JNAProductions
The music's deep bass is still audible, shaking your bones as you walk into the back room. The door closes behind you, leaving you with a group of strangers.

One of them is a young lady with a cat purse, a cat shirt, and a headband with cat ears.
Another, a man in a trench coat and a dorky hat.
The third is a woman with prosthetic hands.
The next is a well-attired woman.
And finally, in the back of the room, lounging on a divan, is a short woman in a blue jumpsuit. Her hair is a faint pink, though that might just be a trick of the light, and her skin is a deep brown.

She on the divan is the first to speak. "Afternoon, everyone. I'm sure you're curious why I sent a letter to each of you. There's a lot of details to go over, but the gist of it is, I need help. And you do too, whether or not you know it."

Standing up to her full 5' and no inches of height, she introduces herself. "I'm Nerissa Roubis. You are Natalinya," she addresses the cat-themed woman, "and you've had a hard time connecting to other people. Well, humans, at least. You are Andrew," she turns to the trench-coat clad individual, "and your cough is a lot more serious than you think it is. Stage Three lung cancer, metastasized to your bones too. You are Manuela," she tells the woman with missing hands, "and those jury-rigged things aren't gonna last that long. You are Elaine," she finally tells the woman in tailored clothing, "and your past is more than you think it is."

 
 OOC Thread 
Dr.Gunsforhands
The lanky woman with the duct-tape-and-velcro prosthetics - Manuela, apparently - was sprawled out on a comfy-looking couch across from Nerissa's when you first arrived. When Nerissa starts her introduction, Manuela sits up to attention and looks to each of the other attendants in turn, sparing an especially apologetic look for the noir detective cosplayer.

By the end, she's looking at Nerissa, trying to put the puzzle pieces together. Nerissa is seemingly all too willing to snoop into everyone's medical and family history, but she doesn't seem like an MLM recruiter or anything, so Manuela decides to play into the show rather than try and pick it apart. This is more fun, anyway.

"Okay... So, what about you, Nerissa? What do  you  need?"
Batcathat
Ironically, Andrew's first thought on hearing the woman's words were that he really needed a smoke. Of course, that was his first thought a lot of the time, he admitted to himself, which likely explained why he could be... but why on Earth would he trust a diagnosis from some random person in a club? Just because he had been on a two packs a day habit since he was fourteen. Just because the cough had been getting worse. Just because he could barely breath sometimes.

"Typical", he said as he pulled out a cigarette and lit it – whatever this was, he had a feeling the normal rules didn't apply. "Here you spend your entire life dreaming of the day when a mysterious woman with legs up to so-and-so would ask for your help and then she tells you that you're gonna die."
Greenflame133
" but... my name is Natalia " Natalinya tilts her head to the side like a confused animal. " and yeah, I already got that diagnoses, not exact shy about sharing it eithr. Did we meet on con or something? " She puts a finger to her lip, as thinks, trying to recall somebody this shot she meet. The woman curentlly woudn't look out of place at a comi-con or somilar thing.
JNAProductions
 
 Originally Posted by Dr.Gunsforhands 
 "Okay... So, what about you, Nerissa? What do  you  need?" 
 

Her face turns more serious. "I... I lost someone close to me. And I've been trying to find her for long enough that I know I can't do it on my own."
Soras Teva Gee
Elaine wondered just what she was doing here. A couple of friends had dragged her here before but the Domino House wasn't exactly her kind of club. She sooner be having a nice coffee in a little café after a nice long ride truth be told. Yet something about that invitation had almost compelled her to be here. It had apparently neglected to mention there this would be a cosplay event and between Humphrey Bogart and the cat lady Elaine felt out of place standing there in her riding jacket. It wasn't even classic leather.

 "So are you looking for money or something then?"  Elaine asked wondering if perhaps she wasn't the only nepobaby in the room.  "Because I'm no investigator, and I can't think of what I'd do for you beyond that." 
JNAProductions
"It'll be easier to show you," Nerissa says. She takes a small scepter from one of her pockets, and starts to trace runes on the wall. The traced lines appear in midair, just in front of the wall, and after a minute of work, they flare brightly. When the light dies down, there's an open circle in front of the wall, the only thing visible past it a swirling maelstrom of colors. "Go ahead and step through."
Greenflame133
" An ad hoc diagnosis and magic show is what I expected, but why not. " Natalinya steps forward, looking around, trying to see any signs of how this trick could be performed.
Batcathat
That was new. Andrew's eyes narrowed as he took the last drag of the cigarette. He briefly considered flicking it through the opening but that seemed... potentially unwise.

