#0 - Terrapin Under the Mountain, Comet Above

Terrapin now found himself at a severe disadvantage, having let the twins get too close to him. His early attack on Were did delay her somewhat as she struggled with the force choke Terrapin had used on her bear form, but that allowed Wash to swamp him with a tsunami of water, a globe of liquid weight that surrounded his entire body. Terrapin summoned his telekinetic power again to try to 'push' the water away from himself, or at least to create an opening so that he could escape, but found that the pressure on him was too crushing.

From the corner of his eye he could see Were aiming for him, eagle talons coming in fast. He knew that, with their joint powers, the water would not harm Were at all. Things seemed dire.

What Terrapin could not see, was that there was another observer. Comet had reached the higher skies of Murder Mountain, intending to investigate the whereabouts of his quarry Terrapin. He was at the right location, and as he descended, he could see an aerial battle. Two novas had ganged up on Terrapin! Comet did not recognise either of them, but it was evident that one of them took the form of water, and the other was a large, almost giantish eagle. From his perspective, Terrapin did not have the upper hand. In fact, from Comet's assessment, his quarry was likely to be defeated by the two novas, for Terrapin looked to be drowning in the body of water. While Comet did not know Terrapin, if Terrapin were to be killed, there would be no way to follow up on his lead and he would have to go back and report failure to Le Infante. And that would be utterly embarrassing. If Comet wanted Terrapin alive, he would have to do something immediately.

It was a split second decision, but that split second was all that was needed to distract the wall of water from drowning Terrapin. Comet projected his thoughts at Wash as if it were a mental attack and found that he had struck where it hurt the most! The big amorphous liquid that was Wash's body recoiled and rolled as if being pummeled from within, and for a moment it disassembled into finer droplets of water before it reconsituted itself again. But it was an opportune moment of reprieve for Terrapin who found himself released from Wash's flooding grip, free to act again.

"Who the hell are you?" The words came out as a screech, as Were pivoted mid-flight in response to the newcomer, seeing her sibling attacked. The eagle-shaped nova flapped its wings in order to strike as its namesake, flying straight at Comet with talons outstretched to rake at him. Already infuriated by Terrapin, and now further provoked by the appearance of Comet, the attack was vicious and aimed to hurt as Were's razor-sharp claws tore at Comet. Comet was still unfamiliar with the limits and capabilities of his current body, and found that he while he could resist the piercing talons, the points that managed to penetrate through were immensely damaging, given the alien's strength.

It was clear to both Terrapin and Comet that the two novas they were fighting were physically stronger than either of them. Their alien bodies and physiology seemed to be able to shrug off the attacks that they had leveled at them, no doubt in part due to their ability to morph and change their very forms into different shapes.

Comet's mental blast on the other hand was effective because it went directly into the water nova's mind, bypassing his liquid mass. Comet also realised from the eagle nova's attack that even though the eagle had flown at him at full speed, its speed wasn't as fast as Comet figured he could himself fly. Perhaps there was some tactical advantage to that.

As for Terrapin, with another player now on scene and finally being able to gasp for air, this gave him a chance to gather his thoughts. He knew from his past experience that he couldn't go physically toe to toe with Wash and Were. Being caught out in the open for him only meant that they could freely come at him. What he did have was the entire playground at his disposal: machines he could operate, objects he could manipulate. He defeated them previously not through brute force, but because he was a tactical genius, and hopefully he could apply that again.

Mental Prodigy: Tactics ( 3 previous successes )

Spend 1 Willpower for automatic Success on attack.

+2 die on Attack for Flanking/Attack from Behind (Were)

*Dear GP Lord, don't let this roll suck...

Sputtering as Wash unexpectedly released Terrapin from the hydraulic crush of his watery form, he dropped nearly to the ground before recovering his wits enough to halt his fall. There was a new entrant into the mix taking on the trouble twins.

Oh look. he grumbled between hacking coughs. My gargoyle from WISH finally arrived...

Terrapin didn't know who the new combattant was not why they were here but he was glad for the distraction. The ringing in his ears kept him from hearing the aerial exchange between Were and the other winged Nova but he knew an opening when he saw the girl's eagle form wheel towards the newcomer. With Wash dazed momentarily and Were distracted, Terrapin reached out with his power and launched a section of jagged and rusty metal fencing at the eagle's back. Once meant to keep curious and adventurous children a safe distance from the amusement rides, it now served Terrapin's deadly purpose.

