Duoya

《 Super H.E.R.O. 》

---

"My name is Evangeline, you may call me Eva. My chosen hero name is Dahlia. I admire your bravery, Alchemist. I shall help you win this so we can get pizza. The best food there is."

Rupa blushed as she was complimented, clearly unused to people thinking highly of her. She didn't consider herself brave - she had nightmares almost every day, and was constantly looking up her family's movements online. The last time she was called brave was after turning a dude's stomach into cesium and watching him explode, and that was probably just because the guards cleaning the mess were thankful she didn't cry about it.

"Well, we don't want to lose them now, do we? Let's see if there's anything we can find here first. Come on, everyone. This is a team effort."

Rupa clenched her fists and pumped them in the air, jumping around like a small dog about to go for a walk.

"HELL YEAH!!! Eva and Rupa, we're like Apollo Creed and Rocky!!! But we skip the hating each other part, hopefully! We are so gonna crush this bitch! What kind of pizza are you gonna get when we win? I was gonna get mushrooms, but if we invite the mushroom guy that'd probably be rude... Maybe bell peppers? What do you think, is it-"

Rupa continued to ramble as the pair walked away, more focused on the fact that she had someone to talk to rather than whatever she was actually saying. Stray was already racing away, following after the coin he animated. Rupa thought that was cheating, but that was probably just because her powers weren't geared towards reconnaissance. If powers were allowed, maybe she could just turn his pyramids into mercury when he gets back? Then she wins by default!

Genius plan. God, she's so smart. It was unfortunate that she'd have to settle for Mr. Powers phone number, but Rupa already had a few pranks in mind - asking if his refrigerator was running, for example, or pretending she was an ICOSA member waiting for him in a meeting. The hacker girl followed after him by possessing some kind of robot doll, flying in the same direction as the coin.

Plus, maybe Eva would want to go to Surfshack Tito's and help her finish off the loyalty card!

Rupa considered just following them and trying to take any Pyramids they found, but they'd probably come up with a counter to that pretty quick... Better to just be a sore loser if they win and destroy their pyramids, that wasn't petty or anything.

"Damn, I'm not finding anything... How the hell are the others so good at this!?"

Barely a few minutes passed before Rupa grew frustrated. Turns out, someone with her personality was not very detail-oriented or perceptive. Who knew? Before she could complain too much, Eva noticed something and quickly went to the nearby commotion, Rupa following shortly behind her.

Two men were carrying an unconscious Ms. Duff - one was unnaturally pale, like that one guy from The Davinci Code. He wore a long coat with an upturned collar (not as cool as it looks in The Matrix...), and Rupa could see the knife sheathed at his side. The other man didn't even look human, more resembling mushroom guy than anyone here. He stood tall, with purplish skin that would have resembled a giant bruise if it wasn't nearly translucent. Tendrils spread from his back, and Rupa could almost see how his skin sopped with moisture, as if he just climbed out of the water or something.

They were bad guys! And that wasn't an assumption thing cause they were weird-looking, it's a fact! No other reason Ms. Duff would be unconscious-

Ms. Duff. Rupa didn't know why these guys were here, but her first thought was kidnapping. The Paksha had ransomed DHARMA heroes before, so it wouldn't be her first time seeing this. That shit wasn't gonna fly here. Ms. Duff was nice! Nicer than most people.

Rupa unslung her bag and started rummaging around as the other heroes talked to the villains, thankful for the distraction. She was quickly strapping on boxing gloves, a light metallic squeak coming from them as her power refined them into solid steel. She measured them at around 15 kg each in previous experiments, but to her, they were light as a feather. Punching through a brick wall was easy with these things, and neither of these guys looked like brick walls.

Aim for the limbs, incapacitate, retrieve captive. Just wait for an opening.

...

...Why was everyone still talking? The heroes seemed to be trying to intimidate the villains into surrendering, though Rupa doubted it would work. If someone saw the difference in numbers that was at play here and still wanted to pick a fight, they were either incredibly strong, incredibly stupid, or incredibly desperate - and in any of those cases, talking wouldn't change anything. Back in India, at least two people would be disemboweled or bleeding out by now.

It's probably a good thing, then. Killing people is wrong! Maiming them, however, that was fair game.

Finally, there was action - a greyish-green arm shot from the ground, latching onto the albino man's leg with an intense grip. The Mushroom Man came in for the win, fuck yeah!

Rupa got ready to dash forward - a strike to the jellyfish man and he'd probably rupture, then she could bash in the Albino's skull- no, bad, no killing, break his legs, break his legs instead...

She hesitated for a brief second, but that was enough. The Jellyfish man released a burst of crackling electricity, blinding Rupa and the others long enough for the Albino to escape Mushroom Man's grip. Teleportation of some kind? Couldn't have been super speed.

He stood behind Eva, a switchblade to her throat as he made his demands. He wanted to take her as insurance while he did whatever he was sent here to do.

Couldn't be trusted. Paksha have done the same thing in the past - the heroes are always killed, no matter what. Better to take the risk, he's so close, Rupa could bat away the arm restraining Eva, he's not stopping Rupa's fist. Or skip that and just cave his skull in with a good straight, put that fucker on the mat like Drago.

They were still arguing for surrender. This guy could teleport, why would he surrender instead of just running? Rupa shook her head. She wasn't that smart, she didn't get how things work around here - it's not her place to question the professionals. But she didn't buy for a second that these guys would go along quietly.

Rupa grew impatient in the couple dozen seconds of conversation. Her power was already soaking the area around her feet, leaving metallic footprints in the dirt as she paced in a small circle. Gold, Copper, Magnesium, Titanium, Steel, Bismuth - like an art exhibit, the different colors intersected and overlapped with each pass she made. Small objects on the ground nearby were overtaken by the slowly encroaching metal, until everything within 2-3 feet of Rupa was coated in a metallic sheen.

Maybe 10 minutes at most since the orientation started. She had gone from an excited puppy to a hungry wolf in less than 10 minutes. If Rupa wasn't so focused on the upcoming fight, she'd be questioning the personality change. Or rather, why it happened so much faster than usual.

Another monster crashed on the scene - a massive centipede, with chitinous plates and bony legs sprouting from every angle. Exposed muscle and hanging bits of flesh and viscera tense with each movement, as if it was straining to hold itself still rather than leap to kill. Eyes and mouths were haphazardly opening and closing across its monstrous form, and it seemed to screech out in a monstrous voice. Again, calling for peace. Surrender.

Fuck that.

Everyone was shocked and looking straight at the monster. Of course they were, it was terrifying. But this was as good an opportunity as any. Rupa dashed towards Albino, closing the distance in a heartbeat - thank god she and Eva were partnered up and were already close. Going for Jellyfish instead could have risked the hostage's life.

"Shininglikeashootingstar,theRocky4 -fuck it, EAT SHIT, CRIME!!!"

A jab, aimed at his shoulder. The arm holding the blade. 15 kilograms of metal thrown at the same speed as a bare-knuckle punch. If this guy's power didn't enhance his durability, which Rupa doubted considering he teleported out of Mushroom Man's grasp, then it would easily shatter his entire arm. Possibly tear it off, even. He could either keep his grip on Eva and sacrifice the arm to kill her, dodge and fall prone where she could stomp on him, or teleport away again and let Eva go as the punch swings through open air. Hopefully, he would pick the latter.

The possibility he wouldn't was the only reason she didn't aim for the head.

《 Super H.E.R.O. 》

---

It was a second or two of tense silence before Ms. Duff smiled weakly and addressed Rupa's question. Thankfully, she brought up the fact that fungi and fruits weren't closely related, and Rupa breathed a sigh of relief before continuing to eat the apple. That would have been awkward - fruits are baby plants, right?

Before she derailed herself too much, Rupa noticed that she was not the only one to show up late! The first was a guy that was scraggy and unkempt, wearing clothes that looked like he slept in them for the last three days straight. He also called out to Rupa and answered her apple question, echoing the director's response.

"Woah, you guys let homeless people stay at HERO One?! Cool!! I know a guy named Sticky Ricky who got kicked out of the shelter for stabbing a dude, could he-"

Judging by his question to Ms. Duff and the fact that Hacker-girl was looking at him like he was Sylvester Stallone or something, Rupa quickly shut her mouth. Probably a thing for heroes in the States - maybe they're on the clock so much they can't take care of themselves or something?

