WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

[McCoy]

An envelope is delivered to your character. If they have a Secret ID, the outer envelope is addressed to their Secret ID, the note inside to their Heoic codename (That should get their attention).

 

Inside are a couple of newspaper clippings about Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), and a note claiming that the writer is behind it. If you follow their directions percisely, there will be no more CCD and everything will return to normal within a year. If you don't, CCD will accelerate, crops will fail, the economy will collapse, and there will be famine and possibly mob violence.

 

All you have to do, says the note, is steal some unique item that your character has access to; your teammates' focus, an artifact from a museum where your DNPC works, something that the caracter doesn't own in either ID, but does have access to.

 

The note says that this is not to be discussed with anyone, and the item must be stolen, not checked out or borrowed. Bring the item to the observation deck of the Empire State Building at noon three days hence. Any deviation from thse instructions will result in the extinction of Apis mellifera in North America, possibly the world.

 

What Would Your Character Do?

 

Does it make any difference if the note is signed by a complete unknown, or a Super Villian you have tangled with (who has never used a bioterrorist plot) before?

[Spidey88]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Phidippus's response, assuming noone else is around:

 

"F#$%*& Hornet! Man, what a douchebag!"

 

He'd then double-check to make sure that someone else hadn't signed the note...

 

 

For those that haven't heard me ramble on about my character before, Phidippus was actually granted his arachnid-based powers by Hornet (who I beefed up quite a bit for use as Phidippus' archnemesis), during the time that Hornet was working for VIPER and assembling an arthropod-based superteam called The Swarm (whom we faced in our game just over a week ago). Phidippus defected from the team and VIPER when he was faced with a crisis of conscience (the fact that he had one), and hasn't looked back - but as a result, he and Hornet utterly despise one another. So, you can say they have some history.

 

Really, whenever any insect-related supercrime pops up, Phidippus instantly suspects Hornet. He'd suspect Hornet would get involved in anything insect-related, really - in the same way that any artifact or jewel related even tangentally to cats in Gotham City gets nabbed by Catwoman, or anything bird-related gets nabbed by the Penguin, etc. - it is his schtick, after all. Even if he isn't behind it in some fashion, he'll probably get involved at some point (sigh)...

 

This plot practically screams "Hornet", though there's always the possibility that someone who knows Phidippus well enough (or knows Hornet well enough) is using this fact as a red herring, either to a) throw Phidippus off his trail and onto the wrong one, to make sure he in particular is involved, using Phidippus' sense of personal responsibility regarding Hornet to draw him in to some sort of ambush/set-up, or c) has picked Phidippus knowing that he, more than most other superheroes, will understand the ramifications of this ultimatum and take it seriously. Whatever the case, there has to be a reason Phidippus was selected over anyone else. Maybe he's not the only one, and many different superheroes are running their own errands...

 

In the first two cases, particularly if the requested item is his teammate Ashley's gauntlets (see Saiyanslayer's thread: "Character Post: Ashley" for some details), he'd suspect one of Ashley's enemies was potentially behind the plot too - especially considering we faced some of them at the same time we fought the Swarm (they had apparently teamed up, a prospect neither of us was too happy about).

Phidippus has VIPER as a Hunted, and VIPER knows full well about the animosity between him and Hornet, so they're likely culprits too. Suffice to say, there's probably much more to this than meets the eye!

 

 

That being said, Phidippus would likely try to go through with the plan as described. He's a well-meaning superhero, but this is too serious an issue to take lightly - he'd rather be put in the position of being a thief (and likely set up for an ambush) than be responsible (even indirectly) for the extinction of a species of insect, much less one that's vital to crop production!

 

At the very least, he'd probably have little difficulty with the theft itself. With excellent Security Systems, Electronics, and Mechanics skills, stratospheric Acrobatics, Stealth, and Contortionist skills, not to mention superspeed + Dexterity, a danger sense, and Clinging, I suspect there'd be few heists he couldn't pull off if he set his mind to it. If Hornet or VIPER are behind this though, there's bound to be some sort of snag that will at least temporarily tarnish his reputation (they'd enjoy that way too much to pass up the chance to knock Phidippus down a peg or two).

 

Hopefully this would leave him a fair chunk of time to research CCD in greater detail to either find the source (and beat the bad guy to the punch) or find a cure (making the ultimatum tooththless). If there's any science skill Phidippus excels at (and he is a genius), I think it's entomology! Hopefully his time with Hornet and detailed knowledge of his methodology would prove to be an asset in this case (esp, if Hornet actually is behind this plot).

