You wake quicker than the time before, with only fragments of bad dreams haunting you, and you're laying between two cars with the smell of gasoline in your nose, and cooling asphalt on your back. Above you, you see the Big Dipper, and in the distance you hear the roar of a crowd in approval and a mechanically amplified voice...
"And Dizzy Dean rounds second base, folks, I do believe he's going for..." And the crowd's roar covers the announcer's voice.
*opens his eyes sees big dipper, hears baseball, and a name he knows but he can't place him off the top of his head, before the modern era*
*groans and gets to his feet and looks around and sees where he is at*
Jhiaxus
You see a bunch of 'gangster', boxy, black cars; a purple and silver Duesengberg, some Tin Lizzies, some other colored cars in a parking lot next to a baseball stadium labelled Metro Field by a sign lit by incandescent lights.
There is a man sitting by a gate for the parking lot. He's wearing a red and gold uniform. He's not looking your way.
Beyond the stadium, you see ten and twenty story tall buildings. In the other direction, you see what looks like an industrial area of town.
*getting my stuff and heading out the gate, I like baseball, but don't want to explain my presence here, with the weapons I have, and the sailcar, go getting into the sailcar, and if there is any wind, get out of here*
Jhiaxus
You sail out of the parking lot past an open-mouthed valet, and into the industrial area of the city.
*I need to find a place the stash this aircar with laser canon, can't have the locals getting this stuff while I figure out what the hell I am here for*
*pauses*
*Yeah not going to blend in with the weapons, and I no longer have the duster, so need to get one of those here, but if this is the time period I think it is, it will have to be tailor made, which is good, can put a lot of loops and pockets on the inside. All this will take money, and I don't have anything of particular value, so sadly looks like I will be looking for a job in the morning*
Jhiaxus
It takes you a good while running through the gridwork of streets (Pines and Oaks and such one way, and 11 to 23 the other way) in the industrial section to find an abandoned warehouse. Most buildings are in use.
You stash your vehicle inside behind some barrels, and get some sleep. Honking horns and the roll of a trolley car wake you. Light is coming in through the high windows.
*I wake up and take stock of what I have, and what I can afford to bring, I take off the Belt of Smacking which has my swords, and place them, the phaser rifles, phaser pistols, Glock and Skorpian in the dufflebag. I put all the other Star Trek equipment in my backpack with laptop. I don't have the weights anymore, and really don't need them right now ((I am assuming that botch sucked a lot of energy from my body like my original intent, can I get a new weight total now?)), I am wearing boots, carpenter jeans, a tshirt, I could pass as a lumberjack with the axe, I think that is my story and will walk into town, figure out where I am and what I am going to do, well I need to eat, and a place to sleep and store the aircar, that requires money*
*I walk out with my backpack, acoustic guitar in my hand, my axe in it's holder and large dufflebag and attempt to find a place with people, and maybe a place to look for a job. Trying to consider what skills I have for a less than modern world, checking for other versers, and deep in thought walking through the streets, with looking like I have all my possessions on my back*
Jhiaxus
You've lost eight pounds from 'the rot'.
Some others of the men walking to work, or hanging on the trolley give you a second look due to your axe, but that's all. Men jump off the trolley in mid-run, and no one freaks out. Most of the men look in better shape than in the home timeline.
You sense two versers.
You see a couple guys who look more stylish, and less hard-working as they lean on a corner watching others scurry to work give you an assessing glance. But its clear the local criminal scum don't want anything to do with you.
*I will check my Starsong Comm to see if there is anything there, going to assume not and go into the largest building I can find that isn't going to stop me for having an axe and go to the top to vector the feelings, is it goes down steeply, I will assume they are in the city and head to them, if not, I need to find some way to make a buck for food, shelter, some other way to function while dealing with the sailcar*
*looking the gangsters up and down with a knowing smile, almost wanting them to start trouble since I know they have cash on them, and I have no problem putting them down to take it, and most of the people around won't care*
Jhiaxus
One of the gangsters starts your way, popping out a switchblade, and the other tries to hold him back, but no go. Mr. Impatient wants a piece of you.
He swings at you, and you flatten him (unless you want to kill him.) with your axe handle.
The other gangster just shakes his head, and gets out another cigarrette.
=============
Both vectors change quickly.
You hike to a Helvetian Gasolines store, and up to a young guy putting on a tire for an older, well-dressed woman. He looks up at you, and smiles quick.
