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> The Stormcrow, A Superhero's Tale
SubRosa
post Apr 19 2019, 11:34 PM
Post #1


Ancient
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Joined: 14-March 10
From: Between The Worlds



About a month ago I got inspired to write a superhero character. Actually two. My original idea was what if Aela and Loria were superheroes. I worked on the idea, and with a little help from folks here, January and Avery have become fully-fleshed people in their own right. Ones whom I am really loving to write.

I learned a long time ago that when it comes writing, I need to strike when the iron is hot. So I am putting Seven Reimagined on hold for the moment, and concentrating on Stormcrow and Gadget. I will finish Seven, have no worries on that. There is only one third of the story left to go.

Like with the Seven thread, I am going to use this post for general info and a collection of resources. I'll start posting the actual stories with the next post.

Since these stories are set in the contemporary world, I am taking advantage of reality for once, by setting the stories here in Metro Detroit. Almost all the locations in the upcoming stories are real. You can actually use Google Earth to follow along. A few places are fictional, in that they are from other cities, and transplanted here to The D.

Timeline
March 24 = The Conjurer summons an Abyssal during the Nain Rouge Parade. it is not anchored, and easily banished
May 4 and 5 (Saturday and Sunday) = Stormcrow Rising
May 5 = The Conjurer summons an Abyssal during Cinco De Mayo, using elemental symbols to anchor it, making it immune from banishment
May 14 and 15 (Tuesday and Wednesday) = Stormcrow Recycled
May 25 = The Conjurer summons an Abyssal during Technofest, anchoring it with an animal sacrifice
May 25 and 26 (Saturday and Sunday) = Stormcrow Burning
May 27th = Memorial Day.
May 27 - June 1 (Monday -Saturday) = Stormcrow Pride [Ferndale Pride on Saturday]
June 1 = The Conjurer summons an Abyssal during Ferndale Pride, anchoring it with a human sacrifice
June 1 - 9 = Crystal Death [Motor City Pride]
June 1 = Chad overdoes on Crystal Death at Leland City Club.
June 3 = first Crow Tales, featuring Frankenstein
June 8 = second Crow Tales, featuring This Spell For Hire. January stops the Death Dealer. Blood Raven humiliates Nazis at Motor City Pride
June 9 = Nazis on Crystal Death attack Motor City Pride
June 11 = January records interview with WNN.
June 13 = January quits working at the dojo, starts working on Artemis Argent with Rus
June 14 = January's interview is aired in its entirety, as well as in print and on WNN's website. It generates massive waves of both support and backlash against her. The same night she faces off against Gola at Eloise.



People
January Ward / Stormcrow (RL Georgie Stone)

January again

Avery Green / Gadget (RL Shameik Moore)

Avery again

General inspiration for Lighthammer (except most of his head is covered by a helmet)

Lighthammer (out of armor)

Blood Raven cosplay

The writer signing books

Cyborg cosplay

Carl Sagan

Metro Boomin

Gabriella Wilson

Cecilia Brækhus

Blood Raven on the rooftop

Barbara Ward (January's mom) (RL Amy Davidson)

Romulus Ward (January's dad) (RL Anthony Heald)

Julian Ward (January's brother) (RL Gabriel Mann)

BlackJack (Jacob Scwartz)

Ibroham Alawar is based on RL Ibrahim Alawad

The Man Living In The Packard Plant

Sam Bernstein

Archimedes

Ken Hite

Fire Captain Henderson

Fire Lieutenant Randy

Chase


Society
Hipsters (big in Detroit)

New Year's Eve In Detroit (been there, its true)

Indians Take Over Diamond Trade

Whitewater Security is based on RL Blackwater Security aka Academi

Worldwide Network News is fictional, based on HPLHS's Worldwide Wireless News

Bat'leth

Stormcrow BattleMech

Stormcrow BattleMech Pic

A TERF is an anti-trangender feminist

The Tigers and the Old English D

The Laughing Man is an homage to Ghost In The Shell

Four Twenty

Berenstain Bears

Michigan has a 10 cent bottle return law

Broadsword Calling Danny Boy

Instagram Influencer

"I Am A Golden God!"

King Arthur 2004 Rus!

