New Vindicators Academy of Europe #30: Allegory of Prudence (M&M 2E - IC)

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Shock
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Shock »

Violet Lear
HP: 3


"No, she was dead." Violet felt ill, reliving that day in her head. All thoughts of Martin, Durendal or whatever were lost. "She had to be."
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Gilliam
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Gilliam »

Tamati "Taheka" Stevens
HP: 2
Condition: Normal


"Wait are you saying some of those physcos escaped .... they weren't trapped when "HE" betrayed us." Tamati exclaimed remembering the battle with the Armada on the spaceship, the aftermath and again the pain of what happen to Wally.
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #27: The Anatomy Lesson of Dr. Nicolaes Tulp (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Flynnarrel »

EnigmaticOne wrote: Sat Apr 13, 2019 4:16 pm As for the two bickering on the side, Dennis turned to them with more exasperation. "The question is this: can you ensure Durendal releases the power she would take from other Martin when it's time? If not, then let's not take that risk."
Trying not to get embroiled in shock and denial, Fluxx stays focused on the previous conversation.

"Counter question: Is there ever a time you wish Zat Martin to 'ave full control of 'is powers again?"

"By all accounts she used ze powers she stole responsibly and nobly. It was 'er mezod of acquisition zat was repre'ensible. Zis is not to say zat she will never turn zese powers we 'and 'er to dark intent and purpose. But if we 'ave to take on someone wiz zese powers I would razer it not be a man 'oo 'as 'ad a century to possess zem and likely practice wiz every conceivable way to bend zem to 'arm, a man wiz decades of medical and chemical knowledge at 'is disposal and a database of virulent diseases in 'is 'ead assuming 'e possesses ze same Eidetic Memory as I. Which is not, to my knowledge, an aspect of our power and I do not believe Durendahl possesses."
"Look, in my studies of neos 'oo could mimic abilities dynamically including Tallemaja and Jack and ze blue Nephilim cannibal, zere was a limit to 'ow much zat zey could rewrite zeir DNA and RNA to accommodate powers. If Durendahl takes Martin's powers she may not be able to claim many more abilities of ozers." Fluxx says. "I'm uncertain if I could force 'er to relinquish what she took. But I zink it's our best shot."
"Something pithy this way comes."
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Tattooedman
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Tattooedman »

Greystone:
[Jack Rexroth]
HP: 1
LP: 2
Shock wrote: "No, she was dead." Violet felt ill, reliving that day in her head. All thoughts of Martin, Durendal or whatever were lost. "She had to be."
"I hate to say this, but probably not. I heard her say something about eating a golden apple when we invaded the Pandora ship. So there's a good chance she's an Aesir."
Jabroniville wrote: Tue Jul 13, 2021 11:45 pm
LOl- "The Tattooed Man"? What kind of ABSOLUTE DILDO would refer to himself as "The Tattooed Man" :P!?!
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Michuru »

NVAE, SUBLEVEL HALL (Fluxx, Greystone, Imago, Shiver, Taheka, Ursa; NPCs: Armorer, Backlash, Cacophony, Candyman, Capacitor, the Drifter, Eiron, Fach, Felsic, Fiore, Gae’bolg, Hubris, Kiln, Larrikin, Magnitude, Manticore, Martin, Maze, Mezzanine, Newton, Parabola, Pict, Puck, Rheid, Singularity, Tantivy, Thorn, Vestige)
Otso bristled at the mention of Durendal.
Newton grimaced. “First this Martin, now Durendal... It seems that each new wrinkle is just one more person who puts the students here at risk. Anne can keep Martin contained indefinitely, but the longer she does so, I fear he’ll be less inclined to cooperate. I have a contact inside the French government. I’ll see if they can-”

“They may be a bit preoccupied,” said Fisher as she entered the room. Whereas Newton couldn’t bring himself to look Fluxx in the eye, hers were deadset on Shiver. “Étienne Brisbois, the French Minister of the Interior, was just assassinated on live television by a Neo-Sapien.”

“Please tell me if wasn’t one of our rogues,” groaned Magnitude.

“In a manner of speaking,” said the headmistress. “It appears it was Violet Lear... or rather, an older version of herself. Given the entrance she made and her choice in attire, I’m going to presume it to be Black Ice, the woman you dealt with aboard the Elpis.”

Black Ice was many things: criminal, psychopath, Neo-Sapien, immortal, refuge... Only one thing mattered to Violet:, however she was the woman who killed Eve Robbins...

"No." Violet wobbled on her feet. "She's dead. The Elpis is gone. It can't be." She looked around for support.

It was Dennis who went to her aid first: "Not everyone in the Armada was accounted for, Violet. We didn't exactly get a full crew list."

This revelation seemed to trouble Tamati most of all. "Wait, are you saying some of those psycho escaped!?! They weren't trapped when he betrayed us."