 

In any case, this much is likely:

 

Whoever is behind this is likely very knowledgeable, or has access to those with extensive knowledge about bees (including their immunology and biochemistry) and/or the suspected causes of CCD (primarily considered to be mites, genetically modified crops, poisonous plants, or pesticides). CCD has been reported in one form or another (though often erratically or inconclusively) since before the turn of the century (though bees aren't my specialty, I am an entomologist and could jabber about this for a while longer if necessary), though it's really only gone through the roof the last couple of years. Phidippus should know this info too, so I wouldn't feel guilty about using it in a game where this scenario showed up.

 

From this, we can infer that the culprit has likely been active at least for over a year (though it's possible said individual has just discovered the cause and has a method of distributing it in large-scale doses), possibly even longer; and has either something to gain from doing so (buy my new genetically-enchanced bees or much of the world's food supply stops) or has a serious beef with society (Darn you all for not recognizing my brilliance! I've stockpiled enough food for decades - the rest of you can rot)! Again, this practically screams Hornet, but Telios is another likely candidate (sweet merciful crap, I hope it's not him - there wouldn't be a hope in Hell of stopping him...) For that matter, maybe for the right price Telios could get involved and find a cure (though Phidippus would be loathe to suggest it).

 

Whatever the end result of this whole mess would be - if there wasn't a cure/preventative measure for CCD uncovered over the course of this mystery, Phidippus would probably devote a large chunk of his resources and skills to finding it. What's a superhero who can make a difference supposed to do? Ignore it?

[Drhoz]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Invest in crops pollinated by flies and beetles and ignore the threat.

[Comic]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Oooh. An excuse to pull off a cunning, insoluble theft, leave behind a cunning, undetectably copied forgery, and potentially meet with and beat up someone who thinks yanking my chain is fun!

[Balabanto]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Most of my characters would look up where Deathstroke is hiding out these days, find Stinger, and beat the !!@#$$@ out of him.

[Lord Fyre]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

An envelope is delivered to your character. If they have a Secret ID, the outer envelope is addressed to their Secret ID, the note inside to their Heoic codename (That should get their attention).

 

Inside are a couple of newspaper clippings about Colony Collapse Disorder (CCD), and a note claiming that the writer is behind it. If you follow their directions percisely, there will be no more CCD and everything will return to normal within a year. If you don't, CCD will accelerate, crops will fail, the economy will collapse, and there will be famine and possibly mob violence.

 

All you have to do, says the note, is steal some unique item that your character has access to; your teammates' focus, an artifact from a museum where your DNPC works, something that the caracter doesn't own in either ID, but does have access to.

 

The note says that this is not to be discussed with anyone, and the item must be stolen, not checked out or borrowed. Bring the item to the observation deck of the Empire State Building at noon three days hence. Any deviation from thse instructions will result in the extinction of Apis mellifera in North America, possibly the world.

 

What Would Your Character Do?

 

Does it make any difference if the note is signed by a complete unknown, or a Super Villian you have tangled with (who has never used a bioterrorist plot) before?

 

I would be much more concerned if it was a complete unknown. The idea that at established Super Villian has penitrated my Secret ID, would actually be less scary (but still worrisome enough . . .)

 

I would quietly discuss the matter with the more intelligent/subtle of my teammates. Especially if one, or more, of them is to be the victim of the theft. This would have the following benifits, despite the risk:

• I could identify if one of my teammates is in fact the traitor. (Including myself - if I have secretly gone insane or I was "tampered with.")
  
• It would help me develope and deploy a counter plan - both to save the Bee and to identify and trap the villian.

[hfergus]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Olorin has no secret id - but he'd "borrow" the item, magically "bug" and kick rear once he could. If the whatzit was a hero focus, he could temporarily probably immitate most if not all of the focus's power - that he knows of.

 

Volt would go to Olorin. If not available - He'd notify the people his secret id was protecting. And try to have someone else bug the whatzit. He'd steal if he had to, but try to borrow.

[Comic]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

On reflection, and some of my heroes actually do, on occasion, _think_ their way through situations.. this could be the effort of someone to out the hero. They could even have sent these messages to thousands of people, hoping one of them really was the hero.. Well, that's not likely, but who knows?

 

In any case, the cunning hero would take into account ways to protect their secret identity. Such as showing up, in SID.. and as themself. Both. At the same time.

 

Now, the 'theft' part, that's not so difficult, either, really. "Yes, I have to admit, it is within the letter of the deal.. my evil twin from another dimension performed the actual theft, of which I have conclusive proof, so in a way _I_ stole the object. And no, neither myself nor the innocent person you think is my alter ego are my evil twin. He can only remain in this dimension for an hour at a time. Did I mention, he has a fondness for honey? But you can discuss that with him, as he's made the object which you now hold a portal to his dimension. And I'm sure you'll enjoy his company.. for the next hour.

[lemming]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Remembers to go pick up a Tom Hanks/Meg Ryan Film, or maybe Cary Grant/Deborah Kerr...

