Hostage Exchange

X-Champions Issues

Issue #8 - The Hostage Exchange

As the team gets back to headquarters, their less glamorous responsibilities intrude as Suzanne Palmer is called back to work a suddenly unusual case load in the DA's office while Aela Oceanchild is called to examine a troubling sea mammal virus developing at the aquarium.

Eliot Sihn is busy preparing a new batch of his healing drugs, having nearly exhausted his current supply in the battle earlier in the day. Marty Davis busies himself with Sihn's chemicals, intent on creating a super-caffeinated drink. Hamlet Laughton and Sammy head to the chic upscale boutique shopping center known as the Diamond Court, a part of the Renaissance Center, and where the Gang of Five (now four) has requested an exchange of Professor X for Slayer.

At the Diamond Court, so-called because of the huge crystalline inverted pyramid structure with a solid diamond centerpiece, Laughton and Sammy appear as a couple, Sammy shifting to appear as an appropriate young lady. They peruse the mall, which has an open air public area bordered by the various tiny shops. They check out the computer/electronics store, asking after a camera that allows for remotely watching their imagined child. An eager middle aged salesman attempts to assist but is flustered when Laughton wants to try it out by setting part of it up clear across the mall - over by the security room that the hostage exchange is to take place. As the salesman becomes decreasingly effective, trying to explain store policies about taking equipment out of the store, an overbearing manager rushes to the scene, treating the salesman, Sampson (as he calls him), brusquely and sending him to "check inventory". The manager calms down a bit and tries (poorly) to smooth-talk the couple into buying the observation unit. When he admits it doesn't allow for multiple viewing connections, Laughton and Sammy leave.

Sammy, having already used up a good bit of Hamlet's money on over-priced food at the mall, begins shape-shifting to appear as different people and frequenting the Grandma's Cookin' store with its free samples out front. As each time he takes more than sample-size portions, the agent giving away the samples becomes irritated and freaks out at the "boy" (Sammy) who comes by and grabs much of the sample plate (after she just replenished it twice). She demands he put back "the food" and Sammy obligingly begins to regurgitate some of what he's started to ingest. Disgusted, she retreats and they close the samples operation for the day.

Again as a couple, Sammy and Laughton go into Lady Grey, a clothing store for high-end executive women (along with its nearby companion store, Lord Grey). Sammy is quite interested in the outfits and talking with the pushy sales lady, who also attempts to get Laughton to go to Lord Grey. She laughs off his request for a kilt, then attempts to ignore him when he makes it known he's quite serious. Given the strange behavior of this couple, she determines they're some breed of sexual perverts and hopes that at least she can make a lingerie sale. After that unsuccessful attempt, Sammy distracts her by indicating he'd like to try a suit on while Laughton peers out the back. He finds that a back hallway leads to Lord Grey and probably other stores.

On to the exotic pet store/referral clinic next to the public security office, they cause a more serious commotion as, again in order to distract, Sammy acts as if he's about to sample some fish. Security forces immediately enter the premises as Laughton slips behind the store and checks out the back hallway; no direct entry to the next-door security area is seen.

Meanwhile, as Sihn works busily on setting up the processes to build his healing elixir, Davis becomes quite shaky and excited as the result of his hyper-caffeine solution. He hopes it wears off before engaging the enemy as he feels rather unsteady; given his limited chemistry skills, he should simply be glad he's not collapsed on the floor.

As Sammy is escorted out of the mall, Laughton visits the security office. It houses the lost-and-found referenced by the Gang of Five/Four ("GOF" as dubbed by the Justice Squad at this point in reference to their variable number). Hamlet blurts out to the receptionist/guard, "Excuse me, I've lost my parrot, and believe
the pet store has stolen him. I'd like to lodge a complaint.". The attendant dismisses the complaints and simply asks him to move on; such a posh establishment doesn't even consider such complaints. As he goes to leave the mall he's accosted by two officers. They attempt to maneuver him in front of a camera but he moves deftly to avoid that; he claims he has no wallet in response to their pointed question of verifying his identity.