The other late arrival was a boy wearing sandals and an oversized hoodie, who appeared to have walked up to the rest of the group without a word during Rupa's badass introduction. He had a vibe that was kind of similar to the Hacker girl - more aloof and cold than Rupa would like. Emily walked over and gave the guy a handshake (JEALOUS!!!), so hopefully that would help and make the guy a bit less grumpy.

Ms. Duff started explaining the orientation in more depth, and much to Rupa's delight, it wasn't going to be a boring ass speech! They were doing a scavenger hunt - which for some reason the others were groaning about and calling childish? Rupa thought it was super mature and cool, way better than reading a packet or something.

Especially the prize! Rupa couldn't really handle a proper pet right now, and Mrs. Yuvaves wouldn't like it either - but a plant is super easy. Plus Rupa probably won't kill it while she's sleeping, so that's a plus.

Like the scavenger hunt itself, Rupa seemed to be in the minority of people actually interested in the prize. Mushroom guy was especially grumpy about it, growling and ranting about how he was kidnapped to play games. He even let off a bunch of spores, which grossed Rupa out a lot - 'sporing yourself' sounds like the fungal version of shitting yourself, and that's yucky. Thankfully, it did enough to distract her from focusing on the whole 'kidnapping' thing, cause who knows what kind of tantrum she would throw if she knew that Mire was being held against their will here.

Rupa paused for a while and watched the others - no one seemed to be willing to pair up right off the bat. Jeez, did she get stuck with all the introverts and grouches!? The only one who didn't seem at least somewhat upset or annoyed to be here was the giant girl, and that was probably 80% because she didn't have to worry about stepping on pedestrians and fire hydrants right now. The girl in the trenchcoat and the emo boy were talking to the mushroom man, but it seemed kinda confrontational so Rupa zone out of it. She was only brought back to attention when Eva briefly mentioned hanging out after work.

"Hell yeah, pizza!!! Whooooo!!!"

Despite eating out pretty much every day, Rupa rarely ate with someone who wasn't her landlord. It would be nice to get to know some of her coworkers better - like their favorite movies, or their catchphrase when they catch a bad guy.

And their names. God, she needed to ask people what their names were.

Out of the corner of her eye, Rupa noticed the Hacker-girl continuing to stare at the homeless guy- er, not homeless. Stray. Joseph. Do heroes prefer real names or their made-up ones?

Doesn't matter. It was time to get this scavenger hunt started, even if she had to force people to pair up. Rupa walked towards Joseph, thankful that she was oblivious to who he was. Harder to be intimidated by someone when all you know about them is their name and that they have what looks like chili stains on their pants.

"Mr. Stray! I'm challenging you! I bet that me and..."

Shit, who was Rupa pairing up with? Emo-boy? He'll probably say no. Giant girl? She's 10 meters up, she's not seeing those little ass pyramids, and Rupa did actually want those plants. Mushroom guy doesn't look like he's playing, so he's out...

"Me and the hot lady with the cool coat! I bet that we can find more pyramids than you and, uh... white-haired girl, I don't know her name either..."

Rupa pulled out her wallet and looked for whatever would be valuable to a homeless person. What the hell would Sticky Ricky like...

"I'm wagering $12.87! And a loyalty card to Surfshack Tito's Bar and Grill - two more stamps, then you get a free meal AND can choose what they play on the TV! If I win, you have to tell me Mr. Powers personal number so I can prank call him. O-or Ms. Duff's, either works!"

That rewards card was a hard price to pay. Surely Megumi would be thankful, and not annoyed by this embarrassing breach of privacy. Rupa didn't bother waiting for a response, turning quickly and making her way towards the green-eyed woman. She whispered (well, as much as someone like Rupa could) under her breath as she passed the woman, hopeful that none of the others had a perception-based power.

_{"Please play along, I'll buy you a slice or two when we go for pizza!"}

A white-haired woman covered in scars walked past Rupa, making her way towards the rest of the group. Rupa did her best not to stare - while she was used to those kinds of wounds on her guards with the Paksha, and Rupa herself had quite a few from the training she had gone through, she had yet to see an American look like that. She shook her head, focusing on the green-eyed woman.

"Oh, uhm, could I ask what your name is? I think everyone else forgot to do their Hero introduction like I did."

《 Super H.E.R.O. 》

---

The light shined in through massive stained windows, dancing off the countless metallic surfaces that covered the room. The floor was a wide expanse of intricately carved metal, with footprints of gold, copper, and silver tracing paths from the bed to the television and bathroom. Curtains of gold and silver hung in thick sheets from above, brilliantly reflecting sparkling light across the room, and moving slightly in the breeze from the broken nearby window. Shattered quartz and glass shards lay strewn around the ground, the sound of the window breaking causing the young girl to look up from her screen. It was far more muffled than she would have expected, though Tamba Tantri had almost certainly felt the disturbance and called for the guards.

A man stood in front of her. Young, barely in his 20s, his exposed upper body rippling with thick muscles. Grusome hooks and barbed blades hung from his forearms, dangling on almost imperceptible metal wires. He looked familiar - a cousin that she had been kept sequestered from, only seeing his photos? An old family friend that she hadn't met since she was a baby? Some random intruder? If he was one of theirs, he was probably Ankush Rekha - though if that was the case, he had much fewer scars than the girl had expected.

The girl was barely half his age and less than half his weight, but she didn't seem disturbed by his presence. He walked forwards, his Hindi slurred under his breath as he did his best to sound disarming.

"C'mon Rue Rue, I don't wanna hurt ya. Just need enough to buy ourselves a ticket to France - I'll get ya some Ice Cream and take ya to the movies after, how's that sound?"

The girl's expression didn't change, the man quickly growing impatient as seconds dragged on. He probably knew how intense security was - few who entered her chamber without an invitation left with their body intact.

"Alright seriously, hurry the hell up kid! Come with me if ya want to live."

Despite his scowl and the aggressive baritone in his voice, the girl smiled at the words. The hooks dangling from the man's arms seemed to shift in the air somewhat, and the man snapped his head towards the corner of the room looking straight at the wall. His long legs and swift step allowed him to close the distance almost instantly, and he reached a muscular hooked arm out towards the girl.

"Times up. C'mon ya little shi-"

She darted forwards, moving in and past his arm. A jab to the chest, followed almost immediately by another to the throat. She darted back out within the same breath, though didn't run as far as one would expect a young girl to do in such a situation. The punches themselves were nothing against the man - even in a delicate point like the throat, a child wasn't going to hurt a grown man with a light jab.

Regardless, the man had collapsed to the ground, clutching at the points where their skin had made contact. A thick gurgling noise could be heard emanating from him, like air being pushed out of a whistle that was dropped in syrup.

"Auuuugggaa... Auuuugggaa..."

The hooks dangling from his arms dug into the flesh that remained intact - but in the center of his chest, where there was once thick and rippling muscle, was now an almost transparent sheet of metal. His heart could be seen pumping wildly, blood pooling in a partially transmuted lung.

"Transparent Spinel. MgAl₂O₄. I thought about using Aluminium oxynitride, but I haven't gotten the hang of that one yet... If you keep thrashing around you'll bleed out, and if you stop you'll suffocate from the lung damage. Expected time of expiration: 48 seconds."

A hook seemed to shoot forwards - too high to be a hit on the girl, and aimed to the right. His aim must have been ruined by the shock to his system. Despite that, he managed to land a clean shot on a woman in robes, thick metal armor underneath barely blocking the hook from sinking into her torso. Several more guards raced into the room, all wearing identical uniforms. Two stationed themselves between the man and the girl, while the rest surrounded the man, restraining him and dragging him from the room just as quickly as they first arrived. Several barbs and hooks latched onto the floor as he was dragged away, breaking apart under the force of the guards pulling him.

The girl didn't know why they bothered. They wouldn't be able to interrogate him before he died. She gazed idly at the blood trail that followed the man's body, leaking from a crack that formed in his chest from the force of his restraint. It covered the small golden footprints that she had left in the floor. She frowned slightly. One of the guards that had stayed in the room, an older man, noticed her displeasure and extended a hand, the blood seeming to be drawn up as thick red cuboids into the air.