Dennis grimaced at his otherworldly friend. "Could be she got picked up by another escapee who healed her. Could be she wasn't quite dead and got away on her own. Could be something else entirely."

Like that she was an Æsir. He hadn’t been present for that particular fight, but he’d heard the reports: an older, scantily-clad version of Violet who not only was capable of teleportation, but following others who teleported. Unless this was an ability inherent in Violet that the British girl simply hadn’t manifested yet, it was very likely she came from a world where she had eaten a golden apple.

"No, she was dead." Violet felt ill, reliving that day in her head. All thoughts of Martin, Durendal or whatever were lost. "She had to be."

"I hate to say this, but probably not.” Jack sighed mournfully. “I heard her say something about eating a golden apple when we invaded the Pandora ship. So, there's a good chance she's an Aesir."

A quiet fell over the room. Other Martin. Durendal. Black Ice. This was turning disastrous.

“Let’s focus up here,” said Kas. “Black Ice is in the wind, but Martin—the one we like slightly less…” He flashed the Martin Curie native to this dimension a grin to show he was teasing—trying to add levity to a tense situation. “He is right in front of us and is something we can do something about.

“Now, we know that the Astrolabe would not have brought him here unless it had a reason to. I fear it is not his powers—we have our own Martin for that—but something he offers. Maybe it’s a look into what could be—a warning for our Martin, but I doubt that very much. If that were the case, the Astrolabe likely would have just taken Martin to this other world to learn his lesson there. That… seems to be how this works. These valuable life lessons typically go to whomever accompanies the Drifter on her trips. Gaspar gained a measure of control when we went to Sophie’s world. Jack, wasn’t it on Dennis’ world that you and Ellen started your relationship? I won’t speak ill of our classmates, but… after returning from Dennis’ world, Astrid seemed less… obsessed with trying to prove her worth on the Volunteers and resigned herself to simply being herself. I dare say she seems happier for it.

“Given what we know from past encounters, it’s likely that the Astrolabe brought him here to teach him something about his life and to have him help us in some manner that no one on this world can. As such… we won’t benefit from antagonizing him more than we likely already have.”

Otso grimaced. “Sounds like we're going to France." Either to recruit Durendal to take this Martin’s powers, or to deal with whatever mess Black Ice was creating.

Their Martin grew quiet. This was distracting him. He had an appointment to keep: Dewhurst had requested his and Violet’s audience by the river… and judging by the news of Eve’s killer’s return, it was going to be difficult getting her to accompany him.

“We need more information,” Newton said. “If we want to have Durendal take Martin’s abilities, we can rectify that in an instant. Abe can bridge Vienna and Paris and we’ll approach with the offer.”

“I say we hold off on that,” Kas said. “Again: it may not be Martin’s powers that are key, but his knowledge. We need to find out more information. The timing of it all… Black Ice, killing a French diplomat? This might be the situation the Astrolabe brought Martin here to resolve. We need to find out what his connection in all of this is. If we can determine why he’s here…”

Martin tensed. They needed information, and he had an appointment with someone who specialized in gathering it.

“Give me an ‘our,” he said. “Violet, I am sorry for zis—for ze bombshell zat was just dropped on you… but I need your ‘elp ‘ere. I need you to trust me. Come wiz me… and we can take ze first few steps towards stopping ‘er.”

Shakily, Violet went with Martin. Tatjana moved to follow, but Martin raised a hand. “Please, zis will only take a moment… I’m afraid we ‘ave to do zis bit alone.”

The two set out from the school and made their way to the banks of the river. Sure enough, Dewhurst and another agent were there—soaking wet. Martin understood: one of them had the ability to teleport through water. “Took you long enough,” Dewhurst said, cracking a grin. “I thought you had a few teleporters now.”

He handed Martin a sealed bag containing a small file. “You know that Durendal was working to take down French crime families. After she was… removed… a couple of families were consolidated under one man: Reynard.” Martin looked at the few photographs they had of him: he was a man in dark clothes, a trench coat, and a fox mask. “Near as we can tell, he’s got military training. He’s also an Esper—an illusionist. Recently, he and some people attacked Le Cordon Bleu in a bid to kidnap a girl… Alice Brisbois. Her father is—was the French Minister of the Interior. We suspect that Reynard took her as a means to blackmail her father into… well, we’re not sure. We can suspect though.

“Before Brisbois could react, he was assassinated on live television. This is where you come in, Miss Lear.”

Violet interrupted the man. She already knew what her part in this was: Black Ice.

Dewhurst nodded. “We believe that Black Ice may have been hired by a rival family as a means to resist Reynard. As I said, the guy in the fox mask is uniting families under him—consolidating power. A few are trying to hold out against him. Our intelligence suggest that a few families have formed an alliance to oppose Reynard. They likely hired Black Ice—maybe other SPBs. Somehow, they found out about his abducting Brisbois’ daughter and moved to mess up his plan by simply killing him. Reynard can’t blackmail a dead man, anyway…

“Black Ice isn’t the only doppelganger involved in all of this, though… and as I’d rather not have a repeat of the Chimera incident…” He handed Martin a mobile phone with a video queued up on it. It was a security feed from Le Cordon Bleu—video of Reynard’s attack. There was a woman with him—a very athletic woman, with long, dark hair and a face Martin would recognize anywhere…

Tatjana Nelson was working with Reynard.

