TEXT: A SUPERHERO ADVENTURE
  THIS
  OF
  DARKNESS
  VISION
  ANDREW J. LUTHER
  
  Time anomalies are wreaking 
  havoc in your home city. A 
  time-traveling terrorist is 
  setting himself up to rule 
  the world. In the midst of 
  a violent confrontation, 
  you are thrust into your 
  own future...and it’s worse 
  than you ever imagined.
  Only you have the power 
  to prevent this nightmare 
  from becoming reality. But 
  do you have what it takes 
  to overcome true evil and 
  return to your own time? Or 
  with you help bring about 
  This Vision of Darkness?
  This complete adventure 
  is designed for Fate 
  Accelerated Edition and 
  contains an extensive, time-
  traveling adventure for 
  newly-created superheroes.
  A SUPERHERO ADVENTURE
  www.andrewjluther.com • @AndrewJLuther
  
  1
  A superhero adventure for Fate Accelerated Edition
  by Andrew J. Luther
  
  2
  A Vanishing Goblin Publication
  www.andrewjluther.com
  @andrewjluther on Twitter
  This Vision of Darkness
  Copyright © 2017 Vanishing Goblin Inc.
  All rights reserved.
  All artwork in this document is made up of royalty-free images downloaded 
  from www.Pixabay.com, with additional alterations, effects, and compositing 
  performed by Andrew J. Luther.
  The Vanishing Goblin logo is a trademark owned by Vanishing Goblin Inc.
  All rights reserved.
  This document is a work of fiction. Any similarity to actual people, organiza-
  tions, places, or events is purely coincidental.
  
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  Table of Contents
  Introduction
  Issue 1: New York City
  Summary
  Scene 1: Time for Action
  Scene 2: Follow the Breadcrumbs
  Scene 3: The Missing Dr. Flannigan
  Scene 4: The Seedy Underbelly
  Scene 5: Assault on Warehouse #165
  Scene 6: Race for the Orb
  Scene 7: Out of Time
  Issue 2: Strange New World
  Summary
  Scene 1: Where Are We?
  Scene 2: A Dark Landscape
  Scene 3: A Cry for Help
  Issue 3: Underground
  Summary
  Scene 1: Ambush!
  Scene 2: An Explanation at Last
  Issue 4: Follow the Leader
  Summary
  Scene 1A: Detention
  Scene 2A: Playing Catch-Up
  Scene 1B: Diversion
  Scene 2B: Prisoners
  Scene 3: A Possible Solution
  Issue 5: Homeward Bound
  Summary
  Scene 1: Into the Breach
  Scene 2: The Orb Guardians
  Scene 3: Getting Home
  Issue 6: Battle for the Future
  Summary
  Scene 1: The Final Battle
  Aftermath
  Further Adventures
  Open Game License
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  Introduction
  Welcome to This Vision of Dark-
  ness, an adventure that takes your 
  heroes into a nightmare future that 
  only they can prevent. This Vision of 
  Darkness is designed for Fate Ac-
  celerated Edition and can fit into 
  most “regular” comic book superhero 
  campaigns. There are no special rules 
  regarding character creation or devel-
  opment, nor is the setting intimately 
  tied to a particular place.
  This Vision of Darkness is designed 
  for playing groups who enjoy some of 
  the staples of modern comic book su-
  perhero gaming. Innocents to protect, 
  large and dangerous strongholds, 
  powerful villains with world-shat-
  tering plans, interactions with other 
  superheroes; all of these are aspects 
  of This Vision of Darkness. I sincerely 
  hope that your gaming group gets 
  all the enjoyment out of playing this 
  campaign that I experienced while 
  creating it.
  Preparation
  In order to run this campaign, you 
  need a copy of the Fate Accelerated 
  Edition (FAE) rulebook.
  This campaign was designed to 
  require a minimum of preparation on 
  the part of the GM. It is recommended 
  that the GM read through the entire 
  book once. Otherwise, the GM only 
  needs to be somewhat familiar with 
  each particular section as it is played. 
  A GM familiar with the layout of the 
  book will require no more than a sec-
  ond quick glance through a particular 
  section before running it.
  All text that appears in shaded box-
  es is information that you may read or 
  paraphrase to your players. Sidebars 
  contain other pertinent information 
  for you. All major NPCs are described 
  in sidebars within the text.
  Encounters
  This Vision of Darkness was de-
  signed for a team of 4-6 newly-creat-
  ed FAE heroes (or at most heroes who 
  have reached only one or two signif-
  icant milestones). You are, of course, 
  free to alter the scenes and the oppo-
  sition in any manner you choose.
  Campaign Assumptions
  This Vision of Darkness has few 
  requirements for hero teams. How-
  ever, certain things should be kept 
  in mind when creating characters to 
  play through this adventure.
  a) Heroes with the ability to travel 
  among dimensions or through 
  time may find the challenges in 
  this adventure are much easier 
  to handle. Therefore, it is recom-
  mended that these powers not 
  be permitted, or—in the case of 
  dimensional travel—the power 
  not allow the characters to return 
  to their own time on their own.
  b) While magic powers should 
  generally be fine, there are no 
  opponents or threats that involve 
  magic in this adventure.
  Adventure Background
  It is known that some heroes and 
  villains are able to manipulate time 
  itself, allowing them to see and/or ac-
  cess the past and the future. A select 
  few have heard of a powerful artifact 
  that boosts time-affecting powers, 
  called the Orb of Time.
  THIS VISION OF DARKNESS
  
  6
  the Orb gave him an idea that he has 
  worked towards for the last twenty 
  years.
  Epoch has calculated the exact 
  moment and location of the next 
  reappearance of the Orb of Time. 
  He intends to take possession of the 
  Orb and then travel into earth’s past, 
  setting himself up as a “benevolent” 
  dictator and changing the course of 
  human history. He then plans to move 
  forwards and backwards through 
  time, managing events so that the hu-
  man race ends up the way he wants it.
  During Epoch’s studies and prepa-
  rations, he met and befriended three 
  other super-powered individuals. 
  Alabaster is another mutant like 
  Epoch, Sir Real is a psionicist of some 
  note, and Wraith is an ancient war-
  rior who has conquered death. Due to 
  their wide range of skills and powers, 
  Epoch believes that his “team” is 
  prepared for any problems they may 
  encounter throughout history.
  Recently, Epoch set up a facility 
  to track the coming appearance of 
  the Orb. He hired a large number of 
  guards and purchased a great deal 
  of powerful computer equipment to 
  perform the trillions of calculations 
  required to determine the Orb’s exact 
  location when it appears. He then 
  set himself to monitoring events and 
  waiting.
  Snake Eyes was a small-time 
  hoodlum from the Bronx. A natu-
  ral psionicist, he used his fledgling 
  powers to commit a string of minor 
  crimes throughout New York State. 
  Recently he returned to Manhattan to 
  meet with a new gang of street-level 
  supervillains in the hopes of joining 
  No one knows who created the Orb 
  of Time, or from where (or when) it 
  came. There are cryptic references 
  to it, however, in ancient scrolls and 
  legends dating back to the dawn of 
  recorded history. It tends to ap-
  pear randomly every few hundred 
  years, causing all manner of strange, 
  time-related effects in its vicinity. 
  Then it disappears again, fading back 
  into legend.
  The few scholars who have studied 
  the bits and pieces of information 
  about the Orb all agree that it gives its 
  possessor unique powers. A person 
  in possession of the Orb of Time is 
  able to travel back into his own past 
  and actually change history. The Orb 
  seems to protect time travelers from 
  paradox, meaning that someone could 
  travel back in time and murder his 
  own mother, without ceasing to exist 
  himself. Changes to the past affect 
  everything that comes afterward, 
  although the possessor of the Orb 
  remembers both the original timeline 
  and the altered one.
  Epoch (aka Dr. Edward Flan-
  nigan) is a man who has made the 
  study of time his life’s work. A mutant 
  with an overdeveloped brain, Epoch is 
  one of the most intelligent men alive. 
  Unfortunately, this has led him to be 
  unsatisfied with the world around 
  him. He believes that he could “fix” 
  the world’s problems if only he were 
  in charge.
  When Epoch was a young man, he 
  came across a reference to the Orb of 
  Time in an ancient text that he was 
  reading. Investigating further, Epoch 
  uncovered many details concerning 
  the Orb. Thinking about the power of 
  THIS VISION OF DARKNESS
  
  7
  Once these superheroes hear the 
  PCs story, they realize that this is 
  their opportunity to change the fate 
  of the world. Epoch arrived in this 
  time about two weeks before the PCs 
  and was immediately captured by the 
  Cybernaut robots, and there are ru-
  mors that some kind of glowing orb of 
  power was recovered by Cybernaut’s 
  forces only a few days ago.
  The PCs are asked to help rescue 
  the leader of the resistance, a super-
  hero named Bloodstone who is being 
  held at a containment facility near the 
  ruins of Chicago. If the heroes help 
  their new allies rescue their leader, 
  they are able to learn where Epoch 
  and the Orb of Time are being held.
  They also learn that Cybernaut was 
  once a small-time crook named Snake 
  Eyes, who lived in New York City. Ap-
  parently, on the same day the heroes  
  tracked down Epoch, a rift opened in 
  Times Square in New York, and Snake 
  Eyes was infected by some kind of 
  technological virus. He transformed 
  into Cybernaut on the spot and began 
  his campaign to conquer all of North 
  America.
  If the PCs can return to their own 
  timeline and stop Snake Eyes, they 
  can prevent this entire future from 
  coming to pass. But that requires 
  infiltrating Cybernaut’s Manhattan 
  fortress, extracting both Epoch and 
  the Orb of Time, and defeating Snake 
  Eyes in Times Square before he trans-
  forms into Cybernaut.
  their group. Unfortunately for every 
  human being on the planet, he is 
  about to be in the wrong place at the 
  wrong time.
  Campaign Summary
  The heroes respond to reports of 
  strange time-related anomalies occur-
  ring all over New York State, includ-
  ing the appearance of dinosaurs and 
  other things from earth’s past.
  Investigations lead them to a super-
  villain named Epoch, and his attempt 
  to gain possession of the Orb of Time. 
  They manage to discover where the 
  next appearance of the Orb of Time 
  will occur, and race there to stop 
  Epoch. Unfortunately, Epoch already 
  has the Orb in his possession, but is 
  having difficulty controlling it.
  Epoch loses control of the Orb and 
  he, the orb, and the heroes are tossed 
  into the future. The heroes remain 
  together, but they lose Epoch and the 
  Orb during the trip.
  In the future, an evil villain named 
  Cybernaut has taken control of North 
  America, and his base is situated on 
  what was once the island of Manhat-
  tan. Most of rest of North America is 
  in ruins, and the populace has been 
  mostly eliminated. Only small pockets 
  of humans continue to eke out a harsh 
  existence among the ruins of their 
  fallen civilization.
  The heroes stumble across one 
  of these enclaves being attacked by 
  robotic minions of Cybernaut. Assum-
  ing they help the innocent people, 
  they make allies and learn that they 
  have arrived approximately ten years 
  in the future. They meet a group of 
  superheroes who are trying to find a 
  way to defeat Cybernaut.
  THIS VISION OF DARKNESS
  
