Ex_Libris

By the way, if you want the UI to be included in the TGA files, you can do "/screenshotui 1".

Name: Mythral
Motto: Burn in the Mythral Flames of Justice!
Leader: Flame Witch
Player Type: Casual to Dedicated Players
Number of Members: 10+
Current Levels: 12-24
Normal time of Gameplay: 3pm-6am EST

We are currently recruiting Heroes of security level 10+. We are looking for dedicated heroes who enjoy the social aspects of Paragon city and it's community. We have our own webspace and dedicated teamspeak server for those who prefer voice over text. We are here to have a ton of fun, make new friends and laugh a lot. There is a lot more to Paragon than grinding and we aim to find all there is within the city and enjoy it to it's fullest. We hope you will be there with us.

Please leave in-game email to Controlling 'X (Yes, there is an apostrophe in my name) , Flame Witch, or Cinnimon if you have any questions or feel you'd like to join our ranks.

Good crime fighting to all...

'X

Something is up with the quote marks. Argas is nice and short so it shouldn't need them.

Like the previous poster said you're running the main exe, not the updater. If you got a message about running the updater then it didn't see your command line parameters for some reason.

Now Lobe was thouroughly lost. He'd been searching for Deth for a while now and had seen no people at all since jumping by the strange fellas in the blue uniforms. Why they had shields was a mystery, as was what they were trying to say to him when he jumped passed. Either way, he hadn't found the Lady Deth yet and he wasn't sure if he would in the mess he was jumping through. "Geesh, doesn't anybody clean up around here?" Coming to a halt he gazed around at the complete destruction of bridges, stores, statues, and parks. Buildings, leaning crazily, missing their upper floors, and spewing forth black smoke, broke up the skyline. The utter lack of life completed the sense that Lobe was staring at a corpse.

And like all corpses, this one had maggots.

"Well well well. What have we here fellas?" questioned a green tinged humanoid that hadn't been there a moment before. Emerging out of a hole in the wall of a roofless building were 8 more, all dressed in shabby, unkept clothing and with faces that more resembled demonic pigs than humans.

Lobe, relieved at finding some live people in this desolate place, grinned happily, "Hi! I'm Lobe and I'm looking for a nice lady about this high," he leaned down with his hand splayed out at about the 5 foot mark. "And she wears a hat and her name is Deth, yup. Have you seen her? Have you?"

The speaker looked around at his compatriots and back up at Lobe's concerned-filled grinning face. "Well, I can't say as I have. You boys? Have you seen this Deth Lady?" The leader inquired of his bretheren. What he received in return were a spattering of denials issued in grunts and broken english. Now this particular troll happened to be smarter than average and recognized an opportunity when it came knocking. Looking back to Lobe he said, "Sorry Lobe, but maybe we can help you find her."

Lobe's chagrin quickly changed to happiness, "Really? Wow, you guys are nice." Lobe missed the stunned looks directed at the leader by his minions.

"Well, actually, we need some help with something and if you could give us a hand then we could return the favour by helping you find this Deth of yours." As the troll spoke his comrades' stunned looks slowly changed to ones of confusion.

"Oh Lobe help, yup. I am good at helping!" Lobe agreed happily. "What do you need help with?"

The Troll looked back at his men and winked. "Well Lobe, you see we kind of locked ourselves out of our building...." As the Troll continued his explanation the others slowly began to smile.

As the smoke clears, a single but rather large figure stumbles his way out of the smoking hole, and coughs a few times as he blows out a few smoke rings “Eh, bloody crazy mages…” The irish accented hear known as Caladbolg booms, “…I dinnae if they’re stupid o’ just cowards blowin’ ‘emselves up like that..”

With a final grunt of distaste, Caladbolg heads off from the sight of his latest tangle with the Circle of Thorns. The man Cal calls ‘The Boss’, Servant 12, has an extreme dislike for their kind, and when Cal heard the young woman’s screams he didn’t care too much for them either. Of course, to Cal, there’s nothing better than a hard fought battle, and the beaming thanks of a nice young lass when the work is done.