When the dark-haired woman unleashed her sonic scream, it destroyed the camera and the video ended. “It looks like some other world’s Tatjana is involved in all of this,” Dewhurst said. “I was able to keep Applebottom from raiding the school again by arguing how obviously this isn’t our Violet and Tatjana. I mean, no offense to your girlfriend, but she’s got a few pounds on this one…”

Martin tensed. The other Martin had ‘perfected’ her—he’d all but made her look identical to an accessory. If Applebottom, with her insane determination to destroy them found out…

“I thought I’d bring this to the two of you. This is shaping up to be a big thing, now that a diplomat’s dead. Any chance I can get your help with these doppelgangers?”

“She’s not a doppelganger,” Martin said, putting all of the pieces together. Kas theorized that the Astrolabe had brought another Martin here for his knowledge—something Martin himself lacked.

As the forklift divested the semi of its cargo, Martin spotted the label on the shipping container: "Cloning Tatjana Nelson".

"Okay, ZAT is NOT one of mine." Martin paused. "Oh... unless zey mean zat one fantas... err... never mind."


“It’s a clone. My mozer cloned my girlfriend and now Reynard ‘as ‘er.”
Don't mind me! Just fast-forwarding a bit! Feel free to go forward with that knowledge now! Also, hero point to Martin for this one.
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Flynnarrel
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Flynnarrel »

Michuru wrote: Tue Jun 11, 2019 9:34 pm Newton grimaced. “First this Martin, now Durendal... It seems that each new wrinkle is just one more person who puts the students here at risk. Anne can keep Martin contained indefinitely, but the longer she does so, I fear he’ll be less inclined to cooperate. I have a contact inside the French government. I’ll see if they can-”
Newton seemed surprised that Fluxx would bring up the French hero but the teen had always hated how that played out and this was a chance to rectify part of that if they could get Durendal to agree to a contract that spelled out when she could take and should gives up powers and bind those promises with the touch of an Asian Neo that Fluxx had worked with.
Further Martin had a history of using one set of problems against another Vis-a-vis going to Tallemaja for help when the Dastardly Gentlemen had kidnapped Tatjana and had plans to assail the school.
“Given what we know from past encounters, it’s likely that the Astrolabe brought him here to teach him something about his life and to have him help us in some manner that no one on this world can. As such… we won’t benefit from antagonizing him more than we likely already have.”
And you rarely get a meglomaniacs's help with anything unless you have a position of strength, such as if his powers were wonky from Durendal's confiscation.
“Give me an ‘our,”...

...
“It’s a clone. My mozer cloned my girlfriend and now Reynard ‘as ‘er.”
Fluxx summarizes the situation in his head:
So, we 'ave two crime conglomerates - Reynard wiz a Fach clone 'oo 'ave kidnapped a little girl and anozer 'oo 'ired Black Ice and maybe ozers 'oo 'ave killed ze Minister of ze Interior, quite publicly, so as to stymie ze first? Zat is a razer extreme option.

Zen zere is, related somehow, a century older Martin wiz a god complex but maybe with a future knowledge or expanded talent 'oose appearance, magically guaranteed, cannot be coincidental.


"Dewhurst, we'll need to work wiz ze French woman, I do not know 'er real name but she was 'Durendal' when she presented as a muscular male French super'ero. 'Er knowledge of the French crime scene could be invaluable. Do you know where she is being 'eld? Likewise, is there still a judiciary faction which governs supers? If we can ensure zat Durendal will only take powers as determined by ze court and will give up powers when ordered by zat same body would zey agree zat she can continue to serve ze French people in a 'eroic capacity? Can you ask?" Fluxx asks.

"Violet, we need to get back to ze ozers, I zink I know why ze ozer Martin was brought 'ere. But do you 'ave any questions for zese men first?"

"Oh, sorry."
he says to Dewhurst's likely confusion. "A magical dimension-hopping artifact brought an alternate-universe, future version of me 'oo 'as a severe God-complex, can rewrite DNA wiz a touch, and zreatens to unleash a plague if 'e deosn't get 'is way. I zink zat covers it."
"Something pithy this way comes."
Shock
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Shock »

Violet Lear
HP: 3


"No."
Violet shook her head, still numb from the revelation that Black Ice was still alive in their world. "No questions."
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Michuru »

First off, I adore Martin’s summary to Dewhurst. I will get a response there. Right now, I’m wanting to know what all Martin elects to share, and with whom. Basically, does he try to prevent Tatjana from finding out she was cloned? Does he call a meeting with Newton and the core hitters on the student body? How does he move forward from this?