Comet had observed that his mental attack was more efficacious than if he were to try to charge at them physically. With the blast affecting Wash as it did, he now turned his psychic anger at Were, the giant eagle who had swooped past him with her claws. Comet sent out another brain thrust at the eagle, but found that the pain for the raking talons reduced his ability to focus properly. Still, he managed to send a sharp spike at Were, who screeched and flapped its wings unsteadily as she flew past.

Nearer the ground, it was a good thing that Terrapin managed to put some distance between himself and Wash. He could see the huge blob of water still hovering in the sky above him, but with the opportunity afforded by the newcomer's distraction, he decided to telekinetically fling whatever he could find nearest to him at Were instead; there was more chance of hitting the physical form of the eagle than the amorphous shape of the water nova. Like Comet, he found himself struggling a little to maintain his focus to do so.

Had Terrapin attacked Were's bear form with the iron fencing, its thick hide would've simply shrugged it off. Were's eagle shape was a bit more pliable, as evidently she had to trade the natural defence of the ursine for the the maneuverability of the avian. Even so, she managed to evade most of the bulk of the metal Terrapin sent his way, but the jagged bits that grazed her definitely hurt.

Looks like 1 success?

With the physicality of Wash's water body temporarily disrupted, both Comet and Terrapin had the chance to rally against the animal shapeshifter, Were. Comet, realising that their alien bodies were resistant to a great degree of physical harm, focussed again on their mental state with another brain blast up in the air as they tussled. Simultaneously, from his position near the ground, Terrapin sent a section of fencing upward towards the eagle. Caught in between both attacks, the result could've been deadly, except that both heroes were too injured to use their powers efficaciously: Comet's concentration wavered a little, and likewise Terrapin's telekinetic throw was weaker than he intended. Were was hurt, but flapped on, not yet downed.

All four parties were now reeling from their entanglement. Their power levels seemed reasonably equally matched, neither side gaining an upper hand. It was fortunate that Comet arrived when he did, otherwise Terrapin could've faced his first loss against the twins. It was now down to attrition. Whoever wore out first would lose the fight. Comet was the most wounded of the lot; Were's eagle claws were more penetrative than he had realised. Another swipe could rip out his guts. Wash's likely ability to drown both heroes simultaneously was also not to be lightly disregarded. Yet ...

... yet the alien pair seemed to take a moment to take stock of the situation. An easy victory was now less certain. Wash and Were appeared to intuitively communicate with each other, and before Comet and Terrapin could do anything else, Wash took the form of a lighter vapour of water in order to begin to dissipate and float away. At the same time, Were squawked an angry cry of defiance and frustration, and then the eagle made a huge buffet of its wings in order to soar right upwards through the cloud line. Terrapin was sure they'd be back, but for now the WW Twins had turned tail.

Diavolo? The derisive expression that shot across his face belied either the fact Terrapin was used to his helmet hiding his expressions or he really didn't care whether anyone knew his feelings on the matter or possibly both.

You mean Mister 'we're the maffi-OSA, not the maffio-SA.' Terrapin lilted in his best mock-Hermione Granger. That Guy?

Likes to play at being Italian nobility?. Another derisive snort. Picked up his English skills in Eastern Europe so he ended up with this muddled accent that makes him sound like the cartoon spy with all the little yellow henchmen. That Guy?

Yeah. We did a few jobs for Diavolo back when my team was still around. Pay was good for the few jobs we did.
Nothing spectacular on the surface. Looked like standard ops but the targets put us on the radar for scrutiny we didn't need and couldn't handle. Ended up with me being just about the only survivor.

Diavolo looks...and sounds...and kinda is a complete goofball but he's also way smarter than he gets credit for.
That kind of cunning goes way back in his family... His grandparents cozied up to Mussolini back in WW II in order to get the other crime families in Italy rubbed out so they could muscle in and make a name for themselves. They raised that little monster and the apple didn't fall far from the fascist tree... Diavolo likes his thugs dressed in Hugo Boss designed uniforms and his trains to run on time if you get my drift.

It didn't take much guessing to figure who had sent the winged Nova to look into his past employers. What's Big Baby want with you casing out Diavolo's old operators? I'm not exactly on anyone's speed dial for jobs these days given that the Sept's bounty on my head is higher than most jobs would pay these days? Plus, Diavolo got my old crew killed so the likelihood of me working for him isn't real high. What's the real angle, Kid? . Terrapin knew the actual meaning of Le Enfant's nom de guerre but enjoyed using the mistranslated street version of the crime lord's title.

