"Nemesis!"  Angelo's voice boomed enthusiastically.

The costumed hero threw the curtains wide as he strode out to the stage. His expression was carefully neutral but for a slight upturn at the corner of his mouth, a smirk awaiting its chance. He walked forward purposefully and came to a stop. his head slowly surveying the crowd as if searching for the next target of his particular brand of justice. Seemingly satisfied he assumed a wide stance and crossed his arms. His stern countenance faltered and a smile finally broke free, unable to keep a straight face at his obvious theatrics.

All around her the world moved on.  The crowd cheered, applauded.  Angelo let it draw out, giving Nemesis a knowing smile -- something akin to fatherly pride.  Finally, he raised his hands to assay the appreciation and start the bidding.

He never got the chance. 
  
Ophilia turned around abruptly, turning her back on the table of confused relatives. Danny stepped back as she broke his contact with her, a startled expression on his face. As soon as Nemesis filled her vision, the answer that she'd been seeking, hit her so hard that it knocked the wind out of her.  Her throat swelled with a painful ache, her heart pounded at a frightful pace, and she had to gasp for air.  It was Luke.

“Luke.”  The whisper of his name escaped her lips as, for the first time ever, she invaded the sanctity of his mind.  

Nemesis felt a strong almost disorienting flood of emotion, concern, fear, a wealth of feelings about him that he couldn’t begin to decipher, and amidst it all, the raw violation of his thoughts as his partner forced herself into his mind.  His smile slipped, turned into a frown as he tried to analyze the sudden wash of emotions not his own.

Phi stepped forward as she mentally reached out to Nemesis, overwhelmed with the need to get him out of the room.  {Luke!  You’re in danger!}  Her table was so close to the stage, that she was already in front of him by the time he’d finished processing her mental warning.  Nemesis focused intently on Ophilia, her bond allowing her to feel concern, anger and confusion in equal parts. He was angry at the mental intrusion but concern and confusion were his overriding guides.

Danny was reaching out for her. "Ophilia, no..." but whatever he was going to say was lost as she moved panther quick up onto the platform.

Nemesis crouched, and reached out a hand to pull her up. "Phi?"

Phi’s liquid brown eyes regarded Nemesis, not once turning to acknowledge the impeding doom that only she knew was a few heartbeats away.  She was still in his mind, and he could feel the deathly sober feeling from her as a stray memory filled her mind. 

....and somehow he knew that it would be the last. 

A panicked sob escaped Nemesis, an unconscious welling of emotions not all his own. He couldn't separate them, couldn't tell them apart.

How long was a thought?  It only took a heartbeat to experience it, fleeting and yet vivid in detail.  Somehow everything in no time at all.  

They were standing on the balcony of her apartment, and emotions were raw.  It was their first real argument and they were trying their best to mend things.  It was something she had said to him, that came crashing in on her now.  A hint of ironic amusement, if that was possible, shimmied around the thought, like now maybe he’ll believe me. 

‘My loyalty though, if ever it comes into question, will fall with you, on the side of the team.’

Beneath the goggles Nemesis' brows creased. He felt helpless. His body was tense, ready for action, but he had no idea what to do, no clues as to what danger posed such a threat.

From the back of the room came the piercing shriek of terror.  Simultaneously, all other sounds were deafened by the crack of a rifle.  Ophilia's thoughts were shredded.  It was a single shot, a .308 caliber armor piercing round meant to penetrate the vest of its primary target.  Suddenly in the path, Ophilia was pitched forward, preceded by a spray of crimson from center mass. 

Nemesis registered the impact of the bullet on his armor moments before Ophilia fell into his arms. He caught her reflexively, his mind barely registering what happened except for a cold numbness replacing the presence he'd felt moments ago. He turned slightly, lowering her to the floor even as his eyes scanned the crowd for the shooter. He noted the area or origin, noticed Vinny and one or two other men, a couple of women who hadn't yet fled. One was dark-haired, familiar...