With a chuckle to himself, though, the mountain of a man leaps off towards the farthest reaches of the City. Paragon City. A most interesting place, and quite different from the towns he is used to. Now, Cal isn’t any stranger to large cities, hailing from Dublin most recently, but something along the lines of this place is quite a different world. However, Cal still can’t decide if it is the City, or the ‘so called Destiny’ that Servant 12 tells him of.

Sometime after losing his best friend in the fire started by that blood-sucking freak, Cal ran into Servant 12, and the rest of his life has been a whirlwind of excitement. Servant 12 told him that he could see ‘some kind of glow’ on the young man, and that he could show him what his powers were meant for. Cal, being ever pragmatic, was wary at first, but decided that after the incident at Mickey’s that it would probably be best if he headed out of Ireland for awhile. That is how he finds himself in Paragon City.

Since coming to the City, Cal has met quite a few of his teammates, and they are all very different than what he’s used to. There is, of course, The Boss, who seems a bit wound tight, but is a decent fellow, and knows his fightin’ pretty good. Scion, with his weird talkin’, his crazy winds, and the heart of a true hero. Swirrla, the lady with enough power ta blast even Cal through a few buildings, and Cover Girl who carries more ammo on her than any ten IRA people that Cal has had the enjoyment of runnin’ over. There is Deathstryke, a large man of Cal’s own personality even if he is a bit subdued and cranky most o’ the time. Doran, feisty lil’ guy who likes fightin’ things almost as much as Cal does. Finally, there’s Starblaze, just a bit younger than Cal, and with twice as much vinegar.

All in all, Cal wouldn’t trade a single one of them, and that brings a large smile to his face. Of course, as he’s caught day dreamin’ he’s blind sided by a large sickle shaped blade. With a grunt, Cal turns to see one of about eight freakshow grinning at him like an idiot, and Cal says “Well boyo, we got two ways this is gonna happen. Either yer gonna turn yerselves in….” and with a twist of his neck, a popping sound issues forth as if a great tree was just cracked in half, “…o’ yer gonna get turned in once I’m done poundin’ on ye.” Their answer, of course, comes in the words of a shout as they charge the behemoth, “Heh, wrong choice.”

thanks for the reply.

I got the initial files to load.

The problem now is - when I hit either mouse button it doesn't load the bind file so I get the message unable to read in bind file everytime I hit either button 4 or 5.

It turns on Hover and says "hovering" and turns on and off Sprint and says Sprinting but it won't put me into fly mode at all.

here is what I have -

in the keybinds file I added

lalt+button4 "tell $name, Flight Re-set You are now hovering$$powexec_name Sprint$$powexec_name Hover$$powexec_name Fly$$powexec_abort $$powexec_name Hover$$bind_load_file c:\flybind3.txt"
button4 "tell $name, Sprinting$$powexec_name Sprint$$bind_load_file c:\flybind2.txt"
button5 "tell $name, Hovering$$powexec_name Hover$$powexec_name Hover$$bind_load_file c:\flybind3.txt"

I have 4 other .txt files which have this -

flybind1.txt -

button4 "tell $name, Sprinting$$powexec_name Sprint$$bind_load_file c:\flybind2.txt"
button5 "tell $name, Hovering$$powexec_name Hover$$powexec_name Hover$$bind_load_file c:\flybind3.txt"
w "+forward"
a "+left"
d "+right"
s "+backward"
space "+up"

Flybind2.txt

button4 "tell $name, Walking$$powexec_name Sprint$$bind_load_file c:\flybind1.txt"
button5 "tell $name, Hovering$$powexec_name Sprint$$powexec_name Hover$$bind_load_file c:\flybind3.txt"
w "+forward"
a "+left"
d "+right"
s "+backward"
space "+up

flybind3.txt

button4 "tell $name, Sprinting$$powexec_name Sprint$$powexec_name Hover$$bind_load_file c:\flybind2.txt"
button5 "tell $name, Flying$$powexec_name Fly$$powexec_name Hover$$bind_load_file c:\flybind4.txt"
w "+forward$$powexec_name hover$$powexec_name fly"
a "+left$$powexec_name hover$$powexec_name fly"
d "+right$$powexec_name hover$$powexec_name fly"
s "+backward$$powexec_name hover$$powexec_name fly"
space "+up$$powexec_name hover$$powexec_name fly"
lshift+space "+down$$powexec_name hover$$powexec_name fly"

flybind4.txt

button4 "tell $name, Sprinting$$powexec_name Sprint$$powexec_name Fly$$bind_load_file c:\flybind2.txt"
button5 "tell $name, Hovering$$powexec_name Fly$$powexec_name Hover$$bind_load_file c:\flybind3.txt"
w "+forward"
a "+left"
d "+right"
s "+backward"
space "+up"
lshift+space "+down"


