Neopolis Academy Mods (neopolis) wrote in neopolis_ooc, @ 2010-01-03 10:51:00 |
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Entry tags: | !plot: neopocalypse |
Mission updates #1!
Alright, you asked for it! Here are the updates on all missions. As a reminder, after today, mission updates will not go up every day. For a reminder on the update schedule, please see here -- we have also added the calendar to the Neopolis google calendar. If you don't have access, please feel free to give us or Kati your e-mail address, and we will add you! For today, all groups are updated, but you will notice that Julie and Sarah's cover three days, while Emily and Ryan's cover only today -- that's because those latter groups will get updates again tomorrow, and Sarah and Julie won't be updating theirs again until Wednesday. As always, there will be comment threads to discuss plot, and please feel free to throw up a mini log for your group!
MISSION ONE: ATLANTIS
MOD: Julie
VILLAIN: General Nethuns, a renegade mad general of the Atlantean army who has overthrown the city of Poseidonis.
PARTICIPANTS: Kate, Xandros, Coral, Robbie, Mary, Marisa, Greta, Anna, Marla, Alyster
UPDATE: They find themselves on a VILLAIN ship ("The Dragon"), slightly offshore from the academy and crewed by nervous henchmen. If the kids try to step on land, their collars will activate and give them a slight electric jolt. Feel free to discover this firsthand!
The first mate soon appears. He introduces himself as Snee, and will provide all necessary exposition if nudged: their mission is to get their asses to Atlantis, fight the Knights, kill the kraken. This order comes from General Nethuns himself, new ruler of Atlantis. For the uninformed, Atlantis itself is a fiercely xenophobic society which fuses magic and technology to sustain their underwater lifestyle; they get fairly irrational about the "surface world", and after decades of run-ins with supertypes and science adventurers, a lot of their enemies live in Neopolis. The city of Poseidonis used to be benevolent and democratic, but under Nethuns' rule, the city is under martial law.
The former ruling powers were the following: King Psenophis, who was generally peaceful but firm, and a senior mage, Sonchis, who was once Xandros' teacher and lover. Both of them have been "taken care of". Snee refuses to give more details, but it's evident that Psenophis and Sonchis are still alive.
The first day will be spent learning the ropes, assigning their duties, charting their course, and then setting off westward into the Pacific. They'll have to figure out who will take the lead, and who'll fulfil what function on the ship. The henchmen are just grunts. But most importantly: who knows the most about good eatin' while at sea?
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH Another day for quiet sailing. They spot some faint silhouettes on the horizon; it seems they're being followed.
JANUARY 5th Goddamnit, pirates move fast, don't they? A fearsome pirate ship (with the uncharacteristically innocent name of "The Sea Cucumber") has finally caught up with them. Thankfully, it's a small ship, with only fifteen crewmen. The pirates board The Dragon and the henchmen scatter, screaming.
The battle rages hard and fast between the students and the pirates -- every single person has to contribute! -- and they're only just managing to keep them at bay, when help arrives from... unexpected quarters. Scylla and Charybdis seem to have been uprooted far from their native Greek waters; a immense whirlpool sucks down the pirate ship, and Scylla takes a snap at The Dragon, but the ship escapes unscathed. Looks like the journey towards Atlantis continues!
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MISSION TWO: DRAGGED TO HELL
MOD: Julie
VILLAIN: Adrian Asmodeus, C.E.O. of Hell, Co. Human form, demon form. A smooth-talking demon and head honcho of Hell, currently working with VILLAIN for the innumerable souls he's been offered.
PARTICIPANTS: Dante, Rose, Brent, Benita, Connor, Isaac, Dimitri, Claire, Sophia, Heather
UPDATE: When these students wake, they are sitting in uncomfortable seats in an immensely large, white lobby. They'll have to wait there awhile until the stony-faced receptionist -- who refuses to answer any questions -- buzzes them in and they're greeted by a personal assistant in a crisply-ironed suit, carrying a clipboard. The assistant explains. Their mission is to venture down through the levels of hell, brave its horrors, and retrieve a few errant souls that have strayed from the company. Their VILLAIN supervisor on this endeavour is Mr. Adrian Asmodeus himself.
Can they meet Asmodeus? No.
The assistant will give them a tour of this particular building (which mostly consists of cubicles), before finally putting them up in two sparse hotel rooms: one for the guys, another for the girls. There's a television in each room, but it's only showing reality television reruns.