And yes, Dewhurst is confident he can arrange a conversation between the school and Durendal’s handlers, but will caution that the French government is still a bit meh on Martin, given the role he played in taking down their messianic hero.
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Flynnarrel
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Flynnarrel »

"Let zem know, as a National myself, zat I deeply regret 'ow zat occurred and I am working on a proposal to return our 'ero to ze French people. Ze plan is zis - we draw up an set of promises zat Durendal will make zat include never taking powers unless auzorized by some Board or Committee of ze French Government or ozer Judiciary Agency, to relinquish zose powers, in total or in part, upon request by zat same Committee, and only use 'er powers in ze interests of public safety. Zen cement ze promises into place wiz ze 'elp of one of ze Asian Academy's students 'oose power to do so 'as been documented. Zey may try to put in obedience clauses and controls to 'ave a 'pet 'ero' but zey should avoid over-complicating it or ze promise might not take 'old. Zere is still a lot of moving parts wiz zis, not ze least of which is creating ze Promise wiz advocates for boz ze Government and for Durendal looking it over, and even asking if ze student in question is willing to use 'er powers for zis. But it iz ze start at least." Fluxx says. "Now we must get back to ze school."

************
On the way back Fluxx composes an e-mail to one of his sister Elle's old email addresses. He didn't know what part of the world she and Tallemaja were currently 'righting wrongs' in but he had to tell her that a French criminal had stolen their progenitor, Entier's old experiments and technologies and was using them nefariously. Any assistance or information she could give him would be appreciated.
************

When they return Fluxx will go over in his mind who was in the Hall from before:
NVAE, SUBLEVEL HALL (Fluxx, Greystone, Imago, Shiver, Taheka, Ursa; NPCs: Armorer, Backlash, Cacophony, Candyman, Capacitor, the Drifter, Eiron, Fach, Felsic, Fiore, Gae’bolg, Hubris, Kiln, Larrikin, Magnitude, Manticore, Martin, Maze, Mezzanine, Newton, Parabola, Pict, Puck, Rheid, Singularity, Tantivy, Thorn, Vestige)
And chooses to pare it down to those who've been instrumental in the field before (including the actual Vindicators of course). He notes the amount of significant others are included but tries not to dwell on that fact. While Fluxx wouldn't normally have included Puck he figures the chaotic being would just show up anyway so why not include her from the get-go.
(Fluxx, Greystone, Imago, Shiver, Taheka, Ursa, Current (if he wants); NPCs: Backlash, the Drifter, Fach, Fiore, Hubris, Kiln, Magnitude, Maze, Newton, Parabola, Pict, Puck). Martin (and presumably Mezzanine along with whatever other guards deemed appropriate will not be there).
let me know if I've forgotten any Vindicators or anyone else that has been amongst the 'core'. I don't recognize all the NPC names.
While the call is going out to gather folk together Fluxx will take aside Tatjana. He takes her hands in his. "Tatjana, we are going to 'ave to let Martin reverse ze changes 'e 'as made. Not only is it our only current bargaining chip you, as you are now,... complicates zings in ze current crisis. Zere is a French criminal 'oo 'as ze services of a clone of you zat Entier engineered. Ze clone was modified to not possess ze genetic markers for your disease and, as such, looks exactly like you do now. Ze person I 'ad to see earlier told us zis and said zat your visual differences from ze clone was ze only zing keeping MI-18 from raiding ze school like zey did when Jack's doppelganger was causing trouble." He looks down at their joined hands, "But I've taken a sample of zis DNA and I swear we can work to get you back to a similar state. I'm... sorry."

*************************************

In front of those assembled he will lay out what Dewhurst told him to fill in the missing pieces.

Originally 'Reynard' (Fluxx morphs into the picture/video Dewhurst showed him) kidnapped Alice Brisbois from Le Cordon Bleu. He had with him a clone of Tatjana created by Entier, possessed of her full sonic powers, and seemingly her own will, though that's yet to be determined. They didn't know what other of Entier's technology Reynard's group stole and were using.

A rival group of criminal families decided to thwart Reynards attempt at blackmail by hiring Black Ice (and maybe other SPBs) to kill Brisbois. We have no other knowledge of their agenda or goals.

"I am planning to offer my services to ze French government in tracking down Reynard and 'is organization. I plan to make a deal wiz Martin - ze uncontested reversion of Tatjana to 'er previous state for all ze information 'e possesses regarding any secret labs or experiments zat 'is universe's Jeannette Curie, or equivalent being, including locations. If I know my mozer zey will be secure and secret, probably just ze place Reynard would run 'is or 'er operations out of. It is a place to start at least. If ozers wanted to assist me or approach it from ze ozer side - hunt down Black Ice and zis ozer group of French crime families zat assistance would probably also be welcome by ze French government. Eizer way we should 'tap' Durendal for 'er knowledge of ze organized crime scene."
"Something pithy this way comes."
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Shock »

Violet Lear
HP: 3


In the time since their travel back and Martin's presentation to those gathered, Violet had recovered a bit from her initial shock. But she was still more subdued than usual. "Durendal's proved herself to be out for revenge not justice. And willing to sacrifice children in that quest for revenge. How do you know she'll keep her promise and take orders from the French government?"