I must be missing something, but I can't figure out what.
Probably been looking at them for too long.

thanks again

Supergroup Name: -MoM- (Mind Over Matter)

Website (if any): Nadda

Leader or Recruiting Officers: Aftr Math

Preferred Method of contact:Ingame mail Aftr Math

Guild Description: As of now anyone can join but wene CoV were gunna PvP so if you dont wanna then youll want to quit

"The Sly fox reminds me a bit of Crackerjack - Guy never knew when to take a situation seriously"
-Samaritan, Honour Guard

"He almos' as bad as Yankee Daring, 'cept he wears 'dat daymn stupid hat. We livin' in a westun' o somethin'?"
-MC Xanatos, Wanted Supervillain

"..."
-Skullcap,Legion

"He is a most rash and perculiar individual. I am sure that when the time comes he can prove his mettle...for better or for worse."
-Xanatos

[ QUOTE ]
I've surmised.

For Intel Inside, I'd go with Screaming In Digital by Queensryche.

Yup.

[/ QUOTE ]

For a hero called Intel Inside I would have thought the song 'Its all about the Pentiums' by Wierd Al would have been a sure thing.

TargetDummy
Guardian Server

[ QUOTE ]

LMFAO!!!!

What an absurd explanation for such a blatant, obvious, borderline assinine concept!

Ok lemme see now. Lets say I have a business. Most any business will do here. {I am sure there would be a very, very, very rare exception} Ok I have customers. They pay me money for goods or a service. My goal is to make my customers happy, make new customers, and make money.
Sound good so far?

But as time goes on {as it tends to do} I learn that my customers {the POPULAR majority} of my customers request a reasonable type of service or goods which they are willing to pay me their hard earned money for. Still with me?

So..........

I announce to my customers that just because something is popular with them; I and I alone reserve the right to deny them that! {keep in mind I have already included reasonableness in customers' requests in this equation}

Sound like good business practice to you?

Help me.



Regards,
Captain Beyond

[/ QUOTE ]

I agree with you. What, you may ask, allows me to put my .02 in here? I have a degree in Economics (with a specialization in Monetary and Fiscal policy).

What that statement says to me is "Go play WoW when it comes out". If the majority of the people want something, let them have it? Devs, does it cost you money to give us what we want? Will the game complain to you that the monsters are being beaten up too much and the game is going to quit if you don't nerf the players? Seriously, what's the hurt in allowing people to have what they want in a make believe world? A combo is broken? Who cares?!?! If the players are not challenged because of it, they will monitor themselves and not use that combo.. i.e. D&D Psionics 3.0 had some stupid broken combos.. no one I ever played with used them. We all knew of them, but thought the game wouldn't be as fun.

Let the players have what they want. I promise you that the game will not complain about it if it's mobs are killed more often.

Alex
Your Favorite Burner

PS-Please Buff the MC so I can start playing mine again.

I am planning on starting a PnP Super Hero (Adventure First) game fairly soon, starting in 1915, where the players are the first Superheros in their world, although they will start with varely any powers, and more as people with amazing abilities, i.e. The Shadow.

For people that have played a lot of PnP R.P.G. what is the best system? At the moment I am leaning towards Champions, but is there a system that you love that you would sudgest?

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
I love the game and have no issues with the changes from the last patch,
But this caught my eye

[ QUOTE ]
*I will not make a change to the game simply because it is popular.

[/ QUOTE ]

This statement is rubbing me wrong, Ive been sitting here for about a half hour trying to state my feelings on this one, yet cant find the right words to not offend anyone.

It just feels like your saying, I will listen to what the mass's want, but just because most of the player base "most of the people paying to play' wants something, i wont give it to them. No compromises, Just a flat out Your out of Luck

Then its followed by,

[ QUOTE ]
*I will do my best to continue to make this game fun.