  8
  about the Orb of Time. Clues lead the 
  heroes to an old warehouse near the 
  docks.
  When the heroes investigate the 
  warehouse, they discover that the 
  building has indeed been converted 
  into a headquarters by the super-vil-
  lain. After wading through Epoch’s 
  minions, the PCs are able to question 
  a scientist assistant about Epoch’s 
  and Dr. Flannigan’s whereabouts.
  The PCs learn that Dr. Flannigan 
  managed to calculate where and 
  when the next appearance of the Orb 
  of Time will occur. Epoch and his 
  team members Alabaster, Sir Real, 
  and Wraith went to the location with 
  Dr. Flannigan. The assistant does not 
  know the exact time that the Orb will 
  appear, only that it is very soon. He 
  gives the PCs directions to the loca-
  tion, a shopping mall in the town of 
  Norwich, New York.
  The assistant tells the PCs that 
  Epoch intends to take the Orb of Time 
  and travel into the earth’s past, to set 
  himself up as the ruler of the world. 
  His team will help him shape humani-
  Summary
  In the first issue of this adventure, 
  the PCs witness two dinosaurs appear 
  on a busy downtown street. The huge 
  creatures immediately panic and 
  begin attacking vehicles, buildings, 
  and pedestrians around them. When 
  the dinosaurs are defeated, they all 
  disappear back into the distant past.
  The PCs quickly learn that there 
  have been a growing number of 
  “temporal disturbances” in the area 
  recently. Their questions lead them 
  to a renowned quantum physicist, 
  Doctor Robert Afshari, who tells them 
  that the disturbances remind him of 
  legends about the Orb of Time. He 
  suggests that they speak to a Doctor 
  Edward Flannigan, an expert on the 
  subject.
  The PCs discover that Dr. Flannigan 
  was recently kidnapped by unknown 
  persons, and no ransom note has 
  yet to be delivered. Contacts in the 
  criminal underworld indicate that a 
  super-villain by the name of Epoch 
  captured him due to his knowledge 
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  9
  The heroes are thrown forward 
  through time, along with Epoch and 
  the Orb. During the time storm, the 
  heroes lose sight of the villain and 
  the artifact. Then they are suddenly 
  dumped back into the ruins of the 
  shopping mall. Stunned for a moment 
  from their strange trip through time, 
  they are surrounded by a group of 
  futuristic robotic soldiers.
  Set-Up
  It is recommended that the PCs be 
  together when the adventure begins. 
  They may be in their secret identities 
  (if they have them), or patrolling the 
  city in costume. If the PCs are not 
  based in New York City, then they may 
  be sightseeing when the dinosaurs 
  appear, or on their way to whatever 
  other business brought them to this 
  metropolis.
  ty’s future to that of his own personal 
  vision. Only with the Orb of Time is 
  this plan possible, but a moment after 
  he takes control of the Orb, he will be 
  essentially unstoppable.
  The heroes race to Norwich in 
  order to stop Epoch from taking 
  control of the Orb of Time. When they 
  reach the shopping mall, the heroes 
  are attacked by Epoch’s henchmen: 
  Alabaster, Sir Real, and Wraith. The 
  villains attempt to delay the heroes 
  long enough for Epoch to reach the 
  Orb.
  When the heroes defeat (or get 
  past) the henchmen, they enter the 
  mall to discover that Epoch has al-
  ready gained possession of the Orb of 
  Time—but not control of the artifact. 
  They also realize that Epoch and Dr. 
  Flannigan are the same person; that 
  Dr. Flannigan staged his own kidnap-
  ping in order to throw investigators 
  off his trail.
  As Epoch notices the heroes, he 
  loses control of the Orb. With a flash 
  of light, Epoch, the Orb of Time, and 
  the heroes disappear.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  10
  Scene 1: Time for Action
  Ah, New York City. A bustling 
  metropolis if ever there was one. 
  You never know what you’re going 
  to see on the streets of Manhattan. 
  Street artists, buskers, panhandlers, 
  movie shoots, masses of people, 
  dinosaurs…dinosaurs!!
  With a mighty roar, a tyranno-
  saurus rex simply appears in the 
  middle of the intersection. It looks 
  around with its weak eyes, highly 
  confused. Then the screams start 
  as the pedestrians realize what is 
  standing in front of them. Another 
  bellow comes from the beast, and it 
  begins to move…
  Disturbances in the time stream, 
  caused by the proximity of the Orb 
  of Time, have pulled two dinosaurs 
  from their home in the distant past to 
  the modern present—a tyrannosau-
  rus rex and a triceratops. Confused 
  as the t-rex is initially, it can tell that it 
  is surrounded by food. And carnivores 
  love to eat.
  The triceratops appears right in the 
  middle of a gridlocked group of cars. 
  The smell and the noise cause the 
  beast to panic, and it begins ramming 
  cars in an attempt to get away. The 
  drivers and passengers of the vehi-
  cles are in danger of serious injury if 
  someone doesn’t stop the triceratops 
  quickly.
  When a dinosaur is knocked out 
  or killed, it fades from sight as it is 
  pulled back to its own time.
  The people trapped in the area act 
  as a mob. While the civilians won’t 
  attack the heroes, they will panic, 
  flee in the wrong directions, cower 
  in the worst spots, and generally 
  hamper any efforts to clear the area. 
  The t-rex will attempt to eat them and 
  the triceratops will crush them in its 
  attempt to flee (both represented by 
  inflicting stress on the mob). It’s up 
  to the heroes to protect the civilians 
  and take care of the dinosaur prob-
  lem. The first two stress boxes for the 
  civilians represent injuries, but after 
  that, when the civilians take stress, 
  it represents people actually getting 
  killed by the dinosaurs.
  Note: If you’re running this as more 
  of a four-color setting where innocent 
  people don’t die so easily, then filling 
  all the stress boxes basically means 
  that there are many injuries and 
  much destruction of property, but no 
  deaths. Regardless, it also means the 
  heroes are considered to have failed 
  to protect the city, even if they then 
  defeat the dinosaurs.
  CIVILIANS
  Aspects: Terrified and panicked; 
  Clinging together
  Skilled (+2) at: Nothing.
  Bad (-2) at: Everything.
  Stress: 
   
   
   
   
  TYRANNOSAURUS REX
  Aspects: Dinosaur!; Weak eye-
  sight; Hungry predator
  Skilled (+2) at: Chomping on peo-
  ple, knocking people around with 
  its tail, stomping on people and 
  cars, and frightening bystanders.
  Bad (-2) at: Everything else.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  11
  TRICERATOPS
  Aspects: Dinosaur!; Long horns; 
  Confused and afraid
  Skilled (+2) at: Charging into 
  things horns-first.
  Bad (-2) at: Everything else.
  Stress: 
   
   
   
  Aftermath
  When the PCs have saved the 
  bystanders from the dinosaurs, local 
  S.W.A.T. teams and emergency per-
  sonnel arrive, followed quickly by the 
  media. One of the bystanders yells out 
  that he got everything on videotape, 
  and the reporters swarm around him, 
  yelling out offers of money for the 
  footage. If the PCs decide that they 
  want the videotape themselves, they 
  will have to outbid the other report-
  ers, or convince the man to give it 
  to them. There are lots of witnesses 
  standing around, so PCs who try to 
  intimidate the man will end up with a 
  lot of negative publicity.
  After being questioned briefly by 
  the detective in charge, the heroes are 
  allowed to leave. The reporters try 
  to interview the heroes, and this is 
  an opportunity for them to get their 
  names and faces known to the city. 
  Unless the heroes offer to do an in-
  terview with every one of the twenty 
  reporters at the site, someone whom 
  they turn down will decide to write a 
  series of scathing articles about the 
  team over the next few months.
  The detective in charge, Michael 
  Kynaston, mentions that a number of 
  weird things have happened all over 
  the state in the last few days, all hav-
  ing to do with “hiccups” in time. He 
  suggests, none to subtly, that perhaps 
  some hero-types should consult with 
  a scientist or two and figure out what 
  is going on.
  MICHAEL KYNASTON
  Aspects: Jaded and cynical; Good 
  investigative techniques
  Skilled (+2) at: Investigating 
  crimes and general police proce-
  dures.
  Bad (-2) at: Internal police force 
  politics.
  Stress: 
   
  Michael Kynaston is a tall man in 
  his late 30’s. He’s been on the force 
  for almost twenty years, working his 
  way up to detective from beat cop. 
  He’s terrible at playing the political 
  game, and that’s why he’s never risen 
  higher than detective. He doesn’t 
  really like the idea of superheroes—
  he thinks they should be licensed and 
  work directly as part of the police 
  force. He also thinks they rely too 
  much on special powers and not 
  enough good investigative techniques.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  12
  Scene 2: Follow the 
  Breadcrumbs
  If the heroes speak with an appro-
  priate contact or spend time gather-
  ing information by speaking to the 
  scientific community, they should be 
  eventually be given the name of Dr. 
  Roberta Afshari, a quantum physi-
  cist of some note. A phone call to Dr. 
  Afshari allows the heroes to set up an 
  appointment later the same day at the 
  doctor’s home office.
  Dr. Afshari tells the heroes that she 
  has been following the time distur-
  bances very closely over the last 
  two days, and thinks she knows the 
  answer. She explains that she hasn’t 
  given her explanation to the author-
  ities or to the media because only a 
  handful of scientists believe in what 
  she is about to say.
  There are stories—legends, real-
  ly—that describe an item of great 
  power called the Orb of Time. From 
  the little bit of information that I 
  have encountered, there seems to 
  be evidence that the Orb has existed 
  since the dawn of recorded history. 
  It has appeared in a multitude of 
  different places over the last few 
  thousand years, apparently at ran-
  dom every couple of centuries.
  The Orb itself is said to be a 
  glowing sphere, perhaps a foot in 
  diameter. It radiates a bright white 
  light and is warm to the touch. And, 
  apparently, it gives its possessor 
  complete mastery over time.
  We’ve always considered that 
  traveling backwards in time to be 
  impossible because of paradoxes
  that would be created if you took 
  any action to change something that 
  we knew to have occurred.
  Imagine that you could travel 
  back in time and affect your own 
  past. What if you went back and 
  killed your own father when he 
  was a young child? That would 
  mean that you were never born. Of 
  course, if you were never born, you 
  wouldn’t have been able to travel 
  back in time to kill your father. So 
  you can understand the problems of 
  paradox.
  The Orb, supposedly, frees its pos-
  sessor from the effects of paradox. 
  With the Orb, you could go back in 
  time and kill your father. History 
  would change and you would never 
  have been born. Yet, the “you” that 
  traveled back in time would still 
  exist, and you would remember 
  your own life history, as well as the 
  “new” history that you just created 
  by your actions.
  Someone with control over the 
  Orb of Time would be able to ma-
  nipulate history completely, thus 
  molding the world to his or her 
  desires.
  Dr. Afshari tells the characters that 
  she’s no expert on the Orb of Time—
  she only knows what was written 
  in a scientific paper produced a few 
  years ago. The writer of the paper, Dr. 
  Edward Flannigan, is the true expert. 
  Dr. Afshari knows that Dr. Flannigan is 
  based in New York City, and manages 
  to find a telephone number for Dr. 
  Flannigan’s office.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  13
  Scene 3: The Missing Dr. 
  Flannigan
  If the heroes call Dr. Flannigan’s 
  office, they are able to speak with one 
  of his staff researchers, a young man 
  named Nelson Lineman. Nelson tells 
  the characters that it is not possible 
  to speak with Dr. Flannigan right now. 
  He explains that he is not allowed to 
  discuss the schedule or whereabouts 
  of Dr. Flannigan over the phone, and 
  seems to get more and more nervous 
  as he is questioned. He eventually 
  ends the phone call with “I’m sorry, I 
  can’t help you” and hangs up.
  It doesn’t take much to track down 
  the location of Dr. Flannigan’s office/
  lab in a typical Manhattan office 
  building. When they arrive, they are 
  greeted by a young receptionist who 
  screens all visitors to the four shared 
  laboratories on the premises. The 
  young lady calls someone from Dr. 
  Flannigan’s office to come down and 
  meet with the characters, and within 
  two minutes, a flustered Nelson Line-
  man appears.
  When Nelson sees the heroes, he 
  lets out a nervous laugh and appears 
  to relax somewhat. He explains that 
  he is under specific instructions not 
  to give out any information over 
  the phone in light of Dr. Flannigan’s 
  recent kidnapping. If the characters 
  express any surprise at this news, 
  Nelson warms to his subject and 
  explains all about the disappearance 
  of Dr. Flannigan.
  It was about three weeks ago. Dr. 
  Flannigan was getting close to a real 
  breakthrough in the mathematics of
  time. We could all see how excited 
  he was. He was working on the 
  underlying math that would prove 
  it was possible to look backwards in 
  time, to see history unfold as if one 
  were watching it live on TV.
  We all knew the applications 
  were immense. Imagine being able 
  to solve every single crime ever 
  committed by watching it happen. 
  Imagine watching the evolution 
  of man, confirming or denying the 
  historical accuracy of the bible, or 
  discovering the true identity of Jack 
  the Ripper.
  Anyway, late on that Thursday 
  morning, a group of three people 
  came into the lobby and walked 
  past our previous receptionist. She 
  tried to stop them, but they were 
  obviously supervillains of some 
  sort. She called the police, but by 
  the time they got here, it was too 
  late. The three villains came into 
  our lab and grabbed Dr. Flannigan. 
  One of them said that some other 
  supervillain named Epoch required 
  his services. The three villains then 
  took Dr. Flannigan away. None of us 
  was able to stop them.
  One of the villains was a woman 
  who appears to be made of marble. 
  She was immensely strong. The 
  second one appeared to be some 
  kind of ghost. The third one didn’t 
  seem to do anything. He just kept 
  an eye on us as the other two led 
  Dr. Flannigan out through the front 
  doors.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  14
  Nelson explains that they called 
  the police and reported the incident, 
  and the lab was closed for a couple 
  of days as the forensics crew looked 
  for evidence. Nothing has happened 
  since. The police haven’t found Dr. 
  Flannigan, the villain Epoch, or his 
  three henchmen.
  The heroes can question a few oth-
  er people in the lab, but no one knows 
  anything beyond what Nelson has 
  already told the heroes. The heroes 
  now know that a new supervillain 
  named Epoch has begun activities in 
  New York City and that Dr. Flannigan 
  needs to be rescued from his kidnap-
  pers.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  15
  Scene 4: The Seedy  
  Underbelly
  The characters now have the same 
  information as the police. Unlike the 
  police, however, their methods of in-
  vestigation are not quite so restricted. 
  Villains almost always need minions, 
  and the heroes now have descrip-
  tions of Epoch’s henchmen as well. A 
  thorough and vigorous questioning of 
  underworld contacts will likely point 
  the characters in the right direction.
  If your players like to get right 
  into the action, you can gloss over 
  the search for informants. Alternate-
  ly, you may want to play out a few 
  encounters with hoodlums and street 
  scum who may (or may not) know a 
  thing about Epoch’s whereabouts.
  Either way, the characters eventu-
  ally meet an informant that tells them 
  about Epoch’s recent (four weeks 
  ago) recruiting drive. A few of this 
  man’s buddies joined up to do secu-
  rity at a warehouse near the docks in 
  New Jersey. In moments, the heroes 
  have an address for the villain’s head-
  quarters.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  16
  Scene 5: Assault on  
  Warehouse #165
  The warehouse is located in New 
  Jersey, south of the Holland Tunnel, 
  just off the Hudson River. It is a large 
  building surrounded by others almost 
  exactly the same. The only windows 
  in the building are on the southwest 
  corner, and these are completely 
  covered with opaque shades. All 
  of the exterior doors are made of 
  metal, except for the door also on the 
  southwest corner. This door is made 
  of glass, but the interior of the door 
  has been papered over and there is no 
  way to see inside. All doors leading to 
  the outside are locked.
  The warehouse consists of a large 
  loading bay with space for three 
  18-wheeler tractor-trailers (though 
  no trucks are present) and a couple of 
  offices and storage rooms. The large 
  overhead doors that allow trucks to 
  enter this area are welded shut.
  The main open area is filled with 
  long tables holding banks of com-
  puter equipment, printers, scanners, 
  maps of North America, stacks of 
  printouts, reference books on quan-
  tum physics, and a series of monitors 
  that display all kinds of mathematical 
  calculations. One monitor shows a 
  map of New York State with a flashing 
  red dot over a location just outside of 
  the city.
  There are ten armed guards sta-
  tioned in the warehouse, and four 
  scientists.
  This is where Epoch did his calcu-
  lations to determine the exact time 
  and location of the next appearance 
  of the Orb of Time. Epoch’s chief sci-
  entist, Roslyn Goh, is almost always 
  working in this room (she only sleeps 
  about 5 hours a night). Always with 
  her are a personal assistant and two 
  lab assistants.
  None of the scientists will fight in 
  any manner. If any combat breaks out, 
  anyone wearing a lab coat will imme-
  diately try to huddle in the corners 
  or take cover under the tables. They 
  surrender immediately if confronted.
  Roslyn Goh knows the full details of 
  Epoch’s plan. She doesn’t know that 
  Epoch and Dr. Flannigan are the same 
  person, although she is aware that 
  Dr. Flannigan is willingly helping the 
  supervillain with his plan. She knows 
  the time and location where the Orb 
  of Time will appear, and can tell the 
  heroes that Epoch and his henchmen 
  are already there, waiting for the 
  precise moment to take control of 
  the Orb. She willingly tells the heroes 
  about Pinewood Shopping Mall in 
  Norwich, NY, because she doesn’t 
  believe the heroes have the slightest 
  chance of stopping Epoch. She knows 
  that the Orb could appear at any time, 
  and that the heroes are unlikely to 
  arrive before Epoch takes control.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  17
  ARMED GUARDS
  Aspects: Energy blaster rifles; 
  Coordinated fire, Military Train-
  ing
  Skilled (+2) at: Fire blaster rifles 
  and hand-to-hand combat.
  Bad (-2) at: Resisting illusions.
  Stress: 
   