The Real Portal Games have not reached #5 yet

The Kell Hounds

Trail of Cthulhu

Daredevil's Sensory Powers

Shoggoth

Xenomorph

Tunguska Event



Literature and Art
Frankenstein; or, The Modern Prometheus

The Theme of Alienation in Frankenstein

The Yellow Wallpaper by Charlotte Perkins Gilman

Robert Frost - The Road Not Taken

Festival is a reference to The Festival, by HP Lovecraft

Anglo-Saxon Kennings

Macbeth Act5, Scene 5 (A Tale Told By An Idiot quote)

Trajan's Column

The Bayeux Tapestry

John William Waterhouse - The Crystal Ball



Music
Vnv Nation - Illusion - One of January's theme songs

Two Steps From Hell - Never Back Down (Extended) - January's Fight Music

Gary Clark Jr. - If Trouble Was Money (Avery's ringtone)

The Score - Unstoppable - Avery's Theme

Two Steps From Hell - Blackheart (Extended) - Blood Raven's Theme

Blood Raven's Fight Music

Marilyn Manson - Resident Evil Soundtrack Main Theme - The Summoner's Theme

Gustav Holst - Mars - Nátthrafn's Theme

Counting Crows - Four Days

Clips of Amelie Lens' performance at the 2019 Movement Festival

Orbital

Counting Crows - Mr Jones

Counting Crows - A Long December





Places
A Google Map of all the Stormcrow locations

Macomb Community College - South Campus

Macomb Community College classroom quad, library, and parking

The Best Western Premiere of Southfield

Hotel Pic 01

Hotel Pic 02

Campus Martius

Michigan Soldier's and Sailor's Monument

U of M Law School

January's Parents House

January's Parents House Aerial View

Flint Bishop Airport

Flint Airport aerial view

Flint Airport - A closer view of the terminal and parking lot

Flint Airport - The reverse view, from a model in the airport

Flint Airport - The terminal

Flint Airport - The baggage pickup inside the terminal. The escalator and Ticketing are visible in the middle distance

Flint Airport - The escalator that January leaps up to the second floor

Flint Airport - Gift Shop and Bookstore on the right

Flint Airport - The Food Court on the left

Flint Airport - Do Not Enter sign far down the hall

Packard Plant - The Poletown Bus Stop (well close enough to it)

Packard Plant - The Bus Stop from the air (the Hamtramck Cadillac Plant is on the right. Smaller steel mills on the left)

Packard Plant - The bridge overI-94 and the Packard Plant (beyond in the left)

Parkard Plant - The Packard Plant

Packard Plant - The Packard Plant aerial view

Packard Plant - Another aerial view

Packard Plant - A closer look from above

Packard Plant - Down on the ground

Packard Plant - Summer

Packard Plant - Winter

Packard Plant - Another building

Packard Plant - Inside

Bloomfield Hills

Fitzgerald High School

Aerial View of Source One Metals (it is the big white building at the very bottom center)

Source One Metals (from the turnaround in Mound Road)

Source One Metals (from the parking lot)

Source One Metals (from the back)

MSU is Michigan State University

U of M is University of Michigan

The Lower Peninsula of Michigan

Macomb Community College (the Max Thompson Learning Media Center is the library)

The high school January lands on

The giant factory beyond 696 she lands on

Global Titanium from the air

A closer view of the battleground

Global Titanium from the ground

Global Titanium from the ground again

January's Route To The Junkman's Lair 01

January's Route To The Junkman's Lair 02

January's Route To The Junkman's Lair 03

January's Route To The Junkman's Lair 04 (Her Bus Stop before the Packard Plant)

January's Route To The Junkman's Lair 05

January's Route To The Junkman's Lair 06

Beatrice Grand Trunk Warehouse & Cold Storage Building

The Junkman's Lair, adjacent scrapyard, and City Incinerator (top)

The Junkman's Lair, adjacent scrapyard, and City Incinerator (left)

The Junkman's Lair 01

The Junkman's Lair 02

The Junkman's Lair 03

Saint Andrews Hall

Hart Plaza

Hart Plaza (seen from Jefferson at the bottom, looking toward the Detroit River at the top)

Hart Plaza - Fountain

Hart Plaza (seen from the river looking toward Jefferson Ave and downtown)

Hart Plaza (looking north from Cobo Hall at the bottom)

Hart Plaza (looking south)

The Fist of Joe Louis

The Spirit of Detroit

The Joe Louis Arena

January's Route to the Fire 1 - Cobo Hall Rooftop Parking, looking north

January's Route to the Fire 2 - Fort Washington Plaza

January's Route to the Fire 3 - Theodore Levin Courthouse

January's Route to the Fire 4 - Westin Book Cadillac Hotel

January's Route to the Fire 5 - Book Tower

January's Route to the Fire 6 - Three Stadiums

January's Route to the Fire 7 - Foxtown

January's Route to the Fire 8 - Little Caesar's Arena

January's Route to the Fire 9 - Midtown and the Flying Dutchman at the corner of Peterboro and Cass

The Flying Dutchman (RL Ghost Ship Fire)

The Flying Dutchman Interior

Detroit Receiving Hospital

Detroit Receiving Hospital picture

The Witch House

The Witch House Overhead View



Real Events
ConFusion is a real Metro-Detroit sci fi convention.