[/ QUOTE ]

How can you do this by denying what the magority of the people playing the game want?

Im sure im just reading your post incorrectly and appoligize in advance, just would love some insight into this.

[/ QUOTE ]

The reason why Gecko says he won't make changes just because their "popular" is that the majority of gamers almost 100% of the time don't know what's good for their own enjoyment or the game as a whole. Many other devs have made changes to game because it was the popular change to make, to have it backfire. What Gecko says is completely on the mark.

[/ QUOTE ]

LMFAO!!!!

What an absurd explanation for such a blatant, obvious, borderline assinine concept!

Ok lemme see now. Lets say I have a business. Most any business will do here. {I am sure there would be a very, very, very rare exception} Ok I have customers. They pay me money for goods or a service. My goal is to make my customers happy, make new customers, and make money.
Sound good so far?

But as time goes on {as it tends to do} I learn that my customers {the POPULAR majority} of my customers request a reasonable type of service or goods which they are willing to pay me their hard earned money for. Still with me?

So..........

I announce to my customers that just because something is popular with them; I and I alone reserve the right to deny them that! {keep in mind I have already included reasonableness in customers' requests in this equation}

Sound like good business practice to you?

Help me.



Regards,
Captain Beyond

Quote:

Arguments? Well you haven't really argued about the AM nerf. There has been NO explanation about this change to AM. Why was it nerfed? We are a lot of people that simply don't understand this one - and don't understand why you will not talk about it. There are explanations of Hasten - but not about AM. You claim you aim to communicate Geko - please do so about AM. Why?


Ummmmm....Geko....the man has a point here.


Regards,
Captain Beyond

Rook:

The confessional lasted nearly a half hour, and Rook still felt as if he had plenty more to say. Father Wallace and Rook seemed to have a lot in common, which made it much easier to talk to him about his past. Rook sugar coated most of the stories, but Father Wallace took it all in stride. He seemed to know that Rook was holding back, but wasn't going to press him for the rest of it.

The conversation was abruptly stopped as a loud shriek reverberated throughout the church. Father Wallace held his ears in pain as the sounds seemed to be very close. After the sounds ceased, Rook pushed his way out of the confessional booth, as did Father Wallace.

In a half jog, Rook made his way outside of the church. As he exited, he saw a young man laying unconscious on the sidewalk. Though his hearing was nearly shot, Rook caught the distant sounds of a van speeding off down the street.

Kneeling to the ground, Rook grabbed the young man's head to see if he was still alive. There was a pulse, but he wasn't responding to anything Rook said, although he couldn't even tell how loud he was talking.

Father Wallace stood behind Rook with a look of fear on his face.

Alex Young:

Alex’s head felt groggy. He felt as if he wanted to just lay and sleep forever. Just then Alex remembered the incident with Bernadette. He quickly opened his eyes to see a man standing over him.

Alex coughed numerous times as he tried to stand up. His head was pounding and his bones ached, but he continued to try to get up. Finally, with help of the man, Alex was able to stand up.

Alex looked over to where the van sped off. "Bernadette." Alex said as a tear ran down the side of his face. He looked over at the man. "Thank you for your help. I have to go." Alex said, ready to run off.

Thevshi:

The black van continued through the empty roads of Paragon City. The heavy snows and approaching storm had massively cut down on traffic through out the city. Soon, it was pulling up at an old warehouse near the city docks. The old building was run down, and had lights on within it. As the van approached, one of the loading doors opened and the van pulled in.

Inside, the warehouse, there was a lot of activity. Several more armed men were walking around, and Kross was standing off to one side. Beside him was a massive man who seemed to be made of rock. He stood at well over seven feet tall and appeared a massive wall of muscle. Back behind them, were several large shapes that were covered with tarps. Standing off to one side was a woman, attractive, yet with a cold stare in her eyes.

The IRA operatives in the van opened the side door and pulled out Bernadette’s unconscious form. They had handcuffed her hands behind her back, two of them carrying her over towards the woman and Kross.