He'd heard whispers, of course. Half-spoken rumors about things beyond the normal. He'd paid them about as much regard as he did to rumors about aliens assassinating JFK or the Loch Ness monster sinking the Titanic. But if this was a trick, it was a damn good one.

"After you", he said to Ms Roubis and gestured towards the swirling portal. "Murder by magic portal would be unusual, but I've seen worse."

Well, he had  read  about worse.
Dr.Gunsforhands
Manuela stifles a laugh when Natalia mentions her name, but a cracked phone strapped to an overstuffed glove on the end of her arm fails to cover up her grin. "Probably a Freudian slip because of the cat ears," she says.

She picks up on Elaine's piece as well. "It sounds like she needs a detective... but the detective needed a doctor, and the doctor needed an inventor and the inventor needed a technician, and the technician had... amnesia?" Using her other stuffed glove, marked by twisted paperclips and stylus pens, she makes a pitiful attempt to point to each party member in her fictional chain of quests and heist roles. She would have gone on like this for a full minute, but the sight of floating magical sigils shuts her up.

Manuela fumbles to adjust her glasses and get a better look at the strange phenomenon. Magic is right - the flash was a brilliant way to hide the door as it was being uncovered. She can't even tell where it ends. The obscuring colored lights and fog fits in with the rest of the club's aesthetic, too.

"Cool!"

Even as the word leaves her mouth, she glances at Nerissa and remembers that she really does need something important. "Sorry, I know this is serious. So, do we just go straight to the end of this...?"

She ducks and steps into the swirling corridor-portal.
JNAProductions
There's no lighting set-up that could be making it. Nor was there anything that could've made the glowing lines off the wall from its setup.

Manuela is the first through, while Nerissa waits to say something. "There may be some... Effects, going through. The first time is the roughest, that's for sure. But it's worth it." She steps through.


 

As Manuela passes through, everything distorts. Colors blur together into flavors of sounds, and your mind warps in a thousand directions at once. You see yourself, reflected in the kaleidoscopic shards of space and time.

One of the other selves approaches-an older version, with much more advanced prosthetics. She reaches into a burlap sack and gives you similar-looking ones from it. "These should work better. Just don't forget to come back and give these to yourself, okay? Don't need a paradox."

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Manuela is now PL 8!
 
Soras Teva Gee
 “I’d be the driver if you’re trying to fit me into something,”  Elaine said with a mild smile to the woman with prosthetics. She could also be the muscle maybe, she knew how to fight in an ordinary sort of way and not many expected women to throw a punch.

While Elaine mused on that point their host made to… conjure a magic portal? No that couldn’t be right, there must be some stage trickery like those hologram concerts they did in Japan. A little mist maker, a fan, some LEDs, and a concealed projector maybe. Well it sounded better then magic.

 “I saw something like this at a Silicon Valley tech demo once.”  she said wanting it to be true.

Elaine was getting the distinct impression she was being taken advantage of but she just had to say no after the charade played itself out. Elaine stepped through the portal.


 

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I typed this before that last one but think it still works okay.
 
JNAProductions
When Elaine steps through, she experiences similar contortions to Manuela, though the other woman is nowhere in Elaine's sight.

She sees flashes of wings and scales, great gouts of fiery breath, and above all, a sense of  power  that flows through her. Elaine can look down on herself-so small, so fragile, so weak; but not for long.
Dr.Gunsforhands
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I figured as much Re: the lighting setup and such. Imaginary Dr. Gunsforhands was making assumptions and not examining it too closely. 😛
 


The new device barely qualifies as a prosthetic on its face. It looks like an arm-cannon from a cartoon or a video game. Naturally, Manuela loves it anyway - after all, she designed it herself. Her mind is already racing, imagining how it might work, among other things revealed in the shards of reality around her. So many things...

 
 Spoiler: No one else can see this sequence but it was fun to write 
Absentmindedly, she un-tapes one of the jury-rigged gloves with her teeth while Dr. Gunsforhands from the future prepares the gadgets for installation, manipulating them with rays of shimmering, barely-visible force. "They're permanent, obviously. Our nervous system latches onto them because of the process our brain is going through right now. And I'll brag: we do a really good job making these! They hurt when I first got them, but I haven't had any problems since!"