Hart Plaza - Movement Event Map

Movement Electronic Music Festival

The Movement Electronic Music Festival picture

Another Movement pic




Clothes
Lululemon Fitted Jacket

Ohm's Law Shirt

Cthulhu For President

Made In Detroit Tee

Karategi

Ms Marvel Tee





Real Tech
Fire 7 Tablet

Samsung Galaxy J1

Geo Storm

Hydrogen Fuel Cell Motorcycles

Cosmos

Picking a combination lock

Make an electric lockpick

Victory Empulse TT Review

Victory Empulse TT Pic

Victory Empulse Side View

Victory Empulse TT With Panniers

Victory Empulse TT Instrument Panel

Bell Helmet (it really is from the 1950s)

January's new Sedici Strada Carino helmet

2004 Mazda MX 5

Raven Banner Pendant

2004 Chevy Avalanche



Real Science
Ohm's Law

Hagfish

Hagfish Slime Armor

Solid Light

Voynich Manuscript

Vigenère Cipher

Principles of Flight

Laser Inertial Fusion Energy

Ultra Dense Deuterium

Plasma

Tesseract

Wilhelm Wundt



Meta Tech
Stormcrow Armor ideas (but black and gray, and more of the face covered)

Another Stormcrow Armor general idea (but the real armor would not have all that hair exposed)

Winged Helmet (but January's would be black, and the face would be covered down to the nose)

Think of the upper right goggles area built into the winged helmet above

Stormcrow Armor Symbol

The onboard computer in the Gadgetmobile is named after the Pharos Lighthouse

The Face Bot

The Face Bot again

The Face Bot rear view



Myth and Religion
Oshun

Erzulie



Martial Arts & Gymnastics
Muay Thai - Downward Jumping Elbow

Yoga Crow Pose

Yoga Scorpion Pose


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SubRosa
post Jul 20 2019, 05:06 PM
Post #2


Ancient
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Joined: 14-March 10
From: Between The Worlds



Renee: Lighthammer's not a cheater! laugh.gif He's an energy projector. An energy sheath/shield for defense is pretty standard fare for those types. Since he uses Solid Light in particular, a force field was perfect for him. Right now his force fields are small, as he is new to this. But they will improve over time. (This is what happens when you play Marvel Superheroes and Champions, you look at all supers in terms of how their powers fit together).

I liked writing the talk between Lightguy and Stormgirl very much too. There is some definite conflict there, which January is not shy about backing down from. But the fact they are both willing to talk also shows us something about their characters. If you recall, Lighthammer didn't fire on January first during their initial confrontation. He told her to get lost, and then she took them both out the window. Even then, he tried to grab her in mid air to keep her from falling to her death. Really, January was the aggressor (with good reason to be of course). This willingness to cooperate with others leaves a door open between him and January, which I intend to use in the future.

I think I get more bigotry on the internet than I get here in flesh and blood Michigan. That is not to say that it is not rife in Michigan. Until the Supreme Court overturned it, Michigan had an amendment to the state constitution not only banning same-sex marriage, but also any form of civil union or shared benefits between same-sex partners. That was of course voted for and passed by the people of Michigan by an overwhelming majority. It is also the reason I don't do tabletop RPGs anymore. There is always one person in every group who forces everyone to choose between them and me.

Really though, it is more of a generational thing. Younger people don't bat an eye. Then the older you go, the more likelihood there is for hostility. My mother cried when I came out (and not cried in a good way). My brother didn't care less ("Yeah, I know") is all he said. My father said he though I was brave. It's a whole gamut.

Of course it is called Pop! Soda is what you bake with silly! laugh.gif


Acadian: When I was looking over the name she would pick for herself, the fact that January shortens to Jan was definitely something I considered (along with January being the first month of the year, being similar to the Two-Headed god Janus, and the same name as January Jones). Jan works as a good nickname. I don't use it except in dialogue, as I want to keep a certain level of formality to my writing. And I think she thinks of herself more as January than as Jan. But she knows people are going to call her Jan, and it's a nickname she does not mind.

Worldwide Network News was inspired by the The HP Lovecraft Historical Society. In their Dark Adventure radio theater shows, they have a fictional radio news station called Worldwide Wireless News. I just took it forward in time from the 20s and updated the name. But I still imagine it is the same company.

Sadly, January's reaction to the crucifix was taken straight from my life. I have had to learn to always be on my guard whenever I see one, because I don't know how the wearer is going to treat me. Sometimes it is the same as anyone else, other times, not. I always have to be ready for the latter. That is just the unfortunate reality that people like January and I live in.


treydog: Now that she has committed to this super life, January has a clear idea of who she needs to be. She has not worked out all the kinks yet, or put the Buffy Doctrine down on paper. But she has a clear goal in her head of the person she wants to be. Reaching out to Emilia is part of that. She knows she needs the police on her side if she is going to be successful as a cape. That means forging relationships. Emilia was the obvious first.


