Log:Microwave Turkey

2019/11/29 	 Artemis Blok Kalwara Magus Mercury Quiet Zero

1

Newtown

It's Thanksgiving. The weather is middling: some sun, some rain, neither too hot nor too cold. Peaceful? Well, that tends to depend a lot on how one's family gets along. But there was little sign of anything requiring the attention of heroes. At least till now. On the fringes of Newtown, things begin to happen. House and car alarms go off, 911 calls come in. Those nearby might notice people fleeing. Nothing so unusual for Colonial Bay, maybe, but a bad day for it.

Artemis is unaware of the holiday itself and is on patrol as usual when she hears the alarms and comes swooping in to see what the trouble is.

Kalwara is not in a good mood. She's heard of this feast, called Thanksgiving. Alas, after half a day hunting in Buckingham Park she's failed to find and kill a turkey. While it's improved her opinion of the natives' hunting skills, as so many seem to have turkey on the menu, her own failure rankles. Thus the alarm and fleeing people merely serve to brighten her spirits. A chance to take out her frustations on someone else. Hurrying toward the incident she draws sword...

Having been tipped off about a shop in this district carrying a specific set of spices that the chef had mentioned but thought unable to find, Jonas and Karin have come to personally attend to that endeavor. As all of the alarms sound suddenly, Jonas pulls the SUV over and gives Karin the moment she needs to transubstantiate, "Take care, Fyrstinde," he offers as she exits by the slightly ajar door, ensuring she is not noticed by matching the SUV's colour and dropping off beneath, then slithering while camouflaged against the point where curb meets street, then reforms into the moderately recognizable Mercury! and running to reach the general area and investigate.

Blok is at the Hospital, of course, when alerts start coming in of trouble in Newtown. Since there aren't any patients currently in the Xeno ward, he gains permission to ride out with an ambulance crew to render aid.

Thanksiving. Like Samhain, Yom Kippur, Boxing Day, and others... it's really just a day like any other for those not part of the celebratory demographic. Like many others, it's, unfortunately, not even a good excuse to get a drink. Almost all establishments are closed, and those few that are open are ... debatable. One advantage Lien DOES find is relative peace and quiet. With people cloisted inside, one can walk the street without getting tranpled by pedestrians or run over. Lien is enjoying this as she takes a stroll.

Zero is casing a joint, naturally. Though this time she's not looking for a cheap thrill & a quick payday. She's actually working a case- a missing person who's gone under the radar. What most people don't realize is that there are more psi-positives out there than you'd guess. Most are just latent- getting a quirk or intuition occassionally but few are as capable as Monday/Zero even in her powered down state.

Whe the alarm goes off she sighs from her perch and runs towards the alarms.

Magus walks happened to be walking through the neighborhood on his way to have Thanksgiving Dinner with his friend Maxwell. He stops in his tracks when he hears the sounds of the alarm. "What's this now?" he says to himself.

The observant may notice that before even the emergency vehicles arrive there are other vans out roaming the street. But even the unobservant notice when a house near the edge of town suddenly crumbles!

Mercury rapidly makes her location and the crumbling house location much more similar, immediately flowing through the rubble to find any injured or intact persons for safe extraction.

Artemis flies straight for the crumbling house, drawing her sword and summoning her shield as she follows the sound of crumbling and that strange Urth animal noise.

Kalwara speeds up to a fast run heading to the latest structure to crumble, seeking the reason for such crumbling.

The crumbled house is all but lost in a cloud of dust. There's a moment of relative quiet. Then a large shape steps out of the cloud and lowers its head to look through the window of the next house. "Gobble?"

Terror Turkey: A 9' tall turkey.

Kalwara feels her heart surge with joy. Finally. A turkey to hunt and kill. She will feast well this night.

The turkey stares, exclaims, "GOBBLE!" and breaks straight through the wall into this house too!

Magus says, "Bloody Hell."

Kalwara rushes in after the giant turket bringing her sword up and up in a slashing strike as she leaps onto a table, set with that household's thanksgiving meal, to gain the height to aim for the long turkey neck.

It seems these turkeys are mighty birds indeed: the blade fails so much as to draw blood!