   
   
   
   (10 guards)
  SCIENTISTS
  Aspects: True follower of Epoch; 
  All brains, no brawn
  Skilled (+2) at: Anything to do 
  with mathematics or physics.
  Bad (-2) at: Fighting.
  Stress: 
   
   (4 scientists)
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  18
  Scene 6: Race for the Orb
  The heroes now know where the 
  Orb of Time is supposed to appear, 
  and that it could show up at any time. 
  The characters must get to Norwich, 
  New York as quickly as possible. 
  If they grab a car, or fly, or are fast 
  enough to run, you can gloss over 
  the trip and take them straight to the 
  Pinewood Shopping Mall.
  When the characters reach the mall, 
  they have a choice of six public en-
  trances and one private entrance they 
  can use. They also do not know where 
  in the mall the Orb is supposed to 
  appear. Regardless of which entrance 
  they approach, Epoch’s henchmen are 
  waiting for them.
  Alabaster, Sir Real, and Wraith 
  have the simple intent of delaying 
  the heroes long enough for Epoch to 
  get control of the Orb of Time. If that 
  happens, they know it won’t matter 
  what the heroes do—Epoch will be 
  unstoppable. The three villains have 
  been working together for quite a 
  while and they know how to cover for 
  each other’s weaknesses.
  Tactics
  Alabaster: The lady known as 
  Alabaster has never been the most 
  subtle of combatants. She waits in the 
  back of a van near the mall entrance. 
  As soon as any of the heroes get close 
  to the van, Alabaster jumps out and 
  charges the hero who appears the 
  weakest physically. She attempts 
  to batter her opponent into uncon-
  sciousness before taking on the next 
  weakest-looking hero. She avoids 
  combat with other powerhouses, let-
  ting them fall prey to her companions.
  Sir Real: This psionicist uses his 
  illusion powers to create a strike 
  force of guards who appear similar 
  to Epoch’s minions at the warehouse. 
  The illusory guards fire their blasters 
  at the heroes, trying to force them 
  to take cover amongst the cars in 
  the parking lot. Once the heroes are 
  occupied with the illusory minions, 
  Sir Real animates the vehicles in the 
  parking lot and makes them attack 
  the heroes. Finally, he uses his shape-
  shift power to hide among other 
  innocent bystanders, or if necessary, 
  he takes the form of one of the heroes 
  in order to sow more confusion.
  Wraith: As a sorcerer, Wraith has a 
  wide array of abilities to use against 
  the heroes. First, he blocks the 
  entrance to the mall with his Force 
  Field spell. Then he uses his Energy 
  Blast and Snare spells to wreak havoc 
  among the heroes. During the combat, 
  Wraith prefers to remain Incorpore-
  al so that he doesn’t have to worry 
  about defending himself against 
  attacks.
  Aftermath
  Regardless of how long the char-
  acters take to deal with Epoch’s 
  henchmen, by the time they enter the 
  mall and discover the supervillain in 
  the food court, he has already taken 
  possession of the Orb of Time. Un-
  fortunately for him, he has had some 
  difficulty getting control over the ar-
  tifact. At this point, the heroes should 
  identify Epoch as Dr. Flannigan, and 
  should realize that his “kidnapping” 
  was faked in order to prevent anyone 
  from linking the scientist with the 
  supervillain.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  19
  ALABASTER
  High Concept: Muscle-bound stone 
  brawler
  Trouble: One thing at a time!
  Other Aspects: “It’s time for a pound-
  ing!”; Teamwork at its best; Epoch’s 
  lieutenant
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +0
  Flashy: +2
  Forceful: +3
  Quick: +2
  Sneaky: +1
  Stunts
  Fist-Meet-Face: Because “It’s time for a pounding,” 
  I get a +2 whenever I Forcefully attack an oppo-
  nent in hand-to-hand combat by punching them in 
  the face.
  Cover Each Other: Because we represent Team-
  work at its best, once per scene I can force an at-
  tack on one of my teammates to target me instead.
  Powers
  Stone Body: Alabaster’s body seems to be made of 
  white quartz, making her immune to damage from 
  physical weapons up to rifle calibers and similar 
  attacks.
  Super-Strength: Alabaster has enhanced strength. 
  She can pick up and throw the equivalent of a full-
  sized sedan.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  19
  
  20
  SIR REAL
  High Concept: Sly Psionicist
  Trouble: Relies too much on mental 
  powers
  Other Aspects: You don’t even know 
  what you’re looking at; Team coor-
  dination; Epoch’s lieutenant
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +2
  Forceful: +0
  Quick: +1
  Sneaky: +3
  Stunts
  One-of-the-Crowd: Because I’m a 
  Sly Psionicist, I get a +2 to Sneakily 
  create advantages to disguise myself 
  or otherwise hide my location.
  Hold My Beer: Because I understand 
  Team coordination, I get a +2 to 
  cleverly create advantages with my 
  illusions when assisting my team-
  mates in combat.
  Powers
  Illusions: Sir Real can create illusions in the minds 
  of those he can see. The illusions seem complete-
  ly real to those whose minds are affected, and it 
  can even cause stress and inflict consequences 
  (though the consequences are always mental 
  only).
  Animate Objects: Sir Real can cause objects to move 
  under their own power. It requires a fate point to 
  make something move that normally cannot (like 
  animating a knife to fly through the air at a target), 
  but does not require a fate point if the object is 
  capable of movement on its own (like making a car 
  drive around or a stove heat up).
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  21
  WRAITH
  High Concept: Ghost-Like Sorcerer
  Trouble: Must speak to cast spells
  Other Aspects: A spell for every occasion; I’m tired 
  of subtlety; Epoch’s lieutenant
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +3
  Flashy: +2
  Forceful: +2
  Quick: +0
  Sneaky: +1
  Stunts
  Improvise: Because I know A spell for every occa-
  sion, once per scene I can declare I have a spell 
  that lets me eliminate one situation aspect.
  Blast ‘Em!: Because I’m tired of subtlety, I get a +2 
  to Forcefully attack an opponent with a ranged 
  energy blast.
  Powers
  Sorcery: Wraith is able to cast spells by drawing on 
  arcane power. His primary offensive spells are En-
  ergy Blast (choosing the type of energy based on 
  the situation at hand), Snare (creating otherworld-
  ly tentacles that trap and hold his opponents), and 
  Force Field (shielding an area with a nearly-im-
  penetrable wall of force).
  Intangibility: Wraith can turn intangible at will. 
  While intangible, he cannot be affected by physical 
  attacks, but mental and magical attacks affect him
   normally.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  22
  Scene 7: Out of Time
  When the heroes arrive in the 
  mall’s food court, read or paraphrase 
  the following description to them.
  Even before you enter the food 
  court, you feel a vibration in your 
  bones like the bass turned up too 
  high on a powerful speaker system. 
  As you come around the corner, 
  you are forced to squint from the 
  brilliant light coming from the 
  center of the food court. Innocent 
  bystanders cower under the tables 
  and behind the counters of the fast 
  food vendors as a man who can only 
  be Epoch holds a glowing sphere in 
  front of a black rip in the fabric of 
  reality.
  The sphere is approximately one 
  foot in diameter, and appears to be 
  made of a silver metal that emits 
  the intense white light. As you take 
  in the scene, you all realize that 
  Epoch looks exactly like Dr. Flan-
  nigan – only instead of his typical 
  lab coat, the villain is now wearing 
  a black uniform with the picture of 
  a broken hourglass on his chest.
  In spite of the fact that Epoch 
  is holding the object of his quest, 
  the look on his face is anything but 
  happy. In fact, sweat rolls down his 
  contorted face as he seems to strug-
  gle with the Orb.
  At this point, heroes may attempt 
  to do any number of things. Some will 
  attack Epoch immediately, others will 
  attempt to help him control the Orb, 
  and some will try to get any innocent 
  bystanders out of harm’s way. Regard-
  less of what the heroes attempt to do, 
  their actions distract Epoch enough 
  so that he loses control of the Orb of 
  Time. Once that happens, all bets are 
  off.
  As soon as the Orb is no longer in a 
  struggle for control, its defenses kick 
  in and it decides to leave this moment 
  in time. Unfortunately, it takes along 
  a few passengers in its trip into the 
  future.
  Whenever Epoch is distracted, 
  whether as a result of the heroes’ ac-
  tions or simply when he notices them 
  on his action, read or paraphrase the 
  following to the players.
  Epoch tears his eyes away from 
  the Orb for an instant to look at 
  you. That instant is far too much 
  time. With a bright white flash, time 
  appears to stop. Everyone is frozen 
  in place, although individually your 
  minds are still aware of what is 
  happening to you.
  You hear a high-pitched whine 
  rise up out of nowhere and reality 
  begins to twist around the Orb. Your 
  surroundings dissolve into a morass 
  of color and light, but you remain 
  frozen in place. The whine builds 
  in volume as the colors and lights 
  begin to move faster and faster. 
  The visual and auditory effects are 
  nauseating, and you wish you could 
  close your eyes or cover your ears.
  Just as you think you can’t handle 
  it anymore, as you think you may 
  start losing your minds, Epoch ap-
  pears to become free of the frozen 
  time. Appearing to float in a twisted 
  nightmare landscape, Epoch looks 
  around for a moment before being 
  thrown backwards into the colors 
  and lights.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  23
  He screams, but the sound is 
  quickly drowned out by the whine.
  An instant later, the Orb is also 
  thrust into the color and lights. It 
  disappears just as Epoch did.
  One more instant passes, and 
  everything stops once again. The 
  sudden absence of sound is like a 
  thunderclap, and it takes your eyes 
  a few seconds to adjust to a reality 
  you can understand.
  You are all lying on the ground 
  in what appears to be the burnt 
  out ruins of the shopping mall food 
  court. No one appears to be injured 
  from your encounter with the Orb.
  Of course, with six large, futur-
  istic-looking, robotic men sur-
  rounding you, that may change in a 
  hurry…
  The PCs have been thrust ten years 
  into the future, and there’s no friendly 
  welcome.
  ISSUE 1: NEW YORK CITY
  
