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Greg's bunker is awfully cold this time of the year, so Colin invited all the usual suspects at his house to decide what to do with Cindy. He made chocolate and lemonade. Mrs. Walters made a special cake. Well two, actually, one is for Jacob and John.

He and Sylvia explained how they found who attempted and Gena's life and injured John, and the deal they made with Chris.

"Basically we have two options. We can goad her into attacking a false Gena, which would get her under custody. Or we goad her into confessing that she already tried to kill her, which would get her under custody for good. From a legal point of view, the second option would be better, the first one is easier. But dangerous. She managed to hurt John, and that's no easy feat. So, any suggestion on how we might pull this off?"

"Kinda depends.  Do we want to try to pull this off quietly or are we willing to deal with the mess a big ol' fight is going to leave?"

Sammy says "Getting her to attack could be misinterpreted as entrapment.  She could claim she was totally set up, and she'd be right.  Better to get her to confess.  But I'll be the fake Gena if we can't figure out how to get her to confess."  Her eyes move around the room, and she gets a thoughtful look on her face.  "Although, just me might be able to do it.  Or any of us girls, if their boyfriends are cooperative.  She's jealous, right?  Suppose somebody gets caught 'straying', and the injured party gets really angry in front of Cindy?  She might sympathize, might even offer solutions.  I could do it, as boy bait or Cindy hook.  She might even believe it.  I'm getting a rep anyhow."

"There's another way."

Colin seems very reluctant.

"We could go and tell her we're almost sure Mike has tried to kill Gena, and that we'll have him arrested."

He seems disgusted with himself for even having thought of that.

"Well, why not just let Dave's rumor mill do that.  If the word gets out, and she doesn't know how the rumor got started, then maybe she'll turn herself in."  John says, "The problem is.  There's no proof.  But, maybe she just needs to get help."

"I don't know if she loves Mike that way," Sylvia says.  "They don't have a real relationship as far as I can tell.  That is, she's obsessed with him.  He doesn't know she exists.  And she's willing to kill Gena just to bump up the odds that he'll acknowledge her.

"That's not the profile of a rational, self-sacrificing person.  That's the profile of a sociopath."

John looks at Sylvia for a moment.  He seems like he might say something, but stops and simply offers her that slightly forced smile she's seen on him when he is at a loss for what to say, then he looks away.  "The bait way is really dangerous.  But if we're careful we can mitigate the risks.  But I'd suggest trying the confession thing first.  If she is that unstable, it might not bother her to admit it."

"I'll talk to her," Sammy says, her mind seemingly set on inviting disaster.  "Let me try.  Syl can monitor, and if it looks like something bad is about to happen, you can all ride to the rescue.  How about that?  Or I'll take Sarah with me and she can fwip us away.  I'd say send Laney, since nobody really knows her yet, but with her luck, she'll definitely be attacked."

"Or we can just hold her down and make her a better person." mutters Sarah.  She looks up and smiles nervously.  "Kidding?"

She thinks about it for a second.  "Maybe we should send her and angel.  Everybody gets one.  Maybe that angel could tell her she's on the wrong path."

"If Mike was who vandalized those construction sites.  How does he fit into this, besides being the object of Cindy's affections.  And, is he in any danger?"  John asks after Sarah mentioned angels.

Rhys looks hopeful...

Outside, across the street and on the roof of 636 Pleasant Street, Alicia chuckles as she sips on a cup of lukewarm chocolate, a no-longer steaming Power Rangers thermos nestled next to her.

I can just see Ree-is's face right now, she thinks with a grin.

ooc: not to be a prig, but Alicia can hear all the way across the street when the crew are in an old fall out shelter dug deep in a backyard? With the door closed?

OOC: Bill, we're at Colin's. Read the first post. :)
I've decided (from Google Maps) that Colin lives at 638 Pleasant Street.

"Sylvia peeked into her head. I really wanted to believe there was something we could do to help her. I thought she might be a little like the bee guy. I hoped we could talk to her. On a second look, what we saw was even less encouraging. She's much more like Fern than the bee guy. We have to stop her, before she hurts someone. I don't think the angel would work.
Besides, it's not like we're sending her to jail. She's a minor. She'll get the help she needs by someone more qualified than us."

He turns to John.

"Mike is the one who vandalized those sites, but unless she finally declares her feelings and he rejects her, I wouldn't say he's in danger."

OOC: I was composing my response when I saw that Doc beat me to it. If circumstances are such that Alicia couldn't eavesdrop, I trust the GM to send me packing. ;)

"Gena was there at one of them, remember?  The lipstick?  Maybe he was showing off.  Or..."  Sammy, the resident 'expert' on complicated multilayered, multi-partied interpersonal relationships, looks thoughtful.  "Maybe Gena was with somebody else.  Mike was there, following her.  He got upset because she was with somebody else.  When they left, he let his robot rip up the spot?  Or maybe he had already been to one site, saw Gena at the other, and ripped that one up for spite?  Or maybe stole the robot to get somebody else in trouble?  Preston?"  She rubs a spot over one eye.  "That was complicated. I think I just sprained a part of my brain."

