csyphrett

I'm hooking Lana Lang with Beast Boy. CES

The radio reported the number three in the DOJ quit to go to work for Wal-Mart. Cited reason? Donald Trump is making her job a hostile work environment CES

Beta couple one lana lang the insect queen CES

Recruited 2015- Bobby Iger checked the address he had been given on a stick it note. He frowned at the odd block of a building sitting next to similar buildings. The difference was his building looked gloomy. The other buildings looked happy to be buildings. He shook off the feeling. He had a job to interview for in the gloomy building. He might as well go in and see what the scam was. A woman hurried down from the cross street. She had dressed in business casual with a small bag hanging from her shoulder. Sneakers with neon orange laces drew attention away from her polo shirt, and suit jacket. She had a glow that attracted Bobby’s attention as he walked toward the door for his appointment. She paused as Bobby opened the visitor door into the building. “Are you here about the job too?,” she asked Bobby. One hand reached to keep the door open so she could step inside after him. “Yep,” said Bobby. “It attracted my eye, and I need a job right now.” “Maria Garcia-Lopez,” she said. “Bob Iger,” said Bobby. “Nice to meet you.” “Thanks,” Maria said. They stepped inside the clear space. A desk sat at the other end of the room. A counter with a gate separated customers from the staff behind it. The inside seemed slightly less gloomy than the outside, but Bobby thought it was a work in progress from the looks of things. “Hello,” called a voice from behind the counter. “We’re closed for the moment.” “We’re here about the job,” said Maria. She glanced at Bobby. He nodded at her statement. “Janie had to go out for a bit,” said the unseen voice. “I’m sort of watching the store for her. Come on back. We can shoot the breeze while we wait for her.” Maria and Bobby walked back to the counter. He flipped the top for her to precede him into the work area of the floor. “Have a seat,” said the Asian sitting behind the central desk. His panama was pushed back from a lean face. He smiled as he shuffled a deck of cards. “Name’s Harry.” Maria took the seat directly in front of the desk. Bobby had to grab one from another part of the room and pull it up. “I’m Bob Iger, and this is Maria Garcia-Lopez,” said Bobby. “We’re wondering about the job from the ad in the newspaper.” “Jobs,” said Harry. He smiled as he mixed the cards up one last time. He dealt them in a pattern on the table while he talked. “Janie is looking to hire three more bodies.” “What is involved in this?,” asked Maria. “The ad just says it wants people who needs excitement in their lives.” “The Lamplighters is an organization that needs people who are not afraid of anything,” said Harry. “They investigate mysteries from around the world and deal with them.” “They solve crimes?,” asked Bobby. He smiled at the melodrama. “Sometimes,” said Harry. “Mostly what they deal with are unexplained natural phenomena.” “You don’t work for the Lamplighters, Harry?,” asked Maria. She leaned forward in her chair to concentrate on his face. He hesitated on the answer. A shadow fell across his face as he searched for the right words to address the question. “I had a career ending injury,” he finally said. “I can’t climb down elevator shafts like I used to do.” “Is the work that dangerous?,” asked Bobby. He didn’t want to chase some loon for fifteen bucks an hour. “Sometimes,” said Harry. “I didn’t really expect any problems, but I should have zagged instead of zigging.” “Who hasn’t done that once in a while?,” said Bobby. “Will this Janie hire another woman?,” asked Maria. “If you can pass the tests,” said Harry. “You have to be able to pass a retina scan, and a drug test.” “A retina scan and a drug test?,” asked Maria. “The scan is to load your eye into our files so you can use some of the specialized equipment,” said Harry. “The drug test is to make sure you don’t take anything that would make it easy to victimize you on the job.” “Has that happened?,” asked Bobby. “Not to us,” said Harry. “Some of the people we’ve dealt with were heavy users and their habits made them vulnerable to con men.” “And it’s a risk to anyone who gets this job?,” asked Maria. “You don’t want to be in the middle of a case and have gravity start warping everything,” said Harry. “That’s a quick way to get killed.” “Drug abuse makes that easier,” said Bobby. He nodded. “I can see that.” “You guys will have a great time working here,” said Harry. “Janie has already hired another guy. He’s out with her shopping.” Bobby smiled. Something wasn’t right. This Harry guy drew too many shadows when he talked about himself, and not enough when he talked about the potential job. What was going on? Career ending injury? What did that mean? How bad was it? Had the company walked away from him after that? What was he not telling them? “I noticed you dealt out a solitaire setup,” said Bobby. “I don’t think I have ever seen anything like it.” “It’s not for solitaire,” said Harry. “It’s for reading your fortunes.” “Really,” said Bobby. “What does mine say?” “This is the line if you tell Janie you don’t want the job,” said Harry. “This is the line if you take the job.” “Got that,” said Bobby. He stood to look at the cards closely. “What does the readings mean?” “If you don’t take the job, you live a long life,” said Harry. “If you do, you only have three years before you’re killed.” “Three years?,” said Bobby. “That’s a bad prediction there. I’m as fit as a fiddle.” “You don’t die of natural causes,” said Harry. He tapped the queen of spades he turned up. “A woman kills you. Don’t worry. Now that you know what to look out for, you can change your future on either side.” “So in three years, I should look out for a woman who wants to kill me,” said Bobby. “Can you narrow the list down?” “I’m afraid not,” said Harry. “But I know you will know her when you see her. The card in this context points to something big in your life.” “What are the other cards?,” asked Bobby. He pointed