Bullets, Forks and Power

Sonny-boy shoots at the man covered in black markings. As the first bullet falls near him, the man in black disappears as though he were a balloon which popped. Sonny uses his Power to make the air between two of the gangsters explode! One of them doesn’t get up after that. The other one is knocked sprawling, but recovers, crouching low over his shotgun.

Sky is not sure how physics works, and does not know if he keeps conservation of momentum when he Travels, because usually he makes really small jumps and trusts to luck and besides, he don't even know what momentum is, unless it is that ritzy club on the East Side.

So what he does instead of something smart is pick a spot on the far side of the wall he just saw the Fade fade through, about seven feet up, shouts "Luck be a Lady with me!!" and Travels there.

Sky lands on the Fade’s head with his steel toed boots, kicking hard. The Fade has just solidified to take a deep breath, and ends up getting kicked in the head. With steel boots. He goes down hard.

(Sky has now used five Will; he has three left)

Michael sweeps the gangsters with fire from his tommy gun, firing under the car at their feet if necessary, hoping to drive them back a bit. He also tries to keep an eye on Christine to make sure she doesn't try to run away or attack him when she wakes up.

Two of the gangsters are cut down by Michael’s burst. A third, the last one on his feet, ducks back behind the Model T and returns fire. A rifle bullet rips the hood inches from Michael’s head.

Kaze goes out the window at the end of the hall where she's just stashed Shana in an empty room. She wraps her silken cord around the end of the fire escape and drops, one-two-three, three floors to the street. At each floor she twists the cord to untie it from the railing of the fire escape and wrap it around the next one down, so she falls in a series of sharp drops and sharp stops.

She starts toward the Model T, but the Man in Black Lace disappears. He has Traveled; it's obvious from this close up.

Janet tries to break away from the Fade, but he’s too quick, as though he’s practiced fighting other Fades and staying in contact. Janet’s mind is heaving --- her magic is almost exhausted! The Fade follows her toward the gangsters. The guy who Sonny knocked down, and who got up, and who can shotgun-blast Michael from an angle he can’t see, gets a fork in his neck and is out of action for good.

But now she has to let go of her Power, as urgently as a drowning woman needs air, and that damn Fade is still not just one step behind, but half a step behind, jabbing knives into her vitals!

Belle, having confirmed that their first opponent is dead, may now go to the window which overlooks the back alley, or head downstairs to the first floor, where Sky has just kicked a Fade’s lights out.

So as this round ends, and another begins, here’s the box score:

One Fade is about to kill Janet when she solidifies.

The other one is stone cold unconscious, with Sky’s boots on his head.

The Man in Black Lace has vanished.

Four of the five gangsters are dead, by bullet, explosion or fork.

The last gangster is shooting at Michael; both the gangster and Michael are using their cars as cover.

Unfortunately, the Model T backs up over the rifleman. He screams. The Model T cuts a left-hand turn in reverse and is about to speed around the building, out of sight.