Mertropolis

"Oh, ok." Floe just kinda broke Silly's brain there, so she just stares off into space while Silver just sighs and shakes her head.

Floe gives a laugh. "Don't worry, I'm just pulling your leg. If you want to tag along just drop down to my place at the same time." Floe kicks back as she waits for HH, listening in to what's happening on the radio...

After a bit Golden leaves and a few hours later Heather comes home and is puzzled by why there are more people she's never met filling up her apartment. Nevertheless she lets the pair stay the night and gives Floe the ok to leave.

---

Over the following 2 days people do then following things:

Gear Craft: Continues his handypony jobs and makes costumes for himself, Coral, and Col.

Col Lider: Continues to work with Dr Shamus on making the material for Golden's outfit.

Golden Star: Does more courier work and asks a lot of questions and discovers that nobody has any idea if Bad Lands had a secret base. Or an apartment. Or slept ever for that matters. Complete mystery that one.

Coral Wrench: Mostly sleeps and heals, spends about 20 hours asleep on the last day. Meanwhile her friends alternate watching over her at Heather Health's apartment.

---

As for Floe.... well let's see shall we? Starting from day after the gang left Heather's apartment.

Floe wakes up, has toast, says hello to her shadow, and makes checks around the city for her band. Once again checking their houses/apartments and nearby clubs...

Floe searches for two hours, but finds no more sign of her band mates than she has before.

Floe, once again unsuccessful, sighs and returns home to practice for an hour. After that, she gets bored, and lies about for a bit, staring at her shadow. She decides quickly that this is the best time to go grab a ritual or two to help her with her powers, so she gets up and heads towards the library...

Some time later Floe arrives at the Mertropolis Library via one of the underwater entrances. As always the place inspires awe with it's large size and impressive architecture. Many sea ponies and water breathing snakes (and Floe thinks she spots another dragonnel off in the distance going to the lower levels) swim about carrying waterproofed books, scrolls, tablets, and the occasional strange tetrahedron made of crystal or metal. (Arcana check for the tetrahedrons if you want to know what their deal is.)

Upon her entry one of the librarians spots her and swims off. A not terribly long time later Floe's father, Lore Reed, swims up to her. "Floe, what a pleasant surprise. Come to visit your old man or" he says, pausing somewhat awkwardly for a bit before continuing, "...is there something I can help you with?" The last bit with a sort of hopeful, but wistful note.

(Arcane Check: 10 (Roll) + 18 (Skill) = 28)
(Magic Point Reroll (0/1 Magic Points Remaining): 18 (Roll) + 18 (Skill) = 36)

"Hi dad," greets Floe. She kisses his cheek lightly and gives a brief and casual hug. "Do you know where the rituals are kept?"

(The devices are called holocrons. They are an ancient and complex magical means of storing a sort of magical version of part of a person's knowledge and personality in a device to dispense information to people that person (or sometimes spirit or other such being) would deem worthy to learn it. Alternately sometimes these devices sometimes have specific ways of unlocking their information. And sometimes it's a combination of both things that can even vary from person to person. While the devices are clearly magical to anyone learned in the ways of magic, something about their construction masks just how magical they are (to the point that it is nearly impossible to tell one holocron's magical "weight" from another) and renders any known magical method of "forcing" them "open" ineffective. They vary in their ability to be damaged, but most are very difficult to completely destroy, and some even can self-repair over various lengths of time. While many holocrons contain information on spells, they also are known to contain information on just about any other subject as well. The art of creating holocrons is long lost, in fact nobody even knows what society (or societies) they originated in and nobody has come close to figuring out how the things are made. Though those who have studied them the most have learned a few interesting things about constructing magical items. One of the things they've learned is that it's unlikely any one person (barring a magical super hero) in Mertropolis would have enough raw arcane power to construct one.)


Lore smiles and enjoys the hug while it last, wishing he got more of them these days, and replies, "Well I certainly do but.... what kind of ritual are you looking for kiddo?" There's another slightly awkward pause. "Because we have a lot of them here you know?"

"Let's see," replies Floe, as she thinks for a moment to give a precise specification, "Self-sustaining shadow magic appearance alteration."

Floe's father gives Floe a very odd look. A mix between confusion, alarm, suspicion, guilt at suspicion, and being intrigued. His face expressed these more or less subtly back and forth for a few moments before he says, "I uh... ah... see? Though truthfully I'm not really sure about.... this. Shadow magic is pretty much all in restricted sections and well.... It's not like you can even say you're studying it for some kind of thesis paper, not that that would be a good enough reason... and well... that is.... uh... Can I ask why you're looking for something like that?"

"It's... erm, for the baaand?" Floe gives a innocent grin for a few seconds. She then sighs and rubs one of her forelegs. "Okay, okay, I have a real reason. I can tell you, but we have to go to somewhere private..."

"That shouldn't be a problem." Lore says with a smile and a chuckle at Floe's "for the band" and leads them to a private study room a few floors down, typically used by students or those researching from materials that they aren't allowed to take out of the library.

Lore Reed looks around the small enclosed space with a bit of confusion and nods at Floe.

Floe takes a deep breath. "Okay. You know how I got kidnapped a month ago? When all the superheroes died? Well, things started to happen after that. And, well..." Floe's Shadow pulls away, makes itself clear on a wall, and waves. "I have superpowers."

Mr. Reed takes a step back in surprise and gasps and then says, "W-well, I... see. And you acquired the power of.... shadow magic?" There's a clear look of discomfort and unhappiness, not so much at Floe herself, but she would guess, the kind of magic she had acquired. There's another emotion on his face, but Floe doesn't really recognize it.

"Okay. And um. Honey. What are you thinking of doing with your powers?" he asks clearly a bit nervously.

"I, I dunno. I wasn't going to do anything with them at first. I don't want to be a superhero. I don't want people expecting me to help them all the time, putting all that pressure on me, having to be perfect all the time. I just want to kick back with my friends and my band and take it easy. But I met some of the other hostages who also gained superpowers, and they seem completely determined to become superheroes, and I can't find my bandmates anywhere. There's a battle of the bands in like two days and I have no band to play in." Floe sighs and sits down defeated. "I don't know what I'm going to do."

He silently takes this in for a moment and then smiles and says, "Well, I'm glad you've made some friends who might be a good influence on you for once. Just wait here a moment okay honey?" and with that he leaves the room.

Floe does as her father says (for once, as of late) and waits...

It takes almost twenty minutes, but eventually Lore Reed comes back to the room Floe is waiting in. "Oh good. You're still here." he says. "I've arranged for someone to take you to the section that has the shadow magic materials. I would take you myself, but it might raise some eyebrows for me to be taking you into the above water floors." He gives another pause here and then continues, "On the tenth floor you should find a bat pony named Bookmark in the second aisle to your right after going up the stairs."

Floe smiles. "Thanks dad." She gives another kiss on the cheek and a hug, slightly tighter this time, and moves forward to the tenth floor (making sure her shadow is in tow)...