  24
  Summary
  At the end of last issue, the heroes 
  were thrown ten years into the future, 
  and found themselves in the ruins of 
  the same shopping mall with a group 
  of robotic soldiers surrounding them.
  The robots attempt to capture and 
  restrain the heroes, attacking at the 
  first sign of resistance. However, the 
  heroes should make short work of 
  their opponents. When the team de-
  feats their attackers, they notice that 
  there is no sign of Epoch or the Orb of 
  Time at their location.
  Upon leaving the mall, they see that 
  everything around them is in ruins. 
  In the far distance, the heroes can see 
  what looks like a mountain rising up 
  from the earth where Manhattan used 
  to be.
  If the heroes make their way back 
  toward New York City, they see that 
  the city is mostly in ruins as well. 
  However, Manhattan itself is now 
  appears to be a gigantic walled for-
  tress, protected by a powerful force 
  field, automated blaster cannons, and 
  armed hoverships.
  The heroes soon stumble upon a 
  small convoy of vehicles trying to 
  escape an attack by the same type of 
  robots that the heroes encountered in 
  the shopping mall. The targets of the 
  soldiers’ attack are a group of chil-
  dren being protected by two adults. If 
  the heroes are visible, the adults call 
  for help.
  Assuming the heroes help the 
  group against the robots, the leader 
  of the convoy, Brian Walsh, tells the 
  heroes that he knows of a safe place 
  to hide from further attacks.
  Scene 1: Where Are We?
  It appears that the shopping mall 
  has been the site of a pitched battle at 
  some point in the past. The roof is en-
  tirely gone, and many walls have been 
  blasted apart, leaving only scattered 
  cover.
  The food court where the heroes 
  caught up with Epoch was once sur-
  rounded by glass walls. Now, it is little 
  more than a large open space filled 
  with rubble.
  When the heroes arrive, the ten 
  robotic soldiers are already sur-
  rounding the space, facing toward the 
  heroes. It is almost as if they were 
  expecting the PCs’ arrival.
  The robots aim their arm-mounted 
  blasters at the heroes, and one of the 
  robots orders them in a metallic voice 
  to “Halt and surrender!”
  If the heroes do surrender, proceed 
  to Scene 2B: Prisoners.
  If the heroes start asking questions 
  or make any movement, the robots 
  start blasting.
  CYBERNAUT SOLDIERS
  Aspects: Robotic minions; Electric 
  blasters; Act as one mind
  Skilled (+2) at: Firing their blast-
  ers, taking cover, and hand-to-
  hand combat.
  Bad (-2) at: Dealing with magic.
  Stress: 
   
   
   
   
    
  (10 robot soldiers)
  If the heroes are defeated and cap-
  tured, proceed to Scene 2B: Prison-
  ers. Otherwise, proceed to Scene 2: A 
  Dark Landscape.
  ISSUE 2: STRANGE NEW WORLD
  
  25
  Scene 2: A Dark  
  Landscape
  Once the robots are defeated, the 
  heroes are free to do whatever they 
  wish. Some possibilities are listed 
  below.
  Getting Information from the Ro-
  bots: Technologically-minded heroes 
  could try to hack into the robot brains 
  and see what information they can 
  retrieve. This should be a difficult, but 
  not impossible, task that requires a 
  great roll or a helpful aspect or two—
  Overcome action against Fantastic 
  (+6) difficulty.
  If the hacking attempt succeeds, 
  the hero should gain the following 
  information:
  • The robot “squad” shares pro-
  cessing power among them and 
  they are in constant communica-
  tion, thus improving their coordi-
  nation. Disrupting this communi-
  cation would hamper their ability 
  to coordinate their actions.
  • The robots are linked via satellite 
  to a central computer, which is 
  where they get their orders.
  • The robots are hunting for any 
  “powered beings” to capture 
  them and bring them back to the 
  detention center.
  • The robots have standing orders 
  to kill any humans they find who 
  show no signs of superpowers or 
  other special abilities.
  Attempting to hack into the central 
  computer is nearly impossible—Over-
  come action against Legendary (+8) 
  difficulty. If successful, the PCs may 
  determine the location of the central 
  computer in the middle of Manhattan 
  and discover that the computer pro-
  gram is vastly more advanced than 
  anything that existed ten years ago.
  Any successful attempt to gain ac-
  cess to the central computer is imme-
  diately detected, and the connection 
  is cut off less than a second later.
  Exploring the Area: If the he-
  roes leave the ruins of the mall and 
  explore the surrounding suburb, 
  they find that most of the homes are 
  completely destroyed, and there are 
  many bones scattered around. There 
  is no sign of any living creature. The 
  occasional tracks to be found in the 
  dust and dirt are solely those of the 
  robotic soldiers.
  Monitoring Transmissions: There 
  are no radio or television signals, no 
  cellular networks, no wifi networks, 
  and no power sources. Every few 
  minutes, a short burst of encrypted 
  communications hits the area of the 
  mall (where the remains of the robots 
  are located). If any hero manages to 
  intercept and decrypt the signal, they 
  discover it is an inquiry of status and 
  an order to report on the results of 
  the battle with the “powered beings.”
  Heading for New York: It is obvi-
  ous that this area outside of the city 
  proper is nothing but a wasteland. 
  The only signs of life seem to be in the 
  direction of Manhattan. Regardless 
  of what direction the heroes go, they 
  stumble upon the caravan and have a 
  chance to rescue the people and make 
  some allies.
  ISSUE 2: STRANGE NEW WORLD
  
  26
  Scene 3: A Cry for Help
  As the PCs travel, whether it is 
  toward or away from New York City, 
  they soon hear the sounds of vehicles 
  and blaster fire in what seems to be 
  some kind of running battle. Assum-
  ing they don’t hide—they’re supposed 
  to be heroes, after all—they soon 
  manage to get a view of the fight.
  Two jeeps are speeding in the gen-
  eral direction of the heroes, pursued 
  by two pairs of robotic soldiers on 
  vehicles that resemble hovering mo-
  torcycles, and a ground transport that 
  appears to hold four more robotic 
  soldiers.
  In each jeep, the heroes can make 
  out a human figure hanging out the 
  passenger window and firing a blast-
  er rifle back at the soldiers.
  The PCs have a single turn before 
  the vehicles will reach them. Allow 
  them to make whatever preparations 
  they can—perhaps creating advantag-
  es or otherwise getting ready to help 
  the humans against the robots.
  However, just before the jeeps 
  reach the PCs, a blast from one of the 
  hovercycles hits the back wheel of the 
  lead jeep and blasts it off. The vehicle 
  barely manages to stay upright but 
  comes to a shuddering halt, obviously 
  no longer able to drive over the rough 
  ground.
  If the PCs are standing in the open 
  and visible to onlookers, the driver of 
  the damaged jeep sees the heroes and 
  yells out “Help us! We’ve got children 
  in here!”
  Assuming the PCs jump into the 
  fray, the robotic soldiers rapidly 
  adjust their tactics to take on any new 
  combatants. During the fight, the sec-
  ond jeep skids to a halt and the two 
  adults in that vehicle also lend their 
  blasters to fighting off the soldiers. To 
  represent this additional firepower, 
  the heroes get one free tag on the 
  aspect Blaster fire each round. The 
  robotic soldiers can make an Over-
  come roll against Good (+3) difficulty 
  to remove this aspect (represented by 
  them killing a couple of the adults and 
  driving the others into cover).
  CYBERNAUT SOLDIERS
  Aspects: Robotic minions; Electric 
  blasters; Act as one mind
  Skilled (+2) at: Firing their blast-
  ers, taking cover, and hand-to-
  hand combat.
  Bad (-2) at: Dealing with magic.
  Stress: 
   
   (4 robot soldiers)
  CYBERNAUT HOVERCYCLES
  Aspects: Flying hovercycles; 
  Electric blasters; Coordinated 
  attacks
  Skilled (+2) at: Flying evasive ma-
  neuvers, blasting targets.
  Bad (-2) at: Dealing with magic.
  Stress: 
   
   
   
   (2 hovercycles)
  If the heroes manage to destroy 
  the robots, the leader of the convoy, 
  Brian Walsh, approaches the heroes 
  and thanks them for their assistance. 
  He asks the PCs if they have a secure 
  location nearby, and assuming they 
  answer in the negative, he tells them 
  they are welcome to accompany him 
  to a secret facility that is not far from 
  here.
  ISSUE 2: STRANGE NEW WORLD
  
  27
  There are three other adult humans 
  in the jeeps (if no one has been killed 
  by the robotic soldiers) and five chil-
  dren. Brian tells the heroes that he 
  will explain everything once they are 
  safely hidden from the robot patrols.
  ISSUE 2: STRANGE NEW WORLD
  
  28
  Summary
  The heroes have rescued someone 
  who can tell them what is going on. 
  But first, they need to get to a safe 
  location to talk.
  Brian Walsh leads the heroes to 
  an abandoned construction site in 
  the middle of what used to be an 
  industrial area. Unfortunately, four 
  super-powered members of the Re-
  sistance mistake the heroes for spies, 
  and launch a surprise attack on the 
  PCs.
  Once the battle has gone a couple 
  of turns, Brian Walsh manages to con-
  vince the Resistance supers to stop 
  fighting. They stand down and apolo-
  gize to the heroes for their actions.
  The heroes are led into the bunker 
  to meet Katana, the current leader of 
  the Resistance. She tells them about 
  what happened over the last ten years 
  and their efforts to resist Cybernaut 
  and his forces.
  Katana also tells the PCs that the 
  true leader of the Resistance, Blood-
  stone, was recently captured by the 
  robot soldiers and has been taken 
  to a detention facility in the ruins of 
  Philidelpha. She asks the PCs for their 
  help in rescuing their leader.
  Scene 1: Ambush!
  The trip to the hidden bunker takes 
  only fifteen minutes. The “facility” is 
  an abandoned construction site in 
  an industrial area. Destroyed ware-
  houses and factories litter the ground 
  everywhere. Brian parks the remain-
  ing jeep under cover in the rubble of 
  a side building and, ushering the chil-
  dren ahead of him, leads the heroes 
  down into the construction area.
  However, as soon as the PCs set foot 
  on the ramp leading down toward the 
  foundation below, they are attacked 
  by four super-powered beings.
  Basilisk, Ogre, Stinger, and Black-
  jack work for the Resistance and are 
  tasked with protecting the bunker 
  from all enemies. They misunder-
  stand the arrival of the heroes, think-
  ing that the PCs are forcing Brian 
  Walsh to show them the location of 
  the bunker, and so they come to his 
  “rescue.”
  Basilisk
  Basilisk (aka Markos Metaxas), is 
  a thin man in his late twenties, with 
  dark hair and a moderately handsome 
  face. However, because his powers 
  are always on, few can look at him 
  directly without experience vertigo 
  and nausea. As a result, he usually 
  wears sunglasses to hide his eyes 
  from onlookers. Basilisk is secretly in 
  love with Stinger, but has never ad-
  mitted this to her because he is afraid 
  of being rejected.  He is deeply loyal 
  to his teammates and would never do 
  anything to harm any of them.
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  
  29
  BASILISK
  High Concept: Gaze-Wielding Mutant
  Trouble: Can’t turn off my powers
  Other Aspects: In love with Stinger; Feeling  
  queasy?; I’d give my life to protect my friends
  Careful: +3
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +1
  Forceful: +0
  Quick: +1
  Sneaky: +2
  Stunts
  Guardian Angel: Because I’m In love with Stinger, 
  I get a +2 whenever I Cleverly create advantages 
  design to protect her from harm.
  Look Me in the Eyes: Because I’m a Gaze-Wielding 
  Mutant, I get a +2 whenever I Carefully attack 
  with my gaze powers in combat.
  Powers
  Gaze Abilities: Anyone who meets the gaze of Basi-
  lisk experiences severe vertigo, making it nearly
   impossible for them to 
  move without becoming 
  violently ill. If he stares at a 
  target and they manage to 
  avoid making eye contact, 
  he can still give them “bad 
  luck” and make it more 
  likely they will fail at what-
  ever they are attempting 
  to do.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  29
  