But Kalwara's intervention probably saved one of the people at the table being pecked to death: the giant knife in Kalwara's hand draws the turkey's attention!

Zero skids to a halt on a rooftop and gasps with surprise at the sight of the Terror Turkey.

"What the hell is that?" She says aloud as she takes in the whole scene. Spotting Kalwara swinging swords she wonders what she's stumbled into as the dust begins to settle.

All she knows is she can't let this thing rampage through this part of town for fear of some clue to her search being destroyed or lost. She begins running after the Terror Turkey, aiming her swingline at its ankles as she tries to trip it with her reinforced line & grapnelhead.

The giant turkey is heavy, but Zero manage to heave it off its feet. It crashes through the dining room table, sending glass, dishes, cutlery and bits of wood in all directions.

Magus says, "Seeing how the others attacks have had little effect on the giant bird, Magus he moves up closer and takes cover behind a trash can. He raises his hand and says a quick incantation. Mystical runes appear and swirls in the air around the bird. "

The runes flash red as the spell takes and the bird's feathers become ruffled and molted. The feathers part exposing skin beneath.

Artemis swoops in and lands, staring at the big creature. She's never seen a turkey before and has no idea if it's sentient or not. She swings her bladewhip forward, trying to lasso up the big bird. "Calm yourself, Great Beast!"

Lien blinks. She knows the locals call this Turkey Day, but this is the first time she's seen something like this. Did someone try some new recipe that went horribly wrong? She steps back out of what she hopes is debris or gobbling range, behind a building corner or parked vehicle to see about dressing for the occassion.

Mercury flows through the first crumbled home at high speed, vertically covering a full 2 meters while she goes.

The inhabitants of the house are in, or or were in the course of fleeing from the remains of the dining room. They're in varying states of crushedness, from pinned to urgently-medical-attention-required.

Mercury forms herself to be a large shovelly object to remove rubble from atop persons and cast it aside, calling out, "SIX INNOCENTS! Someone help!"

The turkey scrambles back to its feet and pecks at the most threatening attacker: the woman with the huge knife!

Mercury flows to coat the person she is freeing, propping up the rubble as her body becomes a weird lifty type machine thing perfectly shaped to the rubble, giving the one she protects a dome over the head to allow breathing for a limited time. It should be enough. Within that dome, her voice sounds. "I will get you to safety soon. Please do not panic. Tell me your name. Mine is Mercury."

Blok says "Where injured?" and moves toward the sound of Mercury's voice.

Kalwara manages to get a metal bracer up into the way of the beck peck but the sheer power knocks her back off the tilted table. Turning her fall into a somersault she lands on her feet.

One of the vans with a GMF logo pulls up nearby. The driver pulls out his PDA and says something into it.

Kalwara becomes rather more cautious in her approach. The last time she fought a giant flying beast she ended up fighting for her life in a healer's temple. Never the less, feast! Approaching again she slashes at the turket's flank.

"G-Gemma," says the terrified no-longer pinned person. Her leg looks like it's broken.

The turkey takes the blow to its flank. Its attention remains on Kalwara's sword.

"Gemma, I am going to immobilize you by coating you in metal to keep you from harm," Mercury informs. "When I do, it will feel as though you are trapped. It will not be long after that when I free you. Perhaps a minute will pass. Do you have a favourite song you can recite when that happens?"

Gemma nods.

Zero looks aghast at what she's done. She was trying to trip it up not destroy another person's house with a giant, rabid turkey. "Oh no." SHe says with a voice full of dread. She runs towards the house and drops her thermal-lenses down so she can see if there was anyone inside that might be injured.

She closes her eyes every few paces to help mitigate the rubble preventing her from finding someone. She hopes the others can keep the turkey busy. She certainly suspects that flying Amazon should be up for the task.

The people in the house have no major injuries - a few minor cuts from the things sent flying from the table or perhaps from the turkey crashing into the house. They're been knocked half to the floor and are generally scrabbling backwards from the fight towards the neearest doors.

Quiet still isn't sure what to make of the fowlest of fowl, though cocks her helm as she picks up a nearby transmission. Near enough that it's on audio. Huh. She leaves the turkey carving and celebrant rescuing for a moment, vanishing from sight as her cloaking field activates.