Not his concern.

As the sounds of screams erupted, Mason cast a glance in that direction.  When the shot rang out, he instinctively dropped into a crouch. The alkaline scent of fresh blood and burnt gunpowder exploded in his nostrils.  His gaze followed the source to where Phi lay crumpled in Nemesis' arms. 

Nemesis turned his head again. "Jace! Danny! Someone...get up here!" He hopped Ophilia's prone form, putting his back to the crowd and his body between hers and further danger. He saw the dark stain spreading from her chest, the blood beginning to run from beneath her body. A gloved hand gently stroked her hair.

"Stay with me, Phi," he whispered. "Help is on the way. Just stay with me, Phi." Over his shoulder he called out, "Goddamn it, someone get up here NOW!"

With surprising speed, Mason covered the distance to kneel by their side, interposing himself between the direction of the gunman and her crumpled form.   He frantically examined her wounds to see what he could do.  "Phi! Oh my God Phi! Can you hear me? Phi!?!"

A random draft lifted a tendril of Ophilia's long dark hair, but other than that she remained lifeless and non responsive.  The blood continued to soak her white blouse and pool underneath her.  Her wrist was limp when he picked it up and there was no sign of a pulse, before he could do anything else, he felt the presence of someone behind him.

Danny was there, on the stage as quick as lighting. "Give her ta me now, just give her ta me," he said quickly, smoke roiling off his hands and arms. His face had gone white as a sheet at the sight of Ophilia's ruined chest, and the blood on Nemesis' armor.

It looked bad. It looked hideous in fact, but he could repair the damage. Even now smoke was swirling around the grisly wound in Ophilia's chest, muscle and bone and tissue reknitting itself. The bullet had exited her body, so it should be as simple as... he laid her down upon the stage, running one hand over her shoulders, neck and head, sonic pulses from hastily-crafted and specialized 'vocal cords' along his arms showing that...

Sebastian heard what sounded like a  gunshot, deafening his already heightend hearing. Pain erupted in his chest, as if he'd been skewered with a red hot bar of steel, sending him reeling backwards. As he fell, another burst of pain exploded in his head, and the comforting presence that had taken residence inside his mind for as long as he could remember, winked out of existence, snuffed like a candle.  As he lay on the ground, unable to move, the tears began to stream down his cheeks. She was gone. He wanted to rush to her, he wanted to find the person responsible, mostly he wanted to hear her in his mind again, but he couldn't. He was helpless, and for the first time in his life, he was truly alone.

Stone had walked out through the stage curtain with a "what now" look on his face.  He immediately noticed the small group at the foot of the stage including Nemesis and that Mason guy.  As he walked towards them, his eyes scanned around the room to take in what was going on.

Near the bar, on the opposite end of the room, Vinny's ears were still ringing from the blast of a gun.  He turned slightly and saw the shooter, who was ready to blend in with the panicked crowd and try to slip out.  Without so much as a thought, he pulled his concealed side arm, and pointed it at the man.  He was going to call out for him to stop, or shoot him in the leg, but as his faculties gathered around him and the facts of the scene began to settle into place, he became a slave to his rage.  He could see that his youngest cousin had been hit, and was surrounded by friends and family.

"You fucking son of bitch!"  Vinny spat the words out as he began stalking towards the man, whose back was to him.  Shooting him wasn't enough, he wanted to watch him die.  Realizing that he might be lost in the crowd, if he waited, he aimed for the back of his head and took the shot.  The sound of gun fire rang above the frenzied crowd and the shooter toppled forward onto the floor.  The DiSantiago dropped his hand to the side to help hide his sidearm, but continued towards the shooter to make sure that the job was done.  The room was a mass of chaos and he didn't know or care how many witnesses there might have been to his crime.  He just did what had to be done.