Manuela is barely paying attention. Too many thoughts at once. She feels dizzy. Dr. Guns unwraps her other arm for her and makes it quick.

The stinging, creeping sensation of the attachment process snaps Manuela back into focus. She gasps and flinches, pants and shakes. Her future self winces in turn from remembering it, then remembers something else and dodges just in time-

 *blam* blam* 

-for Manuela's guns for hands to blast a couple of sudden test shots. Fireworks, celebrating a successful procedure! "Ha! Sweet! I hate that we have to leave that in now!"

The Future version of Manuela goes over a couple more things with the junior Doctor Gunsforhands. One: she would need to design any further gadgets herself. She wants those ideas to come from where they actually came from. Two: not to worry about how ridiculously quickly she can think through projects now. It's not, like, an alien parasite or anything. Just a small burst of nerve tissue growth to accommodate a big burst of willpower.
 

 
 Spoiler: OOC Question 
So, does the portal just kind of spit us back out at the end of the transformation, or...?
 
Batcathat
Andrew watched as the others walked into the portal, seemingly disappearing into... something. For a moment his curiosity wrestled his cautiousness, but as the former was a 250 pounds bodybuilder and the latter a sickly five-year old, curiosity won out and after tipping his hat towards Ms Roubis he stopped into the portal.

"See you on the other side."
Greenflame133
Natalinya is still convinced it's a trick of some kind. A well prepend one, but it must be. Fake wall covered with blanket? A UV marker? Fog machine? Leds? What ever it is, magisisans usuaslly to be protective of their secrets.

I shouldrly sounds more logical and teams of wierdoes going on a quest in magic land. One of them is terminally ill! Non the less, she simmply cannot go on without finding out. She step into the portal
JNAProductions
When Andrew steps through, he doesn't feel well. By the time the dark room is no longer visible, he's practically hacked up a lung. It feels like a year passes for each second, with his breathing growing worse and worse until it stops entirely.

And yet, he keeps on moving. Whatever driving force has kept him going through his whole life wasn't going to stop for something as petty as death, now would it?


 

Nat has a much more pleasant experience. She doesn't see anything besides the shifting colors at first, but she can feel something furry and warm press up against her leg. Looking down, she can see a cat, and then another, and another. She closes her eyes for a moment, and when she opens them, she finds herself the same size as any given member of the feline horde. And the same shape-four legged, with whiskers and pointy ears.


 

You arrive at the other side one after the other. The area you're in is a back alley, with overhanging roofs stopping the rain visible on the street from soaking you.

Manuela's prosthetics have gone from jury-rigged to highly advanced.
Elaine is visibly scaly.
Nerissa is the same.
Andrew looks significantly worse for the wear.
And Natalinya appears as a cat.

Nerissa looks a little surprised. "That... Was not exactly what I expected."
Batcathat
"No kidding." Andrew looked around at the others, before starting to feel his own face. No fur, scales or fancy gadgets as far as he could tell. "Anyone got a mirror? I hope I look better than I feel, at least."
Greenflame133
The fluffy hug is already a haven for Natalinya, and it only gets better. she would gasp for joy, but her new body doesn't quite work at this.

After a moment to take it in. She looks between the group. Secretly trying to figure out whose shoulder is most conferable. Then she uses her sharp claws to sprint up a wall and jump on Elaine shoulder. Her tail calmly flowing from side to side as if to say '  I could get used to it  '.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
As a quirk of her transformation, this message is quite easily understood by the rest.
 
Soras Teva Gee
Elaine felt her heart pounding and her breath quicken as she went through the tunnel. Not with fear, she didn't do fear like other people even when she probably should be afraid, but instead with excitement and anticipation. Her skin prickled, hair standing on end, while warm heat filled every inch of her. Then darkness closed in and suddenly she was out of the portal.

 "Okay so maybe I haven't seen that be--- ahhh!"  Elaine shouted in sudden surprise upon catching sight of her hands.

The back of them had been covered in something slick and black that disappeared up the sleeve of her riding jacket. Reaching over to Elaine grasped her sleeve intending to pull it back, and found herself ripping it off instead. The tough fashionable safety gear tore off like a wet tissue, revealing the black substance running up her arm. Suddenly frustrated Elaine found herself ripping off the rest of the jacket. Both her arms were completely covered, as was seemingly her chest beneath the video game graphic tee she had on beneath, feeling her neck there was something other then skin framing her face and covering her ears

Scales.

