Log:Tranquility Lost, Scene 7

Tranquility Lost 2021/10/29 	 Blok Dialydd Engelicus Golden Girl Griffin Grimm Magda Samuel Amp Blackbody Blackout Candela Chalk Cheese Ghoul Mutilator Pivot Razor Runaway Scorpionman Second Shrinkwrap Tesla The Thinker Watt 7

With the dinosaurian incursion handled, the heroes have proceeded to the moon to tackle the prison breakout there. The shuttle pilot has, on their instructions, left them there while they proceeded into the prison. They have met the prison governor, Helen Armstrong, who says she has lost contact with all of the guards; the heroes themselves heard what sounded like the horrified final scream of one over radio. The heroes proceeded to the first (middle) ring of the prison proper. Here they found Green Chost freeing Gargantua and Arthur Simkins; the heroes defeated Simkins and Gargantua defeated himself when he tried to expand to crush the heroes and break open other cells, but Green Ghost fled to the lower level of the prison. Next the heroes faced and ddefeated the reality-warping Horror and a guard he had brought back as a zombie.

All guards found on the level were dead, either decayed (likely by Auntie Rotter) or in some more terrible way by Horror. Empty cells confirmed the escape of Timekeeper, Auntie Rotter, Plasma and Blackout; Green Ghost seems to have escaped when her cell was damaged in the rotting of Plasma's adjacent cell. The ongoing sporadic failure of systems still limits how much can be learnt about the situation, but the fact that more systems are down on the lower level suggests Blackout is located there, and so the heroes have decided to head there. But before proceeding, the heroes take taken some precautions. The captured prisoners have been placed in a cell with a jury-rigged replacement lock, and Grimm has used a power to compel anyone for miles from killing or maiming!

And now the heroes are heading to the lower ring... 

As the heroes head down the stairwell to the lower level, the presence of Blackout becomes a near certainty. Because the bottom of the staircase is in total blackness, impenetrable to electromagnetic radiation of any frequency, or electrical senses.

"Well that's disconcerting." Griffin says aloud as he notices he can't sense anything beyond their present location. "I can't sense anything ahead. Its like a complete energy deadzone. Be careful."

Dialydd eyes the darkness over the heads of the other heroes. He closes his eyes for a moment and when he opens them all the starry universe is contained therein. The alien youth turns his gaze again to the darkness.

"My ability to penetrate this darkness is limited, but the door is closed and locked at the bottom of the stairs. There is no present. I cannot, cha, see beyond the door." He shrugs one shuilder. "My Gifts are limited in scope."

"I can't see into the darkness at all." GG says in a puzzled tone. "I've never encountered anything like it."

"I wouldn't call seeing to the bottom of that bowl of soup 'limited', Dee." Griffin says encouragingly. "Anyone else got anything? A reason not to proceed and get Dee a look through that doorway?"

Griffin falls quiet a long moment to see if he senses anything at all.

Engelicus waits...relatively patiently behind the others. It has been made clear that questions are not really welcome at this time.

Golden Girl tiles her head, turning an ear toward the darkness. "I can hear voices. More than one."

Samuel swears quietly to himself, he'd been meaning to work on better sensors, really he had. Instead he simply sighs as he speaks. "I'm not seeing a thing. I need to study this, find out how exactly it's managing to be so... Comprehensive." He speaks with obvious interest and far too casually considering the circumstances. "I might be able to recreate the effect... Or pierce it given time."

Griffin hears plenty once everything quiets down. "Same." Griffin agrees with Golden Girl quietly. "They sound like they might be arguing? Maybe something to use on the other side of that door."

He turns to Samuel and shrugs. "Not sure we'll have time for all that. But if you find something useful, let us know." He says- still speaking in a low whisper, jsu tloud enough to be heard by those in his immediate area. he reasons if they cna hear those on the other side, they can hear them jsut as easily.

The edge of the darkness is not quite fixed, as if ripples are running along it, but, otherwise, things remain still.

Dialydd inquires, "How much time? And I should I go down and open the door?"

Blok rumbles, "I see nothing, but I can make a good shield."

Golden Girl says, "There's nobody this side of the door is there, Dialydd? If not I could walk down there and open the door."

Magda pauses at the edge of the field, examining it and wondering if she can reduce its effectiveness.

Those who can hear the voices hear them quieten. Almost as if they know you're listening.

Grimm follows along, still recovering from her effort. She doesn't hear anything.

"There is no one on this side of the door, no. Can you fing the keypad and enter the necessary code, sera Golden Girl?" asks Dialydd.

For a moment, the area around Magda goes pitch-black as well -- then intensely blue-white. The darkness ... resists. "No. I'll need to get my hands on him."

