Morose

Morose's Character Mind Palace

Percy Novikov - Contest of Champions Trial CS

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Odysseus

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Ability Scores

Melee 3	Agility 0	Resilience 1	Vigilance 2	Ego 2	Logic 3

Defense Scores

Melee 13	Agility 10	Resilience 11	Vigilance 12	Ego 12	Logic 13

Damage

Melee d6 x 2 + 3	Agility d6 x 2 + 0	Ego d6 x 2 + 2	Logic d6 x 3 + 3

Extra Info

Rank 2	Health (30 x Resilience) 30	Focus (30 x Vigilance) 60	Karma 2	Damage Reduction --

Biography

Full Name: Percy Theo Novikov
Pronouns: He/Him
Age: 14
Height: 5'6"
Weight: 116
Gender: Male
Sexuality: Homosexual
Eye Color: Brown
Hair Color: Brown
Distinguishing Features: N/A
Origin: Mutant
Team: Excelsior
Base: Avengers Academy
Alignment: Neutral Good
Hobbies: Playing piano, reading

History
Percy is the second child of Avengers Dominika and Maria Novikova, also former agents of SHIELD. His parents were part of the West Coast Avengers, regularly jaunting off to go save the world (or at least, the west coast of the United States). When the Avengers then transitioned from having limited and fixed rosters to becoming a global force where any Avenger could be called to respond at any moment, the family remained in San Fransisco. His parents would be taken off to work with a teleporter, whereas Percy and his sister Diana (three years his elder) would be put in daycare with the other Avengers kids.

Growing up, Percy was never really interested in playing with other kids. He liked to read, devouring just about any book that he could get his hands on. The classics were always his favorite. He was obsessed with Ancient Greece and its mythology, imprinting heavily on the Percy Jackson series (after all, he had the same name as the protagonist). When he wasn't reading, he would be off exploring, sometimes ending up in areas he had no business being. And when those and his other hobbies failed him, he'd watch reality TV with his moms and sister - he loved to criticize the outfits. It was his favorite part.

His sister's mutant power manifested first, as she displayed the ability to teleport. Percy was slightly jealous, thinking up what sort of cool power he might get. He had a little diary he carried around with him, where he'd record anything that could potentially be the sign of a power manifesting - ironically, he missed his power when it first came about. He had been wandering around in Chinatown and didn't notice that he could roughly understand everything that was being said. It was a few months later that both of Percy's abilities had manifested.

He properly noticed his first power when out at dinner with his family, when he calmly ordered his food in fluent Italian, despite only speaking English and Russian. His secondary power, a variation of his sister's power, he discovered while at school in gym class. It was dodgeball day and Percy suddenly disappeared and reappeared about ten feet away, just as a ball had been about to nail him in the head.

His sister had already been attending Avengers Academy for a little while before Percy was enrolled. It's his first year at the institute, as well as his freshman year of high school. And while he won't admit it, he's a little bit excited.

Personality
Percy does not behave like a fourteen year old boy - he's spiritually much closer to an angry old man. He looks down on pretty much everyone, assuming that they're too thick, stupid, and/or clueless to make the observations that he can. He doesn't trust others to take care of things, having a tendency to micromanage. Of course, Percy is exceptionally brilliant and bright, meaning that not only is he egotistical and a bit of a narcissist... he's usually correct. People tend to be incredibly frustrated by him, for good reason.

However, Percy is incredibly and fiercely loyal. Family - by blood and the ones he choose - mean everything to him. He would destroy the world for the ones that he cares about, a viciously positive train he inherited from his mother Novikova. Other people in the world don't really matter to him. In his mind, it's he and his against everyone else, billions of souls who just cannot matter as much.

He's snarky and sarcastic, and prone to dark humor. No one would describe him as nice, but he can be kind to those he deems worthy. He doesn't care what other people think about him. As long as his loved ones are alive and healthy, they could see him as the devil and he'd be fine with that.

Traits

• Determination - Percy never gives up, even when he feels like he's at his worst. While demoralized, he does not gain trouble on all actions, though he still cannot maintain concentration or spend further Focus.
• Connections (Avengers) - Percy's mothers are members of the Avengers. By making an Ego check, Percy can call on his moms to provide help in the form of clues, information, or resources.
• Quick Learner - If Percy fails an action check, he gains an edge on the check if he tries the same action again on his next turn.

Tags

• Hounded
• Heroic
• Mentor (Ser Nemo)
• Obligation (School)
• X-Gene
• Young

Powers

Teleportation

• Blink: Percy teleports a short distance away.
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Action: Standard, movement, or reaction
  • Trigger: Percy is attacked.
  • Duration: Instant
  • Effect: Percy teleports into a clear space he can see or have been to, up to his rank in spaces away. If someone was about to attack him and he is now out of reach or line of sight, the attack automatically fails. If he is still within reach or line of sight, the attack has trouble instead.
• Blink Barrage: Percy teleports rapidly around an opponent.
  • Prerequisites: Blink, Rank 2
  • Action: Standard or movement
  • Duration: Instant
  • Cost: 5 Focus
  • Effect: Percy teleports several times in quick succession and winds up in a clear space they can see or have been to, up to their rank in spaces away. Any attacks have trouble against them for one round.
• Blink Together: Percy teleports himself and one other person a short distance away.
  • Homebrewed Power - mixing elements of Blink and Teleport Together
  • Prerequisites: Blink, Rank 2
  • Action: Standard, movement, or reaction
  • Trigger: Percy is attacked
  • Duration: Instant
  • Cost: 10 Focus
  • Effect: Percy teleports himself and one other person he is touching into a clear space he can see or have been to, up to his rank in spaces away. If someone was about to attack him and he is now out of reach or line of sight, the attack automatically fails. If he is still within reach or line of sight, the attack has trouble instead.
    If the target does not wish to be teleported, Percy must grab them first.

Omniversal Travel

• Time Blink - Percy leaps a short time into the future (seconds) and reappears.
  • Homebrewed Power - mixing Blink, Instant Replay, and Time Travel.
  • Prerequisites: Rank 2
  • Action: Standard, movement, or reaction
  • Trigger: Percy is attacked.
  • Duration: Instant
  • Cost: 10 Focus
  • Effect: Once per battle, Percy time travels one round into the future, reappearing in a clear space he can see or have been to, up to his rank in spaces away. If someone was about to attack him, the attack automatically fails.

Translation

• Understand Spoken Language: Percy can get what someone is saying.
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Instant
  • Effect: When Percy encounters an unknown spoken language for the first time, he can make a logic check vs TN 13 action check to puzzle it out. If he already knows any other version of the language, he has an edge. On a success, he understands and can speak the language. On a Fantastic success, he permanently understands and can speak it and never need to make a check again.
• Understand Written Language: Percy can figure out what someone has written.
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Instant
  • Effect: When Percy encounters an unknown written language for the first time, he can make a logic check vs TN 13 action check to puzzle it out. If he already knows any other version of the language, he has an edge. On a success, he understands and can read and write the language. On a Fantastic success, he permanently understands and can read and write it and never need to make a check again.

Basic Powers

• Brilliance 1: Percy puts his brain to work.
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Duration: Permanent
  • Effect: Percy adds +1 to his logic damage multiplier, and he gains a +1 to Logic checks other than attacks.