  30
  OGRE
  High Concept: Oversized Brute
  Trouble: Child-like intelligence
  Other Aspects: Destructive Temper Tantrums; 
  Charging smash; Great leap
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +1
  Flashy: +2
  Forceful: +3
  Quick: +2
  Sneaky: +0
  Stunts
  It’s Your Fault: Because I have Destructive temper 
  tantrums, I get a +2 to Forcefully attack whenev-
  er I have an aspect related to me being angry or 
  upset.
  Here I Come: Because I can make a Charging 
  smash, once per scene on a successful Forceful 
  attack, I can also push my target from our current 
  zone to any zone up to two zones away, smashing 
  through any barrier of Good (+2) strength or less.
  Powers
  Super-Strength: Ogre is super-humanly strong, able 
  to pick up and throw airliners and leap a mile at a 
  time.
  Large Size: Ogre is permanently enlarged to nearly 
  9 feet in height, with corresponding weight.
  Durability: Ogre is immune to anything less power-
  ful than a tank shell.
  Stress: 
   
   
  Ogre (aka 
  Thanh Nguyen) 
  was a construc-
  tion worker in his 
  mid-thirties when 
  a battle between 
  super-powered 
  individuals in the 
  sky over New York 
  caused a strange 
  energy backlash 
  that washed over 
  his body. He fell into 
  a coma, and during 
  the next twenty-four 
  hours his body 
  transformed into the 
  hulking monstrosity 
  it is now. Ogre’s head 
  is now misshapen, 
  his features twisted, 
  and his intelligence 
  has regressed  to 
  that of a six-year-
  old child. He does 
  occasionally expe-
  rience moments of 
  lucidity, and it was 
  during one of these 
  moments he admit-
  ted that is aware of 
  what happens when 
  he is not in control of 
  his mental faculties. 
  He asked to be used 
  as a soldier for the 
  Resistance, as he 
  understands how 
  close humanity is to 
  extinction under the 
  rule of Cybernaut.
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  
  31
  STINGER
  High Concept: Mistress of the Perfect Aim
  Trouble: Shy and reserved
  Other Aspects: My honor is my life; Rain of 
  blades; Quiet solitude
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +0
  Forceful: +1
  Quick: +3
  Sneaky: +2
  Stunts
  Bullseye: Because I am the Mistress of the 
  Perfect Aim, I get a +2 when I Quickly 
  throw my summoned blades at a target.
  Blur of Steel: Because I can summon a Rain 
  of blades, once per scene I can Quickly 
  attack everyone in a zone with by thrown 
  weapons.
  Powers
  Summon Blades: Stinger can summon an infinite 
  number of throwing blades into her hands. The 
  blades only last for a few seconds—long enough to 
  be thrown and inflict damage—before dissolving 
  into mist. If she holds a blade in her hand, it does 
  not dissolve while it is in her grip, allowing her 
  to fight in close combat. The blades are supernat-
  urally sharp and can punch through an inch of 
  concrete or steel.
  Perfect Aim: Stinger has absolute perfect aim. If a 
  target is close enough to be hit by a thrown blade, 
  she can hit it. She always scores a perfect bullseye 
  when playing darts, for example.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  
  32
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  BLACKJACK
  High Concept: Ability-Draining Mentalist
  Trouble: Cocky and impulsive
  Other Aspects: Oh, you thought that would work?; 
  I’ll turn you off like a light; Star of the show
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +3
  Forceful: +0
  Quick: +1
  Sneaky: +2
  Stunts
  Weaker and Weaker: Because I’m an Ability-Drain-
  ing Mentalist, I get a +2 when I Create Advantages 
  as temporary aspects that prevent someone from 
  using one of their powers.
  Attention-Seeker: Because I’m the Star of the 
  show, once per scene I can Flashily create a Dis-
  tracted aspect that I can apply to any target that is 
  not currently focused on me.
  Powers
  Drain: Blackjack can 
  drain abilities from 
  other super-powered 
  individuals. He must 
  touch the target to use 
  this power. He can make 
  someone blind or deaf, 
  disable one of the tar-
  get’s powers, or reduce 
  one of the target’s Ap-
  proaches by 2 points.
  Stress: 
   
   
  
  33
  Stinger (aka Sayaka Nakajima) is 
  a small, Japanese woman who was 
  trained as a child in a mystical martial 
  art form that is unknown anywhere 
  else in the world. She has almost no 
  memory of her childhood, nor does 
  she remember who taught her the 
  skills she now has. As a result of her 
  shyness, she fights almost silently, 
  only speaking to call out warnings to 
  her comrades. She is aware of Basi-
  lisk’s feelings for her, but she does not 
  feel the same way about him—not 
  because of his face, but because she 
  finds it difficult to feel close to any 
  other human being.
  Blackjack (aka Renato Hierro) is 
  a young man in his late teens who 
  thinks the world revolves around him. 
  He doesn’t see Cybernaut and the 
  robotic soldiers as real threats, and 
  he wants to hurry up and defeat them 
  so that the remaining people can wor-
  ship him as one of the true heroes of 
  the age. Consequently, he takes risks 
  in combat and sometimes endangers 
  the mission. Bloodstone has consid-
  ered pulling Blackjack from active 
  duty, but he needs every superhero he 
  can get to remain alive in this danger-
  ous world.
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  33
  Aftermath
  After the battle has gone two full 
  turns, Brian Walsh comes running 
  out—he quickly shepherded the chil-
  dren to safety—and yells for everyone 
  to stop fighting. Basilisk and Stinger 
  stop immediately and leap to prevent 
  Ogre from continuing his rampage. 
  Blackjack taunts the PCs a bit before 
  Brian orders him to stand down.
  If the PCs continue to attack, the 
  Resistance team defends them-
  selves—except for Ogre, who imme-
  diately starts to fight in earnest again. 
  Continuing the fight after Brian Walsh 
  yells for them to stop results in Kata-
  na not fully trusting the team (same 
  as if they lie to her—see below).
  Once the battle is over, the Resis-
  tance superheroes apologize to the 
  PCs for the ambush and explain that 
  they were trying to protect the bun-
  ker and all the innocent people inside.
  Brian Walsh tells them to get back 
  into their guard positions and then 
  leads the PCs to the bottom of the 
  foundation of what was once intend-
  ed to be a new building and into a 
  large concrete tunnel. When he reach-
  es the end, he hammers twice on a 
  metal door, which is opened immedi-
  ately. He then leads the PCs into the 
  underground bunker.
  
  34
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  Scene 2: An Explanation 
  at Last
  As the PCs look around, it becomes 
  clear to them that the bunker is a 
  series of underground tunnels that 
  once connected the construction site 
  to two other buildings. The tunnels 
  were originally intended as conduits 
  for wiring and other systems between 
  the buildings, but now that the build-
  ings are destroyed, only the tunnels 
  remain intact.
  The PCs are introduced to a cos-
  tumed woman known as Katana. 
  Brian quickly tells her about how the 
  heroes rescued him and the children, 
  and she asks them how they came to 
  be in the area.
  If the heroes wish to make up a 
  story rather than tell her the truth, 
  whoever answers her questions must 
  make a successful Overcome action 
  against her Careful ability to detect 
  signs of lying. If the PCs lie to her and 
  she notices it, she decides not to trust 
  the heroes and sets them up to be 
  betrayed in the next Issue.
  However, if the PCs tell the true sto-
  ry of their arrival in this time, Katana 
  realizes the opportunity they present 
  for the resistance. She explains the 
  following to the PCs:
  • North America has been taken 
  over by an immensely-powerful 
  super-villain known as Cyber-
  naut. Katana gives the date that 
  he appeared in Times Square in 
  New York, and it is the same date 
  that the characters confronted 
  Epoch in the mall in Norwich.
  • Cybernaut seemed to increase 
  in power exponentially as he 
  slaughtered the innocent by-
  standers in the area. By the time 
  any super-powered heroes ar-
  rived, he was already unbeatable.
  • After murdering the heroes who 
  tried to stop him, he disappeared 
  for almost a month. When he 
  appeared again, he had built 
  an army of robotic soldiers. He 
  launched an attack on Washing-
  ton DC and within a few hours 
  had nearly leveled the city.
  • From there, his forces spread out 
  and began laying waste to the 
  United States, killing any humans 
  they could find.
  • Cybernaut’s robot soldiers have 
  engaged in wholesale slaughter of 
  every man, woman, and child on 
  the continent.
  • Brian Walsh and his Rangers trav-
  el around the country, searching 
  for survivors and bringing them 
  back to this base. So far, he has 
  found only a couple dozen peo-
  ple. These children he brought in 
  today are the first young people 
  he’s managed to find since he 
  began searching a year ago.
  • Super-powered individuals are 
  captured by the soldiers, when 
  possible, and brought to a deten-
  tion center in the ruins of Phila-
  delphia. This is what happened a 
  few days ago to the leader of the 
  Resistance, Bloodstone.
  • Bloodstone was had detected a 
  surge of some kind of power at 
  the site of the mall a few days 
  ago. He went there himself to 
  covertly observe the area, but 
  he was detected by the robotic 
  soldiers and captured.
  
  35
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  Katana explains that they are plan-
  ning to launch an attack on the deten-
  tion facility and rescue Bloodstone. 
  He is too important to the Resistance 
  to abandon, and there is also the con-
  cern that he might be tortured and 
  reveal information about the Resis-
  tance to the Cybernaut forces.
  If Katana feels that she can trust 
  the PCs, she asks them to help the Re-
  sistance rescue Bloodstone. She feels 
  that the power surge that came from 
  the mall a few days ago is likely relat-
  ed to the PCs own story, and therefore 
  Bloodstone may be able to provide 
  them with vital information.
  If Katana does not feel she can trust 
  the PCs, she plans to use them and 
  abandon them during Bloodstone’s 
  prison escape. She still asks them for 
  help, but their role in the rescue is go-
  ing to be very different. Also, they will 
  not be invited to the planning session, 
  and Katana will ensure that someone 
  is with them at all times so that they 
  do not have any privacy.
  
  36
  BLOODSTONE
  High Concept: Mutant Resistance Leader
  Trouble: Takes too many risks
  Other Aspects: Strategic thinker; Electromagnetic 
  powers; Serious and driven
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +3
  Forceful: +1
  Quick: +2
  Sneaky: +0
  Stunts
  Plan Ahead: Because I am a Strategic Thinker, I 
  get a +2 to Cleverly create advantages when not 
  already in combat.
  Rip it Apart: Because I have Electromagnetic 
  powers, I get a +2 to Flashily Overcome resistance 
  when I use my powers to break apart non-living 
  objects.
  Powers
  Electro-Magnetism: Bloodstone can 
  generated targeted EM beams or 
  wide pulses that disable electronic 
  equipment and devices. He can also 
  shoot EM beams from his hands that 
  cause damage to matter (both living 
  and inert) by disrupting intermolec-
  ular forces.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 3: UNDERGROUND
  
