Finetales

Golden Age

Lady Lynx

Sullivan County, Northeastern Tennessee
Warpath Ammunition Center

It had been only five months since Laura had traded a life of crime for a life of heroism. Thankfully, she had never been caught or identified all those years, so to them she was nothing more than an extravagant dame who brought some important skills to the table. When she had started working for the Golden Guardian and company, she had been wary of all of them, though they would never know it as if she was good at anything in life, it was hiding feelings of unease and presenting confidently. As time went on her unease had begun to fade, and she became more comfortable as Lady Lynx. She did find the typical day of hero work to be rather boring, but she kept reminding herself that she left her criminal life because she was bored too.

Fortunately, today had a good potential to not be boring.

Laura was to accompany a handful of other heroes to an ammunition plant in Tennessee. She did not enjoy Tennessee, but she wasn't mad at the opportunity to meet and work with some heroes she was unfamiliar with. The first order of business was to rendezvous with a hero named Jungle Boy. Jungle Boy, or Tommy, paired well with Laura as he too did not present with the typical tights and bright colors that the other heroes usually did. Laura found their outfits altogether too cabaret for her tastes, but the general public loved it.

Upon teleporting in to the ammo plant with Tommy, the pair were greeted by the usual smattering of military men: one officer (a Major) and several enlisted. Laura thought she recognized the officer, and the look he wore that seemed to say "that's not what I expected." He straightened himself up, before addressing only Tommy, as if she wasn't there. "Welcome, Jungle Boy," the officer began, and continued by giving a brief explanation of the situation and what other heroes were present.

"Thank you, Major," Laura cut in when he was finished, with a pleasant voice but a frosty look on her face. Any woman was used to men talking over them, but she didn't have to abide by it. "Jungle Boy and I-"

She was interrupted midsentence by the faint voice outside yelling "Greif jetzt an, Albrecht!" and rolled her eyes. Even Nazis not in the building found a way to talk over her.

"They're here,"

@Silver Carrot

said Jungle Boy. She liked him, if no other reason than he didn't assume authority over her.

"So they are," Laura replied, before the Major cut in, barking more orders on how the Nazis weren't supposed to get to the material section of the warehouse. Before she could leave, the Major then finally spoke to her. "Ma'am, we need to get you some place safe. If you'll follow-"

"Sorry, do you think I brought this rifle for decoration?" she interrupted, referring to the Mosin-Nagant slung on her back. Before he could respond, she turned to the open door behind her and teleported to the other end the long corridor it presented, before walking further into the base. She made her way to the nearest guard tower and was finally able to survey the situation. The Torch of Liberty was in combat with an enormous Nazi wolfman, while Elastic Man was dealing with some of the Nazi soldiers. Laura spotted some flanking soldiers pushing up to the base unaddressed by the other heroes, and set to work with her Mosin. They hadn't spotted her yet, so it was an easy task of pulling the gun to bear, scope in her eyes, racking the bolt, and pulling the trigger. Two quick chest shots, two Nazis down.

At this point the other Nazi soldiers noticed, and directed their attention to her, instead of the base or Elastic Man. Mission accomplished! She ducked behind the wall of the guard tower as their bullets began to fly. She hoped Elastic Man and Jungle Boy noticed the distraction and would suitably take action. Let's see some archery, Jungle Boy, she thought.

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

Yuna Xu

Yuna had expected a big explosion from the ammo dump, but she definitely hadn't expected one that big or bright. The subsequent confusion on the radio confirmed to her that nobody else had, either.

Guess I got more than I bargained for, she thought as she began the uneventful flight back to Malta. In her head, this justified the use of an expensive air-to-air missile to do the job. You can't argue with results!

The flight back to Malta was over in a blink, but on approach the plume of smoke raised concern from the squadron.

"Cobalt Lead, this is Malta Tower. No need for alarm; it was no hostile action. A fire broke out in a residential apartment complex in Fgura. Emergency services have it under control. You're cleared to land, Cobalt squadron; welcome back, over".