She didn't bother to thank him, or even paid mind to the attempted kidnapping. If the girl was bothered by murdering her assailant, she certainly didn't show it. She just grumbled under her breath, thinking about how annoying the increased security for the next few weeks will be. She made her way back to the massive television set in the corner of the room, resuming the movie that the intruder had so rudely interrupted.

The guards in the room cleaned the mess that had been left from the brief interaction, anxious as the girl watched some science fiction movie in fascination, viscera spraying across the screen as some alien creature exploded out of a man's torso.

---

Rupa collapsed out of her bed, falling onto the hardwood floor as she clawed at her throat and gasped for air. Her pajamas, a full-body onesie with a bunny hood, was rapidly shifting between aluminum, zinc, and silver. She writhed on the floor and did her best to calm down, slowing her breathing as much as she could and trying to keep herself from crying out.

"Fuck fuck fuck I killed my cousin as a kid, oh shit oh god, I'm a fucking psycho dude, holy SHIT!"

The panic attack and stream of profanity continued for a few more minutes before she eventually reigned her power in, transmuting her onesie into silver before slowly crawling to her feet. She breathed a sigh of relief as she took a brief inventory of her apartment - a small studio apartment in the East Flank that was a far cry from her previous luxury. Her bed was still lumpy and kinda smelled musty, the floor was still hardwood with that one sticky spot in the corner that she hoped was soda, and the wall was still drywall that probably had lead paint or asbestos or something. The onesie was hot as hell during the summer, but thankfully it does its job of keeping her rented home (and security deposit) safe from her power.

Taking a look at her phone, Rupa quickly swore under her breath and raced to get changed. If she didn't hurry, she'd be late for the orientation, and might be forced to sit through it again. She threw a top on and pulled on the nearest pair of pants, stumbling through the door to her apartment as she was pulling on sneakers, dragging a massive duffel bag behind her with deceptive ease.

"Shit shit shit- OW!" As she raced down the stairwell, an older woman tossed an apple at Rupa's head while calling after her angrily in a mix of rapid-fire Thai and heavily-accented English.

"Sorry for swearing Mrs. Yuvaves!!! Thanks for the apple, I promise I'll get you rent tonight! ...Crap crap crap."

Rupa ran out of the rundown apartment block before skidding to a halt as she saw that traffic in most of the city had been backed up thanks to the festivities. She groaned loudly, causing a few nearby pedestrians to stare at the scruffy girl, before pulling a weathered MP3 player out of her pocket and sliding earpieces into place. A familiar beat began as she started running, weaving between pedestrians and darting through alleys as she made her way towards Savior Island.

---

Thankfully, her apartment was fairly close to the HERO-owned landmass, and she could see the towering skyscraper of HERO One within a a few minutes of leaving her apartment complex. She had kept up her training regimen ever since coming to the States, so her stamina was decent enough. She wasn't even winded, despite the intense pace she was keeping. As she got closer, she thought back to her previous visits to the building - not the best, in all honesty. She destroyed several training dummies while they were testing her powers, as well as a wall or eight. That, combined with the tantrum she threw when they even brought up the idea of locking her up in the Junior Academy, was enough to put her on the bad side of most personnel who had the displeasure of meeting with her. No way in hell that place was like the Breakfast Club.

'Could be worse - least I'm not gonna get stabbed in my sleep or get facehuggered by boiling mercury.'

Hopefully.

By the time she had made it to the coast of the island, she could already see, several people congregating together. Or rather, several people congregating together, and a fucking GIANT. Seriously, was she 10 meters tall or something? Or whatever that is in freedom units.

Rupa skidded to a halt as she reached the others, coughing and groping for the water bottle in her oversized duffel bag. Probably shouldn't have sprinted near the end if she was trying to make a good impression.

"*cough* s-sup'... sorry I... *cough* I need a bike... Sorry I'm late Ms. Duff. Won't happen again probably I think!"

She choked down a few gulps of water before looking at the other people who had congregated thus far. The easiest to spot from a distance was the giant girl, who even after lowering herself to speak with the other heroes, was still taller than some suburban houses. Her power was pretty obvious and hopefully could be turned off - if not, that shit was even more inconvenient than Rupa's power, which she didn't think was possible to be honest. Imagine getting clothes that fit - ugh...

There was also a freaky mushroom... thing? Let's roll with it. Nah, They, it is kinda dehumanizing- can you dehumanize something that might not be human?

WHATEVER! They were super fucky looking, like a special effects department in the 80's got most of the movie budget. Which, of course, meant they were the coolest-looking thing here. Rupa definitely had to get to know them and ask how they feel about Little Shop of Horrors. Unless that's like a porno for this thing, which it might be.

The others were much less notable at a glance. Ms. Duff was an Omega-class hotty, and her friendly demeanor was a stark contrast to the authoritarian bullshit that Rupa was used to - both with her family, and at the few jobs she tried to hold down in the States. Her outfit was also pretty swanky - Rupa could never pull off heels, and the suit definitely gave off 'I'm the co-leader of a massive superhero organization' vibes.

One girl wore a white trench coat and pants alongside a black turtleneck, with dark hair and deep green eyes. Maybe not a hero and just in R&D or something? She felt like a scientist. Hot, but in a scary way - Ms. Duff is better. Rupa narrowed her eyes a bit as she looked at the woman. She felt familiar in some way, but not enough that Rupa could narrow it down.

The last one was another girl, younger, with long white hair. She seemed kind of cold at first glance, and was a bit off to the side compared to the others. Shy maybe? Dunno. She'd probably be the final girl in a horror flick, or the hacker girl in an action movie if Rupa had to nail her down to a specific niche. No clue what her power is, or the green-eyed girl for that matter. Hopefully flight or fireballs, that'd be pretty badass.

They probably already did introductions, huh? Everyone was looking at her after she sprinted up here, even the Swamp Thing cosplayer. Gotta get back in the swing of things, let's do this shit, Sterling!

Rupa shined an apple against her coat as she looked at the others, her voice a bit too loud for how close everyone was.

"Shining like a shooting star, the Rocky 4 of Superheros! Rupa Sterling - AKA Alchemist, I'm gonna roll with just Alchemsit when I'm saying this in costume - makes any problem golden! EAT SHIT, CRIME!!!"

The girl struck a dynamic pose as she pointed at the sky and yelled her practiced introduction (which Assistant Director Duff had probably been forced to sit through more than once), thankful that she kept the swear word in since it made her sound more mature and serious. Rupa promptly dropped the duffel bag she was carrying, which slammed into the ground with the force of a hundred or two pounds of metal that was shoved in there. She then sat on the bag, and took a massive bite out of the apple she had been holding this entire time.

"Nice to meet you guys. Let me know if you wanna borrow any movies, I got a few hard drives with, like, everything good after 197- oh fuck, should I be eating this in front of that guy?"

She points at Mire with the hand holding the half-eaten apple, her face flush with embarrassment for the first time this entire interaction.

"I don't want to be, like, rude or something."

《 Super H.E.R.O. 》

Rupa Sterling

---

---

ALCHEMIST

"Don't ask a bird how much they like their gilded cage. They'll probably just shit on it."

---

---

[ NAME ]

Rupa Sterling

[ HERO IDENTITY ]

Alchemist

[ NICKNAME/ALIAS ]

Rue, Rocky (Self-Designated), Shitty T-1000 (Self-Designated)

[ AGE ]

19

[ GENDER ]

Female

[ AFFILIATION ]

HERO (Probationary Status)

[ APPEARANCE ]

Subject is a young woman of Indian descent with a lithe, athletic build. Muscular definition is most prominent in arms and back. Height: 5'6". Skin tone: warm brown. Eyes: Green. Hair: long, wavy, black. Notable features include distinctive neck tattoos, reportedly acquired under the misapprehension that she could manipulate them due to metallic content in the ink.

Civilian Attire: Subject favors practical clothing: dark hoodies or jackets over t-shirts, jeans or leggings, sneakers or boots. Always wears gloves or arm wrappings, presumably to assist in controlling her power.

Hero Costume: Minimal deviation from civilian attire. Components include a Small cloak (resembling boxing robes), Arm bandages, Metallic fiber shorts and shirt, Steel-toed boots, Boxing headgear and domino mask for identity concealment

Note: Subject has been observed "looting" armor from opponents, transmuting it for personal use. This behavior should be monitored and addressed.