Elaine realized she was suddenly covered in scales. So fine that from a distance they might seem like a second skin or scuba suit with larger plates about her forearms bracers from some set of armor, a touch suggested several more plates covering her chest. On her hands the scales ended with bony knobs at her knuckles while her palms remained uncovered. Which let Elaine see how the scales sprouted from the skin.

As a clear voice spoke about getting used to something Elaine broke off her inspection and noticed she had somehow jumped about seven feet into the air. And stayed there.

 "Right okay I get it now, that tunnel was full of shrooms or sedatives and this all isn't happening right now,"  she said floating in the air.
JNAProductions
Nerissa reaches into one of her many pockets and takes a makeup mirror out. She hands it to Andrew, letting him see what happened.
Greenflame133
Natalinya extends her claws, clinging onto this shoulder as she is way too height for confort
Batcathat
"Thanks." Andrew grabbed the mirror and peered into it, poking different parts of his face. Everything looked alright – well, alright for a man who's just been told he's dying, at least – but it felt weird. And numb.

Giving the mirror back, he turned towards Ms Roubis. "So what the hell is going on and why do they look all... like that, when I just look like I'm even more dying?"
JNAProductions
"It's... Not an exact science," she replies. "You all had... Have, something that makes you more than ordinary. Nat's a cat, Elaine looks like a dragon, Manuela has her tech, and you... You're a really passionate person, right? Dedicated? Willing to keep going even when everything's against you?"
Batcathat
"I suppose." He pulled out another cigarette and lit it. Didn't feel quite right either. "What's that got to do with anything?"
JNAProductions
"Check your pulse," Nerissa says, looking the other way.
Batcathat
After a moment for her words to sink in, Andrew pushed two fingers against the side of his throat. Nothing. He held them against his wrist. Same thing. "Huh." He took a drag from the cigarette, trying to process that his breath was now mostly just a nicotine delivery system. "I guess I don't have to worry about these anymore, huh?"

"I..." He looked around without finding whatever it was he was looking for. "Yeah, alright. So what are we doing here?" He flicked his cigarette at the ground before aggressively grinding it into the ground with his foot. "And where is here?"
JNAProductions
She looks at Andrew for a moment. "I'm sorry. I didn't know..."

"Well," she clears her throat, "We're outside the lower hospitality hab of New York. The fourth one. It's generally pretty isolated, which is why it's my go-to spot when I have to travel here. And be careful of the 'rain'-that's wastewater from above."
Dr.Gunsforhands
"Well, I imagine you'll still need your lungs to talk," says Manuela to Andrew, before turning her sights upward to Elaine and the cat. She raises one fancy Mega Man arm, and a shimmering holographic hand appears to gently pull Elaine down to earth by the ankles. "Down you go. You look real enough to me! Though, these things don't really have any touch feedback." The numb floating hand jabs its thumb into its fingers demonstratively before moving to pick up the scraps of Elaine's jacket in the background. "How are you feeling? Are you okay to walk?"

Once Elaine is at least ready for that, Manuela bundles the jacket remnants under her arm and prepares to leave the alley. "Alright, so, hab is a new word for me. Is this the habitat that's the least hospitable, or the hospitality-hab that's just physically at the bottom?" She dismisses her holo-hand and replaces it with a floating copper-colored umbrella, to share with whoever else wants to fit under it.
Soras Teva Gee
 "Thank's uh Manuela right?"  Elaine said as she was pulled down by the newly much improved prosthetics. Though it didn't feel like gravity had a particularly strong grip on her right now she could took a step or two and didn't float up again.

 "And no I feel... better then alright. Like I could punch through a wall even" 

That wasn't a joke either Elaine had never felt so alive and aware even in the toilet rain. A dragon Nerissa had said? Okay that went with the scales and the strength but what was with all the other stuff?

 "Speaking of which Nerissa enough with the dribs and drabs, tell us the whole story."  
JNAProductions
 
 Originally Posted by Soras Teva Gee 
  "Speaking of which Nerissa enough with the dribs and drabs, tell us the whole story."   
 

"Wish I could. There's a lot I don't know. But," she says, "I'll tell you as much as I can."