"And still that seems better than trying to work with that other Martin, who is out for no one but himself. Turn your back on him and you could end up a bowl of soup. How can we possibly keep him under control?"
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Michuru »

Other Martin will agree to help without hesitation, his only caveats being a sincere apology from Martin.
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Flynnarrel »

Shock wrote: Thu Jun 13, 2019 11:58 pm Violet Lear
HP: 3


In the time since their travel back and Martin's presentation to those gathered, Violet had recovered a bit from her initial shock. But she was still more subdued than usual. "Durendal's proved herself to be out for revenge not justice. And willing to sacrifice children in that quest for revenge. How do you know she'll keep her promise and take orders from the French government?"

"And still that seems better than trying to work with that other Martin, who is out for no one but himself. Turn your back on him and you could end up a bowl of soup. How can we possibly keep him under control?"
Fluxx looked to Violet. She was there when Fluxx had laid out his plan to Dewhurst. Maybe she just wanted Fluxx to repeat it in front of the group. He addresses the others.

"Durendal is a lesser evil zan Martin by far." Fluxx says quickly, then takes a breath. "But zere IS a possibility for control. Zere's an Asian student 'oo, wiz a touch, lays a powerful mental command on a person zat enforces at least zeir last promise. If we get Durendal to promise not to steal ozer powers, unless directed, and to give up ones she possesses when asked, zis is ze least evil." Fluxx says. For all his offering of another student's abilities he shared the girl's distaste of taking away another's free will and wanted to minimize how complex a promise it would take.
"Something pithy this way comes."
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Shock »

Violet Lear
HP: 3


Violet looked doubtful. "If you say so. I just think it might be better to have fewer enemies involved."
Michuru
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Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Michuru »

VIENNA: RIVERBANKS > NVAE, SUBLEVEL HALL: READY ROOM (Fluxx, Greystone, Imago, Shiver, Taheka, Ursa; NPCs: Backlash, the Drifter, Fach, Fiore, Hubris, Kiln, Magnitude, Maze, Newton, Parabola, Pict, Puck)
Entier had cloned Tatjana Nelson and Reynard had somehow stumbled upon the lab where it was kept. If he had access to Martin’s mother’s research—the things she had created… what did that mean for France and the rest of the world?

That was why the Astrolabe had brought Martin here: he alone knew where Entier’s labs were. Durendal would be no help in that regard. They were going to need the madman to cooperate with them…

“Dewhurst,” Martin said, “we’ll need to work wiz ze French woman—I do not know ‘er real name, but she was ‘Durendal’ when she presented as a muscular male French super’ero.”

Dewhurst nodded glumly. “Nanette Montauban.” The name brought a nod from the junior.

“‘Er knowledge of the French crime scene could be invaluable. Do you know where she is being ‘eld?”

It was the other man with Dewhurst—Agent Oates—who spoke up. “I worked a bit of the Durendal case. As I understand, she didn’t exactly have much in the way of knowledge… Nanette was a pharmacist’s assistant. Her husband, Roland? He was a police officer investigating organized crime syndicates. Both of them were Neo-Sapiens: you know what Nanette’s powers are, but Roland apparently has the ability to change his appearance. He used his power to infiltrate one of the bigger families. Somehow, he got found out and the head of that family demanded blood. They not only gunned down Roland but his entire family: mom and dad, sister, nieces… They gunned him down, but Roland didn’t die, though. He survived, but was comatose.” Oates thought for a moment. “I’m not sure what his condition is at this point. Either way, his wife wanted revenge, so she used her powers on him to become Durendal. You know the rest.

“There are a few theories about how her powers work. Like I said, she worked in a drug store before all of this. She doesn’t have any sort of background in law enforcement or investigative research or hand-to-hand combat. In her tenure as Durendal though, she almost crippled the Milieu. A lot of people believe that when Nanette uses her powers on someone, she takes on some of their knowledge. If that’s the case? Nanette might not be much help here. Depending upon how her power works, she may have lost all knowledge of the Milieu when she released her husband’s abilities. Granted, if he’s still alive, she might be able to get it all back, but… there you go.”

Martin nodded, taking in everything the teleporter knew. “Is zere still a judiciary faction which governs supers? If we can ensure zat Durendal will only take powers as determined by ze court and will give up powers when ordered by zat same body, would zey agree zat she can continue to serve ze French people in a ‘eroic capacity?”