Stone noted Carlotta Cruise was an island of calm in the sea of chaos trying to get out of their seats so that they could escape. She seemed more interested in what was happening on the stage.  He spotted Tara Winston off to his left, scared but not yet trying to leave like the others.  She was trying to wake Christie Danner who had apparently passed out and face planted onto her table.

The flash of the gun drew Stone's attention a split-second before the shot did.  He marked the shooter - Vincent DiSantiago, the one who was with Ophilia at the party.  He'd just shot someone in the crowd, and that someone had gone down. 

The man he'd seen pointed out as Javier DiSantiago, was staring at Angelo, who stared back for a moment before the two men set about on different vectors.  Javier went towards the back, where Vincent was.  Angelo moved towards the group on the stage.

Edison heard the rifle shot, instantly recognizing it . Without another word, he leapt to cover Lana and bear her under the table. "Stay down," he whispered urgently, "that was a gunshot." He hoped his teammates were more on the ball than he and could deal with whatever the hell was going on.

He frantically looked around, trying to catch sight of where the shot came from, so he was able to see the man carrying the rifle take a few steps then collapse as another gunshot cracked the air. As the shooter fell, Edison could see the figure of Vincent DiSantiago further back, lowering a handgun to conceal it.

* * * * *

"Oh fuck," Danny whispered. There, a huge black area in her brain. "Oh no. No, no, no, not this. Oh fuck,"  A massive series of burst vessels in her brain. It could be fixed, but what woke up wouldn't be Ophilia. It would be, at best, a child. If she woke up at all.

He looked up at Nemesis, eyes bright with unshed tears. "Somethin happened to her mind. I can't fix that. Nothin can fix that." 

Nemesis stared at Danny through his goggles. His mouth worked but no sound came out. He looked down at Ophilia and again allowed his finger to trace her face. He pulled his hands out and stood, still looking down at her.

"Stay..." His voice came out a croak. He swallowed. "Stay with her. She shouldn't...don't leave her alone." With that he turned away to scan the room.

Mason glanced up at Nemesis.  He sensed on a subconscious level the same despair that he now felt mirrored in the superhero's demeanor and his suspicions were confirmed.  He looked back down at his old flame and felt the primal fury rising up from within, unbidden, unstoppable. Whoever had done this was going to pay...in blood. He bared his teeth as a feral growl issued from between them. His canines extended slightly and his fingernails extended to match.

Then, with an almost unnatural celerity, he vaulted from the stage and dashed through the crowd towards where the gunfire had originated.  Most of the guest were already out of their seats and those that saw him as he came vaulting over the tables and down the isle, shrunk back in fear.  It was the rage on his face more than the subtle changes in his body that frightened them.  Only Carlotta had managed to make it out of her seat, and she was walking towards the stage with a look of serious concern on her face. 

The acrid scent of the gun fire burned in his nose as he closed the distance, all of his senses keyed and tuned to the room in front of him.  He could hear the rushing pulse of Vinny DiSantiago's heart, easily matching his own, as he bared down on him.  He followed the man's intent stare and saw another man lying face down on the floor, obviously the recipient of the second gun shot that he'd heard.  He landed in between Vincent and the prone man, as things clicked into place.  Ophilia's cousin had murdered the shooter.

Nemesis quickly took in the resulting chaos of the room, including Mason's superhuman feat of prowess. He filed it away for future study. "Take him alive!" he bellowed. "Alive, goddamn it!" He jumped from the stage and moved to Sebastian's prone form. He knew Phi and her twin shared a psychic bond and he had no idea how that would affect the man.

He knelt next to man and checked for a pulse. There was one, strong if a bit off. Sebastian let out a groan and moved a hand slowly. The guy looked almost as bad as Phi but otherwise just seemed stunned.  "We need some help, here!" He looked around the room and stood up again. He was almost surprised to find he had his stun discs in his hand. He stood up and began making his way to the shooter, ignoring the panicked audience members trying to get out.