at the other two lines next to his reading. “They’re hers,” said Harry. “It’s the same set up as yours.” “I don’t think I want to know what my future will be,” said Maria. She held up a hand to forestall any explanation. “You don’t have anything to worry about,” said Harry. “You’ll live a long life in either case.” “Hold on,” said Bobby. “She gets to live a long time, and I get killed. How does that work out?” “She’s looking for something,” said Harry. He indicated several cards. “If she doesn’t get the job, she doesn’t find what she’s looking for in the other line. If she does, she does find what she’s looking for. In both lines, she gets to live a long life according to this. She’d have to throw her life away to shorten either line.” “So things work out better for her than me if we both get the job,” said Bobby. He rubbed his face with the palm of his hand. “The future isn’t set,” said Harry. “You both could change things to change the line of the cards and the future. You just have to know what you’re looking for and put forth an effort. It’ll be like dealing yourself a new hand.” “What about the hand you dealt for yourself?,” asked Maria. “I know you looked at it.” “I was given a choice,” said Harry. “And I made it.” “It didn’t work out well for you, did it?,” said Bobby. “I can see it didn’t.” “I admit it wasn’t much of a choice,” said Harry. “But it was the only one I had.” “I can see that,” said Bobby. “Would you have done it again, knowing what you know now?” “Yes,” said Harry. “I couldn’t change the future enough to change my choice. It still had to be made, and I’m the only one who could have done what was required at the time.” “The only one?,” said Maria. “Yes,” said Harry. “Even with what I did, we still almost lost. Instead we changed the future enough that what I did stopped something bad from wrecking the city. I don’t have any regrets about that.” “We’re expected to throw our lives away if it comes down to that.” Bobby frowned at the two of them. “That’s what you’re telling us.” “No,” said Harry. “You’ll be expected to do whatever you can to protect people, and stop bad things from happening. There’s a chance that you’ll get hurt. I won’t lie about that. Lamplighting is a dangerous business. It’s not for the weak. There are better ways to die.” Harry picked up his cards. He laid out one more line after a small shuffle. He shook his head as he picked up the cards and put them in his jacket pocket. “How long?,” Maria asked. “Excuse me,” said Harry. “How long have you been dead?,” said Maria. “I know that you are.” “A while,” said Harry. “So you know I’m a ghost.” “I can see it,” said Maria. “I’m sorry for you.” “Don’t be,” said Harry. “I made a decision to do something. It was my choice. No one else had the responsibility. You come to work here, you’ll have to make the same kinds of choices.” “Even if it kills us?,” said Bobby. “Especially if it kills you,” said Harry. He smiled. “This job isn’t like any other. You’ll know that you’re making a difference in someone else’s life even if all you want is fortune and glory.” “Fortune and glory doesn’t seem that bad,” said Bobby. “It is if you get killed trying to get it,” said Harry. He stood up from behind the desk. “It would be better if you didn’t tell Janie that you saw me. She wouldn’t believe you, and it would just stir up trouble.” “It would change the future,” said Bobby. He stood also. He wasn’t sure if he believed the ghost stuff. “It would only force you into the non-job line of things,” said Harry. “That would wreck things for Maria, and force you to get a job that you didn’t like to pay your bills.” “You think I’ll like this job?,” said Bobby. “I think it’s something you will excel at for the three years you have,” said Harry. “And having you in a slot will placehold it for the person who comes after you.” “You’re on,” said Bobby. “I’ll fight the future to prove you’re wrong.” “Good luck, kids,” said Harry. He straightened his hat. “I’ll be keeping an eye on you.” He walked into streamers that thinned the longer they grew before they faded away. “My first time seeing a ghost,” said Bobby. “I hoped for something scarier.” “I’m scared enough,” said Maria. She stood. “Maybe I should get another job. This one is too weird.” “That’s up to you,” said Bobby. “The only difference not being a Lamplighter will have for you is you won’t find what you’re looking for. Maybe not even trying is the way to go for you.” “You’ll die if he’s right,” said Maria. “That’s not a good career choice in my book.” “I could also change the future,” said Bobby. “That’s something worth trying to do.” “So you want to try for this job even it kills you?,” said Maria. “I don’t see why not,” said Bobby. “I’m the perfect candidate.” “Really?,” said Maria. “How so?” “Because nothing will kill me for the next three years,” said Bobby. “If I look out for any dangerous women, I might live longer than that.” “Are you sure about that?,” asked Maria. “Not really,” said Bobby. “But I don’t have anything to live for, so this might be what I need.” “All right,” said Maria. “We’ll talk to Miss Hillsmeirer, and see who she wants to hire.” “I’m game if you’re game,” said Bobby. The vehicle doors slid up out of the way. A white van with a candle logo on the hood rolled into the empty space. The room brightened considerably when the woman driver stepped out of the van. She frowned when she saw the two strangers standing behind the counter. Then she remembered she was supposed to be talking to two candidates. She shook her head. She had muffed that up. “I’m Jane Hillsmeirer,” the woman said with a smile. “You’re Garcia-Lopez and Iger. Let me get some coffee and I will be right with you.” She headed upstairs as her passenger slowly climbed out of the van. He grimaced at the two strangers as he walked toward them. “Marcel Hobart,” the man said. “This place is haunted. Are you sure you want to work here?” “This is just as good a place as any,” said Bobby. He smiled. “Don’t worry. I’ll protect you.” “More like talk to me from beyond the grave,” said the other new Lamplighter. Bobby smiled.

