Arc 1-Session 2-Mini 3 - Shade/Auntie

(9:22:54 PM) icoordinates: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
So, it's Saturday morning in Pinnacle City, Iowa. Sleepy people heavy with religious thoughts (you can *sense* that now, which is kind of weird) are dragging themselves into the morning light of the sun, headed to synagogues and churches of the Order of the Sacred Flame.  (They have a Sun-goddess, but put their weekly holy day on Saturday for some reason. Maybe it was a translation spell mishap, maybe they didn't wanna go up against *that* timeslot pre-Jerusalem. You're not sure.)
You, on the other hand, can't sleep. You think *maybe* you're a little nocturnal. You're sleeping less and less, though, so maybe you just... won't sleep, at all, eventually. Which is kind of weird but also kind of awesome. Your aunt won't be able to keep you from staying up watching TV all night long! (Sadly, it's mostly infomercials after 3 AM.)
(9:25:48 PM) read87: NETFLIX.
(9:25:49 PM) read87: ...
(9:26:41 PM) read87: Speaking of Auntie, I’m wondering where she is. She’s in “Europe”. I don’t think she’s actually in Europe (She’s in Uruguay). But I haven’t been able to reach her. I know she’s okay but...well....I’m sure she’ll be fine, right? Maybe...mmmf.
(9:26:43 PM) read87: TV is nice, at least.
(9:26:52 PM) read87: I do like TV. I’m watching the Great British Bake Off.
(9:29:04 PM) icoordinates: You should probably go to one of the churches and thank the paladins who protected you earlier. (Even though you sort of wound up saving them. Sort of.)
... But maybe not on a Saturday morning.
(... There are also good cartoons. Not that you'd watch them. You are a mature goddess.)
(9:29:28 PM) read87: .....I”m totally watching cartoons. Shut up. I delivered pizza until a few weeks ago.
(9:31:24 PM) read87: On a Saturday morning. Now I’m watching people bake delicious treats.
(9:39:57 PM) icoordinates: Duh. An hour or two of delicious treats, you have Technicolor Ponies set to record, and you have no responsibilities and no one who is coming to your house.
- then the front door slams open and you duck into your own shadow.
(9:40:14 PM) read87: !
(9:40:22 PM) read87: I...poke my head out, a little. Trying to stay hidden.
(9:40:25 PM) read87: That...is that Auntie?
(9:40:31 PM) read87: ...I hope she recognizes me.
(9:47:54 PM) icoordinates: ... That's auntie. I mean, you didn't recognize her. Until right now. Her dark skin and pointy ears were kind of ... fuzzy, like the rest of your past, but there was a picture you saw of this person that you guess was her -
There's a crack from the floor in front of her and a wave of mortal-blinding darkness spills out as she dives in.
AUNT HAS A GUN. RED ALERT.
SWEAR YOU'LL DO THE DISHES
(9:48:30 PM) read87: “aaaah! don’t shoot! @_@“
(9:48:51 PM) read87: I have my hands up. I mean, it’s not super fuzzy. Auntie’s clear as day, sort of. She just didn’t look like *that*. But it’’s obviously her because of course it’s her.
(9:50:11 PM) icoordinates: She scans the room to cover behind you. "... You're safe?"
"... Why are there bullet holes from a light machine gun in the front porch? Rachel."
... eeeeh, but that's hard and expensive to clean up.
(9:51:04 PM) read87: “....because someone tried to kill me? apparently i’m a goddess now!” A moment. “....why do you have a gun?!” I can’t really make my distress known by being loud, but she can probably hear it.
(9:52:25 PM) icoordinates: After a few moments, she puts the gun away. The darkness fades, and she appears as your human aunt again.
She looks at you, upset. "You didn't call?"
(9:52:40 PM) read87: “i did!”
(9:52:46 PM) read87: “you didn’t pick up!” I totally called!
(9:53:22 PM) read87: “i got your stupid long voice mail message answer thingey. it’s not funny when archer does it, it’s not funny when you do it.” That’s a lie, those are pretty hilarious.
(9:54:47 PM) read87: “....also...uh....how did you do that?”
(9:55:05 PM) icoordinates: She's still upset. Very much so. Then she reaches out to grab you by the ear and pull you out of the shadow you're hiding in.
(9:55:19 PM) read87: “ow! ow! owwwww!”
