Issue #1: The Day After the Day Unlike Any Other

[Ing]

Leshy's body lunges, pulling them towards the monster eager to get back in the fight. he feels something tugging at his "feet" (well the stilt like extensions of them made out of algae and sea weed) and looks down annoyed to see a human grabbing onto him, desperate to keep their head above water. This persons's fear of drowning has overridden their clear terror at Leshy. The red fog of rage subsides from Leshy's mind as he watches for a moment. He looks back at the shore, and back at this helpless human.

 

A clump of his mass detaches and forms into a life raft underneath the human, as the sea weed raft bobs to the surface it scoops up the endangered person providing them a reprieve.

 

The human looks up at them confused, terrified but possibly, grateful? Under his grizzly form Leshy smiles and gives them a thumbs up before resuming his trudge to shore. 

 

"Not a monster yet" he thinks to himself. 

 

Spoiler

Unleash powers to reshape environment +freak 2 -2 because of conditions, roll is 5+6=11

 

Edited June 26, 2020 by Ing

[Charlotte]

The seaweed is fully buoyant, and within moments, the civilian stopped panicking. He looks at Leshy.

 

He's out of breath and still in shock, so perhaps he's still scared of Leshy - or perhaps he's still scared in general. But now he has the presence of mind to stop thrashing around. And maybe, just maybe, he's grateful.

 

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Situation check:

The Moss-Mass is partially out of the water, and partially submerged in the water; people are evacuating as calmly as they can but it'll be a little while yet before the fight zone is clean.

Argo has been thrown a clear city block.

Leverage is underwater in a supervillains' private minisub.

Leshy is still in the water but close enough to land that he can walk.

Persephone is pushing a boat to the shore; it'll be safe once her turn comes 'round again.

Kitsune is close enough to engage with ease.

Incantrix is also close enough to engage with ease, and has just taken a powerful blow.

 

No civilians are in immediate danger. I'll give Leverage an opportunity to act before it lurches out of the water (probably in a couple more turns.) So:

 

 

[Charlotte]

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I have been informed that Leverage's player is not available, so I'm tossing the spotlight back to:

 

[Jekca]

Leverage flipped through the buttons in front of her. There were alot of them, though so far everything had been pretty easy to figure out, at least for her gadget happy self.

"Yeah, I am so keeping you," She said as she patted the console reviewing her options. "I need a way to get the things attention and get it off the shoreline.... but not surface, OR blow up people including the team who might be in range.... and why in the nine circles of hell is that thing doing. What does it want.... it already had too much miracle grow. Maybe it needs a bigger grow light..."

She looked over her options one more time, as she got a little closer.

"Fine, Gyarados, I choose you!" Lev said with an eyeroll and slapped a button that she thought would do what she wanted...

[Charlotte]

There is a funt noise as a harpoon is deployed, and it strikes true, spearing the moss-mass and pinning it to where it is - unable to advance on shore, and unable to full return to the sea. In rage, it lashed out, but Leverage is able to steer the sub expertly, dodging its blows.

 

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Leverage chose directly engage a threat and rolled a 8, and chose to create an opportunity for her allies; she in turn, rolled a 4 to take a powerful blow and avoids the worst of the monster's counterattack.

 

The opportunity manifests as thus: it is temporarily pinned in place, and thus - with civilians way the hell out of its way - attacks currently have no chance of any unintended casualties. Property damage is still a possibility, of course...

 

But the triumph is short-lived, as the Moss-Mass's many eyes and many mouths roar together in song, and this song is... disturbingly alien, washing over the battlefield in an almost tangible wave. It raises the hair (or the lichen) on the backs of your necks. It stirs uncomfortable memories as if they'd just happened, just now.

 

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Leverage, being underwater, can't hear it, but everyone else is subject to the Moss-Mass's move, Ear-Splitting Roar. This means that Argo, Leshy, Persephone, Kitsune, and Incantrix must mark a condition, their choice.

 

Updated stats on the Moss-Mass, now that it is Insecure and Angry:

 

 

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I tossed it to Kitsune before and I'll do so again, so:

 

 

[SalmonMax]

Kitsune's self-back-patting over how she'd solved the problem of the panicking crowds was interrupted by an unearthly bellow from the sea. A stark and very unwelcome reminder that the real problem here was not dealt with yet. Slowly, unwillingly, Sachi turned around to look at the monstrous thing and couldn't help but feel absolutely dwarfed. What the hell was SHE going to do to THAT? Her images were just that: Images. Fancy lightshows. And the homemade gear she'd managed to bring with her was designed to work on PEOPLE. Shooting a mountain like that would be about as effective as shooting...well...a MOUNTAIN.

