The Mysterious Miss Direction - vol. 01

This is really not the way you wanted to start off the week. The city has been experiencing rolling blackouts all month because of increased power usage during this record heatwave. One must have occurred last night, because your alarm clocking is blinking when the sun wakes you up. After rushing to get ready for work, your commute is delayed another 45 minutes by a burst water main flooding the street. When you finally get to the museum you have to tiptoe through the employee entrance in hopes that you can avoid getting caught by your manager, Jonas Parks. Finally, you get your first bit of good luck when you hearing him loudly talking on the phone in his office; allowing you to creep by while he is distracted.

You let out a sigh of relief as you reach the bottom of the steps and enter the basement that houses all newly arrived artifacts, as well as those waiting restoration. The air is, thankfully, slightly cooler and you shouldn't have to worry about anyone pestering you for the next few hours. Or at least that was the plan.

A flash of light across the room catches your eyes. There is a high school age boy with a camera snapping away photos of the artifacts as if it is a murder scene. When he turns around, the unexpected sight of another person sends him flailing in fright and he nearly drops his camera.

"Oh my god. You really shouldn't sneak up on people like that. You're Ms. Morton, right? Your boss said you would be happy to show me around. Teach me a little about the work you do." The kid seems to have a permanent goofy grin plastered onto his face. He turns away from you and starts snapping more pictures of items that probably shouldn't be exposed to this much bright light. "I'm Nathan, by the way. But I'm sure Mr. Parks already told you that."

You notice a sheet of paper on your desk that certainly wasn't there when you left on Friday.

Holly,

Some rich brat is going to stop by around 8:30. He is really interested in history or science or something. I don't know or care. What I do care about is that this kid walks out of here raving about what a great day he had. His family makes more money in an hour than you will in 10 years. I know you're not a total idiot, but just in case, I'll spell it out for you. Happy kid = big donations = we all keep our jobs.

Believe me, I wish it was one of my trusted tour guides showing him around, but the kid is interested in the restoration and preservation of artifacts or something. So unfortunately for both of us, that means you are going to be the one showing him around. All day. Make sure to treat him to a nice lunch. Don't let him pay. This isn't a date. And no, you will not be reimbursed, so don't ask.

--Mr. Jonas Parks, Director of the Crowfall Museum of Natural History

P.S. If we don't see a big fat donation check by the end of the week, you'll be the one explaining it to the board.

"You're boss sounds like a really fun person." Nathan says, looking over your shoulder as you read the note.

Holly tries to stifle a squeal of fright and nearly drops her old thermos (a container so old it looks as though it should probably be on one of the displays) as she is surprised by the young man in her "office". This day was not going well at all for her so far. The heat was one thing, but the heat mixed with the omnipresent humidity of the city of Crowfall made her normally wavy, black hair look more like a charred tumbleweed. Her alarm didn't go off, so she didn't really have time to shower and tried to make do with a spritz of perfume, fresh change of clothes, and a quick brush to calm the tangles forming (which resulted in a broken brush and a further delay as she had to excavate it from her locks). Her commute was delayed, so she had to spend nearly an extra hour in a bus crammed with other sweaty and irritated people. Now she had a young man snooping around the museum, clearly ignorant to the proper protocols required for handling such delicate artifacts.

She tries to introduce herself but winds up stuttering and mumbling as she tries to confirm the questions he sends at her rapid fire. She simply smiles at him and sets her thermos down on her already crowded desk to read the note.

She tries to suppress a moan of disappointment about the state of her day, but she couldn't let Nathan know that he was causing any sort of inconvenience.


She really needed this job.

"He's alright, once you get to know him," she lies, hoping to start things off on a better foot now that she had information and was beginning to formulate a plan moving forward. She tries to smile, hoping that the fact that she didn't have time to brush her teeth would be noticeable. "So, uh... what's got you so interested in restoration, Nathan?"

"Oh yeah, restoration. If I had to narrow it down to just one thing... I would say... definitely the whole... Ok, so upstairs they have all these exhibits and people flock to see them; but it is like the corporate version of history. Does that make sense? But down here, you get to see everything up close without a filter. I can't even imagine all of the cool stuff down here that never makes it into an exhibit because it doesn't fit the narrative or whatever."

Nathan suddenly lifts the camera and without warning and takes a shot of you. Your vision goes spotty from the flash for several seconds before fading to a nice blur and finally back to normal. By that point, Nathan is poking around nearby tables which hold various works in progress.

"Do you have anything cool like that down here? Moon rocks, Charlemagne's crown, a stuffed mutant raccoon with a human face, or I don't know, even the Warden's jockstrap. Anything that will literally make my jaw drop?"

Holly tries to cover her face before Nathan can blind her, but he seemed to be a bit quicker than she was. Making a face as she rubs the spots out of her eyes, she jumps to action as soon as she sees him poking around her current project.

"Whoa, whoa! Hold on." she tells him, a bit more forcefully than she probably should, before he can finish picking up what looks like a piece of ruddy brown junk. "Uh- I mean. That's like, very very old." she offers in explanation. "I don't know so much about crowns or jockstraps right now, but what I do down here isn't always so glamorous."

She points out a few pieces of the old junk on the table as she grows closer to it, keeping her arms slightly raised like a mantis at her sides in case Nathan tries to blind her again. "These are the remnants of a vase from the New Kingdom, made around two-thousand years ago, give or take a few centuries." she begins to explain. "Not as exciting as a crown, or a sword, or a bag of gold, but there's so much history that can be found in these artifacts. You can tell a lot about a culture from the tools and basic household items of the common man."

"It's... not exactly going to be a center piece, of course, but I know there are people who appreciate seeing all parts of history as opposed to just the cool stuff." she assures him, and secretly, herself.

"If you say so." Nathan doesn't seem terribly interested in the vase. He does take a picture of it, but you get the feeling it is more out of obligation than interest. He starts looking around the walls and ceiling of the basement workshop.

"Cool or not, all these things have got to be worth a lot of money, right? You guys ever have any break-ins? Crazy elaborate heist?" His eyes land on the air vents. "That doesn't exactly look big enough for a ninja to crawl through. What a bummer."

Nathan drops his camera on your desk and plops down into the seat. It spins around a few times as he stares up at the ceiling, looking bored.

"You got any cast off relics that nobody is going to miss? I wouldn't mind taking home a little souvenir."

Holly's shoulders slump at Nathan's lack of enthusiasm at what really happens down in the basement of the museum. "Well... I can't really let you... I mean, I'd lose my job if anything was..." she tries to tell him, but stops herself at the mention of her job.

P.S. If we don't see a big fat donation check by the end of the week, you'll be the one explaining it to the board., the note had said.

She takes a deep breath and rubs at her temples. She's sure that Nathan is too bored and self-absorbed to notice her struggle, so she puts a smile back on as she says, "Okay. I don't really have any souvenirs, but I do think I remember finding some cool stuff in storage if you want to take a look."

"Oh, wow. Storage. That sounds exciting. Do you mind wheeling me over there?" he says pointing to the back of the chair he wants you to push. When you get there, Nathan methodically starts snapping pictures of everything.

The rest of the day continues and you somehow even manage to get a little bit of work done while babysitting this kid. He never really seems annoyed with you, but does let out loud groans of boredom from time to time. At the end of the day Jonas comes down and puts on a sickening display of sucking up. He tells him that he is welcome to come back anytime and apologies again and again for your behavior if it offended Nathan in any way.

Nathan rolls his eyes through it all. It is very obvious that he is used to this type of treatment and is not buying the act. The two of them exit your workshop and you finally get a few minutes of peace before it is time to head out.

On your way out you are once again able to dodge Jonas. You make your way down the street toward the bus stop and see Nathan standing next to a limousine, talking with who you assume is his father. The man is dressed in an impeccably fine suit that is remarkably free of any wrinkles. It is like someone pressed it while he was wearing it. Nathan sees you and gives a polite wave, which causes his father to turn around. He gives you a questioning look before raising two fingers and motioning for you to come over.

"Hello Ms. Morton. My son tells me you showed him the ins and outs of the restoration process today. Thank you for taking the time to do this. I hope he wasn't too much trouble." Up close you can smell his fancy cologne and see just how perfectly trimmed his mustache is. Despite the terrible heat, there isn't a bead of sweat anywhere on his face. He looks like he could play the male lead in one of those motion pictures made back when they were still calling them 'talkies.'

"Do you have plans for the evening, Ms. Morton? I'd be happy to give you a lift anywhere you need to go. No one wants to stay outside for too long in this heat."

Holly, the pinnacle of grace under pressure, stutters her response, "I- uh, no, no really that's alright, I'm just..." she trails off as she looks beyond the limo to see her bus already taking off. Meaning a long, sweaty walk back to her apartment.

"Um... that's- that's very kind of you, sir. As long as Nathan doesn't object, I'd be really appreciative of a lift to my apartment complex."

Nathan's father just smiles in response. His chauffeur opens the door and everyone climbs inside. It is rather silent at first, but you notice some changes in Nathan. He is no longer slouching and appears to be doing his best impressive of his regal father. It is unclear if this is being done in jest or if he is expected to behave like this.

"How terribly rude of me. I never properly introduced myself." Nathan's father remains seated but holds out his hand for a shake. If you wish to take part you will be forced to be the one that leans forward to meet his reach. "Avery Key," he speaks his name with a hint of a smirk, all the while studying your face to see if you give off any impression of having heard the name before. You think you may have recognize his name from the news but are not 100% certain. Something to do with big business, stocks, finances... maybe.

"I must say, Ms. Morton, you are much younger than I was expecting for someone in your profession. The Museum puts a lot of trust in you to not only handle all of those priceless artifacts, but to restore them to their glory. I am sure that trust is well placed."

Soon enough, you arrive outside your apartment building. Avery indicates for Nathan to get the door, and the boy exits the vehicle to hold the door open for you. Avery slides a hand inside his jacket and pulls out his checkbook. The pen quickly glides across the paper as he fills out a check in a matter of seconds before folding and handing it to you.

"Please personally ensure that Mr. Parks receives this tomorrow. Thank you again for your time." You exit the limo and Nathan climbs back inside. They wait as you walk towards the entrance of the building. Just as you reach for the door you hear the familiar sound of Nathan's camera followed by the light of the flashbulb going off. When you turn around the window of the limo is rolling up as they drive away.

Holly thanks Mr. Key profusely before walking back towards her apartment. The click of the camera causes her to turn quickly and she has to wonder just what Nathan's intentions are with that camera. A bit red in the face, she heads up to her apartment. Its... quaint, certainly. Containing only 3 rooms (four if you count a change in floor covering as room separation), with a combo kitchen/living room, a bedroom, and a bathroom. All of which are much smaller than they needed to be. But the rent was affordable, and the people living nearby weren't very nosy.

Molly puts the check in her bag, and hides her bag in a drawer in the kitchen, not daring to look at the amount and provide herself the temptation of knowing just how well (or poorly) she did for the museum. She didn't need that on her mind right now. Looking outside, she smiles when she realizes that she had a little time left at least before nightfall, and thus kicks off her shoes, sets an alarm, and falls face first onto her squeaky bed to take a nap before tonight.

---

She felts glad at times that the Mask provided her with a costume. She didn't know what she would say to her parents if she had had to ask them for their old performance attire, or, god forbid, if she had to take the suit to the laundromat. The tight fabric fit her body well enough to let her tumble and jump along the rooftops of Crowfall, as she kept an ear out for criminal activity. She usually just followed her gut. The Mask had a weird sense of where she needed to be, so she tried to trust that.

In the meantime, she tumbled, somersaulted, and generally did idle acrobatic stunts too close to the edges of the buildings in an effort to alleviate her boredom until the fun began.

Even well after the sun has gone down, the concrete and steel of the city seems to hold so much of the heat accumulated throughout the daylight hours. You find yourself taking it a easy to avoid exhaustion and start to consider calling it a night when you notice a flickering light in the distance that can only mean fire. You pause for a moment to listen for sirens but don't hear any.

It takes about another minute before you arrive on top of a good size building across the street from the apartment building that is on fire. It is an absolute inferno. The heat coming off of it, even from this distance, has you worrying about getting burns from being too close for too long. There is no way for a fire to get this bad without some thought put into it. You have no doubt an arsonist is at work here.

A large group of terrified residents and onlookers is gathered on the street, but even over the roar of the blaze you can hear shouts for help from people trapped inside. The fire is spread far and wide, but the worst of it seems to be in the middle floors of the five floor building. You see signs of movement from inside the highest floor which must be where people are trapped.

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6

Optional Side Objective
(2 Round Time Limit) Find and Escort Trapped Residents to Safety - 5

While you are not under attack, you will need at least 1 Defense success per round to avoid injury from the fire.

Miss Direction puts a finger to her lips as she surveys the building, looking for entrances and the like. An open window on the top floor seems the best route. Time to make an entrance.

Lights, with no discernible source, begin to shine in beams like the spotlights of a theater or performance, lancing out from the ground below and shining in between the two buildings as a voice erupts from the heavens.

"LADIES AND GENTLEMEN!" the invisible announcer booms, gathering the attention of any that might be nearby, hopefully including those within the building. "FOR YOUR VIEWING PLEASURE, PLEASE PUT YOUR HANDS TOGETHER FOR THE ONE! THE ONLY! MISS! DIRECTIOOOOON!" Applause, whether from the crowd, who likely looked around confused, or not, sounded for her as the spotlights converged at her location upon the edge of the next building over. Holding her head high, she blows kisses to the imagined crowd, and pulls forth her magical deck of cards.

Shuffling them with impossible speed and dexterity, a few handfuls of cards disperse from the pile and flutter around her like fans to blow away hot air or smack away flames. With her arms held high, Miss Direction tumbles forward, off of the building.

And her hands catch air, like an impossible-to-see tightrope wire connecting her position to the open window she found earlier. Letting her hands do the walking, she shimmers over to the open window and enters, feet first.

"Ready or not!" she shouts playfully, "Here I come!" Her smile stretches wide across her painted face, though inside, she is filled with panic. Her heart raced as her eyes darted about to find any and all that might be trapped within. She hoped her theatrics caught some of their attention, so that she could spot them more easily, but she knew that her magic required her to keep up the performance, or her magic would fail.

Several of the top floor occupants are immediately drawn to your theatrical display and are present the second your feet touch the hard wood flooring of the building. If they weren't currently afraid of being burned alive, you are sure they would be excitedly clapping right now at what they just witnessed.

"You gotta help us get out of here!" one woman says while holding a wet cloth over her face to help filter the smoky air. "The door to the stairwell has been welded shut by that madman and the flames are too strong near the fire escape."

You hear a loud crash sound off in the distance. A moment later everyone freezes as they hear the thud of heavy footsteps accompanied by some rather serene but muffled whistling.

"No, no, no, no, no. He's back. You have got to get us out of here." You carefully peer into the hallway and see the source of the footsteps. There is a man walking down the hallway looking like he is having a great time. He is wearing a black suit and tie and a gas mask over his face. The most alarming thing is that his hand appears to be on fire as he gleefully runs it along the nearby wall, lighting it ablaze as he walks down the hallway. You recognize the man from the newspaper. A villain named Matchstick who can create and control fire. He was tossed into the slammer a few years ago after burning his way into a bank vault.

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6
Miss Direction - 3 HP

Threat Ratings
Boss: Matchstick - 3 HP

Optional Side Objective
(1 Round Time Limit Remaining) Find and Escort Trapped Residents to Safety - 5

Matchstick has not spotted you yet, so you will not have to worry about attacks from him this round. At least one defensive success to avoid heat/fire damage is still required.

Go ahead and roll for both rounds 1 and 2. You have 6 d6 from the previous round using your Natural Born Performer - 5 Trait which can be split between offense (only available option at the time was helping the the people escape) and defense. All rolls of 5 or lower will be successes. Then possibly another 6 d6 to be earned this round toward attacking Matchstick, helping people escape (if the rolls from the first round haven't already cleared that), and defense from the fire using whatever ends up being the most featured trait in your details for round 2.

Any questions, let me know.

Miss Direction keeps her jovial smile plastered on her face as new details come to light. Not too big a deal that the exits are shut, but the villain approaching was complicated. Despite the influence of the Mask, and her trying to keep the civilians calm, a bit of Holly's pragmatism seeps through in the form of a checklist.

First priority: get the victims to safety.
Second priority: deal with the villain.
Third priority: Have Fun!

That last one was the Mask.

Glad for the card fans continuing to flutter around her, Miss Direction gathers around all of the people inside. "Not to worry, not to worry!" she tells them, pulling, out of nowhere, her trusty deck of cards. "You'll be safe in a moment, and then I will deal with this new contender!" She makes a wide sweep of her legs as she turns around towards the open window she came through before. There was no fire escape, but it was large enough for a person to fit out of. The fall was the problem, but nothing her magic cards couldn't fix!

She makes a show of smiling and laughing and shuffling her cards, when... WHOOPS! The deck falls from her hands and scatters to the street below. She can almost hear the gasp of fear from the victims, and chastises this performing side of herself for scaring them like this. As the cards flutter and spin in the hot air, the coalesce into vague shapes, suddenly appearing as a team of clowns, miming to each other and grabbing each others over-sized shirts to spread out and form a very large trampoline with the words LAND HERE printed on it.

"Off you go! Perfectly safe, but go quickly!" she tells them in an sing-song tone. Heading nearer to the flame and the villain creating them.

You breath a sigh of relief as the residents leap from the building to the relative safety below. The roar of applause as each person gets to their feet outside fills your heart with warmth. You can't bask in the spotlight for too long though, or the fire surrounding you will start to warm you heart in an altogether different way.

Just as the last person leaps to safety, the floor of a nearby room caves in. The rush of air causes an explosion that sends you flying out into the hallway. With the wind knocked out of you and the air thick with smoke you find it hard to get back to your feet. Looking down the hallway you see Matchstick lying on his back, feet kicking around in the air as he laughs hysterically. The blast appears to have knocked him to the ground as well, but he is loving every minute of it.

Both of you slowly regain your footing. When he sees that you are looking, he holds out his hand and twinkles his fingers at you mockingly.

"Well what do we have here? You must be new to the game. I don't recognize you at all." He juts his hand forward and a spray of yellow fire streaks down the hallway. You manage to leap into the air and over the flames which light up the wall behind you. Matchstick gives a congratulatory golf clap.

"That's the problem with jail. It's so easy to fall behind on everything going on in the city." He spreads his hands wide and rapidly slams them back together in a deafening clap. The flames eating away at the nearby walls suddenly leap forward, attacking you from multiple directions. You manage to duck, dip, dive, and pirouette around the flames without picking up more then a singe here and there.

"Very impressive. I took this job for the quick paycheck. Figured I'd have some fun with the people inside as a little bonus. If I'd known I'd be having this much fun, I'd have done the job for free." Matchstick moves his hands in front of him in circular motions as he forms a ball of fire that grows larger by the second. Satisfied with his work once it is large enough to take up the full width of the hallway, he hurls the flames in your direction. "Dodge this!"

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6
Miss Direction - 3 HP

Threat Ratings
Boss: Matchstick - 3 HP

Optional Side Objective
(Completed) Find and Escort Trapped Residents to Safety

I did not roll for Matchstick last round, but seeing as your round 1 results were enough to complete the side objective, I am sending all of your round 2 'other' rolls at Matchstick and rolling defense for him.

Time seemed to slow down a moment as Holly stared down the giant fireball coming her way. Should she be thinking about her life choices up to this point? It seemed like one of those moments. Those moments when your happy memories and deepest regrets flash before your eyes just as your about to meet your maker. She could seriously die from this, yet here she was, staring death in the face and... laughing?

Miss Direction's tinkling laugh sounds throughout the hall as she deftly falls to the ground, her legs spreading in a perfect split as she puts herself as close to the ground as possible. As the fireball flies past her, she springs back up, her legs seeming to gain more momentum than her upper body as she does a flip and lands gently a few feet ahead of where she was, a new deck of cards in her hands. The great thing about magic was never running out of cards.

Fanning them out once more in both of her hands, she holds them in front of her face as cards seem to take on a mind of their own and fly towards Matchstick, going for his gas mask. Why would a fire villain wear a gas mask if they weren't vulnerable to their own smoke? Well, at least as vulnerable as normal people...

Matchstick backpedals while flicking and snapping his fingers. With each snap a burst of flames shoots outward and lights up another card. As quick as he is moving, a few do manage to get through and break the snaps on one side of his gas mask. The mask looses its tight seal around his face and starts to droop a little. It won't be long before smoke starts to fill the mask, making it more of a hindrance than a help. "ENOUGH!" He shouts and flames shoot out from his body in every direction, burning the last cards into oblivion.

"Alright, no more Mr. Nice Guy." He brings his hands up high as long winding whips of fire form and spiral outward from his grip. He spins to give them extra momentum and cracks the whips over and over while running down the hallway toward you. The fire whips slice through the walls without any resistant and each second brings them closer to slicing you in half...

