Ivory Talons, Chapter 3: Racing the Clock King Report
General Summary
Friday, September 11, 2009, 10:00 pm - Manhattan, NY
Bluehive Architectural Services, then Grail Industries on the southern side of Central Park
Plaster dust and drywall flakes fell like snow but that wasn't what left the team feeling cold.
Their fight against the Hammer Empire Titan combat robots damaged the Canidae Technologies factory in Brooklyn. Support beams, damaged from high powered energy blasts, bent inward, causing the ceiling and roof to buckle. Meanwhile, the Disco Boys' stretch corvette that Taki had driven through the factory wall did secure an outside exit for her teammates - it also had fallen through a weak spot in the floor to the entrance to the teamster shipping tunnels below.
Before the Knights Vigilant could make a break for the outside, two vehicles pulled into the parking lot. They were two mysterious black sedans, each bearing the logo of 'Blackstone Security'. There was a four-person team in each vehicle.
Assuming the worst, the heroes and Dr. Fries climbed down the hole to the teamster tunnels below ground. Racing to the SpectorCorp warehouse across the street, they climbed to the roof and border their "Fantasticar" ... the team's custom repulsor aircar ... and raced off into the New York night.
Once in the air, Moon Knight laid out the clues he recovered. First was the doodle of the strange mask. No one knew what to make of that. The other clue was a list of companies, specific addresses arranged in a list from 12 to 1. Wondering if the locations mapped out a clock, Moon Knight plotted the addresses on his iPad, only to discover they all were locations surrounding Central Park! They didn't just form a clock, they formed a sundial type clock.
As they had just left the fifth location - Brooklyn Harbor District, Canidae Technologies remanufacturing plant - they surmised either the "Bluehive Architectural Services" or "Grail Industries" was the Clock King's next target. Also, the 'point' of the sundial could be one of two locations: either the regional headquarters of Grail Industries or the regional headquarters of Oscorp! Could those be the actual final target of the Clock King? Or could one of those be the Clock King's hideout?
On the chance that the Clock King might be about to attack another company on the list, the heroes split into two teams: Sahara, Statesman, and Mr. Freeze headed for Bluehive Architectural Services and the others headed for Grail Industries.
Bluehive had already been hit, with the Clock King having stolen the blueprints for the following buildings:
However! At the Grail Industries location, the other half of the Knights Vigilant found a crime in progress!
Moon Knight headed in through the roof access, theorizing that the Clock King might try that as a way inside. Instead of the Clock King, he found a team of AIM Cybercommandos. But! They had been already taken out. He headed inside to investigate and discovered the culprits behind the attack on AIM ... mysterious figures wearing masks just like the drawing found at the factory in Brooklyn!
Meanwhile, Taki - using a disguise borrowed from a nearby pub's laundry for its staff - bought several boxes of donuts and conned her way inside under the pretense to 'set up a conference'. This went smoothly until she met the other half of the criminals with the strange carnival masks! The guards were knocked unconscious quickly, leaving Taki alone on one floor in a fight and Moon Knight a floor above in his own conflict!
These criminals with the carnival masks used gadgets, acrobatic skills, and the occasional hypnotic gaze as weapons.
Rushing to their aid, the other half of the team raced from Bluehive to Grail Industries. Leaving Mr. Freeze to watch the teams' "Fantasticar", Sahara and Statesmen hurried inside. Sahara through he roof, Statesmen via grapple line and swinging over.
Sahara met up with Moon Knight. The fight was two on two. The two heroes against two of the mysterious masked thieves. A floor down, Statesman entered the fight to help Taki. It was brutal. Moon Knight and Sahara subdued the two thieves on their floor, Taki and Statesman weren't so fortunate.
Before Taki and Statesman could gain the upper hand, a human with wings dressed in high-tech armor melted out of the shadows and fired at the heroes. The energy blast hit Statesman, overloading his synapses and bio-electric field of his body, leaving him drained of strength. He collapsed to the floor in a heap. In the hallway, Taki expended an energy blast of her own! It left her weakened which one of the masked thieves used to their advantage and knocked her out with a well-placed kick.
It was at that moment, Sahara and Moon Knight arrived. Acting fast, they disabled the last of the carnival mask thieves. However, as for the mysterious man with the hawk wings, he vanished into the darkness then crashed through a window to escape.
Just before escaping, he left a warning with the heroes ...
"We have your doctor. Stay out of the Clock King's business!"
The only doctor the Knights Vigilant knew of was Dr. Fries whom they had left back at the "Fantasticar"! Waking Taki, then carrying Statesman who was unable to walk, they returned to discover that Mr. Freeze had indeed been abducted! But, not before a hard fight that had damaged the aircar.
As the police arrived, the team made their exit, heading for Chinatown and Apothecary Fu's shop. The Knights Vigilant had lost to these new adversaries, worse yet ... these new opponents had kidnapped Mr. Freeze!
The implication that Mr. Freeze was being held hostage to keep the Knights Vigilant from interfering. Yet, is that true? Could the real reason be even more nefarious? Sahara pointed out to the others that Mr. Freeze has one of the team's communicator earbuds on him. Through that, they could track where Mr. Freeze has been taken.
And what of the team's theory as to the center of the "sundial"? Is that where the Clock King will strike? Or is that his hideout ... where Mr. Freeze might be taken at this moment?
... to be continued!
Missions/Quests Completed
Character(s) interacted with
Dr. Victor Fries ( "Mr. Freeze" ) - renown criminal from Gotham City.
Mysterious figures in plain white masks and gymnast bodysuit!
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A strange hawk-humanoid figure in armor that ambushed the team at Grail Industries!
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