[Dr. Anomaly]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Dr. Anomaly would sit down and give this some thought. (And as an aside, it would likely be MORE troubling if the signee were an unknown, as it means there's a great big gaping hole in things somewhere for this kind of information to leak out, that he didn't know about and see coming.)

 

First, take the precaution of preserving, both cryogenically and magically, a nice cross-section of bee DNA, just in case. Spend some thought processes wondering if he and Kathleen might be able to "build a better bee" to replace the dying/disappearing ones, that would be immune to the cause of CCD. But that would require knowing the cause of CCD first...

 

Second, examine the demanded item. Research it THOROUGHLY. Run possible use scenarios of the item. If there are no obvious uses (particularly malign ones) set about figuring out the inobvious ones. Determine which, in the long run, would be worse for the country / environment / mankind... the death of all the bees, or the blackmailer getting their hands on the desired item. (And with several days of time to do research, believe me... Dr. Anomaly can come up with a truly astonishing amount of data.)

 

Assuming the culprit actually getting their hands on the item won't lead to an immediate crisis situation... steal the item for delivery, as stated. Load up on gadgets, spells, and so on heavily geared towards defense, pursuit, and capture. Proceed to the drop-off with the intention of doing his level best to capture the blackmailer, find some means of obtaining the cure for CCD from them once they are in custody. (The reason for stealing the actual item is that it seems likely the item will have to be presented to be vetted during the meeting, and Dr. Anomaly is aware there may be things about it that he doesn't know to look for or detect that would reveal a fake, no matter how apparently complete such a fake was. Best chance for capturing the blackmailer seems to be to take the actual item, and return it afterwards.)

 

Now comes a couple of slight twists.

 

First, as he's done on a couple of other occasions, Dr. Solomon Kinkaid will ALSO happen to be on the scene, for some reason or other... just in case there happens to be any possibility of secret IDs getting revealed. (Dr. Kinkaid is, of course, a homunculus, but one with the actual Dr. Kinkaid's memories, personality, beliefs, and so on. In short, Dr. Anomaly but without the powers.)

 

Secondly, the note specifically warned against discussing the matter with anyone, so Dr. Anomaly will not have discussed it; however, at the time specified for the meeting, several very specifically tuned psionic databursts will go off from devices back in the lab, downloading a synopsized version of the events, his research, conclusions, and course of action into the minds of his team-mates. As a back-up, in case some or all of them are not in a state capable of receiving the psychic download (a fair chance with all of them) a brief one-paragraph written synopsis would also be materialized in front of each of them. And in either case, a one-shot teleport device that homes in on Dr. Anomaly would be included along with the printed information.

 

So, roughly 20 to 30 seconds after the pre-arranged meeting time, the meeting place will be hosting ALL of the Millennium Knights... and Dr. Anomaly will NOT have been guilty of violating any of the conditions... and the blackmailer would have to be very, very lucky to get away...

[Hermit]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Dr. Sanguine- Would quickly begin an astral journey to the realm of life to uncover if this was truly the cause of CCD, or merely a ruse. If somehow this figure is behind it, he would find out HIS secrets, including his location, and bring the brunt of Omega 6 (Each member 500 points) down upon the malefactor(s)!

[Kevin Schultz]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Jake the Troll - "Oh, yeah. Hadn't gotten around to that yet." Goes out and fixes CCD. Next week, Jake receives a letter threatening to cause massive breast-sag in the porn industry unless Jake goes and steals something else. At this point, Jake groans and throws the letter away.

 

Icon - Emma isn't at the national level yet, and thus wouldn't be getting a letter like this. If she did, she knows enough about police procedure and blackmail that she would immediately contact the feds, and let them know, and try to work with them to get things resolved. If CCD did actually occur as a consequence, then it was some megavillian being a prick.

 

Shinji Miromoto - the potential short-term misuse of the item in question is likely greater than the resultant ecological disaster that could be caused by CCD. Follow the commique to the letter, but exploit any technicalities ruthlessly. For example, a discussion implies two-way communication. Therefore, he would fully and completely inform his teammates of what was going on, but explicitly state that he cannot listen to any responses by them, and thus use a spell on his own mind to PREVENT any discussion (ie, two-way communication) on the subject. at that point, the entire team is involved, and so the case could go forward normally, albiet without Shinji being able to discuss it with them.

 

Widower - steal the item, then beat up whoever comes for it. He's technically a minor, so worst comes to worst he goes to Juvie for a bit. Another issue of "there's no way someone that powerful would be coming after me, so what's the real story?" Would likely think it was part of The Plot; originally it was supposed to be just some high school chick who could control insects, but it may have changed to fit his current situation.

[WalkerMyHero]

Re: WWYCD: To Bee or not to Bee?

 

Vindicator, a Mystic and Metamoprh, Privite Investigator, and Thaumatogist would investigate using all his skills and abilities before caing in. And then only to lay a trap.

 

Quote - "There is more than one way to skin a cat."