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Grendyne groans and starts pulling on her boots when the alarm goes off. Again. She quick-marches to the broom hangar, sits on her machine and is handed a plethora of loaded weapons by attentive corporals.
"Two flyers in one day? They're getting way too common."
"It's worse," the commander informs them, "South Karlsland got hit with three at once. We're taking Lytee's express and sleeping there. You can sit out if you absolutely need to, but Freya's still recovering so we could use you as a comms relay."
"No, I'll come. I just reserve the right to complain about it."
The 42nd United Forces Witch Wing takes off and assembles into a perfect synchronized formation as Lytee charges her teleport power.
...This is not South Karlsland wilderness.
[note: halfway through this thread I created a unique account for Grendyne. Do not be alarmed by the change in account. -Rockeye]
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characterquarry
witchwatcher
Right, Scion. I forgot about that guy. This'll work as long as it has silver or gems touching my skin as discussed so I can store power in them.
She looks over a list of her copied powers. It's missing something fairly important, now that she thinks about it.
To Director Piggot, she sends another email. It occurs to me that having a nonlethal takedown power will be helpful here. I didn't need it before. I heard of someone in wing 65 - Ilya Skeldin. Ranged stun-bolts effective on organic targets. Probably won't work on people like Hookwolf, but it would be good to have. It shouldn't be too much trouble to arrange a visit, me there or her here, for me to try and copy her.
She looks over a list of her copied powers. It's missing something fairly important, now that she thinks about it.
To Director Piggot, she sends another email. It occurs to me that having a nonlethal takedown power will be helpful here. I didn't need it before. I heard of someone in wing 65 - Ilya Skeldin. Ranged stun-bolts effective on organic targets. Probably won't work on people like Hookwolf, but it would be good to have. It shouldn't be too much trouble to arrange a visit, me there or her here, for me to try and copy her.
wormcan
The costume is designed to contain the expensive components, just not visibly. Apparently that would be sending a conflicting message.
Nonlethal is absolutely necessary under almost all circumstances. Especially for Wards. We'll send you over with the next round of teleportation.
Nonlethal is absolutely necessary under almost all circumstances. Especially for Wards. We'll send you over with the next round of teleportation.
witchwatcher
I hadn't planned on killing anybody. It could be a day or two before I come back, I'll have to get someone to teleport me the rest of the way once I'm in the correct world, or do it myself, and it can take some time for me to grasp powers well enough to keep them permanently. Is that OK?
wormcan
How much time? If it's very long it might be better to try to get Ms. Skeldin here, but you do have leeway. We haven't officially unveiled your cape identity yet. If the day or two was the full count, then yes. It'd take some time to have your costume and equipment ready anyway.
witchwatcher
I'd give it less than 5% chance it takes more than two days, and less than 25% chance it takes more than one. Also when considering equipment, note that I have fine enough telekinesis to wield darts and so on.
witchwatcher
She goes back to the forum and corrects her profile. The costumes thread she started is locked after she replies, They had some good points about my name and costume. Sorry nobody's ideas will get used.
She shows up when Lytee makes her morning teleportation round trip.
She's back that evening, looking stressed but reporting successful acquisition of a ranged organic-stun attack.
She shows up when Lytee makes her morning teleportation round trip.
She's back that evening, looking stressed but reporting successful acquisition of a ranged organic-stun attack.
wormcan
This is the sort of power that's likely to see a lot of use. The PRT people would like her to test it whenever she's feeling up to it, accuracy and power et cetera (as measured against target dummies that count as organic for local powers, at least). They only insist that this be done before she first goes out in costume as Citrine Mage, so it's not immediately pressing.
witchwatcher
She's not tired, just annoyed. Ilya was tiresome to be near enough to copy her.
She can do it now. Where's the range?
She can do it now. Where's the range?
wormcan
One level below the Wards headquarters, there's a combination power training area and regular gym. They don't insist on having anyone supervise this, but do ask that she record the results.
witchwatcher
...She eventually manages to figure out how to turn the system on, then firing bolts at the dummies can actually record whether they'd go down.
