Dramatis Personae

• Derrick K. Ratnam aka Ledgerdemain (NPC Ally): Spin doctor and media liaison for Project VANGUARD. Twin to Bo. Tagline: “Well, actually that’s not how it happened…”
• Jodie R. Swann aka Surferboy (NPC): Dude. Aero- and Hydrokinetic. Really laid back, but wants to make a difference. Has a advanced glider/drone he rides on. Tagline: “Like. Let’s just chill, dude.”
• Layla A. de Blackburn aka Nox (NPC): CIA-trained child assassin all grown up to be Daddy’s Little Monster. Maybe a little mad. Argues with her shadow often. Tagline: “No, we shouldn’t do that…should we?”
• Stainless Steel Rat aka “Sir” (NPC Ally): Bo’s best friend and assistant. A sentient drone in the shape of a stylized shiny metal rat mindlinked to Bo. Specialties are rapid repair construction and modifications. Imagine if K-9 and R2D2 made a baby and it looks a bit like a rodent. Tagline: “Repairs and upgrades in progress”
• Tierney M. Ward aka Rush (NPC): Speedster and former member of the Bullet Hell Brigade. Tagline: “Was that fast? I thought that was fast.”
• Zubayr Sajjad Marou aka Five Stars (NPC): Driver. Pilot. Klubbe gig worker.. From N’Djamena, Chad. Used to go by Darryl Bell to sound more American. Tagline: “I can get you there in time.”

Previously . . .

Several days have passed since the missions have finished and the support teams are still going through the data that they’ve brought in with the aid of the CIA, NSA, and several other alphabets. They’re majorly worried about a working serum coming into existence, especially one that isn’t under their control. The group, since they’ve got nothing better to do, is sent over to India for humanitarian support, with Wirerat being forced to accompany them in the real world with Wirerat being very distraught and Nyx being as comforting as he can be. Whisper gets woken up and gently warning the man sharing her bed to not mind the suit that’ll be there when he wakes up to show him the way out and gets a quick briefing from the director rolls out of bed.

They’re headed New Delhi to India for humanitarian aid since they’re experiencing a record heat wave and drought with Whisper and Five Star flying the planes. They ask for opinions on how to deal with things as they have to explain it to Nyx who has had less than stellar educational opportunities while Wirerat sits in the corner with a visor with blacked out so he doesn’t have to deal with the real world. Nyx quietly scribbles Groucho glasses and mustache on the visor while he’s distracted. Nox and Threshold comment on perhaps casting a lot of shade, similar to her previous blackout in Syria.

Throwing Shade

Nyx, Threshold, Whisper, and Wirerat
Office of Emergency Management
Monday, June 10th, 2019, 1230 hours (UTC+5.30)
Parliament House, New Delhi, Delhi 110001, India

Landing at the airport, they’ve even got the Prime Minister there to greet them for assistance, thanking them in English with Threshold taking over. Their largest problem is the sun and the lack of water. They plan to take them to their emergency services department as they’ve got a lot of pomp and circumstance with crowd there to see the group land, several recognizing Nyx after his years of service in the Vanguard program. Taken to a mobile command center for emergency service departments with RVs full of various organizations like the UN, Doctors Without Borders, and  RESCUE (a Greenpeace-like group full of metahumans). Threshold heads over to the Doctors Without Borders and greets them from his prior time in the group. He wants to know what the lay of the land is, what their plans are, and what are their powers. looking at the information, the drought is pretty severe, spanning hundreds if not thousands of miles.

Nox speaks with Nyx about how to work with his powers and to do a fusion with their powers, explaining it even more in-depth than back in Syria. She teaches him how to form a fusion with other Darkness Manipulators and how to stunt their powers together. Working together, they shade the entire continent of India for the next couple days.

The discussion turns to water usage, Threshold could strain himself and open a portal for some time to bring in new water with Surferboy being able to purify it, but it would be quite taxing on both. Nyx points out that he may also be able to help with the warping of space and time since he’s got a similar power with Nox helping them along. Nyx, being a veritable energy bank, shoulders the burden of providing the energy, Nox shouldering some of the saturation burden, with Threshold directing the gestalt after Wirerat builds a small submersible that can show Threshold where to open the portal to. With the air of an earth manipulator creating a large hole in the ground, a large, portal is created semi-permanently to provide water to a certain level while Surferboy creates a filtration system with his powers, making it look like a water fountain with animated features While Wirerat waits for the rest of the group, he investigates the local infrastructure and suggests improvements wherever he determines their problems to be. Luka Sinclair of the metahuman group tells them that they can expand it outwards by creating aqueducts with earth manipulators like they did over in Africa.