Grits: Freya is way to busy being impressed by "Outside!" to pay attention to a nerd like her mother. laugh.gif

I will be working in more Detroit personality in today's episode in fact. Later in this chapter we will have a couple cases where we can fly along with January and see more of the city as well.

I did try watching John Adams again, since I get it free on Prime. I tried once before, but could not get into it. Sadly, I could not keep interested for too long this time either. It's the inaccuracies! Unfortunately for me, all the nits I see about the show are about actual events (like who was where at what time), or about things like officers having the wrong buttons on their uniforms, or enlisted men holding their rifles the wrong way on their shoulder. No one really had anything to say about the portrayal of life in general. But the good thing is I am almost finished reading the book I bought a few days ago, and it has been very helpful.

If you want to get more familiar with superheros I highly recommend the new run of Ms. Marvel with Kamala Khan as the protagonist. It is a great entry point, as it has a very well written main character. It is not just about her punching things, but navigating her life. Likewise with the (now) older Batgirl of Burnside era comics (Batgirl New 52 #35 and up) and her Rebirth era issues. The artwork is not that great. I guess they don't spend money making the girl comics. But the writing is excellent.

Of course I also recommend the two books by April Daniels that I keep flogging. They are what made me think I could actually write a superhero story in prose (as opposed to how we normally see them in comic or movie form).



This Episode's Links:

Oshun

Erzulie

Made In Detroit Tee


You can follow along with January's walk. Start at the Poletown Bus Stop

The Poletown Bus Stop (well close enough to it)

The Bus Stop from the air (the Hamtramck Cadillac Plant is on the right. Smaller steel mills on the left)

The bridge overI-94 and the Packard Plant (beyond in the left)


The Packard Plant

The Packard Plant aerial view

Another aerial view

A closer look from above

Down on the ground

Summer

Winter

Another building

Inside


The Man Living In The Packard Plant


Principles of Flight

The Tigers and the Old English D






Book 2.1 - Stormcrow Recycled

Mid May 2019


"Hey girl, that's a really cute jacket you got on."

January looked up from the book she was reading on her phone. Standing in the aisle of the bus was an African Goddess. Perhaps she was Oshun? However, Erzulie was a strong possibility as well. She was tall and slender, with a curly mane that spilled from her shoulders like an indigo waterfall. She was dressed in a tight leather jacket, and even tighter skinny jeans that glittered with rhinestones. Her silky skin was mellow brown, and her eyes gleamed in the morning sun.

"Umm, thanks," January glanced down at the soft pink fitted jacket that she wore over a "Made In Detroit" tee.

"That's like, a Lululemon right?" Oshun asked.

"I wish," January smiled wryly. "I can't afford one of those. It's a Clululemon, same as my leggings. Not even half the price."

"Now that's what I was thinking," the Goddess said as she sat down beside January, who was obliged to scoot over to make more room for the other girl. "I was thinking 'there is a girl who doesn't waste good money'."

"Um, I guess," January murmured. She did not understand why the Goddess was even talking to her. She must have been incredibly bored. Or maybe it felt like a safer bet than sitting anywhere near the four gang-banger wannabes in the back, or the old lady knitting socks the next seat over, or the woman with two sneezing kids in front.

"Oh you got some nice legs on you too, don't you girl?" To emphasize her words, the African Goddess put one hand on January's leg, and gently slid it along the soft fabric of her black leggings. January had to admit, it felt good. Better than good. Her touch was practically electric. "I bet you work out, don't you?"

"Yeah," January fumbled for words. "I do gymnastics."

January stared down at her boots. What on earth was this African Goddess doing talking to her? Was this some kind of butter-up before she tried selling her something? Was all this some kind of punked video? Was the other woman trying to pick her pocket? If so, she was going to be very disappointed. There had to be some reason for the attention, but January could not imagine what it could be.

The Goddess continued talking, and fawning over her. It made January more and more nervous, waiting for the other shoe to drop. She was relieved when the bus finally reached the Poletown stop. She lifted her backpack, and squeezed past the Goddess to get into the aisle and off the bus. Afterward, she immediately felt for her phone and her wallet. But nothing was missing from her purse, pack, or her pockets.

January could still remember how warm her hand had been, when it had gently slid across her leg. She could still feel it there, softly caressing her. That was not something she would soon forget…

January fought the urge to blush. She pulled her pack across her shoulders, and walked down the street. To her right a row of trees partially screened the looming colossus of the Hamtramck Assembly plant. Across Mount Elliott Street to her left were smaller steel plants, and a towering white building with no signs at all, or even windows.

