Log:Return of the Timekeeper, Scene 3

Return of the Timekeeper 2020/01/17 Ascendant Copycat Dorian Fauna Porter Starlight Zephyr Timekeeper

3

Timekeeper, the timewarping villain who hald the world ransom twice before, appeared on TV after the New Year's concert, demanding he be released from Tranquility prison or ageing 'chrono-bombs' would be set off around the world. The heroes discovered which cities they were likely to be and how to find them at close range, but time is too short (3 hours to the first bomb) for finding them all to be practical.

The heroes split into two groups: CopyStarlight and Porter headed to the moon to try to learn things from Timekeeper himself. The other proceeded to a village in Maine, which showed as an anomaly om Timekeeper's movements last time he was free. They discovered he owned, under a false ID, an isolated farm there., and determined that it was where the demonstation of the chrono-bombs (rapid ageing of farm animals) was recorded. In the basement of the house they found a high-tech lab, with a chrono-bomb in it:, with its timer counting down (just under an hour and a half left, which make this the smalll-scale demonstration bomb before major cities begin to be targetted). The heroes woke up the caretaker robot and failed to meet its security check. Starlight destroyed it (and holes right up out of the house) just before it could send a code to the chrono-bomb! 

Meanwhile, on the moon, the prison governor, Helen Armstrong, is taking the heroes to meet Timekeeper...

Spirit looks around. "We really need a hacker here now. I can probably draw off energy from the bomb to keep it from exploding. Maybe. But that's a temporary solution. And it doesn't help the other locations."

Spirit tries to trace power lines from the bomb to see if it's being controlled in some way by the computer system in the room.

Jackie flies back down to the basement. "Uh, hlp that was the right thing to do. Didn't really have time to ask first." she says.

Spirit nods, "Better than finding out what it would do. Though if there's a person that's based out of here, they'll know something's up now. I guess it couldn't be avoided."

Zephyr says, "I think the amount of dust upstairs argues against recent visitors."

Nohrbor Nanuran Surryx watches on. "If it can be moved, I can fly it to a safe distance if need be. The Ages shall break like waves against my Immortal Refuge- but as the Mighty Commander of the StarGuardians has said, that would do little for the other devices, especially if they are set to release their temporal toxin in tandem."

Fauna shows the message to Zephyr and the Stranger. It warns that if Fauna makes the sound of an elephant, it means she is going to grow to 100ft height and the area should be cleared. Seems to be a general purpose message rather than one for this situation specifically.

Spirit nods. "I...don't know if it can be moved without setting it off. Let me try draining it down first. I suggest everyone who isn't immune to aging to get out of hte building."

Zephyr says to Fauna, "I will remember, but I hope it isn't necessary. We should go outside."

Zephyr flies up through the holes left by the robot and out over the fields.

Fauna points at the troublesome thing, then to her open mouth, chirping. She settles into place.

With a few breathes the Stranger takes on his Ascendant form- burning his spiritual energy to fuel his body. His form changes to reveal something a bit more godly than how he arrived.

Divine energy roils off of him revealing the new form- steeled to face time itself head on.

"I will remain steadfast at yourside, Commander." He says as confident as ever.

He turns and pats Fauna on the head. "Aye- as will eye, little Sproutling. But now is the time for dark tides to wash upon these shores and time for you to go lest you turn to bones and ash." He says to Fauna.

Spirit looks at Fauna. "Out." He points up where Zephyr went. "You're not going to eat the thing. Detaching it could set it off."

Jackie says, "You should think about leaving too, Spirit."

Spirit tilts his head, "I'm going to drain it down. How am I going to do that from elsehwere? And I'm made of energy now. I...don't age, as far as I can tell."

Spirit says, "So...why should I leave?"

Spirit shrugs, "If you have a suggestion for a different course of action, I'll gladly entertain it."

A caw sounds from Fauna in reply to the suggestion that she not be present, and her expression is devoid of worry. She turns attention on the device, licking her lips cartoonishly with oversized tongue.

