LPF/IT: Fri, Sat, or Sun Savaged Legends (Savage Worlds meets Legendary Planet)

[sirkerry]

I was thinking an American Southerner John Carter type.

[Zenspeedstr]

Recap from our last session:

Last Time, in Savage Planet--

From the Journal of Nelson Chadwick:

The Case of the Mississippi Madness, Part One:

My name is Nelson Chadwick. But you may call me by my stage name-- Marvello.

The turn of the Century was right around the corner. It was the final night of a week-long series of performances in New York City, and I was playing to a sold-out house. I thought the show went very well, in spite of my old nemesis Dixon Woods showing up to try to "debunk" my act. We had danced this particular number many times, Dixon and I. As usual, I managed to turn his skepticism to my advantage, and in the end the audience laughed him off the stage. I found myself actually looking forward to the vitriol he would no doubt be spewing in my direction in the Saturday Edition of the Times. A wise man once said that there is no such thing as bad publicity.

After finishing my curtain call, and taking my final bow, I returned to my dressing room as the audience began to depart. I began packing my things into my old steamer trunk, when I was interrupted by an insistent pounding on the door. I opened the door to a youth from the local Western Union. He had a telegram for me.

The telegram was from an old business associate of my father's-- a man by the name of Reginal Covington III. Reginal had followed my career in the papers, and knew of my frequent collaboration with authorities and my involvement in strange cases. Reginal had lost contact with the town of Culver's Ferry Mississippi, where his largest lumber mill was located. When the lumber stopped flowing from the mill, Reginal sent a group to investigate. The investigators were found a week later, wandering in the woods and babbling incoherently. The investigators savagely attacked the men who approached them. Reginal could tell that something out of the ordinary was going on at Culver's Ferry, and he wanted me to investigate.

The following morning, I looked up an old friend. Sam Nez is a Navajo shapeshifter. He claims to be a supernatural being almost a hundred years old, yet he doesn't look a day over 30. I have seen him do amazing things, and I have no reason to doubt his claims. Sam and I have worked together on occult cases numerous times in the past. He has even helped me in my act from time to time, and once or twice has aided me in "putting one over" on Dixon. I trust Sam implicitly.

After explaining the details of the case, Sam agreed to help investigate. He reminded me that we might need scientific expertise that neither of us possessed, in case whatever was plaguing the town proved to not be supernatural in origin. He suggested a scientist he knew-- a man by the name of Doctor Ulricht von Mekkheimer. The Doc had been a professor at a prestigious German University, until an accident crippled one of his legs and cost him his position. Sam believed he would be a great help to us in Culver's Ferry.

The Doctor agreed to come along for a share in the proceeds, stating only that he needed funds to continue his research. "There is one additional condition," the doctor added. "Under no circumstances will I become a performer in one of your American Circus acts."

Sam and I exchanged glances. "Agreed," I replied.

I procured train tickets for the three of us, and we agreed to meet at the train station the following day. The Doc arrived with a large object covered in a tarp, which he insisted on taking along. When asked about it, he would only say that the object was something he called the "Leonburger Mark V," and that it was necessary for our investigations. With a sigh, I made arrangements for the object's transport, and the Doc followed the workers who loaded it onto a boxcar in order to make sure that it was loaded properly and secured. Sam and I boarded the train and went immediately to the club car.

After an uneventful trip, we arrived at a small town in Mississipppi a short distance from Culver's Ferry. With a flourish, the Doc finally revealed what had been hidden beneath the tarp-- an amazing steam-powered vehicle of his own creation. Somewhat dubiously, we climbed into the Leonburger and with a clattering of gears, Doctor Mekkheimer pulled away from the station, driving the three of us to Culver's Ferry.

As we neared the Ferry, a wide river bisected the dirt road and separated the town proper from the North side. A skiff rested on the Northern riverbank, beside a thick rope stretching across the water. There was a shanty beside the shore near the skiff. As we approached the ferry, we felt a growing sense of unease. We passed by the carcass of a dead mule, it's body covered in lacerations. Across the river, what we could see of the town appeared to be deserted. A number of buildings were burned down to the ground, and we could see plumes of white smoke rising. In the distance.

Approaching the ferry building, we spotted five men shambling around. The men all carried hand axes, and were behaving most peculiarly. From time to time one of them would pass by the carcass and hack at the dead mule. Raising our hands to show that we meant them no harm, we attempted to communicate with the men. As we got closer, however, we could see that they had a crazed look in their eyes and they moved to attack.