Dewhurst thought for a moment. “It’s… complicated. There is no organization that governs supers in general, just… particular supers. The Vindicators, for instance, are essentially employees of the United Nations. They operate under the umbrella of the Security Council. People like Oates here, meanwhile, operate under the auspices of our government. The UN has no real jurisdiction over what Oates does or doesn’t do, despite him being a Neo-Sapien.

“All of that changes if ever Oates decides to use his powers to commit a crime. Now, if he decides to do something back home? Let’s say he kills a man. Well, maybe Paladin or Excalibur will move to track him down for that. Maybe he begins terrorizing members of Parliament. MI-18 is going to be hunting him. Now, let’s say he goes international. Suddenly, the Vindicators are going to be on his trail.

“So long as he stays in his own pond, Brittan will decide what to do with him. You’ve seen where we keep our super-powered criminals. I don’t believe I need to say much more. If he goes international, though? Well, he’d be tried at the Hague… like Ronald Nelson was.” Martin remembered that ordeal all too well. “Up until recently, they had a way of dealing with such criminals…” Pandora was considered a humane treatment for international criminals whose powers made prison a non-viable choice. “Durendal’s crimes were international, but several factors kept them from shipping her off to Pandora. One, she technically didn’t kill anyone; two, she willingly surrendered and proceeded to cooperate with law enforcement.”

Martin remembered that, too: it was the curse of having an eidetic memory… He remembered everything about that night in Paris.

“My powers allow me to understand ze powers of zose around me. Zis boy is fast--fast enough to be almost anywhere in Europe in a moment." Durendal looked from Current to Sprite. "You can fly incredibly fast. Will you two protect zis city? Will you step up as Magnitude and ze Volunteers 'ave for Vienna? Will you devote yourselves to doing what I 'ave done and protect zese people? Zis city? Zis country?”

They had, and they hadn’t. They had prevented the Armada from destroying the entire universe, but Paris itself was arguably worse off without Durendal. Perhaps now, Martin had a way to correct the course…

“Durendal’s power makes her dangerous if she has other Neo-Sapiens around her. Given that, the Hague sentenced her to a regular prison—not Pandora. I don’t know if they’ll consider releasing her, but…”

“Can you ask?”

Dewhurst shrugged. “That’s all I can do. I have some contacts in the French government who may be able to help facilitate things, but… they may not be keen to listen if I drop your name. You’re… not precisely France’s favorite son…”

“Let zem know, as a National myself, zat I deeply regret ‘ow zat occurred and I am working on a proposal to return our ‘ero to ze French people. Ze plan is zis: we draw up an set of promises zat Durendal will make zat include never taking powers unless auzorized by some Board or Committee of ze French Government or ozer Judiciary Agency, to relinquish zose powers, in total or in part, upon request by zat same Committee, and only use ‘er powers in ze interests of public safety. Zen cement ze promises into place wiz ze ‘elp of one of ze Asian Academy’s students ‘oose power to do so ‘as been documented. Zey may try to put in obedience clauses and controls to ‘ave a ‘pet ‘ero’ but zey should avoid over-complicating it or ze promise might not take ‘old. Zere is still a lot of moving parts wiz zis, not ze least of which is creating ze Promise wiz advocates for boz ze Government and for Durendal looking it over, and even asking if ze student in question is willing to use ‘er powers for zis. But it iz ze start at least.”

That would have to be enough. “Violet, we need to get back to ze ozers. I zink I know why ze ozer Martin was brought ‘ere, but do you ‘ave any questions for zese men first?”

“Oh, sorry,” he said, realizing how confusing the idea of another Martin might be to the two men. “A magical dimension-hopping artifact brought us an alternate-universe, future version of me ‘oo ‘as a severe god-complex, can rewrite DNA wiz a touch, and zreatens to unleash a plague if ‘e doesn’t get ‘is way. I zink zat covers it.”

Dewhurst blinked.

“No.” Violet shook her head, still numb from the revelation that Black Ice was still alive and in their world. “No questions.”

“I have several,” muttered Oates, still reeling from Martin’s last statement.

Martin waved to the pair. “We must get back to the school.”

As they walked, Martin drew his mobile phone out of his body and worked to compose an email to the last address he had for his sister—if only to tell her that Reynard had taken over one of Entier’s old labs. He sent another immediately after, asking Newton to gather certain individuals in the Ready Room.

At the school’s entrance, he was not surprised to find Tatjana waiting for him. It took him aback seeing her: he wasn’t quite used to her new appearance just yet. “Tatjana,” he said as Violet slipped into the building, “we are going to ‘ave to let Martin reverse ze changes ‘e ‘as made. Not only is it our only current bargaining chip, but you, as you are now… complicates zings in ze current crisis. Zere is a French criminal ‘oo ‘as ze services of a clone of you zat Entier engineered. Ze clone was modified to not possess ze genetic markers for your disease and, as such, looks exactly like you do now.”