"Maybe Preston has a crush on Mike, too," Sylvia suggests, but she might be joking.

ooc:groovy. Shutting up now.

"I was thinking more Gena and Preston were together, and Mike saw them."

OOC:  So?  Have we decided?  Is this happening Thursday night or Friday?

OOC: I vote Thursday.

OOC: This thread is and has always been on Thursday. I think freezing this until it's clear if Donnie and Sarah are going to be back by Thursday afternoon would be a bit more sane for everyone involved. But it's up to you. If you want to go on, we can go on.
And whatever the result of the meeting is, I think it should take place at school on Friday. If that is going to be relevant or not it's up to the GM.

Alicia bites her lip as she struggles to keep track of the conversation over the background noises of suburbia.

The main drawback of eavesdropping is being unable to contribute any insights. She takes out her cellphone and mentally debates a course of action. Will letting someone know she's listening in derail the meeting? Is her input useful enough to risk it?

After a few seconds, she sighs and puts her hand down. She'll wait; chances are someone else will think of it and she'll be off the hook. If not, she can always pipe in later.

After a moment, Sammy asks "We've been staring at Cindy.  Did anybody ever bother to find out who Gena likes?"

"Does it matter?" Sylvia says.  "I mean, I could look, but I'd rather not go digging for something that's none of my business."

Colin shakes his head.
"No. Sorry, Sammy... I mean excuse me, but it doesn't matter now. At the moment Gena and Mike and Preston don't matter. Please, let's decide what to do about Cindy now, before she does anything irreparable. I agree that we'll have to talk with Mike about the construction sites, and about the sleep gas, and all the rest. But that comes later."

He doesn't seem all too well.

OOC: I need a notice check from Alicia and one from Sylvia (use + 4 for your telepathy rank or your Notice skill whichever is higher)

Sammy opens and shuts her mouth a few times, rather like a gasping codfish.  Then she says "OK.  Whatever.  Somebody else talk to Cindy then, since I don't seem to be thinking the same way as the rest of you.  I don't want to mess up your plans."  She retreats behind her cup of chocolate.

OOC: I Spy With My Little Eye... (1d20+10=13) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1922271/) Ugh. I guess she's too distracted by the thumping coming from the bedroom below. ;)

What's new, pussycat? Whoa-oa-oa-oa-oa-oa. . . . (1d20+8=15) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1922310/)

OOC: Nothing to see here, move along citizens.

Sylvia throws Colin a look.  "Something wrong, chief?"

Sammy gazes curiously between Sylvia and Colin.  "She's right.  You don't look well."

Colin tries to wave away their concern. "It's nothing. Just a bad feeling. It's gone. Don't mind me."

"What about we go with the plan of telling her Mike could go to prison, then, if she says something incriminating, Chris has the evidence he needs, and if she doesn't, we casually drop that Gena might be the one who pointed the finger at Mike? This way she'll be tempted to get rid of her and play hero with Mike for it. We'd only have to offer her a false target and wait."

Sammy's brow furrows.  "Not Gena.  Don't point the finger at Gena; its too dangerous.  It doesn't matter who Cindy attacks if all you're doing is collecting evidence.  Say it is one of us turning in Mike; at least we have a chance of protecting ourselves."  She looks down at her cocoa.

Alicia grits her teeth at Colin's suggestion. You go, girl, she mentally cheers Sammy on.

The idea of using Gena as bait does not appeal to her at all either. And after this is over, maybe the girl could help Mike get over his obsession with metallic tentacles.

She frowns. She too has noticed a certain... oddness in Colin's voice and manner. Sylvia and Sammy's comments reinforce her concern. It may be worth talking to him once the meeting is over.

Sarah moves over to Colin and waits.  The concern's been mentioned.  If he was sick she could zap him home and if it was something different.. well she could get out of the way while John, Donnie and Sylvia took a look.  

Donnie comes out of the bathroom, rubbing his hand over the stubbly remains of his recently removed mohawk. "Sorry. Something I ate isn't sitting too well with me. Have we made any decisions as to what to do with murderous Cindy?"

Sammy stares at her cocoa.  She's making snowflake patterns with the steam over her mug.  "No."

Donnie looks around at the strange looks on everyone's faces. "What gives here? Everyone is acting wierd. Even for us abnormals. Is it my breath? The fact I wasn't at school today? What's up?"

Colin explains. "Gena and her family are under protective custody by now. Chris saw to it. Cindy can't find her. I'm just saying we could use a decoy Gena as bait. I really hope it doesn't come to this, though. I think we should try our best to make the first part of the plan work, and use the second only if it fails."

He notices Sarah looking at him with concern, and gives a reassuring squeeze to her hand. "Really, it's nothing. Only a bad feeling. As in 'I have a bad feeling about this'. That's why I said we should hurry."

"Colin."  John begins, "When you say you have a bad feeling about something, it makes me nervous."

Colin raises his hands defensively.

"Guys, if I knew anything more I'd tell you, I swear. I only got this feeling that we should hurry to take care of this. If you find yourself wishing for something more definite, or more specific, all I can say is welcome to my world." he says with an apologetic smile.

Donnie nods, serious faced. "I think we need to find Cindy as soon as possible. Let's all go and talk to her. Youre hunches are really worth listening to."