(9:55:26 PM) read87: “aaaaauntieeeeeee @_@“
(9:55:35 PM) read87: ...the ear probably doesn’t pull out to a cute point.
(9:57:08 PM) icoordinates: It doesn't. Sadly. (Yet.)
(9:57:17 PM) icoordinates: "Sit." She points to the couch.
(9:57:28 PM) read87: I sit. Very chastised.
(10:00:34 PM) icoordinates: "What have you been doing since you gained the Mantle of Shadows, Rachel?"
(10:02:13 PM) read87: “...w-watching tv. and eating candy.”
(10:02:19 PM) read87: “and uh, i met some paladins.”
(10:03:18 PM) icoordinates: "Mmm-hmm. And did you pay for all of that candy?" of course!
(10:03:29 PM) read87: “...of course i did auntie!”
(10:05:49 PM) read87: I sound indignant. :<!
(10:06:00 PM) read87: “....i don’t steal stuff! :(“
(10:06:05 PM) read87: “...and how much do you know about this?!”
(10:08:29 PM) read87: “auntie, why did you look all weird? and have pointy ears?” because she’s an elf. I mean... “...are you an elf?”
(10:15:33 PM) icoordinates: "Drow." Pause. "Yes." Another pause. "Some of it. My sister was a demigod." - Wait WHAT really?
(10:15:58 PM) read87: “w-what?! ...oh.”
(10:16:05 PM) read87: “...um...are you one too?”
(10:16:32 PM) read87: “uh, a demigod that is. or...was that my mom?”
(10:16:59 PM) read87: “i did get a letter from my dad...” I do hand it over.
(10:19:14 PM) icoordinates: "Just your mother. I'm not that lucky," she adds. "Your mother sent you here to be raised with me since she didn't want this life for you. And she thought your grandfather was evidently going to live a lot longer than he did."
(10:20:24 PM) read87: “....yeah um...”
(10:20:42 PM) read87: “....you’re a total badass, aren’t you?” It’s not said with any anger, just some slight questioning and a faint hint of nervousness.
(10:21:25 PM) read87: I’m rather quickly next to her, snuggling. I’m pretty sure I was taller before. But she’s still good to hug.
(10:21:44 PM) read87: ...I did come out of her shadow.
(10:21:47 PM) read87: IT”S INSTINCT :<!
(10:25:51 PM) icoordinates: "Of course I am." She sort of holds you off. Normally people can't do that. At all. But she does. You're not sure if she's got divine power in her right arm or if you're just letting her because she's Aunt. But she extends her arm like a bully holding a smaller kid back to keep you out of her shadow and snuggling. "No. No hugs until we make sure you're not going to end up like your Grandfather."
(10:26:15 PM) read87: “....what do you mean?”
(10:27:41 PM) read87: I...I mean, I’m not hurt. Or at least not trying to show it.
(10:29:18 PM) icoordinates: She sighs deeply. "Well, here we'd call your grandfather a supervillain. A bad one, too." You... were sort of guessing that, yeah. "My mother said that he was normal when he was just our cousin, but... some things happened." She doesn't specify what those 'things' are.
(10:29:48 PM) read87: “...oh. um...”
(10:29:56 PM) read87: “...like what sort of things?” I sound scared!
(10:30:09 PM) read87: I don’t want to spontaniously turn evil!
(10:30:53 PM) icoordinates: "... Kidnapped by cultists of a god from another world and convinced that his powers were evil so he was evil too."
(10:31:13 PM) read87: “!”
(10:31:15 PM) read87: .....
(10:31:20 PM) read87: “....idon’twannagetkidnapped!”
(10:31:21 PM) read87: ....
(10:31:25 PM) read87: I’m hiding in my own shadow, again.
(10:31:27 PM) read87: ....
(10:31:30 PM) read87: IT”S SCARY! SHUT UP!
(10:32:04 PM) icoordinates: ... That was a thing you might have been saved from, after all.
(10:32:18 PM) read87: ....ohno. ohno...
(10:32:40 PM) read87: “...t-that’s maybe what the machine guns were? um, trying to kidnap me or something...” Fidget fidget. OHSHIT. OH SHIT...
(10:33:17 PM) icoordinates: "So you can see why I was *concerned*."
(10:33:34 PM) read87: I nodnod. “i...yeah...” small whimper.