Her dark eyebrows shifted in anger at the mention of a disease—as though it were responsible for her entire appearance. Immediately, he realized he had misspoke and apologized. It seemed to soothe her rage. That was one benefit about the transformation he would miss: as she was now, Tatjana was unnaturally understanding.

“Ze person I ‘ad to see earlier told us zis and said zat your visual differences from ze clone was ze only zing keeping MI-18 from raiding ze school like zey did when Jack’s doppelganger was causing trouble.” He looked down at their joined hands. “But I’ve taken a sample of zis DNA and I swear we can work to get you back to a similar state. I’m… sorry.”
Tatjana gave Martin’s hand a squeeze and then shifted to stand beside him. Hand-in-hand, they walked into the school and made their way down to the sublevel and into the Wreck Room, where the others were waiting…

“Montauban was a Parisian police officer who used ‘is morphing abilities to infiltrate and investigate a criminal syndicate. Zey caught on to ‘is ruse and zough ‘e survived ze attack, ‘e was left in a coma. ‘Is wife, Nanette, was also a Neo-Sapien… ‘Er power allows ‘er to copy anozer Neo-Sapien’s ability, and possibly zeir knowledge… but at ze cost zat her target becomes unable to control zis power. She used zis power, as well as zose she took from ze Amanar sisters, Otso, Viktor, Mouloud… to wage a one-man war against ze Milieu.

“She became Durendal.

“Several monzs ago… several students and myself went to Paris to confront ‘er.” He didn’t name the students. There was too much pain associated with Eve and Gaspar that he thought it best not to name them. “Ultimately, she gave up all of ze powers she had taken. She was taken into custody and zat seemed to be zat.

“According to our friend, Agent Dewhurst, an illusionist named Reynard has consolidated several criminal families under ‘im. ‘E recently abducted a young woman—Alice Brisbois.” Each time he named them, Martin shifted forms to show them what each person looked like. “Alice’s fazer was ze French Minister of ze Interior, and it is likely zat Reynard intended to use Alice to turn ze man into a puppet. ‘Owever, ze criminal groups ‘oo ‘ave resisted Reynard ‘ave ‘ired superpowered mercenaries—Black Ice, and potentially ozers. Some’ow zey knew of Alice’s abduction and moved to counter Reynard’s move. Zey ‘ad Black Ice assassinate ze minister.

“Security footage of ze abduction shows zat Reynard was accompanied by someone ‘oo bares a remarkable resemblance to Tatjana as she currently looks. She even ‘as similar powers. I believe this may be a clone of Tatjana created by my mozer. When we entered my psyche to expel Entier’s influence over my actions while I slept, we saw a… memory… It referred to an attempt to clone Tatjana. We paid it no furzer mind, but… it would seem as zough Entier did execute such plans. Zis is likely why ze Astrolabe brought zis ozer Martin ‘ere: ‘e alone would ‘ave knowledge of where Entier’s ‘idden lab may be.”

“Then it sounds like there are two ways to get that information,” Magnitude said, stroking his chin in thought. “If Durendal does take a subject’s knowledge when she copies their powers, she could potentially learn what we need to know.” He smirked. “We may not need him to cooperate with us after all.”

Kiln wasn’t so sure. “Only if we can get Durendal to cooperate… and that’s a big if considering how this has played out since Durendal’s arrest. When she gave up her powers on live television? Her face was out there. It wasn’t long before her real name was known. There was a blip in the news not long after: they went after her family. Her parents, brother, nieces… There’s no one left. Maybe she’ll jump at the chance to get revenge, but… what if she blames us as much as she does whoever pulled the trigger?”

“Durendal’s proved herself to be out for revenge—not justice. And willing to sacrifice children in that quest for revenge.” Violet sounded more subdued than usual. She was still reeling from the revelation that her doppelganger was involved in all of this. “And still, that seems better than trying to work with that other Martin, who is out for no one but himself. Turn your back on him and you could end up a bowl of soup.”

“I trust the other Martin more than Durendal,” said Hubris. “Don’t get me wrong: he’s batshit insane, but he’s still altruistic. He genuinely believes he’s helping.”

“You could say the same thing about Durendal,” offered Pict. “Maybe she was out for revenge, but she was still fighting the good fight… not that I approve of her tactics.” He flashed Otso an apologetic look. “The question isn’t about what direction their moral compasses point, however: it’s whether or not either can be trusted. Yes, Durendal will likely have a vendetta against the Milieu, and yes, New Martin seems determined to play the part of the benevolent god he believes himself to be… but I don’t think either can be trusted off a leash. If give them an ounce of freedom, their mad pursuit towards their goals—however noble—could prove more destructive than the thing they oppose.”

“Plus, both very likely now have reason to loathe our Martin,” said Kirstie. She looked at Martin sadly. “Sorry.”