  37
  Summary
  Bloodstone, the leader of the 
  Resistance has been captured by the 
  Cybernaut forces. He may have infor-
  mation on how the heroes can return 
  to their own time, and the interim 
  leader, Katana, asks them to help 
  rescue Bloodstone from the detention 
  center in Philadelphia.
  If the heroes have earned Katana’s 
  trust, she asks them to effect the 
  actual rescue while the Resistance 
  causes a large distraction by engaging 
  the Cybernaut forces directly. The he-
  roes are given a way to infiltrate the 
  detention center and they make their 
  way toward the prison block where 
  Bloodstone is being held. However, 
  when they arrive at the prison block, 
  they discover that Bloodstone has 
  just been removed—he’s being taken 
  to a transport that will bring him to 
  Washington DC, where Cybernaut has 
  his primary base of operations. The 
  heroes must race through the deten-
  tion center and reach the hovercraft 
  bay before Bloodstone is taken out of 
  their grasp forever. Begin with Scene 
  1A: Detention.
  If Katana has decided that the 
  heroes are not trustworthy, she gives 
  them the wrong target—she tells 
  them that they believe Bloodstone is 
  being held at a location that is actu-
  ally a military base for the Cybernaut 
  army. She diverts Basilisk, Ogre, 
  Stinger, and Blackjack to actually 
  rescue to Bloodstone while the PCs, 
  unbeknownst to them, act as the 
  diversion. The PCs are dropped just 
  outside the base and given instruc-
  tions how to get inside. However, 
  once on the grounds of the base, the 
  entire facility goes into high alert and 
  Cybernaut soldiers begin searching 
  for “the intruders.” The heroes are 
  soon able to figure out that the rest of 
  the Resistance is not here with them, 
  and that they were used as diversion 
  and left to be captured. Begin with 
  Scene 1B: Diversion.
  Whether or not the heroes return 
  with Bloodstone to the Resistance 
  bunker, they find out that Epoch 
  appeared in the ruins of the mall 
  approximately two weeks before 
  the heroes arrived, and the Orb of 
  Time appeared only a couple of days 
  before. Both were captured and are 
  being held in the New York fortress. 
  The only way to get back to their own 
  time is to rescue Epoch and get the 
  Orb of Time, and have him take them 
  back so that they can stop Cybernaut 
  when he first appears.
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  38
  Scene 1A: Detention
  Use this scene if Katana trusts the 
  heroes.
  Katana reveals that the Resistance 
  managed to capture one of the hov-
  er-vehicle transports. They’ve figured 
  out a way to temporarily “spoof” the 
  ID system to allow them to get close 
  to the detention center. The plan is 
  for the PCs to be dropped off at a 
  tunnel that runs under the facility, 
  and then the rest of the super-pow-
  ered individuals in the hover-vehicle 
  will fly around to the main entrance 
  and launch a full-scale attack on the 
  security forces.
  Once the PCs are dropped off, they 
  are able to make their way inside us-
  ing an old subway tunnel that has not 
  been fully blocked off. They must use 
  stealth to reach the specific prison 
  block where Bloodstone is being kept.
  The trip through the detention 
  center should be tense, but the GM 
  is encouraged to let the PCs succeed 
  at any reasonable efforts to remain 
  hidden from the Cybernaut soldiers.
  When the heroes reach the prison 
  block, it is likely that they will need to 
  fight their way in. However, it’s pos-
  sible one or more heroes may have a 
  way of gaining access without alerting 
  the guards (such as the ability to turn 
  intangible or something similar). Use 
  the standard Cybernaut Soldier stats 
  for the guards in the prison block, and 
  assume there are about ten guards 
  stationed in the area.
  Bloodstone was the only prisoner 
  in this section of the detention cen-
  ter—all the other cells were empty. 
  What the PCs don’t realize until they 
  reach the prison block is that Blood-
  stone has already been moved.
  If the PCs manage to gain access to 
  the computer systems in the prison 
  block—which would likely require 
  eliminating the Cybernaut guards—
  they can determine that Bloodstone is 
  being transferred to a transport that 
  will take him to Washington DC and a 
  (likely final) meeting with Cybernaut 
  himself.
  If the PCs do not have a team 
  member who can access the com-
  puter system, after they realize that 
  Bloodstone is not in the prison block, 
  Katana contacts them on their wire-
  less communications and tells them 
  that one of her Resistance members 
  has managed to hack in and has 
  discovered what is about to happen to 
  Bloodstone.
  Either way, the PCs must race 
  through the detention center and 
  attempt to catch up to Bloodstone 
  before he can be loaded onto the 
  transport.
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  39
  Scene 2A: Playing  
  Catch-Up
  This scene follows Scene 1A: De-
  tention.
  If the PCs hope to intercept Blood-
  stone before he is taken away, they 
  can no longer remain hidden. De-
  pending on their actions in the prison 
  block, an alert may already have been 
  activated. Regardless, they are now in 
  a race and every moment counts.
  This should be run as a challenge, 
  as the PCs cannot take the time to 
  fight off the robotic guard patrols 
  they encounter or they will be too 
  late. For each step in the challenge, 
  only one PC should make the roll on 
  behalf of the entire team.
  There are three steps in the chal-
  lenge:
  1) Figure out the best/fastest 
  route to the hover-vehicle bay: 
  The obvious approach for this is 
  Clever, but Quick could also be 
  justified (though I would suggest 
  a one-level increase in difficulty). 
  Other approaches would require 
  some really good explanation by 
  the player. Suggested difficulty is 
  Fair (+2).
  2) Get past a guard station: The 
  route takes the heroes right 
  through a guard station. The 
  station consists of waist-high 
  barriers that can be used as cover 
  and is situated at a four-way junc-
  tion where two hallways cross. A 
  group of robot guards waits here 
  and attempts to stop the PCs. 
  There is no best approach here—
  each player should come up with 
  a way to get past the station and 
  use the approach that matches 
  their description of how they are 
  going to do it. Suggested difficulty 
  is Great (+4).
  3) Get into the hangar bay before 
  the blast doors close: The robot 
  guards attempt to close the blast 
  doors, which are nearly impossi-
  ble to break through—Legendary 
  (+8) difficulty. The PCs need to 
  be inside the hangar before the 
  doors close. Quick is the best ap-
  proach, though creative solutions 
  should not be dismissed. Suggest-
  ed difficulty is Fair (+2).
  If the PCs manage to succeed at 
  all three steps in the challenge, then 
  they arrive in the hanger before 
  Bloodstone has been loaded onto the 
  transport.
  If the PCs succeed at two out of 
  the three steps, then they arrive to 
  find the blast doors already closed. 
  Breaking through the doors, as noted 
  above, requires beating a Legendary 
  (+8) difficulty. However, the PCs may 
  come up with other options, such as 
  hacking into the building security sys-
  tem. Each should be considered on its 
  own, but the difficulty should not be 
  reduced to less than Great (+4). In the 
  first round as they arrive at the door, 
  Bloodstone is being carried across the 
  hangar to the transport. In the second 
  round, Bloodstone is loaded aboard 
  the transport. In the third round, the 
  transport powers up and the guards 
  prepare to leave. And in the fourth 
  round, the transport takes off, rapidly 
  gaining altitude and speed.
  If the PCs succeed at only one of 
  the three steps of the challenge, then 
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  40
  Bloodstone is already on the transport and it is about 
  to power up. The PCs only have two rounds to get past 
  the doors at this point.
  If the PCs don’t succeed at any of the steps of the 
  challenge, then the transport is gone by the time they 
  arrive at the hangar. If this occurs, then they have 
  failed to rescue to Bloodstone.
  Flying Heroes
  PCs who possess the ability to fly may attempt to 
  give chase if they arrive after the transport takes 
  off. The transport flies at Superb (+5) speed and as-
  cends to about 40,000 feet, higher than altitude limit 
  of commercial airliners. Heroes will need powers 
  that allow them to breathe at that height if they wish 
  to chase the hovercraft.
  If one or more PCs do manage to catch up to the 
  hovercraft, they still have to break in and subdue the 
  six robotic guards inside. Use the stats for the Robot 
  Soldiers earlier in this adventure. The difficulty of 
  breaking through the armored hull or forcing open a 
  door is Great (+4).
  Assuming the PCs are successful in their rescue 
  attempt, they can escape using the same hovercraft 
  that was going to transport Bloodstone, or any other 
  option that their powers allow them to use. Once 
  they have Bloodstone in their possession, escaping 
  from the detention center should be a simple mat-
  ter—don’t drag it out unless the players want to play 
  out each moment of their retreat.
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  41
  Scene 1B: Diversion
  Katana has decided the PCs cannot 
  be trusted, and she worries that they 
  are spies for Cybernaut. She tells the 
  PCs that her intelligence indicates 
  that Bloodstone is being held at a 
  military facility on the outskirts of 
  Philadelphia. Again, she asks the PCs 
  to break into the facility and gives 
  them a false location inside the build-
  ing where Bloodstone is supposedly 
  being held. She figures if the PCs are 
  agents of Cybernaut, the base will 
  ready for their arrival with the expec-
  tation that the Resistance believes 
  Bloodstone is being held there.
  If she’s wrong about the PCs—well, 
  in order to rescue Bloodstone, she’s 
  willing to make necessary sacrifices, 
  and she’ll worry about that later.
  When the PCs are dropped off out-
  side the base, they find an old subway 
  tunnel that leads into the facility (yes, 
  just like at the detention center).
  The trip through the military base 
  should be tense, but the GM is encour-
  aged to let the PCs succeed at any 
  reasonable efforts to remain hidden 
  from the Cybernaut soldiers until 
  they reach their target.
  However, what they find when they 
  arrive at the location they were given 
  is that this area is a “barracks”—it is 
  filled with hundreds of robot soldiers 
  standing at attention and waiting for 
  new orders. And unless the PCs are 
  otherwise undetectable, the soldiers 
  activate and begin to attempt to cap-
  ture the heroes.
  It is important to note that if the 
  heroes choose to fight, they will 
  eventually be overwhelmed. While 
  the individual robot soldiers are not 
  much of a challenge, they coordinate 
  their attacks with near perfect timing 
  and accuracy. Further, the military 
  base is equipped with more pow-
  erful weaponry that can harm even 
  the toughest heroes. And finally, the 
  soldiers can also rush the PCs and 
  tackle them to the ground, piling on 
  more and more soldiers until even a 
  hero with super-strength is unable to 
  break free.
  Therefore, the GM should make 
  it clear to the heroes that this is an 
  overwhelming force, and if they stay 
  and fight they will be captured. Rath-
  er than play out a battle that cannot 
  be won, the GM should offer each PC 
  two fate points to allow themselves to 
  be captured by the robot soldiers. Go 
  to Scene 2B: Prisoners.
  If the players decline the fate point 
  reward and decide that they do not 
  want their PCs to be captured, then 
  they must try to escape.
  In order to keep the escape attempt 
  simple and allow the game to keep 
  moving, this should be run as a chal-
  lenge. The best way for the heroes to 
  escape is to get back to the subway 
  tunnel and use that to travel away 
  from the base underground so that 
  flying patrols cannot find them.
  In each challenge, only one hero 
  needs to succeed at the step for the 
  entire team. The other heroes can 
  support that hero with created ad-
  vantages. There are five steps to the 
  challenge:
  1) Getting out of the ambush: The 
  PCs need to get out of the imme-
  diate area so that the strength 
  of the full force cannot be easily 
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  41
  