I would like to grab May Parker, spider girl for my alpha couple CES

Mike Mechanico can build any type machine needed to do any job. His vast storehouse of gear is stored in his work belt. There's no job to big to fix. CES

Alpha couple Ben Ten

I thought they were talking about an extension CES

loaded Young Strangers and A Leaguer's Fount of Monstrosity to my page. CES

Button Pushing 2015- 8 Scarab Girl put out the fire with more foam capsules from her gauntlet. She led the way upstairs. Amenophis’s men had retreated with their master. There was no sign of the changed Givens either. “What am I going to tell Givens’s family back home?,” Tanner limped after his colleague. The keyboard was fixing him up as he walked up to the main floor of the church. “How do I explain this?” “I don’t think you can,” said Scarab Girl. “Amenophis will be out of the country in a few minutes. He can travel fast on his own. His men have scattered. We can look for them but they won’t know anything beyond what we already know. If you say anything at all, it will be to tell them that Amenophis took him. Then you’ll have to explain how you know that.” “I can’t tell them that,” said Tanner. “It means I have to tell them I caused his transformation and possible death.” “I know,” said Scarab Girl. “Someone is going to have to break the bad news to them. If we don’t, they’ll be looking for him to come back.” “He won’t be coming back from the way he was changed,” said Tanner. “Where would he go if he stays in town?” “I don’t know,” said Scarab Girl. “He’s probably in some bolthole he took from someone else. New York has a ton of places for someone to hide if they want to get away strong enough.” “So both of them could be beyond our reach,” said Tanner. Scarab Girl nodded. “I screwed this up,” said Tanner. “If I hadn’t broken those jars, we could have done something else to get Givens back.” “Or he could have been turned into a mindless weapon, and used against us,” said Scarab Girl. “My dad is going to kill me that I took on Amenophis without calling him. I will be grounded.” “Too bad,” said Tanner. “I called out of school sick. I’m going to have to forge a note for my school.” “Your parents will be looking for you,” said Scarab Girl. “Not for another two hours,” said Tanner. “But if the school called their work, that might be trouble for me.” “I think we should explain things to my dad,” said Scarab Girl. “Maybe he can alert the authorities where you live. They’ll take care of notifying the parents for you.” “All right,” said Tanner. “That’ll help me out. Then I have to try to get home and lie to my parents about what I have been doing all day.” Scarab Girl shrugged. She had to make her own excuses for bailing out of the last period in school. Luckily, her parents covered for her though they wanted her to not patrol on her own until she was older. Tanner’s phone buzzed in his pocket. He pulled it out and checked to see who was calling. He winced when he saw it was Darla. He definitely didn’t want to explain things to her. He thought about ignoring the call. He grimaced and accepted the call. “Hello, Darla,” he said. “Where are you?,” she asked. “Why?,” asked Tanner. He didn’t want to tell her he was in New York before he knew why she was calling. They didn’t get along at the best of times. Why give her ammunition? “The Vice Principal was all over me about you calling in sick,” said Darla. “It’s obvious you’re not sick. What’s going on?” “I think I got someone killed,” said Tanner. “I have to meet Scarab Girl’s dad, then the rest of this mess will be out of my hands.” “That’s peachy keen,” said Darla. “Who’s Scarab Girl?” “She’s a local heroine,” said Tanner. “I’ll explain everything when I get home.” “You better hurry up with your business,” said Darla. “Mr. Butthead might be trying to call your parents to check on you by now.” “Thanks, Darla,” said Tanner. “I’ll be home as soon as I can.” He cut the connection and put his phone up. He grimaced at the thought that the school was trying to catch him pretending to be sick. What was going on with Roland Givens? Had anybody missed him being in class? Had anyone noticed the fight that had happened outside the school grounds? What did he do about that? “Let’s talk to my dad,” said Scarab Girl. “Maybe he will have something for you to use.” “Thanks,” said Tanner. “Let me call him,” said Scarab Girl. “We can meet at Good Eats.” “Good Eats?,” said Tanner. “A diner my dad and his friends use to meet,” said Scarab Girl. “He probably won’t like meeting you in civs.” “I understand,” said Tanner. “I thought about a mask and costume, but I couldn’t decide on what I wanted.” “I can see that,” said Scarab Girl. She touched the side of her hood with a finger. “Can you hear me, Dad? I need to talk to you in person.” She bent her head as she listened to the radio in her mask. “I have a guest from out of town with me,” said Scarab Girl. “We had some trouble with Amenophis.” She nodded. “We’re fine, but things didn’t go our way,” said Scarab Girl. “We need to talk to you so we can hash this out.” She shrugged as she listened. “We’ll meet you at Cassie’s,” said Scarab Girl. “Then he has to head home. His parents don’t know yet.” She nodded again. “I understand,” said Scarab Girl. “We’ll be there in a few minutes.” She cut the connection. “We’re meeting at Good Eats,” said Scarab Girl. “He’s not too thrilled by this.” “I can see why,” said Tanner. “We’re about to dump a huge mess in his lap.” “He’s used to that,” said Scarab Girl. “It’s you he’s not thrilled by.” “That’s no surprise,” said Tanner. “Follow me,” said Scarab Girl. She took aim with an arm. She fired a line from her gauntlet. It pulled her into the air with a yank on the thread. Tanner checked the timer on his arm. It was almost done. He needed one more healing spell. He could do that later after meeting Scarab Girl’s dad. That should be a hoot. He jogged after the swinging heroine until the timer ran out. He put on his wings and leaped into the air. He flew after as she crossed Manhattan. She dropped down on what looked like an old diner in the middle of some skyscrapers. He swooped in for a landing just as his timer ran out. He landed on the roof a little harder than he meant. “You need to work on the landings, Transformer