Magus hears Mercurys call and does his best to keep the turkey distracted while hiding behind the trash can. He shouts at the giant bird, Hey turkey! You aint seen stuffing yet! He summons a bolt of eldritch magic and hurls it at the bird-like monstrosity.

The bolt flies from Maguss hand and soars through the air. The bolt hits the giant turkey in the spot of flesh exposed by his hex spell. The bird screeches in pain. Magus ducks back around the trash can for cover.

The turkey goes flying backward, taking out the likely already-weakened wall between the kitchen and dining room.

Artemis twirls her whip and tries to capture and wrangle the turkey again. This time, she won't be so gentle.

Mercury leaves a hardened shell around Gemma, shifting herself to create pathways within the home from the entrance to where she is by big metal ropes, "Follow the line, please," the rope part suggests as Mercury's voice emits from that portion and Blok is sensed.

Artemis's bladewhip wraps around the turkey. She digs her heels in to try and hold it down, then pulls on the whip to tighten and squeeze the turkey.

Gemma starts singing a song which has someone made it into the top 10, quite beyond the understanding of anyone above about the age of 18.

The trussed up turkey looks stupidly at the whip it's entangled in and follows it with its eyes back to Artemis. Then those eyes glow red...

It would appear that the turkey shoots microwaves from its eyes, on top of everything else....

Artemis gets her shield in the way for the most part, but she's partially singed. "This Fowl Beast is more capable than I expected!"

Blok follows the line to where Mercury has encased Gemma.

The dust is beginning to settle and Blok can dimly see the encased teen.

"She has a hurt leg and I have encased her for extraction," Mercury informs. "I am also connected to where the others are. If you prefer I can simply repeat what I have done here."

Blok says, "Probably a good idea, if you can prevent further injury."

"It will he done," Mercury assures.

Blok reaches a long arm into the rubble to draw Gemma forth safely.

The woman in the passenger side of the GMF van gets out, hauling a big tranq gun behind her. She sighs as she sees the chaos in the house, and approaches carefully.

Kalwara fo;;ows the giant turkey into the kitchen. Glancing at the flameless cooking booth (oven) she shakes her head, "It need to be bigger. A lot bigger." she mutters as once again she swings with the sword at the beast.

The blow, alas, strikes a patch where the feathers didn't moult under mystical assault.

Quiet eyes the woman exiting the van with the big gun. She can appreciate this, given that she has one, too. While she could attempt a lengthy and likely arduous attempt at charades to question the woman and compatriots as to their mission and relation to TOUSes, she goes with the abridged version. Her own very large rifle is drawn and she drops her cloak with it pointed at the woman. Just to be certain, she looses a whistle through the suit's barely-used vox. A two-tone whistle of the 'yoohoo' variety.

Luckily, the understandably twitchy woman recovers herself before shooting quiet point blank with an elephant-strength tranq in her surprise.

Zero begins making her way through the rubble of the second house- helping anyone she can to her feet and out the back door before she re-engages the Terrible Turkey.

"Come on! You guys have to get out of here!" She exclaims as she crouches down to help one person to their feet. She looks around preparing to carry someone out if she has to.

THe person help to her feet makes her way out of the dust, coughing, following the vague form of Blok. The next person, alas, proves to be in terrible shape - being both crushed and likely to bleed to death in moments once the weight pinning him down ceases to staunch the blood.

Magus glances over at the strange woman. I take it your with the birds-run-amuck patrol. Whatever you do, dont feed the turkey. I think its stuffed. he says to the woman with a smile. He peeks around his trash can cover and hurls another mystical bolt at the fowl bird.

The bird is struck hard - and knocked back again, demolishing half the kitchen fittings.

Artemis pulls tighter on her whip to further squeeze the giant turkey.

The turkey flaps its wings uselessly as Artemis tightens her hold.

The turkey would choose to flee, but that isn't practical as long as it's trussed up like, well, a turkey. So it blasts again at Artemis will all its force of will. In other words, no harder than last time. It's a turkey.

Artemis gets burned and singed even with her shield to protect her. It hurts, and yet she laughs. "At last! I was worried this planet had no fearsome beasts to battle!"