[ PERSONALITY TRAITS ]

Free Spirit: Subject displays a strong desire for freedom, likely due to previous confinement. This manifests as enthusiasm but can lead to rule-breaking and authority issues.

High Energy: Exhibits constant readiness for action. While beneficial for hero work, it may impede teamwork and strategy planning.

Naivety: Sheltered upbringing has resulted in frequent misunderstandings of social norms. Paradoxically, subject shows disturbing familiarity with violence and combat.

Cinephile: Obsessive interest in films influences decision-making and expectations. May lead to unrealistic approaches to hero work.

Brutal Tendencies: Subject displays concerning comfort with violence and gore. Avoids lethal force not out of moral compunction but adherence to HERO guidelines. Close monitoring is recommended.

Overall Assessment: Subject's psychological state is complex and potentially unstable. Regular therapy sessions and careful mission assignments are strongly advised.

[ BIO ]

Subject Rupa Sterling, born Rupa Paksha, originates from the infamous Paksha clan of Mumbai, India. The Paksha clan has terrorized the Indian subcontinent for generations, their notoriety extending internationally due to high-profile heists and reckless destruction. The clan's power stems from their cultivated Hero Gene, resulting in potent ferrokinetic abilities across family lines.

Rupa is the daughter of Parad Rani (Mercury Queen) and Loha Raja (Iron King), two of the clan's most feared members. From birth, she was expected to manifest powers at the 'Shesha Rank' (equivalent to HERO's Alpha class). Her abilities emerged early, at age 5, marking her as a prodigy within the already exceptional family.

Unlike her siblings and cousins who were groomed for direct criminal activities, Rupa's role was unique. Her ability to transmute any material into metal made her an invaluable resource. The Paksha clan used her powers to amass incredible wealth and resources, fueling their campaign against DHARMA (India's superhero organization). This culminated in the near-total control of Mumbai by the Paksha clan four years ago.

Rupa's daily life was a stark contrast to her family members. While they engaged in combat training and criminal operations, she was kept in a metaphorical gilded cage. Her handlers provided her with luxuries but denied her freedom, keeping her under constant surveillance. This isolation bred resentment from her siblings and cousins, who viewed her as privileged despite her confinement.

To cope with her isolation, Rupa immersed herself in American cinema. She learned English primarily through these films, developing an idealized view of Western life and heroism. This fascination extended to her choice of combat training; she requested to learn modern boxing instead of the traditional Musti-yuddha techniques favored by her family.

The turning point came when Rupa turned 19. The clan arranged her marriage to the son of another villain family, intending to create an even more powerful villainous alliance. This impending loss of what little autonomy she had spurred Rupa to action. On the night before her engagement ceremony, she used her powers to disable security systems and escape the compound.

Her escape coincided with a DHARMA assault, orchestrated by a precognitive hero. This distraction allowed Rupa to flee to Nashik, where she used her abilities to acquire forged documents, adopt the surname Sterling, and secure passage to the United States.

Upon arriving in America, Rupa spent several months on the move, using her powers sparingly to avoid detection. The culture shock was significant; her understanding of American life, based entirely on films, proved woefully inadequate for navigating reality. However, her cinematic education did provide her with a strong grasp of English, albeit one peppered with movie quotes and outdated slang.

Ultimately, Rupa chose to settle in Castleburg, drawn by the presence of HERO. She saw the organization as a means to secure protection from her family, obtain legal income, and potentially gain citizenship. More importantly, it offered her the chance to reinvent herself as one of the heroes she had idolized in movies.

Rupa's integration into HERO and American society has been an ongoing challenge. Her naivety about social norms, combined with her unusual upbringing, has led to numerous misunderstandings. Her comfort with violence and casual attitude towards her lethal abilities have raised concerns among HERO psychologists. However, her enthusiasm, unique skillset, and genuine desire to do good have made her a valuable, if unpredictable, asset to the organization.

Currently, Rupa continues to adapt to her new life, balancing her hero training with therapy sessions and cultural acclimation classes. She remains vigilant for any sign of her family's reach, a fear that occasionally manifests in nightmares. Despite these challenges, Rupa approaches her new life with optimism, determined to write her own story as a hero rather than the villain she was born to be.

| MISCELLANEOUS |

Countermeasures: Traditional weapons and defenses are ineffective. Bullets can't hurt her, and she can tear through walls better than 90% of Metahumans. Landmines and other explosives are effective - the shrapnel does nothing, but high heat and concussive force can kill her. Electromagnetic traps can cause severe damage to her and be turned off to retain a stealth advantage. As of writing, she cannot swim - a telekinetic could simply throw her into a deep body of water. Mustard Gas and other aerosol weapons are effective due to her inability to transmute gasses.

Despite her generally upbeat demeanor, Subject regularly suffers from nightmares about her family's crimes and her role in enabling them. Currently seeing HERO therapists.

Cultural integration challenges persist. Subject's understanding of American society is heavily influenced by media consumption.

"My favorite movie? Rocky 4, EASY!!! And like, all of the Rocky movies except 5 are up there too. I also love Shawshank Redemption and The Matrix, those are some top-tier cinema! Lagaan is my favorite musical, but cricket is so fucking boring in real life..."

Abilities

[ RANKING ]

Γ (Gamma Class)

[ POWERS ]

Ferrokinetic Transmutation Subject can transmute any solid or liquid material into any metal or alloys known to the Subject through touch. Transmutation speed varies based on object size and composition, but is exceptionally quick in most situations. Power is extremely lethal - direct skin contact can easily be fatal. All known metals the Subject has been exposed to seem to be replicable, though several are undesirable. For example, Radium (irradiates the Subject) or pure Iron/Nickel/Cobalt (magnetic enough to cause intense migraines and stick to the skin).

Secondary abilities include manipulating metal with extreme dexterity, described by the Subject as 'shaping wet clay'. Metal objects the Subject hold are effectively weightless to them, though this does nothing for non-metal components. Subject also demonstrates high resistance to metal-based physical attacks (bullets, knives, etc) but not any indirect effect of metal (drowning in mercury, radiation poisoning from radium, etc).

Magnetic Vulnerability: Subject experiences adverse reactions to magnetic fields. Effects range from mild (power interference, migraines) to severe (internal injuries, seizures, death). Metal is presumed to be vitally important to subject's bodily functions, with magnetic fields having a massively increased effect on them compared to normal humans. Prolonged exposure can result in metal adhesion to subject's body.

[ PHYSICAL STRENGTH ]
■■■□□□□□□□
Subject displays above-average strength, comparable to a skilled college athlete. Effective strength increases to 6/10 when handling metal objects due to power interaction.

[ AGILITY ]
■■■□□□□□□□
Above-average speed and agility. Power enables unique mobility options (e.g., creating handholds in structures). Not competitive with speedster-type metahumans.

[ INTELLIGENCE ]
■■□□□□□□□□
Demonstrates proficiency in chemistry and metallurgy. Significant deficits in general knowledge and life skills due to isolated upbringing. Unable to perform basic tasks such as cooking, cleaning, or driving.

[ DESTRUCTIVENESS ]
■■■■■■□□□□
High potential for environmental and structural damage. Ability to transmute materials into hazardous substances (e.g., mercury) poses significant risks to infrastructure and ecosystems. Limited by touch range and potential for self-harm from structural collapse.

[ LETHALITY ]
■■■■■■■■■□
Extremely high lethality potential. Direct skin contact can be nigh-instantly fatal to even the highest levels of durability. Touch range limitation prevents higher rating.

[ ENDURANCE ]
■■■■□□□□□□
Subject displays high pain tolerance and can function even with multiple massive injuries. Most likely a consequence of training rather than her actual powers. Against metal objects, Endurance is comparable to an 8-9/10.

[ STAMINA ]
■■■■■■■□□□
Passive aspects of power (e.g., metal resistance) appear constant. Active transmutation sustainable for several hours before fatigue onset. Passive transmutation occurs at a slow but constant rate when Subject is not actively preventing it.

[ EFFICACY ]
■■□□□□□□□□
Subject's default state is power activation. Constant focus required to prevent accidental use. Magnetic fields severely impair control.