@Rhona W

"Yeah, I don't buy that," Yuna muttered to herself. She made a mental note to talk to someone about that later. Scott, maybe...but more likely Ximena. After a few drinks of course.

Nonetheless, the squadron landed in turn without incident, and arrived to...applause?? "Well shit, I could get used to this," Yuna said through a smile as she climbed down from the cockpit. She gave a quick round of thanks and fistbumps to her crew, and then she joined Scott and the others. Scott spoke well as usual, and then produced a cooler of beers. Yuna smiled and shook her head as she walked over to avail herself of at least one beer. She grabbed one, opened it, and raised it to those around her in a toast as she walked over to her pensive-looking drinking buddy.

"Goddamn, I love this squadron," she said loudly, and took a large swig from the bottle.

@everyone?

Bloodmarked By The Gods

@Silly@Lyla Thank you for helping out @TruckKun while I’ve been out in the real world swamped with life. Wind storm knocked down my chicken coop, don’t worry the chickens were not in it yet!

Waiting on a CS post from @Finetales if still interested. And @tadcfnaf technically had next post but it has been over a week since Silly posted so…TruckKun you can go ahead and post.

@WhiteAngel25

Hi!

I am still here and still interested, but currently also mega swamped IRL (and have other RPs to attend to) so probably won't be able to get a CS out for a little while. If you'll still have me when I can finally come up for air I'll happily join the fun.

Golden Age

Lady Lynx

Archetypes - Carmen Sandiego, Lyudmila Pavlichenko, Marlene Dietrich
Name - Laura Mae Ankins
Alias - Lady Lynx
Age - 36

Powers/Skills/Equipment:
Powers

• Vanishing Act - Laura can teleport herself and anything on her person to anywhere she has seen or been to. When she does so, she disappears into a wisp of smoke that matches the color of her clothing and disperses quickly, only remaining for about 5 seconds. The reverse occurs when she arrives at her teleport journey's destination.
• All-Seeing Eye - Laura has superhuman eyesight, able to see at incredible detail to an incredible distance. She also has a limited ability to see through one layer of walls or other solid objects, provided the material isn't too dense or thick.

Skills

• Annie Oakley - Laura is an expert marksman with both handguns and rifles. For all of the trouble he caused in Laura's life, Laura's father forcing her to learn to shoot (despite Laura's mother's objections) was a rare good decision on his part. Even a broken clock, and so on.
• Catwalk - Laura can precisely control how much sound she makes when she moves and walks, from essentially silent to loud and imposing. Contrary to what one might expect, she is best at this in a pair of heels.

Equipment

• Heirloom - Laura's prized possession is a pair of handcrafted binoculars that she was given as a Christmas gift by her mother, the year before she lost the battle with tuberculosis. It keeps her level and reminds her to follow in her mother's footsteps, rather than her father's. It also has practical use, as it allows her to see farther in detail than even her super-eyes would allow.
• Armory - Mosin Nagant 91/30, Colt M1921AC, Browning Auto-5 12ga, Artillery Luger P08 Carbine 9mm, Navy Luger P04 9mm, Swiss Luger 7.65mm, Enfield No. 2 .38, Webley Mk VI .455, and many others

Weaknesses:

• Gun to a Hero Fight - Laura may be an expert marksman, but it is her only real offensive capability. She has no super strength or other extra resilience more than anyone else...she is just a normal woman. She must rely on teleportation and the element of surprise to outwit and outspeed opponents before they can get to her.
• Friends in Low Places - Laura's criminal past comes with enemies and loose ends around the world. Though she has never been caught or identified, her notoriety could come back to haunt her at any moment.

Personality: cunning, shrewd, mercurial, skittish, charismatic
Experience: Laura is a greenhorn compared to many heroes, with only 5 months under her belt as Lady Lynx. But her previous clandestine career provided the training ground to hone her powers to a mastery befitting a superhero.