Boy,” said Scarab Girl. He sensed she was smiling at him under her mask. “I never found a way to change the timer,” said Tanner. “I don’t like to fly unless it’s for short hops. High enough in the air that the fall will kill you is hard to judge against the time it will take me to dial a new power while falling.” “Experience?,” she asked. “Yeah,” said Tanner. He had misjudged the first time and almost killed himself with a car that he just missed when his new power kicked in. “I have had a couple close calls myself,” said Scarab Girl. “That’s why I’m still in training.” “You‘re supposed to be in school,” said a figure in scarlet and silver dropping on the roof of the diner. “You know better than to ditch.” “Dad, this is Transformer Boy,” said Scarab Girl. “This is my dad.” “My name is Tanner, Mr. Scarab,” said Tanner. “I’m sorry about all this.” “Tell me what’s going on,” said the Scarlet Scarab. “I’ll see what I can do to fix the problem.” Tanner told him what had happened from the time he tried to stop Roland Givens from being taken to the fight in the basement of the church, and how Amenophis and Givens had both escaped. “Not good,” said the Scarab. He hooked thumbs in his belt. “We can report them but no one will believe that the victim had suffered a personality change.” “His family should know,” said Tanner. “I don’t know what I can say at this point. I thought this would be an easy rescue.” “Amenophis keeps his head down and avoids as many entanglements as he can,” said the Scarab. “If you never dealt with him before, he can throw down a lot of heat before you realize what’s going on.” “What do we do about the kid?,” asked Tanner. “He’s wandering around out of his mind.” “We start a search for him,” said the Scarab. “If the spirits are running him, there’s not much we can do. He’ll be looking out for us looking for him. They aren’t going to want to be pulled out when they are mobile and can run things any way they want.” “So we have to wait for him to start doing whatever spirits want to do,” said Tanner. He sighed. “All right. I guess I can do that.” “I’ll let the Idaville authorities know,” said the Scarlet Scarab. “They can let the family know. They’ve probably got more experience breaking bad news than we do.” “So we’re done?,” said Tanner. He still had to get home and see if anyone had caught on he wasn’t home. “One more thing,” said the Scarab. He pulled a business card for a computer company from his belt. He wrote a phone number on the back. “Something like this happens again, you call for help. Don’t try to take everyone on yourself.” “Yes, sir,” said Tanner. He stored the card in his wallet. “Remember,” said the Scarab. “I’ll call the FBI office and leave the tip. You might want to get home.” “Yes, sir,” said Tanner. “I guess I’ll see you guys at the next crisis.” “Goodbye, Tanner,” said Scarab Girl. She waved at him as he walked to the edge of the roof. “Take it easy, S. G.,” said Tanner as he keyed in the slide. “I don’t think I like Transformer Boy.” He jumped off the roof and slid to somewhere in Texas. He checked his map and worked his way northwest through a series of zigzagging lines. He reached the outside of his house without a problem as far as he could tell. He slipped in the back door. He listened to the house. The place seemed quiet. He went upstairs. He sat down on his bed. This was one problem his keyboard couldn’t fix. At least he could call for help if he ran into Amenophis again. His phone buzzed at him. He checked the caller ID. Darla again. He wondered what she wanted. She wasn’t usually helpful to him. “Hello, Darla,” said Tanner. How was he going to explain things to his parents? He had no idea. “You’re all over the news,” said Darla. “Dead guys in the street, missing student, your Gold Man running around.” “I tell you about it tomorrow,” said Tanner. “I have to get something to eat and then get a nap. I’ll see you later.” Tanner cut his television on. He switched to the local news. He winced at the damage done chasing Amenophis’s fanatics. He went to the kitchen. He needed something to eat, and then he had to look at the assignments that might be wanted tomorrow. He had failed across the board. How did he come back from that? Maybe he should try to keep the next rescue a little simpler. He made a noise at that as he walked into the kitchen. He searched the fridge for something he could put in the microwave. He settled on some bologna and cheese on bread. He put that on a plate and put it in the microwave for a minute. He looked out the window as he waited for his food to cook. He blinked at the man in the coat looking out at the neighbor’s house. His cigar rested in his hand. Tanner ran out the back door. He held his hands ready to call on one of his abilities as he looked at the man in the coat. The nameless stranger nodded at him with his perplexed eyebrows in evidence. “I lost him,” said Tanner. “You knew what was going on. Why didn’t you warn me?” “That’s not my job, Tanner,” said the man in the coat. “You know that. I can only offer options.” “Options?,” said Tanner. “Roland Givens is a monster. What kind of options does he have now?” “The same as anybody else,” said the man in the coat. “You didn’t save him from being scarred, but you didn’t let him become a slave to a bigger menace. Options for him is not the question you should be asking yourself.” “What is?,” said Tanner. He had a feeling he was about to hear some more bad news. “What is the question you should be asking yourself?,” asked the man in the coat. “What are you going to do when Roland Givens comes home?” “Why would he do that?,” asked Tanner. “Why wouldn’t he?,” asked the man in the coat. “You did as well as you could with what you had. No one could have done better. Maybe your cousin could have.” “Next time, more information would be better,” said Tanner. He dropped his hand. “Maybe a broad outline of the problem.” “I wish, kid,” said the man in the coat. He puffed on his cigar. “Get ready. He’ll come home eventually. You can count on that.” He walked from the back yard, heading for a destination that wasn’t quite clear in his mind, to warn someone who needed it. //151664

The turtle known as Crankcase is the fastest land animal known, and his shell is bulletproof. CES