Nerissa takes a breath and starts. "There is, to my knowledge, three Keystone Eras-or at least, that's what I can access. There's your time-early 2000s. There's when we are now-about fifty millennia ahead of your time. And one in the past, about two million years prior. Why these moments? I don't know. And while I can travel between them, time passes equally between all three moments. If we spend a week here, it'll be a week later back home for you, and a week later in the Paleolithic time as well."

"I'm from this time period-born and raised spacer. Didn't set foot on a place with real gravity until I was sixteen. My life wasn't much to talk about, you know-I worked maintenance jobs mostly, flitting from ship to ship and planet to planet. I always felt... Kinda lost, you know? Like there was something more, but I didn't know what. And then I met Celina. She wasn't, exactly, the more that I wanted, but she knew about it. She offered me a chance to do something more impactful than just keeping some ship running. We were together... We worked together for about a decade. It can be hard to tell exactly, given the time differences," she continues. Her tone is guarded, but you can tell that she had and has feelings for Celina as more than just a coworker. "There's a lot of stuff out there that's real nasty. Things that go bump in the night. Things that live in nightmares. Things that aren't meant to be. And we helped make sure that they didn't hurt anyone. Then, maybe three years ago, she told me that something big was going to happen. That she needed to leave, and she didn't know when she'd be back."

She takes another breath, a little ragged. "And now... Now, I've been fighting on my own. And I don't know where she is."
Batcathat
Andrew rubbed his forehead, absentmindedly noticing that the skin didn't seem quite... attached. "So, let's get this straight... you're a time-traveler who's recruited a cat, a cyborg, a lizard and a...a zombie to save the world?"

"Good lord." He pulled out yet another cigarette – hopefully they still sold them in the future, at this rate of reality-shattering revelations he was going to run out fast. "If I'm going insane, it's at least a rather interesting insanity."
Greenflame133
Natalinya jumps off Elaine's shoulder as soon as possible. Turning back into a human, not too far one, she was back in the club. Except, her head now has 3 pairs of ears. Two human ears, two cat ears on the headband, and a pair of real cat ears growing out of her head. She quickly hides the headband and considers putting on a hat, but with a quick look amongst her companions; she decides she won't be one standing out anyway.

" 2 Million years ago? That's like... before homo sapiens. Hold on a second... at this distance, butterfly effect should be crazy, yet you said you say you are able to consistently make your way to this allay way? How can that be "
JNAProductions
Nerissa shrugs. "There's a lot I don't know. I'm a mechanic, not a scientist-I'm more concerned with 'Does this work?' than 'Why does this work?'. Anyway, we should probably move a little. I've got an apartment down the road."
Dr.Gunsforhands
"Good! Guess you really are the muscle, then," says Manuela to Elaine offhand.

She lets the cat girl do her thing and listens intently to the space wizard's story. Somehow, the only part she's hung up on is whether that  worked together  was more, 'my love was unrequited,' or more, 'it's literally fifty thousand years in the future and people are STILL rude to us for being lesbians.'

"I guess that tracks, if the idea is to separate our appearances so they can't feed back on themselves," she muses regarding time travel. She hovers her umbrella into waste-wet undercity and gestures for Nerissa to lead the way. "These things lurking - are they the kind where we need to watch what we say in public?"
JNAProductions
She shakes her head as she walks out of the alley. "Not here, at least. It'd be obvious if they were around. That being said, we do stick out a bit right now," Nerissa tells you. The "rain" is grimy and gross, flecked with rust and dirt. There's few people on the street, though walking out, you can see more streets above and below.

The apartment complex isn't far, reached with just a few minutes of walking. Nerissa taps a code into the lock of the front door, then politely holds the door for you all to go in. "Three floors up, second door on the right," she directs you. She follows up behind. The stairs are steeper than you're used to, but it doesn't seem to tire you out-whatever's transformed you seems to be working well on that end, at least. The second door on the right looks identical to every other door on this floor.

 
 Spoiler: Perception DC 10 
There's an argument going on in the second door on the right. It's heated, since they're clearly yelling at one another.
 
Soras Teva Gee
Elaine's head spun with the scope of how far (how when?) she presently was from home. Still well if dragons were ever real the far future or even farther past was certainly a place to hide them but how did it connect back to her? Did some dragon science pop their egg into a rocket so that their child might escape their dying world only for it to go all wibbly wobbly and end up in the present?