Sammy dispels the steam and air pattern over her mug and stands up.  "Right.  Colin, you're the one wiht the bad feeling, and you're generally the most diplomatic of us all.  Why don't you talk to her?  Your gut will tell you if you're on the right track or not.  And if we need a decoy, I don't know, Rhys?  He can make himself look like anything.  He'd be convincing.  The rest of us can protect you two."

Sarah says, "You do have a pretty good track record Colin, but let's not put all our eggs in one basket.  If we all showed up on her doorstep she'd either book or fight and I think that most of us at least would like to get her to see sense and get some help."

"I didn't mean standing right there," Sammy explains, "I meant, around.  Nearby, but not on top.  Close enough to help, but not claustrophobically so.  Definitely not enough to scare her into doing something stupid."

Sarah nods to Sammy, "Oh.. well.. okay.  I mean Syl could hide a few people and Alicia and John could be out of sight a ways off and still hear what was going on.  Rhys, ha, he could wherever he wanted I suppose."

Donnie grimaces. "I don't have my invisibility spell up today. Guess I will be down-the-block back up again."

"You could fly with Althea," Sammy suggests, entirely innocently.  She doesn't know about Cancun.  "Sarah could be with you, and if you have to move in, Sarah could take you south.  Or you could just dive in; a dragon stooping to snatch her up could scare Cindy stiff, if it comes to that."  A mischievous glint lights up Sammy's eyes.  "That would be fun to watch."

Donnie gives Sammy an incredulous glance, and looks over at Sarah. "I think I have dragged Sarah along enough. I will hang with Sylvia and you can fly with Althea."

Sylvia, meanwhile, exhibits glassy stoicism--always a bad sign.  "Let's get to it, then."

OOC: Let's do it again you two.

Even my sixth sense is impaired. (1d20+8=22) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1923703/)

I'm Aware... (1d20+10=21) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1923756/)  Is this any better?

Alicia hears the sound of a voice a good distance away.  "Cindy, did you try to kill Gena?........That's not important, I need you to tell me the truth, did you try to kill Gena or not?..........Why?  I thought you and I were friends!"

Sylvia catches a stray thought from Alicia, which leads her to Mike Brooks who is on the phone with Cindy trying to find out if she tried to kill Gena and why.  "Cindy, did you try to kill Gena?...Who told you that?.....That's not important, I need you to tell me the truth, did you try to kill Gena or not?.....Yes, I'm sorry.....Why?  I thought you and I were friends!"

Like a bloodhound, Alicia zeroes in on the sound.

Her every instinct pulls her to rush off to its source, to deal with whatever threat it may mean. She bites her lip as Jack's words filter through her mind.

"When the urge ... comes on you, try to find out where it's coming from.  Then think."

Her head jerks back to Colin's house. A moan of frustration grinds out her mouth. She finally grunts in angry resignation and leaps off the roof.

A second later, she's pounding on the door to 638, already regretting it.

Colin goes at the door. "Oh, hi, Allie, I thought you wouldn't come. Come in."

Upon a second look, he adds: "Is there something wrong?"

The moment the door opens, Alicia rushes in.

"No time to 'splain."

She makes her way unerringly to where the rest of the group is assembled. She stops and swallows to give her a second to compose herself enough to announce breathlessly, "I heard someone talkin' to Cindy on the phone. I think it was that Mike boy. He knows Cindy tried to kill Gena."

Donnie says "Great. Somebody told him. Gina probably called him after her and her family got picked up.."

Sammy looks over at Alicia.  "Guess that settles it then.  Somebody ought to get Mike to the police, to protect him, and also let the police know that Cindy might come looking for Gena.  Somebody else ought to find Cindy and deal with her.  Do you think you can take me to him, Alicia?  I'll fly him to safety.  Nobody ever looks up."

Sylvia tries to catch at that thought and bore in to learn more.

Ever since you saw her that day she's all you ever talk about.

That's not a reason to kill someone.  I can't believe you would do that, you of all people.

Who told you, I...It's that Colin kid, isn't it?  He told you?

I've been spying on him and his friends.  Laser microphone against the window.  They want you to get help.  and....I do too.  If you feel this strongly, then maybe there's something...

You think I'm crazy!  you of all people!  You and your stupid plan to get revenge for Donald Howell!  You were just a pawn to him, you don't owe him anything Mike!

Cindy.  Don't try to change the subject.  You tried to kill someone!

And what about you?  What were you going to do to Colin and his friends?  Use those mechanical arms to deliver flowers?  This is ridiculous, I can't believe I thought I was in love with you!

L...Love?  You...you never said anything.  I thought you didn't like me for more than a friend.

Ugh.  boys!

Sylvia is keenly aware that Mike is now confused, and Cindy has ended the call.

Alicia nods impatiently, agreeing with Sammy's assessment. At her question, she frowns, "I think so. He was close enough for me to catch his conversation. If he's still talking, I may be able to narrow down where he is."

She shrugs. "Might be faster for someone to get his address, though."

Alicia turns to Colin. "You mentioned that Gina and her family was 'under protective custody.' That means cops, right? Do these cops know they might be dealing with a paranormal?"