Magnetic Tracer uses the world's magnetic field to propel him at supersonic speeds. He feels that if he can go fast enough he can ascend to the next phase of reality. The results of this would cause the world's magnetic field to warp even the trail of destruction mounted along his path. CES

Kubo's Village CES

Rubio authored the loss of pools for insurance to hurt the ACA and now he wants to author paid family leave out of Social Security. I don't believe that for a minute, especially with Mike Lee involved. CES

Button Pushing 2015- 7 Tanner checked the main room of the building. Men in black suits blocked the main access down to the room below the church. He had to get by them before he could try to stop whatever Amenophis was doing to Givens. He checked his timer as he pulled back. The Gold Man was almost out of time. Did he want to call it back, or resort to another form? He needed a shooter to get through the forces acting as a barrier. If he went with brute force, they would pour fire into his altered form until he was down. He couldn’t afford a delay. Givens might already be close to dead by now. He had to make a decision and make his move. He checked his options as he poured over the powers he had unlocked. He had literally dozens of abilities that could be generated by the keyboard. If he moved up to the fourth key despite the warning he had been given, he might have more powers he had never used, or combinations of what he was already using into something new. He decided on the Shooter. It was straight forward, and the ammo might punch through whatever skill Amenophis was using as his shield. He keyed in the call. The change washed over Tanner. He flexed his hands. Guns flickered as he pretended he held weapons. He nodded. He stepped out of the door leading to the belfry. He rushed forward. Blasts of sound struck the guards like hammers in front of the charging vigilante. That was enough to put them down as he ran toward them. Tanner used the guns on the door leading downstairs. He wanted them thinking about him, and not what they were going to do with the stolen kid. The door sprouted holes before it jumped out of the way. No one shot back from the other side of the door. Tanner paused at the door, taking cover behind the wall next to the opening. He heard chanting. Whatever was going on was happening. He had to get downstairs and stop it before Givens was gone for good. He took a deep breath. He could do this. The Shooter still had plenty of time and if he took out some of the rats, that was the price he would have to pay. Tanner headed down the stairs, hands at the ready. Fireballs tried to set him on fire halfway down the steps. He fired back as he looked for cover. He hopped over a rail, and shot two men while they were still trying to set him on fire. Men in robes stood around the table. They held jars in front of them as they chanted. Givens had been forced into a skirt of some kind. He pulled on the chains holding him to the disguised altar. Tanner decided the quickest way to end things was to smash the jars. Once free of contents, the jars would be useless. “What are you doing here?,” Amenophis stepped out of the shadows. He had changed his shirt and pants for a metal collar and a belted skirt. “You are in the way of my creating.” “Stuff happens,” said Tanner. He noted a wave of air heading his way. He threw himself forward, firing from both hands as he fell. His slugs ripped through the jars, shattering them in the hands of the acolytes. The men fell back as tendrils of energy whipped into the open air. “What have you done?,” screamed Amenophis. Green light erupted from his eyes. “What have you done?” “Ruined your plan,” said the Scarab Girl. She shot him with an expanding net from a channel in the back of her gauntlet. “Sit down while we try to fix the rest of this.” The tendrils leaped to where Givens had been chained down. They entered his mouth before anyone could do anything to stop them. “I don’t think that’s good at all,” said Tanner. He shot one of the acolytes in the leg to get him out of the way. “What were you guys doing?” The cocoon split apart as Amenophis pulled the threads apart with his bare hands. He glared at the interloping kids. Scarab Girl shot him with more of the net shells until he was completely buried in the webbing. Givens exploded from his chains. He looked around with eyes on fire, and a smile that was way too wide for a human boy. “Greetings, humans,” said the transformed Givens. “It is excellent to have a human body again. Sharing it with these others is a trial, but I will get used to it eventually, I suppose.” “What about the boy?,” asked Tanner. He shot one of his opponents too dumb to run for it in the foot. He kicked the hopping man out of his way. “He has a life.” “Not anymore,” said the new Givens. “I had to eat him to become the king of this conglomeration.” “You killed Givens?,” asked Tanner. He raised his hands. He still had time to deal with this monster. It couldn’t be allowed to escape after all this. “Essentially,” said the monster. “I didn’t need him getting in the way while I took control. And with the spellwork in place, it was tremendously easy.” Tanner shot the body in front of him. He had failed to save Givens. He wasn’t going to see him being used as a puppet by a gloating thing. The bullet bounced off a stone chest. Givens smiled even wider if that was possible. He threw a sheet of flame at Tanner and Scarab Girl. He could have fun with these two. Tanner threw himself to the side. His Shooter ability gave him an insight on where things would move and that was enough to let him jump out of the way of the blast. Foam wrapped the