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH Welcome to hellish bureaucracy, ladies and gents. Your first task of the day is queuing. Each student will spend agonising hours waiting in respective lines, being shuttled from department to department, arguing with desk clerks, retrieving appropriate forms, hunting down the right signatures, and delivering the proper paperwork to the proper demon. This, my friends, is the circle of hell known as LIMBO.
JANUARY 5th By the next day, their efforts will have paid off: with form #1093C ("Request for Infernal Aide") successfully approved, they'll meet their guide, Zepar, who'll be the Virgil to their inferno. He'll lead them to a massive, massive train station -- the Grand Central of Hell -- which is an exercise in neverending chaos, delays, and changing displays. It's impossible to know where to go.
Their guide, however, knows the way; he'll direct them onto the right train. "DESTINATION: UPPER HELL." At various points during the train ride, he'll try to seduce each of the ladies by appearing as their ~perfect man~. How does that go?
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MISSION THREE: RELIC HUNTING
MOD: Sarah
VILLAIN: Don Walter, an eccentric and wealthy collector. He has no super powers to speak of, but his vast collection of magical and scientific artifiacts gives him quite the arsenal at his command.
PARTICIPANTS: Tuesday, Zoe, Cicely, Happy, Courtney, Regina, Magda, Val, Sally, Vinnie
UPDATE: The students find themselves in the midst of a dense jungle -- based on their travels, Cicely and Zoe might be able to correctly identify their surroundings as deep within the Amazon basin. Pinned to a tree with a knife is a letter detailing their task, and at the base of the tree are a few canteens of drinking water, but no food -- for that, the students will have to manage for themselves. Their mission is clear -- locate the Incan Shrine of Inti and bring it, unharmed, to Mr. Walter. The letter contains directions to an ancient burial ground in which the map to the Shrine is rumored to be buried -- in one of the fifty graves, each marked only with a simple stone on the ground. It will take a day's worth of walking to get to the graveyard, so the group had better get started -- as for sleeping arrangements, that's up to the group to figure out. Lots of animals are nocturnal out here, though, so watch out.
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH The group will reach the graveyard on the afternoon of the second day, January 4th. The map is buried in the third row of graves, second from the right, though it will take them a full night's worth of digging up dead people to figure this out. By the time they finally locate it, it's time to bed down for the night again. But the spirits don't take lightly to being disturbed in their rest, and the students will not find their night spent in the graveyard to be a pleasant one. The spirits enlist the help of jungle animals in harassing their visitors, and all through the nights, various rats, spiders, and snakes will attempt to find their way into the students' beds.
JANUARY 5th With map in hand, it's time to head off in what looks to be the right direction -- south, straight into the heart of the amazon. But at this point, the group is running desperately low on water, so a detour toward the river will be necessary. Once they arrive, they find two large rafts waiting for them. It's up to the group whether or not they want they think that the river will be a superior route of transportation, or if they'd rather stick to the shelter of the forest.
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MISSION FOUR: THE HEIST
MOD: Julie
VILLAIN: Incapability Brown. Don't take his name for granted -- Incapability Brown was and is one of the most brilliant architects in Neopolis, with loyalty to neither the Band nor League.
PARTICIPANTS: Toby, Zac, Alex, Darcy, Casey, Scott, Andy, Jacob, Brand, Ezra
UPDATE: The kids wake up in an underground bunker, where they receive a transmitted video message from Incapability Brown himself in full costume. He gives them the details: after years of successful architecture work for Band and League and neutrals alike, Brown's reputation has grown to the extent that no one dares take on any of his secret bases or HQs. And this bums him out, guys. It really bums him out. No one's tested themselves against a Brown design for years, and it's given him a resulting existential crisis: he just doesn't know if his schematics are any good anymore.
So they'll have to break into his latest and greatest pièce de résistance: Fort Solomon. Somewhere in the middle of that fort, past all its multitudinal defenses, lies a mecha-security machine called the REX. Get in there, disable it, and consider yourselves a success.
The day is spent chillin' in the bunker, suiting up, selecting their individual gadget from an armoury (feel free to make up one item of awesome tech for your char!), and looking over specs for Fort Solomon -- which is located on the Fox Islands, Alaska.
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH After a hearty breakfast and another encouraging message from Incapability Brown ("Here! I've upgraded the video recording capabilities on your PDAs! If you could keep track of various weaknesses in my system and point out where the biggest vulnerabilities lie, that would be WONDERFUL!"), two helicopters pick them up to take them to Alaska. They'll parachute in, land on the top of the fortress, and then start making their way into the building via the ventilation shafts.
--Too bad they don't really have an accurate map of the ventilation system. It'll take a while for Darcy to tap into the network, but in the meantime, it looks like you've lost your way.