"Just a mo', sir."
OOC: Ordinarily I wait for the fight, but with him with 1@6 Stamina, 1@4 switchblade, he didn't have much of a chance at all.
((No, I prefer not to kill in most situations, axe handle works))
*I lift him by the neck*
"Pulling a knife to kill a man *looking him straight in the eye with my Odin eye and see if it has any effect*, you are damn lucky I am in a good mood. In fact, I'm going to let you live and walk away, but your paying for my stay in town. *pulling out his wallet or cash stash and taking what he has*. Let that be a lesson, you get to live to learn from it."
*sticking whatever in my pocket, not even looking at what I am taking*
*going to assume one of the vectors brings me to the Helvetians or it's on the way*
*nods and smiles* "Take your time, ladies first"
OOC. You did what I would have done perfectly, all my skills are weapon based, and I would have chosen the cross check of doom in that situation. It does remind me I do need to learn some unarmed skills.
Jhiaxus
He shivers when you give The Eye.
And yes, the vector leads you to the young guy changing tires at Helvetian.
*uses the free time, to see how much he has to work with from the punk, putting whatever into his wallet, smallest furthest out, biggest furthest in*
*Happy to see this verser looks relatively normal*
*waits for him to be finished or if it looks like he needs help, I will help him out and wait to introduce himself*
"Greetings I am Jhiaxus, Chosen One of Odin, I just arrived here, and you were one of the two scriff sources I found."
Jhiaxus
Fifty green in 2 Five (Coolidge), 2 Ten (Washington), and Thirty Ones (Ben Franklin). He's also got a card for Clementine's, and four tiny gold coins with James Madison on them. A pair of tweezers, a picture of a movie starlet unless he's a lot luckier with the ladies than you think, and a newspaper article about "Mechanoman apprehended four thugs in the Metro Oil Faculty in the midst of their nefarious deeds."
"Um, Chauncy Whitehall. What are you talking about man? I'm a Christian, I guess, and 'scriff'? You're not trying to sell me something are you?"
*Now that I am in front of him, do I feel it's him, or maybe it's pointing to a specific part of him like maybe an object?*
"No, I was just drawn to you, normally when I feel this feeling, it's someone like me, a traveler so to speak. I'm sorry if I have mistaken you for being like me, I can see it can be very confusing."
Jhiaxus
I added more to the previous post.
Its him.
"Hunh, a year ago some dame made the same mistake. Fruity tooty." He shrugs. "Got to get back to work, sir."
((Got it thanks, not stealing his wallet, taking the coins and money, and the article leaving his identification, picture, tweezers))
*smiles and nods his head*
"I don't know how long I'm here for, but if you have any questions, like when your not getting older, just feel in your stomache and look for others like you. If I'm still here, you might be lead to me. Have a good one Chauncy."
*heading toward the other scriff vector, reading the article as I go*
The article describes an attempt by four of the notorious Five Fingers Gang of Irish hooligans who sought to steal two double semi tankers full of gasoline, thus endangering the city, and flouting the Law, but they were stopped by the heroic man-robot Mechanoman who said 'Thanks to an anonymous informant inside the gang, I was able to intercept these thugs, and put a stop to their unlawful activities.'
The four will be standing trial at the Metro Courthouse in October of 1920.
========
You walk across town, and see Tessa sitting in a window of a restauraunt, laughing and talking with a nicely suited man.
*looking at the article wondering 1920's, wow prohibition, the rise of organized crime, very very interesting indeed, thinking about the movie The Untouchables, putting the article away*
***********
*walking and seeing her stopping in his tracks, he has come full circle, looking at her, and realizing he feels a bit of jealously, looking over the events of the past week, knowing that what happened wasn't her fault, and that he still loves her, nodding and smiling, he walks into the restaurant and waits for the host or hostess to seat him, asking for a table near the windows or at the windows*
*ordering tea, a ham and cheese omelet and hashbrowns after consulting the menu, and getting the closest thing to the above, watching her, smiling a bit, content to let her look over with surprise*
Jhiaxus
The maitre d' looks at you as you enter the front room carpetted in green velvet, and then smiles slightly.
"Sir, we serve gentlemen here." He pauses, and touches his suit jacket lapels. "Appropriate attire, please. Come back another day."
*I look him in the eyes with mine*
*In a low voice as not to get anyone's attention*
"I can be in appropriate attire, but I will never be a gentleman."