floating boy. A spark flickered as it tried to fight through the confinement. A green boot landed in the angry face trying to set things on fire. “My dad knows an exorcist,” said Scarab Girl. “We’ll get you out of there and put you back in your jars.” Tanner winced at that. He had destroyed the jars in his haste. He should have shot the jar holders. The web cocoon ripped apart to allow Amenophis to step forward. He glared at the two children who dared to oppose him. The foam on the other side of the room exploded under a waterspout. The Shooter ran out of time to some cursing. “My revivalist,” said Givens. “You have done some good work.” “I will have to start over from the look of it,” said Amenophis. “The plan was for you to be my weapon. Running amuck was not part of that.” “No one gets what they want all the time,” said Givens. He directed water at his creator. It evaporated in the air as it crossed the room. “I do,” said Amenophis. He gestured. Givens screamed in pain. He hit the ground, writhing. “I don’t think I need to explain your place in the scheme of things.” “He’s getting exorcized,” said Tanner. He gestured with a hand. The table came to life and charged Amenophis. The magician paused for a moment, and then the table had rammed him into the wall. The legs did their best to kick him while he was down. Givens writhed on the floor. Tanner wanted to help him. This was all his fault. If he hadn’t shattered the jars, none of this would have happened. Givens rolled so that they could see his smiling face. Then he slapped the stone floor with the palm of a stony hand. Ripples of stone formed a circle of spears spinning around Givens. They spun into a stabbing ring at the two children. These heroic kids should not be allowed to grow up to be heroic adults. Scarab Girl swung over the moving fencework. She landed with both feet on Givens’s head. She bounced away before he could set her on fire. Tanner waved a hand. His ability worked against the control Givens exerted. A spear started fighting its brothers to protect him. He breathed a sigh of relief as he tried to think of a solution to this problem. Amenophis hit him with the table after shrugging it off. He glared at the room. These children had cost too much of his effort to create a perfect warrior. Was it worth to kill them? He considered that as another shell flew at his head from Scarab Girl’s wrist gun. He ducked under it. A net spread across the wall behind him. The very least he should was rip the spirits out of Givens and put them into something he could use as storage. He grabbed a discarded bottle as he approached the spinning spears. His men had retreated in the face of this. He didn’t want otherwise. It was better to handle this himself than hope one of his men got lucky and saved the day without getting killed. Amenophis flowed around the spears like a cloud of sand. He waved Scarab Girl out of his way. She should have known better than to get involved in this. The Scarabs and he were old enemies. Killing the latest wouldn’t raise a drop of sweat on his brow. Givens looked groggy. That was good. That made his exorcism all the easier. One spoken command and a seal on the bottle should take care of things. Once the spirits had been reclaimed, the boy would be as good as dead if the king had spoken the truth. Destroying the boy would be the key to using his body, but usually the spirit just pushed his ride’s mind under. An exorcism might be enough to restore his mind. If it was gone, that was a pity, but it didn’t concern Amenophis all that much. Givens hit his creator with a stone fist. The magician flew across the room. The changed boy stood. He saw the odds. It was him versus the three of them. He should make his escape before Amenophis could make good on his threat. He sent a wave of flame out as a distraction. He used the dancing spears to carry him out of the room. His laughter drifted down on his enemies. Scarab Girl checked Tanner. He seemed to be having problems focusing. She didn’t want to take on Amenophis by herself. She didn’t see any way out of the confrontation. “That didn’t go near as well as I had planned,” said Amenophis. He brushed the blood off his face with a flick of his hand. “I should kill you both for the trouble you have caused.” “Do you really want to waste your time while your perfect weapon is escaping?,” said Scarab Girl. “The next time we meet, it will end differently for you if you cross me,” said Amenophis. “Don’t doubt that.” “I look forward to the chance to cross swords with you again,” said Scarab Girl. “Yes,” said Amenophis. He walked away from them. One hand brushed aside the flame that reached for him. “Are you awake?,” asked Scarab Girl. She slapped Tanner’s face. He blinked at the impact. “Are you awake?” “Hurt,” said Tanner. Pain ran through his back. He couldn’t move. He must have taken a bigger hit than he thought. “Need a hand.” “I’ll get you out of here,” said Scarab Girl. “Hold on.” “No,” said Tanner. “Left hand. Left hand.” “What?,” said Scarab Girl. “Left hand?” “Yes,” said Tanner. “My hand.” Scarab Girl picked up the hand. She saw a scarred fingerprint on his index finger. “What do you want me to do with this?,” she asked. “Right forearm,” said Tanner. “Need you to touch spaces with index finger.” Scarab Girl shifted the other arm. Scars that looked like a keyboard ran down the forearm from wrist to elbow. “Top row, third space in,” said Tanner. “Index finger.” She did what he wanted. The space flared under the skin. He gave her directions for the other two keys. He pushed up to his knees. “Looks like we lost,” Tanner said. “But we’re alive,” said Scarab Girl. “Let’s get out here.” //149377