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6
Miss Direction - 3 HP

Threat Ratings
Boss: Matchstick - 2 HP

Miss Direction sqeaks with shock as she quickly contorts backward, nearly in half, to avoid the first attack of the fire whip, and uses her hands to jump up and avoid the second. She dodges and dodges and dodges to keep herself safe from the attacks, but she refuses to let him get the jump on her. If she doesn't fight back, he'll have no reason to stop the onslaught of attacks.

Standing on one hand, her head contorts to look at him as another deck of cards appears in her free hand. "Too bad. I liked Mr. Nice Guy." she pouts before spinning to avoid one last attack, letting the cards 'fall' from the deck in a long line to form a whip of her own that swings in a wide arc to knock the mask from his face.

"Gah!" Matchstick shrieks as the mask is ripped from his face. His hands reflexively go up to his face, causing the fire whips to dissipate. When he drops his hand you can see nothing but raw anger on a face which otherwise looks like just any normal business man you'd see on the street.

He is done with the verbal sparring and stomps down the hallway ready to end this fight. Both of you are starting to have trouble breathing now as the hall fills with more and more smoke. You also hear the sounds of crumbling wood and steel beams screaming under too much pressure. This building is not going to last long as this rate. The fire whips cut through a lot of supports and plaster from the ceiling starts to fall like rain.

Matchstick clenches his fists and they are immediately surrounded by white hold flames. Even from a distance you can feel the increased heat they are emanating. Just as he is about to launch an attack, loud cracking sounds break his concentration and the floor gives out from beneath both of you.

You fall in what seems like slow motion as you plummet to the lower floor which is completely engulfed in flames. To make matters worse you can see the roof above you caving in as well. This whole building is coming down. Off in the direction Matchstick was in, you feel the searing white heat again as he uses his powers to propel himself upward through the collapsing building, hoping to burn his way to safety.

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6
Miss Direction - 2 HP

Threat Ratings
Boss: Matchstick - 2 HP

Miss Direction yelps as the floor gives out and begins to plummet through the floors of the burning building. Seeing Matchstick use his flame to propel himself to safety, she is tempted to yell out "Come on!", but the rushing air and choking smoke prevent it. Seeing that she is fast approaching certain doom via her descent coming to a sudden stop, she grits her teeth, and looks for an out.

There! An exposed pipe on one of the lower levels. Waiting until just the right moment, Miss Direction juts her gloved hands out, catching the pipe and using its momentum to swing onto the second floor and hit the ground running. Or, that would have been the plan until the pipe wrenches itself free of the supports around it as she hits it at high speed, sending her tumbling instead of running.

Suppressing a scoff at the nerve of that pipe for suggesting she weighed more than she initially calculated, she uses her rolling momentum to spring back to her feet and run towards the front of the building. Luckily, most Crowfall apartment buildings are built from the same general outline, and the hallway has a decently sized window at the end of it.

No time for theatrics this time. As the building begins to crumble around her, she braces for impact with her shoulder and launches out of the window towards the street below.

You crash through the window just as the building comes down around you. Not more than a second after a miraculous landing on the asphalt of the street you are showered with dust, ash, and small bits of concrete propelled outward by the force of the collapsing building. It takes a minute for the dust to settle; allowing you to get a view of your surrounding. Most of the former residents of the apartment building ran for cover behind cars or mailboxes. They still received a healthy covering of dust which floats up from their hands as they clap and cheer your reappearance.

The applause is short lived as Matchstick also reappears shortly after you. Like a shooting star he comes torpedoing straight down out of the sky. "Bombs away!" the maniac shouts at the top of his longs as his whole body engulfed in flames heads straight for you. You manage to tumble out of the way at the last second only to be tossed another 10 feet back by the resulting shock wave as Matchstick slams into the ground.

From inside the newly formed crater you can hear him cackling. He uses his flames to lighten the air around him and hold him in a floating position directly above the crater. He looks a little worse for where now, with blood trickling from his ear and his suit torn to shreds. He turns his head at the sound of fire engines approaching from the distance.

"Sounds like our little play date is about to come to an end. Time to finish this!" Matchstick open his mouth wide and fire screams out toward you.

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6
Miss Direction - 2 HP

Threat Ratings
Boss: Matchstick - 2 HP

Man, this guy does not give up! she thinks to herself as Matchstick makes his landing and prepares for his attack. Lucky for her, an attack like that severely hinders the man's ability to see her since he's likely going to be closing his eyes with the effort or in an attempt to shield his eyes from the blinding light of the flame. Perfect for her as she makes a standing leap, far higher than any normal person can, and somersaults in the air towards the man.

Her fingers press her deck until the cards arch as the flies through the air, the ground not making up its mind on which direction it would like to stay in, until the cards fly forward in a tight cylinder. She grabs the cards, now a solid, heavy pole, and watches as the cards towards the end fan out and grow heavy as they form a large, colorful mallet. Taking it in both hands, she feels the momentum of her consecutive flips through the air make it feel heavier and heavier until finally, her movement stops.

With a dainty laugh, she lands with feathery-lightness on Matchstick's head with one foot. She can feel his confusion as he tenses up and begins to look upward at her. With a wide grin, she lifts her foot again, as if to jump away, but stays perfectly still above him as the massive weight of the hammer begins to swing down in an arc at the back of his head. She knew it wouldn't kill him. Her magic was weird like that, and everything she did was decidedly non-lethal, but it would certainly put an end to this game of theirs for tonight if he didn't move out of the way in time.

The hammer bonks Matchstick square in the back of the head, sending him falling to the ground in a heap. The crowd erupts into applause and highs fives each other which completely drowns out the sound of Matchstick chuckling to himself. As you walk over to what you think is a fallen foe, he suddenly rolls over to reveal the massive orb of fire he had been making beneath himself. He thrusts his arms outward and the ball explodes when it impacts your chest sending you flying through the air and into the crater.

You try to regain your composure as quickly as possible but the unexpected attack extracts a heavy toll. By the time Matchstick's smiling face crests the top of the crater you find that you're muscles are still refusing to cooperate. Sirens from the approaching fire trucks grow louder and force Matchstick's smile into a frown.

"I wish they could stay out of this because I could do this all night. But all good things must come to an end." Matchstick closes his eyes in concentration; holding his hands out in front of himself while motioning upward. You can feel the ground begin to rumble beneath you and you plead with your arms and legs to start functioning before it is to late. You can feel and hear the earth parting beneath you until the very ground itself explodes upward. Only a small layer of crumbled asphalt and dirt protects you from the stream of fiery magma that propels you 30 feet into the air.

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6
Miss Direction - 0 HP

Threat Ratings
Boss: Matchstick - 1 HP

The heat and the impact pull the air from Miss Direction's lungs as she rockets towards the sky. At least now, her limbs were beginning to move, albeit slowly, with the rush of adrenaline that comes when one begins to fall from a great height. Well, thirty feet isn't great, but it certainly isn't good. It does give her a second or two to think of a new plan of attack.

Up close and personal isn't working. She's not a brawler, and this guy is clearly more accustomed to getting down and dirty in a fight, even without his power. She needs to fall back on her specialty if she wants to come out of this alive, or, in the least, without a visit to the hospital.

Time to show him why they call her Miss Direction.

Now that she had more control of her body again, she lets a cloud of cards fall from her sleeves, shrouding her from view as she plummets to the pavement. The mass of cards shows where her body is, however, and BLAM, she lands in a heap, her body body still obscured. But when Matchstick looks closer at the pile of cards, something doesn't seem right. There should be a body...

The closer he looks, the less he can see the swirl of cards surrounding him that begin to solidify and change, much like the clowns earlier, to look more real. Where once there was a burning building, and a building crowd of onlookers, he now stood in a silent hall of mirrors. In ever mirror, his own reflection looked back at him, and then suddenly, there she was. Idly kicking a card from her pantleg in each of the reflections with a mild look of annoyance, she looks back at him with a smile. From his perspective, she was standing right behind him, but she was only present in the reflections. Her smile widens into a grin, and she strikes a pose like some model for a gameshow.

"Welcome to tonight's show, hothead!" she announces to him. "Time for some real fun, as you decide which is the real me!"

The confusion is plainly visible on Matchstick's soot covered face. He spins about, eyes rapidly flicking from one mirror to the next while his flaming hands sit idle while unsure where to direct his attack. His confusion gives way to complete panic, fear, and finally rage. His fiery fists shake and he closes his eyes to try and get his emotions under control. "No, no, no! This isn't fair. You're messing with my mind. GET OUT OF MY HEAD!" Flames erupt from his mouth and shoot forward in a blind attack made from pure instinct.

---

Dice Pool Limit - 6
Miss Direction - 0 HP

Threat Ratings
Boss: Matchstick - 1 HP

As one mirror shatters (and falls in a heap of smoldering cards), the reflections of Miss Direction tut and shake their heads sadly in unison. This wasn't necessarily the reaction she was hoping to get, and certainly not the one she expected. Her card tricks were a means to give her a fighting chance at this, not to torment the broken psyche of a damaged man. Regardless of his crimes, she felt bad for toying with him like this.

But it served its purpose.

"Uh oh!" she chimes, her smile returning which an almost sympathetic tint to it, "You've activated my trap card!"

The hall of mirrors begins to crumble around him in a massive wave of cards that swirls with a magical wind in a tighter and tighter arc around him. Suddenly, the tide of cards constricts in an attempt to contain the man from the nose down. She made sure to try and cover his mouth, after witnessing first-hand the damage of the fire breath.

She stands behind him as all of this occurs, his attack getting nowhere near her hiding place. "Game over."

Matchstick makes no effort to stop your efforts. His eyes are vacant and staring off into space. You are left wondering where his head is at as the fire trucks finally pull up and immediately start spraying the burning rumble with water. The crowd runs forward from their hiding places and cheers for your victory even though they just lost their home. A few kids in the crowd mimic your tumbling moves and you hear a little girl asking her mom if she can dress up as Miss Direction for Halloween.

---

BUZZ BUZZ BUZZ. It feels like it has only been 10 minutes since your head hit the pillow. Task Force team members were on the scene shortly after you defeated Matchstick and it was a solid hour before you were able to make an exit. Kids wanted hugs and photographs with you, the Task Force wanted details on Matchstick's take down, a reporter from the Daily Legacy was right behind them seeking an exclusive interview.

When you exit your apartment you see Miss Direction's photo on the front page with a crowd of thankful people cheering behind her. MATCHSTICK SNUFFED OUT BY CROWFALL'S NEWEST HERO: MEET MISS DIRECTION reads the headline.

Despite being dreadfully tired, you manage to get to work on time and find Jonas looking grumpy as usual as he sits at his desk filling out paperwork. The delivery of that, hopefully large, donation check should put a genuine smile on his face. If that is possible.

Holly does just that, as she enters the building. She marches right to Jonas's office, slams the check down on the desk, and tells him exactly what he can go do with said check.

At least, that what Holly thinks about as she walks in, daydreaming as her whole body slumps and shambles its way along its path to Jonas's office. With great effort, she raps her knuckles against his office door a few times, and peeks at him through the window, holding up the check, which she still hasn't had the presence of mind to look at. It could just have "Nice try", or "Better luck next time", or any number of dismissive, or far more insulting, things written on it.

Jonas looks up and frowns upon seeing you. He does wave you in but doesn't offer a seat. "What do you need, Morton?" You hand over the check and when he unfolds it his eyes go wide. For the longest time Jonas is completely speechless. "Tell me this is real? If this is some kind of bad joke, you are so fired." He drops the check onto the desk and you instinctively glance at the amount for just a second. In that time your eyes pick up a minimum of eight digits. Jonas's face grows brighter and happier with each passing second.

Jumping out of the his chair, Jonas runs out of the office and shouts for everyone to put down what they are doing for an emergence meeting. He thanks everyone for their hard work and explains that the museum has secured a donation that will keep this place running for a long time to come. Jonas makes sure everyone knows that that the Key family is to be treated as most distinguished guests anytime they come to the museum. No mention of your part in obtaining the donation is mentioned.

Finished with his speech, Jonas dismisses the everyone... well more like he barks at them to stop standing around and get back to work, but a wide smile remains on his face the whole time. When you try to leave, he grabs you by the shoulder and tells you he needs to have a word in his office.

"You know I'm not your personal messenger, right? Don't let that donation go to your head. I'm not going to cut you any slack because you did your job. That is what I expect out of you.

"I don't know what you did to make such a good impression on Avery Key and his son, but you better keep it up tonight. I don't want them voiding this check because you pull some social faux pas." He reaches into his desk and pulls out an envelop addressed to you. The seal has been broken and you have no doubt that Jonas read the letter inside. "Alright, now hurry up and get to work."

When you get downstairs to your work area you take out the letter.

Ms. Morton,

It was a pleasure speaking with you yesterday and I was pleased with everything my son told me all about what he learned. I am hosting a little get together with some friends tonight and would love it if you could attend. Many of my colleagues are just as interested in natural history as my son and I. We would all love to hear more about what you do. I'll have a car pick you up outside your apartment around six.

Sincerely,
Avery Key

Holly feels a bit numb about it all. Sure, she kind of expected Jonas to more-or-less take the credit, or at least, not share the spotlight with her, but she would be lying if she said it didn't sting. Regardless, she could still ride the high of being the main attraction last night. She memories of it still filled her with glee as she thought about her flips and tricks and her battle against Matchstick. And the crowd! Not only did she feel the euphoria of saving all of those people, but to be admired so much for it!

She had to focus on trying to not let it get to her head. Picking at her shirt to try and keep it from rubbing against the salved burns and bandages she was hiding, she read through the letter. She had... mixed feelings. On the one hand, she was eager to get back out tonight and fight more evildoers and save more people... on the other. Well, her powers didn't really include healing. IT would be good for her to take it easy. At least for tonight.

She scratches at the back of her neck trying to think of what she could possibly wear to keep her injuries hidden...

Maybe her mother could help. Going to her desk, she makes the call. "Hello? Mama?"

"Holly? Well this certainly is a surprise to be hearing from you this early in the morning. Oh god, it isn’t something wrong with Patrick again is it? Did he ask you for money?" You spend a few minutes catching up before asking her for help on something to wear tonight.

The letter wasn’t specific but you assume that these high society types will be dressed up. You explain to your mother that you got a nasty burn when a co-worker spilled coffee on you and you’ll need a classy ensemble to keep it covered up tonight.

"Are you asking me to dress you up for a date?" She shushes you when you try to butt in. "Fine, fine fine. Keep your secrets. Well your father and I don’t exactly get out to parties like that too often so I don’t really have anything in my closet that would work... not that we’re even the same size. Cherish your youth, darling. I’ll give a call to-- wait a minute. I think I can make something work." She hangs up the phone before you can respond.

You try to reach her a few more times throughout the day but it always rings busy. It is a tell tale sign you are familiar with where she leaves the phone off the hook when she goes into project mode. By the end of the day any adrenaline of the previous night has long since worn off and you are dead tired and looking forward to a weekend of rest. It is only on your way out when Jonas reminds you to not screw up tonight that you remember the party.

On your way to the bus stop you are greeted by a familiar ‘honk honk’ and find your smiling mother sitting in her car waving you over. There is a plastic garment bag hanging by the hook in the backseat and plate covered in tinfoil in the front. She chides you for looking so thin and then lets you in the car.

The two of you head back to your apartment where she shows you the outfits she has prepared for you to choose from. "You’re lucky I used to make all the costumes back in our performing days. Believe it or not, that’s how I was able to get these done so fast. I took some of my old costumes and modified them into something appropriate to your needs. It may not be some fancy designer label but I am sure my future son-in-law will be impressed when you walk through the door."

"Very lucky," Holly says with a smile as she examines each one of the dresses. "But I'm not-" Not going on a date, she wants to say. But her mother put forward all of this effort, and... well, she didn't want to disappoint her. "That is... I'm sure he won't notice recycled fabrics."

She wish she had told her mother a bit more about the occasion, however, as the cuts of some of them are a bit... alarming. The irony is not lost on her that she dresses up in tights most nights and fights crime, poses for pictures, and generally steals the spotlight, but... she wasn't Miss Direction tonight. She was Holly Morton. And Holly Morton wasn't comfortable showing off that much of her chest.

But, when it came down to it, Holly had very nice legs, a remnant of her gymnastic triumphs and her continued (but secret) pursuits in that field.

Key’s driver shows up exactly at 6 PM and opens the door for you. This time you have the whole car to yourself while Avery and his son must be busy preparing back at home.

You are driven downtown into the super high class neighborhood bordering the park. Your yearly salary might be able to pay for one day of rent in this area. When you arrive the doorman quickly comes to assist you.

"Good evening, ma’am. If you would please follow me." He takes you past the normal elevators and through a locked door where he has to punch in a key code to call a private elevator that takes you up to the home of Avery Key.

The elevator doors open directly to his spacious apartment. At first you think you've arrived at the wrong location. This place almost looks more like a museum than your museum does. Artifacts from all over the world are displayed on the wall or under glass enclosures.

A man you assume to be a butler greets you when you step off the elevator and takes you into the main room where Avery Key and a dozen of so individuals are dressed in tuxedos and gowns. Avery spots you and waves you over.

"This is the young woman I have been telling you about. Everyone, please meet Ms. Holly Morton." Each of his guests in turn introduce themselves. One elderly woman asks if you wouldn’t mind sharing a little more about yourself.

Holly is overwhelmed, to say the least. The opulence of the venue and the fact that she is even standing here, in a homemade dress, talking to what she could assume are the elite of Crowfall, is mind-blowing.

"Well, uh- I work at the Natural History Museum in the restoration department, which is... well, mostly just me and a few interns on the weekends." she says with a self-deprecating chuckle.

"What did I tell you? Very modest." Avery remarks. "You really should give yourself more credit for the work you do, Holly." The elevator door opens again and Avery excuses himself to greet the newcomer; leaving you alone with total strangers. Not that you really know Avery all that well either.

"Why don't you take a walk with me, dear." The elderly woman who introduced herself as Harriet Morris takes you by the arm and steers you out of the main room where the guests have gathered. Overhead lights spring to life as the two of you walk down a previously darkened hallway. "Do you have a keen interest in history? Biology? The sciences in general?" Like the entryway, many artifacts are hanging on the walls or placed on stands along both walls of this long hallway. "Tell me what you know about the pieces you see here."

The whole situation is a little odd, but you're not exactly feeling that at the moment. Harriet has a very grandmotherly aura that is keeping you at peace as you look over the assortment of artifacts.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 6

'Threat' Rating
Impress Harriet Morris: 4 (One Round Time Limit)

Holly does her best to sound confident as she walks with Harriet. "Well, I've always taken more of an interest in history, especially when said history has to do with the performing arts." she tells the woman, trying to make it sound as though it were more cultured than just knowing everything there was to know about the history of circuses and stage magicians.

Looking along the walls, she does see a few things that strike her interest, especially since she recognizes a few of the items that have come into the museum on loan. Interesting to think that they came from here, of all places. Coming to a stop in front of a painting, she points out the scene of a single man on a desolate battlefield. "This here is Guillaume de la Chapelle aux Ursins' le Soldat Solitaire or The Lone Soldier," she tells her, pronouncing the french perfectly, though only because it rolled off the tongue nicely, so she memorized it while it was at the museum. "Painted in the late 16th century, many people speculate that it was a depiction of a the reaction of soldiers during the time, when latent super powers began to emerge and the scale of conflicts became far less dependent on large armies, and fell into the hands of these larger-than-life individuals. Though, to tell you the truth, I believe that is only one facet of the true intent, and may be our modern perceptions coloring what would arguably have been a much simpler time, as far as that subject matter is concerned."

She directs the woman's gaze closer, to the actual strokes of the brush. "If you look more closely, you can actually see that some of the pain on this canvas is newer than the rest. When it came to our museum, I was told that it had suffered some damage when it was moved from its original home to Crowfall. It was a bit of a pain to get the shade right, as the pigments they used back then were less... well, synthetic, but you can hardly tell unless someone points it out." she explains with a slight tone of pride.

She goes on to explain a few of the other pieces in the hall, such as a intricately painted vase from the late Han Dynasty. The dark history of it was explained to her by the archaeologist who brought it in, as it was said to be a trap for the souls of those slain in battle, and was carried with Imperial army to capture the souls of the Empire's enemies. She also explains how she was asked to perform a very delicate and special procedure for the vase, which had cracked after being handled for so many centuries. Instead of filling the cracks and making them disappear, she was asked to fill the cracks with gold to accentuate the damage, and show that its history was something to be celebrated, not hidden.

Down she goes, listing off facts she had learned over the years, both from the historical side and from her unique perspective as a restoration specialist.

Harriet's smile widens as you explain in great detail about the artifacts. She does not speak much, but is a very attentive listener. When you reach the end of the hall she thanks you and the two of you return to the party. "It is very nice to see a young woman like yourself so well versed in her craft and everything it entails. I am sure you already suspect ulterior motives in my speaking to you, but do not worry darling, it is nothing sinister.