  42
  brought to bear against them. The 
  Approach should be determined 
  by what the players narrate their 
  heroes are attempting to do. The 
  key is that they retreat from the 
  barracks and the hundreds of 
  soldiers facing them. As they are 
  not fully surrounded when the 
  soldiers activate, the difficulty of 
  this step should be Mediocre (+0)
  2) Outrace the pursuing soldiers: 
  The robot soldiers will immedi-
  ately give chase, of course. The 
  heroes can run away from them, 
  block the passageway so that the 
  soldiers cannot follow, or any 
  other plan that stops the imme-
  diate pursuit. In this step, simply 
  hiding will not work as the 
  soldiers are still within detection 
  range of the heroes. They must 
  first get some distance before 
  they can hide, disguise them-
  selves, or do something of that 
  nature. The difficulty of this step 
  is Fair (+2).
  3) Find their way back to the 
  staircase leading down under-
  ground: The base is a maze of 
  twisting and crisscrossing corri-
  dors. The heroes must find their 
  way back to their starting point. 
  The Clever approach seems the 
  most appropriate, but of course 
  the players may use their powers 
  in unexpected ways and the GM 
  should remain flexible on how 
  they approach this challenge. The 
  difficulty of this step is Fair (+2).
  4)	Get	past	the	final	robots: The 
  robot soldiers figure out where 
  the heroes must be going, and 
  send the closest units to inter-
  cept. These happen to be a pair 
  of heavy-duty Class V robots that 
  carry powerful weaponry and 
  strong armor. The robots position 
  themselves at the entrance to the 
  stairwell that leads back down to 
  the subway tunnels below, mak-
  ing it nearly impossible to sneak 
  by them or otherwise past with-
  out being detected. As always, let 
  the players narrate their actions 
  and use the most appropriate 
  Approach based on how they 
  describe what they are doing. 
  Because of the extra weaponry, 
  heavy armor, and enhanced sen-
  sor suites, the difficulty of getting 
  past these soldiers is Great (+4).
  5) Get out of the nearby tunnels 
  before they collapse: When the 
  PCs get down into the subway 
  tunnels, the robot soldiers decide 
  to bomb the area and bring the 
  tunnels down on their heads. The 
  heroes hear the bombing start 
  and it is obvious what the robots 
  are trying to do. They must race 
  through the tunnels and get out 
  of the area before everything 
  comes crashing down. The diffi-
  culty of this step is Fair (+2).
  What Now?
  The PCs will likely feel that Katana 
  betrayed them, and rightly so. They 
  still have a communicator and can 
  contact her if they choose. Once Ka-
  tana discovers that the heroes were 
  nearly killed at the base, she realizes 
  they were not spies for Cybernaut 
  after all. She apologizes for her deci-
  sion, but she tells the PCs that their 
  behavior was not trustworthy and 
  she simply couldn’t take the chance 
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  43
  that they were working against the 
  Resistance. Bloodstone (who was 
  successfully rescued) comes on the 
  communicator and speaks to the PCs, 
  and the discussion can be similar to 
  that in Scene 3: Rescue Who? This 
  will give the PCs the information they 
  need to return to their own time.
  If the PCs do not attempt to con-
  tact Katana, she contacts them after 
  the bombing stops (she had some-
  one watching the base who saw the 
  bombing occur).
  However, the PCs may decide that 
  Katana (and perhaps the entire Resis-
  tance) is not trustworthy and destroy 
  or throw away the communicator as 
  a precaution. If they take this action, 
  then they might be at a loss on what 
  to do next with no allies and no clear 
  plan on how to get home.
  The key pieces of information that 
  the heroes need to have are a) Epoch 
  was captured at the mall a few weeks 
  ago, b) a “glowing orb of energy” was 
  recovered from the mall only a few 
  days ago, and c) both Epoch and the 
  orb are being held at Cybernaut’s 
  main fortress in Washington DC.
  Getting this information to the 
  heroes can be done in a few different 
  ways:
  Heroes with technology-based 
  abilities may be able to hack into the 
  local base communications and find 
  out what is going on now that they 
  escaped. If so, the GM should set up a 
  fairly easy challenge to discover the 
  information.
  The PCs may encounter the mem-
  ber of the Resistance who was watch-
  ing the base and reporting to Katana. 
  This person can tell the heroes about 
  why Katana made the decision she 
  did, and connect them with her and 
  Bloodstone via a communicator.
  Any hero with any kind of precog-
  nition sees a vision of the heroes, Ep-
  och, and the Orb of Time, with Epoch 
  agreeing to help them get home to 
  stop Cybernaut.
  Since the heroes know that Cyber-
  naut is in Washington DC, they could 
  decide to travel there. Once in the 
  area, the GM could have them find a 
  few survivors in the ruins of the city 
  who have managed to hack into the 
  security systems and know about 
  Epoch and “the glowing orb” but not 
  why they are important.
  Finally, the heroes may ask if any 
  other superhero from ten years 
  earlier was known to own a time 
  machine. If the GM does not have any 
  other good way to get them home, he 
  or she could mention that there was a 
  famous scientist-hero, Samual Streak, 
  who reportedly had a time machine. 
  He owned a huge building in New 
  York City, and the heroes might be 
  able to find the device in the vaults 
  under his building. Note that the GM 
  will have to make up suitable chal-
  lenges if the heroes decide to go this 
  route. But this will allow the heroes 
  to jump directly to Issue 6: Battle for 
  the Future.
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  44
  Scene 2B: Prisoners
  The PCs may get defeated and 
  captured by the robot soldiers at a 
  few different points in this adventure, 
  including in their initial battle at the 
  mall in Issue 2: Strange New World, 
  during the attempted rescue of Blood-
  stone in the detention center in Scene 
  1A: Detention or Scene 2A: Playing 
  Catch-Up in this Issue, or during their 
  infiltration of the base in Scene 1B: 
  Diversion in this Issue.
  If the PCs were captured before the 
  rescue of Bloodstone, they are fitted 
  with power-suppression restraints 
  and then taken to the detention 
  center and placed in separate cells in 
  the same prison block as the leader 
  of the Resistance. The GM should 
  provide a scene where they can have 
  a whispered conversion with Blood-
  stone, who is in a neighboring cell. If 
  they do not already know about the 
  Resistance, Bloodstone can provide 
  them with the same information that 
  Katana would have given them in 
  Issue 3: Underground.
  The PCs do not have any opportuni-
  ties for escape for a few days, but then 
  the robot guards come and tell them 
  that they are being transferred to the 
  Washington DC facility. Bloodstone 
  motions for the PCs to go along with 
  the soldiers and to wait to act. They 
  are marched to the hangar bay and 
  loaded aboard the hover-transport.
  If the PCs are captured during the 
  rescue of Bloodstone, they are loaded 
  onto the hovercraft along with Blood-
  stone.
  Once they are aboard, but before 
  they can be strapped into the re-
  straints, Bloodstone concentrates for 
  a moment, and any power-suppres-
  sion systems suddenly fail. He yells 
  “Now!” and starts fighting the robot 
  soldiers aboard the hover-transport.
  The heroes and Bloodstone should 
  be able to make short work of any 
  robot soldiers inside the transport. If 
  none of the heroes are pilots, Blood-
  stone can operate the hover-transport 
  and he flies them out of the detention 
  center.
  Bloodstone tells them about Epoch 
  and the strange orb that was taken 
  from the site of the mall, and that 
  both are at Cybernaut’s main fortress 
  in Washington DC. Once he hears the 
  PCs’ story, he suggests that they fly 
  directly to Washington, which the ro-
  bots will not expect. They can rescue 
  Epoch and get him to use the Orb of 
  Time to take the heroes back to the 
  same day they left, and perhaps they 
  can stop Snake Eyes before he gets 
  infected by the Cybernaut virus.
  CYBERNAUT SOLDIERS
  Aspects: Robotic minions; Electric 
  blasters; Act as one mind
  Skilled (+2) at: Firing their blast-
  ers, taking cover, and hand-to-
  hand combat.
  Bad (-2) at: Dealing with magic.
  Stress: 
   
   
   (6 robot soldiers)
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  45
  Scene 3: A Possible  
  Solution
  This scene takes place if the heroes 
  successfully rescue Bloodstone from 
  the detention center. Everyone re-
  turns to the underground bunker, and 
  Bloodstone is happily reunited with 
  his fellow Resistance members.
  But the celebration is short-lived 
  as he hears the PCs story. He imme-
  diately puts everything together and 
  explains about Epoch appearing at 
  the site of the mall about two weeks 
  earlier, and then the robot soldiers 
  recovering a strange glowing orb at 
  the same location only a couple of 
  days before.
  Since the villain Snake Eyes was in-
  fected by the Cybernaut virus on the 
  same day the Orb of Time appeared 
  at the mall in Norwich, it appears 
  that the time disturbances may have 
  opened a rift into this very future 
  so that Cybernaut could set these 
  events in motion and ensure that this 
  future came to pass. But if someone 
  could stop Snake Eyes from being 
  infected, then the disturbance would 
  pass without Cybernaut coming into 
  existence.
  If the PCs are worried about the 
  paradox of stopping Snake Eyes and 
  thus never coming into this very 
  future, the GM should remind the 
  heroes that anyone traveling through 
  time under the power of the Orb 
  of Time is immune to the effects of 
  paradox. The heroes are in the unique 
  position to stop this future from ever 
  coming to pass.
  Bloodstone points out, though, that 
  Epoch is only one who knows how to 
  use the Orb of Time. The heroes will 
  have to rescue him and convince him 
  to help them save the past and change 
  the future. However, Bloodstone 
  figures the Epoch has nothing to lose 
  at this point, so it’s probably worth a 
  shot.
  Again, it may be worth remind-
  ing the PCs that from what they 
  discovered about him, Epoch never 
  seemed to be “evil” but rather always 
  intended to be a benevolent dictator 
  in order to “fix” the problems in the 
  world. While certainly misguided and 
  perhaps narcissistic, he doesn’t hate 
  the world and would probably want 
  to prevent this terrible future from 
  coming to pass.
  So with the Resistance backing 
  them up, the heroes’ next step is to 
  head for Washington DC.
  ISSUE 4: FOLLOW THE LEADER
  
  46
  Summary
  In order to return to their own 
  time, the heroes need the help of Ep-
  och. They also need to get their hands 
  on the Orb of Time, which is being 
  kept in inside Cybernaut’s Washing-
  ton DC fortress.
  The Resistance launches a final 
  attack on the fortress, which gives 
  the heroes an edge in their attempt to 
  rescue Epoch. Once he realizes who 
  the heroes are, he enthusiastically 
  agrees to help them, as long as he 
  returns as well.
  The heroes find themselves in a 
  running battle as they head towards 
  the research facility in another part 
  of the fortress, and they can hear over 
  the communicator that the Resistance 
  superheroes are sacrificing them-
  selves in their fight against the robots. 
  When the heroes reach the chamber 
  holding the Orb of Time, they are 
  forced to fight the Orb’s super-pow-
  ered guardians: Fenris, Mercury, 
  Gargoyle, and Razorback.
  When Epoch takes control of the 
  Orb, he realizes that it has been dam-
  aged by the experiments done on it. 
  Regardless, he activates the Orb and 
  sweeps the heroes up into another 
  maelstrom. Unfortunately, while 
  the damaged Orb barely returns the 
  heroes to their own time, it disin-
  tegrates and sends Epoch spinning 
  away through time.
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  
  47
  Scene 1: Into the Breach
  The heroes are given plans that 
  show them a way to bypass the main 
  security systems as they infiltrate 
  the fortress. In the meantime, the 
  members of the Resistance take their 
  hovercraft and land right in the pri-
  mary hangar bay, launching an attack 
  that draws the attention of the robot 
  soldiers.
  The GM should run the infiltra-
  tion of the base as a challenge. Their 
  heroes’ goal is to reach the prison 
  cell where Epoch is being held. Only a 
  single hero needs to succeed at each 
  step in the challenge on behalf of the 
  entire team.
  There are three steps in this chal-
  lenge:
  1) Gain entry into the fortress: 
  While the heroes are given a 
  secret route into the fortress 
  that bypasses most of the secu-
  rity systems, they still need to 
  avoid certain areas. Sneaky and 
  Careful are the most appropriate 
  approaches, but creative use of 
  other Approaches may also work. 
  The difficulty for this step is Me-
  diocre (+0).
  2) Reach the prison cells: The 
  heroes have plans that give 
  them the best route through the 
  fortress, but there are still roving 
  patrols that must be avoided. 
  Again, Sneaky and Careful are 
  good Approaches, but if the team 
  decides to simply eliminate any 
  soldiers they encounter, the GM 
  might also choose to allow Force-
  ful to work. The difficulty for this 
  step is Fair (+2).
  3) Free Epoch: Once they reach the 
  actual cell block, the team needs 
  to get Epoch out of his cell. Clever 
  and Forceful are both good Ap-
  proaches for this. The difficulty 
  for this step is Mediocre (+0).
  Once Epoch is free, the heroes can 
  explain what is needed of him. He 
  readily agrees that this future is terri-
  ble and he will do whatever he can to 
  prevent it.
  The next step is to recover the Orb 
  of Time.
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  
  48
  Scene 2: The Orb  
  Guardians
  Getting down to the research sta-
  tion in the fortress is so similar to the 
  heroes’ trip to rescue Epoch that the 
  GM is encouraged to gloss over the 
  trip and not make it another Chal-
  lenge just for the sake of having more 
  dice rolls. The important part of this 
  scene is the battle against the su-
  per-powered villains who are tasked 
  with guarding the Orb of Time.
  Cybernaut hasn’t yet figured out 
  exactly what Orb is yet, but he does 
  have some theories. His scientists are 
  working on the problem, and Cyber-
  naut is taking extra precautions to 
  ensure he doesn’t lose it.
  The four beings who are tasked 
  with guarding the Orb—Fenris, Mer-
  cury, Gargoyle, and Razorback—
  were once super-villains, but now all 
  have been turned into cyborgs under 
  the control of Cybernaut. They retain 
  their superpowers, but Cybernaut 
  always knows exactly what they are 
  doing and can give them direct orders 
  even if he is not present.
  While Cybernaut generally prefers 
  to capture superpowered individuals, 
  in this case he has ordered the guards 
  to kill any unauthorized persons at-
  tempting to reach the Orb—he is not 
  taking any chances with this object.
  The scientists all cower and take 
  cover, and can be safely ignored 
  during the battle.
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  
  49
  FENRIS
  High Concept: Savage Werewolf
  Trouble: Mistakes Friends for Foes
  Other Aspects: Teeth and claws; Killer instinct; 
  Vulnerable to Silver
  Careful: +0
  Clever: +1
  Flashy: +2
  Forceful: +3
  Quick: +2
  Sneaky: +1
  Stunts
  Rip ‘Em Up: Because I have Teeth and claws, I get a 
  +2 when I Forcefully attack in close combat.
  Frenzied Attack: Because I am a Savage Werewolf, 
  once per scene I can attack everyone in the same 
  zone, including my own allies.
  Powers
  Werewolf: Fenris is able to change into a wolf-man 
  form that increases his mass, makes him resistant 
  (though not immune) to non-silver weapons, and 
  gives him razor-sharp teeth and claws. In this
  form, he is also superhumanly strong, able
  to flip over a normal sedan. He can 
  crouch down on all fours and lope at high 
  speed, approximately 40 MPH.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  49
  