[ SURVELIANCE LEVEL ]
■■■■■■■■□□
Subject's background with the criminal underworld, anti-authority worldview, high-lethality power, and general psychotic tendencies have warranted a very high level of monitoring by HERO personnel.

[ SKILLS ]

Boxing: Proficient in both traditional Musti-yuddha and modern boxing techniques. Favors aggressive, close-range combat style.

Chemistry: Strong foundation in chemistry, metallurgy, and material science. Valuable for power application and mission planning.

Multilingualism: Fluent in Hindi and English. English proficiency notable for mix of formal language and pop culture references.

Cinephile: Subjects opinion on their talent in this skill has been copied, verbatim, from their interview:

'I've seen so many movies dude! If there's a leftover that's like a Xenomorph or the Thing, they're fucked!!! Don't get me started on Robots, I learned the laws of robotics from that one Will Smith film with the weird plastic-looking dudes, they can't even hurt people most of the time. Kinda crappy, T-800s do it all the time! I learned some cricket after watching Lagaan, OH, and I have the PERFECT Wilhelm scream! Check it, UAAH-'

[ EQUIPMENT ]

Steel Boxing Gloves: Transmuted boxing gloves. Extremely heavy (30+ lbs each) but weightless to Subject. Highly dangerous in combat.

Cloak: Provides additional armor and movement concealment. Subject believes they can use it to 'glide like Batman', despite normally holding more than 100 lbs of metal at any given time. Note: Subject's misconception about gliding capabilities has been addressed.

MP4 Player: Personal entertainment device. Contents may provide insights into Subject's mental state and cultural adaptation progress. Often used during Training / Sparring.

ADVISORY: Close monitoring of all equipment is recommended due to Subject's transmutation abilities.

《 Super H.E.R.O. 》

@Hitman
Should be done - it's been a hot minute since I made a character for any RP, so I might have gone overboard or missed the mark. Wrote it up like a in-universe document, but I can make a more traditional sheet if needed. Lmk if I should change anything!

Rupa Sterling

---

---

ALCHEMIST

"Don't ask a bird how much they like their gilded cage. They'll probably just shit on it."

---

---

[ NAME ]

Rupa Sterling

[ HERO IDENTITY ]

Alchemist

[ NICKNAME/ALIAS ]

Rue, Rocky (Self-Designated), Shitty T-1000 (Self-Designated)

[ AGE ]

19

[ GENDER ]

Female

[ AFFILIATION ]

HERO (Probationary Status)

[ APPEARANCE ]

Subject is a young woman of Indian descent with a lithe, athletic build. Muscular definition is most prominent in arms and back. Height: 5'6". Skin tone: warm brown. Eyes: Green. Hair: long, wavy, black. Notable features include distinctive neck tattoos, reportedly acquired under the misapprehension that she could manipulate them due to metallic content in the ink.

Civilian Attire: Subject favors practical clothing: dark hoodies or jackets over t-shirts, jeans or leggings, sneakers or boots. Always wears gloves or arm wrappings, presumably to assist in controlling her power.

Hero Costume: Minimal deviation from civilian attire. Components include a Small cloak (resembling boxing robes), Arm bandages, Metallic fiber shorts and shirt, Steel-toed boots, Boxing headgear and domino mask for identity concealment

Note: Subject has been observed "looting" armor from opponents, transmuting it for personal use. This behavior should be monitored and addressed.

[ PERSONALITY TRAITS ]

Free Spirit: Subject displays a strong desire for freedom, likely due to previous confinement. This manifests as enthusiasm but can lead to rule-breaking and authority issues.

High Energy: Exhibits constant readiness for action. While beneficial for hero work, it may impede teamwork and strategy planning.

Naivety: Sheltered upbringing has resulted in frequent misunderstandings of social norms. Paradoxically, subject shows disturbing familiarity with violence and combat.

Cinephile: Obsessive interest in films influences decision-making and expectations. May lead to unrealistic approaches to hero work.

Brutal Tendencies: Subject displays concerning comfort with violence and gore. Avoids lethal force not out of moral compunction but adherence to HERO guidelines. Close monitoring is recommended.

Overall Assessment: Subject's psychological state is complex and potentially unstable. Regular therapy sessions and careful mission assignments are strongly advised.

[ BIO ]

Subject Rupa Sterling, born Rupa Paksha, originates from the infamous Paksha clan of Mumbai, India. The Paksha clan has terrorized the Indian subcontinent for generations, their notoriety extending internationally due to high-profile heists and reckless destruction. The clan's power stems from their cultivated Hero Gene, resulting in potent ferrokinetic abilities across family lines.

Rupa is the daughter of Parad Rani (Mercury Queen) and Loha Raja (Iron King), two of the clan's most feared members. From birth, she was expected to manifest powers at the 'Shesha Rank' (equivalent to HERO's Alpha class). Her abilities emerged early, at age 5, marking her as a prodigy within the already exceptional family.

Unlike her siblings and cousins who were groomed for direct criminal activities, Rupa's role was unique. Her ability to transmute any material into metal made her an invaluable resource. The Paksha clan used her powers to amass incredible wealth and resources, fueling their campaign against DHARMA (India's superhero organization). This culminated in the near-total control of Mumbai by the Paksha clan four years ago.

Rupa's daily life was a stark contrast to her family members. While they engaged in combat training and criminal operations, she was kept in a metaphorical gilded cage. Her handlers provided her with luxuries but denied her freedom, keeping her under constant surveillance. This isolation bred resentment from her siblings and cousins, who viewed her as privileged despite her confinement.

To cope with her isolation, Rupa immersed herself in American cinema. She learned English primarily through these films, developing an idealized view of Western life and heroism. This fascination extended to her choice of combat training; she requested to learn modern boxing instead of the traditional Musti-yuddha techniques favored by her family.

The turning point came when Rupa turned 19. The clan arranged her marriage to the son of another villain family, intending to create an even more powerful villainous alliance. This impending loss of what little autonomy she had spurred Rupa to action. On the night before her engagement ceremony, she used her powers to disable security systems and escape the compound.

Her escape coincided with a DHARMA assault, orchestrated by a precognitive hero. This distraction allowed Rupa to flee to Nashik, where she used her abilities to acquire forged documents, adopt the surname Sterling, and secure passage to the United States.

Upon arriving in America, Rupa spent several months on the move, using her powers sparingly to avoid detection. The culture shock was significant; her understanding of American life, based entirely on films, proved woefully inadequate for navigating reality. However, her cinematic education did provide her with a strong grasp of English, albeit one peppered with movie quotes and outdated slang.

Ultimately, Rupa chose to settle in Castleburg, drawn by the presence of HERO. She saw the organization as a means to secure protection from her family, obtain legal income, and potentially gain citizenship. More importantly, it offered her the chance to reinvent herself as one of the heroes she had idolized in movies.

Rupa's integration into HERO and American society has been an ongoing challenge. Her naivety about social norms, combined with her unusual upbringing, has led to numerous misunderstandings. Her comfort with violence and casual attitude towards her lethal abilities have raised concerns among HERO psychologists. However, her enthusiasm, unique skillset, and genuine desire to do good have made her a valuable, if unpredictable, asset to the organization.

Currently, Rupa continues to adapt to her new life, balancing her hero training with therapy sessions and cultural acclimation classes. She remains vigilant for any sign of her family's reach, a fear that occasionally manifests in nightmares. Despite these challenges, Rupa approaches her new life with optimism, determined to write her own story as a hero rather than the villain she was born to be.

| MISCELLANEOUS |

Countermeasures: Traditional weapons and defenses are ineffective. Bullets can't hurt her, and she can tear through walls better than 90% of Metahumans. Landmines and other explosives are effective - the shrapnel does nothing, but high heat and concussive force can kill her. Electromagnetic traps can cause severe damage to her and be turned off to retain a stealth advantage. As of writing, she cannot swim - a telekinetic could simply throw her into a deep body of water. Mustard Gas and other aerosol weapons are effective due to her inability to transmute gasses.

Despite her generally upbeat demeanor, Subject regularly suffers from nightmares about her family's crimes and her role in enabling them. Currently seeing HERO therapists.

Cultural integration challenges persist. Subject's understanding of American society is heavily influenced by media consumption.