She looks at Alicia.  Don't give me any crap about this.  You need to know.

And she passes the entirety of what she's captured telepathically to the group at large.

We need to keep up the pretense of conversation, and we need to stop Cindy now that she's been tipped off.  Sarah, John, can you get there?  Rhys, can you mimic us?  Keep the conversation going?

She pours the effort on and tries to find out what exactly Mike intended in the way of revenge.

Text me her address.  And John is out of the apartment and gone in a blur.


In the swirl of his emotions and intentions it's hard to pick out fact from adolescent fantasy.  He imagined a titanic battle where he used his kung fu and his tentacle harness to defeat a variety of people, Colin included.  Mostly delusional power tripping.  Assorted things go through his mind, including a bomb in the news room which he thought might get rid of most of you at once.  And then he started to watch the group.  Trying to figure out who did what.  And he realized that the group's recent internal struggles might do his work for him.  Once the group was divided, then the assortment of enemies they have would find them easy targets.

Sylvia passes this back to the group, too.

Sammy is surprised by the revelations, but It doesn't matter.  Still need to protect him.  Or at least pretend that's what I'm doing.  I'll be vulnerable, but that's just how it has to be.  Secure this place, in case she comes here.

"Right.  Mike's address.  Then you -- Alicia-- and I'll go find Mike and take him to somewhere safe.  If Cindy can't find him, she can't hurt him and make things worse than they already are."

Alicia's eyes snap open as the information pours into her mind.

Her face stretches into a feral grin. Her thoughts whirl, with strands surfacing out of the maelstrom.

He's nearby. He was spying on us. He wants to hurt us.

The thoughts spiral down into a black hole of compressed primal rage.

Then suddenly, like a scythe, Jack's words cut through the storm.

[/i]"Think. If you move to violence without thought, you're a slave to your chemistry."[/i]

Breathing heavily, Alicia clenches her fists as she struggles to restrain herself. The whirlwind narrows into a column, contained but still raging.

She glares at Sylvia and thinks furiously. Just tell me where he is.

Sylvia tries to see through Mike's eyes.  Where is he?

He's near the corner of a fence a little down the street.  He's looking back towards Colin's house  He has something on a tripod next to him that's pointed towards the front window, and it has headphones attached.  they are sitting on top of the thing, which Sylvia realizes is his laser microphone.  He's worried.  Cindy tried to kill Gena.  Am I to blame?  How could I have missed it, she said she loves me.  How did I not see here there this whole time?

Sylvia transmits this information back to them.  Don't go off half-cocked, she warns Alicia, hitting her with a dose of icy focus.  We need evidence and incapacitation, not blood.  We are still the good guys.

Sarah gives Sylvia a thumbs up.  Where is Cindy?  You guys handle Mikey? 

Alicia's mirthless grin dims not a watt.

Don't worry 'bout a thing, chica. I'll just talk real nice to him.

She has nowhere near John's speed, but she manages to disappear from the room quickly enough.

All houses have a back door, and Colin's is no exception. Fences and hedges are no obstacle to her. She approaches Mike with all the grace and silence of a lioness stalking her prey.

Stealth roll: With Silence Dread (1d20+14=33) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1924063/)

Sylvia gives Sarah an uncertain look.  How can she figure out where Cindy is?  Can you piggyback on my signal?  Can you make him ask her without tipping him off?

Sylvia has seen Smith do it.  She understands the concept.  But where Smith is a psychic surgeon, Sylvia's afraid she'll break something.  She doesn't have the help that Sarah has.

Sarah shakes her head.  No way.  I'm no brain squeezer.  I thought we had her address somewhere is all.  Any ideas?

Colin is the last one to react. He was a bit too much in shock. Well, not really in shock, but... confused. Is that really how they see him? Is that how he is?

He shakes himself out of it, and tries to react. Alicia was already after Mike, and Jon after Cindy. He needs direction though. Fortunately, he already did his research.

He tells everybody Cindy's address, and texts it to John. "If she's not at home, call me back. I'll try to find her."

He grabs his jacket and gets out. He has to talk to Mike.

It's not too hard to sneak up on Mike.  His mind is a whirl of things that he had not considered.  Alicia is able to get as close as she wishes.

Colin will be about a minute behind her, but heading out his front door and directly towards Mike.  Since Alicia went around there will only be about thirty seconds separating their arrival where Mike is standing.

Alicia positions herself opposite Colin's house from Mike.

She announces her arrival to her target before coming out to the sidewalk, a few feet away from him.

"What's the matter, Mikey? Things not going down the way you wanted? Reality's a bitch that way."

Sammy blinks, and Alicia is gone.  The hell?  She couldn't wait for me?  Then Colin is heading for the door. Sammy zips out after him and heads up to keep an eye on him and look for Alicia too.

John- Mike is @ ******.

Sylvia keeps a lock on Mike and the others to make sure her friends (and Alicia) have the advantage of instantaneous warning in case he does something other than cower and plead for his life.

"I'm not in the mood Vega."  he says.

Alicia pointedly shrugs and says in a mock-sympathetic tone, "Too bad. Here, I'll make it short and sweet so you can go home and sulk to your heart's content."