As the other novas, newly met, sized each other up, the fact that they had fought on the same side meant that they were of no immedite threat to each other. One pressing concern though, was that both of them were pretty banged up by their last entanglement. Terrapin had some difficulty moving, still suffering from the after effects of Wash's buffeting. Comet's wounds on the other hand, began to appear more and more serious now that they both had some time to evaluate their current status. The raking wounds continued to bleed out, and now that the adrenalin had worn off somewhat, the pain was threatening to overwhelm.

In fact, the injuries had occupied Comet's head so much that he almost didn't pick up on his preternatural awareness. The same premonition he had earlier at the Tarrochi casino now began to tingle, not from the sky, but towards the ground. Perhaps it was there all the while during the fight and Comet hadn't had the chance to pick up on it, but it was certainly being triggered again. The question was whether Comet was still up to investigate what or who that might be, given his condition for Comet was now very far from medical treatment and also from his own apartment refuge.

As for Terrapin, he could easily retreat back to his mountain hideout once again after this altercation. But perhaps there was value to figuring out if Wash and Were had accomplished anything else in the time leading up to today before confronting them. He knew already they were attempting to sabotage some of his place, hoping to draw him or force him out. Did the twins scurry back to seek reinforcements from the other Ten Titanics, the group in which they were members of? Or worse, were they likely to report to the Sept regarding their failure?

While Terrapin was not unfriendly to the newcomer, at least he was certain that this nova, Comet, was not out for his blood, unlike Wash and Were. If he wanted to get to the bottom of this, he might have to pay a friendly, or perhaps not-so-friendly visit, to Le Infante himself rather than have to depend on the explanation of a henchman, if indeed this winged nova was a henchman.

But their troubles weren't over yet. Together they had dealt with his enemies. But now Terrapin had spotted what Comet had sensed since Comet's visit to Le Infante's casino. A vehicle in the distance, and the impression that there was someone inside watching them. Was it now Comet's turn to have to deal with his own antagonists?

You should probably get that claw wound looked at, Kid. Terrapin opined as he got a better look at the damage Were had done to the other Nova. You never know where she's been... Big Baby should have a few back-alley sawbones that can fix you up. Unless you regenerate or some such.

The vehicle in the distance was concerning. Could be a van full of mercs looking for a payday by bringing him in or surveillance on how the Twins performed... The possibilities swirled in his mind. One thing he knew was that even with the other Nova present, neither of them was in much shape for another fight. The Kid had pretty severe puncture wounds and he had a couple of bruised ribs and was running low on Quantum. Friends of yours? he asked, nodding towards the vehicle in the distance. Or are the Mormons really desperate enough to come knocking on my door?.

"I'm afraid that one's on me." Comet landed on the grounds of the amusement park, stumbling a little from his wounds, just so that they could get out of sight range from whomever it was that was watching them. "I might have picked up a tail from when I left the city. Couldn't tell who or where they were at first, but it's easier to spot them now that we're further out upstate." Terrapin could see that it was one of those GMC all-terrain vehicles in customary black, near enough to get a binocular visual on the Comet/Terrapin and the Twins, but far enough to keep a safe distance between themselves and any of the nova action that had just transpired.

"Well, you meight want to come back with me and tell Le Infante yourself, if you want to get him off your back. If there's no love lost between you and Diavolo, I'm sure he'd be glad to hear of it. Who knows, he might even give you an opportunity to settle scores. There's probably something going down between the two of them, which means there's work for the likes of you."

"We'll have to deal with them though on our way back." Comet waved in the direction of the vehicle."I don't fancy tangling with them so soon after our last fight, not without getting patched up a bit. I do want to know who the hell they are though."

Well, whoever it is, it looks like they're just being voyeuristic.. Terrapin grunted. Otherwise they'd be jamming sniper rounds at us if they really wanted us dead.
With the shape were in, I doubt there'd be much we could do about it... It was a plan he'd used more than a few times in the past with his team. Hit & Run, do some damage, leave the target run down and hurt, then hit them from afar with sniper or anti-material fire. Wouldn't really do much to the tough targets but the less than bulletproof ones...they went down a lot easier than in a stand-up fight.

If talking to Big Baby will get people off my doorstep and him off my back it'll be a small price to pay... he broke from his reverie of the past to address the present. If they drove here, they're probably not Novas but that don't make them any less dangerous... Makes me wonder if they'll bolt if we approach.. A quick shiver ran through Terrapin, still dripping wet from Wash's watery embrace. It'll take a day or two to dry out the black uniform he'd been wearing. He was glad he'd left his helmet behind; they never smell right after getting wet. If you wanna see who's been tailing you, we'll just have to go and ask.