Satisfied with the reconnaissance, they head back and join Sihn and Davis. Back at the detective agency, Caruthers is meanwhile interrupting Sihn and Davis to tell them to watch something on television. Apparently Speedo Man is holding a press conference, having attracted the media's attention by grandstanding with an armored security truck. He seems to think that his sobriquet is a respectful powerful one given to him by the locals and thus readily identifies himself by it. He goes on to tell the city that he has come to find his bride-to-be, the Mermaid, and that those who assist him will be honored while those who oppose him will be swept aside. His haughty but awkward manner of speech betray a distinct lack of familiarity with American, if not human, culture.

At 4 PM, an hour before the hostage exchange is supposed to take place, Laughton (AKA Rodin), having previously turned to an ice sculpture and melted down to water, is transported by a shape-shifted Sammy and dumped into the fountain in the middle of the mall, where the inverted crystal/diamond pyramid rests. Sammy poses as an elderly gentleman, gets some food, and rests on a nearby bench. Shortly Rodin, a mass of sentient water camouflaged amongst the regular water of the fountain, spots Bud Girl shopping, apparently already in place. Around 4:30 security comes by and hassles the old man (Sammy); Sammy gets the message as long as he's getting food and not simply loitering he's fine, so he continues to eat - he's by no means displeased by this "imposition". A bit later, at about 4:45, as the tense countdown nears its termination, Rodin and Sammy see a cloaked figure pushing an occupied wheelchair go upstairs to the security office. They surmise it's Mocker with a sedated Professor X.

With moments to 5 PM, Sammy goes up to the rendezvous spot. As he goes up the escalator, Rodin becomes aware of a tiny mosquito that flies about the base of the pyramid, just around him, pausing oddly. He figures it must be Mosquito, and Mosquito acknowledges this strange column of water. They're mutually spotted. Meanwhile Sammy enters the security office and sees Mocker with the Professor behind the counter. He also spots a barely-covered contingent of knocked out (dead?) security officers to the side. Mocker asks Sammy which gang he's with, looking to establish that Sammy is with the Justice Squad as it's that time. Sammy is evasive, though, and attempts to leave, whispering to himself that it looks like Professor X with Mocker - because he has the Troll's ear embedded in his head. The Troll (Sihn) and The Captain (Davis) prepare to head in, having hovered just above, taking advantage of the low cloud cover. They had hoped to use Bob Buick's help in entering but Buick was not available - he's often on his own mysterious errands. The Troll has prepared himself and The Captain against Bud Girl's mind control abilities by using a drug that boosts their mental capabilities and they are ready to go.

However, Sammy is not protected and Bud Girl, whom he's never encountered, is a few yards away, across an open area of the second floor. She sees him fleeing the office and knows simply that no one is supposed to leave there without Mocker's say-so. She shouts to him, "Oh, dear, please go on back in there and be a sweet guy and lay down on the floor on your stomach, 'kay?" Sammy does so without hesitation, laying prone.

The Troll hears this and they realize now Sammy is at risk. As The Captain flies in, holding the unconscious Slayer in front of him and the Troll hangs onto him, they realize that Bud Girl's spell is still quite strong as they have no desire to attack her. The Captain sweeps into the small security room and narrowly misses Mocker as he keeps Professor X in the way and moves deftly to the side, still visibly surprised by this sudden maneuver. Mocker is not so lucky as the Troll launches himself from The Captain and directly into him, knocking the wind out of Mocker.

Meanwhile Rodin hears a loud crack and sees the inverted pyramid start to teeter as the Mosquito slams into it. Quickly Rodin launches into human form and out of the fountain - just in time for the Bogeyman to appear. The Bogeyman appears to trigger the release of a large weight just above Rodin's head. Rodin dives out of the way.

Momentarily stunned, the Mocker barely regains his senses as The Captain grabs him and he and the Troll pummel the master of mockery. The Troll tosses Sammy the syringe to boost his mental defenses just as Bud Girl tells Sammy that "The ugly guy tried to hit me, please stop him, I'm just an innocent girl!" Sammy injects himself and fights off Bud Girl's command, thinking that she must mean Mocker who's also not exactly attractive, rather than the Troll whom she no doubt meant. Mocker is knocked out deeply in no time between the three heroes.