The humor drops from her voice like a shroud revealing a corpse. "Whatever you're planning against us, give it up. You've been made. Anything happens, we go straight to you."

Sarah says "Thanks!" with a grin to Colin and vanishes.

*fwip*

"Whatever."  Mike says, then begins to take his laser mic apart to put it away.  Doesn't matter anyway.  I've got to find a way to stop Cindy.  Maybe actually be the hero, maybe that's why she was there, maybe we met so I'd be tested.  Can I actually be the hero?

Sammy sees Alicia talking at Mike, her body language feral and aggressive.  No no no no no!  We need him to stop Cindy!

She dives down, fierce and swift, and puts herself in front of Mike with her hand outstretched.  "Alicia!  Mike has a good chance to help Cindy right now.  I don't care what he's done or what he wants to do!  I only care about keeping her from trying to kill anybody else.  Mike, will you come with me, help us to help her?  Please?"

Alicia keeps her eyes on Mike the whole time.

Once Sammy finishes her appeal, she chimes in, "What do you say, Mikey? Up to being a hero?"

Sammy adds "If nothing else, I'm going to protect him from her.  If she turns on him, he'll need help, and I'm not letting her kill anybody."

"She.....she actually said she tried to kill Gena.  What can I say, or do to help her?  Nothing is turning out like I thought it might." I don't know if I can do this.  Cindy, a killer?

OOC: Unless Sylvia is passing it along (just let me know if you are in general and then note anything you specifically DO NOT share) no one is privy to the thought parts of Mike.

Colin finally arrives at the corner.

"It still might. Nothing is lost yet."

Sylvia will wisely keep Mike's thoughts to himself so no one slips up and lets him know his brain is on America's Funniest Home EEG's.

Alicia cocks her head at Colin and says, with a droll touch to her voice, "I'd say listen to the man, Mikey, but considering your intention was to do some hurtin' on us, I'd suggest you turn your attention to doin' some good instead."

"I may have already ruined any chance of helping her."  Why are they offering to help?  I thought they were behind all the trouble, what's going on?

Sylvia digs again.  What trouble?

"Try," Sammy urges.  Her hand is still outstretched in his direction.  "She needs help, Mike.  She knows you and likes you, maybe too much, but that's not anybody's fault.  You have a better chance than any of us of getting her to see she needs help.  Try.  Please, try."

Mike nods.  "I owe it to her.  She's my friend.  My best friend."  He drops the tripod and a second later four shiny metal tentacles emerge from under his trench coat, lifting him from the ground.  "I just hope she'll listen."  And he starts off in the direction of Cindy's house, taking a direct route through yards and over fences.  The tentacles give him considerable speed.

Sylvia catches a ride with Donnie, trailing Mike, and for a few hours at least she forgets that she's supposed to be annoyed with him.

In Mike's mind there are conversations with Donald Howell, and others.  Donald is spinning the truth about how members of the Usual Suspects are always around when there is trouble.  Getting other kids into trouble, engineering events to disrupt the school.  Getting rid of people they don't like, such as the cheerleader Fern.

Alicia stares nonplussed at Mike's retreating figure. "That's not something you see every day."

She looks over at Colin and Sammy. "Sam, how about you give Colin a ride? I'll follow on the ground."

And she's off, following Mike's route with equal disregard for any obstacles in the way.

"Yeah, Sammy, please." Colin says, approving Alicia's idea. The he turns back towards his home.

Syl, are you coming?

She's riding the bitch seat on Althea, who's humming a deep, bassoon-like rendition of "Hit Me Baby One More Time."  On my way.

Donnie leans back towards Sylvia. "I have so much to tell you! Most of it can wait, but I did bring you a present! I'll give it to you after all this is over!"

Sammy is happy to oblige.  She grabs his hand and they go, quickly catching up to Mike.

"I like presents," Sylvia says, leaning in close, focused on the chase.  "Your dad's okay?  Happy endings all around?"

Mike covers distance fast, but not faster than the others can keep up.  John sends a text to the group about half a minute after they start towards Cindy's house.  She's in the backyard.  Mad and crying.

Sammy checks the text.
ty. Mike is OTW w us 2.

She says "Mike.  Cindy's in her backyard, 'mad and crying'.  We can get help for her, but you have to get her to agree to talk to somebody about it.  Colin's pretty good at that, but well, she knows you.  Colin's just some guy."

Alicia, running along the top of a fence pacing Mike, hears Sammy's report.

As she off-handedly vaults over a partition, landing on a trampoline in someone's yard and using it to propel her over the next fence, she mentally debates options.

Planting herself on the scene's not going to help matters, but if the ball drops, she wants to be close enough to step in. Especially if friends like Colin and Sammy are going to be in the line of fire.

She chews on the conundrum as she continues the run. Crap. This "we are the good guys" thing can be a real pain sometimes. It'd be so much easier to just pound the bitch into the dirt and hand her off to the cops when they show up.

She gives a mental sigh. But Sammy's already shown me up there. She got Octo-Mike to play nice without lifting a finger. I would've just thrown down with him, which wouldn't've solved anything really. Maybe we can actually settle this without any bloodshed.