As they arrived at the apartment Elaine found herself up the stairs first. Reaching the door and hearing hearing loud noises inside hauled back her fist and swung it forward. Halfway through her muscles seem to abruptly swell and instead of a polite knock Elaine pounded on the door with a loud resounding bang.

 "Hello!" 

 

 
 Spoiler: OOC: 

 (1d20)[ 5 ]  + 6: 11 Success

Elaine also specifically has her Draconic Might active raising her strength to 8 with a lift of 10.
 
Batcathat
Andrew made sure to walk at the back of the group, both to keep watch over everyone and to keep an eye on them. Despite everything that happened, he'd had longer relationships with some lunches than with this group.

He almost flinched at lizard lady pounding the door as if she was trying to break it down. "Subtle."

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 Perception:   (1d20+18)[ 29 ] 
 
JNAProductions
They go quiet on the inside. After a few moments, the door opens, and you see a timid-looking woman within. "Hello?" she asks.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
Quick note, for anyone new to my games.
I will have nested DCs for skill checks. So, the outermost spoiler have DC 5 or whatever, then within that spoiler, there will be a higher DC, so on and so forth until I feel it's good.
This is just so you know not to just take 10 for an "easy" check-there might be harder DCs within!

 
 Spoiler: Perception DC 8 
Whoever else in the apartment is bigger than she is. You can hear heavier footfalls and motions from the back.

 
 Spoiler: DC 14 
The woman's wrists are bruised and raw.
 

 

 
 Spoiler: Insight DC 12 
She's spooked-very nervous.

 
 Spoiler: DC 18 
But not so much of you all-I mean, yes, she's spooked of you. But she seems more concerned with whoever else is in the apartment with her.
 

 

 
Greenflame133
Nat hangs back, for now content to listen and holding her words until such as more information.

 
 Spoiler: OOC 
[roll]d20+12 Perception[/roll]
 
Dr.Gunsforhands
Manuela has no strong preference for being in the front or the back. She's tall enough that she sticks to the back of crowds and family photos, but is also a forward rally point when she's leading kids around. As such, she ends up at the top of the stairs right behind Elaine.

She's caught off-guard when Elaine goes to town on the random door - okay, not random, but people are allowed to shout at each other in their own apartment - and is close enough to notice some things about the timid woman when she answers. Things that are now Manuela's problem, even though she  really  would have rather not gotten involved.

Manuela thinks hard, trying to find a way to defuse the situation quickly. If she doesn't, the dragon girl is liable to charge in and commit a crime as soon as she notices what's going on. Of course, we can't just leave things as they are, either...

"Uhhhh, pizza delivery!"

Okay, maybe Manuela didn't think that hard. Surely they have pizza in this part of the timeline, right? After all, what kind of Future New York wouldn't have pizza in it? Certainly none that Manuela would want to be a part of.

With a mental command, the projectors in her arms conjure the holographic form of a pizza box. It appears as though Manuela just retrieved it from behind her back, and is held out so the scared resident can easily touch it without revealing it to whoever is behind her. It's surprisingly realistic, save for its unusual logo:

 Need Rescue?
Yes &lt;- -&gt; No 

Manuela's never inserted herself in a secret-gun-to-the-head kidnapping/hostage situation/domestic dispute before, but if there's one thing she does know, it's UI design.
JNAProductions
 
 Spoiler: OOC 
I am laughing SO HARD at that post, Doctor! Three internet cookies to you. :)
 


She nods, slightly, but immediately freezes up when the other occupant of the apartment arrives. He's a tall, broad-shouldered man, with the look of someone who does physical labor for his work. His knuckles are especially calloused. "Well, at least you did something useful," he complains, and then properly looks at the assembled people on the other side of the door. "The hell kind of place did you order from?"
Batcathat
Andrew almost smiled at the trick with the pizza box, but the amusement vanished as the man showed up and Andrew casually repositioned himself to have his gun easily available.

So... what was the best play here? Playing pizza deliverers seemed like something of a dead end, any other sort of bluff would have to account for the most eclectic group since the Wizard of Oz – not to mention he'd have to sell it to a man he knew barely anything about.

Oh well, when in doubt, intimidate.

He walked up to the man, standing quite a bit too close for comfort. "We would like to ask a few questions."