Rodin, seeing Bogeyman dive under a bench to avoid the shattering debris of the weight he just released, starts to turn him into stone. Or so he believes - it's all a mirage, a mental image that Bogeyman has planted into Rodin's brain. Rodin wastes his time as in real life the Mosquito shatters the base of the pyramid, sending it to the ground. While Rodin perceives this, he doesn't perceive the real Bogeyman grabbing at the huge diamond capstone of the crystal pyramid and disappearing with it. As Bogeyman fades, Rodin's mind returns to reality and he realizes what has just happened. He also realizes that Bud Girl is equally affecting him, keeping him from going after her as he sees the tiny insect villain move vaguely towards her.

Mosquito moves too quickly for anyone to catch. He grabs Bud Girl just as another dose of the drug from the Troll brings The Captain to his senses and makes him realize Bud Girl is not to be protected. Bud Girl waves and says "Bye-bye guys, don't you worry and don't go after Mosquito or he'll drop me and I'll get really hurt! Take care!"

Sammy sprouts wings and turns into a bird form, dragging along Mocker, Slayer, and the Troll, as they hear the sirens of many police cars. The police are rapid to respond, with a SWAT team tearing into the building. The media is also not far behind. Laughton and The Captain stay behind to field the media and draw attention from the escaping heroes.

The two heroes who deal with the media are peppered with barbed questions regarding stories slowly being substantiated about cannibalism and terror inflicted upon the gangsters the Justice Squad brought in. Other questions are raised as to who exactly is in the Justice Squad. Also comparisons are made to the brutal Punisher in Atlanta, though it is stated that the Justice Squad has not been known to kill anyone. During the questioning The Captain and Laughton let it slip that they had the Slayer and were to exchange him for Professor Xavier, whom they rescued successfully. This leads to questions, after a momentary lapse in realizing who the professor is, regarding Xavier's abilities and if there is an underground mutant gang under his direction. The Captain flexes his muscles and rips out a bench and presses it, not so much to distract the press as much as to simply show his considerable power. As one reporter presses The Captain, The Captain grabs him and flies off, making many circular maneuvers. The reporter, who turns out to be a Rodney Kenningsworth, manages to avoid sickness and keep the presence of mind to ask more about the Justice Squad. When The Captain indicates that he's got an exclusive relationship with Lisa Walters, Rodney quietly tells him that she's only looking out for himself, and it would be better for the team to get their word out through others like himself. He gives his card to The Captain. Meanwhile Laughton spots a woman who he's sure is only posing as a reporter. Finally The Captain flies off as he indicates there's danger elsewhere. Then he flies back as he's forgotten to take Laughton with him...

Back at the headquarters, Sihn manages to revive Professor Xavier. Xavier explains that he decided to attempt to reform the villains after discussing the situation with Sihn a few days before; he felt that it was possible these were basically good people who, like many mutants, turned bad due to persecution and shame. He went on his own so as to endanger no one else. Unfortunately, though he landed near their headquarters, they saw him come down first and managed to subdue him, taking him by surprise. He briefly got into Bogeyman's and Mocker's minds. With Bogeyman he found a dangerous lunatic; while his lunacy may be obscuring things, Xavier did not believe he was human but didn't know what he was. Mocker, as verified upon capture, is also not human and is instead a cyborg. However, Mocker seems to fully believe he's human and responds to brainwaves as humans do.

Davis has other commitments, including case work, to attend to, and at this point bows out, leaving further work to Sihn, Laughton, and Sammy - someone has to run the business.

Sihn receives a threatening call from a "Deputy Inspector" at Stark Industries, Samuel Bronco. Bronco seems to be quite aware that Sihn is the Troll, and alludes to SI following his activities at an executive level. He doesn't care about the Troll's heroic actions but he and management are worried about the reports of cannibalism and torture. He warns that Sihn can be terminated, to which Sihn listens politely and responds that he gets the message, without confirming or denying anything.