Avengers Academy: Junior Year 💥

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@BlueSky44@Nallore@Trainerblue192@Achronum@PatientBean@Forsythe@Blizz@Kirah@Natsu

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8:30 AM - Mon. November 29th, 2038 - Margaret Carter Institute

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Trick or Treat 2024

These tricks/treats go into effect when your character returns from Thanksgiving break

Leah - Treat - While everyone else had a parent or guardian that could be contacted, there was no one there to speak for Leah - something that the school, shockingly enough, hadn't even realized. In order to both tie up the legal loose end and ensure the safety of a young child, She-Hulk stepped up and filed the documentation necessary, with Leah's okay, to become her legal guardian. Leah has now been given access to She-Hulk's Los Angeles apartment, where a room has been set up for her, as well as a card giving her access to the West Coast Avengers' mansion. Jen has also gotten a trust fund set up for Leah, where she will now be making regular deposits - being an Avenger doesn't pay well, but being a lawyer as well certainly doesn't hurt.

Mary Sue - Trick - Mary Sue headed back to Cardiff over break, most likely hoping for something relaxing and uneventful. Instead, her grandfather sent his heralds to retrieve her father. The resulting fight was intense and bloody, Oliver ended up in the hospital in critical condition, and a scar across Mary Sue's left eye that rendered her partially blind. Her mother lost an arm, which will soon be replaced with a prosthetic. At least they won the battle. But Thanos is still out there, lurking.

Andy - Trick - Over Thanksgiving break, Andy will have had a hard time sleeping, bouts of insomnia that no medicine or magic seems to be able to dispel. The day before she is due to return to the Margaret Carter Institute, she'll finally get some much needed rest. However, when she wakes up, she finds herself in an abandoned building, a desiccated corpse at her feet, and wounds on her arms - as if someone had tried to fight her off.

Mads - Treat - Over the break, Mads went through a bit of a growth spurt! Her more demonic features came in and settled. She now has fanged teeth, a forked tongue, horns, a tail, and wings like those of a bat. With these wings, she now has the innate ability of flight. Her teeth are able to destroy most materials, save things like vibranium. Her tail is prehensile, so can be used to grab other objects and manipulate them. And her more monstrous form will give her advantage on intimidation checks.

Sabine - Treat - During the break, Sabine was plagued with strange, almost lucid dreams. In these dreams, she watched her mother as a young woman, striding confidently down the halls of a castle on the moon, a sword strapped to her side. She stood a few paces behind a tall man, with dark hair and a dramatic cloak, a crown on his head that indicated his station. Her mother seemed to be his bodyguard, following him wherever he went - from the scene of courtroom dramas to ghastly murders. No matter what Sabine did, no one noticed her in the dream.

Until the last night, right before students were due to return to the Academy, when her mother would look directly at Sabine, and say: "You are not your father's child, Sabine. You're his."

Zari - Trick - Zari and Andy have a great break, catching up with her parents in the alternate universe of Earth-667. Aside from Andy's issues, no trouble rears its head - until they get back to Earth-666, and Zari sees her time traveling device short out, reading a bunch of error messages that more or less amount to one thing... Earth-666, the universe our RP takes place in, is now cordoned off from the rest of the multiverse. No one can leave. No one can enter.

Zelda - Trick - Even before the business with Arcade, Zelda has often felt herself to be invisible, blending in with the surroundings and never truly being noticed. Perhaps that is more true now than ever before, as over the break, she fell ill with a horrible fever. The fever nearly required hospitalization, and when it broke, her body seemed to be fading out of existence. Within a matter of hours, she had become completely invisible - and so far, she hasn't figured out a way to control this power and reappear.

Dorian - Treat - For a living boy, Dorian shares a great deal in common with the dead - a fact that may endear him more to his Uncle Casper, or even his formerly dead father, Ben. Over the break, Dorian will discover another thing he has in common with ghosts - the ability to manipulate electromagnetism. He gains the ability to perform applications at the basic level per powerlisting.fandom.com/wiki/Electrom…

Danni - During the break, Danni ended up wearing himself out one day, so incredibly tired as he went to sleep. So tired, in fact, that the scent of smoke didn't wake him. In the midst of a nightmare, his powers activated... and burned his house to the ground. No one was injured, thankfully, the adults had been out seeing a show - and while Max would be able to fix the house pretty quickly with magic, the memories don't fade, and the smell lingers.

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April Flynn

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Location: Avengers' Academy - the Headmaster's Office
Skills: N/A
Fit: ~School Uniform, Skirt + Sweater Variant~

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Teams - if you need a refresh!

Lady Nimue: April, Mads, Mary Sue, Andy, Gideon
Ser Nemo: Percy, Dorian, Danni, Sabine, Zelda
Usagi: Vicky, Leah, Diana, Zari

April's eyes widened, as Vicky directed a comment towards her - saying that she was sticking her head in the sand, her tone filled with spite and derision. What had she ever done to Vicky? She didn't even know her - hell, one of her girlfriends was friends with her! The anger was completely out of nowhere, and already in a fragile mental state, April felt her chin begin to wobble, as what little control she had remaining to her evaporated away - and she burst into tears. "What the fuck is your problem, Vicky?! I get that you're having a rough time of things, but that doesn't mean you get to take it out on everyone else! Not that the Headmaster and the school deserves it more, but what have I ever done to you? What has Dani ever done to you? You don't have to be so mean a-a-and hurtful! I don't know you, you don't know me, you don't know my life or wh-what I'm thinking or what anyone here is thinking!"

April took a shaky breath, knowing that she should stop talking - but she couldn't bring herself to do it. The words just kept on spilling out of her mouth. "I'm sorry if I ever did anything to offend you, but like - like talk to me about it and don't - don't do whatever this is! And Dani, I know he hasn't done anything but be nice to you - so just - just stop being a bitch for two seconds and realize we're all in this together, okay?!"

She then leaned over, holding her head in her hands as the last few sobs wrecked her body, her hair a messy curtain. She'd wanted to leave the office when Dani did, but she'd felt frozen in place. Maybe her head was in the sand.

Unlike April, Lady Nimue offered no response to Vicky's baited words - instead, her face as impassive and collected as ever. Ser Nemo's face had taken on an almost red tinge not too long after Diana's exit, and he seemed somewhat lost in a memory once more - an embarrassing one, anyone who caught his gaze would figure.

One by one, the rest filed on out - with Sabine telling April that everyone's emotions were just high, that things were going to be okay. She appreciated her girlfriend's words, but it didn't fix her. Not really. But April wanted her to think that it did. So she forced a smile on her face and nodded. "I-I'll see you there! I'm going to..." where? Dani was outside with Leah. All April really wanted was to curl up into a ball with the friends that were like brothers to her, so.... Dorian was probably just at his room. "go by my room, too." Mads had already left.

April left the office, quickly making her way back through the halls to the dorms - and instead of going into her and Mads' room, she went to the one across the hall, and knocked on the door. "Dori? It's April - can I come in?"

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@Forsythe Once everyone had left the room, only Vicky, Ser Nemo, Lady Nimue, and Headmaster Coulson remained. Coulson motioned for Vicky to take the seat in front of the desk, weariness clear on his face. This wasn't a part of his job that he loved doing. He loved working here at the academy, helping kids learn and grow and become the heroes they want to - but this? This was one of the worst parts of his job - and the most necessary.

Sometimes, his students need help - more help than he can give them.