And that dark little voice in her head whispers silkily, And that would be such a disappointment, wouldn't it, love?

Sarah crouches in the shadow of a rooftop watching Cindy.  When Mike approaches she prepares for possible fireworks. 
Ugh.  I can't believe I'm considering keeping these two from having a fight.  Just let the winner go to jail.


OOC:
Using Interpose should anything go flying at Mike. 

Mike clears the fence and settles down, the tentacles slipping up under his coat and out of site.  "Cindy."  he says.  "Let me help you.  Let me, please."

OOC: I need a Fate roll from Someone.  First up is fine.

Fate, be my woman (1d20=9) (http://invisiblecastle.com/roller/view/1925206/)

Arriving at the scene, Alicia chooses to stay on the ground, finding a suitable hiding place that keeps her close but out of sight.

She strains to catch any sounds from the backyard. The moment she hears the snap of a hand in motion from Cindy, she's going in hard.

"You.  You came to help me?"  Cindy says softly, walking towards Mike.

"This would be that scene where the hero realizes the girl he's known his whole life if the one he's been looking for."  Mike says with a chuckle.  "I'm just a little slow is all."

Cindy runs to him and hugs him.  She's started to cry, but through the sobs some of you can hear her saying that she's sorry and then the realization that she tried to kill someone hits.  she collapses to her knees, and Mike goes down to hold her.  "I can't believe it was me.  I was so mad at her.  I didn't even think about it really, I just threw it.  But then I didn't hit her, I thought it was a dream.  I was so mad."

OOC: Sylvia make a Telepathy check DC 12 (1d20+4)

[If this is the game in which you can spend a Hero Point to roll over, I'm doing that.  Otherwise, I fail.  :)  ]

OOC: You can do that.  On a Hero die roll the minimum is also 10, so it's an automatic success.

Cindy is honestly lost.  She's embarrassed at how she let her anger get away from her.  And she can't fathom how she got so angry to begin with.  She regrets what she did, but there is a strange simmering surrounding Gena in her mind.  She knows what she did was wrong, but she is still angry at Gena.  Her personal reasons for that have evaporated with Mike's coming here.  Her heart swells with happiness that he likes her, perhaps even loves her.  But there is still that anger directed at Gena.  Sylvia can't see a reason for it now, and neither can Cindy.  But it's there.

Sylvia sends Colin a special bulletin on it.  Back me up, partner.  I'm going in.

Sylvia does have far more experience untangling altered memories and twisted emotion than she should for her age.  She wades into Cindy's mind with the self-confidence of a budding professional, wary but determined.

The flow of her memories.  How they mesh together to form hours and days is undamaged.  Then the smell hits Sylvia.  It's perfume.  Gena's perfume.  and Sylvia starts to get angry.  She fells Colin pull her back,  shaking it off.  The emotion is artificial, induced.  It's a sense memory tied to an emotional response.  this then takes root in the brain, and snowballs.  Cindy is mad at Gena because of something chemical, that has become a conditioned response.

[I'm confused about what you're saying.  Is Cindy conditioned to become angry at the smell of Gena's perfume?]

OOC: She smelled her perfume, and from that moment on the thought of Gena makes Cindy angry.

EDIT: sorry, had to walk away.

So let me try to explain.  she smelled Gena's perfume and that seemed to trigger a chemical response in the body producing anger.  and now just the thought of Gena triggers the sense memory and makes Cindy angry.  Make more sense that way?

Imagine Love Goo, only it makes you hate the person.

Let's fix this, Sylvia tells Colin.

Alicia slides down to sit on the grass as she hears Cindy's tearful confession.

She puts out a hand and flexes. A metal throwing spike appears like magic; it's the same spike that Cindy had thrown with such malice, that Jacob had painfully drawn out of John's back.

Alicia had fantasized about brandishing the weapon at Cindy, showing her the evidence of her crime, perhaps even using it on her in some form of poetic justice. Now it just rests in Alicia's hand, an inert piece of steel.

"I was so mad at her.  I didn't even think about it..."

Alicia sighs. A phrase she'd heard her mother use once, quoting some other unknown source, runs across her memory. "We have met the enemy and he is us."

What really was the difference between Cindy and her? Jack's words once again echo in her head. "If you move to violence without thought, you're a slave to your chemistry."

Alicia stares at the spike some more, thoughts flitting around behind her eyes to form new patterns, before thoughtfully putting it away with a gesture.

As Sylvia stands inert next to Colin, probably submerged in the mind of Cindy the Jealous Potential Murderess, Donnie wanders over and leans against a nearby tree, watching.

After landing a street over, the two teens had jogged after Mike's robotically assisted form and Donnie had heard some of what was said. They seemed to be getting along alright, and Sylvia didn't need him near her, distracting her from her work.

Sammy sidles backwards too, letting Colin and Sylvia have their space.  She drops down on a nearby sidewalk, then notices she's beginning to shiver.  "Idiot," she mumbles, chastising herself.  "You left your coat at Colin's.  D'oh!"

After a minute or so, Alicia's down jacket drops on Sammy's lap. The owner is standing there, looking down, a slight frown on her face.