(10:34:42 PM) icoordinates: "When your grandfather became a god, your mother got some of his power because she was his daughter. But she didn't get kidnapped, so she... tried to get away from him. She got away for a very long time." ... She's very quiet about the exact details.
(10:35:18 PM) read87: “...oh.”
(10:36:30 PM) read87: “and what about my father?”
(10:37:50 PM) icoordinates: "He was, uh, a Baron." - what, really? YOU'RE NOBILITY AND A GODDESS. YAY. "I didn't keep that much track of him. Need-to-know isn't exactly the best basis to run a family on."
(10:38:25 PM) read87: YAY!
(10:39:01 PM) read87: “...oh! um...that’s...huh. that makes sense...” I mean, it doesn’t, but I’m nodding along. “...i’m really 19 though, right?”
(10:40:38 PM) read87: “...and um...we’ve been here since i was....”
(10:40:48 PM) read87: I look at her, uncertain.
(10:45:04 PM) icoordinates: "... Six." What, that long? "I took you in when you were six." That... does explain a few things. "Now, I couldn't tell you that much about what I did, because it'd make you an accessory to certain things."
(10:45:51 PM) read87: “...is that um...the vacation you take every year?”
(10:47:42 PM) icoordinates: "...Sort of." And the locked 'makeup cabinet' that she screamed at you when you pulled the lock off and started looking over the weird-colored powders.
(10:48:01 PM) read87: ...right. that...
(10:48:06 PM) read87: That makes a *lot* of sense.
(10:48:43 PM) read87: Still though, since I was six...it explains why I don’t remember *much* of my childhood.
(10:49:27 PM) icoordinates: "I go find a supervillain, usually someone hiding in a country without extradition treaties, and I make an... offering."
(10:50:15 PM) read87: “...like godfather offering?” ....A moment. “....is *that* why i felt really nice two days ago?!”
(10:50:34 PM) read87: I may be a bit red.
(10:50:42 PM) icoordinates: "...Yes."
(10:50:56 PM) read87: “...eheheheheheh...” BRIGHT RED>
(10:51:05 PM) read87: “um....it...um....thank you...”
(10:51:26 PM) read87: I look like I want to jump into my own shadow. Again.
(10:51:48 PM) icoordinates: (I need to bed soon)
(10:51:50 PM) icoordinates: (Continue later?)
(10:51:56 PM) read87: (Me too and yes!
(10:51:59 PM) read87: SHADE IS ADORABLE
(10:52:00 PM) read87: AUNTIE IS TOO
(10:52:17 PM) read87: “please teach me how to be good at assassinating at things?”
(10:54:53 PM) read87: SHADE IS CUTEST HALF DROW
(10:55:02 PM) read87: “...oh, that explains the grey skin and purple eyes and hair...”
(6:48:43 PM) icoordinates: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Auntie's still mad at you. Probably because the entire front of the house is still shot up and you didn't call anyone, just sort of put plastic wrap over the holes and went 'cool'. Speaking of 'cool', you were still running the AC.
(6:51:26 PM) read87: Yeah. I mean, it’s hot out! And I get hot easily. Well, I mean, we’re in Northern Michigan so it’s more humid than anything....
(6:51:29 PM) read87: THE OVEN MITT!
(6:51:31 PM) read87: ....
(6:51:33 PM) read87: It’s nice up here.
(6:51:41 PM) read87: And we’re on the water. But still.
(6:51:56 PM) read87: Yeah...I mean...I’m not really sure who to call about this.
(6:52:09 PM) read87: Still...I mean, it’s not like it’s that bad...
(6:52:12 PM) icoordinates: (Actually, you're in Iowa.)
(6:52:19 PM) read87: (Oh! Iowa then!)
(6:52:51 PM) icoordinates: (Pinnacle Academy was originally built in Iowa because the president at the time hated his party's next front-runner.)
(6:52:56 PM) read87: (HA!)
(6:57:06 PM) icoordinates: So, that's probably most of the reason you're grounded.
(6:57:36 PM) read87: I mean, it makes sense...
(6:57:55 PM) read87: Still, I’m rather :< about the entire thing. Ugh, I’m 19! I’m technically a divinity! And...I’m going to be good, honestly. :<
(6:57:57 PM) read87: ....
(7:03:28 PM) icoordinates: On the bright side, you've been confined to your room and you have a laptop.
... Rachel didn't have many friends, she was kind of quiet. That's disappointing.
(7:06:49 PM) read87: Yeah....