Appearance: Laura stands at 5'8", with a slim frame and wavy blonde hair befitting a Hollywood starlet. Her chiseled, stern visage betrays her German ancestry. Through her ill-gotten gains, Laura has an opulent wardrobe that is as mercurial as she is, and she is equally at home wearing a pinstripe suit as she is a glamorous gown. She has a particular affinity for interesting hats and other headpieces, especially those that can be tilted enough to allow her to shoot her Mosin while wearing them (such as the one in her picture). She has an excellent ability to wear whatever will give her leverage in the situation at hand, whether it's a plain outfit befitting a seamstress or a lavish ensemble befitting the most exclusive galas.

Biography: Laura was the only child of two very different people. Her mother was a saint of a woman with a heart of gold. She taught Laura to see good in the world and to embrace her femininity. Laura's father put on the face of a typical businessman, but was secretly a career criminal. In 1916, when Laura was 14, the law finally caught up to him and he was put behind bars for life. Laura and her mother scrounged together enough money to get by on their own for the next three years, but in 1919 Laura's mother had a battle with tuberculosis that was ultimately fatal.

With her parents dead or incarcerated, Laura had to survive on her own. In the unforgiving city environment that surrounded her, she quickly learned that her father's way of doing things earned her much more money than the menial jobs she struggled to keep. She began to use her teleportation ability (initially discovered when she was 9 years old, and kept secret) to commit untraceable burglaries, stealing all kinds of items from the largest, wealthiest places she could find. She became something of a klepto in the process, continuing to steal for the thrill long after she had all her needs met. She was never caught or even identified (though she had many close calls), and by 1938 she had become bored with teleport burglary. There was no challenge anymore, and she had already catapulted herself to wealth and luxury. She began searching for a better purpose, one that aligned more with her mother's path, and she found it in the new wave of superheroes spearheaded by the Golden Guardian.

Potential Storylines:

• Fork in the Road - In a particularly stressful time in the story, Laura struggles with stress and not feeling good enough for hero work. When a lucrative criminal opportunity lands on her lap, Laura strays back to her father's path and temporarily becomes a villain. The other heroes must help her overcome her personal "dark side", setting her back on course on her mother's path as a hero.
• Most Wanted - Laura's criminal past catches up with her all at once and blows up in her face. The law, the mob, and/or the other heroes find out that she is the notorious never-caught thief at the top of every agency's most wanted list.
• We Want YOU - Laura is recruited to be a sniper for the Allies, expanding her duties beyond strictly hero work.
• Free at Last - Laura's father escapes from prison and tries to find her.

Additional Notes: Like most people of the time, Laura is a chronic smoker of both cigarettes and cigars. She tends to prefer smoking to drinking, though she will certainly not say no to a strong drink placed in front of her.

Golden Age

A second intimidating dame joins the fray!

Lady Lynx

Archetypes - Carmen Sandiego, Lyudmila Pavlichenko, Marlene Dietrich
Name - Laura Mae Ankins
Alias - Lady Lynx
Age - 36

Powers/Skills/Equipment:
Powers

• Vanishing Act - Laura can teleport herself and anything on her person to anywhere she has seen or been to. When she does so, she disappears into a wisp of smoke that matches the color of her clothing and disperses quickly, only remaining for about 5 seconds. The reverse occurs when she arrives at her teleport journey's destination.
• All-Seeing Eye - Laura has superhuman eyesight, able to see at incredible detail to an incredible distance. She also has a limited ability to see through one layer of walls or other solid objects, provided the material isn't too dense or thick.

Skills

• Annie Oakley - Laura is an expert marksman with both handguns and rifles. For all of the trouble he caused in Laura's life, Laura's father forcing her to learn to shoot (despite Laura's mother's objections) was a rare good decision on his part. Even a broken clock, and so on.
• Catwalk - Laura can precisely control how much sound she makes when she moves and walks, from essentially silent to loud and imposing. Contrary to what one might expect, she is best at this in a pair of heels.