January imagined that if she could get up on that roof, she could get a lot of air under her wings. She would have to change first. But that would be easy enough, given that her armor was in the pack across her shoulders. But a public street was not the place for changing clothes, not even as fast she could do it.

She made her way down the sidewalk, with only a few cars occasionally whipping past. One honked its horn at her, but she had no idea why. It was not like she was walking in the street or anything. She crossed a dilapidated bridge over I-94, and found herself standing in front of a gas station. The tall smokestack of the city incinerator rose up in the distance to her right. But she turned left instead, putting her back to it. She followed the service drive along the side of the freeway, past a big warehouse with semi-trucks parked outside.

She came upon a dilapidated railroad track, and turned right to follow it south. To her left was a parking lot fenced off with razor wire, with some sort of industrial building beyond. The sharp edges of the wire glinted in the sunlight, and the links of the fence were still shiny. That, and the handful of trucks and cars in the lot, told her that this was a place still in business. Though she could not guess what that business might be.

She ignored it, and headed down the railroad line. A thin bank of trees began on the far side of the tracks. She crossed over and ventured into the greenery. It was a nice, quiet spot, screened from any prying eyes that might be following her.

She closed her eyes and concentrated on her Fire meditation.

Fire give me passion and energy. Transform me in the night sky.

An instant later she was clad from head to toe in her Stormcrow armor, and her regular clothes were tucked safely away in her backpack. She leapt up onto the bough of a stout oak, and looped one of the pack's shoulder straps through its branches. That would keep anyone from finding it, let alone stealing it.

She knew that she could have just taken the pack with her. But she did not want anyone seeing her wearing it with the armor. They might take pictures, then they might see her in her ordinary life wearing the same backpack, and put two and two together. It was paranoia, to be sure. But that did not mean there were not people truly out to get her. Everyone knew what had happened to Hailstorm after all. She was not going to end up like him.

She dropped to the earth below, and stepped out of the greenery and into a street that paralleled the trees and train tracks. Beyond rose the sprawling ruins of the old Packard Automotive Plant. One massive building after another rose like a line of rotted teeth in a blighted jaw. They reminded January of a row of megalithic dominos. Push on one, and all them would probably collapse one after the other.

Not one building retained a single door or window. Broken cinderblocks, cracked bricks, and other detritus were piled up everywhere. Yet nowhere was there anything of value. No iron or steel. No wiring. Certainly no copper pipes. The only remaining life was in the graffiti that splashed the decrepit walls, and the trees and brush that rose from some of the rooftops.

It made January think of pictures she had seen of cities bombed to ruins in World War II. Except no bombs had ever fallen here. No wars had marred this spot. It had been neglect, abandonment, and decay that had writ the doom of the Packard plant, just as it had done to most of Detroit's once-mighty industries.

She found the man she was looking for soon enough, standing on the roof of one of the taller buildings and gazing out over the edge. His blue, white, and silver armor glowed softly. He stood arms akimbo, in one of those classic superhero poses. Then he rose slowly into the air, a plume of white light erupting from each of his boots. January wondered if he practiced that in front of a mirror.

She leapt up to the roof of the nearest building. From there she jumped again to the top of a taller ruin across the alley. By the time she made it there he had jetted over, and hovered in mid-air beyond the edge of the roof.

"You're late," Lighthammer groused.

"Blame the bus," January shrugged her shoulders. "I got here as soon as I could."

"The bus…" Lighthammer shook his head. "Really Crowgirl? You're taking the bus?"

"This ain't Chicago or New York Lightguy," January countered. "It's not like we have a subway, or an elevated, or any real mass transit here."

"You know, I'm working a mission. Probably sometime next week," he said. "An extra hand wouldn't hurt. Your end would probably be 50k, if things go well."

"And how many people would I have to kill?" Now it was January's turn to rest her hands on her hips.

"Don't think of them as people," Lighthammer shook his head and waved one hand from side to side for emphasis. "It makes things easier."

"I can't do that," January shook her head. "I can't live my life the way you do."

"You too good for me White Hat?" There was no mistaking the challenge in his voice.

"I didn't say that," January insisted. "Everything I do is always being watched, measured, studied, by people yearning to vilify me. Not only me, but everyone else like me. I don't have the luxury of ever doing anything wrong. I have to be perfect, all the time, now more than ever."

"Sounds like an impossible way to live," the armored man said softly.

"That's what my therapist said, back when I used to see her," January shrugged. "But I'm not here to stretch out on your couch Doctor Hammer."

"A'ight," Lighthammer nodded. "I used the extra time to get ready. Step into my classroom."