Sam readied his spear, placing himself between Doctor Mekkheimer and me and the approaching mob. The Doc produced a strange device that he called a lightning gun, using it to fire a bolt of electricity at the closest target. The man fell to the ground writhing as the current arc'd through his body. Waving my hands, I muttered an incantation and called on my staff of power to make the Mule appear to come back to life, causing it to bray at the lumberjacks. One of the men closed with Sam, who attempted an attack but missed. The lumberjack countered and also failed to connect. The other three moved to attack the illusion of the mule as I had hoped they would-- buying us a few precious seconds.

Doctor Mekkheimer fired again, achieving the same result and a second of the lumberjacks fell to the ground, writhing in pain. Sam attacked his opponent, scoring a hit, but the blow was deflected by the man's clothing, causing no damage. The lumberjack attempted to attack him again, but Sam deftly swept the blow aside with his spear. The other attackers seemed to realize that their attacks were passing through the Mule, and a second one broke off to attack Sam instead. Speaking another word of power, I gestured and a glowing golden hammer of force appeared above the second attacker's head, slamming down at him. The blow struck true, but did no appreciable damage.

The Doc fired again, and a bolt of electricity jumped from his weapon to one of the closest lumberjacks. The bolt struck the man squarely in the chest, but caused no damage. The two lumberjacks then attempted to attack Sam, who deftly parried both attacks with his spear. I attempted the same maneuver a second time. Waving my hands in the air and speaking my word of power, the glittering golden hammer of force appeared again and slammed into the ground. Sadly, my intended target somehow managed to lumber out of the way just as the hammer fell. With a savage cry, Sam drove his spear into one of the lumberjacks. The spear thrust went deep, but the man only seemed momentarily dazed.

Mekkheimer's amazing invention took out another of our opponents. He crumpled to the ground twitching spasmodically as the bolt struck him. Sam pulled his spear from the Lumberjack's Torso, and while the assailant was still off-guard, he twirled it above his head and plunged it into the man's chest. This time the spear found it's mark, and the man crumpled to the ground. The final assailant attempted to strike the Shapeshifter, but Sam once again parried the blow. I tried my force hammer once more, only to witness the final enemy somehow stagger out of the path once again.

The final opponent attempted another attack at Sam, but the Native's lightning fast reflexes once again deflected the blow. With a sigh, I gestured with my right hand, and the Derringer I sometimes use in my stage act appeared in my palm. Drawing a bead, I fired. The shot found it's mark, and the man stumbled backward from the impact. Sam attempted another blow, but the Lumberjack's flailing arms batted the spear away before it could find purchase. The Doctor fired again, and for the first time in the battle his weapon crackled and the shot went wild. The second shot from my derringer also missed.

Mekkheimer attempted to fire once more, but the shot ricocheted off of the Lumberjack's axe and struck Sam, who was fortunately able to shrug off the damage. In anger, Sam savagely drove his spear into the final assailant and he went down soundlessly. Inside the shanty, we found the body of the Ferryman-- butchered like his mule. The shanty contained a pully system that had once connected to the Mule's harness. We bound the survivors from the combat and tended briefly to their wounds. I muttered the words to an incantation and passed my hands above the bodies, but I could detect no trace of magic.

The Leonburger had a small winch on its bumper that Mekkheimer planned to use in order to pull us across to the far side-- unfortunately, it quickly became clear that the skiff would never be able to carry the weight of the Leonburger, and we were forced to leave it behind. Boarding the Ferry, we pulled ourselves across by way of the thick rope stretching from shore to shore.

[Zenspeedstr]

Mississippi Madness, Part One, Continued

At the first farm on the outskirts of town, we met a family who had not succumbed to the madness. The farmer told us a tale of a sickness that had descended on the town, driving the residents insane. He didn't know many actual details, but told us that the sheriff and the apothecary were researching the sickness when last he saw them. The farmer offered his farm as a base of operations, telling us that the provisions inside were ours for the taking. We helped the family pack and ferried them across the river.

Returning to the farmhouse, we made quick plans and decided to head for the Sheriff's office in town. Sam used his abilities to slip into the shadows, scouting ahead. At the next farms we came to, we could hear a dog barking frantically from within the house to the South, while a woman in the tattered remnants of a wedding dress was perched precariously on a catwalk atop a grain silo some fifty or so feet above the ground. She appeared to be in distress and contemplating a jump. Even from a distance we could see that her dress appeared to be soaked in an oily liquid resembling lamp oil.