Equipment

• Heirloom - Laura's prized possession is a pair of handcrafted binoculars that she was given as a Christmas gift by her mother, the year before she lost the battle with tuberculosis. It keeps her level and reminds her to follow in her mother's footsteps, rather than her father's. It also has practical use, as it allows her to see farther in detail than even her super-eyes would allow.
• Armory - Mosin Nagant 91/30, Colt M1921AC, Browning Auto-5 12ga, Artillery Luger P08 Carbine 9mm, Navy Luger P04 9mm, Swiss Luger 7.65mm, Enfield No. 2 .38, Webley Mk VI .455, and many others

Weaknesses:

• Gun to a Hero Fight - Laura may be an expert marksman, but it is her only real offensive capability. She has no super strength or other extra resilience more than anyone else...she is just a normal woman. She must rely on teleportation and the element of surprise to outwit and outspeed opponents before they can get to her.
• Friends in Low Places - Laura's criminal past comes with enemies and loose ends around the world. Though she has never been caught or identified, her notoriety could come back to haunt her at any moment.

Personality: cunning, shrewd, mercurial, skittish, charismatic
Experience: Laura is a greenhorn compared to many heroes, with only 5 months under her belt as Lady Lynx. But her previous clandestine career provided the training ground to hone her powers to a mastery befitting a superhero.

Appearance: Laura stands at 5'8", with a slim frame and wavy blonde hair befitting a Hollywood starlet. Her chiseled, stern visage betrays her German ancestry. Through her ill-gotten gains, Laura has an opulent wardrobe that is as mercurial as she is, and she is equally at home wearing a pinstripe suit as she is a glamorous gown. She has a particular affinity for interesting hats and other headpieces, especially those that can be tilted enough to allow her to shoot her Mosin while wearing them (such as the one in her picture). She has an excellent ability to wear whatever will give her leverage in the situation at hand, whether it's a plain outfit befitting a seamstress or a lavish ensemble befitting the most exclusive galas.

Biography: Laura was the only child of two very different people. Her mother was a saint of a woman with a heart of gold. She taught Laura to see good in the world and to embrace her femininity. Laura's father put on the face of a typical businessman, but was secretly a career criminal. In 1916, when Laura was 14, the law finally caught up to him and he was put behind bars for life. Laura and her mother scrounged together enough money to get by on their own for the next three years, but in 1919 Laura's mother had a battle with tuberculosis that was ultimately fatal.

With her parents dead or incarcerated, Laura had to survive on her own. In the unforgiving city environment that surrounded her, she quickly learned that her father's way of doing things earned her much more money than the menial jobs she struggled to keep. She began to use her teleportation ability (initially discovered when she was 9 years old, and kept secret) to commit untraceable burglaries, stealing all kinds of items from the largest, wealthiest places she could find. She became something of a klepto in the process, continuing to steal for the thrill long after she had all her needs met. She was never caught or even identified (though she had many close calls), and by 1938 she had become bored with teleport burglary. There was no challenge anymore, and she had already catapulted herself to wealth and luxury. She began searching for a better purpose, one that aligned more with her mother's path, and she found it in the new wave of superheroes spearheaded by the Golden Guardian.

Potential Storylines:

• Fork in the Road - In a particularly stressful time in the story, Laura struggles with stress and not feeling good enough for hero work. When a lucrative criminal opportunity lands on her lap, Laura strays back to her father's path and temporarily becomes a villain. The other heroes must help her overcome her personal "dark side", setting her back on course on her mother's path as a hero.
• Most Wanted - Laura's criminal past catches up with her all at once and blows up in her face. The law, the mob, and/or the other heroes find out that she is the notorious never-caught thief at the top of every agency's most wanted list.
• We Want YOU - Laura is recruited to be a sniper for the Allies, expanding her duties beyond strictly hero work.
• Free at Last - Laura's father escapes from prison and tries to find her.

Additional Notes: Like most people of the time, Laura is a chronic smoker of both cigarettes and cigars. She tends to prefer smoking to drinking, though she will certainly not say no to a strong drink placed in front of her.

Golden Age

Maybe someone will come in with a female hero. There’s a lot of dudes.

Not that I mind.

@Cyrania

Fret not my friend! I am working on a female hero as we speak!