"Thanks.  What?" Sammy has an exasperated look on her face.  "Yes, I know it was dumb, but everybody was in a hurry and I forgot.  I'm not perfect."  She frowns.  "But now you're going to freeze.  That's hardly fair."  She holds the coat out to Alicia.  "I'll just fly back and get mine.  It looks like things are under control here."

Alicia shakes her head, still frowning. "I don't mind the cold. And we might still need you here."

Her expression is not one of annoyance, but more contemplative. She folds down into a squat next to Sammy, balancing her weight on the balls of her feet.

"You were right. I was wrong. I was ready to throw down with Mike; he was planning to to hurt us. You knew better."

Alicia sighs, It's now obvious that her demeanor is one of uncertainty, as if she is trying on unfamiliar clothes, unsure if they're the right size.

"Thanks. For keeping me from making a stupid mistake. Again."

John comes to stand closer to Sammy and Alicia, his presence is obvious because of the heat he radiates in the chill air.

God and Great Spirit. I'm so tired of this kind of stuff. We have to find this jerk who keeps abusing chemistry. Didn't the love goo case teach people anything?!

Sylvia can work at a distance, but Colin needs to touch her. So he steps forward.

"Excuse me. There is something you should know." he says to Mike and Cindy.
"The first thing is that the spike didn't kill Gena because John got in the way of it. You have to thank his lightning reflexes nothing happened.
The second, and most important thing, is that it wasn't all your fault. We just realized this. Someone actually made your anger flare out of control. It was something chemical. You're probably still angry at her, and you can't explain why."

He lets her test her feelings before going on.

"You were... conditioned to hate her. We don't really know how, or why yet. But if you allow us, we'd like to put things right. To free you from this conditioning. I only need your hand for a moment."

If she accepts, he lets his energies flow into her. He lets Sylvia work with her mind. He tries to open her way targeting Cindy's chemical imbalance.

Without much thinking about it, Sammy throws a blanket of air around the three of them and captures the heat.

"Oh.  That.  You're welcome.  I guess."  Sammy shifts into a more comfortable position.  "I took a big chance on him, but... well, I gambled that Cindy's problem was more important to him than hurting me.  Stopping Cindy was more important to me than pounding on him, even if it meant protecting him from her or us.  I counted on him wanting to help Cindy and to protect Gena, just like I wanted to do."  She shrugs.  "It could have gone really bad, but I was okay with that.  It was worth a try.  Like y..."  It looks like she's going to say more, but then shuts up.  "I'm rambling."

Alicia looks down for a second and gives a dry chuckle. "Yeah."

She turns her head to look in another direction. "Maybe someday I'll learn to think that way."

She stands up, avoiding Sammy's gaze. "Anyway, thanks. Don't worry 'bout the jacket. I see Ree-is. He'll be warm enough."

She gives a silent nod to John and walks off in Rhys's direction.

Sammy stays where she is and watches Alicia walk away.  She sighs once, then waits to see if Cindy's going to explode.

Rhys smiles at her. He'd listened in on what she said to Sammy.

"I'm proud of you - you're growing. Just like I knew you could."

He throws his arms around her.

"What do you want?" he says in her ear. "A nice full-length fur coat? Or maybe a simple down parka? Name it, and I am it."

Alicia gives him a small, wistful smile and wraps her arms around him. "Just hold me."

Cindy looks at Mike, it's obvious she's confused.  Mike nods.  "I think they're the good guys.  After all I've seen and heard.  I think Don lied to me.  To use me."  He nods, and Cindy reaches up her hand to let Colin take it.

Between Colin and Stlvia they're able to undo the damage to Cindy.  Sylvia adjusts the subtle colors of Cindy's emotions, and then Colin pushes the sour chemicals from her, and they escape in a breath.  A spirit reaches it's hand out, and cups the vile cloud, pulling it out this world and destroying it.

"Will she be alright?"  Mike asks, as he watches Sylvia and Colin.

"I'm so sorry what Don Howell has done keeps hurting people. I... still don't understand fully how or why he's done what he's done. He had friends, people who sincerely held him as a friend and he..." he tries to go on, but the memory of Tom Renquist cuts short his words. There are times his memory doesn't feel like a blessing.
"If you'll ever be interested in, well, our side of the story, I'll try my best to explain it. You deserve as much."


Colin nods gratefully to the spirit.

"I think she will." he answers, looking back at them. "I'll talk to the police and to Gena's family, and explain things. And we'll look into this matter, and try to find out the real responsible. Yes, I think you'll both be all right." he says with a smile.

"Though you-" he adds, pointing at Mike "-you should find a different way to exercise. We can probably help you find a place where you could do less damage, if you'd like us. You won't need it for long anyway. You're getting real good with them." he points at the tentacles. "And if you use them the right way, like I'm sure you can, something good will actually come out of this, after all."

"Thank you."  Mike begins, "The first two times they got out of control.  I've got the hang of them now though.  And, I want to do some good with them."  He helps Cindy stand, still holding her in his embrace.  "I appreciate all you've done.  And all that you're trying to do.  I should get her out of the cold."  He looks towards everyone in the dim light of the street lamp, tears streaking his face.  "Thank you.  All of you."  And he begins to help Cindy inside.