"My favorite movie? Rocky 4, EASY!!! And like, all of the Rocky movies except 5 are up there too. I also love Shawshank Redemption and The Matrix, those are some top-tier cinema! Lagaan is my favorite musical, but cricket is so fucking boring in real life..."

Abilities

[ RANKING ]

Γ (Gamma Class)

[ POWERS ]

Ferrokinetic Transmutation Subject can transmute any solid or liquid material into any metal or alloys known to the Subject through touch. Transmutation speed varies based on object size and composition, but is exceptionally quick in most situations. Power is extremely lethal - direct skin contact can easily be fatal. All known metals the Subject has been exposed to seem to be replicable, though several are undesirable. For example, Radium (irradiates the Subject) or pure Iron/Nickel/Cobalt (magnetic enough to cause intense migraines and stick to the skin).

Secondary abilities include manipulating metal with extreme dexterity, described by the Subject as 'shaping wet clay'. Metal objects the Subject hold are effectively weightless to them, though this does nothing for non-metal components. Subject also demonstrates high resistance to metal-based physical attacks (bullets, knives, etc) but not any indirect effect of metal (drowning in mercury, radiation poisoning from radium, etc).

Magnetic Vulnerability: Subject experiences adverse reactions to magnetic fields. Effects range from mild (power interference, migraines) to severe (internal injuries, seizures, death). Metal is presumed to be vitally important to subject's bodily functions, with magnetic fields having a massively increased effect on them compared to normal humans. Prolonged exposure can result in metal adhesion to subject's body.

[ PHYSICAL STRENGTH ]
■■■□□□□□□□
Subject displays above-average strength, comparable to a skilled college athlete. Effective strength increases to 6/10 when handling metal objects due to power interaction.

[ AGILITY ]
■■■□□□□□□□
Above-average speed and agility. Power enables unique mobility options (e.g., creating handholds in structures). Not competitive with speedster-type metahumans.

[ INTELLIGENCE ]
■■□□□□□□□□
Demonstrates proficiency in chemistry and metallurgy. Significant deficits in general knowledge and life skills due to isolated upbringing. Unable to perform basic tasks such as cooking, cleaning, or driving.

[ DESTRUCTIVENESS ]
■■■■■■□□□□
High potential for environmental and structural damage. Ability to transmute materials into hazardous substances (e.g., mercury) poses significant risks to infrastructure and ecosystems. Limited by touch range and potential for self-harm from structural collapse.

[ LETHALITY ]
■■■■■■■■□□
Extremely high lethality potential. Direct skin contact can be nigh-instantly fatal to even the higher levels of durability. Touch range limitation prevents higher rating.

[ ENDURANCE ]
■■■■■■■□□□
Passive aspects of power (e.g., metal resistance) appear constant. Active transmutation sustainable for several hours before fatigue onset. Passive transmutation occurs at a slow but constant rate when Subject is not actively preventing it.

[ EFFICACY ]
■■□□□□□□□□
Subject's default state is power activation. Constant focus required to prevent accidental use. Magnetic fields severely impair control.

[ SKILLS ]

Boxing: Proficient in both traditional Musti-yuddha and modern boxing techniques. Favors aggressive, close-range combat style.

Chemistry: Strong foundation in chemistry, metallurgy, and material science. Valuable for power application and mission planning.

Multilingualism: Fluent in Hindi and English. English proficiency notable for mix of formal language and pop culture references.

Cinephile: Subjects opinion on their talent in this skill has been copied, verbatim, from their interview:

'I've seen so many movies dude! If there's a leftover that's like a Xenomorph or the Thing, they're fucked!!! Don't get me started on Robots, I learned the laws of robotics from that one Will Smith film with the weird plastic-looking dudes, they can't even hurt people most of the time. Kinda crappy, T-800s do it all the time! I learned some cricket after watching Lagaan, OH, and I have the PERFECT Wilhelm scream! Check it, UAAH-'

[ EQUIPMENT ]

Steel Boxing Gloves: Transmuted boxing gloves. Extremely heavy (30+ lbs each) but weightless to Subject. Highly dangerous in combat.

Cloak: Provides additional armor and movement concealment. Subject believes they can use it to 'glide like Batman', despite normally holding more than 100 lbs of metal at any given time. Note: Subject's misconception about gliding capabilities has been addressed.

MP4 Player: Personal entertainment device. Contents may provide insights into Subject's mental state and cultural adaptation progress. Often used during Training / Sparring.

ADVISORY: Close monitoring of all equipment is recommended due to Subject's transmutation abilities.

Parahumans: Earth Drega

---

As Ethan climbed higher and higher in the fire escape, the areas where the stairwell was compromised became more apparent by the second. Small flakes of silver, almost liquid metal were splattered across the railing and stairs, becoming more prominent and difficult to avoid with each story he climbed. Ethan wasn't a mover in a direct sense, but he knew how to place his body in just the right positions to avoid touching the liquid. Thankfully the individual puddles didn't seem to expand past a few feed in diameter, but considering the size of the fire escape, that didn't exactly leave much room to maneuver.

Too much spread, doesn't make sense with previous reports. Should take at least an hour for it to get this far down if it started at the top floor. Ironside located somewhere other than top floor? Unlikely. Climbing the elevator shaft is impossible. Main stairwell also likely shut down with liquid metal. Elevator shaft too dangerous to climb, can fall to death or be destroyed by a Sundown gravity well. Spread is far too fast paced, indicates some preparation or outside assistance. Possible trump support? Consider-

Ethan cupped his head in one hand, pausing at a corner as he wrestled with the constant flow of information. He had never been 'on the field' with his power before, and it seemed to kick into overdrive with the stress and conflict of the situation, overfeeding him with information that was unnecessary. Every glance around him told him the errors in architecture, the points that were coated in the liquid metal stood out like neon lights to his vision, making them almost impossible to ignore. The parts where the metal soaked into the stairwell, melding with supports and bolts, was especially concerning.

The short amount of reading Ethan did on the ride over here said that Ironside took quite some time to fully contaminate an area - he had only been here a dozen or two minutes, and had already filled several floors of this massive building with his metal. Ethan was too distracted to think on it deeply, constantly looking up to make sure Champion wasn't running down the stairs to drop kick his head off, or Ironside wasn't about to teleport behind him and push him over the railing. But he had a few guesses about what was happening. The most likely situation was that Blackburn arrived some time ago, subtly infested the area, and then launched the heist... but that wouldn't explain why they haven't done that in all their previous jobs.

Could also be any other number of reasons - a trump they recently hired for this gig is empowering him, maybe they commissioned some kind of power enhancer from Chemtrail. Hell, Ironside might have just second triggered and gotten a faster ramp up period out of it.

Doesn't matter. Not enough information to guess on the why - just need to focus on the facts right now. Ethan tapped the side of his helmet, talking over the channel as continued walking around each puddle in his ascent.

"Lot more metal here than I expected - I'm thinking something is boosting Ironside up more than usual. Maybe a trump, tinker tech enhancements or something. Hard to narrow it down with my power being distracted and pointing out every puddle to me. Just be careful if you guys see him, and watch where you step. If Tandem is free, covering the metal in containment foam would be smart."

Ethan didn't know if Ironside had some kind of Thinker perception towards his puddles, but it would make sense - a teleporter usually has some indication of where they are teleporting too, so having awareness around his 'waypoints' would make sense. Ethan was just kind of hoping it relied on touching the puddles, rather than just being around it.

Ethan was making surprising progress - already about halfway up the building, and not a parahuman in sight. A crashing sound somewhere below made Ethan pause, but a few questions towards his power helped him narrow it down to either being Richter, Shattercrash, or both. Ethan stayed where he was for a second, catching his breath as he ran through the worst case scenarios.

Kintsugi was most likely with the hostages since he was a liability in a direct fight, and his minions were probably very capable of keeping the hostages in check. At worst, a construct or two might come down the stair well, and considering the usual intelligence of Master minions, they would probably be easy to evade, even with the tight quarters.

Ironside was likely fighting down below with Shattercrash or Richter, since he was probably the only member of Blackburn that could tank a direct hit from either of them. His power allowed him to teleport anywhere he pleased though, so he could appear behind Ethan the second he let his guard down.