I muttered another incantation, activating my staff of power and invisible tendrils of power wrapped gently around her, lowering her to the ground. She was inconsolable, speaking gibberish about her husband Seamus. Sam entered the woman's house and found a photograph of her and her husband. Sam used his shapeshifting powers to take on the form of her dead husband, and pretending to be the ghost of Seamus, convinced the woman that she must go on without him. We sent her back to the farmhouse that was serving as our base camp.

We approached the house containing the barking dog and attempted to peer in the windows. The dog was a large mastiff. Seeing us, he lept at the window. We could see that the dog seemed to have eaten everything inside that resemblied food, and it was starving. Sam asked the Doc to stun the dog with his electrical weapon. Mekkheimer shattered the window with his walking cane and fired a bolt of electricty at the animal. Whether from adrenaline or hunger we couldn't tell, but the Mastiff was able to shrug off the effects of the lightning gun. Sam used the haft of his spear, attempting to subdue him. The blow struck home, and with a whimper it dropped onto its haunches and shook its massive head. I attempted another Force Hammer, and although I was on target, the Mastiff managed to roll out of the way of the bulk of damage. Doctor Mekkheimer fired a second time, but for the second time since our arival the shot went wild.

I decided to try to contain the beast, and used the glowing energy from my staff to create a box of force around the dog. Frightened and enraged, The mastiff threw it's body against my force box and somehow managed to break free. Waving my hands, I collected the energy that had been the box and smashed it down into the dog as one last force hammer attack. This one paid off. With a yelp, the dog crumpled to the ground unconscious.

We took the dog to the stables behind our farmhouse base and left out some food for him.

-------------------------------------------------------------------------

I hope you guys don't mind-- I took a little liberty and embellished the campaign background a bit. I also decided to change the format of the recaps this time and write it up as if it were Marvello's journal. We'll see how that goes, moving forward...

[Sammage]

This is awesome Zen!

[DMReckless]

Nicely done!

[Zenspeedstr]

Rules clarification corner:

So at some point in each session, I have wanted to cast a spell while maintaining another spell, and I have had a hard time finding the actual rules about that. I think I found them today. See what you think, DMReckless:

Savage Worlds Deluxe Edition, p. 95
Maintaining Powers: Characters can maintain powers as
long as desired, but each power maintained inflicts a –1 to
cast any new powers. Thus an invisible mage can keep the
power going indefinitely, but suffers a –1 penalty if he then
attempts to hurl a bolt.

I think that makes it pretty clear that maintaining an illusion while trying to use my "Force Hammer" attack should cost me a -1 penalty on the latter arcane roll.

Note that this is different from the multi-action penalty, which would take effect if I attempted to cast multiple spells in the same round (ibid, p. 66). Each additional action taken within a round imposes a -2 penalty on ALL actions taken within the round, and you can't perform the same action twice. The way I read it, that means Marvello could attempt multiple spells in a round, but they all have to be different spells, and doing so would incur a -2 to each Arcane Skill roll for the turn. So I could have more than one illusion up, as long as I cast them on different rounds. And each additional illusion adds a -1 penalty to the next Arcane Skill roll.

A personal clarification request

I also re-read the section from the Super Powers Companion on Power Modifiers. I think I should have been applying the -2 penalty to incoming ranged attack rolls for Marvello's Deflection power. I purchased it with the Device limitation, but not Activation. The way I read The Super Powers Companion (pp. 17-18), my Deflection is a Passive power, and therefore should always be on. I had envisioned Marvello's bracelet to be similar to the one Harry Dresden wears (if you are familiar with the books/show) so having it always on would be perfect.

I'll have some additional questions for you later about how you want to adjudicate increasing our powers.

[Zenspeedstr]

Recap from our last session:

Last Time, in Savage Planet--

From the Journal of Nelson Chadwick:

The Case of the Mississippi Madness, Part Two:

Having stabled the dog in the Redthistles' barn with food and water, we turned our attention back to the town of Holver's Ferry. The Sheriff's Office had been one of our early points of interest. It was one of the few stone buildings in town, along with the Church to the north and the Town Hall to the southwest. As we approached the town square, we could see the bodies of three people hanging from the large central oak tree, nooses around their necks. Even from a distance we could see that they were lifeless.

