With thanks to Derek for most of the work on this issue
Scene 1:
Splash page opening is Nightfox leaping into a wall of sound and flashing lights as he dives towards the DJ console, and its speaker stacks and light rigs. He plummets into a kaleidoscopic tunnel which ends up with him crashing to the floor surrounded by concerned dancers and mumbling “too bright… too loud…”.
Outside, Rakshasa and Red argue about who is going in after Joule and Nightfox. Rakshasa eventually goes in. Red has an internal debate about being recognised, then follows.
Rakshasa enters, shrugs off the hypnotic effect of the music and, ignoring the dancers, heads for the mobsters he’s after.
Red arrives and also fights off the music: she sees Joule dancing in the crowd and Nightfox down on the floor, surrounded by concerned people. Acting quickly, she shoots a Stun Arrow at the DJ: it hits, and the impact knocks the DJ back a step – but the DJ seems to absorb the electrical jolt.
Nightfox gets up, shuts his eyes, and jumps blindly towards the stage; Rakshasa has had enough of the music and cuts the power with a thrown knife. As the power fails, Joule is released from the musical effect. She makes her way towards the DJ’s stage.
Panic breaks out as the dancers are released from their spell and separate out into groups of mutants, “straights” and gang people. It looks like there could be a stampede for the exit or a nasty fight, but Red takes control of the situation. She calls on her reputation as a known crime-fighter, commanding the attention of the crowd and gets the non-mutants to leave in an orderly manner.
Rakshasa corners the two mobsters, a man and a woman. After a brisk fight, he ties them up and hangs them from the ceiling. The man is terrified by his fear aura, but the woman is more strong willed and contemptuous. He does however find out that they are working for The Outfit, specifically John Zuko, who is having them extort young mutants.
Nightfox lands on the stage, knocking the DJ (a young woman) to the ground. He turns, ready to fight, but Joule gets up on the stage and puts out a hand, helping the woman to her feet. Joule and Red talk to the woman, Alice, and find that she’s using her special power to stop fighting and make everyone happy in her nightclub. Rakshasa thinks he recognises Alice as looking rather like a former villain Seraph tangled with. He isn’t sure, though.
Red and Joule find the blue aquatic boy they went to look for and persuade him to go back home. They also talk to some of the mutants.
Heroes head off to their secret base.
Scene 2:
Group sitting around Seraph’s shiny white and silver base. Some reassurance and praise around the group.
Rakshasa talks about the clues he’s found about young mutant kids being used by the Mob to carry out crimes. He has a lead to a pawnshop he wants to investigate. He also identifies the DJ as being very like a former supervillain and foe of Seraph’s called Whisper. Whisper had group emotion control powers, but was normally pulling the strings of other villains.
Nightfox gets a call from Maria: there’s a big guy hammering on the door of the apartment opposite, she is frightened and wants him to come over. He tells her that he’d be right over and to call the cops. He tells the group he has a private problem to deal with, and gets teleported to a rooftop a few blocks away from Maria and Red’s apartment.
Just after he leaves, Joule and Red decide to go to Red’s place for hot chocolate, leaving Rakshasa to go through computer files. They teleport on to Red’s apt block roof. Nightfox sees them arrive and go down into the building, changing into civilian clothes. He changes as well, and goes in through the front door as Jesus.
Rakshasa (as Deep) calls the DJ and arranges for her to perform at an event at Seraphs gallery. He then heads out into the night.
Scene 3:
Red and Joule get to Maria’s place to find a huge Eastern European Guy [HEEG] hammering on the door opposite, and calling a woman’s name (Jacqueline). Red knows that the apt is occupied by a single mother and her young son. HEEG doesn’t speak any English and is insistent and intimidating. Red gets between him and the door and tries to calm things down. Red arrives, and is able to speak to HEEG in Spanish. Maria is watching from her door and is advised to wait inside until things calm down. The HEEG is apparently very concerned about the woman inside. Jesus persuades HEEG to stop bashing at the door and that Red would check that the woman was ok. Jesus and HEEG wait in the stairwell.
Red calls the woman’s name, and on getting no reply, picks the lock and goes in. Joule waits outside.
Red finds a young boy in the front room, and passes the kid to Joule to take care of. She then goes into the bedroom to find the kid’s mother lying injured and unconscious. She is then jumped by a shadowy figure and hit hard.
Joule and Jesus both hear sounds of a fight. Jesus persuades HEEG that the cops would be there soon, and HEEG leaves. Joule passes the kid on to Maria, and goes in after Red. Red and Joule fight an increasingly desperate Shadow Guy: Joule finally hits him with a bolt of electricity and he explodes into a cloud of shadows, which dissipate to leave no trace of Shadow Guy.
Red and Joule check out the room, and Joule finds a business card for a Pawnshop. They get Maria in to help the injured woman, and the cops finally arrive, including Joule’s mother. The injured woman is taken to hospital, and Red promises the cops that they would look after the little boy until his mother was able to return home. After a round of hot chocolate, Joule says she has to leave, and Red asks Maria to look aver the boy. Maria accepts (thinking that Jesus would be staying to help), and Red and Joule leave. Jesus then drops a bombshell by telling Maria that he has to go too! She chases him out the door in a fury.
Scene 4:
Rakshasa is lurking outside a dingy pawnshop, watching a mobster he recognises go in. He decides to jump them: they go rolling in to the building and he finds himself surrounded. There is a furious fight, which ends with the mobsters fleeing. He searches the building, and finds evidence that a number of children with powers are being exploited by a mid level Outfit boss, John Zuko, going against the Outfit’s policy of not using mutants. Among the kids the audience recognises Red’s neighbour’s very young child.
Scene 5:
Back in the base, the group compares notes.
Joule and Red describe what happened at Maria’s place, meeting HEEG and Shadow Guy. Joule also shows the business card. It turns out to be the same pawnshop that Rakshasa has just visited. He shows the group what he’s found. The group realise that the kid they’ve left with Maria (and Jesus’ extended family) is one of the super powered children – and the boy has super strength!
Closing panel: the shocked look on Nightfox’ face as he could have left Maria in great danger…