Laughton has his own worries with authority; Lucy Coe has an unofficial conversation with Laughton regarding the increasing evidence of torture of the gangsters. Laughton reminds her of how crazed these gangsters were, mentioning the example of the attack on Suzanne Palmer's building. He finishes by telling her to talk to Mayor Berry and immediately thereafter he visits the mayor. In private conversation he points out that they've carefully smashed the Purple Hat gang in such a way that it allowed for a heavy police involvement/credit. He further elaborates that whatever happened, it was done to satisfy the mayor's wishes. Berry admits that his office will do whatever it can legally to keep the Justice Squad from prosecution, broadly hinting it will be sufficient, but also warns that he can control neither the media nor individual police people, and that leaks will happen.

Laughton returns to find Terwilliger visiting Sihn and a hungry Sammy. Sihn is debriefing Terwilliger, glossing over the sticky points. Terwilliger confirms that SI is watching Sihn from a senior level and that he needs to be careful. Meanwhile Sammy and Laughton go to dinner. On their way to Baroni's, the restaurant now favored by Sammy due to Eduardo Tucci's open invitation, they are approached by a homeless person who tries to elicit sympathy, claiming he has special food needs - only brown liquids that aren't carbonated. The bum is aggressive and emboldened by recognizing Laughton from having seen him on TV (in a store window) earlier that day. Finally Laughton gives him a couple dollars.

As they approach Baroni's, Laughton realizes they're being followed. He tells Sammy they need to go somewhere else due to this; he's hard-pressed to keep Sammy quiet as innocently Sammy exclaims, "Wow, how can you see that? I can't see anybody following us!" They duck into a tourist-trap restaurant called the Red Wine River and their tail disappears. After circuitously moving around and behind the restaurant, Laughton checks it out and his eagle eye catches the slight-build person in a car down the street. Shortly thereafter he receives a phone call from a nearby pay-phone. A woman's voice cheerily says, "Looks like you've spotted me. We'll leave you alone for a while now, just know this was the King watching." Sammy and Laughton check out the pay-phone as Sammy himself leaps to the idea of looking for prints or hairs. He's learned a lot from watching television.

They return to the Red Wine River, a site selected by Laughton not only for its crowded noisy atmosphere but also for its all-you-can-eat buffet. As Sammy stuffs himself, an astute waiter (not theirs) comes to the table and tells them to get out - he doesn't want mutants in the establishment. Hamlet retorts, "We don't have our check yet." The waiter says it can be arranged, leaves, and then a loud argument is heard. Suddenly a manager approaches the duo and apologizes. In fact he's just fired the errant waiter. However, while he seems to sincerely be fine with mutants in his restaurant, he is transparently (except to Sammy) afraid of the massive amounts of food Sammy's devouring. He quietly and "confidentially" asserts that a much better buffet can be had at Anthony Pesto's down the street. Shortly afterwards, as he returns to the kitchen, shouting and threatening can be heard from the back. Laughton interrupts as a blood-curdling scream is heard - the fired waiter has a butcher knife and has cut another waiter's arm. Then the mad ex-waiter sees Laughton and launches at him - only to be turned to stone. The grateful manager has trays of food brought to their car for Sammy. Sammy and Laughton drop off the aggressor with the police as the restaurant reports the incident. On the way Hamlet leaves a note with Tocci's driver, whom he sees just outside Baroni's. The note indicates that the Justice Squad was rushed into stopping the Purple Hat gang and it wasn't possible to help the Toccis at that point. However, it wishes well and keeps the door open.

Sihn calls Gere-luce in; the daffy gadgeteer is as usual a bit hesitant to spend too much time away from his demanding wife but is too interested in looking at Mocker to pass it up. He spots a self-destruct mechanism immediately but otherwise he finds Mocker to be a complex piece of cybernetics. Human nerve tissues connect several data elements and in many ways the being can replicate human responses. Gere-luce is fairly sure it's designed by an American organization, either SI or ABC or a dark government lab. It could also be a Doc Magnus creation. He surmises it has an unusual vulnerability to water. They briefly consider interrogating it but there seems to be little of value to get out of it and too much risk it will drain their willpower. Sihn asks Gere-luce if he can isolate and deactivate Mocker's ego-draining capability. Gere-luce makes an attempt but succeeds only in damaging Mocker, seemingly irreparably. Laughton resolves they should make a candy vending machine out of it and Gere-luce is willing to oblige.