JANUARY 5th In the early hours of the morning, the kids finally get their bearings, make their way to their desired destination, and crash through one of the grilles... right into henchmen HQ, which consists of a large dormitory and mess hall. They'll have to physically fight the startled and groggy henchmen; after subduing them, the students will have access to maps and uniforms. And more food.
Other items of note: the daily diaries of Henchmen 21 and 24, chronicling the trials and tribulations of working for Incapability Brown.
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MISSION FIVE: FROM RUSSIA, WITH LOVE
MOD: Sarah
VILLAIN: Nastya Slutskaya [ANASTASIA]
PARTICIPANTS: Amy, Svetlana, Joe, Dan, Jenlee, America, Austin, Willa, Molly, Jillian
UPDATE: The students find themselves in a barren desert next to three cars: two BMWs with four seats each, and one Aston Martin. They realize that they're obviously supposed to drive the cars -- what else are they supposed to do, die out there in the desert? Austin drives the Aston Martin, with Svetlana and Molly driving the BMWs. Of course, not long after they all hit the road, a high-speed chase ensues. The men and women in the cars chasing them are dressed all in black, and they are not fucking around -- in addition to trying to run our lovely protagonists off of the road, they're also firing into their cars with a lot of gunfire. The only solution is for the group to fight back with whatever weapons they have. Thanks to some great aim, some well placed grenades, and some awesome driving skills, they manage to get rid of all of the cars except one, which flips over, trapping the driver beneath. Knowing that they might be able to get some useful information out of him, they race to interrogate him, but the man swallows a tablet of cyanide before they can get any information. In his pocket, however, is a map -- and on that map is a little red dot. It's 100 miles down the road and they don't have many other options, so the group sets on its way. Oh, by the way... the map? Is in Russian.
It turns out that their mystery destination is a swanky resort where, unsurprisingly, the staff speaks both Russian and English. There appears to be a lot of international guests, none of whom looks incredibly trustworthy. And what do you know? The students have reservations. There is one suite with three double beds, and another standard room with two beds. In the rooms, the students find a massive supply of weaponry: guns, laser pens, parachutes, knives, the works, in addition to closets full of very nice clothes for them to wear. There is also a note which congratulations them on finding their way to the hotel, and instructs them to rest up for the days ahead. It ends with this very odd sentence: Remember, darlings, that appearances can be deceiving and information is often worth more than gold.
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH will be largely devoid of any drama or action. The group is free to rest up, enjoy some time by the pool, and search for clues.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 5TH There is a great deal of buzz in the resort: a grand affair is being thrown in the casino that night. It does not seem coincidental, and since the students literally have nothing else to do but go, it seems likely that they should be there. However, once there, everyone will find themselves individually entertained by a very attractive individual -- girls, think Pierce Brosnan and Matt Damon lookalikes, men, you've got Angelina Jolies and Nicole Kidmans chatting you up. That's right, a first class seduction is underway, and those who allow themselves to be enticed away to private rooms -- well, let's just say that they won't be coming back anytime soon. Jillian, Dan, America, Jenlee, and Molly all manage to get themselves seduced, but thanks to her powers, Molly escapes in the nick of time, just as the rest of the group is tied and bound and driven away to an undisclosed location. A good thing that Molly is there to inform the rest of the group, who sets off, hot on their tail. Hope everyone's in for a long night of incognito tracking.
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MISSION SIX: A TRIP TO THE STARS
MOD: Sarah
VILLAIN: The Dark Invader
PARTICIPANTS: Huck, Leo, Ludwig, Hanselle, Adam, Ira, Dani, Freddy, Wally, Steve
UPDATE: One moment they're in Caesar's palalce, the next they're -- on a spaceship? That's right. The ship is docked at a small space station in which there are some basic supplies. Their first day will be spent doing some manual labor -- there are some issues with the ship's engine that need to be fixed up in order to get her to fly, and everyone else can get to work on stocking up on supplies and fixing up the interior. It's not a huge ship and it's not particularly glamorous, but it's a ship and there's room for everyone. On board there are four bedrooms with two beds in each, which is convenient enough, since there should probably always be two people in the cockpit at any given time, anyway. But everything is completely filthy, so they'll need to get everything cleaned out and livable before taking off, lest they want to living in a airtight cube of dust for the foreseeable future. Good thing there's a vacuum cleaner at the space station.