 

Even so, she couldn't just run the other way. The others would never let her live it down.

 

So Kitsune ran down the streets a bit to get a better bead on the mossy tower, and concentrated HARD on her powers, coaxing a spray of photons to explode from the atoms in the air in very precise wavelengths and intensities. Similar bursts of infrared light caused pockets of heat in the air, causing it to expand and create sounds as well...and THAT had been a hard trick to pick up.

 

All around the mass of moss there was a flurry of fireworks explosions...blinding flashes and bursts of light that sent sparks of red and blue and violet everywhere in their wakes. Accompanied by BOOMS and THUDS and crackles. It was like the final display of the biggest fireworks shows someone could see...the kind they set off over Central Park, or the Great Lakes. Blinding. Deafening.

 

The creature reached up and swept an enormous arm through the images, and the change in air currents made distortions in them that almost immediately stabilized. So it stomped forward then...apparently completely unhindered by the display. Kitsune felt a sinking feeling in her gut as she realized she had no idea how this thing saw, or heard. Maybe it used totally different wavelengths. Maybe it used vibrations conducted through the ground. It was so...alien...who even knew?!

 

The only thing she realized with clarity was that it was moving again. Directly towards her. As if it could tell she was responsible for the annoying images around it...and had decided to make them stop.

 

Now she could run the other way.

 

Spoiler

 

Rolls conducted in chat. Kitsune takes Insecure from the creature's attack, then flubs her Illusion roll woefully and takes Afraid.

 

...help.

 

 

[Charlotte]

 

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Kitsune, as a result of her Are You Watching Closely? roll going sideways, marks Afraid.

 

[Malachite]

The song from the creature, so alien but a song, brought Persephone up short. They were fighting it without knowing what it was or why it was here. It was wreaking havoc, yeah. It needed to be moved away from people, but just punching into it. . . .that didn't feel right. The boat was to the shore now and the people on it were making a fast retreat away from the beach; Persephone and her wind spirit flew back up to try and figure out a better way to handle this. 

Her eyes caught on a island a little ways offshore, not much more than a rocky outcropping poking above the water. She called out to Incantatrix, "Help me push it towards the island!" Calling on the wind and water spirits around her, she tried to do the same to get the creature away from the city without just attacking it. 

And it was working. The creature lurched back and began to tumble towards the island. That's what it looked like at first, at least. But it was getting smaller. Not from distance but because it was shedding moss and fish and seaweed each time a spirit pushed on it. Persephone moved in closer, eyes scanning for the person or creature that might be at the center of it all. By the time she set foot on the rocks of the island, the last few fish flopped back into the water and away from dry, airy death. There was nothing left. 

Persephone stared at where the last parts of the creature had come undone, her eyes wide and tears threatening to spill over. Did I kill it? I didn't. . .that wasn't. . .oh, god, did I just kill someone? Her breath came in ragged little gasps as her mind spun and the sound of the surf filled her ears like an accusing roar.

[Charlotte]

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Persephone chooses Directly Engage a Threat and chooses to create an opportunity for her allies. However, inflicting this condition on the moss mass means it is defeated as it was out of conditions to mark.

 

However, it in turn inflicted a powerful blow on Persephone - emotionally, in this case - and she has chosen "lose control of your powers in a terrible way."

 

Without her will to guide them, and with her roiling emotions churning within her, Persephone found herself alone on this island, surrounded by swirling waters.

 

The substance that had stuck the fish and other sea life all together was seemingly dormant, but lying atop the water - if it wound up active again, the process could start all over.

 

And on top of that, Persephone's nature spirits began to work their will on the surroundings. Flowers started to spring up through cracks in the beachfront's sidewalk and road. The wind began to roar, buffeting the few who were still left behind and the property in the area, and stray tables and chairs began to tumble in the winds. And at the center of it all, on the island, Persephone saw it again: the water, swirling around her.

 

In a spiral.

 

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Two chief issues:

First, someone needs to deal with the nature spirits that are suddenly out of control, either by getting them under control or helping Persephone get them under control.

Secondly, someone needs to take care of the mass of moss lying dormant on the water, or else it might start all over again.

 

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By now, Argo's managed to make her way out to the scene of the battle, so she can contribute if she so wishes. So:

 

[Jekca]

Leverage dives her sub out of sight of anyone, if indeed anyone could have seen it.