"I have worked with Avery and the Key family for decades now. When I was your age, I to showed a strong interest in history and the relics it leaves behind. Unfortunately for me, in those days the profession wasn't as inviting to women. Thus, my long career as an assistant to dimwitted men who liked to pretend they knew more than they really did began. Avery is my latest employer and an exception to this lack of intelligence I have so often had to put up with.

"Would you be interested in working with me, Holly? Now I'm not asking you to leave the museum. Far from it actually. I think it is important for you to keep working there; handling many artifacts and restoring them as you currently do. It is a valuable first hand experience that I would never dream to rob you of. But I travel all over the world to inspect and procure artifacts for Avery. If you are interested, I would like to take you on as an apprentice of sorts."

Holly's eyes widen and her pulse quickens a bit before the bit of her brain that controls rash decisions takes over. "I would like that very much, but I wouldn't be doing my due diligence if I didn't ask what such an offer entailed." she explains to Harriet.

"If you had accepted the offer blindly, I might have been forced to retract it," Harriet says with a small laugh. "Most of the time you'll continue to go about your day to day like you do now. This job will not demand long hours, but believe me, the pay for those hours you do give up will be more than worth it.

"When I locate a piece that Avery is interested in we will have to travel to the seller to see it first hand. My skills in confirming authenticity and appraising value are highly sought after. These are the skills I will be teaching you during these excursions. In turn, you will lend me your restoration knowledge. You'll be given as much time as you need to look over the piece and will provide an estimate on the level of investment required to restore the artifact to a condition worthy of display.

"I cannot give you an exact estimate on how often these trips will take place, but I can ensure that it will not interfere with your job at the museum. Avery has been granted a spot on the board and he will make sure your boss has no problem with the occasional leave of absence.

"On average these trips can last anywhere from 3 days to a week; depending on where we are going and the number of artifacts under consideration. My last trip was a 5 day visit to the Philippines to inspect a statue of an ancient folk hero called Bantong. Unfortunately it turned out to be a 17th century recreation of the statue we were actually seeking."

Holly smiles as she thinks it over. While this had excellent implications for her career, she wasn't sure how it would mesh with her life as a superhero. She wasn't exactly well-established yet, so having to go places for a few days at a time wouldn't be too serious, but what would happen if she left?

She realizes that she's probably waiting far too long to give Harriet an answer.

"I'll do it."

She'll figure out the rest later.

"Splendid. Why don't we toast and enjoy the rest of the evening now that our business is taken care of. I'm sure Avery will send some paperwork your way in the following days but all that bores me to tears. Let's have fun." Harriet snaps her fingers and a server comes by with a tray full of drinks. You each take a glass and toast to the start of a new business relationship. The rest of the night goes by and is surprisingly fun for a party filled with middle aged and older ultra rich history nerds.

At the end of the night Harriet says she will be in touch and Avery thanks you for coming. He has arranged for the same driver to take you home. You walk through your front door a little past midnight.

You sleep in the next morning and are awakened by sunlight pouring through your window. Any particular plans for this bright sunny Saturday?

Of course Holly had plans for such a beautiful Saturday. Apart from changing her bandages and applying the burn salves she'd picked up from the store, she wasn't planning much on worrying about her night life until much alter in the evening. In the least, she might pick up a newspaper and check on her rising fame, or any current events that might lead her to a more pointed approach when next she decided to don the Mask.

Firstly, however, she knew she would never hear the end of it if she didn't call her mother to talk about her "date". Picking up the phone, she is suddenly assailed by questions when her mother picks it up, which is done quickly and makes Holly think that she may have slept beside the phone waiting for such a call.

The one-sided conversation heard from Holly's apartment proceeds like this:

"Hi, Mama. I-"

"No, he didn't really comment on the dress."

"Well, we didn't really-"

"Mama, no its not like that-"

"Well, we were at a party, and-"

"No, there wasn't another girl."

"Can I please just-"

"Yes, I know, Mama..."

"Well, I don't see how it matter that Pat is married."

"The party was fine, it wasn't really a-"

Heavy sigh and long silence.

"Yes, Mama."

"No, Mama."

"No, you do not need to come over."

"Look, I need to go, but I wanted to tell you that I was offered a job."

"NO! Not that kind of job!"

"It was more than a date! I told you we were at a party!"

And so it went for far longer that it really should have as Holly tried to explain the details of her offered position to her distraught and future-son-in-lawless mother. After that was done, she takes a deep breath and goes to take a shower, electing to spend time unwinding at her local coffee shop with her latest novel, Memories of Fire. Though reading a romance novel wasn't high on her list of priorities at this point, she could at least try to lose herself in the words while sipping a latte and doing some people watching.

The exhausting conversation with your mother combined with the scorching heat leaves you a little distract as you walk to the local coffee shop and you forget to check out the paper. Stepping inside the air conditioned building and smelling the freshly ground coffee beans is just what you needed to get the day moving in the right direction though. A few minutes after ordering a very uninterested barista shouts "Latte for Molly." It takes a few moments of no one going forth to claim this drink before you realize this must be your order.

Shoddy customer service aside, the latte is made to perfect as always. You are a little disappointed by how few people are in the shop today and are glad that you brought the novel to keep you occupied. But before you can even crack the book open you spot the headline of today's paper that someone left on the table next to you.

'DEVILMENT INC. BREAKS MATCHSTICK FROM CUSTODY: NEW HERO MISS DIRECTION CALLED OUT'

Snatching the paper up, you quickly read through the front page article. Devilment Inc. came out in full force to free Matchstick late last night before he could be transferred to a more secure holding facility build specifically to contain a villain with his powers. He was being held, highly sedated, in a warehouse near the harbor. Crowfall PD has the warehouse locked down and are are currently investigating how it was leaked that the Task Force was holding him in this location. A rookie cop accidentally slipped that a message was left at the crime scene presenting a challenge to Miss Direction. Spokesmen for the Task Force and the Crowfall PD declined to comment on exactly what was said as they do not want to encourage a potential showdown between the hero and the infamous villain group.

Holly reread the article a few times, trying to commit the details to memory. not that there were many. Its not like the Legacy made a habit of including the addresses of crime scenes in their newspaper, but she knew well enough how to get to the harbor, and its not like she had anything else going on today.

She doesn't want to wait for too long, and let the police get rid of the message, but, to be fair, if Devilment wanted her to get a message, they'd find a way. Finishing her coffee, she puts her book back in her bag, and heads back to her apartment via public transportation for some... supplies. It was on the way to the harbor anyway, so not like she was wasting that much time.

It felt weird, just having the Mask in her purse in broad daylight. She had only ever put it on at night, and somehow, well... it almost felt like sacrilege. But when she began to get closer to the harbor, it became painfully obvious that she wasn't going to be able to just enter the crime scene. So, she was going to have to get creative.

The Mask was good for that.

Finding a dark alley, of which Crowfall has many, she looks around to make sure no one can see her, and slips it on.

It was a sensation that one could never get used to. For one, once the mask was on, she felt the sudden urge to begin laughing like a maniac, but she had quickly learned how to push that down. Behind the mask, a jester's cap had sprung into existence and she now sported her usual leotard, which had since repaired itself from her encounter with Matchstick. Pushing the Mask out of her face and into its usual spot on her head, she smiled and used a nearby fire escape to quickly ascend to the rooftops.

She kept herself as low as she could on the rooftops, only springing between buildings when she was sure no one was watching, or at least, wouldn't see her against the sun. When she got to the harbor, she went from warehouse to warehouse, looking for signs of police presence, and this fabled message left by Devilment, Inc.

It doesn't take long to spot the warehouse with several police cruisers parked out front and the entire thing wrapped up in yellow caution tape. The warehouse is a very large old brick building. It is several hundred feet long and three stories high.

There is half a dozen officers chowing down on donuts and joking around with each other by the front door of the warehouse. Swinging around to the ocean facing side of the building you find a smaller number of policemen guarding the large open entrance where goods would be brought into the warehouse after being unloaded off ships. Another possible option of entrance would be getting up onto the roof and finding a window or skylight to slip in through. Since this warehouse is taller than any of the nearby buildings, this would entail crossing on the ground and somehow climbing up the side of the building. You have noticed patrols of officers around the sides of the building but the warehouse is very large and there should be enough time to leave you an opening.

There is no sign of any message outside. Whatever Devilment Inc. wanted you to see, it must be on the inside of the warehouse.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5
Miss Direction --- 2 HP (Still recovering from the previous battle)

Optional Side Objectives
Sneak into the warehouse without getting spotted --- 2

Miss Direction sat and watched for a moment as she memorized the patrols their timing. While no one was perfect, the cops of Crowfall did have a good rhythm to their walking, and, if she had the averages, could give herself a cushion of at least a few seconds on either side of the few minutes it took the patrols to get to the side of the warehouse she was observing.

She elects that the roof is her best bet, but... how best to get over there?

It should be easy. Arguably, her magic allows her to bend reality in many ways, but only if she makes a show of it. How could she make a show out of it and not be seen at the same time?!

A smile creeps across her face as the idea comes to her. It was so painfully obvious that she wanted to smack herself in the forehead, but decides against it as she uses a nearby fire escape to descend to the ground level.

Standing in the shadows, she stretches quickly, as, despite how limber her powers made her, the aches and pains did sometimes remain after she removed the mask. When she is finished she leans herself forward slightly, pushing her face out past the rest of her body, and, with a dainty finger, boops her own nose.

Suddenly, the world is silent. The calls of nearby sea birds are gone and lapping of the waves does nothing to disturb the peace of it all. Everything looks... muted. Not quite black and white, but as if whatever took the sound away had left with its fair share of color as well. Holly somehow knew this perception was only her own, but her body now existed in this new reality, exhibited by her costume's change in color scheme from its bright and contrasting reds, whites, and blacks to simple stripes of white and black. Her white gloves looked slightly oversized, and if she had to guess, her jester's hat had been inexplicably replaced with a beret (though the mask itself remained).

She now stood in the Mime dimension.

With a silent laugh, she counted on her fingers until she was sure the latest patrol had passed her, and peaked out of the alleyway. There they were, mere feet from her, but not a sound escaped from her to alert them of her presence. Sticking her hands in the pockets that now existed in her leggings, she casually strolled to the wall of the warehouse and, with a casual look to each side to ensure that none of the patrols were near, presses the button of the invisible elevator that now surrounded her and began to ascend to the roof of the warehouse.

She tapped her foot impatiently and checked a watch that wasn't there while the elevator took its time to get to the top. With a shake of her head, she began to realize that a patrol was coming around the corner of the warehouse, just as she was reaching the top. She bounced with even more impatience on the balls of her feet while she waited for the ding that wasn't going to sound that informed her that the doors of the elevator had opened. It wasn't actually there of course, but the Mime Dimension did have rules. Not that she'd been there before, but the Mask seemed to fill in this all-important knowledge for her.

Just as she was sure that the Police would notice, the doors opened and she quickly disappeared onto the room and found a skylight that she could probably slip into. Opening the window, and tying off a "rope", she descends onto one of the catwalks in the upper part of the warehouse...

The exterior of the warehouse did not prepare you for the utter war zone that is the interior. The warehouse is mostly a large open area with offices or break rooms in the corners. The rest of the floor is wide open to store cargo. The warehouse used to have nicely organized lines of highly stacked containers and shipping pallets. All that remains looks like the results of an epic game of giant sized Jenga.

It looks like anything that was wooden has been severely burnt. Much of the warehouse is still moist from the water used to put out fires. A hole in the drywall of the front office indicates that a person sized object was thrown right through it. Even the massive steel shipping containers are wrought with dents and bends. At first it seems like trying to find a message in this horrible mess is an activity that might take all night. But you were right in your assumption that the villains wanted you to find this message. You don't even have to leave the catwalk to read it.

Floating up high near the ceiling you see hundreds of playing cards arranged to form letters and words. Below the cards is a map of Crowfall with 12 red X's on it.

'Dear Miss Direction,

My sincere apologies for missing your dazzling performance the other night. You have brought wonder back to a city that all to often forgets how to have a good time and I cannot thank you enough for it. You've inspired me to shake the dust off my slippers and step my game up. Any chance you'd like to join me? I see a lot of myself in you. I know you aren't like those goody two-shoes who always spoil the shenanigans my friends and I get up to. Matchstick went a little far. I get that. He does that. What can you do? So I don't blame you for putting him in timeout. I hope you'll understand why I needed to bring him back home though. These people don't understand folk like us. They would only make his condition worse. Gah, here I go slipping into the darkness that permeates so much of existence in Crowall.

In your honor, my friends and I will be pulling off three heists Saturday night into Sunday morning! I don't want too many cops showing up to spoil the fun but I know they won't be smart enough to dive down the rabbit hole. They aren't on the same wavelength as you and me.

We'll be hitting three of the twelve locations at very precise times, in a very precise order between the hours of 1 AM and 12 Noon. Now I best start preparing or I will be late, late late, for our very important date. Hope to see you there!

Love,
Bastet'

The 12 locations marked on the map are as follows:

Caterpillar, Inc machine factory.
A bookstore called 'Turn the Page Books'
The Crowfall Knight's stadium
A bakery called 'The Queen's Tarts'
A bar called 'Joe's Tavern'
Zapit Electronic Repair Shop
The Spare Change Arcade
A karaoke bar
A gourmet tea shop called 'Maddy's!'
A video rental store called 'Silver Screen'
A Ford Dealership
WCRW radio station headquarters

---

Dice Pool Limit: 7
Miss Direction: 2 HP

Optional Threat Rating
Decipher Bastet's code --- 4

Miss Direction looks at the scene, pursing her black-painted lips, and tapping them with a gloved finger. She didn't have the presence of mind to be amazed at the lack of black grease paint coming away, it was all consumed by the riddle.

She sighed, dramatically, as it was the only way to get the feeling across in this silent world she found herself in. Well, the best she could do was take notes and collect evidence to figure things out. There was hope that she could figure it out, and, already, she had some ideas that jumped out at her, but she was in no way going to rush this. That was going to lead to mistakes, and, weirdly enough, she didn't want to embarrass herself with silly mistakes in front of this Bastet.

Using her gloved hands, she makes a rectangle with her index fingers and thumbs and looks through it, as though she were looking through a camera. Keeping her eye in place, she moved her hands from the rectangle and mimed as though capturing the shot with an old plunger button on a cord as opposed to a more handheld camera. Like this she went, capturing every bit of the scene with her invisible camera and somehow knowing that the images she captured would show up in her bag once she removed her costume.

The Mime dimension had rules, but they sure were weird ones. Though, maybe that had more to do with her magic than anything else.

When she was done, she left the warehouse, though not before leaving a single playing card behind on the catwalk. She was sure Bastet would get the message, or the police would understand that she had received hers regardless of their efforts.

---

Holly made it back to her apartment in no time. She knew that no one had seen her, and was thoroughly impressed with herself that she hadn't screamed when she returned to the normal world. That much sound assailing someone at once was... jarring. She sat in the middle of her living room, her furniture pushed up against the walls and all of the miraculously developed pictures spread out around her. She'd gone ahead and taken the time to grab a notebook and pen down the message left for her. It was easier to read her own hand-writing over and over than having to decipher it from the cards each time she wanted to look it over.

She'd gone ahead and made some notes, and underlined key words she thought might help her solve it. Firstly, she couldn't decide if "spoil the fun" was really a clue or just a turn of phrase, but she wasn't going to rule anything out yet. Corresponding to the locations provided, which she had arranged into a clock based on the order given, this one could either mean the Arcade or she could really be stretching it and going to the Ford dealership because she was talking about spoilers (again, not throwing away any ideas).

Secondly, she'd have to be blind to not get the Alice in Wonderland references, but that still alluded to two locations: "Turn the Page Books" and "The Queen's Tarts". She was more inclined to believe the second due to the more obvious reference of the Queen.

Thirdly, wavelength could only mean one thing. The radio station. She had to believe that that would be the final heist... she sighed heavily as she decided that the bakery could be the last one, considering she ended her letter with an Alice reference...

She was probably overthinking things...

You muse over the riddle Bastet left for hours but find yourself going around in circles and constantly second guessing everything. The one thing that is clear is the references to Alice in Wonderland. To try and help narrow things down you decide to dig up the old copy your mom used to read to you before bed when you were little. Skimming through the pages offers little help and you certainly don't have time to read through the entire book with the heist window rapidly approaching. Frustrated you toss the book onto the table and it lands with the table of contents displayed.

Holly takes a deep breath as she looks at the table of contents from her vantage point across the room. Picking her way gingerly across the room, trying to not step on any of her photos, she picks the books back up to look closer. She returns to her spot in the center of the chaos, and immediately begins ripping up her notes. Not her deciphering of Bastet's note or anything, but her notes on the clock and she disregards what she wrote down about the references in the note. Obviously, she was grasping at straws.

With a clean sheet of paper, she copies down the table of contents, making sure to keep the numbers alongside them. There was her clock. She went through each location, trying to match the chapter titles to defining features and found only three that matched. Well... four, but matching The Queen's Croquet-Ground with the stadium just felt like too much of a stretch when there were three far more obvious answers.

The only thing that gave her pause was the sheer gap in the beginning of the time-frame and when her first heist began... but, she had her list.

---

Miss Direction spent a bit of time patrolling around, but it seemed as though the criminal underground of Crowfall was holding its breath, hoping to witness what was sure to be a great show.

While her notes had it listed as 5 o'clock in the morning, Miss Direction had her plans to arrive on the scene of the Caterpillar, Inc machine factory at half-past four in the hopes of gleaning information on what they could even be after here... but strangely, something in her felt like showing up too early would spoil the surprise. She had to fight the feeling, and remind herself that she was dealing with hardened criminals, but it persisted, and she found herself arriving Right. On. Time.

You keep your ears open during your patrol for any sign that you picked the wrong start time for the first heist. On occasions where you find an open window and a TV is on, you linger for a bit to make sure there is no breaking news alert. Nothing. Crowfall remains quiet for hours. During your patrol you swing by a couple of the locations deemed unlikely targets and find there is a small police presence at each one. It is not clear if this is because of lack of funding needed to put a heavy guard on so many places or a lack of interest from an police department generally regarded as being corrupt.

You arrive at the Caterpillar factory moments before the clocks strike 5 AM and find that the two officers who were sent to this location have already been taken out. They lie unconscious but still breathing on the sidewalk. The glass doors of the lobby entrance have been shattered but no audible alarm is sounding. Looking around you notice all of the streetlights are out and deduce that they must have cut the power to the factory.

The relative silence of the early morning is abruptly ended by the sputtering and clanking sounds of a large engine turning over deep inside the factory. A moment later another engine roars to life and then another. You watch from outside as the walls of the lobby explode outward. From the hole emerges a massive yellow bulldozer and two smaller bobcat earth-movers. Thieves in dark clothing giddily sit behind the controls, lifting levers and pressing buttons seemingly at random. The giant construction equipment tears apart anything they touch and the vehicles make their way outside to wreak havoc on the streets.

It doesn't look like they mean to make off with these expensive machines. You get the impression that heist #1 is designed more as a distraction rather than something that is going to net the organization a big payday.

The bulldozer sees the two unconscious cops laid out on the streets and smiles wide as he moves toward them, raising the blade in preparation of dropping in upon them.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5
Miss Direction --- 2 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Bobcats --- 4
Mini-Boss: Bulldozer --- 1 HP

Optional Side Objectives
(One Round Time Limit) Prevent those cops from being squashed --- 2

Its lucky that was already moving towards the officers when the building began exploding with the emergence of the heavy machinery. She was sure the thieves hadn't yet seen her, and while that might be good for some, for her, it just wouldn't do.

The stark darkness of the early morning is abruptly expelled as giant spotlights begin to wave around, pointed both into the sky (which she hoped might alert nearby police or civilians) and toward the ground just outside of the factory.

"Ladies and Crooks!" the disembodied voice of the announcer called, grabbing the attention of the mooks and momentarily distracting them from their antics. "Back, by popular demand! You asked for her, and she has graciously answered the call!"

From her hiding spot, Miss Direction materializes a shiny black top hat and flings it behind the officers, on the other side of the bulldozer, where it skids to a perfect halt underneath the spotlights, which all arc down to point at it.

"And now! Prepare yourselves for a show of Mystery! Magic! AND MIIIISSSS DIRECTIIOOOOOOOON!" the announcer finishes, filling the dead silence of the night with phantom applause as the hat suddenly bounces from the sidewalk, doing an impressive flip from having no discernible source of momentum as Miss Direction seems to materialize beneath it (when in actuality she just ran very quickly while the spotlights were on the flying hat) and catches it before placing the hat on her now Jester hat-less head.

She takes a bow and produces a large white sheet from nowhere, which she flaps out to cover the officers completely. With a swift pull, they are gone, and are safely propped up in an alley way down the street (though, of course, the mooks don't know that).

"I have to say, I'm somewhat disappointed that you lot got the fun started without me." she tells the thieves with a mock-scolding tone. Her big smile betrays her true feelings. "After all, I am tonight's entertainment."