If you can believe it, she is based on Carmen Sandiego. 💃

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

Yuna Xu

"Fuckin' A, I think we got that one," Calico said to herself in both humor and relief as the enemy F-15 was annihilated by objectively too many missiles. As Jefe waggled her wings and made a show of herself in front of Yuna, the Singaporean chuckled and shook her head. "Too slow, Jefe," she called out. "You still owe me those drinks though."

With the skies clear, it only took moments before Scott's familiar voice cracked to life on Yuna's radio. Ground targets only, in and out. What was a girl in a Flanker to do?

Yuna eased her nose in the direction of Mitiga, behind the others. Everyone in front of her had something to ruin the day of their friends on the ground, while Yuna was stuck with her 7 remaining AAMs. She figured she'd at least accompany the others on their bombing run in case they got a nasty surprise, especially as they were on a tight schedule. She watched with satisfaction as Scott, Kat, Myk, Fuka, and Ximena lit up the base in front of her. It was nice to watch an attack run done properly.

As she approached the base, she surveyed the fine work her squadronmates had done. Tu-22s? Burning. ATC? Offline. SAMs? Dealt with. Comms? Gone. It was a symphony of flames and wreckage, but through the carnage Yuna spotted a target that had yet to receive Cobalt Haze's wrath. A large, unprotected ammo cache, surrounded with crews, supply vehicles, a couple fuel tanks, and other supplies. Even one bullet from the Sukhoi's autocannon would light it all up, but Yuna knew she was fresh out. She could call it a day......or...

"Blasting Russian planes with Russian weapons, funny life we live, ain't it, Calico?"

@Smike

"Wouldn't have it any other way," Yuna replied.

R-73s still selected, she dropped her Sukhoi closer to the deck and carefully guided the aircraft in for a run. She nudged the crosshairs to the center of the rapidly-approaching ammo cache, and at just the right moment...

"Cobalt 8, Fox Two!"

The R-73 left its pylon and screamed unguided towards the cache, and Yuna wasted no time yanking the stick hard left, screaming over the apron as the missile connected with its target. The R-73's warhead detonated on contact, causing a chain reaction as every unit of ammunition ignited. The small initial explosion was followed by a much larger, violent affair that vaporized any person or object unlucky enough to be nearby. Anything a little farther away not bolted down was sent flying.

Satisfied with her handiwork and not willing to push her luck further, Yuna bugged out. Her 6 remaining missiles would get to fight another day, and Yuna was ready to be back on the ground with a drink in her hand.

@Smike

Bloodmarked By The Gods

-pokes head in-

Hmmmmmm...I may yet throw my hat into this ring 🤔

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

Yuna Xu

Yuna pushed her nose down in tandem with the Silent Eagle, sizing up the situation. She knew the F-15 was lighter than her big Sukhoi, and that the pilot would likely try to take advantage of that. But Yuna knew the Flanker better than she knew herself, and she liked to think she knew herself pretty damn well. She knew the Naga Merah's limits, and if there was any time to test them, it was now. She followed the F-15 as it dove for the deck, attempting to anticipate its next action but taking an even steeper dive to get below it. Only trouble was, a smart pilot would...

Shit, she thought to herself as her adversary began to pull up sharply, exactly what she was concerned about. Yuna was at risk of an overshoot now, but before she could mentally address that for even another millisecond, the Silent Eagle suddenly spit out chaff and banked hard left. Yuna smiled as she followed the F-15 left, assuming the pilot had gotten spooked and made a mistake. And, well, she was kind of right, but not for the reason she initially thought. Yuna's smile grew wider as the F-15's sudden bank put the Sukhoi in a more advantageous position, but then her smile faded as the enemy aircraft used...a laser???

"What the FUCK was that?!" she exclaimed, before noting exactly what it was the laser was shooting at. "Jefe, you fucking..." she muttered to herself, but she had no time to address the laser or the Sinomexican's arrival any further. She had to wrap this up right now. As the F-15 rolled inverted and tried to break away, Yuna momentarily cut the power and yanked the stick hard to keep the Silent Eagle in her sights. Once reacquired, she punched the throttle to give chase. With the F-15 further away, Yuna could now fully enact her master plan: Operation I Have More Missiles Than You.