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH On day two, the group is ready to leave, which is a good thing because they won't really have a choice. Their radar screen picks up approaching vessels, and rather than wait around to see whether or not the approaching parties are friendly folks, the group takes off at full speed. A chase ensues, but thanks to the skilled piloting of those on board, they manage to escape before their pursuants can do much damage. Later that night, the video communication screens that are placed throughout the ship light up, and a shadowy figure appears. He appears to be some kind of an alien humanoid, with midnight black skin that appears to have a sickly greenish tint to it in certain light. He wears a dark cloak, and his voice is coarse as he speaks.
"Hello, students. How thrilling that you decided to join me up here in my little space playground. Oh that's right, you didn't really decide, did you?" At this, he breaks out into a horrible noise, which after a few seconds the students can discern as laughter. "My enemies know me as The Dark Invader, but you can call me -- well, I guess you can call me that, too!" At this, there is more laughter. Apparently The Dark Invader cracks himself up on the regular. "We are currently in the Zobar Galaxy -- I don't know how familiar you are, but I can assure you that you won't find the planets here to be very hospitable -- but don't let that stop you from trying!"
After some more laughter, finally The Dark Invader gets down to business. "Oh, right, I'm supposed to give you your 'mission,' aren't I? Well children, it gets so very boring out here among the outer planets, and VILLAIN was so kind as to provide me with some earthly entertainment -- you, of course. You see, what I love more than anything in the universe is a chase." The face on the screen grinned wickedly. "And you're going to give it to me. So get going, won't you? Because here I come."
The screens go blank, and it's up to the group to decide where to go next -- the only problem is, they don't have much of a choice. They're low on fuel, and there's only one planet nearby with signs of life. They set the course and head off in its direction.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 5TH The group arrives at a small, dusty planet named X23. The lifeforms there are fat, ugly, and less than agreeable, and to make matters worse, none of them have never seen human beings before. It's up to the group to figure out a way to barter with them for fuel, but it seems like the only thing they want is food. Unfortunately, it looks like the only way to get out of X23 is to diminish their rations stockpile. They could be in for a hungry couple of days in the sky.
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MISSION SEVEN: THE LAND OF FAERIE
MOD: Emily
VILLAIN: Dead Bowie & fairy consort, Remella Grimvine
PARTICIPANTS: Wendelin, Agnes, Cal, Braden, Alvin, Emily, Teddy, Jamie, Allegra, Beatrix, Clarence
UPDATE: When the students awake, they find themselves in a meadow. The grass smells sweet, the air is clearer than any other air they've ever breathed, flowers sway in a warm, gentle breeze, and the sound of birds fill the air. There are two problems: firstly, birdsong is the only sound, and there isn't the slightest sign of civilization for as far as they can see (which, so far, seems only be meadow). Secondly, as the fey members of their group will immediately recognize -- this isn't Neopolis. Or California - definitely not Kansas, or anywhere, in fact, on moral Earth. Although the humans might not be able to put a name to it, Wendelin, Alvin, Braden, and Emily know -- this is Faerie.
As such, the fey kids' powers are augmented exponentially -- which, considering some of the personalities in the group, may be a problem. Today will be devoted largely towards keeping everyone together, and trying to find some civilization - or just shelter and food. Near the end of the day, after endless explorations that seem to go in circles (because they do, much to the frustration of those who realize the enchantment they're caught in), they'll find an abandoned fairy castle in ruins... formerly belonging to Clan Tanglestice.
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MISSION EIGHT: THE CASTLE OF ATRONTO
MOD: Julie
VILLAIN: Count Atronto
PARTICIPANTS: Victoria, Ellie, Winston, Godfrey, Judy, Grant, Lettie, Ana, Elwood, Ivy, George
UPDATE: When the kids come to, they're being offloaded from three carriages and into the entrance of an enormous gothic castle which looms over the surrounding sleepy countryside. When they're brought in, they're greeted by Count Atronto himself -- who, despite the clear Dracula inspiration for his schtick, is exceedingly polite, genial, and hospitable. He's a well-known neutral gothic in Europe, recognised mainly for his campaigning for gothic rights. His purpose for cooperating with VILLAIN? Why, he wants to make sure gothics have a place in this new world order, of course! As time goes on, it becomes exceedingly apparent that he's a member of the 'catching more flies with honey than vinegar' philosophy. (We'll see how long this holds up, naturally...)
He invites them to dinner tomorrow night, and promises more details then. In the meantime, they're each led to a separate elaborate bedroom. They're free to get settled into their immense beds (George gets a large pile of gold), hang out with each other, explore the castle, read some books, and so on -- in the meantime, however, the more observant of the party might spot the eyes watching them through wall portraits...