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

If I think some roll is warranted (Intimidation, in this case), should I just roll or wait until I'm asked?
 
Soras Teva Gee
Elaine's eyes flicked to the woman's wrists and her fists tightened while she was keenly aware of the presence lurking behind if not exactly sure how. They might be in the future but it seems not that much had really changed now had it. As the others butted in Elaine forced herself to take a step to the side as she realized she was about to launch another blow. What the hell? Since when was she the first to throw down even when faced with something like this?

Forcing herself to breath steadily she waited, something told her a fight was about to break out even if she didn't start one but she was going to be sure she finished it.
Greenflame133
Natalinya thought of playing along with the pizza deliver story for a moment, but it seems that the situation escalated to the point where that could not work. Rather, she goes up a few steps, just enough to disappear for view of people inside. There, she transforms into a pure black house cat, trying to her lower profile to sneak into the house. Man doesn't look like much of a fighter, not when compend to a zombie and the dragon on her team. However... perhaps she can learn

 
 Spoiler: Rolls 

Stealth:  (d20+12)[ 16 ] 
(if needed) Perception:  (d20+12)[ 22 ] 
 
JNAProductions
The man backs off a little when Andrew makes his menacing ask. But he steels himself, and says "Screw off," grabbing the woman by her wrist and moving towards the back.
Batcathat
"I'm sorry", Andrew said, sounding remarkably unsorry as he took a step forward. "I must have been unclear. You  will  answer our questions."

Then suddenly he dropped his intimidating posture and sounded quite relaxed as he turned towards the others. "What do you guys think? Pepper spray, brass knuckles or gun?" He turned back towards the couple, shrugged his shoulders and lifted his hands as he spoke, as if weighing his options. "On one hand, with pepper spray he'll be bawling his eyes out and who wants to hear that? But with the knuckles, I might break his jaw or something. And let's not even get started on the complications of answering questions after he's been shot..."

 
 Spoiler: OOC 

 Insight:  (To hopefully get a better sense of what might get him talking)  (1d20+18)[ 20 ] 
 
JNAProductions
He goes a little pale, and grabs the woman by the wrist. "Close the door," he tells her.

She hesitates. "Do it!" he says.

 
 Spoiler: Insight 
He's seen his fair share of brawls, but you get the feeling it's mostly been fistfights. No weapons save for maybe a pool cue or something else not  too  dangerous.

You're also pretty sure you can take him, by yourself. You're still not used to your new abilities, but gut feeling tells you you're good.
 
Dr.Gunsforhands
 Drat.  Manuela got the confirmation we needed, but wasn't quick enough on the draw to hit the big baddie with her cartoon distraction bit. Now he has his mitts latched onto what's-her-name again! So now we have to separate them, but Manuela doesn't trust her non-existent gunnery skills in these crowded conditions...

"I guess I'm into the pepper spray," she says supportively, quickly stepping back from the door to avoid getting more in the way. "Those scaly fists would probably work, too!"

To give Andrew and Elaine an opening, she raises her other gun-arm and telekinetically forces the door open. In a perfect world, this would incidentally slap the door in the big galoot's face, but she'll settle for a brief distraction without damaging the little lady's arm.

 
 Spoiler: roll? 
I guess a Move Object effect roll, to shove the big guy off-balance and/or to oppose them shutting the door in our faces.

 (1d20+6)[ 26 ] 
 
Soras Teva Gee
 "Way ahead of you,"  Elaine muttered as she went into motion.

Doing her best to slip behind the man Elaine darted forward to grab him from behind.


 

 
 Spoiler: OOC: 
Grab Action on Bad Due
Attack:  (1d20+8)[ 17 ] 
Strength:  (1d20+8)[ 23 ] 

No wait they roll Strength against DC 18
 
JNAProductions
When the door is shoved, the man lets go of the small woman to force it shut. This allows Elaine to move in and grab him, her enhanced strength proving far more than a match for him.
Soras Teva Gee
Elaine's arms snaked forward grabbing the man and wrenching his right arm up behind his back he struggled but Elaine might as well have been made of steel for all the good it did.