The Church was in cinders-- all of the wooden parts completely burned to char. Only the stone remnants remained. The Sheriff's Office was boarded up. The porch running along the front of the building was stained with blood, and there were deep axe cuts in the door. Sam listened at the door, but couldn't hear anything moving within. We decided to turn our attention first to the hanging tree.

The tree was a magnificent white oak, standing over 40 feet tall. The graying bodies of the three dead townspeople were in macabre contrast to the tree's beauty. The dead were two men and a woman. From the condition of the bodies, they seemed to have been hanging there for several days. We cut them down from the branches, and laid them out as gently as we could at the foot of the tree.

As we were taking down the bodies, we noticed a curtain move from an upper window in the Inn across the courtyard to the south. Approaching, we could see that the downstairs windows were all boarded up. Stepping up to the door, I rapped on it with my cane.

A woman opened the door a crack and fearfully asked what we wanted. With a bow, I introduced myself and my companions and told her that we were in town to investigate the strange goings-on, asking to be let inside. She admitted us to the common room, offering us seats and beverages. Briefly, we heard thumping sounds from the floor above, as of someone moving about. We asked the innkeeper how she managed to avoid the madness that had descended on the town. She credited a guest-- Mr. Vorthad-- for saving her. Unfortunately, she said that after the Alderman and his nephews hung the three townspeople, Vorthad had grown increasingly sullen and withdrawn, seldom leaving his room.

The inkeeper, whose name was Vessa, told us everything she knew about the madness. It had begun 11 days prior, violence breaking out like a plague that swept through the town. The mob burned the church and the mill, and then wandered through the streets with axes and torches slaughtering people they encountered. The apothecary and the sheriff believed it to be some kind of viral outbreak and began searching for a cure, but then 7 days before our arrival the sheriff disappeared-- last seen heading east in the direction of the Ferry. The violence seemed to culminate in the hanging 3 days prior-- the Alderman and his nephews shouting about God and evil. Afterward, there seemed to be a kind of lull that had descended on the town. She hadn't seen the Apothecary since the sheriff's departure, but she didn't believe that he had accompanied him.

A man's voice shouted from above, demanding to know the source of the noise. This was followed by pounding on the doors and stomping. The Innkeeper apologized, saying that his outbursts had been getting worse for the past few days. We decided to speak to him, out of concern for ther safety.

I knocked at the door to his room, and asked to speak face-to-face. After a moment of silence, Vorthad unlocked and opened the door. A large and burly man, his appearance was disheveled and he was sweating profusely, but he invited us inside. Vorthad had a hunting knife on his nightstand, and there were marks on the door and bedposts where he had been carving. Vorthad told us much the same story that the Innkeeper had. He had come to Holver's Ferry looking for a job, and when the violence broke out he sequestered himself inside the Inn. He hadn't left town so that he could insure Vessa's safety.

As we spoke, Vorthad began to refer to "things he had seen out west," and his eyes began to dart furtively toward the knife. He began to eye Sam with an irrational hatred I had seldom seen in the larger cities where my act normally played, but which Sam assures me is still all too common in rural areas. Vorthad began to act increasingly suspiciously, and claimed that he was tired. As we inched toward the door, I decided to use my Telekinetic abilities to snatch his knife from the table. Sam surreptitiously slipped his brass knuckles from a pocket and slid them onto his hand. Vorthad reacted with shock, and demanded that I return the knife-- claiming that he had taken it from a Commanche. When he became beligerent, I used a little sleight of hand to make it disappear up my sleeve, promising him that we would return it to him after we got to the bottom of whatever was causing the madness. Vorthad suddenly charged at us with murder in his eyes.

Sam swung at Vorthad, who dodged out of the way. Brandishing my staff, I whispered a word of power and a giant glowing hand of mystical energy appeared and grappled him. Restrained, Vorthad seemed to grow even angrier, frothing at the mouth and slurring his speech. Using rope from the tree, we bound him to a chair. His rants and raves became almost animalistic snarls and growls. After a few minutes, Vorthad seemed to calm down and return to normal. He couldn't remember anything after we took his knife. He told us he had been feeling feverish for several days since his last big fight. He seemed honestly relieved that he hadn't hurt anyone. We decided it would be best to keep him restrained until we talked to the Apothecary. Dr Mekkheimer suggested the jail as a place where he could be restrained while still maintaing some autonomy of movement. Barricading Vorthad's door, we made our way to the Sheriff's Offfice, stopping to drag the bodies from the tree over to the stables at the Inn.