She spends a while getting a feel for the power, firing at range, firing in quick succession, finding the minimum force of mana required to make one count as 'down'. It should hopefully be a good benchmark for safely taking down humans. The dummies fall over and report 'unconscious appx. 15 minutes' in most cases. When a stunbolt just clips them, it merely interferes with their coordination for a few seconds before the effect fades.
The stunbolts come out in a sort of off-yellow color and mesh very, very well with her guided-projectiles power. She can weave them around barriers in complex paths, or fire a dozen at once and leave them all seeking their target individually. Both of these tricks are pretty draining, though.
Overall, they're the best nonlethal takedown Gren's ever seen or used, and she has detailed notes to justify this assessment when she reports back to the desk people.
"Power synergy is awesome."
She spends a while getting a feel for the power, firing at range, firing in quick succession, finding the minimum force of mana required to make one count as 'down'. It should hopefully be a good benchmark for safely taking down humans. The dummies fall over and report 'unconscious appx. 15 minutes' in most cases. When a stunbolt just clips them, it merely interferes with their coordination for a few seconds before the effect fades.
The stunbolts come out in a sort of off-yellow color and mesh very, very well with her guided-projectiles power. She can weave them around barriers in complex paths, or fire a dozen at once and leave them all seeking their target individually. Both of these tricks are pretty draining, though.
Overall, they're the best nonlethal takedown Gren's ever seen or used, and she has detailed notes to justify this assessment when she reports back to the desk people.
"Power synergy is awesome."
wormcan
The PRT is always glad to have more designedly nonlethal combat powers on side; it's pretty much the ideal. The fact that hers is an especially good one is even better.
witchwatcher
She goes out shopping. Pretty much the only clothes she has are her old uniform and the painfully generic stuff that was in her room in the Wards base. And she's figured out that she doesn't like reading proper novels on anything other than paper, she'll visit a bookstore and pick a few likely-sounding stories for when she needs a break.
The touristy places are way too expensive for the relatively small allowance they're letting her use. She finds stores in a less fancy part of town. She's in a decidedly less fancy part of town when she takes a wrong turn on her way back, still carrying a bunch of plastic bags.
The touristy places are way too expensive for the relatively small allowance they're letting her use. She finds stores in a less fancy part of town. She's in a decidedly less fancy part of town when she takes a wrong turn on her way back, still carrying a bunch of plastic bags.
wormcan
As sometimes happens when one takes a wrong turn in Brockton Bay, she walks in on a crime in progress. A girl a few years younger than Gren is on the ground. One of her attackers tears her jacket off and hands it to another, then they start tapping a long thin knife at different points along her face. She doesn't scream, but is obviously terrified.
The victim doesn't see the person watching from a nearby roof. Dark costume, mask and cloak, and weapons.
The victim doesn't see the person watching from a nearby roof. Dark costume, mask and cloak, and weapons.
witchwatcher
Gren sees them both, as soon as she looks around to check.
She goes blurry - not hidden exactly, but indistinct, hard to look directly at. And she runs forward and slaps a stunbolt into each of the three attackers, moves the knives safely out of the way from impaling anything on their way down, and tosses a stunbolt at the shadowy figure overseeing the crime for good measure, not bothering to guide it, seeing how they'll react. She doesn't even drop her bags.
She goes blurry - not hidden exactly, but indistinct, hard to look directly at. And she runs forward and slaps a stunbolt into each of the three attackers, moves the knives safely out of the way from impaling anything on their way down, and tosses a stunbolt at the shadowy figure overseeing the crime for good measure, not bothering to guide it, seeing how they'll react. She doesn't even drop her bags.
wormcan
They drop. All except the person on the roof, who sees it coming and dodges. The cape jumps down, fires a crossbow at Gren, and turns insubstantial right before hitting the ground. With her fall slowed, she lands safely and charges at her attacker.
witchwatcher
Gren is invulnurable to any physical attack short of a high-power rifle or Neuroi beam now. Witchly superstrength is convenient like that.