Not a second passes between you saying the word "entertainment" and being forced to do a back flip over a speeding bobcat that was heading right for you. Now up close to the thieves you get a better look at them and their manic faces. Their eyes are bloodshot and drool drips from their wide unnatural smiles. These guys are definitely on something.

You spin around at the sound of crushing metal and glass shattering. The bulldozer has carried on with his destructive path completely oblivious to your entrance or the fact that his kill was stolen from him. You can hear him laughing as he flattens a car and very nearly tips the bulldozer over in the process.

The bobcats move with a little more speed and grace as they circle around you in wavy unpredictable paths. It is hard to tell exactly which direction they will be going at any moment which makes avoiding them difficult and attacking even more so.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5
Miss Direction --- 2 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Bobcats --- 4
Mini-Boss: Bulldozer --- 1 HP

Optional Side Objectives
Prevent those cops from being squashed --- Success

Miss Direction scoffs and brushes an imagined bit of dust from her costume as she straightens back up from her maneuver and takes stock of the situation.

Apparently having made up her mind, she nods, and takes off her hat, her black hair visible for only a moment before the jester's hat returns with a pop and the comedic jingle of tiny bells. She regards the hat for a moment for flinging it idly behind her like a Frisbee, it making a wide, horizontal arc through the air as it picks up speed before clocking the bulldozer operator in the side of the head with the hard brim.

With that out of the way (she hopes, as she listens for more carnage), she decides to focus on bobcats that appeared to be the more pressing issue. With a look of satisfaction, she cracks her knuckles and gets to work. "I hope you boys aren't on hallucinogens, because things are about to get pretty crazy for you," she comments, as she casts her arms out wide as cards spill from her sleeves and begin to pick themselves up and tumble about as a few more Miss Directions appear on the scene. And then a few more. Until a couple dozen identical supers vault and tumble around the wildly swinging arms of the bobcats and work to make their way into the cabs to wrest the controls away.

The bobcats veer back and forth in wild paths as they try to strike at the illusions in front of them while also trying to push away the fake Miss Directions that get close. After a while it starts to look like they've given up on trying to hit anything and instead are trying to take the most wildly chaotic path imaginable purely because it is fun. Their lack of focus is their undoing when one bobcat crashes into the other; sending it toppling end over end. The other one starts smoking and the engine slowly winds down. The thief driving it stumbles out of the cab and falls to the floor. A large gash across his face has drenched his whole face in blood but he doesn't seem to notice as he keep pulling at imaginary levels and running about like he is still in the bobcat.

It is all quite a sight to behold. Enough so that you lose track of the bulldozer for a little while. The blow to the head actually seems to have knocked some sense into its driver. While you were busy with the bobcats he rushed to turn a car into a makeshift 2-ton ball of metal. You'd be pretty impressed with his ingenuity if the ball weren't presently rolling right toward you at 20+ miles per hour.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5
Miss Direction --- 2 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Thief --- 1
Mini-Boss: Bulldozer --- 1 HP

Miss Direction shakes her head at the turn of events, and quickly begins to somersault backwards to get out of the way of the ball of metal. When she knows she's sufficiently out of range, she pivots when her feet hit the concrete and breaks into a run instead, now heading toward the bulldozer's cabin.

Getting closer to the bulldozer, she leaps once, putting a foot on the tread and using that to give her enough strength to break through the glass of the cabin door to tackle the man out of the other side. On the way out, as her momentum seemed to be carrying her with the thief towards the concrete, she hooks her foot around a lever and pulls it down, hoping to send the machine turning out of the way of the bobcats and to not crush the idiots pretending to drive them.

Your acrobatic display avoids the dangerous rolling ball of metal. The bulldozer drivers sneers at you and slams the lever in his left hand forward, propelling his vehicle forward at its top speed... which admittedly isn't that fast. It's a bulldozer. You are easily able to work your way up and in one fluid motion eject the driver out of the bulldozer and pull the throttle lever back to the neutral position. The bulldozer slows to a stop in the middle of the parking lot.

When you turn to face the former driver of the bulldozer you are shocked to be looking down the barrel of a .357 magnum revolver. Coming face to face with your impending doom makes your mind go momentarily blank and you aren't able to think of a clever way to counter this new threat using your powers. Luckily, your instincts get in and you dive away; trying to get to cover around the bulldozer. He tracks you with the revolver as best as his dazed mind can and pulls the trigger. The bullet grazes your calf and sends you stumbling to the ground.

Turning your leg over you see a small wound, but nothing too serious. With two heists to go, you hope there won't be any more close calls like that.

---

Miss Direction --- 1 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Thieves
Mini-Boss: Bulldozer

Miss Direction huffs as she gets up off of the ground and the now-unconscious thief who had broken her fall. She checked him for injuries, but he simply seems to have gotten the wind knocked out of him and passed out. Or... maybe it was the knot forming on the back of his head, she thinks with a small pit of worry in her stomach.

Not really having the time to be worried about concussions, Miss Direction marches over to see the remaining mook is pantomiming driving the bobcat and she shakes her head, which now hurts slightly as well. She had to take better care of herself if she was going to make it the rest of the night.

She mentally commands her doubles to swarm the man, and the ones who don't get punched wrap their arms around him and restrain him, suddenly becoming a thick band of playing cards that hold him tightly around the torso, preventing him from moving.

She takes the time to make sure the machines are shut off and gathers the thieves up in one spot, binding even the unconscious ones with cards so that they couldn't escape justice once the police showed up.

She oddly felt a bit winded by the fight. Not that it was going to keep her from stopping the others, but she needed to get some help before she went to the next venue. She still wasn't sure that this was the only purpose for the heist here, and heads into the factory. In the least, she might be able to find a first aid kit to fix her bandages and maybe find some painkillers.

You have to be careful walking around the dark factory. Broken glass, concrete, and rebar obstacles are all over the place. This place better hope their Supers Insurance policy is up to date. You do manage to find a pretty well stocked medkit. Thank goodness for OSHA regulations. You take some time to clean your wounds and bandage the cut from the gunshot graze. You still feel rough, but are now a little more prepared to continue through the rest of the night.

You hear more cop cars arriving around the same time that you come across where the thieves entered the factory. An exit door to the alleyway has been cut through with a blowtorch. Not very technical but it was effective. There is a dufflebag left in the alley with their tools and a ventilation mask hooked up to a small gas canister. This must be what was causing them to act so strangely but there is no indication of what it is.

You hear some feet shuffling out towards the lobby and flashlight beams cut through the darkness. "Hello! Crowfall PD. Is anyone in here?"

---

Miss Direction --- 2 HP

She considers for a moment about alerting them to her presence, if only to tell them about what she's found or to inform them of how lucky their officers were that she arrived when she did. She decides that doing so would only hinder her efforts to continue throughout the morning. She hadn't hidden the officers, so she is sure that they will be found and receive the care they need.

Heading out of the back entrance, she books it to a nearby building and uses the fire escape as a convenient series of handles to vault herself up towards the rooftops. She didn't have any time to waste if she wanted to get to Maddy's Tea Shop before similar destruction could be wrought upon it.

Though, she highly doubted that the tea shop would have such powerful equipment nearby.

You manage to get across town and arrive nearby the tea shop before the suspected deadline. You keep to the shadows but maintain a patrol hoping to catch Bastet or whoever shes sends after this location. Just like at the factory, there is one cop car parked out front. Two officers causally chat with each other while drinking coffee.

'Good morning, Miss Direction.'

You spin around, surprised at the sudden voice calling you out. There is no one anywhere to be seen.

'You know, I am usually quite good at looking through people. Seeing in their souls. I am afraid something seems to be blocking me when I take a look at you. I hoped to learn more about the woman behind the mask, but I guess we'll be reduced to the old fashion way of getting to know each other. Care to join me for a cup of tea?'

Throughout this whole speech you keep moving and remain unable to spot anyone. When she mentions a cup of tea you turn your gaze to the tea shop and find it is still empty. Suddenly the shop fills with green smoke and as it fades a familiar face appears.

Sitting at one of the tables with two cups of tea before her, you see the villain coined by the papers as the Medium Madam. She got her start in the fortune telling business, gradually adopting a 1920's spiritualist schick as her popularity grew. It all seemed like harmless fun until it was revealed that she genuinely possessed psychic powers and was using them to force woman to work in her underground brothel. She was sprung from the Catacombs prison a few years ago and has remained relatively quiet since then. As far as anyone knows.

You know that despite her petite appearance, this is a very dangerous villain. It is never been fully documented what the extent of her powers are.

You look down the street to see if the cops have noticed her and it appears that they are completely frozen in time. You watch for a few moments and neither one moves a muscle. Not even the one that has his thermos halfway to his lips. Looking up and down the street you see similar worrying things. A car stopped in the middle of an intersection, a crow seemingly floating mid-air, someone in frozen part way through closing the drapes of their apartment window.

Miss Direction flares her nostrils in frustration at essentially being out-staged. But, she is not without grace and dignity.

"I was afraid this would all be dreadfully boring, what with the nameless goons at the other location." she comments, seeming completely at ease with having her powers taken from her, as she makes her way over to the table to take the seat opposite Medium Madam. "Tea sounds lovely, provided you do not intend to simply poison me and be done with it. That hardly seems Bastet's way of going about things."

She lounges in the chair, waiting for her hostess to serve the tea and perhaps react to her foe simply ignoring the handicap imposed on her.

The Madam gives you a polite smile as you make your entrance and take a seat. "If I could say one thing about throwing my proverbial hat in with Bastet and her lot, it would be that my nights are never boring now." She is now speaking aloud as she pours both of you a cup of tea from the same kettle. The Madam makes sure she is the first to drink in order to ease your suspicions.

"You are quite right about her methods. Bastet rather enjoys playing with her prey before she kills them. Wholly committed to the cat motif, that one. Personally, I find all the nicknames a little campy, but it is hard to escape them when once the world brands you. I’d much prefer you call me Lily, but won’t object to my more common moniker.

"You seem rather unfazed by being unable to call upon your unique gifts. I’ve done this same thing with many heroes over the years and few react with such poise. Have you managed to deduce why you do not have access to your remarkable abilities? Or what the purpose of this meeting is?"

With each second that you spend inside the tea shop your sense of unease grows. You cannot place a finger on exactly why this is but the more you focus on your surroundings you start to pick up on more subtle differences than just the rest of the world appearing to be frozen in time.

There is no movement to the air and yet it doesn't have a stale quality to it. The environment in general feels... empty. Neutral? Colors are less vivid. There is no ambivalent noise. As much as you try to look around at your surroundings, you find your gaze constantly being drawn back to the Medium Madam’s eyes.

Miss Direction calmly sips tea as she looks around for as long as she is able. "Lily? That's a lovely name. I'm sure you won't fault me for not sharing mine, what with the business we're in." she converses politely. Setting her cup down, she leans back in her chair.

"As for being unfazed, don't be fooled. There is such a thing as grace under pressure. I'm certainly not frightened, not with such a polite hostess, but I'm certainly not at ease. Then again, I haven't been at ease since I got Bastet's message. I felt rather lucky that I actually had a copy of the book, and didn't have to go to the library or something." she lets out a tinkling laugh at this. Her powers may not be working, but she still had an image to maintain as Miss Direction.

"As for deductions, or the purpose of this meeting, I do have a few theories. I am quite proficient at illusions, and this seems to be quite a powerful one, though not in a visual sense. If I had to guess, based on what I've heard of your powers, I'd say you're currently routing around in my mind and making me see things that aren't there." she points to where she was patrolling moments ago. "For all I know, I'm still up on that ledge, drooling and slumped over in a comatose state."

Taking a deep breath, she locks eyes with Medium Madam. "The purpose of this meeting is either to defeat me by figuring out identifying details about me and outing me to the world, or to simply waste my time and make me miss the final battle."

Sip. "Now, I imagine you'll tell me how close or far away I am from the truth and correct the record in some over-dramatic villain monologue."

Lily seems positively delighted by your response. "I can see why Bastet speaks so highly of you. Very smart and talented. You are quite right, or close enough, on many points. In others you could not be further from the truth."

The hands of the clock on the wall behind the register start spinning at rapid speeds. "First of all, Bastet and I have very different intentions for this meeting. She would never dream of unmasking you. She believes wholeheartedly that Miss Direction is the real you and whoever you are during the day should be put out to pasture. If she had her way, none of us would use our birth names ever again.

"I am the one who hoped to see below the surface and find out who you really are. It is important to understand why people do the things that they do. I want to see why you risk your life fighting for the people of this city. Unfortunately, your powers seem to be blocking me from seeing what I seek. A rare gift you have there." The room starts to expand. The ceiling rises to great heights and the walls stretch on for hundreds of feet, causing the framed photographs and design of the wallpaper to morph into unrecognizable forms.

"Don’t tell her that I told you, but the real purpose of this meeting is because Bastet is bored. She thinks you will liven things up. She’s looking for a new best friend in all the wrong places, if you ask me. No offense. I was asked here to be a messenger, but we’ll get to the message after I’ve had my fun."

A bell placed above the front door rings, signalling that someone is coming in. You turn to see your father as well as your boss, Jonas Parks. They silently walk across the room and slide up chairs next to you at the table. They each stare off into space, never acknowledging anything or anyone around them.

The Medium Madam taps her index finger to her lips as she inquisitively looks from one silent zombie like figure to the next. All light is sucked from the room except for a bright spotlight shining down on the table and its occupants. It appears as if the rest of the world ceases to exist. Beyond this table there is only darkness.

"Well would you look at that. Names continue to elude me, but your mind can’t completely hide your secrets. Tell me, Miss Direction, who are these gentlemen that have joined us? And how far would you go to prevent harm from falling to them?"

Her heart jumps when she sees the two men arrive. Not that she thought they were really there, but she was unnerved that the woman could pull such things from her mind.

She takes a sip of tea, noticing the faint tremble of her hand, that cause her to furrow her brow, to focus, and steady it once more. She was far from ready to give in.

Setting the cup down, she looks at the Madam. "They are both important to me, if that is what you are asking. One more than the other. But what you are failing to recognize is that it doesn't matter who they are. They could be complete strangers. Or they could be my worst enemy. You could have Matchstick sitting next to me, and I would do everything in my power to ensure their safety."

A thought occurs to her. A way to fight back. She didn't have her powers, surely, but if this illusion existed within her mind, she was far from powerless. She tries to test her theory, trying to remember the specific layout of the Tea Shop. The counter. The dainty, tiled floor. The little french-looking sign that detailed the daily special of the small bakery in the back.

The Medium Madam tosses her head back and lets out a long bout of laughter. Jonas and your father join her but it is much more robotic and unsettling. "You heroes always like to pretend you are so much better than the rest of us. Don't delude yourself, honey. When push comes to shove, we all serve ourselves first. It is a part of being human." You try to ignore her and continue to focus on the task at hand. Before long, a hazy sign listing the specials appears floating off in the darkness behind Lily.

She looks behind herself at the spot you are staring at. When she turns back, she gives a long roll of her eyes. You press forward, focusing on the floor and one by one the tiles appear and spread outward. "So you think you have it all figured out, huh? This is your head so you're in control? Only half true." She snaps her fingers and a television appears behind each man seated at the table. It shows them in bed, sleeping in what you assume is the real world.

"The versions next to you may be figments of your imagination, but I do not need to know exactly who they are in order to play with the real things. It would be such a shame if one of them were never to get out of bed. Heart attacks are a major cause of death in this country, you know?"

Lily snaps her fingers and everything goes dark again. The chair vanishes out from under you and you are falling. No, you are sliding. A long seemingly never ending and totally enclosed tube slide, like one at a water park. It dips and turns in wild directions, tossing you about in the process. After what feels like ages, you plop down on hard linoleum flooring with a thud.

Looking around you see that you are in your first grade classroom. It is empty but a message on the chalk board catches your attention.

Today's Assignment:

Oral Essay Presentation on 'Why I Became a Superhero'

The chair behind the teacher's desk spins around and the Madam is sitting there, now dressed up like a teacher. She slaps a ruler into her had repeatedly, "To the front of the classroom, Miss Direction. It is time to give your presentation."

Miss Direction suddenly feels a great rush of dread. Not at being present in the classroom, but at the severity of her confinement. She would buck and kick and scream at the confines around her mind, but the threat against her father and her boss was too dire. She was going to have to submit to whatever torment Medium Madam had planned for her. God, it was going to be hard to not berate Jonas for this on Monday.

Regardless, she would show the Madam, Lily, that she controlled the situation. But resistance could be showed in many ways.

It may not be her day job, but she was a performer, regardless of her powers. With a confident grin, she stands from the desk she somehow found herself in and strode to the front of the classroom. She still had her creativity, and so decided to put it to good use.

Spinning around in a delicate manner, her costume had changed. She was still masked, though it appeared as though she were ready to go to some Catholic school for Circus Children. Her jester's cap jingled merrily, and her skirt swished with its rich white, black and red fabric. She grinned as she the saw the rest of the class wearing similarly ridiculous outfits. She filled the room with memories of her school days. Throwing in jocks with clown noses or tutus, or the popular girls who made fun of her wearing gorilla costumes or simply a fish on their head. She couldn't remember most of their names, and that was all well and good. No sense giving Madam more ammunition.

They all sat quietly, looking at her with enraptured faces. She tries to will a spotlight into being to shine down on her, but that's a bit too much to manifest. She does, however, holds aloft a skull in one hand as she puts the other to her chest and makes a ridiculously serious face as she begins.

She complies, but she makes sure that Lily can tell she refuses to take this seriously.

"What makes a hero? One might ask. Is it through the fires of hardship that they are forged into beings above the common masses, or is there a spark, placed in their breast by the divine, that allows them to soar through the heavens and lift the spirits of men, women and children the world over? I ask you my friends, is not any man who serves his fellow man a hero? Is not the officer, who keeps our cities safe and free of drugs and crime, the same as the man who can lift a buss with his left buttock?" she wills a few of her 'classmates' to snicker.

"Is not the garbage man a hero, for he serves his brothers by sweeping away the refuse of a wasteful world? Yes, it is through servitude to the masses that makes one a hero. Whether it is saving helpless people from a burning building or simply bringing a smile to saddened faces. A comedian can be a hero in the same way a Labrador can be a Shih Tzu, in that they are both dogs. But is dog spelled backwards, not God? Can one be a god among men if he has not contemplated peeing on a hydrant, or assaulting the mailman?"

She looks over to Lily with a ridiculous grin, a silent question as to whether she wants to move on or if she should continue her nonsensical tirade.

Lily could not look less amused. Her eyes are narrowed, brow furrowed, and lip twitching as she boils in anger. It is pretty obvious that she is used to getting her way.

"You think you’re really clever, don’t you? Did you hope your little show would push the right buttons and get me to reveal something about myself that would lead you to victory? Well you’re wrong. I am not some sad little damsel that the world took advantage of. I am the monster that mothers warn their children about! You and Bastet belong with each other. You’re both.... such..." Lily slowly rises to her feet, face turning red as her voice grows louder. She catches herself, closes her eyes and calms back down before continuing. "You’re pathetic." She vanishes. No puff of smoke. No theatrics. There one second and gone the next.

The classroom around you slowly fades away and you find yourself inside of Maddy’s! tea shop. The two officers that were stationed outside have their guns drawn on you and are shouting for you to drop the money down and put your hands up.

Looking down you see the store’s safe is open. You are holding a clear plastic bag stuffed to the brim with stolen cash.

‘Is your sense of humor going to get you out of this, Miss Direction?’ Lily telepathically taunts you.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5
Miss Direction --- 2 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Cops --- 2

Optional Objective
Talk your way out of this --- 3
Run for it! --- 1

Miss Direction's first though is in response to Lily's taunt. 'Probably.' Promptly followed by the thought, "Well ain't this a pickle," which emerges when the gravity of the situation hits her.

She looks at the bag of money in her hands, easily the largest amount of actual cash she's ever held, which is kind of cool if it weren't for the illegality of the whole situation. She then looks at the cops, pointing guns at her and growing incredibly more frustrated with her lack of compliance.

She could run, but how would her reputation suffer from having two officers of the law swear that she had attempted to steal from an adorable little tea shop, only to be caught in the act. Not a good look.

She puts a hand on her hip and lets out an amused laugh. "If this ain't a doozy, boys." she calls to them, shaking her head like she were reacting to some silly joke they'd told her. "Don't suppose either of you recall an older lady sitting in here a few minutes ago? Bit droopy faced, wearing that whole five-buck palm-reading psychic get-up?"

More requests to freeze, which she responds to by setting the bag of money down on the table like their having a conversation. "No, I mean like really weird looking. Not only that, but you folks were frozen in time, we had a cup of tea, and then suddenly she's my teacher which brought up some really confusing feelings." She chuckles. "Turns out she doesn't like Shakespeare either. Who knew?"