Golden Girl nods hesitantingly, "I'm almost.. sure." she replies, and begins walking into the darkness.

Unless something stops GG she walks to the door and feels for the keypad. If it's an electric lock she expects it won't function but that's the first thing to try.

Blok follows GG, carefully feeling his way.

Griffin follows along- preparing to defend the others if the opporunity presents itself.

"Why haven't we been studying these inmates more?" Samuel lets out an annoyed tut as he looks around him to no effect. "Why haven't we got effective countermeasures to their technology. He turns off his comms, letting his continued complaints be kept to himself.

Dialydd murmurs, "Becuase compartmentlization of information runs wild in this facility?" seemingly in response to Samuel's query.

Three heroes follow Golden Girl into the darkness without too much stumbling, and Golden Girl manages to punch in the passcode by feel. The doors can be heard to open, and there's the slight breeze at a pressure change - but all remains dark.

Magda sighs, but then floats down into the darkness. "I need to fine-tune a few things," she mutters as she goes.

Dialydd offers Grimm his arm as the others head down the stairs. "May I guide you, sera Field Commander Grimm?"

Grimm laughs and takes Dee's arm. "Uhhh, that's definitely not my title."

Griffin stands defensively- stopping just outside the doorway- he has the tactical training to know not to stand in front of an open doorway in the dark, listening for any sort of clue that the situation has changed.

Golden Girl says, "You are the senior SGG operative on the scene and this is nominally a SGG/UEMS operatiom, Grimm."

Engelicus follows as well, keeping quiet. An odd thing for one of the Bloodlit, to be honest.

Blok has no such tactical training. He just knows that if he's standing in the doorway, those behind him are unlikely to get shot.

The alien youth shouts out loud, "Ambush! Over a dozen enemy 3 meters beyond door in hallway clockwise! They are waiting! Cannot see anti-clockwise. Assume more there!"

Dialydd murmurs, "They are not tightly packed, but an area coveing attack beyond the doorway should affect several, sera Grimm," as he let's go of her arm.

Blok grunts, "Good."

Dialydd says in a louder voice, "These enemies are clearly seen: a tall matte black woman. A demonic ghoul. A male with body-covering razor-sharp scales. An extremely handsome male. A scorpion-man hybrid. A swirl of lights resembling a miniature spiral galaxy."

Golden Girl turns her head in the direction Dialydd indicates. She warns, "I'm going to fill the corridor with a spread heat beam. If you retreat and return to your sells you will be safe from this. 3-2-1.."

Golden Girl says, "Sorry I had to do that but you were warned."

Though only Dialydd can see this, Blackbody seems quite unmoved by the attack, and shields those behind her. Ghoul, on the other hand, lets out and inhuman screech as he flies backward...

Grimm nods at Dialydd's order. "It's alright. I can sense them now," she says as she raises her hands, walking to the middle of the group of tougher heroes for some protection. Her hair billows from a rise in energy and pressure around her as a swirl of energy rises around her. "You heard Golden Girl's warning. This won't end well for you. If you want to avoid a further beating, run back to your cells and lock up NOW!" her voice reverbs eerily as she commands the villains, throwing a hand ahead and behind her as a storm of swirling shadowy ribbons explode out from her in every direction. They weave past the heroes and seek out the villains.

Of her 8 targets, Grimm hits Chalk, Ghoul, Second, Tesla, Amp and Candela.

So devastating is the eerie voice coming from the darkness that many of the escapees, having been ready to ambush the heroes, are taken aback and lose the initiative...

About half a dozen are bowled clean off their feet.

Dialydd attempts to keep the rest of the heroes apprised as to what effect their attacks are having. It's a bit harried given how quickly the combat's evolving.

Magda's mind is immensely swifter than her body's ability to keep up, even with her powers. Deducing that un-flanking themselves is probably the best idea, she calculates a trajectory to put herself in the middle of the lower floor's hallway behind the 'unknowns' -- and creates a momentary Einstein-Rosen bridge to take her there.

Teleporting behind the anticlockwise escapees, Magda can see 2 unconscious guards about 12m away further anticlockwise. Clockwise from her, the nearest 4 villains are a red-haired woman with a runner's build, a shortish ugly man, a woman not in prison uniform but rather in (just-not-transparent) cling film and a man with a mustance from who's hands flow utter blackness, feeding the blackout area! There is also a man just seated in his open cell, on his bed, in the pose of the Thinker. By curious coincience, the sign on his door says he's the Thinker.

The alien youth, Dialydd, cranes his head around to look towards the back of the group to the clockwise. He murmurs, "That one then," as what appears to be golden-silver sand flows from his hands and races to engulf the a male at the back of the group.

The woman at the back of the group to the clockwise suddenly yawns widely, rubs at her eyes, and then sink down into sleep.