Champion was unaccounted for, but would perform very well in the narrow fire escape. She could definitely beat Ethan in a prolonged fight, but her power set was at least something he could try to fight against. Feint and bait, rely on her overconfidence. She'll crush you if she gets the chance, but taking advantage of the environment could let you evade her or knock her down the stair well. Stay at a distance, don't let her touch you, find-

Sundown was the worst outcome - if she launched one of her orbs in here, it would probably destroy the entire fire escape. Nothing to do there, juts run or die. Shoot her with your crossbow before she can attack, throw a knife to distract her and then pepper spray her eyes. She won't attack if she can't see, too much risk-

Ethan kept moving, his movements almost like a dance as he carefully stepped around each puddle, hand only brushing the railing when he needed to make the occasional leap over a larger pool of metal. His hand over over each of his weapons, weighing the options with his power before eventually settling on the pepper spray. It could debilitate anyone except a Kintsugi construct, and he'd be able to drop it and pull out a knife quickly after.

Parahumans: Earth Drega

---

Ethan breathed an anxious sigh as he stepped out of the PRT van, one of the last wards to exit the vehicle. The building in front of him was cordoned off by police cars and officers kneeling around their vehicles, with a few setting up partitions of police tape to keep the especially curious pedestrian or reporter from getting too close to the danger. Ethan looked up at the bank itself, grimacing beneath his mask as he did so. It was a massive 25 story structure, the sides a sheer face of glass and concrete. Despite a significant portion of the building being composed of windows, the foundation and design of the concrete was clearly engineered with stability in mind - a focal point of Bridgewater architecture in a post-Confessor city. There were still weak points in the construction, but nothing that was applicable here, let alone useful.

Three points of exit and entry on the ground floor, no readily accessible rooftop exit. Windows are reinforced, but a strong blow can knock them out of frame - much easier pushing from the inside-out, though this will lead to the hostages falling to their death. Push some of the Blackburn capes out the windows? Two should be able to circumvent this or survive the fall, but the rest are dead from a high enough drop, easy kills. Likely have some parahuman mechanism for escape after they finish the heist - exploitation of Ironsides portals? Flying Kintsugi minions? At least two stairwells in the building, one for daily usage, and a fire escape. The main stairwell likely cordoned off by Blackburn, but fire escape potentially overlooked due to lack of time. Access the fire escape through the back entrance, the code to enter the back is 58-

Ethan grunted a bit under his breath, his glove clicking lightly against his ceramic helmet as he moved to cover his eyes. His power was even more active than usual, flooding him with information. Was it the fact he was finally in a real 'cape situation'? The stress? The proximity to other parahumans?

Didn't matter. He had to work through it, couldn't get lost in the input before he pulled together what he needed. He fished his PRT issued phone out of his pocket, looking over the text messages from hostages, blueprints of the bank, and various other documents that were shared with him by the PRT on the ride over. He did his best to glance over everything he couldn't finish on the ride, allowing his power to fill in the blanks as he read and as Shattercrash began talking to the other Wards.

The elevator system was already taken out? Had to be Ironside or Sun- okay, definitely Sundown. Leaves the stairwells for most of us, fire escape being the safer option. Hostages were probably moved to higher floors to prevent escape, but the question is where... Worry about it later, would take too much time to play 20 question with my power for that answer. Bird boy can maybe fly some of us up- can't support the weight, could maybe haul Tandem or some lighter Wards at best.

Ethan frowned, looking up at the bank once more. Scaling it was out of the question, even with Ethan's ability allowing him to pick out optimal hand points and climbing pathways. It was clear that the stairwell was the only real option for him, as well as most of the other non-movers.

He was about to speak before Shattercrash raced forwards, leaping through one of the shattered windows as a trail of neon pink light trailed behind her. Several tense seconds passed before a crashing sound could be heard from within the bank, Tandem teleporting away an instant later. Ethan snapped back to the reality of the situation, a wave of cold tension washing over him.

Yeah, he could probably die in this situation.

There were experienced capes here, but Ethan sure as hell wasn't one of them. Despite this, he was surprisingly calm about that - a far cry from his panic attack only a dozen or so minutes ago. With his power acting in overdrive like this, he was able to detach himself from the situation, focus his attention elsewhere to distract himself from the danger and the fear.

This was a puzzle, and it had a correct answer. He just had to figure out the pieces and what he had at his disposal, work out a plan that he could focus on. He followed the trail his power laid out for him, speaking out to the other Wards. He fumbled his words for a second, before figuring out how to turn on his earpiece and share his message with anyone who had already left the main group.

"Don't know exact positions, but I'm leaning towards the hostages being pretty high up - Sundown broke the elevator system to limit their escape, and the lack of external fire exits means they can't safely get out from higher floors."

He turned towards Hornet quickly, barely pausing in his rapid fire speech.

"Can you sense the hostages from this range? I can probably narrow their location down while looking over the bank schematics, but that's gonna take some time with all the rooms I'd have to check over - might be quicker for you to pop in and look around first. Just knowing the floor would cut down a lot of time."

Ethan barely slowed enough to allow her to respond before continuing.

"There isn't an entrance on the roof, but I doubt helicopter extraction would be an option anyways. You might be able to break into the higher floors through the windows, Bird boy, but I'd avoid it - might break your neck, the laminated glass is pretty tough. Easier to pop out of frame or slice a hole through than it is to break."

A pause as he unlocked his phone again. Ethan quickly began typing on the phone as he spoke, screen flipping between schematics and the text message he was typing every few seconds.

"There are two stairwells we can use, a main one and a fire exit. Both are probably compromised, but I'm thinking the fire exit might've been overlooked - they only had so much time to lock down the main stairwell and elevator. Probably the safest way up for the non-brutes. Shattercrash and Richter might be able to climb the elevator shaf- Nevermind, stupid idea. Sundown's gravity distortions might still be active in there. I'm headed to an employee entrance near the back if anyone wants to take the fire exit."

Ethan finished typing his message a few seconds after he was done speaking, sending out an updated image of the bank schematics, with the entrances and stairwells highlighted, and some of the unlikely hostage locations (bathrooms, storage closets, etc) already crossed out. He was making his way towards the back entrance of the bank, not bothering to look to see who was following him. He was too busy looking over the building more, checking the officers on sight, noticing the tarnished remnants of metal and asphalt that littered the ground - didn't even need his power to tell him those were some of Kintsugi's minions.

Vault and high security safety deposit boxes located in a basement level, but unlikely to be the primary target. Mercenary groups like Blackburn most likely going after documents and deeds on higher floors. Kintsugi likely to be guarding the hostages, his minion creation keeping larger groups in check more easily. Rely on stealth and assassination to take down quickly, minions should be easier to handle without coordination from a Master. Sundown probably keeping an eye over the main stairwell and elevator shaft, maybe support from Champion? Avoid confrontation. Ironsides has almost certainly diffused teleportation waypoints throughout the building, but unlikely to have gotten to all parts yet. Identify metal growths in environment, request Tandem cover them in containment foam or trap with explosives. Maintain stealth as long as possible, rely on Shattercrash to cause as much havoc as possible to pose as a distract-

Ethan got to the back entrance, barely slowing as he hammered a code into the keypad next to the steel door. Against most of the capes in Blackburn, Ethan was cannon fodder. This was his first time in costume, all his combat experience coming from schoolyard brawls and practice in the PRT training room. In every way imaginable, he should not be ready for this - he thought as much less than 15 minutes ago, when he had calmed himself by telling himself that he probably wouldn't even enter the building, just go over schematics and plans.

Now he was walking into danger of his own volition. He had no idea why he was so calm as he snuck towards the fire exit stairwell, avoiding the shattered remnants of the lobby. His power needed more input to help him out here, input he couldn't get from outside the building. Or at least, not fast enough to matter. Not for the hostages.

Was that it? His power needed more information to work off of, so he was risking his fucking life to get it? What stupid horseshit was that-

Shallow and rapid breathing, must relax to conserve stamina and avoid hyperventilation. Adjust your gait, ease into balls of feet for softer foot falls. Avoid shattered glass on ground, noise may attract attention.

Ethan drew his knife, measuring his breathing carefully as he continued to climb. He made a stupid mistake - he relied on his power to ease him into this mission, to keep him calm and avoid letting his fear and anxiety get ahead of him. And it, for some reason, didn't tell him how stupid of an idea it was to enter here.