"Sounds pretty far-fetched I know, but Medium Madam is no joke." Hopefully the name drop would lend credence to her story, but she was prepared to blast them with a spotlight and make a run for it if they didn't buy it.

The cops immediately stop talking when you mention the Medium Madam. They give each other a serious look and lower their weapons. The older of the two motions for you come over and talk to him while the other officer heads outside to radio the dispatcher.

"It may sound far fetched, but it certainly helps us connect some dots, young lady." He takes a deep sign and shakes his head. "You came walking in out of the shadows about 10 minutes ago with this blank look in your eyes. Thought you just came from one of them raves. Kids still like those? Anyways, we watched you walk up to the building and pull this glass cutting tool out of thin air. We jumped out of the cars went to try and stop you, but you ignored all of our commands. Next thing we know, you’re reaching through a hole in the glass that doesn't seem to actually be there and unlocking the door!

"We tried to follow you through, but it was locked for us. Had to get approval to break our way in while you were cracking the safe using some over sized megaphone to hear the clicks of the spinner lock. You’re that Miss Direction that took down Matchstick, right? Good job on that, by the way. Glad to see you didn’t go and turn evil on us." He takes out a notebook and pencil. "I should probably get a statement, if you don’t mind. Oh man, you’re on a timer or something aren’t you? Do you know where Bastet is hitting next? I could call ahead and get some more officers into position."

Miss Direction heaves a dramatic sigh of relief as the police accept her story. All true, of course, but she was a rambling mess after being trapped inside of her own mind.

'Note to self. See a therapist and deal with high-school trauma.' she thinks, filing that away as she moves towards the officers.

"Interesting to hear what it looked like from the other side." she tells them. "And do I look like the kind of girl that goes to parties?" she jests, tossing her head dramatically to make her hat jingle. She smiles. "Sorry. Hard to take things seriously when your dressed like a clown from the middle ages. But, yeah, I'm 'that Miss Direction'."

Their question about the next location makes her furrow her brow. "Either of you boys got the time? I'm afraid my costume doesn't include a watch, and having your head messed with can really throw off your sense of time."

The officer looks like he is going to question you, but decides it is best to leave strange mind control business to the superheroes. "It’s 7 AM." He sees your mild look of surprise and takes a closer look at his watch. "7:02, technically. Did you need the time down to the second?"

Everything that transpired with the Medium Madam happened within a single minute of real time. It is a somewhat disturbing thought, but at the very least it gives you plenty of time to prepare for the next stop on Bastet’s series of criminal activities that only sort of resemble heists.

Miss Direction shakes her head. "No, its just that... well, I expected it to be much later. This heist, if you could really call it that, only started at 7."

She takes a deep breath and shakes away a bit of the nerves from that realization. "I've got time for a statement, if you still have questions, but for reasons I think we all recognize, I can't allow myself to be held up for long."

You sit with the officer for around 10-15 minutes, answering the questions they have. Ultimately they feel like there isn’t going to be much they can do about what took place. No one has seen the Medium Madam in person since she escaped from captivity, but he lets you know that this information will be going to the Task Force to help them develop ways of combating her powers. He thanks you for your time and wishes you good luck at the next destination.

You arrive in the area of the Queen’s Tart Bakery with plenty of time to spare and do some general scouting. The bakery is very small. A mom and pop store that you are surprised to find is open for business despite the threat of burglary by a legendary thief. A friendly looking old woman is at the register and you’ve seen one or two employees come in from the back where they are working on various deserts.

Nothing about this screams high value heist target. You mentally go over the clues again, trying to make sure this is the right place and the right time. Everything seems to fit, but what purpose would hitting this place have? None of the other locations have been about financial gain. There is the possibility that this one isn’t either.

After studying the bakery and finding nothing nefarious, you turn your attention outward. The side of the street that the bakery is on is a solid row of similar mom and pop type shops. No help there. Directly across the street from the bakery, however, is a fairly good sized bank.

You have plenty of time left to prepare; once you decide what you’re preparing for. Did you tip the cops off that this was the final location and time? Do you think Bastet aims to hit the bank, or is the bakery still your focus? What additional prep do you do to prepare for whatever it is she has planned?

Miss Direction kicks her legs as she sits on the edge of the roof of a nearby building as she contemplates her options. After her run-in with Medium Madam, she was not adverse to having back-up, something she told the police on the scene. However, she also explained that the first heist, she had to spend too much of her time getting the two police officers that were already there to safety to prevent much of the collateral damage (Not necessarily true, but it helped her make her next point). She would only tell them the next location and time, if they promised to show up at the time she told them to. To give her time to figure things out, and make sure they weren't going to be in any danger.

She elected to tell them to arrive at the bakery at 11:30. That should give her time, but hopefully wouldn't be too long, and they'd only find her corpse and a ruined street. She sighed. The best course of action, she thought, would be to wait atop the bank's roof. From there, she could watch the bakery for signs that something had changed, and would likely be able to hear any alarms that sounded inside of the bank.

Besides, Bastet was a cat burglar to the nth degree. She wouldn't be walking in the bank's front door. A rooftop entrance seemed more her style.

Taking a few minutes after making her way up to the top of the bank, she gently prods at the bandaged flesh beneath her costume. She was lucky that Medium Madam hadn't torn anything loose and reopened her wounds, but she had a feeling that this fight, or whatever it was going to be, with Bastet was going to require a lot of moving around. Seeing that everything was where it should be, she patrols the rooftop, constantly looking over the edge of the building where the bakery sat across the street.

About five minutes to 11, two separate events in two separate locations catch your attention. You hear a soft thud upon the roof and swing your head around in that direction. You don’t see anything. Turning back to the bakery you see someone enter through the front door. There have been several customers already during this stakeout, but this one in particular caught your eye because they were holding an umbrella which blocked your view of them. A strange accessory on a bright sunny day.

From behind you, in the direction of the roof access door to the bank, you hear the familiar sound of a lock clicking open. Turning back to the bakery, you see the person with the umbrella has chosen to keep it open even while inside talking to the clerk. The clerk seems very happy to talk to them and after a moment, motions for them to come around the counter and enter the backroom of the bakery where you lose sight of them.

Miss Direction is suddenly caught between a rock and a hard place, or, more specifically, two separate heists. She feels like cursing under her breath but it feels somehow wrong to do so. Probably just a trick of the Mask.

She sighed. She would have to pick what would clearly be the greater evil here. Whoever was in the bakery didn't seem an immediate threat. It could just be an odd customer at this time. Whoever was going into the bank's roof entrance, however, was clearly a criminal.

Turning on her heel, Miss Direction makes a break for the rooftop entrance to catch the intruder in the act.

Coming around the corner you peer through the open door and get a look at another one of the goons you encountered at the Caterpillar heist. Dressed head to toe in black, the man is clearly hopped up on something. Unlike the earlier ones, he does not have a manic smile on his face. His eyes are still wide and bloodshot, but the rest of his face is deathly seriously. A picture perfect example of stoic focus on the task at hand.

He has some sort of electronic device in his hand that he must have used to bypass the lock on the door. Now he has it plugged into the security system for the bank. You notice the red light on a nearby security camera turns off and the camera droops downward after powering down. It appears that he has to go through the security systems one by one to shut them down. At the moment, he also seems completely oblivious to your presence.

Just as you are about to make your move you hear what can best be described as a fleet of cars screeching to a stop outside the bank entrance. Car doors open and the steady smack of combat boots on tarmac rings out until all the mooks are inside the bank. That's when you hear shouting of orders to "EVERYBODY DOWN ON THE GROUND OR I FILL YA WITH LEAD!"

---

Dice Pool Limit: 7
Miss Direction --- 2 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Laser Focused Bank Robbers --- 15

Optional Objective
Take out the security expert before he takes too much offline --- 1
Get the hostages to safety --- 15 (3 Round time Limit)

Maybe its the lack of sleep or the fact that she is usually out of her costume by dawn, but this whole situation sets something off within Miss Direction that she was unaware could be set off. With a look of grim determination, she sneaks deftly up behind the tech expert and takes him out with a solid jab to the side of the head with her elbow.

She immediately regrets this and grabs her elbow and suppresses the groan of pain as a nerve is triggered, making her entire arm feel as though it is filled with static numbness for a solid second.

That threat dealt with, she makes her way out the door of the office they were standing in. Swinging the door open, she could see that she was on the second floor of the bank, where many of the offices were. Made sense. Sneaking her way closer to the edge of the balcony/landing she was on, she hides behind one of the large pillars that gave the bank a very classical look. Looking down, she could see the group of jack-booted thugs making their way through the first floor of the bank with an almost impressive, military efficiency.

Well. She might as well get to work.

"COME ONE, COME ALL!" cries the voice of the omnipresent announcer, causing a great many heads (both mook and hostage) to turn and look for the source. All they can see are the lights being blocked out by what looked to be the same fabric used for big-top circus tents. It draped along the ceiling to create a room-shape not unlike a large, rectangular tent, and the thick fabric falls along the walls and pillars to accentuate the appearance. "Ladies and gentlemen, it is my great pleasure to introduce today's featured performer! Straight from the scene of another failed heist! It's MIIIIIIIISS DIRECTION!!!!"

There is no fake applause to accompany her appearance at the top of the grand staircase (now lined with a thick red carpet). Only the sound of dreadful, almost mournful, circus music. She wore no smile as she descended, though they wouldn't be able to see it if she was. She still wore that look of grim determination, hidden under the Jester's Mask that now fully obscured her face. Her hands moved intricately, weaving around her tendrils of cards that circled and danced in impossible ways as she assessed the scene.

"Now this is no way to act boys." she chastises them in an imperious voice, which sounds so unlike her own that she had to wonder if she was really the one to speak. "Strutting around like you own the place. Threatening these poor, innocent people." She tuts. "Just won't do."

It doesn't take long for some of the thugs to wise up and try to shoot at her. Her massive shield of cards takes care of the bullets heading her way. Or, at least, that is their purpose.

Her first order of business is to get the hostages out. Hopefully the thugs were too busy looking at her to realize that the fabric covering the building was moving on its own. When the mooks weren't looking, the fabric would woosh in, covering the hostage and making them vanish like the police officers before. She couldn't trust that there weren't more thugs outside, so she put them in the office upstairs that she had locked behind her.

All around the bank mooks armed with uzis look around at the changing environment but they never lose their focus. They keep an eye on everything with the intention of not losing track of anything... or anyone. A few do take shots at you but the bullet spread is wide. Your cards take care of anything that comes close while many more bullets simply go wide and embed themselves in the walls. It feels more like suppressive fire than a concentrated effort to put you down.

When the first volley finishes you find out that this is exactly what was happening. With your focus distracted on not being shot, a few of the gunmen were able to get a really good scan of the bank and the hostages. One of them has her arms wrapped around a hostage that couldn’t have been half a second away from being whisked away to safety. She drags the kicking and screaming hostage back toward the center of the bank. By this time the other goons are wise to your plan and have ushered as many hostages as they can into the very center of the bank where they can be more easily watched.

Another round of machine gun fire is launched in your direction. This time they are shooting to kill.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 7
Miss Direction --- 2 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Laser Focused Bank Robbers --- 15

Optional Objective
Take out the security expert before he takes too much offline --- Success
Get the hostages to safety --- 13 (2 Round time Limit)

Miss Direction grits her teeth against the pain she knew was coming. She didn't have the time to keep both herself and the hostages safe. Cards begin to fly from the mass surrounding her, but not towards the group. They fling themselves upwards, towards the ceiling where they explode in showers of confetti. From the confetti, long strands if silk fabric begin to tumble down, and when they reach the end, Miss Direction is at the end of it, doing an elaborate swinging dance from the ropes. And another Miss Direction. And another. At least twenty Miss Directions swing from the ceiling, around and around the group in the center, with the real one no longer on the steps but hidden somewhere among them as she disappears in her own cloud of cards.

The cards, the swirl with magic as they move towards the walls and become long mirrors that reflect the scene back at them. Once these manifest, the Miss Directions change their tactics, now moving into the group, some picking up and flinging the armed men around, and others gripping for the hostages. Those that attack do nothing more than move them out of the way. They are harmless illusions, and couldn't do more than move the mooks around. The ones going for the hostages pick them up and swing with them, moving them as quickly towards the walls as they could.

The hostages scream as the illusions let them go and they look as though they are about to slam into the mirrors. Instead, the mirrors seem to swallow them in their own reflection, transporting them once again to the room upstairs.

The gunmen shoot, swipe, and punch at the Miss Direction fake shemps. The tight watch over the hostages falters and you are able to get a good number of them to safety. The apparent leader of the group begins to catch on to what is going on and tries to shout over the gunfire for everyone to stop wasting their time.

"If you want something done right, you gotta do it yourself." His laser sharp focus tunes out the rest of the room. His eyes lock on to the remaining hostages as he slowly walks across the lobby. Hostages scream and press their covered heads into the floor. The world seems to slow down around you as you watch the gunmen raise his uzi and unleash a stream of lead in the direction of the hostages.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 7

Miss Direction --- 1 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Laser Focused Bank Robbers --- 15

Optional Objective
Get the hostages to safety --- 6 (1 Round time Limit)

Miss Direction grips the silk rope she swings from tightly, more to distract herself from the pain of the gun shots that grazed her as she moved. That might be a bit harder to explain that the burns...

Seeing the leader shoot at the hostages, she wills her illusionary selves to drops themselves in the way. They couldn't stop the attack, but the cards they were made of could hold off the bullets for a moment, as she drops behind the wall of Miss Directions to get right next to the hostages. They were all crowded together, luckily. Probably trying to keep themselves in one spot so that they could be picked up by the swinging jester women.

Looking at them from behind her mask, she says nothing. Only spending the next precious few moments shuffling another deck and swinging them out with a wide gesture. The cards move with a mind of their own, forming a closed circle around the hostages and finally, when the last card falls, turning the marble floor beneath the hostages into one large mirror.

She doesn't wait to see if they fall through, though she can hear a few surprised yelps as the floor gives out from underneath.

So long as there were no causalities, it was just them and her. She tried not to think of the warm feeling of blood flowing from her side. The only thing that mattered was that the hostages were safe.

The one who fired upon the hostages tosses away his gun in anger, but it only shows on his face for a short moment. In the next second his face is back to stoic and focused on your destruction. He lowers his shoulders and charges at you like a linebacker. The rest of the gunmen spread throughout the bank have nothing left to focus on and all take aim on you at once.

You find yourself performing a never ending series of backward somersaults and tumbles as you try to dodge the strikes of the leader and a seemingly endless barrage of gunfire. Magic infused playing cards fly in all directions around the bank deflecting bullets and pestering bank robbers into missing their target.

By some cosmic coincidence nearly all of the gunmen run dry at the same time. This brief reloading break finally allows you to stop dodging attacks for a moment. You land in a very heroic looking pose and prepare to turn the tables on these men and women.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 7

Miss Direction --- 0 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Laser Focused Bank Robbers --- 15

Optional Objective
Get the hostages to safety --- Success!

For once during this particular heist, Miss Direction smiles. Lifting her mask and returning it to its position on the side of her head, she takes all of the armed thugs in with her grin. She had a plan, and, if it worked, the mooks would be subdued until the police arrived.

Moving quickly, she moves back into range of the 'leader' of this heist. She ducks at the last moment and deftly slips beneath his legs, grabbing his ankles as she does so and lifts with all of her might when she is clear of his body. All that move really did was remove one combatant s his face slams into the marble floor and knocks him out, but she had plans for the rest of them.

Letting cards flow from her sleeves, she grips the 'ends' and the streams of cards become two long whips. She uses these with remarkable efficiency to grab at arms, legs, and ankles to trip up her foes. Once they hit the floor, phase two begins as the dangling silk ropes take on minds of their own to tie themselves at the ankles of the thugs and lift them into the air. She tries to make sure she disarms them as well. Wouldn't do to have them shooting at her from the ceiling...

With all of the hostages safely hidden away, you are able to shift your attention and the number of active bank robbers steadily starts to drop. Focused as they may be, these guys are no match for your combination of acrobatics and magical arts. Before long, half a dozen of them are strung up and hanging from the ceiling.

The remaining group are running low on ammo and resort to trying to gang up on you in a good old fashion beating. Shots still occasionally ring out but these crooks at least seem to value each other's lives. Very few shots can be taken while so many of their allies are surrounding you.

Just when it seems like everything is starting to go your direction you hear the thuds of several mooks falling to the floor. Having cut their way to freedom from the silk ropes, they are now back in the fight and just as eager to stop you as ever. This is really starting to feel like a three steps forward, two steps back situation.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 7

Miss Direction --- 0 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Laser Focused Bank Robbers --- 12

Miss Direction allows herself enough time to roll her eyes in frustration as she gets back into the fray. She forgets tying up her foes. Didn't seem to be doing any good anyway. Instead, she keeps up her assault with her whips while flipping, somersaulting and generally trying to be hard to hit.

She goes for the legs more often than not, trying to let gravity pull people down to deliver the punch. It knocks some of them out at least, and the numbers continue to dwindle. It seemed to be a war of attrition at this point, but the aching warmness in her side told her that she would be hard pressed to keep this up until the police arrive.

Maybe she should have said 11:15?

Audible alarms finally start to ring throughout the bank. Considering you took out the hacker almost immediately, you are surprised that it took them this long to trip an alarm. While dodging punches, kicks, and gunfire, you start thinking back over the last couple of minutes since the heist started. You can’t think of a single one of these supposed bank robbers actually making any sort of move to grab at the money held here.

Your whips crack through the air and wrap around the legs of two separate men. You use the momentum to send them colliding into one another and to the ground. This opens up a clear view of the bank vault. Still sealed tight. It looks completely untouched. Besides guns, these robbers don't appear to have brought any kind of tools with them to get into the vault. Unless that was the hackers job?

A mook attempts a diving tackle but you are easily able to duck out of the way and he ends up careening into his own comrade. You look over to the line of teller stations. No broken glass and no open cash drawers. You can't find any sign of why that alarm suddenly started to sound.

No one has any ammo left at this point, but that doesn’t stop them from coming at you with their fists. All of them seem to take turns coming at you. No one is attempting to locate the hostages. They came in loud with guns blazing and now there is an alarm blaring. It is only a matter of time before the cops get here and these guys laser focused attention remains squarely on you; as if they have no other purpose in life other then to keep you occupied.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 7

Miss Direction --- 0 HP

Threat Rating
Mooks: Laser Focused Bank Robbers --- 9

Miss Direction tries to put the pieces together of what was going on. The alarm was a welcome surprise, as it might hurry the police along, but who tripped it?

The sobering realization strikes her as she cracks her whips again to take out two of her on opposite side of her, who were so focused on trying to get at her that they didn't see the coils around their legs until it was too late. But she knew what was going on know.

This wasn't the heist. It was a diversion. Bastet was in the bank already. Probably already in the vault. And all she could do was fend off these goons.

That filled her with greater determination. She refused to be had by Crowfall's master cat burglar. With a grunt of effort, Miss Direction leaps vertically. She tries to ignore the aching in her side, telling herself that its just more sweat, but she knows well enough that sweat feels cool on the skin, not warm. Now that they were out of bullets, she could try to put herself out of reach. With a twirl that could only be achieved with great skill or supernatural power (or both, in her case), she gets one leg wrapped in a silk rope and begins to swing as she continues to use her long whips to fight.

You live up to your name as your acrobatic display keeps everyone in the room guessing. Limbs of bank robbers flail about in desperate attempts to put you down for the count but each passing second only seems to see their numbers falling further and further. The pain from your wounds is starting to ache terribly but you push it to the back of your mind and focus on finishing the task at hand. One by one, bank robbers fall to your might as your vision slowly starts to fade to black. You push harder, trying desperately to stay in the fight. You're not sure what they eventually were able to hit you with. All you know is that it was hard, it was metal, and it was one strike too many. As you fall to the ground everything is already black. After a few moments all sound fades and you are left in darkness.

When you come to the bank alarms are silent and you’re once again surrounded by cops. You really need to stop waking up like that. At least they seem more friendly this time. They congratulate you on keeping every single hostage safe; many of who have stuck around to personally thank you. One look behind you at the open and empty bank vault tells you all you need to know about whether or not Bastet was successful.

The cops fill you in on what they discovered of her plan. This heist had apparently been in the works for months. So much for being done in your honor. All of the employees of the Queen’s Tarts were drugged with the same type of chemical that the bank robbers were on. It made them more susceptible to manipulation and allowed Bastet’s men to slowly but surely dig a tunnel clear across the street. All Bastet had to do today was walk into the bakery, hop into the secret tunnel, and finish off the last bit of work to get into the vault.

The officer said they found an umbrella in the bakery with a note attached that was addressed to you.

My Dearest Miss Direction,

Sorry I missed you! I really hoped we could tangle today but it just didn’t seem to be in the cards. I am forever impressed by your style and do hope we’ll meet soon. I’ll be in touch.

Love, Bastet
Your Biggest Fan!

---

Miss Direction --- KO’ed!