As Magda is wondering how best to handle Blackout, the Thinker stands, glances at Magda, glances at Blackout, and silently punches his left hand with his right fist. His meaning is clear - raw physical force is the means to use!

Blackout had hoped to lure more heroes out into the corridor, but they're being too cautious. So he drops the field of darkness so the other escapees can attack and targets Golden Girl, as most visible to him, with a twisting tendril of darkness.

Golden Girl is stunned by the darkness tentacle that bypasses her defences.

Scorpionman - who is actually mostly scorpion apart from his head - scuttles along the wall and over heroes heads into the stairwell!

Razor - who is just behind Blackbody - fires one of the razor-sharp scales at Dialydd's stuck-out head.

Cheese regains her feet.

The razor sharp blade cuts a deep furrow into Dialydd's throat. A great gout of dark red blood sprays forth but the alien youth just yelps in pain then raises a hand to the wound. He's still active it seems.

Down the corridor there echoes the unmistakeable (to those who have heard such) sound of a cosmic energy blast.

Engelicus sees the scorpion...person....scuttle over their heads in the stairwell, so he unleashes a gout of soulfire at the odd creature without saying anything. No soliloquy.

Scorpionman makes a semi-human cry and draws back, but seems not to be too hurt.

Second regains his feet.

Reactor moves as he spots Scorpionman blocking the overhead path down, leveling his arms he fires a blast of pure radiation at the bug-man in hopes of clearing the path so others may proceed down.

Scorpionman again makes a strange noise, and is blown off the ceiling onto the floor.

The chalk-white West African gentleman in the middle of the clockwise group of escapees flies into the air. "Don't be dismayed by their voices from the shadows!" he says, in an educated voice. "Remember, we are fighting for our freedom!" So saying, he takes a blast at the partly concealed Grimm.

Grimm is still trying to control the storm of shadows about her, thinking maybe one of the tanks will provide cover. The blast strikes her and sends her flying back, crashing into a surface painfully and falling to the ground. She rubs the back of her head and groans as the shadow storm disperses.

Candela regains her feet.

As does Ghoul.

The woman in the clingwrap notices Magda, even if Blackout didn't. She turns to attack her...

A stream of plasticky film shoots past Magda.

Sentinel doesn't like the tight corners- even with the advantage Grimm provided, they're too packed to act where they are. He floats up as he prepares to and then darts into the room with the kind of efficency & casual grace that can only be honed with many such entrances.

"We're going to keep pouring in here until you stand down." Griffin says- his voice angry & more resonant after seeing so many of his team being struck so quickly. He scans the room 1000x speed, "But you're putting me in the mood to do this the hard way."

His eyes glow as he changes plans, charging Blackout instead, ironically, making things physical as the Thinker suggested. Despite his anger, he holds himself in check- his mind never even considering going with more lethal means.

As he gets in range he drops out of the air, attempting to ring Blackout's bell.

Sentinel is knocked clean off course- striaght into the roof. He grunts as Watt tries to overload him.

He grits his teeth and absorbs the energy- dropping down over Watt. he takes the opportunity to return the favor.

Watt goes down, but it seems he's pretty tough. He scowls.

Mutilator stands.

"You guys don't get it." Griffin says firmly, standing above Watt seemingly unharmed by Watt's attack though his costume smokes in a couple of places. "'This is about freedom'... Do you know who you're talking to? What I've done to protect FREEDOM? Naw- you lost that right. Every last one of you, even before today, and this isn't the way to get it back. The next stage for you all is an airlock- no one is going to elect for you to get Earthside. They'll shoot you all out of the sky before that happens. WE ARE YOUR LAST CHANCE." He says, looking at Thinker for that last bit.

The squat ugly guy, Pivot, also turns toward Magda, and reaches out two hand toward her, one as a fist and one with finger spread to point along three different axes.

Pivot twists his left hand and Magda turns in synch so her head faces the wall, then move his right hand toward that wall, Magda matching the movement.

TK is not fun when you're on the receiving end, but Magda's standard defenses prevent the damage that Pivot attempts to do to her.

Samuel moves down the hall slowly and carefully, unable to see anything until his vision returns, he watches the others attack and rush forward, then he watches Scorpionman fall to the floor, and his targetting systems get a quick firing solution and so he shoots, hand raising and a blast of crimson energy extending from his palm.

Scorpionman is on his back and looking very woozy indeed....

Blok takes a large step forward (into the intersection), turns clockwise, and uses his Thunderclap, slamming his hands together and sending a sonic shockwave down the corridor.

Lots of the prisoners in that direction cry in pain and cover their ears.

Blok says, "You were warned! You choice is between you cells or the medical ward!"