"Ms. van Dyne - I asked you to stay behind because I'm concerned about something you said earlier, just now. You said that you can't stop thinking about how you would want to kill yourself, should a situation like this happen again," he said gently. "Are you having thoughts of suicide?"

He paused. "We're mandated by the state to take action when a student expresses thoughts like this to us," Coulson explained. "There is a facility that we have a relationship with, with the very best of doctors and care - doctors who specialize on working with people like you, people with powers. They can help you there, more than we can - give you the support, tools, and resources that you need. How does that sound?"

Morose's Character Mind Palace

April Flynn - Contest of Champions Trial CS

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Cascade

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Ability Scores

Melee 1	Agility 3	Resilience 2	Vigilance 1	Ego 3	Logic 1

Defense Scores

Melee 11	Agility 13	Resilience 12	Vigilance 11	Ego 13	Logic 11

Damage

Melee d6 x 2 + 1	Agility d6 x 2 + 3	Ego d6 x 2 + 3	Logic d6 x 2 + 1

Extra Info

Rank 2	Health (30 x Resilience) 60	Focus (30 x Vigilance) 30	Karma 2	Damage Reduction N/A

Biography

Full Name: April Cassandra Flynn
Pronouns: She/Her (eventually She/They)
Age: 16
Height: 5'3"
Weight: 120 pounds
Gender: Female-ish (figuring it out)
Sexuality: Lesbian
Eye Color: Blue
Hair Color: Dirty Blonde
Distinguishing Features: N/A
Origin: Mutant
Team: the Huntresses
Base: Avengers Academy
Alignment: Lawful Good
Hobbies: Scuba Diving, Surfing, Crocheting

History

April was born to Agent Bonnie Chase and Agent Freddie Flynn in spring 2022 at a SHIELD medical facility. Her mother had retired from active duty, transitioning into a lab based role at SHIELD. Their father was an active duty Operations agent, as well as a long lost son of the mutant terrorist, Magneto. By the time April was about five years old, her mother had been promoted to Director of Medical Sciences at SHIELD, so the family moved to Washington D.C. Their childhood growing up in the DC area was fairly normal, with occasional trips to Canada to visit her grandparents.

April really liked being an only child - or at least, from what she remembers they did. When she was very little, her mother gave birth to her younger sister and only sibling, Zelda. April didn't like Zelda at first, finding her loud and stinky - but once Zelda wasn't a baby anymore, April actually liked having someone around her own age to play with. Unfortunately, the sisters never became particularly close, as they had the opposite personality types and interests. April was very extroverted, whereas Zelda was very introverted.

April was about eleven years old when her X-gene activated and she gained her mutant powers. Their school had done a science field trip to the zoo. April had been admiring the hippos when the class bully had come on over and shoved April backwards. The bully's goons were jeering and laughing at them, and April saw red. The next thing she knew, the bullies had been doused with the water from the hippo tank and flung about twenty feet backwards. Needless to say, the school called her parents to come and get them.

Given that her parents were both working for SHIELD, April always wanted to save the world. She wasn't interested in wearing a costume though and fighting villains - they more wanted to save the Great Barrier Reef and stop corporations from polluting the waters. Her favorite comic book character naturally was Poison Ivy. She finished middle school and her mother recommended her for the Margaret Carter Academy, and April started taking as many courses in environmental science as she could. She really loves their school and dreams of saving the ocean and the planet.

And of course, April has a burning ambition to unseat the Young Avengers in the Contest of Champions before they graduate - and be elected Prom Queen and Class President and make Valedictorian too.

Personality

April's personality is a study in duality, and she takes after her parents a great deal. They are very positive, upbeat, and lively - which often translates to them going on and on without any end in sight, which can tend to grow old quickly for certain people. She's very passionate about the things she cares in and hyper fixates on them, learning all of the information there is to know - for example, she's very interested in the environmental, particularly the ocean, and has often talked at her mother for hours at a time about it. This drive has caused them to pretty much go through school effortlessly, as they're the sort of person who reads textbooks and Wikipedia pages in their spare time (at the beach though, of course).

But at the same time, they are incredibly competitive, always needing to come out on top and have the last word. They are very judgmental of other people, often making snap decisions about them and going to any lengths she has to in order to persuade other people to hold the same viewpoint that she does. It isn't enough for her to be right, she needs other people to recognize her as right. This also tends to drive them towards being a bit dramatic, blowing things out of proportion (mostly unconsciously, although on occasion they'll do it intentionally).

Traits

• Connections (SHIELD) - April's parents work for SHIELD. By making an ego check, April can call on them to provide help in the form of clues, information, or resources.
• Glibness - April can strike up a conversation with anyone at any time and can often convince them to lend a hand. She has an edge on Ego checks to persuade characters she is speaking to for the first time.
• Quick Learner - If April fails an action check, she gains an edge on the check if she tries the same action again on her next turn.

Tags

• Hounded
• Heroic
• Mentor (Lady Nimue)
• Obligation (School)
• X-Gene
• Young
• Mental Health Conditions (Bipolar)
• Vision Issues (Far-sighted)

Powers

Elemental Control (Water & Ice)

• Special Effects triggered by a Fantastic success -
  • Water: Surprises target until the end of the next round.
  • Ice: Paralyzes target for one round.
• Elemental Barrier (Water): April forms a wall of water.
  • Prerequisites: Elemental Blast, Rank 2
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Concentration
  • Cost: 5 Focus
  • Effect: April forms a wall of water within her line of sight and up to 10 spaces away per rank. This covers up to 2 spaces across (vertically/horizontally) per rank. April makes an Agility check and compares the results against the Agility defense of any target in the affected spaces. On a success, April chooses which side of the barrier the target winds up on. On a failure, the target chooses. On a Fantastic success, the target suffers the element's special effect too.
    Attacks against the barrier are against April's Ego defense. Any attacks against it that do 10 points of damage or less are instantly absorbed, and the barrier continues. If an attack does more than 10 points of damage, it destroys the barrier. Either way, the attack leaves those behind the barrier unharmed.
• Elemental Blast (Water): April blasts a foe with water.
  • Prerequisites: Elemental Burst, Rank 2
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Instant
  • Range: 10 spaces
  • Cost: 5 or more Focus
  • Effect: April makes a ranged attack with an edge at any enemy in line of sight. For this attack, add +1 to April's Agility damage bonus for every 2 points of Focus she spends. On a success, an affected target takes that total damage. On a Fantastic success, an affected target takes double that total damage and suffers the elemental type's special effect.
• Elemental Blast (Ice): April blasts a foe with ice.
  • Prerequisites: Elemental Burst, Rank 2
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Instant
  • Range: 10 spaces
  • Cost: 5 or more Focus
  • Effect: April makes a ranged attack with an edge at any enemy in line of sight. For this attack, add +1 to April's Agility damage bonus for every 2 points of Focus they spend. On a success, an affected target takes that total damage. On a Fantastic success, an affected target takes double that total damage and suffers the elemental type's special effect.
• Elemental Burst (Water): April fires a burst of water..
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Instant
  • Range: 10 spaces
  • Effect: April makes a ranged attack against an enemy in line of sight. If the attack is a success, it inflicts regular damage. On a Fantastic success, the enemy takes double damage instead and the elemental type's special effect.
• Elemental Burst (Ice): April fires a burst of ice..
  • Prerequisites: None
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Instant
  • Range: 10 spaces
  • Effect: April makes a ranged attack against an enemy in line of sight. If the attack is a success, it inflicts regular damage. On a Fantastic success, the enemy takes double damage instead and the elemental type's special effect.
• Elemental Grab (Water): April uses water to snare a target.
  • Prerequisites: Elemental Burst, Rank 2
  • Action: Standard
  • Duration: Concentration
  • Range: Varies
  • Cost: 5 Focus
  • Effect: April makes an Ego attack against a target's Melee defense within 5 spaces times April's rank. If the attack is a success, April grabs the target with water. On a Fantastic success, the target can also be pinned and suffers the element's special effect. Breaking free requires a successful Melee check against target number 20.
• Elemental Protection 1 (Water): April protects herself with water.
  • Prerequisites: Elemental Barrier, Rank 2
  • Action: Standard or reaction
  • Trigger: April is attacked or otherwise in danger.
  • Duration: Concentration
  • Cost: 5 Focus
  • Effect: April protects herself with water. Any attacks against her that do 10 points of damage or less are instantly absorbed, and the protection continues. If an attack does more than 10 points of damage, it destroys the protection. Either way, April remains unharmed.
• Elemental Sphere (Water): April can create a protective sphere of water.
  • Prerequisites: Elemental Protection 1
  • Action: Standard or reaction
  • Duration: Concentration
  • Cost: Same as April's Elemental Protection power
  • Effect: April envelopes herself - and any chosen people within up to 5 spaces times her rank - in a protctive sphere comprised of water.
    When the sphere is formed, April makes an Ego check and compares the results against the Agility defense of unwanted characters in the enclosed spaces. On a success, April can move any unwanted people within the sphere's perimeter to spaces outside of the sphere. On a Fantastic success, such moved people suffer full damage and the element's special effect.
    Attacks against the sphere are against April's Ego defense. Any attacks against the sphere are absorbed as if made against April's Elemental Protection power, and the sphere continues. If an attack does more damage than April's Elemental Protection power can sustain, it destroys the sphere, but no one inside is harmed.