Miss Direction did her best to cater to those she saved. She was surprised by how many wanted autographs. She didn't feel like she deserved it, especially since she had failed at the larger objective. Not that she should feel as though she failed, since everyone was able to make it out alive... including her. That thought filled her with dread at how close she could have been to falling into the hands of the enemy.

Not that it seemed Bastet was interested in such things. She had gotten what she wanted. A night of entertainment as she watched Miss Direction try to piece together and stop her and, in the end, failing spectacularly as her plan came together perfectly.

It took all that she had to not hang her head in shame. She could save that for later one. For now, it was time to smile and talk and seem unbothered to the masses. When all is said and done, she thinks she's done well. Once the hostages clear out, the police get to see a different side of her.

Its strange to think that a short woman in jester make-up can be serious and somewhat intimidating, but it could those aspects that make it that much more prominent, as no one would expect it. She keeps the note for her own purposes. She had been practicing how to divine information with her magic, and having such a piece might make it easier to get a read on... well, whatever the note wanted to tell her about its author. It wasn't exact magic, and much had to be interpreted through her cards.

She waits around to see if the police have anything they want to say to her before she leaves. She was truly beginning to feel how bone tired she was, and desperately yearned to return to her drab, little apartment.

Thankfully, the police don’t have a ton of questions for you. An EMT offers to look at your wounds and you are able to get out of there before too much time has passed. There is nothing fun about the journey home as the pain from the wounds and the ego of ultimately losing the battle weighs heavily upon you. You get home around 2:30 PM and the draw of going to bed is all but irresistible. You clean up as best as you can in this exhausted state and finally drift off into a well deserved deep sleep.

---

The alarm clock continues to ring while you attempt to stare a hole through it. How dare it do its one and only job when all you want to do is stay in bed for another 16 hours. You’re going to have to make sure Bastet does this earlier in the weekend next time so you have more time to recover before having to drag yourself back into work.

You dress your wounds and cover them up as best you can before hopping on the bus to work. The extra time needed to do this, along with moving slowly from the injuries, causes you to walk through the doors of the museum about 45 minutes late. You tiptoe down the hallway past Jonas Park’s office only to find that he isn’t even there.

Paranoid thoughts start to enter your brain. It feels like its been weeks since your mental battle with the Medium Madam. The one in which she created psychic representations of Jonas and your father... and then threatened to stop their hearts in their sleep.

A co-worker sees you staring into Jonas’s office looking mortified. "Morning, Holly. Hope you had a good weekend. Don’t worry, Jonas didn’t make it in and I’m not going to snitch on you. You caught a lucky break today."

"I appreciate it, Diane." she mutters to their the tour guide. Taking a deep breath, she tries to look relaxed. "Did he say what was wrong? He usually doesn't miss much work, so it must be serious." She takes on the tone of someone trying to draw out the gossip that must exist.

Diane's plastered on professional tour guide smile never waivers. It is like the second she walks through those doors her personality shifts and she is no longer able to be anything but beaming and happy. "Get this. He didn’t tell anyone he wasn’t coming in. Nick has been trying to get him on the phone for an hour with no luck. There’s some issue with the elevator and he needs director authorization to get a guy out here. Blah, blah, blah."

You’re not really paying a ton of attention as she continues on about bureaucratic red tape. There is quite a bit going through your head right now. You do pop back into the present when she says "...with the way Jonas stresses, wouldn’t be surprised if the poor guy gave himself a heart attack." She plays it off with a laugh and waves goodbye.

This was sounding worse and worse to Holly as she puts on an expression of concern that she doesn't need to work too hard at. "Poor guy," she mutters, much to Diane's confusion. It was no secret that Holly wasn't Jonas's favorite person in the museum, and had a habit of crushing her dreams, spitting on her ideas, or otherwise making her feel entirely ignored by much of the other staff. She likely would feel a justifiable bit of relief at his plight if it weren't for her encounter with Medium Madam last night.

Taking a deep breath as if to signify the end of the conversation, Holly seems to realize that something is off, and immediately puts on an air of panic that cuts through the fatigue she was powering through. "Oh, no! My thermos!" she exclaims to Diane. "I left it on the bus!"

She turns swiftly and runs back outside in a faux effort to catch up to her fleeing lunch. Its all a ruse, of course. She always kept her thermos in her purse when she commuted, so that situations like this wouldn't happen. Well... wouldn't happen again. What she does do, is run down the steps of the museum and, once she is out of sight, slips into a phone booth nearby. Making sure its closed up around her, she dials 911.

Holly doesn't give the dispatcher much time after her initial statement. "Hello, I'm hoping to speak with Officer Bailey?" she asks, giving the name of one of the officers she spoke to outside of the tea shop last night. When he picks up the phone, sounding every bit as tired as she felt, she picked up the pitch of her voice to sound more like her heroic persona. "Good morning, Officer. I wish I was calling under better circumstances. Well, perhaps they are better, and I am over-reacting. During my statement, I told you of the two men Medium Madam threatened during my... trance. I was unsure of their identities then, but I've done some more digging and fear that she may have moved forward with her plans."

She explains that a Mr. Jonas Parks had not arrived at his place of work, and she would like someone to check on him at his residence. She reiterates that it could be nothing, but any deviation from his normal schedule would have put her on edge. She also gives him the name of her father (who she speaks about in a distanced and clinical way to put off suspicion) and gives him both their work addresses and home addresses.

At first, Bailey seems surprised to hear from you, but soon enough he is able to shift back into cop mode and starts taking down the information you give him. "That’s some good detective work there in figuring out who those men were, Miss Direction. We’ll get to work on checking to make sure everything is on the up and up. Uh... how do you want me to get back in touch with you? Please don’t say shining a signal into the night sky. The department is already way over our floodlight budget and can’t handle another hero like that."

You try to go back to work after that is taken care of but it is more than a little hard to focus. Before long, you are interrupted from your own worries when your mother calls. It is obvious from the sound of her voice that she has been crying and is trying to cover it up. "Holly... I don’t want to worry you but I couldn’t leave you in the dark either."

She proceeds to explain how your father started acting strange yesterday around lunchtime. She had gotten up early and was working in the garden while he slept in. Around noon he walks outside and tells her he got a call from an old buddy who wanted to meet in town for tea. When he didn’t come home last night she tried to tell herself that they probably got drunk and he’s sleeping it off on his friends couch; even if this was terribly out of character for your father. Now that the police have stopped by asking questions she is struggling to hold it together and has no clue what is going on.

"Oh, god. I’m so sorry, Holly. I shouldn’t be putting this on you like this."

Holly lets out a distinctly Miss Direction-y giggle. "I'll think on that, Officer. In the meantime, just do what you can and expect another call later today."

After this, she heads back inside. Luckily, Diane is already doing her job, so she doesn't have to come up with some lame excuse as to how she was actually able to get her thermos. It is shaping up to be a normal day in the basement of the museum before she gets the call from her mother.

Her heart sinks. She's glad she sent the police to investigate, as this clearly was the work of Devilment, Inc, but she also wishes she hadn't upset her mother.

"It's okay, mama. Really." she assures her. "Here, let me come over there. I've certainly got time to take off and this is an emergency."

She argues back and forth with her mother, but asserts that she is coming over. Luckily, the bus schedules aren't too out of whack, and it only takes an hour to get to her parent's house. She tries not to think about how beat up she looks. She could hide it from her coworkers, but there was no way she could hide it from her mother.

You arrive outside your parents house a little while later. Your brother’s car is also parked in the driveway and you are greeted at the door by his wife. She offers a solemn greeting and lets you in the house. Your mother practically sprints across the room to wrap you up in a big hug the second she sees you.

"Thank you for coming, darling. I know I’m probably worrying over nothing--" she has a hand on your head and you wince as she runs fingers over the bump that formed from the blow that finally knocked you out yesterday. She steps back but keeps her hands firmly latched onto you so you can't escape her inspection. Her eyes go wide as she takes in the sight of you.

"Oh my god, Holly. What happened to you? Did you get mugged?"

Holly shakes her head and offers a self-deprecating chuckle. "No, I'm just a clutz." Her long commute offered her to chance to come up with a cover story, so she tells her mother, and by proxy, her brother's wife, about how she was leaving her apartment on Saturday and had tripped over her own feet and fallen down the stairs. She banged up her head pretty bad, and her ribs were sore, but the doctor said she was fine.

She didn't tell her mother about it because the tenant in the apartment across the hall, you know, the cute blonde guy whose name she still didn't know, was the one that helped her out and she spent most of Saturday and Sunday being doted on by the very caring, and admittedly attractive man.

She thought that including another potential love interest would make her mother forget about her injuries, at least as long as she kept her talking.

Your sister-in-law, Natalie, gives you a suspicious look and excuses herself to make a fresh pot of coffee. Your mother, on the other hand, eats up the story with a smile on her face. It is a nice welcome distraction from what is going on with your father. When you finish you can see the worry start to seep back into her face, but she seems to let your injuries go.

The doorbell rings and you get up to answer it. You are a little surprised to see Officer Bailey standing there. "Morning ma’am. Is it alright if I come in?" You step aside and Bailey walks into the house. He introduces himself and you do the same before both of you return to the living room. Natalie was just putting fresh cups of coffee out for everyone and when she sees Bailey, she excuses herself once more to pour one more cup.

Your mother tenses as she waits for information from Officer Bailey. "I have a bit of an update, but I’ll start off by saying we haven’t been able to locate your husband just yet. We have him on video though. Surveillance at an ATM. He looks unharmed and in good health. No one was with him and he appears to be acting more or less normal.

"He attempted to withdraw a large sum of money from your joint savings account. Luckily, thanks to a tip from a local superhero, we had a hunch this might happen and had the bank on the lookout for any suspicious activity. He was not able to successfully complete the withdrawal." This does not seem to comfort your mother as much as Bailey had hoped. If anything she looks remarkably confused.

"See, uh, this is difficult to say, ma’am. Your husband has been targeted by the Medium Madam. We’re unsure why and he’s not the only one. She’s used this mind control to empty life savings scam before so we were able to get ahead of it but she is keeping them on the move. Don’t worry. We won’t stop until we find your husband."

Your mother is left speechless. It's not everyday that you're told your husband’s mind has been taken over by an incredibly dangerous super villain. Officer Bailey takes out his notepad and turns to face you.

"Holly Morton, you said? The daughter? Do you mind providing a few official words? Anything you know that might help us out. Starting with the last time you spoke to your father?"

Holly does her best to sound the part of the distraught and in-over-her-head daughter. "Me? Words? Uh- yeah.... yeah, sure." she begins.

"I haven't spoken with my father since... last Tuesday I think it was? I stopped by the his pawn shop to look at some old books he was telling me about, and, of course, to catch up with him. He didn't tell me anything out of the ordinary, I don't think. Just complained about things that his generation were always complaining about that I've sort of come to tune out anymore. Something about gas prices and..." a thought seems to occur to her. "Dad used to be a magician! Could that be why she'd be interested in him?"

Officer Bailey’s eyes turn upward as he thinks over your father’s background. "That’s an interesting theory. It wouldn’t exactly fit her M.O. though. The Madam tends to go after upper middle class targets. Guys that have money but not enough that they are going to have armed guards following them. No offense, but we are having a tough time figuring out exactly why she targeted your father and this gentlemen who works over at the Museum of Natural History. Neither of them have the money or access to information that she typically looks to steal. Thank you for your time, Ms. Morton."

You glance over at your mother and Natalie. Both of their eyes are a bit wide after hearing your place of business brought up in connection to another victim of the Medium Madame.

Bailey gets up to leave but turns back to you. "I’ll leave my card here. Do you mind giving me your home and work phone numbers in case I have any additional questions? Where was it you said you worked, by the way? I don’t seem to have it written down here."

A number of panicked profanities run through Holly's mind. Maybe coming over to her mother's house was the last thing she should have done.

She tries to keep the ruse going, hoping that Officer Bailey would be too distracted to notice. "I- uh... I work at the Museum..." she tells him meekly.

Officer Bailey was all ready to head out but he stops dead in his tracks and just stares at you. Every single eye in the room is locked on you for what seems like the longest, most silent eternity that could possibly exist. Bailey finally breaks the silence by asking, "You work at the Crowfall Museum of Natural History? You work with Jonas Parks?" When you confirm this, Officer Bailey holds up one finger asking for you all to hold for a minute. He steps out of the living room and gets on his radio, leaving you alone with your mother and sister-in-law.

You only have about 30 seconds to discuss anything with them before Bailey returns. He locks eyes with you and motions to get up and follow him. "I’m going to need to talk with you in private." He makes his way toward the kitchen, making sure you get up and follow him. "Apologies, ma’am. I hope you’ll understand that in order to properly do my job and locate your husband as quick as possible I will need to talk things over with Holly one on one." Your mother tries to protest, but Natalie stops her and starts working to calm her down.

Once in the kitchen, Bailey sits you down at the table. He decides to continue to pace about as he asks questions. "I hope you realize you are note in trouble or suspected of any wrongdoing at this time. But right now you are the only link between the two individuals that the Madam has taken control over. I need to know everything you know. Anything that could possibly explain what is going on and how we can put a stop to it. Starting with whether or not you knew Jonas Parks was missing before I informed you, what your relationship with him was like, and what was discussed the last time you spoke with him."

Holly closes the door behind her, looking nervous and frightened for the benefit of her mother and sister-in-law up until the door closes. When she knows that it is just her and the officer, she gestures to one of the wooden chairs at the small kitchen table. "You're going to want to take a seat, Officer. We may be here awhile." She hopes the severity in her voice lets him know that she believes him in that she is not in trouble, and that, in this situation, they are on equal footing.

Taking a seat herself, she leans back and lets out a deep breath. "Let me start by answering your questions in reverse, because I think that's going to make this easier to spit out. The last thing I discussed with Mr. Parks was the importance of a gala I was attending on behalf of the Museum, after I had procured a rather large donation for the Museum from a Mr. Avery. It was not his choice that I go, because he and I have a rather rocky relationship. Being that he is an insufferable man with ridiculous expectations and I do not live up to any of his standards, we have a hard time seeing eye-to-eye," she explains in a very matter-of-fact, almost annoyed fashion. Not that she was annoyed with him, but she was about to do something that every comic book she had ever read (which were many since she began her journey into the land of herodom) told her was a terrible idea.

"As to whether I knew about his appearance before you said so, yes, I did. That is why I contacted you this morning to look into it..." she gives him a few seconds put the pieces together. Hopefully he wouldn't need more than that, or her hopes that her father would be found would be crushed.

It takes Bailey a few moments but his eyes grow wide as he comes to the realization that you are Miss Direction. He takes off his hat, lies it on the table, and runs his hands through his hair. "Oh man, this is so above my pay grade." He may be overwhelmed but Bailey is a professional. He puts his hat back on, picks his pen up, and gets back to work.

"I’m not going to out you in my reports, so don’t worry about that. Anything you say is off the record. Crowfall PD has some unwritten rules for how to deal with situations like this. We protect our allies. Now let’s get down to business.

"I am assuming if she gave you any hint of her intent, you would have already shared it with me. Do you guys have some kind of history that the public isn’t aware of? I thought you were pretty new on the scene, but the Madam seems to be holding a grudge directly going after people you know... you should probably give me a list of anyone else she might target. People we can get eyes on and maybe even try to get to a safe and secure location. If we do this, I can’t guarantee we can keep your identity under wraps though."

Holly pinches the bridge of her nose as she leans forward. "I appreciate that, I really do." she tells him. "And I do think I have some ideas as to why she's doing this. She pulled those two from my memories, threatening them if I didn't comply, but it didn't seem like she could find much more than them. I complied with her mind games, but kept butting against the limits of her control. I think this all may be punishment for that." Wrapping her arms around herself, she shakes her head. "The entire time, she kept trying to make me admit that I wasn't doing this out of a desire to help people, and wanted to see what limits I would go to to protect the people who were close to me. And I will say that last night was the first night I had met her, so there's no outstanding history there..."

"She probably knows more about my family now, if she can pull from my father's memories, and may know more about my workplace. Its possible that she could put two and two together and figure out my identity, and I don't doubt that she would use that against me. Its strange to say, but she doesn't seem to have the same sense of honor as the rest of Devilment, Inc. She seemed to think that Bastet and I were perfect for each other." Running her hands through her hair, she looks at Bailey. "Do you want any coffee? I know I could go for a cup."

"I have a feeling I’m going to need coffee running through my veins until this whole thing is over and dealt with." Bailey takes a minute to think over what you said while you pour two more cups. He thanks you when you hand him the mug.

"Here’s what I’m thinking. As far as your family is concerned, we run with the ‘Madam is targeting your father because of his magician past’ angle. We tell them that it is necessary we get everyone to someplace remote, secure, and safe. This means getting them out of the city and having an officer on guard duty. The Madam is crazy powerful but her range isn’t unlimited. Once they are out of the city, they should be safe. We’ll make it seem like you’re going into protective custody as well, but you’ll actually be getting into character and coming downtown. The second we get a location on your father, Mr. Parks, of anyone connected to Devilment, you’ll be the first to know."

"I like the plan, but I can see a few holes. If my family is going into protective custody, I could see them wanting to know my location. You know, the whole, families stick together thing. We need a way to ensure that there is a reason I would be being kept separate or staying behind entirely..." she muses as she contemplates the inside of her coffee mug.

"I got it," she tells him, perking up. "Madam is making a big move. She's not just targeting my father, but every professional magician or similar performer in the city. Why is she doing this? Because of a supposed artifact that has come into the museum's possession (hence why she took Jonas too). I need to stay behind to figure out the link between the magician's and the artifacts." She nods to herself as she thinks it over. "We can assure my family that I'll be protected as well, but I have to stay behind to help the cause, as it were. I won't have any trouble convincing my mother of this, and she'll be happy that someone in the family is working towards bringing my father home."

She finally stops rambling to look at Bailey. "What do you think? Too over the top, or do you think it would work?"

Officer Bailey nods his head in agreement as you lay out the modified plan. "That’s perfect. Solid reasoning that they shouldn’t question while pulling on emotional connections enough that they shouldn't question why you have to stay in the city. I’m going to head out front and radio to HQ to get some transport vehicles ready. I’ll leave it to you to explain everything to your family. I think they’ll take it better from you. If there is anyone else you think should be put into safety, now would be the time to let me know."

Once that is settled the two of you head back to the kitchen. Bailey excuses himself and heads out to his squad car. As he exits, he nearly runs head first into your brother Patrick who is just now arriving. Patrick rushes to your mother’s side and gives her a big hug but soon enough all eyes are back on you as they wait for you to explain what you discussed in private with Bailey.

"Not unless you think the Avery's or any of my coworkers at the museum could be targeted." Holly tells him.

She wasn't dreading talking to her family, exactly. It was the lying she was unsure of. Not that her mother would be able to tell the difference. On any other day, maybe, but not with her being so distraught. She told them about what she believed to be going on. Dad was targeted because of his role as a magician way back when, and probably for offering lessons now. There was an artifact at work she had gotten that Bailey believes could be the key to it all (hence why her boss was taken) and that, not only did she need to stay behind to help them figure out the bigger plot behind all of this and help bring home all of those taken by Medium Madam, but they were going to have to go into protective custody, along with the families of other abductees, to ensure that they would be safe from her influence.

It went about as well as could be expected. No one likes to have their live upended in such an efficient manner after all, and Holly's mother was not pleased that her daughter was going to have to put herself in harm's way during all of this. She made sure to point out the fact that Holly couldn't even win a fight against a flight of stairs, to which Holly retorted that she wouldn't be fighting, and she would be under constant police protection during the investigation.

Her brother was adamant that he stay as well, though Holly immediately shot him down by stating that he would only get in the way and make things harder for the police. Natalie didn't care much for that. Not that she wanted him to stay either, but Holly had no cause for being so rude about it all. This resulted in a small spat between the two, a common occurrence at family gatherings as Natalie was incredibly protective of her husband, and Holly loved to remind her that she married a literal clown, but this fight was compounded with the building stress of having a family member go missing and then being told that your life wasn't done changing for the worse.

Normally, Holly's mother would be putting a stop to this fight, but she had been through too much to put her foot down. It eventually fell to Holly, who brought back to the light the fact that she didn't want to have to put herself into harm's way, but right now, she was the best chance of ever seeing Dad again.

Again, that went as well as expected. Natalie was silenced, her mother was crying, and her brother was doing his best to comfort her. However, they all seemed to get the idea. She gives her mother one last hug, and heads out the door.

By the time you step foot on the front lawn, several more police vehicles have arrived to take your family to safety. Officer Bailey opens the passenger door to his cruiser for you and the two of you set off for a long, silent, and tense ride back to Crowfall police HQ.

Once you arrive, Bailey makes a beeline for the coffee pot but then shows you to an empty office where you can ‘get into character.’ He says he’ll be back in a few minutes. Not more then a few seconds after putting on the mask you can feel the shift in reality all around you.