This power is a bit tricky, but she can already tell that her opponent is not exactly physical. She can have a dozen stunbolts, from enough different angles to make dodging impractical, anyway.
This power is a bit tricky, but she can already tell that her opponent is not exactly physical. She can have a dozen stunbolts, from enough different angles to make dodging impractical, anyway.
wormcan
The crossbow bolt pricks her, but doesn't penetrate.
The cape sees some of her bolts coming. Enough to not try dodging. She turns into something like smoke again, and keeps charging as the bolts fly through her.
And she's surprised when they affect her. Most of them hit, and even if a single hit doesn't stun her that was plenty. She goes down.
The cape sees some of her bolts coming. Enough to not try dodging. She turns into something like smoke again, and keeps charging as the bolts fly through her.
And she's surprised when they affect her. Most of them hit, and even if a single hit doesn't stun her that was plenty. She goes down.
witchwatcher
"Unf. Tranquilizer." Ten seconds of flaring regen take care of that.
And now she has four unconscious people, one with powers, and one terrified civilian to deal with. She stays 'blurred' even though it's building up to a headache, tells the woman, "Better clear out," and pulls out the phone PRT gave her.
"Citrine Mage here. I have four unconscious criminals in front of me. Ran into three guys with knives holding someone down while out shopping, with some cape just standing there watching from above. Knocked the criminals down, tried to knock the cape out, she tried to attack me before I got her. They'll stay down for about half an hour. Not entirely sure where I am or what to do with them, though, please advise."
And now she has four unconscious people, one with powers, and one terrified civilian to deal with. She stays 'blurred' even though it's building up to a headache, tells the woman, "Better clear out," and pulls out the phone PRT gave her.
"Citrine Mage here. I have four unconscious criminals in front of me. Ran into three guys with knives holding someone down while out shopping, with some cape just standing there watching from above. Knocked the criminals down, tried to knock the cape out, she tried to attack me before I got her. They'll stay down for about half an hour. Not entirely sure where I am or what to do with them, though, please advise."
wormcan
"We'll have a Protectorate member there shortly, and a containment van to pick them up. Stay on-site, it'll be just a few minutes. Describe the villain?"
witchwatcher
"Black clothes, crossbow, insubstantiality, tranq darts... Wait a minute. This is Shadow Stalker? Uh. She's a Ward, right, why would she just watch three guys about to rape someone? I feel like I'm justified in moving first, right, I thought she was a villain."
wormcan
"You're sure she was just watching? That's a serious allegation if it's Shadow Stalker. How long did you see her watching?"
witchwatcher
"She was watching for about twenty seconds before I got close enough to down them without giving them time to react. Long enough for them to start stripping the victim and put the knife on her throat. No blood. She might have been waiting for an opportunity to strike, I'm not familiar enough with how she operates to tell if that's plausible."
wormcan
"It's not how she's normally seen to operate. More often her partner has to hold her back from charging immediately. She isn't assigned to be patrolling right now at all, or she might have someone.
You should have one of the Protectorate heroes approaching your location now."
It's Dauntless. His boots are crackling with energy, which quiets down as he stops moving superhumanly fast until they're glowing no brighter than his spear and shield. "Citrine Mage. You...captured...Shadow Stalker?"
You should have one of the Protectorate heroes approaching your location now."
It's Dauntless. His boots are crackling with energy, which quiets down as he stops moving superhumanly fast until they're glowing no brighter than his spear and shield. "Citrine Mage. You...captured...Shadow Stalker?"
witchwatcher
"Apparently, yes." She repeats her summary as she carefully studies this new power. It's an artifact creating power. She wants it, badly.
She gets enough of a hold on it to start preparing a charge by the time she finishes her spiel.
...She drops the blurriness to hold on to that, though. "Got a spare mask? Most powers, I can't keep them up forever."
She gets enough of a hold on it to start preparing a charge by the time she finishes her spiel.
...She drops the blurriness to hold on to that, though. "Got a spare mask? Most powers, I can't keep them up forever."