“That be ‘er alright.” Kross replied as he looked at the young Irish girl. “Quite the little wildfire she is. Listened ta ‘er an ‘er boyfriend last night.” He said with a grin.

The woman stepped forward. “Remember, she is important. If she can get the traitor ta us, then she is more important than any o’ us.” Looking at the two men holding her she nodded with her head towards the back. “Put ‘er in the storeroom.”

The two men nodded and easily carried the unconscious girl back towards a door. Opening it up, the switched on the light, they moved into the dank musty room and set her down on a small cot that was against the far wall. Then, they moved back to the door, switched off the light and shut the door again, locking it.

Back in the main room, the woman known as Rose, looked at her fellow assassins. “Now we just ‘ave ta make contact with ol’ Rook an’ lure ‘im inta the trap. We should ‘ave more than enough firepower ta take the traitor down.”

Rook:

Rook slammed the door to his apartment. For some reason, he felt that something had just gone terribly wrong. Rook thought about the young man outside the church.

There's no way a bunch of kids played a practical joke on him...No one would have wasted 'that' much money on a sonic grenade, just so that they could scare some kid...

Rook thought about it some more for a few minutes. The strange thing was that he was actually thinking about something besides how 'horrible his life has become.' Maybe the confession with Father Wallace actually did help.

Rook then looked over at the answering machine. 7 messages. Most likely from Team1 teammates and Mr. Edwards wondering what’s going on with him. Rook didn't press the play button and instead made his way to the shower.

Taking a whiff of himself, Rook wondered how Father Wallace could have even sat in the same confessional booth with him. After spending a night in a drunken haze in the streets of Paragon, Rook royally stunk.

Throwing his shirt and jeans off into a pile in the corner of the bathroom, Rook cranked up the hot water on his shower. The warm water felt good on his tired body. Placing his hands against the front of the shower, Rook took a deep breath and tried to relax himself.

He thought he heard his phone ringing, but the shower felt too good to leave. Whoever it was would have to wait until he got out.

Rook:

Rook grabbed a pair of boxer briefs from his dresser and slid them on as he dried his hair with his towel. He rarely ever dried himself completely when he got out of the shower. The puddles on the wood floor were testament to this. Rook turned on his favorite rock station and continued to throw on a pair of dark jeans.

Rook then glanced over to his nightstand. The answering machine was blinking still, but this time there was 8 messages instead of the original 7.

Wondering who the hell wanted to talk to him so bad, Rook sauntered over and pressed play.

*message 1* "Hey Rook, it's me Vindicator...you alright man? If you need to talk, give me a call." *message deleted*

*message 2* "Rook, this is Edwards...I'd like to speak with you in my office tomorrow at 9 a.m., prompt. Don't be late or..", Rook cut him off and deleted the message.

*message 3* "You there Rook? Listen, give me a call once you get this message, cool? Thanks...later." Rook grinned as he listened to Renegade's voice. He was genuinely concerned with Rook. He also probably wanted compensation for the desk Rook smashed.

Messages 4-7 were also teammates who seemed to be concerned. Pillar actually wanted to go out and grab a drink with him.

Then, came message 8.

*message 8* ".............Roooooook? Ye there boyo?........I think we got somthin' ye might be interested in......pick up the tele ye bold gowl....", the message was in a very devious tone which had the sounds of laughter in the background.

A rush of fear poured into Rook's body. It was so much that he staggered backwards and nearly tripped on the puddles.

Soon, the phone rang again. Rook stared at it in sheer horror.

Then, it rang again. Rook, still motionless, gazed at the phone aghast.

After the third ring, Rook slowly picked up the phone and placed it to his ear. His heart was pounding and he could feel sweat beginning to form on his forehead. If it was who he thought it was, Rook was in for trouble ahead.

"Ello?...........who is this?....

Alex Young:

Alex walked around the city, looking back and forth. He wore his thin costume at first, but quickly went back for a warm coat. He had been searching the whole city since he had lost Bernadette many hours earlier. He soon found that his shoulder-length hair often got into his face, so he found himself wearing a toque.

Now, as the teen walked through the city, he still felt the sharp wind against his face, and although he had started to become cold, he continued his search. Alex used his fire to keep him warm for a few hours, but after so long he decided to conserve his pyrokenetics incase he needed them soon. But alas, the search had not been going well at all.