"Fockin A, take em alive," Danny spat in a whisper, smoke pouring off his body as he focused on repairing the god-awful damage done to his cousin. The black tendrils crept over his face, his eyes flaring to crimson life as the transformation was complete: all his power was now focused on healing his cousins body. And he waited for what he suspected would come next.

The echo of Nemesis' command to take the shooter alive, fell on deaf unsympathetic ears as Vincent DiSantiago closed the distance to the prone shooter.  He met Mason's gaze, his eyes a mirror of the pain he was feeling inside, but didn't pause.  He bent down and roughly turned the man's body over, with a savage sort of raw strength, his gun placed carefully next to his knee as he did so.  His eyes were set and staring blankly at the ceiling, he was dead.

The pain in his chest and head receded, and once again Sebastián found himself in control of his body.  Groaning slightly as he got to his feet, he checked his internal clock. It had been 9 and 3/8's seconds since he lost contact with his sister, well beyond his ability for a quick fix.  The empty hole in his consciousness was a glaring reminder of all he'd lost, and anger slowly started building within him.  Cursing under his breath he focused, took a quick glance around at the people immediately around him, and willed time to stop.

The familiar silence welcomed him, as every shriek, every panicked voice was stilled in a second.  He slowly made his way to the stage, as if he was on auto-pilot. His head was telling him he had to see her, but his heart was making him drag his feet.  The usually comical poses of people frozen in mid-action were ignored because tonight they were of no consequence. His focus was the stage, and the cluster of people at the edge.

As he got closer, he could see her slight form, with cousin Danny kneeling over her, doing something.  Angelo was standing just off to the side, and behind him was Stone.  Sebastián got to the edge of the stage, and stopped, just looking at her body, his eyes starting to well with tears.  Unable to look at her any longer, he turned, and looked out at the exiting crowd, looking for something, anything that would help him figure out who was responsible.

His eyes followed the trail of those that were close to Phi, casualties of a pain that was invisible to the naked eye, but that Bastian knew had scarred each of them.  Nemesis was midstride, intent and focused on the back of the room. Uncle Javier's back was to him and Aunt Carley was facing him, as they both traversed the distance between.  Vinny and Mason stood at the back of the room, their facial expressions unreadable as they looked towards the floor.

Sebastian was in a bit of a daze as he walked by each of those that were close to his sister, more concerned for her, than in escaping the obvious dangers of the room.  As he reached Vinny and Mason, he saw a dead man at their feet, with a bullet through his head.  He didn't need to guess at who had done it, even without seeing the gun lying next to Vinny, it was well known that his impulse and temper control issues ran as deep as his loyalty to the family.

Now that he was upon them he could see the look on their faces.  Vinny's was one of resolve, his jaw clenched tight, the repercussions of his actions still far from his mind.  Mason's was filled with fury, the glint in his eye was so predatorial that Sebastian almost didn't recognize him.  ...and it wasn't just that, his face was set into a feral growl that didn't look all human.

For a long time, Sebastián stared down at the gun, thinking of that key piece of evidence, and what it would mean if his plan did not work out.  Anyone else, anyone not family and he'd have not spared a second glance at the discarded firearm.  This was Vinny.  This was family.  

Flashes of better times crossed his mind: He, Vinny and Mason were racing Sea-Doo's in the harbor, and later that night, they nicked a couple of six-packs to drink down at the pier. The three of them spent the night getting drunk, and bragging about their conquests.  His vision shifted, to Vinny in an orange jumpsuit, standing before a judge.  With a firm resolve, he bent down and with a napkin he picked up the gun.  A few steps and he was carefully slipping the gun into Aunt Carlotta's purse. Anyone stupid enough to actually search her would get an earful, and even if it was found, no one would think twice about the mature DiSantiago carrying a pistol. 