Jackie nods, "Nor I. But, Dorian, do you want it to be several hundred years personal time before you see Zeal again? That is a significant factor."

Nohrbor Nanuran Surryx, the Ascendant waits for the mortals to decide who shall throw themselves upon the pyre patiently, looking upon the Commander's constitution & command approvingly.

Spirit shakes his head, "It wouldn't be, though. That's just it. I don't have to live out....hundreds of years separate from her. And I'll be just as I was. The aging is instantaneous. So...nothing would be different. I'd be unchanged. I wouldn't have experienced time."

1:25:00....

Spirit reaches out a hand, "In the meantime, perhaps someone should try to get the other bomb locations fromt eh computer, if powssible."

Jackie shakes her head. Nit in denial but confusion. How does that work? How can time be accelerated for physical effects but not affect mentation?"

Spirit tries to draw off some energy from the bomb...starting out slowly, just to test the waters, so to speak. Wisps of energy pull from the device toward him. "I'll start slow."

"These mortal trinkets are not my forte. I will remain here for now- unless I am needed else where." The Ascendant says as his hands glide and shift into various mudras as he continues layering on defenses- those both spiritual & physical.

Spirit syphons off some energy - without apparently any problem. Not that that was enough even to reduce the charge meter below 100.

Zephyr flies to the nearest farmhouse, to suggest that the residents leave town for a few hours - and to call the people around to tell them the same.

Spirit nods to himself, "Still stable, but not much impact. Yet."...and he starts to amp up his power, draining off more energy at a consistent rate.

Jackie watches Spirit draining the device. "I think I can do that, Spirit. Mind if I give it a try?"

Spirit nods, "If you can...go ahead and try."

Jackie gently, very gently, rests fingertips of the capacitor and attempts to draw enengy from it.

The Ascendant watches on gleefully. He does enjoy watching the heroic and the clever at work. He holds his breath, not wanting to disturb the heroes.

Neither Spirit not Jackie have triggered the bomb, yet. Though the device seems to have woken from sleep - perhaps monitoring more actively now?

Jackie lets Spirit continue the draining process. Heading out she suggests the heroes who cannot be in the expected area of area think about evacuating the nearby village. "This is taking too long. If it was only this device we could cope. But if we have to deal with multiple devides we'll run out of time. If the affected area is clear we can try other options."

Meanwhile, in Tranquility prison....

Helen Armstrong leads the heroes through further security and into a room, where Timekeeper has already be brought. He's a man of middle years, at least to appearance, with brown hair and beard (it's grown back) and grey eyes. He looks surprised to see the arrival of heroes. A couple of guards are also in the room.

Copycat walks stiffly with Porter towards the room and hisses under her breath in panic, "What're we supposed to do? I don't know how to question or interrogate someone. I thought I was just going to get to be him and just -know- what's going on."

Timekeeper says, "Such distinguished visitors! Forgive me if I don't stand. It might be taken as an aggressive action if I make any sudden moves."

He has a hit of a smile which suggests this is actually a joke.

Copycat tries to hide her panic as she looks back to Timekeeper, but forgets to hide her surprise. "Distinguished?" the rookie heroine asks, then looks to Porter and back. Well, Porter is the veteran hero, in her books.

Timekeeper looks between the heroes and Armstrong, as if patiently awaiting some explanation of what this is about.

"These heroes have some questions for you," says Armstrong, not really satisfying his curiosity.

Copycat takes a seat across from Timekeeper, keeping leaned back. "Yes, we had questions about a little something to set into motion. About 10 years ago?"

Timekeeper frowns. "The tsunami matter, you mean?" He shakes his head. "I truly regret that I ever resorted to that. But I thought the superheroes had prevented any harm I might have done?"

"No, no. The other thing," Copycat replies. "The one that took a lot of extra planning and work to set up."

Timekeeper frowns. "I'm sorry, I don't know what you're talking about...."