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH Ah, yes, the big dinner. There's the expected long table -- everyone ends up having to shout at each other down the row before the count finally rearranges their seating order. Each student is plied with as much delicious food as they could ever want; if they have unique dietary requirements, they have been catered to. Elwood is treated to a full re-bandaging and supplies of fresh sawdust. The count is obviously spoiling them rotten.
Once they reach dessert, however, he explains his particular VILLAINous challenge for them: they have to survive "a few nights in my castle of horrors, merely!". He smiles a lot and tries to downplay it, but it soon becomes apparent that they'll have a few surprises waiting for them. The atmosphere is tense when they leave their meal that night.
JANUARY 5th A quiet day for further exploration of the castle.
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MISSION NINE: PLAYING TO SURVIVE
MOD: Sarah
VILLAIN: The Parker Brothers
PARTICIPANTS: Cole, Charlie, Trish, Dorothy, Jessi, Roxie, Tash, Sebastian, Grace, Christian
UPDATE: The students find themselves in a giant Victorian mansion, vaulted ceilings throughout. Though the students are armed to a T, it seems that their only company is a small group gathered for a dinner party. They invite the students to join in, and there is even an extra large chair for Cole. They do not appear aggressive, and encourage the students to put away their weapons -- or at the very least, to set them down on the dinner table and enjoy some good food. A pair of identical twin men sit at the ends of the table, one on each side, looking particularly pleased with themselves. They stand and introduce themselves as The Parker Brothers. Notable for their lives of wild crime as juveniles, the League banned them for being too reckless, they tell the students. Fortunately, with VILLAIN, they fit right in. They introduce the other members in attendance at the party: Professor Plum, Colonel Mustard, Miss Scarlet, Mrs. Peacock, Mr. Green, and Mrs. White, the maid. As eyebrows go up around the table, the Parker Brothers simply laugh and tell them that it is time for the two of them to retire to their bedrooms. The rest of the group will each find that they have their own room upstairs -- hopefully they find them to be comfortable. Any attempts to break free from the house in the middle of the night will be futile -- students will find that it is magically reinforced and, besides that, they appear to be miles and miles from the nearest sign of civilization.
TOMORROW, JANUARY 4TH The first student to wake up on Monday morning is Jessi, and as she creeps downstairs in the darkness of the early morning, she trips over -- you guessed it -- a body. It's Professor Plum, poor thing, and he's dead as a doornail. The rest of the guests are awoken by Jessi, and needless to say, the students aren't the only ones who look alarmed. Mrs. White looks like she's going to vomit, Mr. Green looks -- well, green. The Parker Brothers gleefully tell the students that they have until 5pm to make a guess as to which guest performed the murder, in what room, and with what weapon. Sounding familiar, yet? With a chuckle, the pair vanishes again, leaving the rest of the students to interrogate and investigate. A quick line of questioning informs them that the rest of the "guests" are really just actors, hired to play the part, but now that one of them is actually dead, they're thinking about calling the union. They all claim innocence and beg the Neopolitans to help rescue them from this mess. After a day's worth of searching, Charlie finds two dust trails where bodies were dragged, coming from both the lounge and the kitchen. Roxie locates a rope hanging on the billiards table, Cole finds a hidden candlestick in the ballroom, and Grace locates a lead pipe in the kitchen. Considering that the body has both rope burns and head wounds, no clear conclusions can be made, and by 5pm, they have nothing but guesses. Since they haven't figured it out, the Parker Brothers inform them that they'll have to be punished, and Christian is taken away and locked in the cellar for the night. It isn't pleasant down there -- mechanical spiders guard the doorways, and a solid two inches of slime coat the floor.
TUESDAY, JANUARY 5TH A new day brings a new body, and Mrs. White is looking more ghostlike than ever when Christian trips over her after the cellar door opens for him at 6am. Today it's the same assignment, but the students realize now that the stakes are higher, and the investigation moves into full force. Thanks to some gadgetry whipped up by Cole and Charlie, they finally locate a microscopic partial fingertip on the bottom of the body's chin, and are able to finally pinpoint the murderer: Miss Scarlet. Turns out that not everyone was an unwilling actor in this little charade. And as for finding out the murder weapon -- well, that part was easy, since there's nothing that a little violent force from Trish, Jessi, and Dorothy can't get out of a person. Miss Scarlet confesses to killing both individuals with the lead pipe in the billiards room, and the Parker Brothers throw a celebratory dinner for their Neopolitan guests. As for the rest of the Clue Crew? They were escorted out the back door and never returned to dinner.