He waved for her to follow, and flew back to the building he had originally been standing upon. But he did not return to the roof. Instead he nimbly zipped down through a wide aperture in the floor beneath it.

January leapt after him. She hit the triggers built into her gauntlets, and her cape snapped out into a pair of wings. She followed his path, just barely gliding through the gaping maw that had once been a window. Once inside she hit her triggers again, and her wings collapsed back into a cape. She hit the ground with speed, tucked into a forward roll, and bounced back to her feet.

She found that Lighthammer had indeed been busy. On one otherwise bare wall he had spray painted several diagrams. One was of an airplane with arrows pointed out from it in all directions. Another was the side view of a wing, with dotted lines to denote what looked like the flow of air across it. He also had several bullet points spelled out, which he began going over.

"Okay, flight is governed by a set of four principles," he said. "Lift, Weight (or gravity), Thrust, and Drag."

He pointed to the graphic of the airplane, and January noted that each of those principles was spelled out beside an arrow showing which direction it moved the plane. Lift for the up arrow, Thrust for the forward arrow, and so on. She listened with rapt attention as he went over each, and explained how they affected flying. For example Lift was created by lower pressure created on the upper surface of a wing, compared to the higher pressure on the underside of the same wing. As the name said, that caused it to be lifted upward.

After spending some time on such book learning, Lighthammer led her out the window and back into the sky. Here they put his lessons to practical use as January glided along, with him beside her to coach her on angling her wings, and her body, to make the most of each.

January could not stop herself from smiling. It was not that she did not take it seriously. She certainly did. It was just such undeniable fun that there was no containing it. There were no morals or ethics to consider. No uncertain future to angst over. No one to insult her. There was nothing to worry about at all, except falling to her death on the broken concrete a hundred feet below.

"We got company Crowgirl," Lighthammer's voice erased the smile from her lips. "Four o'clock."

January had to spend a moment working out what direction that was. Finally she craned her head back and to the right to see a skinny old man with white-hair and a beard standing on one of the abandoned rooftops. He wore a blue sweater that said: "God in the 313". He raised one hand to shade his eyes as he stared at them. A pair of dogs circled him, wagging their tails joyfully.

"Don't worry about him," January replied. "He just lives here. He won't bother us."

"He lives here?" the armored vigilante said. "Is he mental or something?"

"This is Detroit," January explained. "We are all mental here. All the sane people left decades ago."

"If he calls the police, it'll be more than a bother," Lighthammer warned.

"He won't," January replied confidently. "Like I said, this is Detroit. No one here calls the police. They know there's no point."

"Such cynicism in one so young," Lighthammer clucked. "I respect that."

January laughed. It would be funnier if it had not been so true.

"So what's the 313 he's got on his shirt?" Lighthammer wondered. "Is that some kind of gang you got around here?"

"It's the area code for Detroit," January explained. "Go past 8 Mile and into the 'burbs and it turns to 586 and 248."

"Uh huh," Lighthammer nodded.

"So if you're in the 313, you're in the D." January went on.

"The D?" Lighthammer asked. "Oh, you mean Detroit."

"The D is something we say here," January explained. "It's from the Old English D the Tigers have on their hats."

"The Tigers I know," Lighthammer nodded. "I saw them play the Indians down at Progressive Field with…"

The vigilante's words trailed off, and January guessed that he was about to say someone's name. She did not press him for more. Now she remembered that they were not just two ordinary people hanging out and talking. They were capes, and they had secret identities to protect, even from one another. Especially from one another.

It was a sobering thought. Did this barrier exist between all metas? She knew that they might be allies at the moment, when they each had something the other needed. But that could change in the future. Would she always have to think so strategically with everyone she met from now on?

They returned to their original rooftop. Now it was January's turn to become the teacher. She began with the most basic moves of Krav Maga. First she demonstrated them. Then she worked Lighthammer through each, repositioning his hands, arms, and body, until he could perform the attacks and counters flawlessly.