Ethan paused as he rounded the stairwell, reaching the second floor. No point regretting it and thinking logically now. His power got him into this mess, now he just had to hope it could bail him out too.

He continued making is way up the stairs.

Saint Valerius Academy - A Knight/Noble Fantasy

1. I'm fine with any age, though the description of the academy's classes being high-school level makes me lean towards 16-18. Maybe we can change it to university-level courses?

2. I think the Fate Core ttrpg system has a very good mix of narrative and mechanics-based combat. Characters have inherent advantages over others in different tasks, either from skills or their aspects, and players can spend resources to get further bonuses based on aspects in the situation (such as leaving a trail to give yourself a better tracking check when retracing your steps, or having an advantage at hiding because you are well acquainted with the area and know where blindspots are).

I'm more of a fan of narrative-based combat, but it seems like the dice system is mostly there to help if we can't decide things on our own. Might I suggest switching to 3d6 instead of 1d20? Gives a nicer probability curve, and makes it a lot harder for a random peasant to stumble into a victory against a master fencer in a sword duel. Just a suggestion!

3. The skim option sounds better in my opinion - leave things open, maybe give a small factoid to keep in mind about the npc (The second rank knight has a serious temper problem, the Noble of the 5th rank is a master of gravity magic, etc). That way we can expand on them later if necessary, and give a bit of mystique and mystery to the various other students at the academy.

4. Usually prefer darker stories, but definitely not against fluffy SoL stuff - I'm just used to seeing those fizzle out. Maybe start off with SoL and branch off into some heavier subjects once we get settled on a defined plot? Up to everyone else.

If we need some plot ideas, I don't have anything super concrete - I usually like seeing the characters everyone has in mind before getting into that kind of stuff. Maybe someone on the newspaper club starts spreading gossip in the paper (which has some pretty severe consequences considering how rich and influential the nobles attending are) could work in a lighter plot?

5. Nothing I can think of right now - maybe a few examples of classes that the Nobles can take, or any advantage Ranks may have (other than reputation)? I'm planning on making my knight a bit of a delinquent, so if anybody is interested in pairing up, let me know!

Saint Valerius Academy - A Knight/Noble Fantasy

Interested if there is still space! Would prefer to play a knight, but I don't mind rolling with a Noble if pairings are skewed.

When you get the ooc up, do you mind throwing up some example talents (minor and/or major)? I want to get a feel for where to aim when making those.

My favorite characters change pretty often, but Lain Iwakura from Serial Experiment Lain and Kaoru Yamazaki from Welcome to the NHK are pretty high up there.

Parahumans: Earth Drega

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Ethan noticed that one of the cloner girl's bodies had approached, and when a lull in conversation appeared, she was quick to interject and start speaking with him.

“Hey Keystone. If your power hypothetically maybe at some point tells you that I’ve got something in my inventory that I could get in trouble for could you keep it a secret? I promise it’s not to hurt anyone, just for emergencies and stuff like that. You seem like you get being prepared, right?”

Her voice was a hushed whisper, so quiet that Keystone doubted Axiom would be able to hear despite only being feet away. Axiom smirked a bit beneath his mask - his power had already filled him in on this girl's paranoia, so it made sense that she'd be trying to get on his good side before he snitched on her.

"The only reason I'm using a crossbow is because they said no to a pistol - still pretty pissy about that, so I'll keep quiet. Just don't point shit at me or set something off when I'm in the room, and we're cool."

Ethan hesitated as he finished his whispered response, a second or two of pause filling the conversation as his power started filling in more details on the situation. Some of the things this kid had was pretty fucking dangerous, but if she was able to hide it from the asshole PR department, more power to her. No, what made Ethan hesitate was something a bit deeper than something related to her power.

"...Hey Clone gi- oh, Tandem, you're Tandem apparently. While we're talking favors, you mind partnering up for the patrol tomorrow? You and Shattercrash look like the most experienced ones here, and I could use the pointers. Plus I don't want to get randomly assigned with Bird Boy, he's setting my powers off like crazy."

Pointless. All the Protectorate heroes here are more experienced than any Ward, ask one of them for help instead. The changer probably heard that last part, you might have hurt his feelings. Keep it up.

Ethan was trying his best to be friendly, but damn it was hard to do that without stepping on toes or invading people's privacy. Offering to tutor her would probably offend her, and Ethan doubted he'd be patient enough to handle teaching her anything substantial. Asking to hang out after work would be way too annoying - he wanted to be friendly, not waste all his free time with people he worked with every day. This way he could make small talk with a Ward that didn't set him off too bad during work hours, and he'd probably be able to badmouth the PRT without too much retaliation on her end.

Plus he'd be able to tell his dad he made a 'friend' without lying to him. Win-win.

It wasn't even two minutes after Grandmaster left when another figure entered - well-dressed, somewhere in his 30s, and clearly annoyed with the situation at hand. He gave a sweeping glance across the room, taking in the various wards that were present, before introducing himself as Vice Director Fukuda. The name sounded vaguely familiar - Ethan might have seen him in a news report a year or two ago, or learned it via cultural osmosis. What mattered a lot more than this guy that Ethan didn't really care about was the news he was bringing them - instead of the relaxed schedule overview, team building exercises, and whatever other bullshit Axiom had planned for everyone, the Wards were apparently going to be stopping a bank heist.

On the first day.

Ethan had never even went out in costume before, so the fact that they were going up against a group of seasoned mercenaries was making a pit form in his stomach. The fact they only had 10 minutes to prepare was even more concerning - within seconds Ethan was already sliding his helmet off so he could equip the earbuds, throwing anonymity to the wind.

The changer almost seemed to explode, limbs and torso shooting vertically until he was pressed against the ceiling, chest shifting rapidly as he hyperventilated. Surprisingly, this helped ease some of Ethan's own anxiety around the situation - the buzz of his power in his head was able to hold his attention much more easily than the fact he might die in a half hour.

"Ugh, fucking piece of... Okay, someone calm him down before I have an aneurysm..."

It took a lot to not demand one of the master girls try to fuck up bird boy's perceptions or emotions (wouldn't work, they'd ignore you at best and attack in relation at worst. Better to bash his knees in, then go for-), and if the Engineering department had actually made the tranq bolts that Ethan had requested, he almost certainly would have unloaded half a dozen into the changer on the spot.

Instead, Ethan pried himself away from the scene, walking over to the small kitchen area to look over his costume. He breathed slowly. In. Out. In. Out.

Don't look, don't listen, don't think. Focus on the now. You're about to go fight mercenaries who you don't know, so ask Axiom or Nightstalker about them once everyone settles down.

Ethan patted himself, feeling the various pieces of equipment hidden beneath his cloak. Knives, crossbow bolts he barely knew how to load let alone aim, his phone, pepper spray. The first aid kit he felt at his side was probably his biggest contribution to the team in this situation, though he wasn't sure how useful it would be for wards like Richter or the changer.

Ethan saw a small bag of flour sitting at the edge of the counter, and instinctively snatched it, already jamming it into one of the many pockets lining the inside of his cloak. It could be useful - blocking line of sight was a pretty good defense against most powers, and worst case scenario it's combustibility would surprise an opponent and create an opening.

Excuses. Scared, looking for distraction. Painfully aware of your own inexperience, you're afraid of dying like he did. Focus on the others, hide behind them and rely on striking from range. You know more about this than any of the other wards - use that to your advantage.

Ethan stopped himself from scavenging anything else from the room, moving on to making final adjustments to his costume and cocking his crossbow. He would return to the group as soon as things settled down more, not trusting himself to not lash out right now. He could get filled in on the details and make a plan on the drive to the bank.

I'm a 14 year old, a thinker, and this is my very first day in costume. I'm probably just looking over the blueprints and asked to comb through strategies, not throw punches or some shit... Yeah, that's probably it. Nothing serious, relax.

The breathing exercise and logical reasoning helped ease some of Ethan's tension - he hadn't expected to get so wound up over this, but then again, he also hadn't expected to be stopping a 'real' crime within the first month, let alone the first day.

Ethan unconsciously gripped one of the knives at his side, practicing his quick draw to distract himself.

Practicing something Grandmaster remarked on, doesn-

Shut the fuck up already...