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MISSION TEN: MYSTICAL MOUNTAIN
MOD: Emily
VILLAIN: Alba Abomina
PARTICIPANTS: Jackie, Jimmy, Matty, Toni, Billy, Theresa, Lance, Erik, Reggie, Violet
UPDATE: Clear blue skies, stunning mountainscapes... if the kids weren't waking up here after being abducted by VILLAIN, it'd be an idyllic vacation spot. There are even some mountain goats further up the slope. No snow where they are, but there's bound to be some further up -- and it's certainly pretty chilly.
Waiting for them when they wake up is Alba Abomina, surrounded by a protective sphere (just in case the kids get any ideas). "Well! I can't say some of you were my first pick, but you'll have to do, won't you?" she sneered, surveying the group. "Listen up! You're mine to command and to do with as I please, and this is what you're doing. See up there?" she pointed an ornate staff up the mountain, where naught was visible but slope, shrubbery, and goats. "Up there is the legendary Temple of Mu, and it will be MINE! Mine, I tell you!! Of course, they've prepared for my attack, but you? They know nothing of you." she paused here to laugh, cruelly.
"So you're go up there, and destroy the talisman that protects the Temple, so that I can take what's mine. Or else you die. Of course... that may happen anyway, depending on how weak you may or may not be." Contempuous looks were cast towards the less combat-minded of the group... but don't take it personally.
"Ta now! And mind the abominable snowmen."
With that, she disappears, leaving the kids and the mountain face. Any attempts to go down are met with a forcefield... they are forced to go onwards and upwards. Hope they don't mind a day of hiking, because that's what's coming for them... and a cold front, so they'd best be prepared.
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MISSION ELEVEN: THE ISLE OF SIN
MOD: Ryan
VILLAIN: Dr. Genghis Sin
PARTICIPANTS: Johnny, Jack, Queenie, Nate, Tony, Janelle, Drake, Holly, Dominique, Aviva
UPDATE: The group will awaken on golden sands, with warm surf licking about their heels. The edge of a palm canopy blocks out the warm Mediterranean sun, and the soothing cries of wild, exotic birds fill the air. From the curvature of the beach, it seems likely they're on an island - an island which reaches up in the center towards one ominous volcanic peak. The peak itself leaks slow, lazy smoke into the sky, putting aside any questions of dormancy, and on the volcano's side is what appears to be a naturally-occurring 'face' - a twisted, skull-like rictus that Jack will quickly recognize. They're on the Isle of Sin, secret HQ to Dr. Sin.
The kids are given enough time to wake up, get their bearings and start bickering before a small, round video screen pops right up out of the sand to address them. On the screen is the sneering face of Dr. Sin himself, who addresses the group as 'Team Danger', and obviously seems to be speaking to one of them in particular. "Should you wish to survive to see the New World Order, you pesky little brats will have to help me out with another pesky little problem... The 'locals' on my island have started causing me troubles, so I need you lot to find them and put a stop to their nonsense, immediately! And if you don't..." His finger hovers ominously over a button, which one would imagine is connected to their collars. The screen blinks off and buries back into the sand (suggesting much of the island holds hidden mechanics), and as Sin's cackling begins to fade, it is replaced by the steady, distant tattoo of tribal drums...
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MISSION TWELVE: STORMING OLYMPUS
MOD: Ryan
VILLAIN: Atë, Greek Goddess of Rash Action and Reckless Impulse
PARTICIPANTS: Nardo, Lucas, Ragnar, Sandals, Katrina, Phoebus, Arden, Odie, Twitch, Brendan
UPDATE: Waking amidst an arid forest, this group will immediately get a strange sensation from their seemingly innocuous surroundings. Those with any divine blood in particular will feel the tingle; something feels both odd and familiar at the same time. Flying above the trees to take a look doesn't help too much, except that the terrain seems distinctly Mediterranean, and that there isn't any civilization in the immediate area.
They aren't left in the dark for too long, quite literally - soon enough a series of small, fiery explosions herald the arrival of a wild-eyed blonde in leather armour, who introduces herself as Atë, the Goddess of Awesomeness. She explains that they are no longer in the mortal world proper, but instead on the threshhold of the god-world; the parallel dimension inhabited by the gods of old. She also explains, with manic fury and further explosions, nearly singing a few of our students in the process, that she once sat at Olympus with her father Zeus, but that she had been cast out for totally uncool reasons. She is, however, intent on reclaiming her place, and has chosen the group as her champions to make this happen. They are to march on Olympus and take one of Zeus' lightningbolts, an act she's convinced will ensure her reinstatement on the mountain!