Sam Nez had a plan for gaining access to the Sheriff's Office-- a trick I hadn't seen him use before. Sam's body suddenly became viscuous, and he slithered beneath the door and reformed on the inside. There were two jail cells, a gun cabinet, and a desk inside. On the desk was a cloth map of the area of Holver's Ferry. Two brass pins were stuck into the map, denoting locations to the south along the shore of Lake Shimmermere. Sam unlocked the door, allowing us entry. Returning to the Inn, we escorted the Innkeeper and Mr. Vorthad across to the Sheriff's Office, and secured him inside one of the cells.

After a short discussion, we decided to press on to try to locate the Apothecary, Dr. Mekkheimer reminding us that in viral outbreaks-- as this one appeared to be-- time was a critical component in preventing the spread of the pestilence and finding a cure.

We located the Apothecary's at the end of a long trail leading out of town to the northwest, just where the Innkeeper had indicated it would be. The two-story shop was built into the branches of a giant sycamore tree. A narrow wooden staircase wrapped around the trunk of the tree with a friendly sign inviting visitors to make the climb. Ascending the stair, we knocked at the door and were challenged from within. Once he learned that we had a scientist in the party, the Apothecary's demeanor changed and he invited us inside. He introduced himself as Dr. Rexall, and independently corroborated the timetable given to us by the other townspeople, but otherwise had little additional information to convey. We described the sheriff's map and the pinned locations and he identified the places as an abandoned orphanage and a mansion belonging to one of the town's founders. We convinced the Apothecary to accompany us back to the Sheriff's office to examine Mr. Vorthad.

As we approached the Sheriff's Office, we were ambushed by 4 men wearing the bloodied vestments of priests. The Apothecary identified them as Alderman Foss and his nephews-- the ones responsible for the hangings and for torching the church. Sam, still in stealth, approached them quietly.

Foss challenged us, calling us sinners and blasphemers, claiming to derive his authority from God. This seemed to rankle Dr. Mekkheimer, who unslung a large gun from his back in response. The men produced pistols and brandished them threateningly in our direction. Warning Dr. Rexall to stay down, I too made preparations for battle.

Foss took a snap shot at Dr. Mekkheimer. He connected, in spite of the Professor's energy shield. The wound was only superficial. Two of Foss' henchmen also fired at the Doctor, but their bullets ricocheted harmlessly off of his shield.The final henchman fired at me, and I felt a pinch as the bullet ripped into my shoulder. Luckily, it missed anything vital. Dr Mekkheimer fired a blast from his weapon at Foss, but the shot went wide, missing his intended target. Sam closed with one of the henchmen, attacking with his spear. The man somehow managed to sidestep, and the spearhead tangled in the oversize robe the man was wearing, causing no damage. I gestured with my hands and a bolt of lightning appeared to arc from the sky. From the flash, an elderly figure 20 feet tall wearing white robes emerged, pointed an accusing finger at the men and intoned, "Thou shalt have no other gods before me." One of the men dropped to his knees immediately, begging for forgiveness. A second one attempted to run. The third henchman fired at me with a trembling hand, missing me completely.

[Zenspeedstr]

Mississippi Madness, Part Two cont'd:

Dr. Mekkheimer seized upon the confusion to fire another bolt from his weapon. It struck Foss in the chest, fairly vaporizing a large portion of his flesh. I wondered at how the man was still standing after the attack. He attempted to point his pistol at the Professor, but in his badly weakened state, the round went wild. Sam struck Foss with the haft of his spear. The blow connected, but Foss was able to shrug it off. The kneeling henchman continued to prostrate himself before what he believed to be God, while the second henchman pulled out a censer on a chain and swung the heavy object at Sam like a mace. He caught the Navajo unaware, delivering a terrific blow. Sam managed to retain his footing, but I could tell that his head was ringing.

Catching the attack on Sam out of the corner of his eye, the fleeing henchman came to his senses. Shaking off the effects of my illusion, he attempted to fire at Sam, but missed. Dr. Mekkheimer unleashed another deadly bolt from his weapon, and with a scream Foss disapppeared before our eyes, dissolving into a smouldering pile of ash. It was a rather unnerving sight. Sam spun on the henchman who had attacked him, driving the point of his spear into the man's side. The Henchman dropped at his feet.