Bounties of Space

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April turned slightly at Dorian's nudge - he'd only gotten better at reading their expressions over the years, although April had never really been known for subtly. (Not that Danni was any better than them at it, of course). They shook their head ever so slightly - whatever it was they'd seen, now wasn't the time to chat about it. Both their brothers were right - Titan was hell. And filled with way too many opportunistic devils for April's comfort. "Maybe it's time to bite the bullets and get a symbiote," April teased instead. They'd been good friends with one once - and at the memory of them, their mood soured ever so slightly. Simpler times.

Kol'Kill wasn't particularly remarkable - it looked exactly like any other building on Titan, just another hobble on the shitstain of a moon. April crossed their arms as they exited the vehicle, giving a quick glance around. Nothing out of the ordinary. No reason for them to be jumpy. What they'd seen - it probably hadn't happened. Just the stakes of everything in front of them getting to them a bit. They needed to relax, to let out a little bit of the pressure. So as Dorian agreed to grab a table in exchange for a drink, April held up their right hand, signaling to make it two. "Please," they added.

They sat down across from Dorian at the table, propping their feet up on an unused chair - not Danni's, of course. And for a moment, they let themself just watch the performance, listening to the song. The singer was pretty - beautiful, even - and extremely talented. But it might as well have been Greek to April - they couldn't understand it at all. The emotions though, those came through. Ones that were all too familiar.

Ω Heroes of Olympus: The Next Age of Heroes Ω

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🌈👻 Leda Storm 👻🌈

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Location: Tartarus
Skills: N/A

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"It's dangerous to be in Tartarus," Leda countered. Every minute here was dangerous - it was dangerous to remain, just as it was dangerous to leave. Sure it was probably more dangerous to get to the Doors of Death. And yes, she didn't know what would happen if she died a second time, now that she was a ghost... but she wasn't going to spend the rest of eternity in Tartarus living in fear. She'd rather find out what a second death would mean. And Mads... well, Mads would just reform in Tartarus. There wasn't anything for Mads to risk or fear losing beyond time.

"When can we leave?" she then pressed. She assumed Mads was down for this plan - once more, Mads' didn't have the risk that Leda had here. And the sooner they made their stand, the sooner they could return to the world - the sooner that Leda could see Kiera again. The sooner that they could help to save everyone. The sooner that they could go home.

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☀️ Nancy Parker ☀️

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Location: Camp Half-blood
Skills: Audiokinesis

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The god of parties peeled Nancy off of Demi, his body like steel that she couldn't fight back against, as much as she wanted nothing more than to continue to scream, to continue to pound her fist into Demi's face over and over and over again. But the god shoved her, and she fell into her fellow Romans, and she felt a legionnaire restrain her. She shoved, trying her best to break free, to close the gap between her and Demi again - but she couldn't shake the legionnaire off, even as her blood was boiling.

And then Zeke, Zeke was screaming too.

Zeke had to understand, right? He had to see what his boyfriend had said, how much of a moron Demetri was - how deeply he had insulted all of Rome - how much he needed to pay for that. Instead, he corrected her language - she was too angry to really register it, to even really consider what she'd said - instead, she glared forward, seeing her brother turn his back on her. She didn't hear another word he said, her ears ringing. So she only saw - only saw him face Demi and not her, choose Demi and not her. Of course he was going to choose Demi. Of course. What else could she have expected from a Greek? They didn't understand. They didn't want to understand.

If there was one person that Nancy hated most of all, it was herself.

She let out a scream of frustration, of rage, and she bent the sound waves around her, sending out a shockwave - the legionnaire restraining her fell to the ground, as did Zeke. And it wasn't just her blood that was boiling, her skin itself was hot, throwing off heat. "Fucking coward! Always hiding behind others! Get the fuck up and fight me! You think you're so fucking smart, so fucking clever, but guess what? You're a goddamn idiot. If you're so convinced that Leandra is the person you think she is, then YOU can go with her in exile! Go and see the person she really is, because you two fucking deserve each other, you absolute piece of shit!"

Avengers Academy: Junior Year 💥

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@BlueSky44@Nallore@Trainerblue192@Achronum@PatientBean@Forsythe@Blizz@Kirah@Natsu

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8:20 AM - Mon. November 29th, 2038 - Margaret Carter Institute

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Trick or Treat 2024

These tricks/treats go into effect when your character returns from Thanksgiving break

Leah - Treat - While everyone else had a parent or guardian that could be contacted, there was no one there to speak for Leah - something that the school, shockingly enough, hadn't even realized. In order to both tie up the legal loose end and ensure the safety of a young child, She-Hulk stepped up and filed the documentation necessary, with Leah's okay, to become her legal guardian. Leah has now been given access to She-Hulk's Los Angeles apartment, where a room has been set up for her, as well as a card giving her access to the West Coast Avengers' mansion. Jen has also gotten a trust fund set up for Leah, where she will now be making regular deposits - being an Avenger doesn't pay well, but being a lawyer as well certainly doesn't hurt.

Mary Sue - Trick - Mary Sue headed back to Cardiff over break, most likely hoping for something relaxing and uneventful. Instead, her grandfather sent his heralds to retrieve her father. The resulting fight was intense and bloody, Oliver ended up in the hospital in critical condition, and a scar across Mary Sue's left eye that rendered her partially blind. Her mother lost an arm, which will soon be replaced with a prosthetic. At least they won the battle. But Thanos is still out there, lurking.