Kalwara nods to Artemis even as she slices at the beast with sword. "This reminds me of the beasts of the Wind Mountains. We must hunt together some day." She says.

Quiet remains focused on the woman with gun, still knowing not her purpose here aside from suspicous. She makes a lowering waggle with the barrel of her own weapon, pointedly looking at the other's armament. With any luck, she'll get the intent. If not, there are alternative preventative measures.

Artemis chuckles at Kalwara's comments. "Indeed we must!"

Mercury goes to the next patient, flowing over them and using that movement to relieve the rubble-pressure from atop their body, then provides them with a hard shell as she did with Gemma. "I am creating a metal covering to prevent further injury so you can be extracted safely," she informs the unfortunate. "I am sorry that there was little warning. My name is Mercury, you will be freed soon after you are moved."

The rope-like leading appendage remains, adjusted to guide Blok.

This man proves not to be conscious, which may be a mercy given his mangled form. The metal casing stops him bleeding out instantly.

"The next one has suffered massive trauma," Mercury informs Blok. "Not conscious."

Blok touches Gemma, allowing his Diagnostic Sense to tell him about her medical condition.

Gemma has a broken femur and several scratches and abrasions. And acne. Otherwise in surprisingly good shape, considering.

Blok says, "You have a broken leg. The paramedics will be here soon to take care of you."

The woman with the tranq gun takes Quiet's keeping the gun in her face as hostile. Like heroes being involved weren't bad enough. She makes a decision - and pulls the trigger on her own gun.

Quiet recently had an acquaintance get slipped some unrequested chemicals, so has no intentions of receiving the same. Her weapon fires immediatly after the other's, not at her, but to throw a nice heavy, frangible 'round' to decimate the incoming needle.

Kalwara examines her sword. Has it lost its edge. Because the beast still has its head.

Quiet confirms at least one thing about the woman: she didn't seem to eager to justify her presence, nor avoid shooting an unknown. That places her fairly in the threat column for Quiet. She then one-hands her weapon to bring forth another: an energy blade emits from her left forearm, which she brings down at the woman's weapon, rather than the wielder.

Magus says, "makes a gesture in the air and says an incantation. He vanishes from sight and reappears by Mercury. "What can I do to help?" he says. "

Artemis continues to wrestle with the turkey to try and prevent it from rampaging elsewhere.

Quiet's energy blade slices clean through the breech of the woman's weapon, reducing it to a pair of unwieldy batons, at best. She wasn't going to give her a second chance to fire.

"There are four trapped and one protected in dire condition," Mercury informs Magus. "If you are able to please extract that one while I protect the other four."

The turkey emits a rather strangled sound. Clearly the fight it wearing it down.

THe trussed turkey desperately shoots more microwaves from its eyes at its captor.

Artemis winces as she's cooked further by the microwaves beams that her shield and armor only protect her a little from. She looks like she can't take much more. "By the highest hallows, why won't this beast fall!?"

Mercury repeats the steps from the previous, moving on to the next most injured, leading the thicker line from previous to the one she uncovers and coats.

At least no one else seems to have life-threatening injuries. The work is getting a lot easier.

Only one, indeed, seems to have injuries enough to need the coating.

The woman who no longer has a tranq gun dashes back to the van. "Hell with this! Just drive!!"

Kalwara sees nothing wrong with her sword. So it must be her technique. Obviously she's been lacking practice. Still all she can do is her best. So once again the sword swings.

The turkey looks in alarm at the approaching sword, as if it knows somehow that knives are the bane of turkeys. Then the blade makes contact, and it passes from consciousness, collapsing fully to the ground.

Outside, Quiet deftly disables the van's front repulsor, leaving its nose down into the ground.

Mercury raises flags on the spots where the bodies within casings are, and tends to freeing Gemma and others that have been brought to a safer location.

Mercury's body casts ensure the turkey's victims can survey transportation to proper treatment. The family in that house are grateful. (Unlike the ingrate in the second house, who seem miffed that the heroes broke their house more than the turkey did...)

So much for the spirit of the season. :)

Mercury then works to clear the debris, extracting metal for recycling needs. She allows the others to perform interviews with the trouble shooters.