 

"Looks like the mess is mostly taken care of," is the text she sends to the others, adding, "I will find a better place to leave my new toy, and be uptop asap to help with any needed cleanup."

 

She directs it towards the bottom, looking for that ping the submarine's sensors had blipped at her. Whatever that was, was going with her to be poked at later. Away from here. Away from anywhere that might show up to the Dad's that she was involved. The more she could stay off their radar, the better of she would be.

Once she found that, it was off to this little cove with land that was for sale, apparently she needed to do some acquiring... sigh.

[Ing]

Leshy is delighted as he wades back to the shore and sees the fish and sea life that had been absorbed. He starts to laugh in relief and runs a tendrilled arm through the water watching the fish bend their path around him to swim away. The fish survived, and were released unharmed. It was beautiful and it meant there was hope for others affected by the lifeform. This felt good, been a while since he could just enjoy nature. And then he comes across the remains of the symbiote lifeform, a mass of mossy algae left as a weak film atop the water. Leshy looks at the pathetic struggling life form and back at the fish and thinks for a minute. He starts to think maybe the mass isn't a monster, it's a lifeform like an animal; one put into a new and strange environment. Scared and isolated from it's own kind. Maybe it deserved a chance to have a happy ending today too...he can't bring himself to lift another finger against it. 

 

 

 

Leshy's focus is broken as he looks out to the Island and sees Persephone and misunderstands the nature spirits going rampant, assuming she's reveling n happiness like him

"Hey! You did it!" Leshy calls out to her "You did it this time! You saved everything! Nothing had to die this time. Everything lives! You're amazing absolutely amazing So lucky you have actually good powers..."

"wish I could be useful" he mutters under his breath

 

Leshy is his wish I could be ability to comfort or support Persephone

Edited July 31, 2020 by Ing

[Charlotte]

Argo sees Persephone out in the bay, on an outcropping of rock, and though it's far, it's close enough to imitate. So she does so, and exerts her will over the forest spirits, and they falter, with the aid of a weave of mystical binding from Incantrix.

 

This is merely a temporary solution, however; Persephone must still get them back under control. But in the midst of the burgeoning storm, Leshy - the voice of her teammate - can be heard, reaching out to her, offering words of comfort and support.

 

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Leshy is choosing to comfort or support Persephone. He rolled a success, so Persephone can - if she chooses - clear a condition, mark potential, or shift her Labels. In addition, she'll be able to get the nature spirits back under her control, if she opens up to Leshy in return.

 

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There is still the matter of the moss-like goop that's floating atop the water. It seems to be inert, but that could change if it's not contained. So, what do those remaining (everyone except Persephone, Argo and Leshy) do?

 

[Malachite]

Spoiler

She'll open up to him and clear Guilty - though she'll feel a bit foolish by the end.  

Persephone blinked as Leshy's words slowly penetrated. She was breathing hard and staring at the spiral. "I didn't. . . I didn't kill someone? But there's nothing left. Where's. . . where's. . .?" 

She shivered hard and reached out to destroy the spiral in the sand. Leshy had given her the ability to think again. She impulsively made her way over to him and hugged him as well as she could. "Thank you," she said, her tears mixing with the saltiness of Leshy's seaweed. "Thank you." 

After a moment she seemed to notice the storm for the first time. "Oh, uh," she winced and centered herself, reaching out to the spirits to try to calm them down and send them back to their elements. 

[Ing]

Leshy is stunned for a moment before gratefully hugging back, enjoying the first human contact in a long while. as Persephone calms the storm Leshy looks down and sees the alien biomass floating on the ocean. Looking down at it now helpless and defenseless he can feel...something from the mass. Not quite thought, nothing that sophisticated but maybe, emotions? or some alien analog? Fear, anger, loneliness. Leshy's anger towards the mass softens as he realizes it's just another form of life, another creature far away from it's home and anything it knows, confused and frightened. 

 

Leshy's own alien mass reaches out a tendril to the algae as in invitation. some form of communication passes between them

 

"It's ok" he mutters under his breath, "You're not alone anymore"

 

He feels relief swell and fear subside as the  algae takes the invitation and flows up his tendril, joining his biomass and assimilating into his symbiote colony. 

 

A shiver runs down some remnant of Leshy's human spine as a reality sets in. he's absorbed more alien matter, more potential danger? what could that mean for his chances to be human again? He tries to feel good about what has happened today but suddenly feels very distant from the rest of humanity. This was the right thing to do...but it was also another potential step towards losing himself to the lifeform, of forgetting who he was and becoming...something else.