Andy - Trick - Over Thanksgiving break, Andy will have had a hard time sleeping, bouts of insomnia that no medicine or magic seems to be able to dispel. The day before she is due to return to the Margaret Carter Institute, she'll finally get some much needed rest. However, when she wakes up, she finds herself in an abandoned building, a desiccated corpse at her feet, and wounds on her arms - as if someone had tried to fight her off.

Mads - Treat - Over the break, Mads went through a bit of a growth spurt! Her more demonic features came in and settled. She now has fanged teeth, a forked tongue, horns, a tail, and wings like those of a bat. With these wings, she now has the innate ability of flight. Her teeth are able to destroy most materials, save things like vibranium. Her tail is prehensile, so can be used to grab other objects and manipulate them. And her more monstrous form will give her advantage on intimidation checks.

Sabine - Treat - During the break, Sabine was plagued with strange, almost lucid dreams. In these dreams, she watched her mother as a young woman, striding confidently down the halls of a castle on the moon, a sword strapped to her side. She stood a few paces behind a tall man, with dark hair and a dramatic cloak, a crown on his head that indicated his station. Her mother seemed to be his bodyguard, following him wherever he went - from the scene of courtroom dramas to ghastly murders. No matter what Sabine did, no one noticed her in the dream.

Until the last night, right before students were due to return to the Academy, when her mother would look directly at Sabine, and say: "You are not your father's child, Sabine. You're his."

Zari - Trick - Zari and Andy have a great break, catching up with her parents in the alternate universe of Earth-667. Aside from Andy's issues, no trouble rears its head - until they get back to Earth-666, and Zari sees her time traveling device short out, reading a bunch of error messages that more or less amount to one thing... Earth-666, the universe our RP takes place in, is now cordoned off from the rest of the multiverse. No one can leave. No one can enter.

Zelda - Trick - Even before the business with Arcade, Zelda has often felt herself to be invisible, blending in with the surroundings and never truly being noticed. Perhaps that is more true now than ever before, as over the break, she fell ill with a horrible fever. The fever nearly required hospitalization, and when it broke, her body seemed to be fading out of existence. Within a matter of hours, she had become completely invisible - and so far, she hasn't figured out a way to control this power and reappear.

Dorian - Treat - For a living boy, Dorian shares a great deal in common with the dead - a fact that may endear him more to his Uncle Casper, or even his formerly dead father, Ben. Over the break, Dorian will discover another thing he has in common with ghosts - the ability to manipulate electromagnetism. He gains the ability to perform applications at the basic level per powerlisting.fandom.com/wiki/Electrom…

Danni - During the break, Danni ended up wearing himself out one day, so incredibly tired as he went to sleep. So tired, in fact, that the scent of smoke didn't wake him. In the midst of a nightmare, his powers activated... and burned his house to the ground. No one was injured, thankfully, the adults had been out seeing a show - and while Max would be able to fix the house pretty quickly with magic, the memories don't fade, and the smell lingers.

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Percy Novikov

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Location: Dorian's Room
Skills: N/A
Fit: Yes he's in the school uniform

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Percy's phone vibrated as a text from his sister came in - most likely asking where he was. It wasn't like him to be late to things - he was punctual to a fault. However, it also wasn't like him to be overly respectful of authority figures. He had chased Ser Nemo with an axe during his audition for the Contest of Champions, and he had willingly went against school rules and guidelines to use the Framework after hours with Arcade. So while Percy tended to be punctual, it wasn't necessarily out of respect for the time of others - but rather, out of respect for his own time. There was the additional factor that it was an accepted social convention, more or less a rule of operation, and Percy tended to adhere to such things rather seriously - hence his insistence on not making modifications to the school uniform.

So as Dorian pulled him into his room by the wrist, shutting the door behind them, there was something else that concerned Percy more than the matter of timeliness - and this, of course, was the sight of his boyfriend halfway dressed, his hair beautifully fluffed. The air caught in his lungs and his chest tightened, and it was like everything slowed down around them, as Percy stared at the veritable demigod that was Dorian. Even Aphrodite must have been jealous of his physique, Percy decided without a single hint of irony. His face was blushing a deep crimson, and Percy froze, gripped with uncertainty and hesitation.

He never understood physical interactions very well - he wasn't one that was prone to touch, preferring to keep to himself, to have his own little bubble. But right now, the idea of closeness with Dorian wasn't repulsive, it was... strangely invigorating. "Dorian..." he began, not really sure where the sentence would end, his heart pounding.

What was he doing?

"What if you... didn't?" Percy ventured, his tongue feeling like lead and swollen cotton. "What if you...."

He couldn't finish the sentence, though. He could understand just about every language intuitively as it was spoken to him, but this? He couldn't form a coherent thought, couldn't find a framework to express this. He could only hope that Dorian could find one for him.

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April Flynn

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Location: Avengers' Academy - the Headmaster's Office
Skills: N/A
Fit: ~School Uniform, Skirt + Sweater Variant~

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Teams - if you need a refresh!

Lady Nimue: April, Mads, Mary Sue, Andy, Gideon
Ser Nemo: Percy, Dorian, Danni, Sabine, Zelda
Usagi: Vicky, Leah, Diana, Zari

Almost immediately, the atmosphere in the room became hostile. April's eyes widened as people started to lay into Coulson, beginning with Vicky. She'd never even considered blaming Headmaster Coulson for any of this, or the school - they'd been the ones using the Framework after hours without supervision, sneaking around with Arcade. She'd been prepared to beg to not be expelled, and not only did Coulson seem proud of them, he was letting them automatically ace all of their courses and continue to compete? His apologies seemed genuine to her, but... Well, it seemed like most people in the room agreed with him - she desperately scanned the faces of the crowd, hoping that others beyond Diana would speak up and give a contrary opinion, but instead Leah added to it - and charged out of the room, slamming the door behind her. April flinched as it whipped against the door frame.

And Mary Sue, poor Mary Sue! April didn't want to ask what happened to her over the break, but she couldn't help but be curious as well. She bit her lip, feeling almost nauseous with how uncomfortable she was as Mary Sue added more accusations to the pile, telling Coulson that they all had died, that everyone here was essentially little more than a variant. But April didn't feel like a variant - she felt like herself, didn't she? The thought that she wasn't real, that the real April had died that night... It was one that April desperately wanted to avoid. She gripped her right hand with her left and dug her nails in, a desperate attempt for control, for stability.

Even Sabine, cool and collected Sabine, didn't seem to be taking things well - April had noticed the way her girlfriend tensed when Coulson mentioned the mandated therapy. She had a strange double think about it all - that April wanted her friends to get therapy and get better, but loathed the idea of doing it for herself - loathed the idea of acknowledging that there was something wrong with her, that maybe there was a genetic sin lurking within, just waiting for an opportunity to bloom...

"G-guys, let's all just take a step back here, okay? This is...this is a lot of energy and things are super scary but we're real, we aren't dead, we survived, and we got to be heroes - what we all came to do this school to do! A-and real heroes can't wait around for the Avengers to save them, otherwise they wouldn't be heroes, a-a-and I'm sure the adults are meeting to talk about how to improve everything so let's... let's just talk about anything else, okay? N-no need to talk about death because we're fine!" April's face had taken on a slight green tinge. She really wanted to STOP talking about this...