Martin moved to steer the conversation back on track; it seemed as though every time the denizens of this campus tried to formulate a plan, someone had to play the part of cat wrangler. “I am planning to offer my services to ze French government in tracking down Reynard and ‘is organization,” Martin said firmly. “I plan to make a deal wiz Martin—ze uncontested reversion of Tatjana to ‘er previous state for all ze information ‘e possesses regarding any secret labs or experiments zat ‘is universe’s Jeannette Curie, or equivalent being, had. If I know my mozer, zey will be secure and secret, probably just ze place Reynard would run ‘is or ‘er operations out of. It is a place to start at least.

“If ozers wanted to assist me or approach it from ze ozer side—hunt down Black Ice and zis ozer group of French crime families—zat assistance would probably also be welcome by ze French government.”

“That’s your plan?” asked Ellen. “Let Martin 2.0 play around with Tat’s DNA and ask Durendal nicely to help us out and just trust that neither will go rogue?”

“Durendal is a lesser evil zan Martin by far,” Martin said quickly. “But zere is a possibility for control. Zere’s an Asian student ‘oo, wiz a touch, lays a powerful mental command on a person zat enforces at least zeir last promise. If we get Durendal to promise not to steal ozer powers unless directed, and to give up ones she possesses when asked, zis is ze least evil.”

Violet looked doubtful. "If you say so. I just think it might be better to have fewer enemies involved."

“I can have Abe take us to Tokyo,” Newton said. “I’ll explain the situation to their administration and… presuming you know them well enough, Martin? You can ask if they’ll join us for this course of the mission.

“From there, we’ll split into multiple teams. One team will accompany our guest to the Curies’ lab—however we learn the location of. They should be prepared for a possible encounter with Reynard. Dennis? Your abilities will make you invaluable here. I hope you’ll consider being a part of this strike force. Likewise, Kas does not rely on sight and that may provide him with an advantage. Kas will lead this team.

“A secondary team will operate on what information Dewhurst has on the other crime families. It is highly possible that they may have hired multiple mercenaries—not just Black Ice. The Vindicators will take point on this mission. Puck, would it be too much to ask for you to join them? Your experience could be invaluable.”

“Well, since you asked so nicely,” said the ageless creature floating horizontally in the back of the room. Still in the guise of a young girl, Puck had one leg raised with a knee bent, giving half of the room a clear view up the pleated skirt it wore. “Perhaps I should dress the part?” The school girl costume turned black, with a white ‘V’ over the shirt and tie. “Does this make me officially a Vindicator now?”

“Please, no,” muttered Backlash.

Newton ignored them. “Fiore will lead a third team that will remain in reserve with Abe. As we don’t yet know the strength of the opposition, we need to be prepared to supply either team with reinforcements, as necessary.”
Alpha will be moving onto the Curies’ lab. Unless EO has objections, Dennis will be a part of this team. Also, he should have three more hero points, because I am a terrible person who missed EO's birthday. :( Magnitude will lead.

Beta will be led by Kiln and will consist of Backlack, Hubris, Pict, and Puck.

Gamma will be reservists. Fiore and Sidestep will be part of this team.
NVAE Setting - VP: 5
Flynnarrel
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Joined: Fri Nov 04, 2016 5:23 pm

Re: New Vindicators Academy of Europe #29: The Son of Man (M&M 2E - IC)

Post by Flynnarrel »

Michuru wrote: Mon Jun 17, 2019 3:06 am “That’s your plan?” asked Ellen. “Let Martin 2.0 play around with Tat’s DNA and ask Durendal nicely to help us out and just trust that neither will go rogue?”
"I am loathe to give Ozer Martin access to Tatjana's DNA once more but as ze team going after Reynard could use 'er presence as a counter to 'er clone's powers she should be as distinguishable from ze clone as possible. And whezer or not we line up ze plan of Nanette taking Martin's abilities and knowledge we can't trust zat she will get ze exact information we need. We'll need to speak to 'im and need to offer 'im ze one zing we know 'e currently wants - Tatjana's reversion and a sincere apology from me, and possibly Jack." Fluxx gives an apologetic look to the teenaged Aesir.

Alpha will be moving onto the Curies’ lab. Unless EO has objections, Dennis will be a part of this team. Also, he should have three more hero points, because I am a terrible person who missed EO's birthday. :( Magnitude will lead.

Beta will be led by Kiln and will consist of Backlack, Hubris, Pict, and Puck.

Gamma will be reservists. Fiore and Sidestep will be part of this team.
"Tatajana and I should be on Alpha team. We'll also need to determine if we are going wiz Martin or Durendal. Since Martin 'as already flatly refused to wear a mask or 'ide 'is identity in any way saying 'why should I? I'm a god', if 'e is seen in public zat compromises my secret identity in zis world - even older 'e still looks recognizably like me. But zere are a lot of moving parts to getting ze Promise set up wiz Durendal." Fluxx says uncertainly.
"Something pithy this way comes."
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