You spin around but the room looks the same. Concentrating for a moment you realize how silent it has become. The noise of a busy police department on the other side of the door has vanished. You try the door knob but it won’t budge. It isn’t that it is locked; the door knob seems welded in place.

A phone begins to ring. You turn around and see an old fashion rotary phone laying in the middle of the otherwise empty room. It does not appear to be connected to anything but you have no doubt of who will greet you on the other end of the line when you pick it up.

"Good morning, Holly. Shame on you for going to the cops. Bastet wouldn’t approve of that strategy. She feels battles between supers are an intimate affair that normal folk just cannot understand. She’d be so disappointed that you asked for outsider help. Then again, she wouldn’t like my toying with you either. But I won’t tell, if you don’t."

"Not really sure I can say I care what Bastet thinks of me, Lily. What I do care about is the fact that this battle has strayed from normal super-antics to a personal attack on those close to me." she informs her adversary in a terse tone, though still slipping into her Miss Direction voice, just in case Madam was already making her make a fool of herself in front of the entire police force. She takes a deep breath.

"So, should I take this as a hostage negotiation, or am I free to return to reality? I am also fine with moving along to the whole final confrontation thing, but you seem the type to want to drag things out."

"You can pretend to not be afraid of me all you want, but don’t forget I can feel your heartbeat. I know just how scared daddy’s little girl is." The phone vanishes from existence and you can feel the Madam leave your mind just as the door behind you opens.

Officer Bailey enters the room holding two cups of coffee. He shuts the door behind him and offers you one of the cups.

"You want to negotiate? Fine by me." She is speaking directly into your mind. It is clear Bailey is not hearing this. "If you want these two men returned unharmed, I am going to need you to stoop down to my level. I want you to do something bad. Something you won’t like at all. Kill Bailey right now and I’ll set both of them free."

She cackles inside your head. "I didn’t think you’d go for that one. You’re clearly not ready for the deep end of villainy just yet. How about another heist?" Bailey starts to look at you strangely, as it is clear your mind is elsewhere. "I want everything the cops have on me. Get into their file storage room. I don’t care how. Get me those files, make sure any copies are destroyed, and I’ll let the hostage of your choice go free."

She clenches her fists at her sides, taking in a deep breath to keep herself from trying to claw out the voice inside of her head. She knew it wasn't going to do her any good. How had she found herself completely at this woman's mercy?

She knew. She hadn't taken Lily's threats seriously in the beginning. She had butted against her control and made herself an annoyance to a woman whose limits she didn't know.

Now, not only was she paying for it, but so were the hostages. She looks at Bailey as he sets down the cups of coffee, refusing to let frustrated tears fill her eyes. "I need to see everything you have on Medium Madam."

Officer Bailey gives a nod of recognition. His head motions toward the doorway. "Right down to business. I can respect that." He leads you to a stairwell at the rear of the building and the two of you walk all the way down to the basement. There is an Officer at the restricted access entry to the storage room who looks up from his newspaper but goes back to reading when he sees Bailey. He doesn’t give you a second glance.

Bailey leads you inside and the heavy steel door shuts behind you with a loud thunk. He leads you down several rows of tall filing cabinets until you get the ‘G’ section. You open the drawer and locate a very large file tabbed Graham, Lily (Medium Madame). The three ring binder holds hundreds of pages of information on the well known criminal.

Officer Bailey points to a simple folding table and chair located by the steel entrance door. "If you want, we can check it out and take it back upstairs."

Miss direction holds the binder with both arms. It was a rather hefty volume, and she felt a deep pit in her stomach as she thought about what she had to do. She looked back to Bailey as he gave her the opportunity to return to the room upstairs. "I think that would be preferable. I'll need some time to look over these documents. I want to know everything that she has done," she tells him. Madam hadn't said anything about reading the documents herself. She also hadn't given a time limit. All that mattered was that the documents were destroyed... eventually.

Maybe, in the meantime, she would be able to figure out some weakness of the incredibly powerful super, or, at least, have time to think of a loophole.

Officer Bailey takes you back up to the private office. "If I get any information that I think can help, I’ll let you know right away." And you find yourself alone once more. Well, mostly alone.

"I’ll give you a little freebie before you go diving into that binder," the Madam chimes back into your head. "Diving through someone’s mind to find specific information is a difficult and tiresome task. Something about you seems to make it even more difficult than normal. I wonder if that binder discloses just how much easier it is to gleam thoughts that are closer to the surface?

"I’ve gotten some basic facts about you from your father and boss. The way I see it, this makes us even, since you know the publicly available information about myself. If you start reading through that binder, that scale will tip to one side and I certainly cannot have that. Luckily, reading specific information about me should bring interesting personal memories to the surface of your mind. So for everything you learn about me, I'll get to learn something about you. Read away, darling. I have nothing to hide. Do you?"

Miss Direction's lips purse in frustration as she slams the cover of the binder closed. She had no interest in divulging more of her life to this woman. She knew that she would somehow find a way to turn it against her, and likely in some terrible and ironic way. She could attempt deception, but any plan she came up with would be at the forefront of her mind, where Madam would easily be able to find it.

She leans back dangerously in the chair, wracking her mind for a solution where she comes out on top... but there isn't one. Not an easy one, at least.

She stands from the desk, opening the door and peaking out. Luckily, a younger police officer is striding by with an armful of coff- oof. Ouch, that looks painful. She rushes out of the room to help the poor guy up, apologizing profusely from hitting him with the door. His burns are pretty minor, resulting in some little red patches and a mostly ruined uniform. She gets him some help, as she felt terrible asking him for anything, but he seems more confused than anything about a newbie super hero just popping out of nowhere and suddenly trying to find him first aid.

Once that situation is settled, she sends him off with someone to help him out and asks another nearby officer to fetch Bailey for her. She returns to the room to wait.

"Not even tempted a little bit?" the Madam pipes in. "And trying so hard to keep your thoughts blank. That’s cute. I'll have you know that that is the kind of tactic that leads to giant marshmallow men attacking the city."

Officer Bailey comes through the door and shuts it behind him. "I wish I had anything new to report. You got something?"

"Hello! Me again." The joy in the Medium Madam’s voice is beyond obnoxious. "If you could be a doll and drop that binder off inside the phone booth located at the corner of 7th and Watson, I would be so very appreciative. I’ve left a pen and pad of paper in the phone booth. Write the name of the hostage you want released, leave the binder, and walk away. Your chosen hostage will walk through the doors of the police station within an hour of the drop off. Feel free to tell your friend Bailey about the plan. It won’t make a difference."

"Just an obnoxious voice drilling into my head everytime I try to make progress on this," she explains. She takes a deep breath and leans on the table, looking down at the binder.

"Bailey. I want to ask you a question, and answer me honestly. And don't answer as a cop. I want you to answer me as a person who puts his life on the line to keep people safe." she continues, looking up at him seriously. "If the only option you had to save someone was to do something bad, something that could put others at risk in the future... would you do it? Just to save one, maybe two, people in the most immediate trouble?"

Officer Bailey takes a while to respond. He is having a hard time separating what the cop should say from what he wants to say. "I may not be the best guy to go to for advice like this. The way I look at it, we are all ultimately on our own out here. People can act like we’re one big happy family of humankind, but you gotta do right by yourself first. When faced with two impossible choices you gotta select the one that leaves you with the least amount of guilt. Situations like this... immediate threat versus the possibility of harm down the road... damn that’s a tough one but I worry about what is right in front of me before dealing with maybes.

"People like to compare us. Superheroes and cops. I never really understood that. It’s like comparing an astronaut to an Air Force fighter jet pilot. We both got important jobs that are tough as hell, but it is hard for one side to really understand the issues that the other side has to deal with. I know you’re pretty new to the super scene. You know any people like yourself that might be able to better understand where you’re coming from?"

Before you can answer you hear loud cheers and applause erupt outside the office. Bailey puts on a confused look and goes to the door. Everyone in the office is trying to get the attention of a costumed superhero that everyone in Crowfall instantly recognizes: Fortuna.

She walks through the crowd of cops with a wide smile on her face. She shoots them with finger pistols which she then raises to her lips so she can blow away the imaginary smoke. From head to toe, Fortuna is dressed in black accented by blood red. Black leather pants, a black shirt with billowy sleeves, and a black tricorn pirate hat with red trim rests above the masquerade mask covering the upper part of her face. On her waist is a brown leather gun belt with flintlock pistols hanging down from each hip.

Even from across the room she spots you standing in the office behind Bailey and makes her way over. "Well, well, well. If it isn’t the new kid in town, Miss Direction." She takes off her hat and gives you a deep bow.

"Fortuna." Officer Bailey greets her with a nod. "I was just asking Miss Direction here if she had any friends in the community she could talk to."

"And then I just happen to stroll on by? Imagine that."

"Right place, at the right time," Bailey says and Fortuna gives him a wink.

"That is kind of my schtick. Now if you don’t mind, I’d like to talk to the young hero here in private." Bailey holds up his hands as if to say ‘you don’t gotta tell me twice’ and leaves the room, shutting the door behind him. Fortuna turns to you.

"Word on the street is your going toe to toe with the big bad Madam herself. I got something of a score to settle with her, myself. I hope you aren't the dark and brooding kind of hero that tells others where to stick it, because I want to be there when you take her down."

During this whole exchange, the Medium Madam is suspicious silent.

Miss Direction smirks. "I don't imagine I could ever come off as dark and brooding," she jests, giving her head a toss as she laughs so that the bells on her hat jingle. She paints a look of confidence over her earlier worried expression that she is sure she was unable to hide in time. But, it didn't help to have one of your personal heroes in front of you at a time like this.

"But to be honest, I could use the help I can get. And not to be too transparent, I should warn you that our conversation isn't exactly... private."

Fortuna smirks. "Oh I’m not worried about that." She looks you right in the eyes but you feel like she is looking right through you. "Lily already knows I’m coming for her and there is nothing she can do to stop it from happening." The way she says it makes you shiver. You recall the two of them have had a number of run-ins in the past. Anytime the Madam has been defeated, Fortuna has been involved in bringing her in.

"You don’t have to give me too many details; but your powers... magic or science based? I’m guessing magic or she probably would have her claws much deeper into you then she already does. She has a strange relationship with magic. Seems to be drawn to it while also being weak against it... That’s what always gave me an edge against her. My magic seems to block her ability to predict what I’m going to do. I’m guessing your powers give you a similar advantage we can use against her."

Miss Direction could not begin to express the amount of relief spreading through her, now that it seemed Fortuna was here to help.

"Magic," she tells her. "It seems to block her ability to dig too deeply into my memories, though she's dug far enough to uncover the identities of two people who are close to me and ensnare them with her power." She looks down at the binder with all of her information. "She's been trying to get me to destroy what the police have on her in exchange for one of them... I must say, I'm in a bit of a bind."

Fortuna gives a concerned look when you mention the Madam’s captives. This turns to curiosity at the police binder on the villain. She walks over to it and begins to leaf through it. "Wrong, wrong, nope, wrong, not even close." She flips the binder shut and turns back to face you with a disappointed look. "She must have control of someone on the inside already. This is a plant. My guess is she wanted you to read it in hopes of bringing strong emotional connections to the surface of your mind so she could get her claws even deeper into you... You didn’t read it, did you?

"I had hoped that she was truly lying low since she escaped and didn’t plan to get back into the game at all. She has limits on her range and how many people she can control at once but that doesn’t make her any less dangerous. She can plant suggestions that keep people acting in her interest long after she leaves their mind. It’s not good that she’s already infiltrated the police. There’s no telling how much of the city she has puppet strings attached to.

"From this point forward, assume everyone you talk to is acting under her instructions." Fortuna’s eyes dart upward as a thought occurs to her. "Except me, of course. I’m solid. For real. Don’t look at me like that."

"I got as far as the table of contents before I felt her digging around. I didn't want to give her more ammunition against me," she tells Fortuna truthfully. The super's admittance at corruption within the police force did little to make her feel better, especially since she had confided so much in Bailey already. Not that he knew anything about her that Medium Madam didn't.

"Should I ask if you have a plan? I don't want to give Madam... Lily... a heads up if I can help it, but I'm struggling to find ways to not be at her mercy."

Fortuna smirks. "Do I have a plan? Who do you think I am?" She just sort of stands there for several moments before shrugging her shoulders. "Seriously, who do you think I am? I usually just wing it and things work out."

‘This is the one you throw your cards in with, Holly?’ Lily is back inside your head. Her teasing voice is gone. There is nothing left but bitter hatred. ‘If you won’t play my game, maybe you are willing to play her’s. Meet me at the Olympus tonight at midnight. You and Fortuna only. If anyone else shows up I’m killing your father and boss.’

Fortuna snaps her fingers. "I got it!" She shakes her head. "No that won’t work at all. Unless you happen to know how to work a thermonuclear reactor?" Sometimes meeting your heroes isn’t all it's cracked up to be.

Miss Direction sighs, and looks to Fortuna. "Luckily for us-" Wow, it feels stupid saying that to Lady Luck, "it seems Lily is willing to plan for us. Olympus, at midnight. No one else, or the hostages die."

Since the whole hero worship thing wasn't all it was cracked up to be, and maintaining her cheerful demeanor was becoming more and more difficult the longer she has Medium Madam whispering into her brain, she allows herself a moment to put her head in her hand and look as weary as she felt.

You arrive outside the Olympus with time to spare. Fortuna filled you in on the joint earlier. It is a nightclub known for its free flowing booze, fast music, and card games. The place is a known haunt of just about everyone in town that is connected to organized crime. Open 365 days a year, this place is always packed this time of night. Knowing this makes the deserted street feel even more eerie.

If it was the old west, you would be expecting a tumbleweed to roll by. There isn’t a soul out on this normally busy street. No cars parked out front of the Olypmus. You can hear jazz music seeping out from the club, but it is otherwise silent.

Fortuna takes the lead and heads right for the front door. She places her hand on the handle and gives you a ‘what have we got to lose’ look before pulling it open.

The place is mostly empty. Off in the far corner a full jazz band is giving the performance of a lifetime. One man stands behind the bar looking completely and utterly dazed. In the center of the club is the lone occupied table.

The Medium Madam sits at the table smoking a cigarette held in one of those old fashion holders you might see in the 1920’s. To her left is Jonas, with your father on the right. Lily spots you and raises her free hand to twinkle her fingers at you in a ‘hello.’

You have the urge to dash across the room and smack the smile from her face but find you currently have very little control over your body. You glance to Fortuna and the grimace on her face tells that she too is fighting against the Madam’s control. She makes the two of you walk terribly slow across the floor of the club and take seats across from her and her guests. Both of you place your hands flat on the table and are unable to move them.

"So good to see both of you again." You hear her speak aloud for what might be the first time. Her voice is slightly more raspy and significantly more tired than it sounded in your head. She nods to the center of the table where an ordinary deck of playing cards rest. "My dear, Fortuna. If you could be so kind as to shuffle those for me." Fortuna obeys but her jaw clinches tight as she tries in vain to fight it. Lily turns back to address you.

"How good are you at poker, Miss Direction? Your chosen name would indicate you should at the very least be skilled in bluffing. I do hope you know the rules because I am a dreadful teacher."

The bartender comes by with a tray of drinks and places one in front of each of you. Lily hands him the cigarette holder and then reaches out her hand to Fortuna so she can turn over the shuffled deck of cards.

"You have been a constant disappointment, Miss Direction. Always fighting against me and my games. You're not half a fun as Bastet seems to think you are." She holds up a hand with one raised finger. "I will give you this one final chance to save these men.

"The game is five card draw. If Miss Direction wins, I set Jonas Parks and Tom Morton free. If Fortuna wins, I set the bartender and this lovely band free. If I win, I get to keep everyone. These terms are non-negotiable. Does everyone understand the stakes?"

Fortuna gives you a bit of a worried look. You can see her mind racing but she ultimately turns back to Lily and simply nods that she understands. Lily looks to you for your response. Before you can reply, your father and Jonas snap out of their trance.

"Oh god, where am I?" Tom Morton shouts; head darting all around the room. Like you and Fortuna, they are both otherwise frozen in place in their seats. Jonas looks furious but remains surprisingly silent.

She clenches her jaw to keep from calming her father. Its a terrifying thing, to see someone you have seen as so strong your entire life be so utterly frightened. But the game was already beginning. Her poker face was set, and she keeps her eyes on Lily.

"Be still, Mr. Morton. Its going to be alright," she tells him confidently, glad that her mask will make her voice unrecognizable.

"Deal the cards."

"What!?" Tom responds. "How do you--" he is cut off as the Madam makes a zipper motion across her lips. Both Tom and Jonas fall back into their zombie like trance.

The band changes tempo. They now play soft and slow. The leader singer stays silent but sways back and forth with the rhythm of the music. Lily deals five cards, face down, to each of the three players and lays the deck down in front of her.

The Medium Madame's face brightens a bit as she looks at her cards. She lays one down, and draws a replacement.

Fortuna reaches forward and picks up her hand. "Pretty cocky of you to settle things like this, Lily. If you wanted to play cards with me, all you had to was ask." The Medium Madam tilts her head and smiles, but does not respond.

Fortuna's face is stoic. The poker face of a total pro. She places two cards on the table and the Madam deals her two new ones.

Miss Direction slides the cards towards her, careful to keep her face neutral as she picks them up an observes the hand.

Miss Direction is careful not to think too hard about her hand. Her gaze flicks up to Lily as she understands just how important it is to keep, not only a smooth face, but a quiet mind. Likely, that is what she was counting on. A slip up. For Miss Direction to think too hard about her strategy.

But what of her powers? Lily knew that cards were her motif. That she was a master of illusion as well... Is that what she's counting on? For her to cheat and make the terms of the game moot? Fortuna had an advantage, given that she was Lady Luck. Maybe this was all just part of Lily's sick game to make us battle each other...

Not everyone was going to be going home...

While the Medium Madam was smiling at her initial hand, things ultimately did not go quite the way she had hoped. Her face morphs into disappointment as she sees the final card she drew. Once everyone has their final hands, Lily tosses her cards to the table and crosses her arms over her chest. "I’m sure you both are delighted."

Ace, high card. She went for the flush and did not get it.

"Oh well. You win some, you lose some. Come on now, don’t be shy. Turn over the cards so I can decide which of my thralls will be giving me a foot rub tonight."

Fortuna gives you a pained look. She knows that there is currently no outcome that is entirely good. "However this goes down, we’ll find a way to make this right." She locks her eyes on yours; ignoring the laughter of the Medium Madam which is eerily echoed by Jonas, Tom, the bartender, and the entire jazz band. Fortuna turns over her cards next.

Pair of 9’s. Your heart sinks and Lily finds it positively delightful. While she was unable to pick up on your attempt to skew the odds in your favor, she is able to read your defeat with ease. The emotions are too strong to stay hidden. You drop your pair of 8’s to the table and Lily claps. Jonas and Tom join in. The bartender and the jazz band look around in fear and confusion, having been released from the Madam’s control.

"What the hell is going on!?" Lily looks furious that bartender would interrupt her celebration. She pulls a Derringer pistol from a thigh holster. Both you and Fortuna try to act, but are still compelled to stay in place. Lily fires the gun and a bottle of whiskey next to the bartender explodes.

"Get out," she tells them. No one wastes anytime running for the exits.

"I know I said this game was your final chance to save these men, but believe it or not, I am a very generous person. I’m willing to make a trade. Your freedom for theirs. Something related to your powers has stopped me from fully taking over your minds by force. I have no doubt I can manage if you willingly give up control though. Two heroes for two zeroes. What do you say?"

Fortuna finds it hard to look you in the eye. She shakes her head. "We can’t do this, Miss Direction. The damage she could do with us under her control..."

‘Do it.’ You look around in confusion for the source of this new voice. Lily and Fortuna give you confused looks. ‘Agree to the deal.’ The voice is male, high pitched, and sounds very angry. It is clear now that it is coming from within your head. As if you hadn’t had enough of that already.

‘I grow tired of this wretched woman meddling in our affairs. I will help you defeat her. Open your mind to her and we will tear her apart.’

Miss Direction looks back to those at the table with her, trying to hide her brief looks of confusion. She considers at first to offer some lame excuse for her momentary distraction, like hearing a strange feedback from somewhere or something like that, but she doesn't owe Lily anything like that. And she certainly can't let Lily on to this new offer of hers.

It was risky, very risky, to turn herself over to Lily in the hopes that this new player would have the power to suddenly overpower her before she could cause any harm...

But something about this urged forward her frustration. Her rage. Her burning hatred for everything that Lily stood for in this moment. How she bartered and betted with people's lives like chips on a board like she was some kind of goddess. Its lucky for her that she's still trying to keep her poker face up so she doesn't start openly glaring at the woman, but the set of her jaw and glint in her eyes certainly hinted at her anger.

"Deal." she (attempts) to hold out her hand for Medium Madam to shake.