The last few hours seemed like decades, yet like seconds. He felt the loss for Bernadette, and his thoughts lingered on her, yet he also tried to keep aware of his surroundings. At least he wished that he had another mode of transportation besides walking.

Yet he would not give up. He would not rest until he found Bernadette.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
Just tried to do this but can seem to get it to work. Was wondering exactly how should the target line look.

"C:\Documents and Settings\Andre L. Nedderman\Desktop\CohUpdater.exe" -demoplay argas.cohdemo"

Is that correct?

[/ QUOTE ]

Almost. But you want to run cityofheroes.exe not the updater.

[/ QUOTE ]

heh I tried running CityofHeroes.exe passing in that command line option (demo file in place in proper directory) and all I get is a dialogue saying that it cannot be run directly.
"Please run updater instead".

[ QUOTE ]
Just tried to do this but can seem to get it to work. Was wondering exactly how should the target line look.

"C:\Documents and Settings\Andre L. Nedderman\Desktop\CohUpdater.exe" -demoplay argas.cohdemo"

Is that correct?

[/ QUOTE ]

Almost. But you want to run cityofheroes.exe not the updater.

A small comment here. Great list, but this one..

"L33T – The common term for the abbreviation and butchering of the English language by a vast majority of on-line gamers. l33t uses many numbers and symbols in it and commonly replaces the letter s with the letter z. "

'vast majority'... rather, I think of it as misses in CoH. They SEEM to be more common than they are because they stand out negatively.

[ QUOTE ]
So, with that said, let me give you my 10 Commandments of Geko:
*I will always listen to the community (that goes for the boards, in game, and thru mining data and statistics).
*I will not be scared to be wrong.
*I will react as quickly as possible, but not sooner than needed.
*I will not be scared to be unpopular.
*I will not make a change to the game simply because it is popular.
*I will do my best to continue to make this game fun.
*I will not intentionally stealth nerf.
*I will not reduce Accuracy.
*I will try my best to give you detailed information.
*I will make Statesman wash my car.

(well, 9 out of 10 aint bad)

[/ QUOTE ]
Rules to "live" by in an MMO! Communication here is better than any other MMO I've ever played

I must say though, that I'm a bit disillusioned with CoH after all the good things Cryptic officials said prior to release. Balance is to a large extent out, I even think you need re-examine your vision on gameplay.

For one thing; there's no real need for two support archtypes when only Blasters (and Scrappers with a Provoke Tanker or a couple of Controllers) has a "viable" damage output.

How about turning Defenders into viable damage dealers by upping their damage slightly and possibly lowering their primary efficiency? This would avoid the "conflict" between Defenders and the Controllers and solidifying what everyone knows; Controllers "defend" better. Likewise Tankers should have their primary slightly lowered (100% unaided damage resistence or even close is unbalancing) and damage slightly upped. Blaster AoE would have to be reduced somewhat and this alone will make Scrappers more viable.

Just my 2 influence worth.

Wow...3 cheers to the original poster, and 4 cheers to you for holding on to it, lol :P

Lets see...

AoE = Area of Effect (Effects an area, not a single target)
LoS = Line of Sight (you have to see what you want to hit)
Aggro = Aggressive (the Monsters got aggressive with you, or aggroed you)

Well, those are the ones you asked about. I've gotten use to seeing abbrevations now, and are second nature to me, so I can't think of any others that you would need help with right now. Maybe someone else can expand the list.

Cool, I will have to add this

Ok so I am trying to do what Blue Volt did, I created a keybinds.txt file and then 4 flybind.txt files using what he posted above.

I have them on my c:\ drive. No subdirectory.

my Problem is I can't get the keybinds.txt file to load in game.

I have been using this command -

/bind_load_file c:\keybinds.txt

I have tried it in Quotes and I always get the message

unable to read in keybind file.

I can't figure out what I am missing.

can someone help? its driving me nuts.

I did get it to load up once but when I used the mouse buttons it would not switch to fly mode it would only hover and give me the message - unable to load in keybind file -
It would switch sprint on and off but It still gave me the message - unable to load keybind file - everytime I hit either mouse button 4 or 5

help please.