Cackling gleefully, the kids are left without much further instruction - though as the clouds above clear, they realize they're standing in the shadow of one epic mountain...
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MISSION THIRTEEN: NEW YORK NOIR
MOD: Ryan
VILLAIN: The Jester
PARTICIPANTS: Simon, Vera, William, Mandy, Kai, Sasha, Marcus, Tibby, Eddie, Annie
UPDATE: The guttural sounds of a busy urban harbour meet this group upon their waking, as does the musky gloom of an abandoned warehouse. They find themselves amidst old, empty stacks of crates on a concrete floor, with slats of moonlight providing their only illumination. For a moment they seem alone, till a nasal cackling begins to echo throughout the dark room.
Soon enough a prancing, cane-twirling figure appears from the shadows, flanked by two gigantic, dour thugs in clown masks. The man introduces himself as the Jester, known to some more than others as the Comedian Prince of Crime in New York's super-criminal underworld. He makes some amused comments that suggest he knows Vera well, but any violent action towards his person is quickly quelled by the toughs.
Perpetually grinning, the Jester explains, "Most of my forces are off in Neopolis for all the fun and games, but some naughty new gang seems to be using the opportunity to muscle in on my territory! Good thing I've got you lot to help me out, because that's what friends are for, hmm?" He brandishes the remote to their collars playfully. "They've been hanging out down at Blimpo's Tavern by the South Docks, so I'll leave it to you to ensure they're made to feel... not welcome, yes? AHAHAHAHAHA!" The Jester is still cackling as he disappears back into the shadows, leaving the group to figure out their strategy.
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MISSION FOURTEEN: BIG IN JAPAN
MOD: Ryan
VILLAIN: Hell O'Kitty
PARTICIPANTS: Yoshimi, Kaori, Mason, Chloe, Harvey, Anderson, Marco, Rob, Quintella, Jonathan
UPDATE: This group wakes to the bizarre dual scents of cotton candy and sulfur, and the strange contradictions don't stop at their noses. Opening their eyes, they'll find they're in some sort of underground lair, done up to look like a twisted demonic toy store. There are stacks of stuffed animal, candy and other cute, frilly things - all bordered by licking flames and devices of torture. Amidst it all, atop an oversized, cushioned throne sits the creepiest doll one has ever seen - made all the more eerie when it turns to talk to them.
Hell O'Kitty introduces herself in a raspy voice, punctuated with occasional childish giggles. She explains with faux benevolence that she's decided to spoil the group with a particularly easy mission; they are to deliver a package to O'Kitty's associate Dr. Roboto, at his secret lab deep beneath the Tokyo neighbourhood of Harajuku. The neighbourhood is known for its gangs, but O'Kitty waves off any concerns, promising all sorts of spoiling and presents in they succeed - and hinting at ungodly pain if they don't.
They're led out of the lair to an opening at the base of Mount Fuji, with Tokyo's lights visible in the distance. They are provided with an old panel van to transport them into the city, and with little debate over who's driving, the journey begins...
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GROUP FIFTEEN: FACULTY
MOD: Emily
VILLAIN: Caesar
PARTICIPANTS: All Faculty.
UPDATE: After a day of drifting in and out of consciousness, panicking, and trying to console one another (or cursing vehemently at the walls of their prison), the teachers finally come back into full awareness, with their PDAs... much too late to be of any help, of course. Along the walls, simple shifts and togas are arranged -- clearly meant for the faculty to don. Whether or not they decide to do so is up to them, but when they're ushered into the next room for an audience with Caesar, they might regret not... for the faux emperor has very specific tasks in mind for them.
"Greetings!" he boomed from his throne, leering down at the gathering of teachers. "I trust you've slept well?" The room filled with maniacal, breathy laughter. "I hope, for your sake, that you have, for today is going to be gruelling. Welcome to my palace!" He spread his arms wide, inviting them to look around them -- it was decrepit, once grandiose, but clearly has fallen into severe disrepair. The stench suggests squatters who were unconcerned with hygiene. "As you can see, it needs to be restored to GLORY! My minions have been hard at work," a gesture to a line of VILLAIN henchmen and women, who are all grinning with delight, "But now that we have you... well! I'm sure those incredible minds can think of a few ways to make this sparkling, hmmm?"
And so it is: Day One, the teachers must clean the filthy, filthy twenty-room mansion Caesar calls his palace. They will be covered from head to toe, the clothes they wear ruined, and if they refuse or move too slowly -- the henchmen have full permission to get out the "motivators" -- whips, pebbles, taunts, Rick Astley -- whatever they may choose. At day's end, it's back into the room... now outfitted with curtains that serve as divisions between their meager pallets and pillows. No baths for now, it seems.