Still, her thoughts kept drifting back to the African Goddess' hand on her leg…


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Posts in this topic
SubRosa   The Stormcrow   Apr 19 2019, 11:34 PM
SubRosa   [b]Chapter 1 - Stormcrow Rising [center]Early May...   Apr 20 2019, 12:04 AM
Renee   Hee hee, this is awesome! She's doing medi...   Apr 20 2019, 02:21 PM
SubRosa   Hee hee, this is awesome! She's doing med...   Apr 20 2019, 03:27 PM
Acadian   Oh this was a hoot! January, her crow fan cl...   Apr 20 2019, 06:32 PM
Grits   I’m very excited to see Stormcrow so soon! (...   Apr 22 2019, 06:17 PM
SubRosa   Renee: I went to MCC for a while, so it was my go-...   Apr 26 2019, 04:32 PM
Acadian   ’Naturally she did what they said to never do....   Apr 26 2019, 06:33 PM
Grits   Awesome, a fight and flying sequence! I though...   Apr 28 2019, 11:29 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: Courage + questionable judgement sounds l...   May 3 2019, 09:35 PM
Acadian   I’ll take your wonderful Two Steps from Hell mus...   May 8 2019, 07:31 PM
Renee   Whoa, she's wearing her superhero outfit in pu...   May 9 2019, 03:55 PM
SubRosa   All: I created a Google Map of all the Stormcrow l...   May 10 2019, 10:05 PM
Acadian   Neat Gadget Cave! Replete with ingenious tech...   May 11 2019, 09:10 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: The Gadget Cave is a fun setting. I have ...   May 17 2019, 04:41 PM
Acadian   What a fun episode, as the plot thickens with more...   May 17 2019, 09:54 PM
Renee   There's a Beverly Hills in Michigan! I u...   May 24 2019, 07:07 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: Now we know that things were not quite as...   May 24 2019, 10:18 PM
Acadian   This was a wonderful episode that sleuthed the sto...   May 25 2019, 06:41 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: Working in the pop culture references is ...   Jun 1 2019, 05:09 PM
Acadian   "I think I forgot to pick that at character ...   Jun 1 2019, 07:17 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: One fun thing about writing January and A...   Jun 8 2019, 04:52 PM
Acadian   Clever how she got her Crowsuit into the house. ...   Jun 8 2019, 10:38 PM
Uleni Athram   A superheroine who actually knows her Marty Arties...   Jun 11 2019, 03:27 PM
Renee   Ah, typical Renee has fallen behind. :blink: Life...   Jun 11 2019, 04:30 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: I used the old window trick to sneak thin...   Jun 15 2019, 04:58 PM
Acadian   January shows us plenty of raw emotion in this pow...   Jun 15 2019, 07:13 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: That was a very intense episode, that giv...   Jun 22 2019, 04:28 PM
Acadian   Nice job here, setting the scene and stakes for wh...   Jun 22 2019, 07:18 PM
treydog   The way you weave “existing” tech in with poss...   Jun 24 2019, 05:46 PM
Renee   Nice. Also, the whole time her family's ha...   Jun 24 2019, 06:52 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: This will be the crescendo of the chapter...   Jun 29 2019, 04:15 PM
Acadian   Despite the superhero tech, you rendered everythin...   Jun 29 2019, 06:21 PM
treydog   Most excellent fight scene! And again, very h...   Jun 30 2019, 12:34 AM
SubRosa   Ooops, I forgot to add some links. I went back and...   Jun 30 2019, 06:48 PM
Acadian   Thanks for the additional links and update. I ...   Jun 30 2019, 07:36 PM
treydog   I tend to agree. While on the one hand, it is fun...   Jun 30 2019, 08:33 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: That Carotid Slap was something I filed a...   Jul 6 2019, 03:49 PM
Acadian   Another intense fight! It was very neat how ...   Jul 6 2019, 06:38 PM
treydog   A most enthralling fight! Then there is the d...   Jul 8 2019, 04:36 PM
Grits   Catching up with January and Avery has been quite ...   Jul 12 2019, 12:28 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: This two part fight forced me to think cr...   Jul 13 2019, 05:08 PM
Renee   Lighthammer has force fields! That's cheat...   Jul 13 2019, 06:34 PM
Acadian   It just struck when you referred to January as Jan...   Jul 13 2019, 07:46 PM
SubRosa   As an editorial note, given that I have decided to...   Jul 13 2019, 11:56 PM
treydog   A nice bit of calm after the Stormcrow (sorry). B...   Jul 15 2019, 12:19 AM
SubRosa   Side note- still looking at early Boston. Did fi...   Jul 15 2019, 02:50 AM
SubRosa   I bought Boston in the American Revolution: A Town...   Jul 17 2019, 02:03 AM