"No, this is a discussion we need to have," Headmaster Coulson corrected gently, holding up a hand to April. "The school's board has been having regular meetings to discuss what we can do to change our security protocols - no decisions have been finalized yet, so I can't speak as to what will be happening, but there will be changes made here at the institute. Your safety is out topmost priority. As for the time travel... Ser Nemo, would you care to shed some insight?"

"Hm?" Ser Nemo spoke up, suddenly shaking himself out of what seemed to be deep thought. "Ah, yes. I am afraid Ms. Sullivan is mostly correct. All of the students from this gathering who did not use Ms. Raynordattir's expertise to time travel did perish, shortly followed by the rest of that reality's branch after it was pruned by the TVA. The duplicate Ms. Sullivan, Ms. Raynordattir, and Ms. Lensherr were similarly then pruned."

"....Pruned?" April squeaked.

"Yes, pruned. A kinder turn of phrase. As I teach in my advanced time travel course, the TVA oversees the proper flow of the timeline for each universe. Everything that has happened, it has happened according to what the TVA determines to be the allowed flow of time for our universe. I understand that it is upsetting, Ms. Sullivan, to think about the variants of your friends perishing - but had they survived without your use of time travel, they would have been pruned nonetheless. Had you decided to not use the Framework after hours, the TVA still would have intervened. What has happened is, for lack of a better term, correct."

April didn't know what to say to that, instead just speechless as Nemo talked so... so coldly about what sounded like death - like the destruction of innocent people just because they didn't follow some predestined script... Was there even free will? She shut her eyes for a moment, willing herself to wake up and discover this was just some sort of horrible stress dream.

Lady Nimue, her watery form glistening in the light, took the opportunity to speak next. "There is nothing to fix, children. Heroes are forged in tragedy. No story can achieve great highs without also facing desperate lows and dire odds. If this is unacceptable to you, then perhaps this is not the place for you - perhaps you are not meant for an exceptional life."

Coulson grimaced, as if less than pleased by his colleague's phrasing. "You are all free to go as you'd like - and you can let me know your decisions by the end of the day, both on your participation in the contest, and should anyone wish to withdraw from the school. But, uh, Ms. Van Dyne - if you would stay back a moment once the others file out, I have something else to speak to you about."

X-Men: Cosmic Crusades 👽

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Guin Stark

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Location: New Orleans Botanical Gardens
Skills: Telepathy

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Guin blinked, and the next thing she knew, everyone was gone - everyone but Annie. The botanical gardens were gone, too, leaving them in what seemed like an empty grey void. It took her a moment for everything to click into place - that they were inside of Mary's mind, and this is what she had chosen to show them. Just nothingness, a cage. She hoped it was what remained of Mary protecting them, but she doubted it. Mary wasn't there. She was gone.

Pietro's voice echoed in, cutting in and out of static. Soon another voice joined him - Ed's. She wasn't too sure on the how - magic? Guin's telepathy? Mary's telepathy? Just ambient noise somehow bouncing in and cutting through? But that didn't matter right now. What mattered was his request - to see if they could push out Phoenix and Chrysi from the inside. As far as she could tell, there was no way to say if there was any additional vulnerability here - nothing obvious to strike at, nothing that would cripple or eject any of those forces.

"I don't know. We'll try," she said, hoping that Ed could hear her. The adrenaline was coursing through her system so quickly that she was calm, as she remembered one of her lessons with Professor X - where he had compared a mindscape to a telepath as being really no different than a lucid dream. So she closed her eyes and focused, visualizing what she needed - something to protect herself with, something to fight with, and a way to something other than this void.

When she opened her eyes again, there was a door in front of her and Annie - and a sword in her hand. She gave it an experimental swing, remembering the lessons she'd had with Aunt Natasha as a kid. "You ready?" she asked Annie, before opening the door and walking on through.

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Avery Spellman

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Location: Chandrilar
Skills: N/A

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Runa's heart skipped a beat as she heard her uncle's reply, despite its negativity. He was speaking to her, then. That was an opening. If she could get his aid in modifying the bloodline curse, have it target only the Phoenix and not the rest of her house, then this could be a path to minimizing bloodshed and loss. So Runa worked in what her domain centered on - she traded in lies, as she responded silently to Loki: You wish to alleviate a guilty conscience, Uncle. You wish to aid me. I know it to be true.

Her fingers itched to snap, to hear his rejection - the magic was much more powerful that way, strong enough to even bend the will of another god - and shift reality accordingly.

Yet there was no response, and Runa felt the magic slip away from her. Frustrated, she tried again, another desperate plea for aid - for her uncle to see sense, to see reason. Forgive me - you would have tried the same in my position. Is there nothing I can offer you as a boon to seek your help?

His response was immediate: "Not really no."

So Runa cast off the connection, with a final - So falls the House of Odin - before re-centering her thoughts on the present. If they could not stop the Phoenix, all life in the galaxy was at risk - all of Asgard was at risk. Her uncle, for all of his flaws, Runa had genuinely believed had at least some interest in protecting his own family. But if a sorcerer of Asgard would not help her, perhaps they ought to turn their attention to one of Midgard - to the Sorcerer Supreme. Perhaps he could modify the curse - or even better, provide another means of magical assistance. Runa turned to Max, her face solemn. "Maximilian - will you accompany me to see the Sorcerer Supreme? Perhaps there is something in his grimoire that may be of use."

"Before you run off to see Doctor Strange, we're going to need to bring this machine back to Earth - and fast," Ben pointed out. "Majestrix, is it alright for us to take the device now? Time is of the essence," he said. Every minute they spent here chatting in space, the Phoenix was threatening Earth and everyone who lived there - was threatening Ben's family. They had a plan now, they had a weapon. Time to execute it.

Avery nodded, glad that their idea had been well received, but also aware that it was just that - an idea, untested and potentially a disaster. But that was the case with everything when it came to this mission, to this task. They didn't know if the machine would really work against the Phoenix, they didn't know if they'd be able to save Mary, they just didn't know. The only person who this had happened to before was Jean Grey and even she seemed to be a bit out of her depth when it came to all of this. The most likely outcome was that everything would go horribly wrong. The least likely outcome was that they'd all survive.

Ω Heroes of Olympus: The Next Age of Heroes Ω

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☀️ Nancy Parker ☀️

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Location: Camp Half-blood
Skills: N/A

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Nancy stopped in her tracks as she heard Demetri’s grating voice, shaking her to her very core. How dare he say such things?! How dare he call her a bitch, insult her leadership of New Rome?! He was too stupid and small and naive and innocent to understand, to really comprehend the severity of Leandra’s crimes. His world was parties and sunshine - he could never comprehend war, or suffering, or trauma. He was useless - more than useless, he was an obstacle.

Her duty called for her to ignore his words, his challenge, and see Leandra delivered into exile. Her duty called for her to put the people of New Rome and Camp Jupiter before her own feelings - before the things that mattered most to her in the world.

Nancy had always done her duty.

She took a deep breath, as the red cloud of anger filled her mind.

She counted to three… but didn’t make it past one, as she lost control.

”Shut the fuck up you stupid fucking f*****!” She wasn’t seeing clearly, as she sprinted back at Demetri, and in front of the God of Parties, she struck him across the jaw and the chest, tackling him down to the ground. She was too incoherent to say anything else, frothing with rage, with anger. She had one knee on either side of Demetri to keep him pinned, and she punched him over and over again, blackening his eye and breaking his nose. She didn’t stop, she didn’t pause to think. All she was thinking about was beating him as much as she could until he could never make another stupid comment again. Blood from his nose smeared on her fists, and she didn’t care. She was going to kill this fucking boy. She was going to kill him.