*turns around and walks out*
*looking for a coffee shop to get what I wanted before, wondering what to do next*
Jhiaxus
Two streets over you find the Fourth Street Diner. Its bustling with workers stomping in, waitresses calling and swinging through the crowd.
"Frank, your usual?"
"Yes, ma'am."
You order the food, and its on your table in five minutes.
*Picking and playing mostly with his food, eating it slowly since he is hungry, wondering what is going on. Putting sugar and milk in his tea and drinking it, watching the world go by, wondering who that guy is, and how long it's been for her, and if he should even bother at this point. Trying to listen if Chainbreaker is singing, or if it is silent, still having to worry about money and a place to stay, unless his plan is to start fights with lowlifes and take their money.*
*works the Starsong Comm and leaves a text for her*
"Ur looking good"
*sighs*
Chainbreaker and the Starsong Comm are both not working.
You hear some Indiana Oil guys (you can tell because of the logo on their jumpsuits) discussing a fight they saw from the top floor of their factory with some appreciative guys from Matthewson Machineworks.
"Blackjack was on top of the Monumental Building. He took a poke at Polecat, but see, he was just faking, and when she dived in, he had one of his lassoes ready, and he caught her and dumped her over the side of the building. There she was swinging, for an hour, twenty stories above ground before the boys in blue were able to get her down."
Laughter rises from the surrounding tables, and you realize that about a fourth of the men and the waitresses are black. No one seems to mind it.
"Sure wish we'd seen it, but y'know a Machineworks, can't put a hundred ton press up on the fifth floor like you can an office desk." A MM guy says.
"Yeah, we were visiting one of the big cheese on the top floor. And he was just like us, an ok guy. Looking out his window with us too."
*sighs again at both magic and high tech technology not working here, job prospects falling, but there seem to be heroes and villains here, thinking he still has his ninja garb, has guns, has the bowie knife, the axe, he has a costume and armor, why the heck not, it's something for him to do, and if there are no people who can use magic or psionics, he would have an inherit advantage.*
*Looks to the Indiana Oil guys*
"I'm from out of town, tell me about these costumed people, I want to know about em. You guys spin a good yarn, I would appreciate a rundown."
*smiles*
Jhiaxus
"Sure, friend, can't take long tho'. Gotta get to work in..." He peers at the clock on the wall. "Eleven more minutes with three minutes to walk over and get signed in. By the bye, my name's Doyle, and if you're not afraid of hard work, well we have some jobs for big guys like you."
He takes a sip of coffee and begins to answer your question.
"Well, Blackjack, of course. He does his Super Savate, and his magic cards. And Countessa, boy, oh boy, she sets the boy's hearts atwitter. America's Sweetheart. She knows acrobatics, and she has that unbreakable staff. Mechanoman, poor guy, lost his limbs in an industrial accident, but never say die, not him. Has more guts than a boxcar full of beef."
Another guy pipes in.
"And The Horror and the Mindless Beast."
"Don't be silly, they ain't real, Mark." Doyle says. "Thats just sells horror comics."
*smiles*
"I'm Jhiaxus, good to meet you Doyle. I would prefer to be thought more for my mind, but beggars can't be choosers when it comes to work. I do have some learned skills in terms of science, and am pretty decent repairing things, but anything really at this point, so I can get a place to stay and not have to live off low lives that pick fights with me."
*grins at the pun*
"Countessa indeed, Blackjack and Mechanoman. Sounds like an interesting town. Well if the job is hard labor, should work well for me getting into shape, so count me in. I'm carrying most of my things on my back, if that's not a problem. I have a vehicle of sorts, and need to sort out a place to stay after, but work is good."
*finishes his Tea and Eggs and is ready to go, standing up to his full height, cracking what needs to be cracked and ready to go, getting the bill, paying it and leaving a good tip*
Jhiaxus
"There's also Masquerade, he's a shapeshifter, Shadow Man who is a living shadow and can cause nightmares, Blue Ace who fought in the last war, and Lady Catlyn who everyone thinks is Marisa Winthorp the IVth, or did until last year when both showed up at the Metro City Charity Ball. But there's lots more bad guys than the good guys, from Abra to Red Bear to Copperhead to Demento...pretty much one for every letter in the alphabet."