Whisper has been collating the data that she’s been given access to after being given a pad with the information. Checking out large amounts of electricity waste and other shenanigans to see if there was a metahuman causing the problems. But it just seems that it’s another horrible situation thanks to climate change. There’s plenty of other supers helping to work on that, but it’s slow going. She shows the information to Director Landry, that there’s no one she can beat on for the problems that they’ve experienced there. With nothing to punch, she works with Sinclair on doing humanitarian aid, handing out bottles of water and otherwise while Sinclair, who is, for some reason, not wearing a shirt in the heat which Whisper really notices and Sinclair notices that she notices and winks at her.

The next day, the ambient temperature has dropped by four degrees. Threshold can help distribute food with the aid of others. Kids are bothering Whisper, asking what she’s able to do, if she can breathe fire or other things, showing off her strength to them, doing juggling tricks and knife tricks including five finger filets on small children. Threshold keeps porting around and grabbing strong men to transport supplies and help those from the MG working with everyone while explaining what is actually happening. Though the general populace is a bit scared, the government has sent runners and radio transmissions explaining what is going on. Surferboy is trying to save the crops by pulling in well water and making new wells as needed. Government is working with Threshold to help distribute cameras so he can use them to teleport around more easily.

Wirerat has been given full access to the entire infrastructure to help control the rolling blackout and repairing the most important public services and checking out the scummier looking parts of the streets. Wirerat develops a computer program to help direct the electric grid and seven working prototypes that fit into the substations while simultaneously setting out free licenses and patents.

Aftermath

The three girls get roped by the Auntie Brigade and are changed into traditional Indian garb with the old ladies excited about Whisper’s muscles. They’re stuck into the best hotel they’ve got and are able to go out into the rural areas where it’s still somewhat ugly from the drought, but the massive heat wave is cooling the area considerably. People are absolutely astounded by what they’ve been doing and near about worship the group. Wirerat starts leaving behind self-contained wifi modules in nearly 36 towns they visit using old satellites and slow speeds, but it’s more than what they have beforehand. By the time the week is over, the heat dome has effectively been dispersed.

Back home, they find that there’s been plenty of coverage when folks learn that they’ve been there, excited about what they’ve done. The Newshound herself shows up, she’s got two powers where she can go to spots where there are interesting stories and can detect when people are lying. She’s been the bane of multiple people who want to keep things outside the limelight.

After Action Report (GM)

One of my favorite forms of escapism is to think of how to make the world a better place. How *I* can do that. It gives me motive and it gives me joy. When I can do it in a roleplaying game it is even better. Imagine what the world might look like if people used their power for good. Now imagine they have superhuman powers. They can blot out the sun. They can change the weather. Cross the map in an instant. Heal the sick and injured with a touch. To whom much is given, much will be required. Today’s session wasn’t about smashing bad guys. It wasn’t about sneaking in somewhere. It wasn’t about securing intel. It was about a group of superheroes living up to their names. In the real world, India faced a MASSIVE heat wave in May-June in 2019. Today’s session took place somewhere in between and the PCs got right into it. Using powers to shade the sun, bring water clear and clean to be drank and used. Bringing supplies to the rural villages. Bringing the world to them via a rural internet. Fixing crumbling infrastructure. It was glorious.

Working with RESCUE (Rapid Emergency Supply, Command, & Utility Engineering), a organization much like Greenpeace or an international version of FEMA, RESCUE shows up where they are needed. Ninety percent of them have powers that are useful at dealing with disasters (natural or otherwise) and humanitarian crisis. Most of them are trained at search and rescue, medicine, or other disaster zone useful skills. They are no slouches when it comes to protecting themselves – all of them are combat capable. Sometimes the shepherd has to carry a gun to protect their flock. I introduced Luck Sinclair who is in charge of the main deployment force for RESCUE and he had his eye on a certain female (TM). That was amusing. I’m also backdooring something else, but more on that later.

Other Notes

Bonus Report from Rory.

Soundtrack

“Slippin’ into Darkness” by War
“Rescue Me” by Kerrie Roberts
“Tu Jhoom” by Naseebo Lal and Abida Parveen