  50
  MERCURY
  High Concept: Liquid Metal Man
  Trouble: Vulnerable to Sonic Attacks
  Other Aspects: Always adaptable; My 
  body is my weapon; Perfect mimicry
  Careful: +1
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +0
  Forceful: +1
  Quick: +3
  Sneaky: +2
  Stunts
  I’m You: Because I have Perfect mim-
  icry, I get a +2 when I Cleverly create 
  advantages by taking on the same 
  appearance as another person.
  Think Fast: Because I’m a Liquid 
  Metal Man, I get a +2 to Quickly 
  defend against hand-to-hand attacks 
  in combat.
  Powers
  Liquid Metal Form: Mercury’s body consists of a 
  malleable substance that can flow, reshape, and
  generally act as a liquid mass. This allows him to 
  form his limbs into simple weapons (e.g. large 
  blades), squeeze through any gaps that a liquid 
  could pass, and change his shape to mimic any-
  one he sees. As he can also change the color of his 
  body, he can form an exact duplicate of another 
  person, including their clothes (though he cannot 
  mimic their powers).
  Density Control: Mercury has very limited control 
  over the density of his body. He can harden his 
  substance to resist small arms fire, or let himself 
  go loose into a liquid form that is very hard to 
  hurt, except with cutting attacks.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  
  51
  GARGOYLE
  High Concept: Animated Granite Statue
  Trouble: Slow reactions
  Other Aspects: Winged flight; Frightening visage; 
  Buddies with Razorback
  Careful: +2
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +1
  Forceful: +3
  Quick: +0
  Sneaky: +1
  Stunts
  Stop and Drop: Because I have Winged flight, once 
  per scene I can fly up into the air and drop on an 
  opponent, automatically inflicting a minor conse-
  quence on my target.
  Didn’t Feel a Thing: Because I am an Animated 
  Granite Statue, I have Armor: 2 against any 
  non-energy physical attacks.
  Powers
  Granite Body: Gargoyle’s body is made from granite 
  and is very resistant to damage. He is also very 
  strong, able to pick up and throw a small (com-
  pact) car.
  Wings: Gargoyle can fly at 
  slow speeds, and hover in 
  place, due to his large stone 
  wings.
  Stress: 
   
   
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  
  52
  RAZORBACK
  High Concept: Mutant Cyborg Warrior
  Trouble: Systems glitch
  Other Aspects: Buzz-saw tail; Laser targeting 
  system; Looks out for Gargoyle
  Careful: +0
  Clever: +2
  Flashy: +3
  Forceful: +1
  Quick: +2
  Sneaky: +1
  Stunts
  Blast ‘Em: Because I’m a Mutant Cyborg Warrior, 
  once per scene I can attack all enemies in a single 
  zone with my energy blasters.
  The Old One-Two: Because I Look out for Gargoyle, 
  when I create a temporary aspect on a target, I can 
  pass a free use of that aspect over to Gargoyle.
  Powers
  Cybernetic Tail: Razorback has a metal tail with 
  a unbreakable spinning buzz-saw blade on the 
  end. He can control the movement of the tail and 
  strike over his head at targets in front of him (like 
  a scorpion).
  Cybernetic Systems: Razorback’s body is integrated 
  with cybernetic systems that give him a laser tar-
  geting sight, energy blasters mounted to his arms, 
  bionic legs that allow him to leap from one zone 
  to another, and resistant plates under his skin to 
  protect his vital organs.
  Stress: 
   
   
  The laboratory where the Orb of Time is being examined is a large, open space 
  with a great deal of computer equipment and a raised platform in the center of 
  the room where the Orb is held. The lab is three stories high, with raised walk-
  ways around the perimeter that look down over the main area.
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  
  53
  Scene 3: Getting Home
  Once the villains are defeated, the 
  only thing left to do is travel back 
  in time to the day they left so that 
  they can stop Snake Eyes before he 
  becomes Cybernaut.
  Epoch allows the heroes to take 
  whatever precautions they wish to 
  ensure that he doesn’t betray them, 
  as long as he has use of his arms and 
  hands, and full control of his own 
  mind. By this point, he is obviously 
  eager to return home and gives every 
  indication that he is aware of how 
  lucky he is that the PCs rescued him.
  Epoch takes the orb in his hands 
  and, if the heroes are not already 
  doing so, he tells them to ensure they 
  are all touching each other in an un-
  broken circle. He then tells the heroes 
  not to disturb his concentration, as 
  he will need every ounce of his will 
  to make the Orb do what he wants it 
  to do.
  He focuses all his attention on the 
  Orb and the object begins to glow 
  ever brighter, similar to what the 
  heroes saw when they first encoun-
  tered Epoch back in New York. Their 
  surroundings start to fade out, but 
  before they disappear completely, the 
  doors to the lab slide open a large sil-
  ver figure walks into the room—this 
  can only be Cybernaut. He reaches 
  out with his hand towards the heroes, 
  but the laboratory disappears and he 
  fails in his attempt to stop them from 
  leaving.
  The constantly shifting colors and 
  lights surround the heroes and once 
  more they find themselves unable to 
  move. The nauseating patterns con-
  tinue but this time the high, piercing 
  whine sounds different. There is a 
  low rumble underneath it. As they 
  watch, brilliant cracks appear in the 
  Orb of Time and it seems as if it is 
  pulling itself apart. Whatever experi-
  ments the Cybernaut scientists were 
  conducting on the Orb, they seem to 
  have damaged it.
  The heroes can see a look of pure 
  horror in the eyes of Epoch as the Orb 
  comes apart in his hands. There is a 
  brilliant flash of light once more, and 
  then everything goes dark.
  ISSUE 5: HOMEWARD BOUND
  53
  
  54
  Summary
  The heroes have—barely—man-
  aged to make it home. They arrive in a 
  subway tunnel under Manhattan only 
  a couple of minutes after they origi-
  nally confronted Epoch in the mall in 
  Norwich.
  Once they reach Times Square, they 
  must find Snake Eyes. But a rift opens 
  up in the sky above Manhattan, and a 
  bolt of strange energy strikes a man 
  before they can find him.
  Snakes Eyes has been infected by 
  the Cybernaut virus, and the PCs have 
  one chance to stop him.
  ISSUE 6: BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE
  
  55
  Scene 1: The Final Battle
  The PCs have appeared in the 
  subway tunnel just outside the 42nd 
  Street Station. They can hear a sub-
  way coming, so they must rush to the 
  platform before reaches them. It is 
  suggested that the GM allow the PCs 
  to reach the station just ahead of the 
  subway without bothering to roll—
  they’ll need to be at full strength to 
  stand against Cybernaut.
  It is also recommended that all 
  PCs get their full refresh of 
  fate points at this time. 
  Any minor conse-
  quences should also 
  be cleared when they 
  arrive.
  Once they reach 
  street level, they can 
  head for Times Square 
  and start looking for 
  Snake Eyes.
  However, before they can perform 
  any real search, a rift tears open in 
  the sky above Times Square. Strange 
  bolts of energy seemingly made of 
  computer code strike the ground as 
  civilians start to panic and flee from 
  the time/space rift. And then, one bolt 
  strikes a shifty-looking man and he 
  screams. Before the rift seals up and 
  disappears, the PCs see themselves 
  standing around Epoch and Orb of 
  Time on the other side of the rift. The 
  bolts of energy have come from the 
  hand of Cybernaut himself.
  The computer code seems to 
  play over Snake Eyes’ body as 
  he hunches over, and then 
  he straightens up and turns 
  to face the PCs, as if he is 
  already aware of their pres-
  ence. The Cybernaut virus 
  has taken hold, and the 
  PCs must stop him be-
  fore he becomes too 
  powerful to beat.
  ISSUE 6: BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE
  
  56
  CYBERNAUT
  High Concept: Cybernetic Supervillain from the Future
  Trouble: Inhuman Thought Patterns
  Other Aspects: Energy blasts; Vast intellect; Rapid Adaptability
  Careful: +2
  Clever: +4
  Flashy: +1
  Forceful: +3
  Quick: +3
  Sneaky: +2
  Stunts
  Targeting Computer: Because I have a Vast intellect, I get a +2 to Cleverly 
  create advantages in hand-to-hand combat.
  Armored Body: Because I am a Cybernetic Supervillain from the Future, I 
  have Armor: 3 against any physical attacks, including energy attacks.
  Fool Me Once: Because I have Rapid Adaptability, once per scene after I 
  have taken stress or a consequence from an unusual form of attack (e.g. 
  cosmic energy, magic, etc.), I gain a +2 to defend from that attack form for 
  the rest of the scene.
  Powers:
  Cybernetics: Cybernaut is a human infected with a computer virus, making 
  him a cybernetic being. His brain is a highly-advanced computer, allowing 
  him to think at amazing speed and giving him instantaneous access to all 
  human knowledge. His body is resistant to damage due to the virus turning 
  his skin into a metal alloy substance—he is completely immune to damage 
  equivalent to 21st century bullets. He is able to see in the entire spectrum 
  of light.
  Weaponry: Cybernaut can fire energy blasts from his hands. The form of 
  energy can be either light (laser) or plasma, and he can hit targets up to two 
  zones away.
  Stress:  
   
   
   
   
   
  ISSUE 6: BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE
  
  57
  Cybernaut will not concede the 
  fight—he knows this is his only 
  chance to gain a foothold in this time. 
  This is a tough conflict, and there’s a 
  chance that the heroes will fall before 
  Cybernaut. If the fight looks like it’s 
  going south, there are a couple of 
  options the GM may consider:
  • Have another, unaffiliated super-
  hero show up to help. This hero 
  should not be the one to beat 
  Cybernaut—instead, have the 
  hero focus on creating advantag-
  es for the PCs to use in their own 
  attacks on the cybervillain.
  • Alternately, a hero could show up 
  and provide support for the PCs 
  in the form of healing some or all 
  of their stress, which will allow 
  them to stay in the fight longer.
  • Another option is to have anoth-
  er hero show up just in time to 
  interpose themselves between 
  Cybernaut and a targeted PC, en-
  tirely negating one of Cybernaut’s 
  attacks. Ideally, this should take 
  out the helping hero and leave 
  the PC standing.
  • Have Cybernaut spend an entire 
  round not attacking as the virus 
  continues to transform his body 
  and mind. He will defend as nor-
  mal (or perhaps with a -1 penalty 
  to all actions, depending on how 
  much help the PCs need).
  The key with all of these options 
  is not to have the PCs overshadowed 
  by other superheroes, but to let them 
  take advantage of the help they are 
  being given by anyone else showing 
  up to the fight.
  Aftermath
  If Cybernaut is beaten, his body 
  rapidly consumes itself as the virus 
  burns itself out, and Snake Eyes does 
  not survive the process.
  The heroes are hailed as saviors 
  of the city by the witnesses and the 
  news organizations. However, at least 
  one person on the scene saw the 
  image of the heroes in the time/space 
  rift and starts a conspiracy website 
  declaring the heroes set the whole 
  thing up themselves.
  ISSUE 6: BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE
  57
  
  58
  Further Adventures
  Alternate Universe: While the PCs 
  appear to have prevented the dark 
  future from coming to pass, many 
  comic books have alternate universes 
  in which things turned out differently 
  from what occurred in the main title. 
  Cybernaut may now exist in an alter-
  nate future, and the PCs may end up 
  there again at some point. Or perhaps 
  Cybernaut tries to find his way back 
  to this universe and infect someone 
  else.
  Epoch: Though Epoch and the Orb 
  of Time appeared to both have been 
  destroyed, it’s possible Epoch sur-
  vived and was thrown out of the time 
  storm somewhere else in time and 
  space. Perhaps he found himself in 
  the past and has been quietly gaining 
  power all this time, ready to emerge 
  as a new villain. Or maybe he truly 
  repented his initial act that started 
  this entire adventure and shows up as 
  a much older man to warn the PCs of 
  a new impending threat.
  Epoch’s Henchpeople: Alabaster, 
  Sir Real, and Wraith most likely got 
  away after the heroes were swept 
  up in the time storm. They will likely 
  continue working together and may 
  show up as henchpeople for another 
  villain later on, or perhaps they sim-
  ply try to get rich themselves.
  Guardians of the Orb: The super-
  villains who were guarding the Orb of 
  Time for Cybernaut—Fenris, Mercury, 
  Gargoyle, Razorback—also exist in 
  the current time. Each one could be 
  used as the basis for another adven-
  ture, or they may work as a team 
  (considering Gargoyle and Razor-
  back were friends in the future). The 
  heroes could find themselves facing 
  younger versions of these villains.
  ISSUE 6: BATTLE FOR THE FUTURE
  
  59
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  15 COPYRIGHT NOTICE
  Open Game License v 1.0 Copyright 
  2000, Wizards of the Coast, Inc.
  Fate Core System and Fate Acceler-
  ated Edition © 2013 by Evil Hat Pro-
  ductions, LLC. Developed, authored, 
  and edited by Leonard Balsera, Brian 
  Engard, Jeremy Keller, Ryan Macklin, 
  Mike Olson, Clark Valentine, Aman-
  da Valentine, Fred Hicks, and Rob 
  Donoghue.
  This Vision of Darkness © 2017 by 
  Vanishing Goblin Inc. Developed and 
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  hereby designated as Product Iden-
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SOURCE: textdata/thevault/FATE (fudge) [multi]/This Vision Of Darkness.pdf