Avengers Academy: Junior Year 💥

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@BlueSky44@Nallore@Trainerblue192@Achronum@PatientBean@Forsythe@Blizz@Kirah@Natsu

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8:10 AM - Mon. November 29th, 2038 - Margaret Carter Institute

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@Forsythe: Cassie would send a text back quickly, confirming that the tree was a good place to meet, and saying that she'd be free around 2 PM after her combat class ended for the day.

Vicky likely would be able to guess why Cassie wanted to chat - Vicky hadn't gone home for Thanksgiving break, after all. And blood or not, the two of them were sisters.

Trick or Treat 2024

These tricks/treats go into effect when your character returns from Thanksgiving break

Leah - Treat - While everyone else had a parent or guardian that could be contacted, there was no one there to speak for Leah - something that the school, shockingly enough, hadn't even realized. In order to both tie up the legal loose end and ensure the safety of a young child, She-Hulk stepped up and filed the documentation necessary, with Leah's okay, to become her legal guardian. Leah has now been given access to She-Hulk's Los Angeles apartment, where a room has been set up for her, as well as a card giving her access to the West Coast Avengers' mansion. Jen has also gotten a trust fund set up for Leah, where she will now be making regular deposits - being an Avenger doesn't pay well, but being a lawyer as well certainly doesn't hurt.

Mary Sue - Trick - Mary Sue headed back to Cardiff over break, most likely hoping for something relaxing and uneventful. Instead, her grandfather sent his heralds to retrieve her father. The resulting fight was intense and bloody, Oliver ended up in the hospital in critical condition, and a scar across Mary Sue's left eye that rendered her partially blind. Her mother lost an arm, which will soon be replaced with a prosthetic. At least they won the battle. But Thanos is still out there, lurking.

Andy - Trick - Over Thanksgiving break, Andy will have had a hard time sleeping, bouts of insomnia that no medicine or magic seems to be able to dispel. The day before she is due to return to the Margaret Carter Institute, she'll finally get some much needed rest. However, when she wakes up, she finds herself in an abandoned building, a desiccated corpse at her feet, and wounds on her arms - as if someone had tried to fight her off.

Mads - Treat - Over the break, Mads went through a bit of a growth spurt! Her more demonic features came in and settled. She now has fanged teeth, a forked tongue, horns, a tail, and wings like those of a bat. With these wings, she now has the innate ability of flight. Her teeth are able to destroy most materials, save things like vibranium. Her tail is prehensile, so can be used to grab other objects and manipulate them. And her more monstrous form will give her advantage on intimidation checks.

Sabine - Treat - During the break, Sabine was plagued with strange, almost lucid dreams. In these dreams, she watched her mother as a young woman, striding confidently down the halls of a castle on the moon, a sword strapped to her side. She stood a few paces behind a tall man, with dark hair and a dramatic cloak, a crown on his head that indicated his station. Her mother seemed to be his bodyguard, following him wherever he went - from the scene of courtroom dramas to ghastly murders. No matter what Sabine did, no one noticed her in the dream.

Until the last night, right before students were due to return to the Academy, when her mother would look directly at Sabine, and say: "You are not your father's child, Sabine. You're his."

Zari - Trick - Zari and Andy have a great break, catching up with her parents in the alternate universe of Earth-667. Aside from Andy's issues, no trouble rears its head - until they get back to Earth-666, and Zari sees her time traveling device short out, reading a bunch of error messages that more or less amount to one thing... Earth-666, the universe our RP takes place in, is now cordoned off from the rest of the multiverse. No one can leave. No one can enter.

Zelda - Trick - Even before the business with Arcade, Zelda has often felt herself to be invisible, blending in with the surroundings and never truly being noticed. Perhaps that is more true now than ever before, as over the break, she fell ill with a horrible fever. The fever nearly required hospitalization, and when it broke, her body seemed to be fading out of existence. Within a matter of hours, she had become completely invisible - and so far, she hasn't figured out a way to control this power and reappear.

Dorian - Treat - For a living boy, Dorian shares a great deal in common with the dead - a fact that may endear him more to his Uncle Casper, or even his formerly dead father, Ben. Over the break, Dorian will discover another thing he has in common with ghosts - the ability to manipulate electromagnetism. He gains the ability to perform applications at the basic level per powerlisting.fandom.com/wiki/Electrom…

Danni - During the break, Danni ended up wearing himself out one day, so incredibly tired as he went to sleep. So tired, in fact, that the scent of smoke didn't wake him. In the midst of a nightmare, his powers activated... and burned his house to the ground. No one was injured, thankfully, the adults had been out seeing a show - and while Max would be able to fix the house pretty quickly with magic, the memories don't fade, and the smell lingers.

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Percy Novikov

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Location: Outside Dorian's Room
Skills: N/A
Fit: Yes he's in the school uniform

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The door suddenly opened, with Danni - not Dorian - leaping on out, as if going for a hug. Percy deftly took a quick step back, reacting without thinking. He most certainly did not want to be hugged by Danni. He strictly speaking didn't want to be hugged by just about anyone. The skin-to-skin contact and physical proximity seemed strange to him, as it always had. Only with his family - and now his boyfriend - did he tolerate it, even enjoy it at times. Still, a bit of guilt panged through him as he saw Danni stumble, losing his balance from the lack of a person to grab onto.

He frowned, not so much in disappointment or anger but rather in confusion, as Danni went on about needing to change up Percy's uniform. "... It's a uniform, Daniel. It's supposed to be uniform without alterations. Otherwise, what would be the point?" He turned with his entire body to follow Danni as he darted past him, still pondering over this as Danni then suddenly stopped again - why was everything always so sudden with him?? - and gasped, before producing a small red and black bracelet with Percy's name.

His confusion only mounted, but Percy nodded, and said - "thank you." He never understood why people had jewelry with their own names on it. Was a name tag not more efficient and visible for that purpose? Why would he want a bracelet with his own name on it? It would make more sense to him to give the bracelet to Dorian - Dorian perhaps would wish to carry a reminder of his partner. He stared at the bracelet again for a moment, before rationalizing that he could wear it for the day, and then tuck it away neatly in a drawer. He slipped the bracelet on.

And no sooner had Danni left than Dorian appeared, pulling him into a tender kiss and hug. Percy's cheeks flushed crimson. His pulse thumbed a little faster, and his hands felt sweaty, almost clammy. There was something addictive about being close to Dorian Gray, something that made it difficult for Percy to breathe, something that enticed him to want to touch, touch, touch.

His fingers lingered on Dorian's wrist. "I missed you, too." He hesitated. It was strange, how now it didn't feel like they'd been apart at all - as if the short Thanksgiving break had never happened, that they had never left. "Very much."

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April Flynn

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Location: Avengers' Academy - Outside the Headmaster's Office
Skills: N/A
Fit: ~School Uniform, Skirt + Sweater Variant~

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April nodded, biting her lip for a moment as shame washed over her. She shouldn't have been freaking out right now - Mads was probably freaking out internally, after all of the cosmetic changes she'd gone through. April knew that puberty could act fast, but she had never really thought about how fast. Something similar had happened with Zelda over break, too - her little sister was invisible now, only able to be heard, and not seen. And so far, Zelda hadn't managed to turn herself visible again for more than a flash of a second. April's own problems seemed suddenly so small and childish.