Your hand is allowed to raise. The Medium Madam smiles and stretches her own hand to meet yours. Fortuna shouts, "No you can’t!" and tries to prevent this deal from happening. She is unable to. Your hands clasp together and it feels as if a bomb goes off. Everything goes white for what feels like hours. Days. An eternity.

Slowly your vision fades back in. You are in the basement of the Crowfall Museum of Natural History and you are alone. The pain from the burns and bruises is gone. The entire Miss Direction getup is gone. You are Holly Morton, restoration historian.

‘Do you remember this day, Holly?’ The scratchy, whiny, high pitched voice again. It is in your head but you can sense the direction it is coming from. The storage room where new artifacts awaiting restoration wait. ‘This is the date we met. Lily Graham is upstairs, aimlessly wandering the halls of he museum, completely befuddled at what is happening.' You can hear her echoed cries in the distance. It is pleasant to hear fear in the voice of the woman who has been tormenting you. 'Don't let your guard down. She is still quite strong, but we are stronger. Put on the mask.'

Maybe she had made a mistake. The power that she was playing with was not one that could be easily controlled, and here she was, at the moment, completely at its mercy. She knew too little about it to know whether she should be terrified or exhilarated. But it was helping her.

Better to take advantage of that while that was the case.

She makes rushes toward the storage room. She knew where to find it. She could vividly remember the moment when she had pulled out the straw-stuffed crate, filled with little trinkets and bobbles from a time long past. Even know, lifting the lid and touching the smooth, cold surface of the mask's grinning face, she could trace back exactly how it had happened.

As she reminisced, she traced her finger along the pristine edge of its impossibly-wide grin. But she didn't have time to wait... she put on the mask, and she felt alive again.

‘Good. You like the way the power feels, don’t you? Do did I.’ Things aren’t entirely the same. Not the same as the day when this all really happened. Not the same as when you normally don the mask. Your costume has been replaced with something considerably more antique. A more period accurate portrayal of a jester. Thick wool, patched in many places, and well worn all over. The bells are brass and in need of a polish.

Something on the crate catches your eye that you didn’t notice originally. You had no reason to because the words meant little to you at the time. On loan from the collection of Avery Key. 1 of 3.

Loud crashes can be heard upstairs. Thuds of heavy movement and... the roar of a lion? ‘I think it is best we get to work before that woman gets any more comfortable inside your memory.’

You rush upstairs, glad to be free of the aches and pains of your recent battles. You can feel that you have full access to your powers here. ‘We are inside your head. She cannot directly control your actions here. Unfortunately, she is extraordinarily skilled. It appears she has worked out how to manipulate other forces within the memory we are in.’

As you walk into the main lobby of the museum, you are able to see first hand what this voice is referring to. The Medium Madam has brought everything at her disposal to life and lined them up in formation; ready to charge into battle against you. You find yourself staring down cavemen, grizzly bears, a family of mammoth, a skeletal t-rex... Why did the prehistoric past have to be filled with such massive creatures?

Suspended by cables in the air above you a 55 foot whale moans in displeasure at its predicament. Around the tail of the whale comes the Medium Madam. No longer distraught, she once again has a smile on her face as she glides through the air on Leoanardo Da Vinci’s ancient helicopter-like flying machine. A group of Meso-America chieftains have been conscripted to work the device, rapidly running in circles to spin the blades.

"Destroy her!"

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5

Miss Direction --- 3 HP

Threat Rating
Boss: Medium Madam--- 3 HP

Of course it wouldn't have taken Lily long to turn things to her favor. It would be a long fight if she had to constantly fight on the defensive, but Miss Direction felt like they had all the time in the world for this little confrontation.

That put a smile on her face, and she advanced on the hoard of stuffed models. Perhaps they wouldn't be quite the same as how she knew they really were, considering that this was all in her head, but keeping that in mind made it feel much less like she was running towards her death.

Her cards were out in an instant, though they had taken on the appearance of antiquated, hand-painted cards than her standard deck of playing cards. She could still feel the magic coursing through them, though, as they shielded her from thrown spears from the cavemen, and created illusory copies of herself for the bears to maul and mammoths to trample.

She thought the T-rex would be tricky, since it was just a fossil. It didn't have eyes for her to fool. But a realization came to her. It wasn't seeing her through its 'eyes', but through Lily's. Her grin deepened, as she executed the improvised part two of her attack.

She scattered cards around the museum's battlefield, each one sliding to a stop and beginning to spew forth thick, black smoke. It might impede her vision, but it would make it all but impossible for Lily to see her.

As she waded through, she could see the controlled creatures batting around wildly, trying to find her through sheer luck. She could barely see them, but they certainly could not see her. In fact, some of them even seemed to be taking each other out in the confusion.

You can hear the Medium Madam throwing a temper tantrum as her flying machines darts around high above the smoke screen. "You insolent little child! I can’t read you! I can’t see you! Get out here and face me!" A sabertooth tiger jumps through the smoke and lands at your feet. You deliver a kick to the face which shatters its jaw and dive out of the way of its swiping claws.

The floor of the museum is pure chaos. The Madam has brought these exhibits to life but she has now left them to their own devices while she searches for a way to deal with your tricks. In the absence of her direct control, everything seems to have reverted back to their natural instincts. Or maybe what your memories say should be the natural instincts of each creature? It isn't exactly clear how any of this works. All you know is that you are in the middle of a war zone.

While dodging attacks made at random, you have to be careful not to trip on pieces of stuffing, plaster, stray bones, and... is that vending machine shooting sodas?

"Archers! Ignite!" A new voice rings out high above you. It sounds like it is coming from the second floor walkway. "Draw. Fire!" Anguished cries ring out all around you as a new element is added to the chaos. The blanket of smoking cards is penetrated by a hail of flaming arrows.

You take a hit directly to the heart and collapse to the floor. The cards above you slowly start to burn away as the fire spreads. For a moment it will add more smoke to the room, but before long the veil hiding you will be gone. None of that really concerns you right now as you stare down at the arrow embedded in your chest. ‘It isn’t real. None of this is real. As long as you realize that and she doesn’t, we cannot lose.’

The arrow slowly starts to dematerialize. It takes a moment for you to catch your breath. You feel around where the arrow struck and find no signs of damage. Even the jester costume is 100% intact. You can still feel the sting of the blow but at least there doesn’t seem to be any lasting damage.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5

Miss Direction --- 2 HP

Threat Rating
Boss: Medium Madam--- 3 HP

Miss Direction begins to laugh hysterically as the arrow disappears from her chest, before clamping her hand over her mouth. It would do her no good to show herself now.

Lily may assume that she had all of the power, but she knew the truth. For once, Medium Madam was in her trap, and Miss Direction had no intention of letting her go. The unreal was where she thrived, and since she knew that Lily would have difficulty separating fact from fiction since the villainess knew of her powers, she could have some fun with this.

But first, to deal with the problem at hand. She could not let the smokescreen go out. Summoning the powers of the mask, she threw out more cards. More and more than littered the floor and created, thick, billowing smoke. But it was all an illusion. She could see just fine, but Lily and her animated statues would be blinded completely.

But that wasn't all. She started to dance. To swirl and twist and pivot as illusory smoke matched her dance. The field of smoke became a whirling maelstrom, and, although there was no real substance to it, it would be enough to trick Lily into thinking that it was all too real.

And then more movement came. From the depths of her imagination, a great beast began to writhe about, composed of the same smoke it swam through. Its body crested enough to be noticed above the field, for Lily's benefit. She didn't let it emerge fully. Just its long, snaking back. Enough for Medium Madam to take notice. Enough for her to fear what was coming.

It was time to make Lily go on the defensive.

The chaos builds as the Madam’s ability to launch a cohesive strike deteriorates. Her minions continue to do considerably more damage to each other. When one actually manages to notice you through the smoke, it almost seems to have forgotten you were ever an enemy and moves on to attack another denizen of the museum.

Lily is no longer making quips or threats. The looks on the faces of the chieftains that pilot her flying machine mimic the worried expression on her face. When she spots the first signs of your illusionary smoke beast, the Madam eyes actually show fear. The flying machine takes off in the other direction, flying deeper into the museum and away from the ruckus. Unfortunately, you only have a few brief seconds to celebrate before you are crushed under 200 tons of whale blubber.

Rolling back time will allow us to see the events which led to this. Some of the flaming arrows meant for the first floor flew a little too high and peppered the body of the whale suspended from the ceiling by steel cables. This sent the already scared and confused beast in convulsions as it desperately tried to get away. The force of its struggles eventually caused one of the cables to snap. Once one was gone, it was like a series of dominoes as the rest gave way one after another.

The whale lets out one last sorrowful moan as he slowly fades away like ash carried off by the wind. You feel how you imagine cartoon characters feel after getting run over by a steamroller. Physically, you are more or less alright, but you are left with the single most painful migraine headache you’ve ever experienced.

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5

Miss Direction --- 1 HP

Threat Rating
Boss: Medium Madam--- 3 HP

She does her best to peel herself off of the ground. While her head pounded, she looked completely unharmed. Though it had taken her a moment to convince her own body that her bones were not actually liquefied.

She knew that Medium Madam was escaping (to the best of her ability). She could not just stay here and continue her orchestration, and risk being trampled, mauled, or crushed by some frightened beast. Sweeping her arms low, the creature she had summoned emerged. A great serpent of smoke, its great maw modeled after an eastern-style dragon, swooped down through the growing maelstrom of the same substance. Miss Direction jumped just in time to land on its shadowy mane.

Then, it began to ascend at her behest. It crested the smoke, its bulk plainly visible to Medium Madam now, with her enemy riding on it like some twisted crusader, seemingly unharmed by any of her machinations.

She beckoned the beast to charge the flying machine, and by proximity, Lily and her Chieftains. At the last moment, she jumps from the beast. Once it passed the flying machine, she would land on what was left.

If there was nothing left?

...she'd deal with that when she needed to...

Lily lets loose a terrible shriek. The chieftains around her add their own chorus of screams. The smoke monster rising above the flying machine and then smashes down upon it. The force knocks all of her minions from the craft. The twisting head of the serpent circles back and gulps all of them up in one smooth motion. The Madam somehow manages to grab onto the very edge of the machine, leaving her hanging precariously.

You drop down out of the air and land in a heroic pose right in front of her. The Madam looks down at the doom that awaits her below before turning to face you with a look that flashes back and forth from sad puppy dog eyes to pure rage. Her grip begins to slip but she can’t bring herself to ask for mercy.

With no one turning the blades, the flying machine starts to descend. Forward momentum sends the craft hurtling towards the plate glass windows that separate the museum from the outside world. Instinctively, you throw your arms up over your face and turn to avoid the impact as you, the machine, and Lily crash through the glass.

While sunlight had been pouring in through the windows just a moment prior, you are surprised to find that things have instantly grown dark. Not quite pitch black, but close to it. You are not falling from the second floor of the museum like you expected. You are standing at the base of the stairs of your childhood home.

You can hear your parents muffled voices arguing upstairs. It wasn’t something that happened everyday, but frequently enough that you cannot place exactly which memory you have stumbled into. Light cuts through the darkness along with the sound of a door creaking open. Your parents stop speaking at once. You hear your mother enter the hallway and tell a younger version of yourself not to worry and go back to bed.

The TV across the room suddenly snaps to life. Static gives way to a view of the real world. The Olympus is under siege by an army of SWAT and police officers. You see the unconscious bodies of yourself and Lily face down on the table. Fortuna is doing her best to fight off not only the officers compelled by the Medium Madam to attack, but your father and Jonas as well. It is clear that Fortuna is pulling her punches. She spends most of her time dodging and only strikes when she feels she must. Her uniform is torn in multiple places and a cut across her cheek bleeds heavily. She can’t keep this up for much longer.

‘Our foe fell into a different memory but I have located her. Go out the front door.’

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5

Miss Direction --- 0 HP

Threat Rating
Boss: Medium Madam--- 2 HP

Miss Direction has no idea what she might be walking in to here. Stepping into the new memory, she can hear the faint bellow of carnival music. The sound of laughter, and cries of astonishment from the circus's patrons. The roars and grunts of exotic animals being paraded around. It filtered in through the temporary walls of the circus's famous Maze of Mirrors. She stood in its center, just as she had when she was a little girl, and she had chased her brother in here after he had stolen her doll.

Looking into myriad of reflections around her, she could see that, indeed, she looked just as she did all those years ago. Her face, red with tears, framed by her unruly mass of black curls. The little dress that her mother had painstakingly made for her, covered in dirt from her tumbling around with the other performers and, more often that not, ending up on her backside. Her legs even sported the cuts and scrapes that she always seemed to have.

She took a deep breath, looking down to see that her body still sported the antiquated jester's outfit, and her head still tinkled with tiny brass bells. When her gaze returned upward, her reflection matched what she knew to be reality. She wasn't some vulnerable little girl. She was a force to be reckoned with...

And she was in her domain.

She reached into her inner well of power, searching through the maze to find the frightened Medium Madam. She was trying to mask her presence somehow, but the distraction of trying to find her way out meant that Miss Direction was still able to locate her. With a smile, Miss Direction stepped forward, into one of the mirrors, and vanished from sight.

---

She could only imagine what Lily was thinking right now, as she watched her from just beyond the mirror's surface as she struggled to find her way out. Miss Direction certainly wasn't helping. She had found passages that might lead her to the exit and sealed them off by twisting mirrors into its place. Just as the villainess reached a junction point, she revealed herself. Not in any way that Medium Madam could use against her (she hoped). All around her, in the reflections of the mirrors, Miss Direction's image appeared, looking at Madam vindictively.

"What's the matter, Lily? Are you lost?"

The Madam jumps; startled by your sudden appearance. When she rebounds her face turns to anger but she won’t answer your question. She crosses her arms over her chest and taps her foot upon the ground as if waiting for you to do something to impress her.

"You have a lot to learn about how the mind works, little girl." A sharp pain rings out in your side and then across your jaw. Try as you might, you can’t hide the fact that you are in pain. This brings a smile to Lily’s face. "Do you remember the girls who used to pick on you? The poor little daughter of two good for nothing carnival folk. I hope you don’t mind that I brought them into this memory to play with your younger self."

You feel your nose crack as one of the bullies punches your younger self somewhere else on the carnival grounds. "If you’re going to beat me, it is going to take more than parlor tricks."

---

Dice Pool Limit: 5

Miss Direction --- 0 HP

Threat Rating
Boss: Medium Madam--- 2 HP

Miss Direction recoils from the invisible blows that she knows all too well. She leans against the other side of the mirror to brace herself, her rib aching from the blow, and the punch to the jaw making her whole head swim.

A hand goes to her face when she feels her nose break, and it comes away covered in blood. She clenches her fist in anger. Lily had not right. No right, to use these things against her. She looks up, still bracing herself against the surface of the mirror, as she meets Lily's eyes.

Something is there that wasn't before. No longer was this a fight against a villain. This wasn't even a fight born of anger at someone twisting her mind, or making their battle far more personal than was healthy for either of them.

There was death in her eyes. This was a fight for survival, as Holly knew that, if she didn't end this, she might as well be dead.

"Fine," she says, straightening up as she steps through the mirror and stands before Lily. "No more parlor tricks."

She channeled the same anger she felt that day, when those girls had picked on her, and she could do nothing but lay in the dirt and take it. All of that negative emotion that Medium Madam had tried to pull back up to make her feel like that same, scared little girl, pooled into her fist as she reeled it back.

And as her fist drove into the face of that at-one-point all-powerful-seeming villain, she could only hope that Lily understood her fatal error. She was no longer a scared little girl.

Just before your fist makes contact you revel in the look of worry that flashes across Lily’s face. The blow lifts her off her feet and she sails through the air, crashing into the mirror behind her. Shards of glass fall upon her. She does her best to shield herself but still suffers cuts on her hands, arms, and face.

You move in to finish this fight but the mirrors all around you suddenly explode. You too shield your face as the laughter of children sounds out. Your childhood bullies leap through the openings. They latch onto your arms and feet; laughing and ridiculing you.

The Medium Madam pulls her hands down from her face and you expect to see that evil smirk, but are instead met with a look of pure terror. Lily cowers away from you. Her hands and feet push her backward as she tries to get away, taking no care to avoid the shards of glass that are all over the floor.

The laughing children relinquish their grip on you. Many of them are crying as they turn tail and run away as fast as they can. You can feel a surge of power flow through your veins. The lights start to flicker and you feel an unavoidable urge to laugh. The loudest and hardest laugh of your entire life. It echoes through the room. Lily’s eyes are wide with fear and her hands are held tight over her ears in a vain attempt to shut out the laughter.

"My turn." The voice comes from you mouth but it is not your own.

Lily screams and everything goes black.

---

When you come to, an EMT is shining a bright light into your eyes. You instinctively flinch away and she shuts the small flashlight off. You are lying on your back on the floor of the Olypmus. There doesn’t seem to be any carryover of physical damage from the mental battle, but your head is absolutely pounding.

You look around the room and see the results of the chaotic battle. Medical personnel are assisting everyone as best they can. Fortuna did everything she could to avoid harming the mentally compelled victims of the Medium Madam.

Lily is lying on the ground about 10 feet from you. Her eyes are still wide and her body is twitching as she mumbles incoherently. The EMTs give each other worried looks. It is clear they have no clue what to do to help her.

Fortuna is leaning against the bar and helping herself to a shot of whiskey while a medic bandages a cut on her shoulder.

Jonas is seated at a table opposite Officer Bailey. They both look relatively unharmed besides a few small cuts or bruises. Bailey has his notebook and pen ready as Jonas gives his statement.

A man groaning in pain gets your attention. You know who it is long before you actually lay eyes upon him. Your father is lying down, propped up on his elbows. His jaw is clenched in pain as EMTs work on his left leg. The bone hasn’t quite broken through the skin but it certainly tried to. You can easily see where his tibia has been fractured. The medics do their best to stabilize it. Another medic enters the building with a stretcher to help Tom Morton to the ambulance.

---

Miss Direction: -1 HP --- DEFEATED

Threat Rating
Boss: Medium Madam: 1 HP

Holly finds herself staring at Lily as she deals with the aftereffects of their mental battle. She finds herself struggling to remember exactly what happened but, since she was more or less okay and Lily was... well, Lily was not okay. She wanted to go over there and help her. Despite everything, it hurt to see someone in obvious distress, and Holly had never done well feeling helpless.

She tears her eyes away. The EMTs would do everything they could for her, and, if they couldn't do anything, Holly doubted she could either.

She should go talk to Fortuna, and probably Officer Bailey too, but her father's moans of pain were at the forefront of her mind. She struggled to stand at first, and the EMT who had been checking her out tried to insist she stay down, but there seemed to be some sort of protocol on their end about not getting in a hero's way (or maybe Holly was just too persistent or stubborn). She rushed over to where the EMT's were getting him on the stretcher.

She wanted to cry, seeing her father so helpless and confused, but she didn't. She didn't get time to say much to him, but offered him words of comfort and well-wishes. He seemed to forget about the pain for a second (though it may have also been the painkillers) as he said something about telling his daughter about getting to meet a superhero. He knew she'd want to hear all about it.

Suppressing tears again, she has a few words with the EMT's about getting with the police to inform his family that he was safe, but recovering at the hospital. She also gives them a playing card with her autograph on it. "I'm sure he'd love to give it to his daughter," she explained.

Bailey was busy with Jonas, so she elected not to interrupt them at the moment. Her eyes were set on Fortuna.

The senior hero was glad for a bit of a distraction from getting stitched up (though not at being referred to as a senior hero). She was very curious about what had gone down, and how Medium Madam now lay convulsing on the floor. Holly explained that she wasn't entirely sure herself, but would be happy to explain what she knew a couple days from now. She considered giving Fortuna a means of contacting her, but decided that having one other person who knew was enough for now, even if that person was a police officer and not a super hero. They work out a place to meet and part ways for the time being.

That left Bailey. Jonas was being incredibly difficult, as she expected he would be, and wanted a lawyer before he spoke with anyone. Regardless, she interrupted their interrogation to express that she was happy that he made it out of this situation unharmed. He disagreed, explaining that he was currently experiencing incredible amounts of stress and would be suing. He wasn't entirely sure who he would sue, but rest assured he would be suing someone!

She smiles and nods, letting him feel entirely justified in his viewpoint as she excused herself and pulled Officer Bailey away for a quick discussion. Out of earshot, she quickly muttered something about her employer's behavior. Taking a breath, she apologies to Bailey, and hands him a playing card. She explains that she wanted to talk to him about everything that had transpired here, but wanted to get home to clean herself up, take a handful of pills for her head, and head to the hospital to see her father. On the card was the number for both her office and home phone, should he need to get a hold of her.

With all of that done, she turns and leaves. Bailey could get her statement later, and cover for her as she leaves on hero business. Fortuna can soak up the limelight of a historic victory against Medium Madam. Jonas can continue to be an insufferable prick, though she can rest soundly knowing that he'll like take the next few days off while he sorts through his affairs. The police would inform her family that the situation had passed and they could return to life as normal.

And she can return home to prepare to save the city another day.