Back at the agency, heated debates begin as to what to do with Slayer. Some, such as Sihn, entertain killing him; others such as Sammy believe in turning him into the police. Laughton considers turning him in but only after discreetly setting him up to be hit by the mob at the same time. The debate simmers as Slayer sits in a deep freeze.

Late in the evening Hell bursts in, quite drunk. He takes Laughton aside (as Sihn "works for the government") and indicates that via the Rosenburg case he's uncovered a government plot to deprive kids of education in order to create more service workers for the upper class. Apparently he's somehow followed a trail where, in determining which parent's negligence created their child's drug habit, he found a teacher provided the Rosenburg child with drugs, and this teacher was in cahoots with an official of the Education bureau. This official had records that Hell has gotten a hold of that indicate a correlation in decline in education with mitigation of what would otherwise be a decline in maids and such. This official check-marked suspicious sections of the document and in parts detailing declining education wrote "Good!". Laughton, while not necessarily dismissing the thought, tells Hell he must pursue billable hours and close the Rosenburg case and then he can pursue this lead. Hell isn't satisfied but agrees half-heartedly. He then tries to enlist the gang for some more drinks but fails.

The next day a fax is received in the Laughton and Davis Agency. It's credited to the "Gang of Five" (now actually three) and says, in an almost-illegible scrawl, "You may have Mocker but we are one step closer to our goal. Ha Ha Ha Ha Ha. Gang of Five." There is a sending fax number on it and a return fax is sent - which quickly results in a call from the police to Laughton. Apparently the fax came from a small business in the Upper Peninsula where, earlier that morning, all the employees on site were brutally slain - perhaps in order just for the fax machine to be used. One employee was spared as they were home sick. The police were therefore concerned when they received Laughton's fax. Laughton clears it up with the police, ADA Lucy Coe present. She asks if they had Mocker as the letter indicated. After a brief verbal sparring, Laughton admits they had Mocker but he had blown up shortly after the battle. He is required to bring in pieces of Mocker, leaving only enough for Gere-luce to create an ashtray (and those pieces not known to the police of course) - albeit almost certainly the world's only ashtray built from the remnants of a cyborg and outfitted with a self-destruct button.

Hell in fact closes the Rosenburg case late in the day as he uncovers evidence incriminating both parents - but only one is their client and that's all that matters. He's free to now fight the good fight...

In the meantime the X-Men under Scott Summers' direction arrive and collect Professor X. They mention to any of the Justice Squad present that they are a secret organization and need to stay that way. Sihn makes it a point to mention that he rescued Xavier while Laughton throws in his own single-handedly holding his own against Bud Girl, Mocker, and Mosquito. Sammy points out he saw it all and they're both correct. Unimpressed, Scott goes on to tell Eliot that they found Xavier's plane and nearby a hastily burnt-down log cabin, no doubt Bogeyman's crews' hangout. They apparently abandoned it as they figured Xavier's presence there, even if unconscious most of the time, would bring visitors. Laughton lets Summers know how to contact them if they need help; Summers barely takes note but does comment that the X-Men can be reached via Sihn.

On November 17th the first traces of Bud Girl appear in the results of Sihn's sewer dragnet. She's been in a northern section of Detroit. Over the next few days it gets narrowed down to a neighborhood - she is around and frequenting someplace they can soon find!

Sihn and Laughton seek out counseling from an Eastern mystic. Sihn seeks anger management, hoping to keep his Troll side more under control, while Laughton seeks out focus and mental strength, concerned after his victimization by Bogeyman and Bud Girl. Also, Laughton and Davis are seeking a detective in large part to off-set the drain Hell represents.