Metroville for me, Hermit. CES

Ryan is retiring. Hopefully he will be gone before he can screw up Social Security and medicare. CES

All this is good and all but Jeb Bush commissioned the Dossier. Chris Steele worked for Fusion. I think it would be odd that a contractor didn't talk to his boss so I don't see what Bruce Ohr has to do with any of that. The head of Russian Intelligence just met with Donald Trump at the white house so which way did they meddle in the elections. Nunes was called out for changing the paperwork before it was put in the papers. Apparently trying to discredit the investigation of Carter Page is part of that since Gates, Manafort's partner, just switched lawyers in his money laundering trial, and Manafort has to go to court right after that. CES

Cupid, Draw back your bow and let your arrow go straight through my lover's heart for me CES

A version of the Nunes memo was released. Some of the comments I have seen are not flattering, essentially being that he is wasting people's time covering for the White House. CES

Button Pushing 2015- 6 Tanner walked outside, pretending to make a phone call. He walked slowly until he was out of sight of the desk. Then he ran to the parking garage entrance hooked to the hotel. He put his phone away and slid under the guard arm. He jogged to the elevator/stairs combo inside a glass room. He frowned at the key card lock on the door. He didn’t want to bypass the lock and then wait until the power ran out so he could call Iceberg. He could key in Iceberg and smash the door. He didn’t want to do that. It wasn’t the hotel’s fault that their guests had attracted a vigilante. He needed to do something to get around the lock. He didn’t know how much time he had before Givens was moved to a new location. He decided to key in his mechanical again. He opened the lock with a simple touch of his hand. He plugged into the network camera and programmed the digital recorder not to accept his image. It wasn’t foolproof but it was the best he could do at the moment. He headed up the stairs for two reasons. He didn’t want to get trapped in the elevator when the Men in Black started shooting at him again with their fireballs. The explosions would kill him with the mechanical power activated. And he needed to use up the mechanical so he could key in another power that would be helpful in this situation. And as long as he had the mechanical operating, he could use the cameras in the halls to keep track of his enemy when they decided to move out. The church had to be the final destination. If he messed up here and lived, he could race them there and try to stop whatever they planned to do. He doubted they would be ready for him twice in a row. He smiled at that thought. They had been taken offguard, but had already beat him back twice. The third time might get him killed. Tanner raced up the stairs, checking the timer as he cleared landings. At least all this running around was helping him keep in shape. He idly wondered how many calories he burned every time he activated a power as he reached the fifth floor. He paused on the landing with his back against the wall as tried to catch his breath. He needed to do more step running when he got home. The timer ran out as he felt his heart beat slowly normalize. Now came the tricky part. He had to walk down to the rooms in question, take out any guards, and escape with the hostage. Bystanders could be hurt if he didn’t act fast enough. Explosions in the rooms were almost as bad as getting caught in the elevator. If any pierced a wall, there was no telling who would get hurt in the other room. And he had to consider that the building would be set on fire by near misses. He walked toward the room, hand hovering over the keyboard. He wanted to give himself any extra second he could before he went into the fight. If he ran out in the middle, he was as good as dead. He took a deep breath before he keyed in Iceberg and covered the peephole with a sheen of ice. He knocked on the door with a crystalline hand. He wanted one of them to open the door so he didn’t have to break it in. A guard tried to peer through the peephole. His shadow was visible behind the cover of ice. “Who is it?,” the guard asked. “Room service for a Givens,” said Tanner. His voice echoed slightly. There was nothing he could do about that. “Givens?,” said the guard. He opened the door for the ice sculpture in the hall. A stony fist crashed against his face and he went down without shooting. Tanner stepped over him into the hotel room. He counted three of the guys. He had to work fast before they got their weapons into play. Tanner took aim and fired nets of ice with his hands at the three men. He smiled as they went down in icy embraces. They were out of his hair while he checked on Givens. He rushed to the inner door of the suite. He wondered where the rest of the men were, but hoped he had gotten lucky. Maybe they were out doing a food run instead of getting room service. Maybe they had been dismissed until they were needed later. How many men did it take to guard a kid in the first place? He pushed the door open. A man sat in the middle of the bedroom at a desk. Pots decorated the top of the desk. A smell filled the air. He fought down his gagging as he looked around. “Where’s the kid?,” demanded Tanner. He raised a hand so he could use his ice power instantly if he had to shoot the guy. The man stood, dark eyes staring at the intruder. Several scars formed a complex patch on his cheek. His sleeves were rolled up, exposing stains on his hands and forearms. Dark hair lined with gray had been braided and left to fall behind him. “I see my men underestimated you,” said the man. “No one thought you would be able to track them to this place.” “The boy?,” said Tanner. He didn’t have time to have a chat with a crazy guy. “Is not your concern,” said the man. He held up a hand in a gesture of negation. Paints stained the fingers. “He is going to be my weapon when everything is done. Save yourself some trouble and go away before you are hurt.” Tanner frowned. Did he have the nerve to take on a painter in the middle of a hotel room for the life of a boy he didn’t know? What would he do if there was some other thing at stake. Ice leaped from his hand. He didn’t need to talk to the guy if the church was the endpoint for all this. He could take him, and turn him over to the FBI after he got Givens back. They could sort everything out without his involvement after that point. The painter waved his hand. The ice blast bounced into the wall and covered it in whiteness. “You should have heeded the warning,” said the painter. He made a twisting motion with his hand. A fist of rushing air slammed into Tanner. He hit the ground and tried to roll away from the impact. Years of fighting Darla had taught him that much. He produced a wall to protect him from the rushing air. It circled around the ice and slammed into him. He went through the window in an explosion of glass. Tanner headed for the street. He wondered if he would live through the impact. His ice power faded and he reached for his keyboard. He still had a chance if he keyed in the right thing while still high enough. An arm wrapped around him and yanked him through the air. He grabbed hold of the arm with both hands as his rescuer swung him to a ledge at the corner of the hotel. “I know things are bad, but there’s no reason to jump,” said his rescuer. “I didn’t jump,” said Tanner. Gratefulness turned into irritation in a second. “I was pushed. Now I have to get up there and stop