"Party's over," she said calmly, as her missile lock turned into a solid tone and she let an R-73E rip with an accompanying "Fox Two". But rather than break off, she stayed on the F-15, keeping that sweet solid tone going as she ripped not one, but two more R-73Es out (with attendant "Fox Two"s) in rapid succession after the first. Dodge that, bitch.

@Rhona W @Smike

Shattered Steel - An Ace Combat/Project Wingman/etc inspired aircraft-based RP

Yuna Xu

"Roger, Cobalt 8; I hear ya. Keep him interested just a second longer, I'm gunnin' for him, over".

@Rhona W

Scott's reassuring radio call was music to Yuna's ears. The two remaining MiGs were hounding her, and she was purely on the defensive, chaining together high-G evasive maneuever after another to stay out of their hunting crosshairs. Lining one up for a missile lock was currently out of the question, and she could only tolerate so many punishing Gs before her body gave out.

Thankfully, Scott's Fox Two call came before that happened, and the resulting explosion lit up the sky. The radar warning beeps ceased in Yuna's cockpit as the other MiG broke off, clearly not wanting to be on the other side of a 2-on-1. "Ha, you bitch!" she yelled, followed by calling on the radio "Thanks Heartbreak, I owe you one!"

She was out of the tangle, but her reprieve was short-lived.

"Cobalt Squadron, this is Skywatch. Be advised; I have a formation of four bandits approaching hot at high speed. Altitude ten thousand; radar identifies them as F-15's, but I'm getting issues resolving a steady picture at this range. These must be some of the mercs the Libyans have hired. Be on your guard, their aircraft may be heavily modified or unusual types, given the radar returns, over!"

@Rhona W

"Let me guess," Yuna muttered, rolling her eyes. The implied and unstated second part of her statement was that at least one of the four bandits would head straight for her.

And sure enough, Naga Merah started screaming at Yuna once more. "Awak anjing!" she spat at her plane in Malay. Just as she began turning the plane to square off against her attacker, the beeps became a solid tone and Yuna punched out flares and yanked the stick hard right and down. The missile hit a flare and exploded behind Yuna, who continued the turn to hopefully gain a favorable position against the F-15.

But Naga Merah was still beeping at her. This F-15 was out for blood. Yuna tightened the turn as much as the Sukhoi would give, and the beeps stopped as she saw the F-15 fly right over her, already banking to try to get behind her. She could barely see the plane at all in the darkness.

As she rolled the plane over and began a split S to hopefully get behind the F-15's downward bank, her brain made some connections that hit her like a Mack truck. "Wait..."

Blacked out F-15s...
Subtle trim...
Hyper aggressive...
Shows up late...

Could it be...?

A memory flashed through Yuna's mind. A weathered cockpit, a younger Yuna at the controls, and an overwhelming sense of immense frustration. A MiG-23 held together with duct tape, an incompetent squadron around her, and a seemingly endless parade of enemy fighters that she alone was responsible for. The Kazakh desert below would not be forgiving if a missile finally connected.

And suddenly...

A blacked out F-15.

Punching out. The long fall to the ground, looking on helplessly as most of your squadron gets decimated, and the survivors run for the hills. Meeting that Kazakh desert up close, and way too personal.

The flashback only took moments, but it told everything. And now Yuna's situation was all too clear.

"Not this time, motherfucker," she muttered through gritted teeth as she completed her split S, keeping the stick pulled back as she saw the F-15 perpendicular to her at two o-clock high. She banked right to get her crosshairs lined up, and when she got a solid tone, she squeezed the trigger and let an R-73E fly, calling out "Cobalt 8, Fox Two" as she did so.

The missile missed its mark, hitting one of the flares the F-15 deployed as the F-15 entered a steep dive to assist evasion. But this didn't bother Yuna; she had a plan.

Radar lock hunting. 10 missiles left.

@Rhona W