Just tried to do this but can seem to get it to work. Was wondering exactly how should the target line look.

"C:\Documents and Settings\Andre L. Nedderman\Desktop\CohUpdater.exe" -demoplay argas.cohdemo"

Is that correct?

Martin was impressed with Vanguard’s massive “secured facility”. The best way to describe it was ‘a fortress’. Three concentric barriers of high, concrete walls with layers of razor wire atop them ringed the facility on all sides. On each corner of each wall was what can only have been a force field generator. Spaced about every twenty feet on each wall were turrets, and each turret had three very dangerous-looking weapon barrels sticking out. As they passed through the third wall, Martin could see what looked to be huge battle-robots bristling with weapons stomping around, patrolling the grounds. Anyone or anything trying to get into this facility would be in for one costly fight.

“Pretty intense hardware, isn’t it, Martin?” Major Davis said jovially.

“Mmm hmm.” Martin murmured quietly.

“We have gone to great lengths to make sure nothing gets into or out of this place. The Sentinel will be quite well-protected during her stay.”

At this, Martin looked at Major Davis. There was a hidden meaning in his words, but Martin couldn’t puzzle it out. He was pretty sure he should be bothered that Davis had added “or out of” to his previous sentence. Once inside, huge doors slowly swung shut, and the place exploded with activity. People descended on the group, grilling Nurse Grey about the Sentinel’s condition, checking the Sentinel’s vitals, quizzing Davis about Martin and Nurse Grey, the works. Facility personnel buzzed around them like a cloud of flies around a day-old hunk of meat.

Once they were all settled in, Major Davis took them on a tour of the facility being careful to point out all the areas that were off-limits as well as the facilities that would be at Martin and Nurse Grey’s disposal. The fortress was essentially a self-contained city, with all manner of amenities, from stores to swimming pools. If Martin was impressed before, he was dumbfounded now. Major Davis even invited Martin to the base’s self-defense classes on alternating nights. The Scarlet Sentinel’s condition improved somewhat, but she still hadn’t awakened, a point which caused Nurse Grey some concern. She hadn’t been allowed to perform any kind of physical examination on the Sentinel since arriving, and had to take the base physician’s word on everything.

“She’s still suffering from severe shock, Ms. Grey,” the doctor explained, “this is an individual that has never known injury. Not so much as a scraped knee. Ever. For her very first trauma to be three near-lethal gunshot wounds was catastrophic both to her psyche, and her physical body. We are doing everything we can. Trust our staff. They are the best there is.”

“Whatever you say, doctor,” Nurse Grey replied, “I am just worried about my patient.”

“Of course you are. She’ll be fine. Relax. Think of this as a short vacation. We’ll have the Sentinel up and around in no time flat.”

Their first night at the facility was a restless one for Martin. He couldn’t help being excited at the prospect of spending time on the base. It was a truly amazing place, and Major Davis had expressed desire for Martin to consider joining Vanguard permanently. Martin was thrilled with the offer. Nurse Grey however, was less than pleased at the prospect.

“Martin, don’t forget Dr. Stromberg’s advice to you. Trust no one,” she told him ominously.

“Nurse Grey, listen to yourself. These are the same people that guard us against the Rikti threat on a daily basis. It is their research that allow for all kinds of incredible advances in just about anything you can imagine.”

“Martin, I’m telling you. Don’t trust them. Not completely, anyway.”

“Well, I’d be lying if I told you I trusted them completely. They’ve not been straight with us since we got here. Did you catch that crap that Davis was running about the Rikti wanting the Sentinel? And were the snipers on the rooftops REALLY necessary?”

“Good. Keep those things in mind.”

The day passed quickly for the two of them, and the following morning was going to be hard for Martin, as he had to prepare for his parents’ funeral. At three o’clock, he would be burying the only family he had in the world. He knocked on Major Davis’ door to tell him of his plans for the day.

“Come in.”

“Hello, Major.”

“Martin! What can I do for you, today?”

Martin couldn’t help but distrust that smile. It reminded him so much of a stereotypical slimy used car salesman. “I just wanted to tell you that my parents’ funeral is today, so I’ll be out for a couple of hours.”

