October 15

## Thinking Global, Acting Local

The Contenders continued to aid in the revitalization of the devastated mutant neighborhoods of Chicago's south side while the city as a whole slowly got back to its feet. As they focused on the needs of the disadvantaged mutants, heroes like Ramshackle helped bring the entire city's infrastructure back online in record time, restoring power and running water to most of the city.

Elsewhere, news reports brought disturbing news. Senator David Sutherland took to the national stage to ask for calm and advocate for a peaceful integration with the new mutant population, but his unifying message was undercut by the President's paranoia and racism. Beijing announced the reemergence of the Plutonian in a world-wide press conference where he confirmed that he had joined the Tiger Squad, China's state-run superhero team.

## Club Business

Seeing that the mutants were in vital need of funds to reestablish their housing and infrastructure, Hardback hit upon the idea of selling Saturnite to the Temeraire Club. A meeting was arranged, and he and Cort soon found themselves back in the Club's penthouse office with John Wolf. The Club was clearly recovering from the damage sustained during the blackout, and John also seemed to have bounced back to a productive (and sober) businessman. After some light banter, during which Hardback made some veiled threats to warn John away from recruiting any of the new mutants, John made an offer for the Saturnite: 11.3 billion dollars, after costs. The deal was quickly agreed, and a sale date was tentatively set for a week away.

## SOS

Not long after, during a day of torrential rain which left the city swamped, the Contenders received a distress call from an UNTIL security agent. He reported that a strike force of heavily armed commandos had just attacked a research facility in Lake Michigan. The strike team had massacred the security force thanks in large part to an unknown "crazy" supervillain with lightning powers. The agent gave coordinates for the facility, and the Contenders quickly sprung into action.

The facility was disguised as a derelict vessel which was being battered by massive, storm-driven waves. The Contenders saw signs of intense combat on the deck, and tracked a wounded agent by a trail of blood. Justicar healed the man, allowing him to give them a warning: he suspected that the commandos had not one, but several supervillains working together on the operation. He didn't know why they had bothered attacking this facility, as he wasn't aware of anything or anyone inside that warranted the effort or expense, but he was able to let the Contenders into the lower deck via a hidden hatchway.

## A Sudden Chill (Sesh)

Entering through the hidden passage, the team found themselves in a small storage room. Through one plate-glass doorway they saw a forge & laboratory that was crawling with the deadly commandos; the other was marked "admin" but had no window. Opting for the element of surprise, Cort threw open this second door, and the Contenders found themselves face-to-face with Perfidy and a ferocious man with blood drying on his teeth.

Holding back her mysterious companion, Perfidy greeted the Contenders warmly, commiserating with them over the death of Mentat and inquiring about Mot's wellbeing. She apologized for the violence of their current operation, saying that the "new guy" just needed some combat experience to polish his rough edges.

Although conversation proceeded amicably enough, neither the Contenders nor the Midnight Crew were willing to back down. Cort decided the matter when he attempted to surprise Perfidy with a sucker-punch from his new 'Jim Braddock' persona, but she was able to deflect the uncouth maneuver. She responded with a slash of her sword and dropped a smoke-bomb in the room, instantly plunging the team into darkness.

The bloody-faced man began to throw lightning throughout the room, but was stunned when Justicar assaulted his mind with waves of guilt. As the man was operating in a fugue state reinforced by hypnotic suggestion, this caused him to relive painful atrocities and shook the hold that Perfidy had on his mind. Just as Justicar was teleported out of the ship entirely by Ultraviolet, the bloody man turned on his former allies and assaulted Ultraviolet with feelings of starvation that sapped his energy entirely, leaving the mutant in a quivering heap on the ground.

While Hardback grappled with Perfidy inside a poisonous cloud, Cort was knocked unconscious and dragged through a wall by the spectral tentacles of a newly-revitalized Hellion. Justicar flew back into the ship, but was soon incapacitated by a barrage of gunfire from the commandos. The bloody-faced man showed impressive strength by belting Hellion first through a wall, and then through a plate-glass window.

## How Cheesy are my Plot Twists when the Players Actually Thought this was Plausible

In the midst of this melee, the Contenders where shocked when Mentat appeared, whole and alive. He warned Hardback to surrender for the sake of his own life, and when the mutant refused, he tried to mind control him into giving up the fight. Unsuccessful, Mentat then turned his attention to Cort and the bloody-faced man, mentally blasting them both into submission with potent psychic energy. Perfidy finally managed to free herself from Hardback, stabbing him in the process and leaving him wounded and unable to fight back.

The commandos, meanwhile, had left with the prize they had sought: a sample of an unknown compound from the base's forge. With their paycheck secured, the Midnight Crew quickly took advantage of their opponent's momentary weakness and Ultraviolet teleported the entire group away, leaving only the blood-smeared turncoat behind.

Though bruised in both body and ego, the Contenders were able to recover themselves. They realized that the "Mentat" they had encountered was likely the Midnight Crew's resident shapeshifter, Facade, rather than the genuine article. The mysterious newcomer with the bloody teeth identified himself as Ghost Dance, and indicated that the Temeraire Club had been using him due to his condition of near-total amnesia. He blamed John Wolf for controlling him via hypnotic suggestion, a serious accusation which threw doubt on the possibility of Hardback concluding a business deal with the Club. Not knowing what to do, but certain that Ghost Dance was a danger to others, the Contenders persuaded him to join them back at the base. For his own part, Ghost Dance knew he would need allies soon, as he felt a third party other than John was likely the cause of his weakened and vulnerable mental state.

As the storm, conjured by Ghost Dance, finally abated, the team left once more with a strange and dangerous new ally in tow. Only time would tell if this alliance would be permanent, or if the mysterious man might turn on them just as quickly as he had the Midnighters.