For my part, I attempted to make my illusory god create a glowing hand to smite one of the remaining henchmen. The trick looked impressive, but I miscalculated the man's distance. The hand connected, but left the man unharmed. Dr. Mekkheimer finished him with another blast from his death ray. The final henchman fired on the Professor again, missing him, and tried to run. Sam closed with him, attacking with his spear, but the blow did no appreciable damage. I dissipated my illusion and attacked him with a grappling energy hand from my staff, holding him securely.

We attempted to interrogate the man, but gained little information from him. He was a zealot, and the events at Holver's Ferry had sent him spiralling into the depths of madness along with Foss and the other henchmen. Dr. Mekkheimer tried to intimidate the man. He claimed that Foss was spoken to directly by God who had called upon him to cleanse the town of it's impurity. He said that they were holding three additional "sacrifices" in the town hall. After a few moments of his babbling, before Sam or I could react, Dr. Mekkheimer suddenly trained his death ray on the man and pulled the trigger. He disappeared in a gout of flame. I have no actual qualms about killing, but I confess that the execution of a restrained enemy disturbed me. Judging from Sam's reaction, I believe that it bothered my Navajo companion, as well. Neither of us spoke out, because the man had after all confessed to mudering nine of his neighbors. But I can't help but feel that we should have left him locked in a cell for the authorities.

We were able to free the three captives from the Town Hall with relative ease. Inside, we also found a strongbox which contained the town charter and the payroll from the mill. We gathered the survivors together and entrusted the strongbox to the Apothecary. The Alderman had left behind a journal-- his entries began normally, but then descended into unintelligible gibberish. About 8 days previously, the entries became legible once more, but then the religious ranting began. Foss believed that God was speaking to him in an audible voice and commanding him to gather up townspeople who had not been touched by the plague and offer them in sacrifice.

We swept through the rest of the town, looking for survivors and met no additional resistance. Gathering the people together at the Inn, the survivors of Holver's Mill declared us their champions, offering us aid and shelter whenever we are in need. We rested, and began to make plans to explore the Mill.

---

Having completed the cleanup of Holver's Mill, the party earned our first Advances!

[Zenspeedstr]

Session Recap

Last Time, in Savage Planet--

From the Journal of Nelson "Marvello" Chadwick:

The Battle of Holver's Mill

Having cleared the town of Holver's Mill from the ravages of the strange madness that had descended on its citizenry, we discovered that we had one important area left to address-- the Lumber Mill itself. From our band of survivors, we heard stories of a group of armed men led by the Mill's foreman, Wendell Lord, who were reportedly holed up in the mill and shooting at anything that approached.

Cautiously, we crept toward the mill located on the Southeast side of town. The compound was surrounded by an eight foot high stone wall. Sam Nez used his special abilities to stealth through a nearby crop field that bordered the mill on the North side. Meanwhile, Doctor Mekkheimer and I approached the gate, trying to stay low and use the wall as cover. The dog we rescued, who Sam had affectionately named Scratcher, accompanied us.

A large gap in the wall to the East bordered the river. Standing in the gap were the smoldering remains of the Mill-- now little more than crumbled masonry and ash. Four men along with Wendell Lord wandered almost aimlessly among the ruins, brandishing rifles.

Somehow, one of the men spotted Sam, and closed to attack-- swinging his rifle like a club. Sam was ready for him, and was able to sidestep the blow. We could tell almost immediately that Wendell Lord seemed to be more cogent than the others. Closing half the distance to Sam, he leveled his shotgun and fired. The shot went wild as Sam ducked to avoid the attack. Spreading my arms, I used the power of my staff to lift myself to the top of the stone wall, my cape fluttering behind me in the breeze coming off of the river. Scratcher moved forward into the compound through the gate, menacing one of the men with a low growl from deep in his throat. Dr. Mekkheimer fired his lightning gun. A blue bolt of electricity arc'd into his chosen target, stunning the man.

Sam slipped his brass knuckles from his belt and swung at his opponent. I couldn't tell if it was the madness that kept the man on his feet or if they just grow them tough in Mississippi, but the man seemed to shrug off Sam's attack. Wendell withdrew a rusty sawblade from his shirt and closed the gap to attack Sam, but he missed completely. On the ground, one of the men swung his rifle at Scratcher, who staggered back onto his haunches with a whimper and shook his head as if trying to clear it. The final two men joined the attack on the helpless dog, and scratcher quickly collapsed from the multiple injuries he sustained.