Grits   Excellent shirt! I’m a fan, even if Freya do...   Jul 17 2019, 03:28 AM
Renee   “fine-toothed search bot” :lol: Ha ha I li...   Jul 17 2019, 03:40 PM
treydog   The thing (okay ONE thing) I like about this story...   Jul 20 2019, 07:15 PM
Acadian   The bus ride and encounter did a couple of things ...   Jul 20 2019, 09:35 PM
Renee   I think I want an African Goddess next to me, if I...   Jul 21 2019, 02:12 AM
Grits   Not Cthululemon? :P Good idea to stash the backpac...   Jul 23 2019, 01:10 AM
SubRosa   treydog: Inserting the human element into these st...   Jul 27 2019, 04:35 PM
Renee   :lol: Yes, how apt a description, the handing ...   Jul 27 2019, 04:51 PM
Acadian   A superbike for a superhero - hopefully. Unfortun...   Jul 27 2019, 11:00 PM
treydog   Quotes first and then observations. Have known...   Jul 28 2019, 03:06 PM
SubRosa   Renee: I had no idea the 'Gucci Biker' lin...   Aug 3 2019, 04:35 PM
Acadian   A nuclear powered Stormcycle emerges from the Gadg...   Aug 3 2019, 07:47 PM
Renee   He put a nuclear reactor in her motorcycle? :O ...   Aug 4 2019, 12:30 AM
treydog   :lol: Loved all the dialogue- this is the way...   Aug 4 2019, 01:05 AM
Darkness Eternal   Chapter 1 - Stormcrow Rising What a great way to...   Aug 6 2019, 02:30 AM
SubRosa   Acadian: I did a lot of work on developing power s...   Aug 10 2019, 04:13 PM
Renee   Yes, I was thinking of buses. :) Fusion-powered ...   Aug 10 2019, 05:43 PM
Acadian   This episode drew me in immediately and was a joy ...   Aug 10 2019, 07:53 PM
Darkness Eternal   Chapter 1.2: I get what you mean. The crows did i...   Aug 10 2019, 09:41 PM
treydog   :blink: Jan is certainly in a position to und...   Aug 10 2019, 10:43 PM
SubRosa   Renee: This chapter is set about a week after the ...   Aug 17 2019, 05:07 PM
Acadian   The beginning of another Crowventure assigned to h...   Aug 17 2019, 09:03 PM
Renee   Yeah, totally. He's like that voice over the...   Aug 18 2019, 03:05 PM
treydog   " The interactions between Gadget and Cro...   Aug 18 2019, 03:47 PM
Darkness Eternal   Chapter 1.3: I like how you mentioned how deep-ro...   Aug 19 2019, 02:17 AM
SubRosa   Acadian: I had not really thought of doing more be...   Aug 24 2019, 04:32 PM
Acadian   Thanks for your peek/insight into the future of th...   Aug 24 2019, 06:44 PM
treydog   More excellent Crow-Girl action! The fight wa...   Aug 25 2019, 10:11 PM
Renee   Nice. She plays Fallout (or at least knows of this...   Aug 27 2019, 08:16 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: I enjoyed writing the fight between Janua...   Aug 31 2019, 04:23 PM
Renee   Yes there is some reason why our armed forces ofte...   Aug 31 2019, 07:01 PM
Acadian   Another wonderful episode! I liked how her ...   Sep 1 2019, 07:29 PM
Darkness Eternal   Chapter 1.4: There was plenty in this chapter that...   Sep 2 2019, 03:06 AM
SubRosa   Renee: Gasoline is much quicker to burn and explod...   Sep 7 2019, 04:15 PM
Acadian   Gosh, I'm learning a lot about Michigan and De...   Sep 7 2019, 07:17 PM
Renee   We recycle. At least I do. Where I live it seems l...   Sep 9 2019, 12:16 AM
treydog   A lesson my A and A team are learning (slowly). ...   Sep 9 2019, 01:13 AM
Darkness Eternal   Chapter 1.7: Heh. Good question honestly. What is ...   Sep 14 2019, 01:55 AM
SubRosa   Acadian: I know you were joking, but the reason I ...   Sep 14 2019, 05:30 PM
Acadian   With a name like Wilhelm Wundt, it is indeed hard ...   Sep 14 2019, 08:31 PM
treydog   Way back when we were reading Gawain and the Green...   Sep 15 2019, 09:15 PM
SubRosa   Acadian: I still remember my Into to Psychology cl...   Sep 21 2019, 03:33 PM
Renee   Yeah, I don't think she'd be able to conce...   Sep 21 2019, 04:34 PM
Acadian   Another fun episode as you ever so smoothly show u...   Sep 22 2019, 12:09 AM
Darkness Eternal   Chapter 1.10: Great thing you provided us with th...   Sep 24 2019, 02:51 AM
SubRosa   Renee: You are right, even if she tried to ignore ...   Sep 28 2019, 04:58 PM
Acadian   Looks like the stealth approach was a good call as...   Sep 28 2019, 07:45 PM
Renee   See, where is Lighthammer during all of this? It m...   Sep 29 2019, 03:27 AM
treydog   Caught up again- yay! And also phooey, becaus...   Sep 30 2019, 11:30 AM
SubRosa   A minor note. Thanks to tredyog correctly identify...   Oct 2 2019, 10:02 PM
Darkness Eternal   Chapter 2.1:Ah, Jan has been meeting some ladies a...   Oct 4 2019, 03:33 AM
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