 "Now now, there's a good boy,"  Elaine whispered in his ear,  "now keep quiet I don't start breaking things alright?"  
Batcathat
"You wanted the door closed, right?", Andrew asked the man as he stepped into the apartment, gesturing to the others to follow and preparing to shut the door behind them. "Very considerate of you. We wouldn't want to disturb the neighbors now, would we?" He pulled out his brass knuckles and slipped them onto his right hand. "You know how it is, your music is too loud, your kids are too wild, the sound of shattered bones is keeping me up."
Greenflame133
Nat runs deeper into the house finding a hide corner to transform. She was in to step bettwen the human and the man. Decading, misturisly appearing inside the house is acting in her favour.  "it's alright mam. We can take care of this." 
Dr.Gunsforhands
Now the last one outside, Manuela hesitates to go in. "Hey, uh," she looks at the shorter woman we're ostensibly here to rescue, "would you rather wait out here, miss? I'll stay out here with you."
JNAProductions
Nerissa, now that the space has cleared a little, is able to actually see what's going on. The meek woman looks to Manuela, who gives a small smile, and Nerissa, who does the same. She steps outside, but says "Don't hurt him. Please."
Soras Teva Gee
Elaine casually moved the man to be better inside the shabby apartment. It was a strange sensation, he did not feel lighter exactly and people were even heavier then you would think especially men, but Elaine had the distinct impression she could have flung the man about with one hand no problem.

 "Sure, sure, nobody gets hurt... anymore... as long as everyone plays nice" 
JNAProductions
The man's struggles stop after a few minutes of helpless wriggling.

The inside of the apartment isn't anything special-it's decorated (or not so much) about as you'd expect from the man, without much in the way of any touches from the woman.
Batcathat
"Of  course  we're not going to hurt anyone." Andrew leaned over and pinched the man's cheek, just a little too hard to be playful. "We're all friends here and friends can talk to each other without breaking each other's ribs or cutting off each other's air just long enough to panic without losing consciousness. Right?" He stepped forward, his face once again uncomfortably close to the man's. "So start talking."

He hadn't actually asked any questions, of course, but it might be rather telling in itself what the man thought it was about.
JNAProductions
The man sputters incoherently for a moment or two. Once his words start making sense, he says "I make the money! She needs me! She wants it! I didn't do anything wrong!"
Dr.Gunsforhands
Manuela groans and has her translucent hand slowly close the door. She’s already seen quite enough of  Streetcar Named Desire  in her own time, thank you.

She turns to Nerissa's bruise-wristed neighbor. "So! I'm Manuela. What's your name?" She pauses to let the smaller of the loud apartment's occupants start explaining herself. As much fun as it is for Manuela to keep making up new epithets for her in her head, it's starting to get exhausting. If she stops at the name, Manuela gently presses to ask about their relationship and who lives where.
JNAProductions
"Jill," she replies in a quiet voice. When asked for more info, she says "That's Todd, my husband. We've been married for six years."

Nerissa looks the other way. "I'm sorry. If I had know this was happening, I would've stepped in earlier, but I haven't been here."

Jill shakes her head a little. "It's okay. I'm okay," she says without that much conviction.
Greenflame133
Nat shakes her head. Something don't change, not even a little bit. " This is not ok. You might have convinced yourself that it's nessery or a small price to pay, but it's more than you realize. "
Batcathat
"Indeed. Let's think about what that price might be." Andrew pulled out his pistol and started inspecting it with a slightly overacted confusion. "Hey, does anyone know how Russian roulette works with a pistol? There's not really anything to spin here..."

What were the odds of this far flung future being familiar with Russian roulette, Andrew wondered. Or Russia, for that matter. Still, the meaning should be clear enough.

He turned back towards the man. "While I work this out, I suggest you keep talking. Or I might just lose my patience a rig the roulette, so to speak."
Dr.Gunsforhands
"Hmm..."

Manuela puts her arms behind her back and looks back and forth between Jill and Nerissa. The situation quickly becomes quiet and awkward. She starts noticing how much her height makes her tower over these two, and how she's instinctively slouching to make up the difference.

"Well, I don't really know what the, uh, legal situation is, here. But, yeah, if you don't feel safe around him, it would probably be better if you stopped living together. You can hang out with us until we figure something out." She glances at the door. "I guess the interrogation is probably not going anywhere, huh? I'll tell the crew to back off."

She force-pushes the door open again and leans into the dingy room. "Okay, everyone! Show's over! Turns out he's just a crappy partner," she announces. "We've got work to do. Let's leave him here and let him rethink his life on his own."