwood]

As Nisha teleports into the shadow, she is lucky enough to find that the room you have popped into is empty. Looking around, it looks like it is some sort of office space, complete with the motivational posters on the wall and a cluttered desk with a computer screen and keyboard on it in the corner. There is no window looking outside, but there is a small window in the door looking into the middle of the warehouse that grants a chance to peek out and see some of what is going on here.

Silanon please give me a Perception roll, and a Stealth roll.

 

[Sherwood]

As Nisha is heading towards the door with the glass window in it to peek out, you don't notice in the darkened office space the mop bucket and wringer that was set there before you teleported in. Unfortunately, you stumble over the bucket and wringer, causing you to stumble into the door which then swings out into the main room of the warehouse with a loud bang, followed by the crash of the metal wringer falling to the floor. Needless to say, Nisha is now the focus of attention from several people in the warehouse as they look up in surprise.

The good news is that you are at least given a good look inside the main room of the building. You spot at least a half dozen men and women in the same style body armor that you fought before, all armed with heavy weapons that look quite nasty. They are standing in a semi circle around a pair of men that are clearly cyborgs (or at least they look like that) that appear to be giving a talk to the others. There are probably a full dozen people in plain street clothes that are moving about, hauling boxes and running forklifts, loading the boxes into the large panel trucks that are just visible out the loading dock doors.

Silanon , go ahead and give me another 5d6 of a Luck roll to see if you can just get lucky, I guess.

 

[Sherwood]

Sadly, it does not appear that Nisha is as lucky as she could be, and with the attention of everyone in the warehouse focused on you, it is clear that things are about to go bad. One of the cyborg men shouts out, "We have an intruder! Everyone, prepare for an attack!"

The men and women in the warehouse all start to scramble, some heading for the doors out to the loading dock, and the rest seem to go for some kind of cover as they now expect that there will be a full on shoot out in a matter of moments.


Outside on the roof across the street, the people there can see that the steady order of loading the trucks suddenly goes into high gear as the people in plain clothes start to scramble for the trucks.

What does everyone do?