Doyle and Mark and their friends take you to their boss who sends you with them to the loading dock. Soon enough you have a job pushing a dolly with a fifty-five gallon barrel of oil from the warehouse to a truckbed. And you have a promise that they will see about getting you another job in the transhipment point.
Its hard and steady work, and you can definitely see that its going to build muscular strength and endurance. The other men on the Loading Crew welcome you, and you soon pick up the art of having a conversation in parts. You say a sentence, the other guy says one as you stroll past each other, and ten minutes later, as you go by each other again, you do the same, advancing teh conversation one step. There's a guy here by the name of Mental Man Mike who can keep track of twenty different conversations at one time.
At the end of the day, they pay you with the understanding that they'll shift over to once a week at the end of the week, but new hires get paid once a day since some people really need the job right now.
*listens as we walk*
"Sounds like the good guys really are outnumbered."
*enjoying the hard and steady work, gives me time to think about my costume, and how to make it different enough that I won't be recognized. Also enjoying the conversation game, and taking note of Mike's ability*
*takes the pay*
"I will be back everyday, can you direct me to a local 5 and dime, and a place to rent a room?, it would be greatly appreciated."
*assuming they do, hitting the 5 and dime first, buying a sowing machine (yes sadly I do know how to operate, and had a antique singer one), threads, bobbins, nice silk fabric, red and blue, and hopefully finding a room to rent to get to work on my ninja garb for tonight, wanting to do a phoenix on the front, and have red silk pieces tied off at several places, and have one blue silk piece across my headband, my plan is to head on the roofs tonight, look for trouble and feel for Countessa, I will be bringing my bowie knife, my katana and my glock 17 as what I am carrying with me, going to be a fun night.*
Jhiaxus
"But the mystery men are willing to work together, and you can have only one Absolute Ruler of the Earth." Doyle replies.
He directs you to Wilshires Five and Dime, and to Mrs. Brookings' boarding house.
Wilshires is willing to put the sewing machine on layaway. It will take about three days work (without eating or sleeping), or pretty much all of your current cash (thug and factory) to buy this.
Mrs. Brookings is willing to let you stay one week but expects to be paid promptly at the end of the week. Dinner is at six thirty, and you should have a suit jacket on, or else you will have to eat in the kitchen.
The room is small, but sparkling clean.
You have pot roast and potatoes and carrots for dinner, and then you make your way up to the room to sew. Three hours later, you're ready to roam the night.
*smiles at Mystery Man*
"It's funny how things blend together sometimes with different meanings."
*I thank him for directing to the 5 and dime, and Boarding House*
*I will have them put it in layaway and do the three days work thing, I will get what I need to make up the garb*
*To Mrs Brookings*
"Thanks, I have a suit jacket, I hope you will allow it until I can get myself some proper clothing. I was a lumberjack for awhile, and they don't usually wear too well on suits." *I will wear the Nanoweave Jacket, Shimmersilk shirt and Nanoweave Tie and matching Pants, if allowable*, if not will eat in the kitchen"
*I will thank Mrs. Brookings for a delicious dinner, best I had in a week*
*I put on my suit, cover myself up, been awhile since I put the suit on, and needed it worked on so it fit well anyway, red silks tied around my elbows and knees, my Bowie Knife on my left side of my belt, Katana on my right, Glock 17 in my holster near the small of my back, Nanoweave armor on underneath.*
*as I climb out the window and onto the roof, and start jumping from roof to roof*
"I am Midnight, Shadow Warrior."
*feeling where the versers are, seeing if I can get this night off to a good start*
((I am excited))
Jhiaxus
You quickly track down Chauncy. He's playing poker with some of his friends in the parlour of a boarding house.
The other verser, you assume Tessa, leads you to The Hamilton Opera House. The other verser is inside, you verify by the simple expedient of walking around the building's exterior on nearby roofs, in a giant 'U' shape. You can't go across the front of the building because the Harlem Avenue is a good eighty feet wide.
The opera house is four stories tall, and rises above its neighbours. In front, you see limos arive, and bejewled woman with tailcoated men get out. The incandescent light bulbs spell out in splendor that
"Rumplestiltskin with Eva Ladislaus as Sophrano" is singing.
