November 26th

## Cheese It!

The Contenders raced back to America ahead of the inevitable reprisal. Not long after they'd returned, the first news of the Plutonian's daring attack began to break. Footage taken by news crews "invited" by the Plutonian showed that the mutant internment camp's prisoners had been released, and new prisoners--namely the Chinese politicians responsible for the camps, including the President himself-- had taken their place. The Plutonian had abducted these men from all over China, and now shaky video of these men being forced to toil in the frigid camp was being broadcast worldwide.

The world responded with shock, more terrified that a lone superhero would do such a thing than at the exposure of the awful conditions of the internment camp. In fact, the news media made almost no mention of mutants in their coverage whatsoever, focusing instead on the Plutonian's seeming descent into supervillainy (punctuated by grisly footage of a Chinese general who, having refused to labor at the Plutonian's command, was summarily executed by his laser vision).

Fearing that the Tiger Force would be inadequate, an emergency nighttime session of the National People's Congress voted unanimously to sign the UNTIL membership charter, granting UNTIL agents access to Chinese sovereign territory for the first time. Shortly thereafter, a strike force of superheroes (both Tiger Force members and UNTIL veterans) charged the Plutonian. After a brief struggle, the Plutonian disappeared in a flash of blue, similar to the escape method favored by his one-time mentor, the Time Wizard. The Chinese leaders were liberated, though the President was so shaken by the experience he immediately added his endorsement to the charter's signing, making China's membership in UNTIL official.

## Investments

Hardback began to contemplate how best to spend his newly-acquired funds. Dissatisfied with the media's failure to properly highlight the plight of the mutants held in Chinese labor camps, he decided that the natural thing was to gain control of the media. His first step was acquiring a majority interest in the Chicago Tribune as the first step in setting up his own media conglomerate.

Hardback had placed his funds in the hands of STAR Bank at the recommendation of Defender, who had a great deal of investment advice for the younger hero. Renowned for their high-tech security, STAR bank is the choice of the ultra-rich, particularly for those wealthy heroes with cash and enemies in equal measure.

## New Digs

Following up on a previous offer, UNTIL contacted the Contenders to discuss a new base. During the conversation it quickly became clear that the UNTIL agents had some idea that the Contenders had been part of the Plutonian's attack; luckily they had no real proof, and the heroes weren't about to admit their involvement, so they dropped the issue (for the moment, anyway).

An agent familiar to the heroes arrived not long after to give them a ride to the base. Hidden under an abandoned brick factory just outside the city's southeastern limits, the base was a slightly dated but fully serviceable facility. It had a number of amenities, including a barracks, holo-training simulator, hydroponic garden, and a small jail complete with a Hot Sleep chamber. But the base's best feature was its anonymity: it was completely hidden and only a small number of UNTIL personnel would ever know that the heroes had taken up residence. There wasn't even an outside internet connection, which would complicate communications but ensure that no hackers would eavesdrop on the team. After having their original base invaded a number of times, the Contenders were more than satisfied with this secluded alternative and immediately took up residence.

## First Comes Money, Then Comes Power

As they began to pack up their old base, Hardback received a call from the aide of Senator David Sutherland, who wanted to speak with him on an urgent matter related to mutant rights. Hardback, a fan of the Senator's work, immediately agreed, and the two agreed to meet at the Senator's hotel the same day. The same invitation was extended to the whole team and they quickly made their way to the Viceroy Hotel.

In the his temporary penthouse office (the Senator being on a political visit to the Midwest), the team was introduced to David Sutherland for the first time. Senator Sutherland, charming and plain-spoken, greeted the heroes warmly and thanked them for all they'd done for the world. He admitted that he'd been following their careers ever since he saw Hardback (back when he was still the Ringster) make an impassioned speech for mutant equality at a civil rights' rally. In turn, the team admired his work defending the West Coast during the events of the Blackout.

After the pleasantries had been exchanged, the Senator made it plain that he had lost faith in President Trump's ability to handle the problems caused by the exploding mutant population. Rather than call for unity, the President had made a number of inflammatory remarks and branded the desperate mutant population as "disgusting criminals" in a fiery series of tweets and unscripted press conferences. Fearing that widespread violence was on the horizon, the Senator told the heroes that he was planning on making an independent Presidential run in the upcoming primary.

As a very popular center-right conservative, the Senator was confident that his entrance as an independent candidate would split the conservative vote, all but ensuring that the President's second term (and the ensuing anti-mutant violence) would never come to pass. Hardback heartily endorsed the plan, vowing both an endorsement and whatever monetary support he could give. Senator Sutherland was overjoyed, and the meeting ended on very cordial terms all around.

## You Can't Please Everyone

Unfortunately, the afternoon took a turn shortly after the meeting's conclusion. An explosion rocked the hotel's lobby, shattering every window and sending civilians diving for cover. The sudden attack was the work of Coriolis, who made his entrance flanked by his team of loyal lieutenants and a squad of familiar gun-toting mutant goons. Accusing the Senator of being a pawn in the very system that prevented mutants from taking their place as "the world's natural rulers," Coriolis demanded Sutherland's surrender.

Transforming into his heroic identity of Invictus, Sutherland launched a fiery attack at Coriolis. But his blast was swallowed up and redirected by a cunning portal deployed by one of the villains' minions, nearly striking Hardback instead. Hardback, meanwhile, was trading blows with a berserk wolf-like mutant. Ghost Dance disabled Overdrive with debilitating hunger, while Fossil was bound in Justicar's enchanted chains and unable to break himself free. Cort attempted to grapple with Coriolis but his attempt was thwarted by another portal-- this one sucking him up and depositing him in a vault on another floor of the hotel. Although Ghost Dance managed to use his hyper-speed punches to knock out the portal's creator, Cort was stuck trying to return to the fight from the wrong side of an armored door.

Coriolis himself used his mighty powers to scatter the Contenders like bowling pins, but the heroes managed to stay in the fight while whittling down his supporters. With a cry of "Mutants, ascend!" Coriolis turned his attention once more to Invictus, dealing him a vicious blow that nearly drove him unconscious. But a combined effort by Ghost Dance and Justicar managed to overwhelm the villain's defenses, and he finally fell in a barrage of lightning and holy fire.

Invictus having been saved, the heroes dusted themselves off and once more made their escape, before a news crew could come and start asking uncomfortable questions. The Senator once more gave the Contenders his thanks before turning to salvage the situation and address the media.

## Table Talk

"I'm basically Rupert Murdoch. Is that so bad? Yes."

- Hardback

"You can't go questioning my motives if you want to be a member of my Justice Buddies."

- Justicar