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GLADIATORS
GROUP: Trish, Allegra, Freddy, Lance, and Svetlana
At 5:00 pm (PST), Trish Terroretti, Allegra Masters, Freddy Wilson, Lance Crawford, and Svetlana Duff are suddenly teleported away from their respective groups. They wind up - separately and alone - in a room that is bare of everything but a single door. (The door is, of course, locked.) For an hour, nothing happens. Then, there is a sickly sweet smell, and they all black out in their respective arenas. When they wake up, they are without their PDAs, but no longer without a clue: there is a disembodied voice to greet them. Specifically, the voice of Caesar, the mastermind behind it all.
"Wakey-wakey, bright young soldiers! It's been a very exciting day, but I have to say, it just isn't exciting enough yet. I want to see what you can do first hand! Up-close! Personal.
So here we are, my future minions! Welcome to the arena. You're alone now, but don't worry! All five of you are in this together. All five of you are going to face the exact same puzzle, and all five of you are going to have to figure it out. On your own, of course. And you better hope you are the most clever, because if you finish after your comrades, well..."
There is a low, nefarious chuckle, and on the far wall a projection suddenly appears. It's different for each student - for Trish, Allegra, and Svetlana, pictures of their fathers in captivity appear. For Lance, it's his grandparents; for Freddy, his mother. Overlaid on each picture is a crude animation of the fate that awaits each family member should the students fail in their task: scenes of torture and destruction. It's clear that the captives can see the threats, too, for they each look varying degrees of nervous (excepting, of course, Alexander Duff -- at least, not to anyone who doesn't know him very well).
After the animations go away, the voice returns, "So, you better hope you're smart enough to finish first, hmmm? Good luck."
Moments after Caesar's speech ends, the door opens and closes in quick succession, admitting a six-foot robot, its parts in various bright colors. It immediately begins to attack the students, but merely fighting the robot won't win the challenge: it's actually a tactile game of Simon. Every time they hit the 'wrong' body part, there is an angry buzzing noise. But if they hit the head, it's silent. If they hit the head, and then the left arm, no buzz. If they hit head, left arm, right leg, no buzz. And so on, and so forth. The correct sequence consists of 30 hits. If they figure it out - great. Maybe they did it fast enough to beat out the other students and save their loved ones, but they have no way of knowing.
What they also don't know is that the fights are being videotaped, and a couple hours after the students finish the fight and return to their groups, all the PDAs in the network got sent a video recap of what happened:
Trish, true to her nature, cursed out the VILLAIN and taunted the robot, certain that they'd never follow through on their poorly-animated stick figure threats. Although she did some impressive damage to the robot, she ignored the puzzle aspect completely.
Allegra's enchanted jewelry bought her some time - first by confounding the robot as to her location, and then giving her just enough luck to hit in the right sequence the first few times.
Although Freddy doesn't have the most fighting aptitude in this group, he does have the biggest brain - and it pays off. A few glancing blows, a black eye, some time to swallow his fear for his mother and before long, he was well on his way to hitting the robot in all the right places.
Svetlana lived up to her reputation; to most watchers, it looked like she barely broke a sweat as she battled the robot, and eventually clued in to the sequence she was meant to be hitting in. Her closest friends, though, would notice the strain that the fight and the threat are putting on her.
Last - but not least - Lance fought valiantly and well, but without a mind for games of memory or lucky charms, he was the last to figure out the puzzle.
At the end of the fight -- that is, when Lance finally hit all 30 points in the right succession, and his robot deactivated, all of the students were teleported back to their groups (Trish while still punching at her opponent), and their PDAs were waiting there for them. On them (and on everyone else's as well), were the results:
1. SHORT FUSE
2. FATALE
3. THE ENCHANTRIX
4. SIR VALOR
5. INCOMPLETE - ATHENA
It is not until later that night - approximately three hours after they return from the battle - that the fighters learn that there were actually three "winners"... and that only Lance and Trish's loved ones received the promised punishment. For at midnight, only those two got one last message from Caesar -- this time with only pictures: a photo of Theo Terroretti, one arm cut off at the elbow, covered in blood; another photo of the elderly Ben and Hazel Crawford, passed out in the ruins of their store.
EDIT: Oh, and one more thing! The students find that not only do their PDAs work, but assuming they are not using a magical journal or something, the PDAs are getting cell phone reception with the other student PDAs. They can't call home or anything, but they can call each other. So feel free to do phone logs... but for everyone's sanity, please try not to abuse the texts. Thanks!