*I can assume both are in for the night, might as well patrol, if I sense the probable Tessa one move, I will come back in for a look, if not patrolling the city for a few hours, seeing if anything happens*
*My normal schedule is out till 3, alert rest 4 hours, shower, shave, work, after work, dinner, Alert rest till 8pm, so working on 6 of rest a night, which is normal for me*
Jhiaxus
You begin to walk away from the Opera House. Slip past a pile of rebar, leap the ten feet to the next building, see a flicker out of the corner of your left eye. Cautiously continue onward, leaping from a two story roof to a one story roof, kicking up dust, but trying not to make too much noise as you leap the small alley. Another flicker. Less obvious, but someone is following you in the cool night...
The likely Tessa verser is not moving.
*stops and picks his Midnight voice, a lot like Batman's*
"You are sloppy, I've caught sight of you twice, and I didn't even need to use any powers to do that. So who do I owe the pleasure of personal attention? Since it would be rude of me to ask you to introduce yourself, I will do the honor first. I am Midnight."
*not making any threatening gestures, but turning on my 2@1 Panoramic Awareness B7@2, and probably leaving it up all the time, and ready to drop into style if attacked. I know some people use powers here, so I will try a 1@7 Read Minds P1@1 (should that be a bit higher, been using it pretty consistently during and since Neo Viking World), and try to always be using 1@6 Thought Concealment P2@1 (also used pretty consistently during and since Neo Viking World, those two skills should work almost everywhere.*
Jhiaxus
A girl with pale leggings and a dark blue unitard, and a pale blue silk scarf over her chin and mouth like a bandit using Macy's finest for a stick up job comes cartwheeling out of the shadows. She has a durantium staff, and also a domino mask, but its easy so easy to recognize Tessa.
You touch her mind (+@1 to both skills as per your reccomendation), and find no thoughts. She pauses ten feet away, and points her staff in a direction parallel to the Opera House.
*I feel for the verser, if I feel her still at the Opera House, I will know this is a projection, of some sort, if the verser is still there, this is mainly to clarify what powers if any she is using. I am going to assume this is a projection, since I get no thoughts, and she isn't talking*
*smiling under his mask wondering if she knows or just knows I am a verser*
"Interesting, yes I was checking up on you, being a verser and all. I didn't stick around because I don't have the dress for the occasion. I also checked on the other, but he doesn't seem to know or be ready to know what he is. I will head back if that's your wish, I can't jump that long but I can easily hide and climb the walls. If you wish to meet, the roof it is. 2@10 Climb, Hide and Stealth"
*jumping back up to the roofs and getting close enough to cross a street, finding good handholds to climb the building and waiting for her on the roof, leaning against a wall, doing my cool and brooding pose*
Jhiaxus
((Yes you have me chomping at the bit, the mixture of the setting, not knowing her reaction or situation and not knowing the players and particulars is a combo that is enticing my curiosity))
The verser is still at the Opera House. You notice as this 'Tessa' moves that she has no shadow even though her feet crunch on the ground.
She follows you, leaping with an easy grace that is not quite human, until she leads you to the roof of the Opera House. Then she leads you further on to the far side. She points down with her staff, and you see a gangster car with actual gangsters (the openly held tommy guns from two of the four trenchcoated and fedora hatted goons kind of give it away) three stories below you in the midst of the length of the alley next to a half-dozen garbage cans.
She blows you a kiss, and leaps down and across the alley to hit the wall ten feet away, she rebounds, and hits the brick wall of the Opera House twenty feet beneath you, and she rebounds heading for the opposite wall and ten feet further down...
*Getting onto the roof, seeing that she has other plans than a talk, watching her jump down the sides, not wanting to be outdone or look weak, considering I still don't know what she knows, I jump down, using my 2@1 Fall impact absorption B4@6. to come down on the roof, probably caving it in, then a 2@1 Quick Stand B4@4, get into 2@1 Tsutsuji, Fast Defensive Weapon-adverse, RF 2, Throw, Def: -15, Off +5 sm 7@1 and 2@1 Disarm weaponless B7@5 the Tommy Gun wielding gangsters. I am hoping that the caving in roof, stuns them for a moment, letting me accomplish this. If gunfire starts will use
2@1 Missile Escape B7@4 to dodge what I can (I believe it's -20 for bullets). If any of them get initiative over me 2@1 Steal Initiative B7@1, and start using 2@1 Solid Punch B7@3 to knock these goons out.*
*I am doing the above regardless what Countessa does, she hasn't communicated with me, and this may just be a test to see if I am a good guy or bad guy. I dislike being at a disadvantage like this, but until she reveals what she knows or comes in person, I'm stuck.*
Jhiaxus