(7:06:53 PM) read87: I mean...I’m kinda quiet.
(7:06:56 PM) read87: ....
(7:07:24 PM) read87: A lot of personal memories are hazy. But not Auntie. And not...my preferences. Which is weird. I mean, I know that they exist. And i remember them faintly but...
(7:07:25 PM) icoordinates: How are you supposed to get worshippers if you're so quiet! :<
(7:07:29 PM) icoordinates: ... Why is that relevant for you now?
(7:07:29 PM) read87: I HAVE NO IDEA :<!
(7:07:36 PM) read87: ....ON BOTH COUNTS!
(7:09:01 PM) read87: EUGH....
(7:09:01 PM) read87: :<!
(7:09:10 PM) read87: “....mmmf...” I’m going to browse the internet.
(7:09:43 PM) read87: And see what’s new. I mean...I’m supposed to go to Pinnacle to train, according to the church. I should see if I got in, right? I think, anyway. Eugh...
(7:15:37 PM) read87: ...
(7:15:41 PM) read87: I could ask Auntie about this entire thing.
(7:15:43 PM) read87: Mmmf...
(7:16:14 PM) read87: I won’t slip into her shadow. Because 1) I very much *do* remember that disobeying her is something I don’t do and 2) because she’d haul me up by the ear and drag me back here. :O
(7:18:06 PM) read87: And then I’d totally be grounded for longer. :(
(7:32:30 PM) icoordinates: (Gah! Sorry.)
(7:32:34 PM) icoordinates: (I was interrupted by Dad.)
(7:32:37 PM) read87: (No worries!)
(7:33:02 PM) icoordinates: Ping! There's several dozen emails for you. Most are spam, half are metahuman-spam, and one is from Pinnacle.
(7:33:13 PM) read87: OH!
(7:33:15 PM) read87: THAT”S GREAT
(7:33:17 PM) read87: OPEN THAT ONE!
(7:33:18 PM) read87: ....
(7:33:25 PM) read87: And wait, is Metahuman spam a new thing?!
(7:40:11 PM) icoordinates: ... Yes. It is. Someone is trying to sell you throwing knives in the shape of your choice.
(7:40:19 PM) read87: Whoa.
(7:40:21 PM) read87: How’d they...
(7:40:23 PM) read87: I mean...
(7:40:24 PM) read87: Mmmf.
(7:40:26 PM) read87: WEIRD!
(7:40:30 PM) read87: STILL. PINNACLE.
(7:40:30 PM) icoordinates: Anyone with a Pinnacle Academy email address gets them.
(7:40:39 PM) read87: Oh man...I guess I do...

(7:47:19 PM) read87: PINNACLE EMAIL!
(7:48:20 PM) read87: I’m opening it, yo!
(7:50:47 PM) icoordinates: Of course!
acarroll@pinnacle.edu
Blah blah blah, welcome to Pinnacle, blah blah blah, you've been put in our Accelerated Acceptance Program for people who have just become metahumans less than a month before classes start, blah blah blah we've already gotten your high school transcript blah blah blah scholarship dependent on joining hero team - wait, what?
(7:50:59 PM) read87: ....
(7:51:00 PM) read87: WAT
(7:51:12 PM) read87: But I don’t have any practical powers...
(7:51:15 PM) read87: Other than a bow
(7:51:15 PM) read87: ....
(7:51:20 PM) read87: And becoming invisible and non-existant.
(7:51:23 PM) read87: And teleporting.
(7:51:41 PM) read87: And uh...feeling really nice whenever someone does something sacramenty in my name. I...think it’s killing people. Which isn’t good!
(7:52:56 PM) read87: ....
(7:53:02 PM) read87: Shit....I’d be really good at heroing.
(7:53:12 PM) read87: “auntieeee!” ...It’s just trying to get her attention and...
(7:53:15 PM) read87: Shit. I’m so quiet.
(7:53:28 PM) icoordinates: ...Yep. But she's up at your door anyways in a few seconds. Even though she was in the basement doing laundry.
(7:53:31 PM) icoordinates: Knock knock on the door.
(7:53:38 PM) read87: It opens!
(7:54:04 PM) read87: “...um...i got uh...was talking to uh...the paladins and they mentioned that i should get training in my powers and uh...i ended up at pinnacle and they want me there doing hero stuff and uh...”
(7:54:07 PM) read87: “...is that okay?”