November 21 finds the gang preparing for Thanksgiving. Velda has invited Sammy over; she's going to be sure there's scads of food and she mentions to him that she has kept his secrets - not even her parents know that he's Elvis Presley. Oceanchild and Sihn have invited Laughton and Davis over. Maddy Hayes, owner of the Blue Moon chain that Laughton and Davis are part of, is jetting off to Paris for the holidays. Jonas Hell stumbles into the office that morning particularly hung over (actually in a state of both hangover and drunkenness) - Buffy has broken up with him as apparently she was unwilling to have him meet her mother. Laughton tells him that Sammy's going to the missions and Hell could join him. When Hell seeks Sammy out, Sammy's all too willing to go with Hell and just have more food at Velda's in the evening. Though Laughton makes a reference to Caruthers as Tiny Tim, nobody asks poor Caruthers what he's doing for Thanksgiving - he intends to work that day.

Late in the morning, around 10:30, as Velda and Sammy are discussing the feast to come, Speedo Man appears just outside the office door, knocking on it. Velda and Sammy aren't sure what to do - people commonly just walk in as it's a place of business. Sammy lets the strange man knock a few times before answering, as Velda informs Hamlet and Eliot. Sammy shows Speedo Man in; his obsequious manner causes Speedo Man to believe him to be a servant of some kind. Speedo Man announces he intends to see Eliot Sihn. While waiting, Sammy shows the awkwardly dignified man to some coffee. Sammy tries to show Speedo Man how coffee grounds are good but SM's not buying it. Speedo Man picks up the almost-empty decantur and tosses it into the trash, commanding Sammy to make more, fresh coffee. Laughton approaches about this time and offers up some tea instead. This is much to Speedo Man's liking as he prefers tea anyway. Carefully Hamlet takes away the cup as SM finishes it hastily - he wants to be sure that the Troll can get a sample of this strange but powerful being. Incidentally, SM recognizes Laughton from the one time they briefly met.

Sihn shows up at this point, just after peeking around the corner to see that samples were being procured. He immediately sees the visitor's arrogant manner and deflects it by acting casual and flippant. However, Speedo Man has no ability to distinguish that behavior and simply is puzzled by him. SM gets to the point quickly - he has been told that Sihn is somehow part of or combined with the Troll and he wants/needs to get back "Princess Lakura" (by whom he means the woman we all know as Aela/Mermaid), whom he understands he can get to through the Troll. Sihn feigns ignorance though often says leading things about how the Troll is.

Speedo Man demands that Sammy bring a chair and before an annoyed Sammy can cause any friction, Laughton suggests they all go to a conference room and SM can choose a chair. Once there, Laughton indicates he's uncomfortable with the term "Speedo Man" and asks the stranger's name. The stranger is Prince Namor, from a "realm far away". Namor takes the term Speedo Man as one of respect and doesn't understand why Laughton prefers another method of address. Laughton indicates he wants to be called Hamlet, and a discussion of full names ensues, in which Namor mentions his name is fully Prince Ednarg Namor. After more discussion Sihn and Laughton conclude, mentally, that Namor must have mistaken Aela's identity for Princess Lakura since the two have different ages. Aela Oceanchild appeared almost 20 years ago; while Namor's Princess was lost at the same time, she was 17 at the time. Aela is only 22. Still, Namor insists she is the same woman. Laughton volunteers his services as a great detective and asks Namor for details on how Princess Lakura was lost. Namor is short on specifics; he's bemused by the offer as he makes it clear he regards humans as idiots and sadly perhaps Laughton is one of the smartest, while at the same time Namor is equally confident that he can see with his own eyes she is the princess. Sihn leaves for a few moments as Namor wants more tea, sure to get more samples. Then, as Laughton questions Namor, he leaves to do some quick analyses.