Sylvia can feel his resolve forming.  They're not the people Don made them out to be.  If I'd just looked for myself I'd have seen that.  And Colin is right.  I need to do what good I can with these.  As the thoughts form in his head Sylvia realizes that this is how some heroes are formed.  From their own ashes.

She takes some comfort in that, but every bone in her body, or every scar at least, tells her he's a rare case.

Colin turns back to Sylvia with a smile. Very good job here, boss. Today is a good day to be in this field, isn't it?

"Would you like to come back to my house? You still haven't tried the cake after all." he says to his friends.

He looks for Sarah and takes her hand.

Alicia reluctantly disengages from Rhys's embrace. "I... I got somewhere else to go."

Avoiding eye contact with anyone, Alicia retrieves her jacket from Sammy and bounds off.

Sarah hops down from the roof and heads over to Colin.  "That went really well," she says and kisses his cheek.    "So now we hunt down what made Cindy hate Gena and who mixed it up and gave it to Gena?  It's about time we give this chemistry whiz a serious thumping."

Sammy says to her retreating form "Alee...? Sha," then turns toward John.  "John?  Help me find her?  She can hide from me, but not from you."  Turning back in the direction of Alicia's retreat, she says "If she doesn't want to come along, that's her choice, but I want to make sure she knows she's the one making the decision."

"Sure."  John says, but I think that was her making the choice.  I'll look for her though."  And he closes his eyes for a second.  His head turns, and he looks into the darkness.  "That way,"  he nods, "Flying is more of a straight line than my way."  he says, holding out a hand towards her.

Sammy laces her fingers between his and off they go after Alicia.  Its not very long before they catch up.

"Alicia!  Hold up a second!"  Sammy zips to hover a few feet over and in front of the other girl, John still in tow.  "Hey, I uh... listen -- if you choose not to hang out with the rest of us, that's cool.  Thing is though, I want to make sure you know you do have a choice.  Its up to you, ok?"

As soon as the pair approaches, Alicia stops and looks in their direction.


Alicia cocks her head and says a touch sharply, with a glance towards John. "Is that you talking, Sammy, or the group?"

She winces slightly and shakes her head. "Sorry, that was wrong."

She sighs. "I'm not fit for company right now, and maybe not for a while. Thanks for the offer, but I'm heading over to Jack's to see if I can work off some of the edge. Let me know if the gang comes up with any plan for dealing with whatever happened to Cindy, OK?"

Sammy nods.  "OK.  I guess I'll go back to get my coat.  See ya."  She looks over at John.  "Coming with, or do you have other plans?"

"I'll come with."  John says then looks towards Alicia, "Good night Alicia.  See you tomorrow."

Alicia nods silently in farewell and watches them leave before continuing on her way.

OOC:  That's all I was waiting for.  :)

"So, back to Colin's?  Your way or my way?"

"I'm good either way.  So let's fly."

Grinning in response, Sammy takes to the sky and heads off more or less in the direction of Colin's house.  More or less.  It's hard to resist staying airborne once she's up, but they get there, eventually.

"Yeah. This is even more dangerous than love goo. Do you think they're related? I mean, that we didn't catch all the ones behind love goo, and one of them got a new formula to test? We'll have to talk with Mr Heep too. When we find a sample he should probably work at an antidote. Sylvia and I can't be both everywhere at once." he sighs.

"Enough about work." he says, with a smile. "I've been missing you. It's been a while since we did something together. Have you got plans for Saturday?"

Sarah smiles at Colin and asks, "I don't know.. do I have plans for Saturday?"  She leans against him.  "It's too cold out here.  Let's get back."

"You're the one driving." he says with a smile.

Once they reappear at his home, he opens the door for those coming back in more traditional ways. Or a window for Sammy and John, if they prefer. Then he sits back to snuggle against Sarah.

"There's a festival of romantic comedies on Saturday. Would you like to go?"


He also calls Chris and explains the developments. Does he think Gena should remain under custody?

The door is just fine.  Sammy is wearing that slightly exhilerated expression she gets whenever she gets to fly just for the joy of it.

"I'd love to.  Want me to drive again?"  She puts her head on his shoulder.  "Do you know what movies they're playing?"

"Well, aren't you the one that should be telling me?"

"Well..." Colin frowns "I'm not an expert of the criminal mindset. If this new mad scientist went through this trouble out of hate for Gena, then she still needs protection. It might also be that she was just an occasional victim, though, and in this case she wouldn't be more in trouble than anyone else. I might be able to know more if I meet her."

"Well, the family thought someone was poking around the house.  The descriptions weren't useful, so it might be safe to let them go home.  I'll have a prowl car cruise the neighborhood to keep an eye out though."

"It's not far. Part of a project for the students of cinema at the uni, if memory serves. But I like when you drive."


Do I?


"Thank you, Chris. I'll look for Gena tomorrow and check if she remembers any particular incident. I'll keep you informed if anything comes out."

OOC: The list of movies is not something I plan to provide.  It would be too much like work.  Assume there is a list and try not to mention any titles.

He tells her the ones he remembers. They're classics he's quite fond of.