the guy who pushed me.” “Leave this to the professional,” said the girl in the costume. “I am a professional,” said Tanner. He keyed in his Gold Man form. “I have to go. Nice meeting you.” He grabbed the window frame with an elongated arm. He yanked himself up to the window. He flung himself into the outer room. His three captives laid where he had left them. They struggled against the ice, but hadn’t been able to break out of their bond yet. Where was the painter? How much time did they have before he did whatever he wanted to Givens? Tanner tried to breathe through his anxiety. He should have dragged Darla along. She would have blasted the guy with her eyebeam before he said one word. “You want to tell me what’s going on?,” said the girl in the costume. “Maybe I can help out, and I know some people who could help out if this is too big for me.” “Saved many people, have you?,” said Tanner. He went to the door and looked out in the hall. The painter was nowhere in sight. Would he use the elevator or the stairs? “Saved you,” she returned. She crossed her arms as she looked at him. Her mask was a dark green blank with protective spots where the eyes should be in her face. “Okay,” said Tanner. “That’s a good point.” He headed down the hall. The elevator was not moving. Did that mean the painter was using the stairs, or had he already used the elevator to reach the exits on the bottom floor? Had he gone down to the ground floor? Which way should he go? “Let’s try the roof,” said the girl. “Maybe we can spot him from there.” “Okay,” said Tanner. He pulled open the door. “Why are you tagging along?” “I’m still waiting for my explanation and my thank you,” she said. “Seriously?,” said Tanner. “Seriously,” she replied. “Thank you,” said Tanner. He stepped into the stairwell and used the Gold Man to climb the center space of the stairwell toward the roof. She flung out a line and let it pull her up after him. When she reached where the line had anchored itself, she threw out another one. They pushed open the roof door and headed for the edges. If they could grab the painter, they could trade him for Givens. Grabbing him seemed the hardest part of that statement in Tanner’s opinion. “Who am I looking for?,” said the masked girl. “Guy with long hair in a braid, scar on face, vaguely Middle Eastern,” said Tanner. “You’re chasing Amenophis?,” she said. “You’re braver than I thought.” “Who’s that?,” said Tanner. He spared a glance at her. “But not ready for this,” she said. “Amenophis is the number three guy wanted by most of the Middle East governments. A lot of guys have taken him on and gotten hurt.” “Wait, what?,” said Tanner. “He’s a shark, you’re a guppy,” said the girl. “You’re going to get killed chasing him. I’ll call my dad and he can take over for us. He’s dealt with Amenophis a few times. He’ll know what to do about this.” Tanner thought about the offer. It was tempting to just give up. He could go home and let someone else rescue Givens. He would be back under the radar. He would prefer that to dealing with a world power. Then his selfish streak kicked in. This was his job. He couldn’t just hand it over to strangers and let them muff it up worse than what he was already doing. “Thanks,” said Tanner. The Gold Man wore off. “Someone’s life is at stake. I can’t wait for someone to take over for me. I have to keep going with what I have.” “Wait,” said the girl. She held up a gloved hand. “My dad really can help us.” “You’re out of this,” said Tanner. “I’ll figure out how to deal with Amenophis if I have to do that. I just want to free his victim.” Tanner pressed the Sky Rocket keys. He blasted from the roof before she could stop him. He knew that was what she wanted to do. He beat her to the punch to get away. He decided to head back to the church. That was the likeliest place the painter would show up. He had to come up with a power to get through his control of the air and take him down. It didn’t need to be more than few minutes, but it had to be done in such a way he couldn’t interfere with getting Givens back. Tanner tried to avoid hitting too many buildings as he cut across town. He felt the power petering out and aimed for a roof he could use for a crash landing. He hit a ventilation unit before the timer marked the exhaustion of the power. He laid there for a minute before climbing to his feet. He pulled out his phone. He asked Google for his current location. He smiled at the red arrow. He asked for the location for the church. He was still blocks away. He put the phone away and keyed in the Gold Man again. He grabbed a flagpole and swung out in space. He grabbed another flagpole further along and dropped to a roof to the right of and below the pole. He stretched his legs out as he jumped over the gaps between buildings. Once he was close to the church, he paused to assess the situation. The Gold Man blinked out as he studied the street. He didn’t see any of the Men in Black. That didn’t mean anything. They could be inside the church, getting ready to do whatever they planned to do to Givens. He needed a way in, and he needed something that could handle them. He was tired of losing every fight he had with Amenophis and his followers. He noted the church had a bell tower. He could get in there with the Gold Man, or the Wings. Then he could descend down into the church. That’s when the fighting would start. He needed to act fast if he wanted to take down Amenophis. His minions could be dangerous, but they hadn’t demonstrated the ability to manhandle him. He changed to the Gold Man as he eyed the bell tower. He could get in there. He just needed some kind of handhold. He couldn’t stretch his body across the intervening space. He pushed back to get running room. He ran forward and leaped. His arms and body stretched out as far as he could extend them as he flew through space. One hand hit the window frame and grabbed hold. The arm retracted, pulling him away from a fall in the street. He checked the timer as he bundled underneath the bell in the tower. He had a small amount of time to get things before he was helpless. He pulled open the trap door leading down from the belfry. A ladder greeted him. He extended his body to take a look around at the vertical space. No one was in sight. He descended toward the ground. //147333

Who will do a March draft? I am assuming that the rest of February will be tied up with voting for me for the Vhan draft. CES

The Transcenders developed great powers that allow them to control the forces of the world. The problem is when pushed too far, they may be drawn into the aether that allows them to operate on Earth. Naturally they fight this because they want to shape the world into what they want it to be. Who are these five people and what do they leave behind when they are forced to ascend to a higher plane? CES

At the edge of the world in the east is where Apollo bridles his horses to run the day. Before that, Eos must lead the way as his herald, riding the sky. But what happens when one of the servant nymphs takes a spark from the sun and walks in the land of men? You have Penelope, Daughter of the Dawn. Her sacred fire is enough to burn most things, light rooms, dispel the night, even heal if she wants which she rarely does. Penelope aspires to be a goddess, no matter how minor. And no mortal will get in her way. CES

There are a lot of seats that are going to be open next year. Ryan, Hatch, and a few others aren't running again. Trey Gowdy isn't running is the last I heard. Who wants to represent South Carolina in the House? CES