Infuriated, Dr. Mekkheimer fired again, and I felt the hairs on my arm rise as the Lightning Gun flashed. One of the men who had attacked Scratcher melted. I attempted to reason with Lord, explaining that we had been sent by Reginald Covington, I demanded that he and his men throw down their weapons and surrender. Lord reacted to the name Covington, but didn't throw down his weapons. Gesturing, I made a giant glowing flyswatter of force that smashed down into one of the men. It flattened him only momentarily. Like Sam's attacker, my target seemed to be able to shrug off the damage.

Lord shouted back at me that we should join forces and defeat Covington together. Meanwhile, he swung his rusted saw blade at Sam once more. This time he connected, and I heard a sharp exhalation of breath from Sam as the saw blade bit deeply into his skin. Sam's second attacker swung his rifle like a club and missed again. Inside the compound, the remaining three guards flailed mercilessly at poor Scratcher's body. One of their rifles accidentally fired with a sharp report-- the bullet tore through the man's leg, and he didn't even seem to notice.

Switching weapons, Dr. Mekkheimer leveled his Radio Gun at one of the men and pulled the trigger. The weapon jammed unexpectedly-- electricity arc'ed over the surface, and a bit of acrid blue smoke drifted upward. The Doctor began beating the weapon with his fist and swearing loudly in German. For my part, I summoned the power of my staff, and a giant glowing golden hand of mystical energy appeared, grappling Wendell around the midsection, pinning his arms to his sides. Sam was able to pull himself together, and fighting through the burning pain from his injury, pulled his spear from his back and attempted to impale Wendell with it. Still weakened, however, the attack missed the mark as Wendell managed to shift out of the weapon's trajectory.

Wendell Lord managed to break the grip of my spell, just as Dr. Mekkheimer got the Radio Gun operational once more, firing a blast that stunned another one of the guards. Flexing my forearm muscles, I caused my stage pistol to appear in my outstretched hand and squeezed off a round at Wendell. The bullet found its mark, but did no damage due to the layer of padded armor the man wore. Angered, Sam brought his spear into play once more, swinging the haft at Wendell's skull. This time the blow found its mark, and Wendell reeled.

One of the men in the compound seemed to tire of beating the lifeless form of Scratcher and turned his attack toward Dr. Mekkheimer. Sam and I could only watch in shock as the man's blow connected with devastating force, felling our erudite companion with a sickening thud. The Doctor dropped soundlessly to his knees-- not quite unconscious, but very close.

Vividly remembering what the men at the ferry had done to the Mule, and what the men in the lumber yard were doing to Scratcher, I knew that I had to do something to get the Doctor out of harm's way. Shouting a word of encouragement to Sam, I used the power of the staff to raise Dr. Mekkheimer up onto the wall beside me with Telekinesis.

Sam intoned: “I have taken your soul, white man. Tremble and fall to your knees and maybe I will give it back to you.” His form shimmered and seemed to twist like shadow, becoming the mirror image of Wendell Lord. Sam thrust with his spear, but Lord dodged out of the way again, just in time. Taking careful aim, I fired the second shot from my Derringer. It creased Wendell's skull, and he grunted from the pain. Sam attempted another attack, but somehow Wendell managed to bat it aside.

Confused by the appearance of a second Wendell, the other guard attacking Sam switched targets, shambling toward me. But he was unable to strike me from my vantage point atop the wall. With a groan, Dr. Mekkheimer pulled himself together and attempted another attack, but the strain was too much and the shot went wide of his intended target. Shaking himself to clear his head, he fired again. This time the attack found its mark and one of the remaining guards melted away.

Sam danced from side to side, chanting in Navajo. Planting the haft of his spear, he kicked up a handful of rocks, dirt, and sawdust at Wendell. Caught by surprise, Wendell began coughing and wiped at his eyes with the backs of his grimy hands. Moments passed as our two groups attempted unsuccessfully to strike at each other once again.

Surveying the battlefield and my injured friends, I decided that I had had more than enough from Mr. Wendell Lord. Vanishing the pistol up my sleeve once more, I brandished my staff. Spreading my arms widely, I lifted Wendell 35' into the air with Telekinesis-- and then dropped him. He hit the ground with a sickening crunch, and lay still. Unexpectedly, the moment that Wendell lost consciousness the remaining two guards became inert, as if they had been lifeless puppets quickened by the sheer force of their master's will.

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I am interested and located in the EST time zone as well. Those nights work for me as long as it does not run past midnight on a Sunday.