Major Davis tented his fingers in front of his face and breathed a sigh. “Martin. I am afraid that simply isn’t possible.”

“Excuse me?”

“What I mean is, that we might need you here for something regarding the Sentinel.”

“I’ve spoken to Nurse Grey about it. The Sentinel will be fine for the short time I will be out.”

“Martin, no offense. But Nurse Grey is just a nurse. Our doctors have a differing opinion of the matter. You wouldn’t want to be the cause of any suffering on the part of someone as selfless as the Scarlet Sentinel, now would you?”

“Of course I wouldn’t, but this is my parents’ funeral,” Martin continued.

“I know, Martin. And I couldn’t sympathize with you more. It’s just too dangerous.”

“So you’re saying I cannot leave.”

“Martin, please. My hands are tied here. I can no more allow you to be removed from the vicinity of the Sentinel than I could allow her anti-biotics to be removed.”

“I see.”

“Cheer up, Martin. If it will make you feel any better, I will have someone digitally record it for you.”

Martin turned and left. Nurse Grey was waiting for him at the door to his room.

“What happened?” she asked.

“Davis isn’t going to let me attend my parents’ funeral.”

“You’re kidding. Why on earth is that?”

“He says I can’t be away from the Sentinel that long.”

“That is ludicrous.”

“You’re telling me? It’s an hour. Two, tops.”

“Martin, something doesn’t add up. The Sentinel should have awakened by now. I want you to try something for me. Don’t take your pill tonight.”

“But my power will shut off as soon as I go to sleep.”

“I know. I have a suspicion, and I want to test it. If my theory is correct, we’ve got a problem.”

“Okay, but what if the Sentinel ends up getting hurt, or something?”

“I don’t think she will.”

“Okay, but I am going to feel even worse if I cause her any pain.” Martin punched the door, cracking it slightly. “I want to go to Mom and Dad’s funeral.”

“I know you do, and I wish I could arrange it, but I can’t.”

“I know you would if you could.”

“Dr. Stromberg will be there, as will I.”

“Thanks. Let everyone know what is going on, huh?”

“I will.”

That evening, a courier brought Martin a DVD of the funeral. Nurse Grey didn’t come back, and Major Davis said she said that she had many other pressing matters to attend to, but that she left a message for Martin to keep his chin up and that she had seen an old friend of his at the funeral who sent his condolences and an envelope. Martin opened it, and turned white as a sheet at its contents. Inside was one of those store-bought condolence cards with a sappy verse on it. Scrawled in a messy hand were the words;

“Thorny,

So sorry to hear about your mommy and daddy. Me and Darla are having a wonderful time together. Why don’t you come join us, and we’ll talk all about old times? We’re at the docks, watching the ships roll in.

- Dawg

P.S. Darla sends you her love. She would have come herself, but she’s a bit tied up at the moment. LOL”

Taped to the inside of the card was a lock of raven-black hair.

<===>

Dawg opened the battered door in the abandoned warehouse and was already jerking off his messily-knotted tie. “Well, whadya know Darla? Marty didn’t show up for his parents’ funeral. The nurse he hangs out with was there though, so I gave her our little greeting card to give to him. Turns out, he’s in some kind of military base or somethin’. Ain’t that a kick in the head.”

Dawg walked over to the frightened girl on the filthy concrete floor. She was dirty, and her cheeks were streaked with tears. A fresh bruise was blossoming under her left eye. Her wrists were bound behind her with duct tape, and her ankles as well. More tape was wrapped around her torso, securing her to a post. The lower part of her face was swathed in the same silvery tape, sealing her mouth shut. Dawg grabbed her hair and put his mouth a scant half-inch from her ear eliciting a sqeual from her. “Looks like you and I have at least another day or so to enjoy each other’s company.”

Darla squeezed her eyes shut tightly as the tears began to come again.

Name: Fat Chicks in Party Hats
Website: n/a
Motto: Wank Ownz Your ***
Leader: Professor Wank & Nigh'lys
Player Type: Casual
Number of members: 2
Current member levels: 10-16
Normal time of Gameplay: Anytime
Other information: Just have fun baby! Thats what it's all about!!! Fat Chicks in Party Hats you have fun and fight the crimz0rs!