"Reaaaally?" Copycat raises an eyebrow. "I don't think one just forgets something like that, after all the work they put into it. Think carefully, now. This may affect your sentence here."

Copycat thinks. o O (Eeeeee, this is just like all those scifi cop dramas! Maybe I should cosplay as Officer Parish for the next con....)

After a moment he says, "I can only think of one thing you might be referring to - but I never activated that, so it shouldn't be a problem."

"What didn't you activate?" Copycat asks curiously. "Could it have been accidentally triggered?"

He looks a bit pained. "Well... I had a failsafe. In case I was sent to prison. I..." he glances at the governor, "was a bit reluctant to mention it. It might not look so good in terms of good behaviour. I planned just to dismantle it all quietly when I'm finally released...."

Copycat squints a little at Timekeeper. "So you thought to not mention a failsafe that could get you out of prison once you were incarcerated? Keeping it a secret does look bad. You know. Unless you tell us how to dismantle it. We can just assume you forgot. Getting arrested is traumatizing. I can see how things could be forgotten."

He looks between Copycat and the governor. "I admit it! I had a failsafe. One that could kill thousands! I'm sorry I never disclosed it but - well, you see how bad it looks! I was a different person back then! Obsessed with my research. Everything was about getting money for that - and staying fee so I could continue it!"

Copycat thinks. o O (Holy schnikes, did I crack him?)

The governor keep stony silence.

Copycat tries to not look too surprised as Timekeeper spills the beans. "Okay, well, you can prove you're a different person by telling us how to shut the system down," she says calmly.

He closes his eyes, holds the bridge of his nose. "So it's active then? Damn. Damn! Yes... yes, I can remember the disarming code. But it has to be entered into each bomb, individually. How long since the system was triggered? How much time is there to find the bombs?"

"It's already been over an hour," Copycat says. "I need you to give us all the locations and codes. And any other details we need to know."

"I can't! I can't recall where I put them all - not after this long. I could find them, if I weren't here - that was the point, of course - but I'm guessing you won't trust me that much. And I don't blame you."

"That really does sound like part of your failsafe plan," Copycat says as she squints at Timekeeper. "We let you out because you can 'only remember where they are if you're there in person', you get away due to another 'forgotten' failsafe. You know, that sort of thing."

"Like, where... oh" Porter started to ask what he figured was an important detail. Darn time-manipulating guy beats him to the punch. Well, phooey. "Wait. How would you find them? Is there an easy way to spot them?"

"Oh, it's not hard - *if* you're time-sensitive. The chronopractic components in the devices can be detected."

Copycat frowns faintly. She looks to Porter with a raised brow. As if that'd actually mean anything to him. She looks back to Timekeeper. "We'll need to discuss this. In the meantime, start remembering those disarm codes." She gets up and looks to Armstrong and nods towards the door so they can talk in private.

Timekeeper's head sinks into his hands. "What have I done?"

Armstrong leads the way out of the room.

Copycat waits for the door to be closed and sighs. "This is bad. And seems like another failsafe. That he has to physically be there? I need to talk to the Commander about this."

Porter nods and steps out. Of course he knows what chronopractic is! That's the guy that snaps his back into place after he lands on it returning from time travel.

Armstrong nods. "Him - or someone else time-sensitive, he said?"

"Yeah. But isn't it just his suit that let him sense that?" Copycat asks.

Armstrong says, "As far as we know he has no innate powers. But we might have overlooked something like that."

Copycat turns aside to radio to Spirit. <> She looks to Porter. "Hmm. Can you ask him if his suit lets him detect those devices?"

Spirit responds back, << I don't have the authority to release him to do so. Speak to the warden. See who has to make that call. >>

Copycat chews on her lower lip and looks to Armstrong. "Would you be able to temporarily release him into Starguard custody to disarm these time bombs?" she asks hopefully.

Spirit calls Director Van Sterran to see if he can authorize the release.