Namor reveals that his "princess" came to his people unexpectedly and was only with them a few months. She was "convinced" to become his bride but escaped. Those who were on duty were all quickly executed as they failed their jobs. Of course this doesn't help any real investigative work. When Laughton, puzzled, asks why he wants her when she might just escape again, Namor is equally puzzled by his question. A woman once wedded would never leave in the prince's culture. She would be willingly his wife once subjugated. Apparently this leader's culture treats women as little more than property. In any case Namor wandered the world, settling on America in the last couple years. He followed rumors of a girl with strange water powers, sounding like his princess, in the northeast and to Detroit. Once in Detroit he saw pictures of her and could see with his own eyes she is his princess and must be captured. Before and after this information is given, a couple of times, both in front of Sihn, when it comes up that Aela is married, he off-handedly comments, "Then I will simply kill her husband and she will belong to me."

Sihn returns; he's gotten some initial data and found that this being is particularly vulnerable to fire. He returns smoking a cigar and offers one to Namor. Speedo Man refuses of course and then tells Sihn, "Get rid of that." He hesitantly tells Laughton how to reach him - via Post Office Box 111 in a nearby zip code. Namor liked the box number and managed to persuade the holder of that box to give it up. Throughout this conversation he grabs Sihn's cigar and despite some pain puts it out in his hand and throws it to the floor. Sihn simply lights another. This repeats a couple times, during which Namor indicates his hesitation about giving out his PO Box is that he previously had done so only to get several strange offers for things he did not want. Namor is not offended by Sihn (who is also trying hard to manage his aggression) but is annoyed by his refusal to not follow his simple order. Finally, he warns Sihn he will strike if the cigar-lighting continues. Sihn acknowledges that he hears the warning and promptly ignores it. Namor quickly strikes with an unusually graceful maneuver and knocks Sihn out cold and inflicting great but not quite deadly bodily harm. He turns to Laughton and says, "I'm sorry but as you can see I warned him. I did what I had to. At least it appears he's healing quite well already." Laughton cordially sees Namor's point and bids him farewell, hoping to meet up with him in a week. Namor is still bemused by the detective's offer and responds "Perhaps." Sammy comments on how rude Speedo Man is.

Duct Tape Corporation and Laughton and Davis begin negotiations on a marketing agreement with Blue Moon. Duct Tape's marketing does not want to be directly associated with the Justice Squad as they eschew vigilante/mutant tie-ins but are interested in something that only subtly touches on it.

Thanksgiving arrives. Hell is considerably more cheerful as he's already found another generous girlfriend, but he also wants to honor his commitment to Sammy. As Hell and Sammy walk to a local mission mid-day, a car suddenly speeds in front of them and comes to squealing halt. Sammy momentarily freezes as he sees men in biologically contained jumpsuits - one eerily reminiscent of those of ABC Corporation. Jonas' fingers quickly hit speed dial and he is connected to Laughton...

[Game Mechanics - Points Awarded...

Drawing against a roughly equal opponent - for getting Xavier and Mocker but letting most of the bad guys get away with the diamond - +3.75 RPs for The Captain, Rodin, Sammy, Troll, +.25 XPs for The Captain, Rodin, Sammy, Troll

Thoroughly defeating an inferior opponent - for stopping the knife-wielding ex-waiter - +.75 RPs for Rodin, Sammy, +.05 XPs for Rodin, Sammy

Losing to a vastly superior opponent - for Namor coming into the offices, dominating, and punching out the Troll - 11.25 RPs for Rodin, Sammy, Troll, +.75 XPs for Rodin, Sammy, Troll

Session play - +4.5 RPs for Rodin, Sammy, Troll, +1.5 XPs for Rodin, Sammy, Troll; +2.25 RPs for The Captain, +.75 XPs for The Captain

Totals:

The Captain +5.25 RPs, +1 XP
Rodin +20.25 RPs, +2.55 XPs
Sammy the Slime +20.25 RPs, +2.55 XPs
Troll +19.5 RPs, +2.5 XPs

Totals to Date:

The Captain 243.75 RPs, 21.925 XPs
Justice (working title) 68.625 RPs, 4.975 XPs
Mermaid 200.625 RPs, 17.7425 XPs
Rodin 258.75 RPs, 23.375 XPs
Sammy the Slime 244.125 RPs, 21.5875 XPs
Troll 257.625 RPs, 25.275 XPs