(7:56:39 PM) read87: “...i mean, both from a permission standpoint and uh...you saying if it’s a good idea?”
(8:00:15 PM) icoordinates: "Mmmm." She looks uncertain. "Mmmmm." Then she looks over your shoulder. "Mmmm."
"Give me your cell phone." But whyyyyyy? It's your phone!
"Because you're not getting paid nearly enough for this."
(8:00:34 PM) read87: “okay”
(8:00:38 PM) read87: I mean, of course I’d give it to her.
(8:00:39 PM) read87: ...
(8:00:45 PM) read87: I mean, she’s apparently a *total* badass.
(8:01:04 PM) read87: Instead of just...uh, my aunt.
(8:06:59 PM) icoordinates: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"Listen you fuckwit." You can only hear half of the argument with the Dean. "The Mantle of Shade is a divine artifact that predates the English civilization and has worked to safeguard an entire plane from everything up to and including an Annihilator Probe. DO YOU FUCKING KNOW WHAT AN ANNIHILATOR PROBE IS, YOU PENCIL-SNIFFING TWATMONKEY?"
(8:07:18 PM) read87: ...ohgodauntie...
(8:09:44 PM) icoordinates: "No. No, you fucking don't know what an Annihilator Probe is, because your insignificant fucking human mind that's never been to another star in the galaxy does not have enough neurons to contain the simplest detail of how the Eternium Armor works. So if you think you can get my niece just for room and board, your higher functions died of smoke inhalation at Mandragora Hall, you limbless wriggling piece of shit!"
You, uh, you haven't seen this side of your aunt directed at someone who isn't you before.
Is it awesome, terrifying, or both?
(8:10:06 PM) read87: BOTH.
(8:10:33 PM) read87: AUNTIE IS TERRIFYING. SO AWESOME AND TERRIFYING.
(8:10:56 PM) icoordinates: "I know exactly what your power does, bitch. I broke into Shadow's files and read it myself. You are nothing to me. You are nothing to her. Do you understand me clearly?"
(8:11:47 PM) read87: ....I....I’m curious now. ....I mean, mostly. Like...i’m from another galaxy?! Holy crap!
(8:11:48 PM) read87: ....
(8:11:54 PM) read87: I’m going to need to ask her about *all* of this.
(8:13:05 PM) icoordinates: "Full board. Full room. No tuition. Ten thousand a month, or we walk, and we walk to fucking Pittsburgh!"
(8:13:12 PM) read87: “....”
(8:13:13 PM) icoordinates: She presses the 'end call' button and hands it to you.
(8:13:18 PM) icoordinates: "She'll call back."
(8:13:21 PM) read87: “....i don’t want to go to pittsburgh...”
(8:13:35 PM) read87: “but um...right.”
(8:13:38 PM) read87: I nod, a little.
(8:13:40 PM) read87: A little intimidated.
(8:14:13 PM) read87: “...you’re really scary...”
(8:14:15 PM) read87: I smile, a bit.
(8:14:18 PM) read87: More than a bit.
(8:14:26 PM) icoordinates: ... She smiles at you, for the first time since you came home.
(8:14:49 PM) read87: “....i want to be scary too. but to the right people.”
(8:15:19 PM) icoordinates: ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
She doesn't call back.
There's an email.
The "Erin Celeste Pinnacle Academy Memorial Scholarship". Which didn't exist ten minutes ago and won't exist after you graduate. Probably.
(8:16:04 PM) read87: “....” Wow. That was quick! Is it everything Auntie wanted? I mean, I’ll present it to her, wordlessly.
(8:17:10 PM) icoordinates: "It's nine thousand, nine hundred and ninety-nine dollars."
... Did she include ninety-nine cents? Your aunt is *upset*, but seems to have recieved the message.
(8:19:38 PM) read87: She did. “....” A moment. Two. Three. “....what’s eternium armor? what’s an annihilator probe?”
(8:19:50 PM) read87: “....what exactly *can* i do?”
(8:21:12 PM) icoordinates: "You're better off not knowing. You're better off not knowing." She pauses for the third one. "You're better off learning there."
(8:25:37 PM) read87: “okay...” a moment and a nod.
(8:26:23 PM) icoordinates: "You should get to campus. It says you already have a dorm there." What are you going to do? "Stay here and see if any of them try again," she says, jerking her head towards the bullet holes downstairs.