"I like the tail, by the way," April said, offering Mads a smile. "It's cool." She did her best to sound calm and positive, even as she was shaking furiously inside - as a million scenarios where Coulson expelled and/or killed them for everything that had happened ran through her head, and a million more where her life amounted to nothing, that she never achieved the most important things - like being Prom Queen and Class President and Valedictorian.

She glanced down at her phone as it vibrated - the flip phone had been replaced with a smartphone, making texting way easier again - and saw a series of texts come in. From Leah and Sabine. From Danni and Dori. She clicked into the groupchat with her girlfriends first, and for a moment, her heart dropped at Leah's message - she saw first Leah's feelings about the contest, before April's eyes frantically looked throughout the rest of the message, her pounding heart only slowing down slightly as she saw the rest.

And just like with Mads' a moment ago, a sense of selfishness went through her - because April did care about the Contest of Champions. She cared A LOT. Maybe she even cared about it more than being a real hero - no, no, that couldn't be true. But she was afraid that it was. She bit her lip, reading Sabine's message next, and a little more reassurance returned to her. Sabine wanted it too. It couldn't be bad to want the Contest if Sabine also did - right?

@Leah & Sabine

Thank you both, I mean it <3 sorry I'm just, like, being a lot right now about this haha. i, like, do super wanna do the contest - i've dreamed of it since i was a little kid - but like you're so right Leah!! i am gonna think about this more <3 <3 see you both in a sec!!

She opened up the messages from Danni and Dori next, her hands feeling as cold as ice. Both of them made similar points, and she let the tension from her shoulders drop a bit. Maybe she was being worried about nothing. Maybe Coulson did just want to tell them what a good job they did - and maybe insist on therapy? She wasn't thrilled about the idea of all of that, but... It was better than expulsion, right?

@Danni & Dori

Gods I've missed my BOYS!! <3 <3 <3 you both know how to calm a girl down. and if it's therapy, i think i need to insist on group therapy - can't do that stuff without a cuddlepile going on!!

As April pressed send, more people were showing up - Vicky, Andy, Diana. Leah. Her girlfriend kissed her on the forehead and April flushed, her mind - as seemed typical these days - swaying rapidly between opposing emotions. "No, I haven't seen Sabine yet - oh, there she is!" she waved at Sabine, spotting her coming down the hallway after Diana. Her other girlfriend kissed her on the cheek, and April gave Sabine and Leah both a kiss on the cheek in return.

"I'm feeling better - I think - less nervous - how are you?"

She caught a glimpse of Mary Sue as she headed into the office, and April's eyes widened. Had that happened during the fight with Arcade, her scar? Had something else happened? She quickly looked away, chastising herself mentally that it was rude to stare. What had happened to Mary Sue?

But they couldn't stay in the hallway forever and chat - they were about to be technically late - so April set her questions aside and headed in, with her girlfriends and her friends, and took a seat - nervously taking in Headmaster Coulson, Ser Nemo, and Lady Nimue. Hopefully it was just that Dorian was right - that they needed to figure out teams...

She then glanced around quickly, realizing that there was no sign of Dorian - or Zelda - or Percy or Zari.

Coulson cleared his throat. "I suppose the others will join us in their own time," he said, smiling somewhat grimly. "I wanted to first offer you all an apology - you were put in an extremely difficult position last week, one you never should have had to face. As the headmaster of this school, the buck stops with me - and evidently, I failed to realize what Arcade had planned."

"Second, I want to offer you my congratulations - and thanks. You stopped a massacre from occurring, and brought a new supervillain to justice. Only a handful of other students here at the school can say the same. What you did was incredible - real Avengers level work. In recognition of your achievements, all of you are receiving A's in your courses this quarter. I've informed your teachers already. No more homework, no more exams. However, you all are expected to attend mandatory counseling sessions each week."

"Which brings me to my next point... the other thing that you all will be preparing for. The Contest of Champions is quickly approaching. We're down a coach, and some of you are down a team member. Each team can have up to seven members, but no fewer than five. The Young Avengers team is already full. I'm happy to send four teams total to the Contest, but the group that worked with Usagi, you'd need to recruit someone to join up. I'd also ask for you to select a faculty member as your coach."

"Alternatively, there are fourteen of you here... We could condense you down into two teams, one coached by Ser Nemo, and the other by Lady Nimue. I'm leaving this choice up to you all."

Teams - if you need a refresh!

Lady Nimue: April, Mads, Mary Sue, Andy, Gideon
Ser Nemo: Percy, Dorian, Danni, Sabine, Zelda
Usagi: Vicky, Leah, Diana, Zari

Ω Heroes of Olympus: The Next Age of Heroes Ω

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🌈👻 Leda Storm 👻🌈

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Location: Tartarus
Skills: N/A

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Leda couldn't decide if she could run them out of there fast enough - maybe she'd get lucky, maybe she wouldn't. The more she thought about it, the more uncertain she felt in her own abilities. The more that doubt crept in, and she faltered, frozen in place, unable to make a choice and push them into an uncertain fate. Flee or fight. Fight or flee. What difference would it make - would both options end with them dead? Well, Mads reforming elsewhere, and Leda... being gone, most likely. Erased.

Damasen. She knew that name, though. Giant. But kind to mortals - to demigods. He'd even helped Annabeth Chase and Percy Jackson escape Tartarus. It was still a risk - maybe a trick? Could a giant pretend to be a different one? But names had power... And the longer they stayed there, the more pressing it became to make a choice.

So slowly, gingerly, carefully, Leda crept out of her hiding spot, clasping the bone sword. "My name is Leda Storm, daughter of Iris. And this... This is Madalyne Crane, daughter of Trivia, and praetor of the Roman Legion," Leda rotated her sword, so the hilt was aimed towards the giant, rather than the sword. "You helped our fellow demigods before. Will you help us reach the Doors of Death?"

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☀️ Nancy Parker ☀️

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Location: Camp Half-blood
Skills: N/A

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Nancy's emotions were stilled for the moment, the calm in the eye of the storm. She was so tensed, so stressed, so anxious, so fearful, and so angry that she was just numb, a numbing that brought focus and clarity however, rather than inattention. Once the majority had filed out of the tent and left, Nancy escorted Leandra out, alongside Niah, Zeke, and regrettably, the cyclops. But their procession had hardly begun before it was halted, as Zeke just... walked off to talk with Demi. Her eyes widened before narrowing, the calm temporarily rippling with fury. She had half a mind to scream at him, to ask him what the hell was he thinking? This wasn't some stroll to the border of camp - this was Leandra. Leandra. She doubtlessly had some sort of scheme, some sort of plan - everything she had done was an act meant to deceive them and if they didn't watch her like a hawk, if they went to chitchat with Greek boys... Leandra could escape. And burn Camp Half-blood to the ground, just as she had burned New Rome.

So at the same time that Niah said this does not involve you at Demetri's offer of aid, Nancy quickly snapped out a "Absolutely not." This wasn't a game. And now, now this blasted god of parties thought he was part of the escort? A vein in Nancy's forehead throbbed.

"Ezekiel, your company clearly calls to you. The rest of us will escort Leandra off the grounds," she ordered, scowling, before ushering Leandra along, moving in the direction of the camp's border.