Armstrong frowns. "Give me a few minutes. I have to consult with my superiors... Do you want to continue your interview while I do that?"

"Yes, please," Kat says.

Copycat radios back to Spirit <>

Armstrong lets the heroes back into the room, then goes to her office to make the necessary calls.

"Right," Porter nods. "We definitely don't want to give him his stuff back. And definitely definitely not if he's also released."

He now steps back into the room with the timey-wimey guy. "So, you say you can find them. How? Are you time-sensitive? Or did you just have chiropractic gizmos in your stuff?"

Spirit responds back on a separate channel from the one going to SG proper, << One I can think of. Timewarp. Not sure how to get a hold of her, though. >>

Copycat sighs. <>

Timekeeper looks up from the paper on which he's writing down codes. "Yes. I've become sensitive from long exposure to temporal warping - time travellers often are."

Spirit responds back, << I could make a post, but well...we'll see, I guess. One moment. >>

Spirit does place a post on HeroNet asking specifically for TimeWarp's help. Though he's unsure if she can be in multiple places at once, since htat's effectively what this is going to require.

Porter steps back to Copycat to update her on the answer to life, the universe, and everything... Well, alright, just on Timekeepers time-sensitivity. "He says he can sense it from all his warping. Didn't make it sound like he needed any stuff to do it. So, sounds like we can't use his stuff. Know anyone else who can smell chrono-whatevers?"

Copycat gets a crazy idea. She heads into the interrogation room. "Got those codes done, yet?" she asks, smiling.

He frowns. "I think so... maybe. Trying to remember which password you used at a certain time..... It's one of these, anyway. But what good is it if you can't find the bombs?"

"I just realized, I'm a bit time-sensitive myself, when I want to be," Copycat grins.

He looks up, sceptically. "When you want to be?"

"Right, you haven't met me, and I never introduced myself. My code name is Copycat. I can be whoever I want to be," she explains. She decides to leave out the limitations involved there. It sounds so much more impressive when she does.

He frowns. "So, you'll do what? Copy me? I'm not sure that's..."

Copycat raises a brow. It wasn't what she was thinking, but now it has her curious. "Are you afraid of what I'll find out?"

No entry for 'shakes his head. "THere are things people in this time shouldn't know...."'

He shakes his head. "THere are things people in this time shouldn't know...."

Timekeeper says, "Then what's your plan?"

"Hm. So you -can- time travel? Or...aren't from here to begin with?" Copycat asks as she sits on her side of the table lightly. "I know a thing or two about time travel myself. My plan is to take your codes, help find the bombs, and use the disarm codes. Help save lives."

"That works - thank goodness! Are you time-sensitive now? I have t show you how to do this..."

Copycat is already short, but she shrinks down a bit more into Timewarp. "I am now," she says, though part of her suspects trickery still.

Recognition registers in his face. "Oh! The hero Timewarp, yes? Excellent. Well, this is how you do it. Try to feel this..." He hands a small object, about the size of a pen cap, over to CopyTimewarp."

Meanwhile, back in Maine...

Porter keeps an eye on Copycat... or the heroine formerly appearing as Copycat, from outside the doorway. Seems she's come up with a good idea. Though, all the talk of gizmos and time stuff has him thinking. So he starts fiddling with his doohickey. It's a gizmo. It does timey-wimey stuff. Maybe he can turn it into some kind of chrono-pract-thingy detecter. A chronopractor!

Jackie lets Spirit continue the draining process. Heading out she suggests the heroes who cannot be in the expected area of area think about evacuating the nearby village. "This is taking too long. If it was only this device we could cope. But if we have to deal with multiple devides we'll run out of time. If the affected area is clear we can try other options." <<reposed - as it's been a while.

Spirit pauses briefly. "This isn't hte solution. I feel like I'm using a hammer to deal with it. And it won't even fix the problem."

The Ascendant raises his eyebrow followed by his hand, summoning a blade of a dark, untarnished metal that burns with a pale aetheric flame into existence. He grips it tightly and says, "Perhaps another weapon is order, Guardian Commander."

Jackie returns in time to hear Spirit say that. "I agree. I offer two more brute force options. Hit it hard enough to smash it before it can detonate. Move it to a place it can go off without harming anyone."

Spirit nods, "Smashing it here is a spectacularly bad idea. Getting it someplace else, I'm good with."

The bomb is showing about 50% when finally word comes back. The release of Timekeeper into temporary StarGuard custody has been approved.

Jackie says, "Is it booby-trapped? If not I can have it half way to the moon in less than a tenth of a second."

The Ascendant relinquishes the weapon and it burns out of sight. "Then how shall we go about lifting this dastardly device? You mentioned fear of it being triggered by our motions. Do you have a solution now?" He inquires curiously.

Fauna points to her open mouth again.

Spirit takes a look, "Not sure...Let me see..."

Spirit looks at it while he keeps draining. "I think it will detect being moved. And our tampering with it has 'woken' it. Kind of."

Jackie asks Spirit, "Can you, kind of, disable that motion detector thing? I mean, you're the science type."

Spirit thinks about it. "I can try. I'll take my time with it."

Spirit stops draining briefly to tinker with the sensor. He uses his powers to manipulate it finely...using threads of energy to move things around. "I think it's disconnected."

Spirit nods. "Yeah, it looks good. We can move it now."

Jackie nods, "Dorian, can you put a shield over the device. I need to clear the ceiling and roof out of the flight path I'm going to take. Better not have any wreckage dropping on it I suggest."

Spirit nods and creates a solid light construct barrier over the top of the bomb. "That should protect it a bit."

Jackie smashes a clear path above the device. Then lands and gets a good a grip as she can, making sure her's underneath the devoce. ripping away part of the basement floor if she has too. "On your word, Dorian. Oh, and better get back a bit and put a barrier up to protect yourself."

Spirit backs up...and puts up an additional barrier to protect everyone else still in the basement.

Jackie prepares, and launches herself upward. She almost instantly reaches a speed of 50,000 Km per second, accelerating at a rate of thousands of Gees. The friction of her passage turns the airs in her path into a raging plasma heated to near solor temperature.

Jackie thinks, looking back and the miles long pillar of incandescent flaming plasma stretching up the full height of the atmosphere oO(.. and that's why I don't use my fast flight in habitated areas.)

A different voice of a young girl radios Spirit. <> She lists off what she knows of the various locations. <>

The sudden weather front cause by the superheating of a small part of the atmosphere results in sudden stronger winds, hail, and other things to make this day memorable to the locals.

Spirit sends a response back to Copycat, << Do you need transport? Or can you get around to hte locations yourself like you did the moon? >>

CopyTimewarp flashes Porter a grin. <>

CopyTimewarp puts a hand on Porter's shoulder. "Let's go!"

Jackie drops back down into atmosphere, then radios Spirit. "I have good news and bad news. The good news. It worked. The device was burnt up during ascent. The bad news? I can't do that in a city for obvious reasons."

Golf ball-sized hailstones start falling through the hole in the roof as if to emphasise Jackie's point.

Spirit nods. "Copycat apparently has the codes to disarm the other bombs. And their locations. She's enroute now. Waiting on an update."

CopyTimewarp and Porter hop from site to site with the help of his doohickey, and a little extra time with the help of Timewarp's ability to step back in time enough to give them some spare time to hunt down the exact spots and try out all the codes.

The first code proves to be correct in each case. It also handles any security systems there are at the various sites.

Indeed, it seems Timekeeper has been true to his word.

Zephyr works to mitigate the weather issues, mostly reducing the wind levels around the house ).

Epilogue: Back in his cell in Tranquility, Timekeeper opens up the little hideaway he managed to make under the guards' nose, and gets out the little machine he's built. "At last, at long, long last," he says to himself. "The last component - a copy of Talitha May's DNA...." 