Carefully putting her purse back in place, he walked back over to his two friends and the dead man.  His brow furrowed as he looked each of them over, mulling his next move in his mind.  He had a way to fix this, to make things right again, but he was going to need help, major help.  Resting his hand on Vinny's shoulder, he decided to start with the people who were most likely to go along with his plan. Closing his eyes, he pulled Vinny out of time, to join him.

Vinny reached for his gun, not missing a beat, and his eyes grew wide with panic when it wasn't there.  He stood up abruptly and only then did he realize that something was very wrong.  Mason was frozen in a state of wild eyed rage and as he looked around he realized that everyone but himself and Sebastian were affected. 

His voice was hushed and agitated when he spoke.  "What the fuck's this, Cuz."  Hearing the sound of his own voice broke the spell and he hauled off and kicked the dead man in the head.  "What the..", his voice became louder and more agitated as he pounded his foot into him again.  "Fuck!  Cuz?!"  His pointed boot left a series of bloody gouges in his temple.

The dark side of Sebastián would have enjoyed letting his cousin kick the downed man into a bloody pulp, reveling in every body shaking impact, but this wasn't the time.  "Vinny!" he said, his voice echoing flatly in the eerie silence. "Calm the fuck down! I did this, I stopped time, and I pulled you out with me." He looked right into his cousin's eyes, "I can save her, I can fix this too." gesturing down at the dead body, "but I'm going to need help. Will you help me?"

Vinny's body stilled under Sebastian's intensity and he nodded his head.  "You better fucking believe it, Cuz.  Nobody messes with Baby."  He winced and Bastian could feel the shared pain.  He kicked the man again, hard as he echoed himself.  "Nobody fucking messes with Baby."

Sebastián nodded once and slapped his cousin on the shoulder "Good, good. I'm going to need to get a few more people, then I'll explain my plan. Just back me up when the time comes." He took a step back and looked his cousin over, gratitude and appreciation emanating from him. "Oh, remember to talk to Aunt Carlotta about your piece when this all works out, it's in her purse." He turned, focusing on Mason next and muttered under his breath "Wish I could see her face when you ask her for it."

Studying Mason's face, he suddenly felt much closer to his old friend. The rage he saw mirrored his own, and for a brief instant he recalled the last time he let his own rage take control. Pushing that memory out of his mind, he stood to the right of Mason, and resting his hand lightly on his shoulder, he tugged him through.

A low heavy growl broke the silence of the room as Mason emerged in the time stasis.  He was much quicker to register his surroundings that Vinny had been, his senses instantly told him that something was off.  He glanced around the room and cocked his head in confusion for a moment.  He took in the body, Vincent, and Bastian; and let out a breath as the situation sank in.  The body somewhat mollified his fury and it began to subside.  As he got himself under control, he ran a tongue over his teeth and looked at Bastian.  He walked over to the body on the ground and bent down to get a good look.  He'd known Bastian had some kind of power over time, but didn't know the extent.  "Now can you rewind it?"

Frustration was evident on Sebastián's face as he heard his friend's question, and the pain of his inability to fix things quickly followed.  "No, too much time has passed for me to fix things right now. I'll explain everything once I've pulled everyone out of stasis, but to fix this is going to take abit more work, and possibly more than just the three of us. I pulled you and Vinny through first, because I was sure I could count on you two, even if the others won't go along."

"Damn straight," Mason growled, a harsh rasp in his voice. His opinion of any who wouldn't accept to join in the effort was plain on his face.

Sebastian turned and walked over to Nemesis.  He was unsure how the man would react to his plan.  He was fairly sure he would want to do something to save Phi, but what Sebastián was going to propose was really outside the norm.  As he stood in front of Nemesis, he readied himself for the possible confrontation ahead, reached up to Nemesis's shoulder, and willed him through.

Nemesis suddenly finished his step, and then another, before pulling up short. He stood straight, head darting about. He whirled around, taking note of Sebastián , Vincent and Mason looking at him. Even beneath the goggles and mask it was easy to see he was confused.

He cocked his head as he again took in his surroundings. He walked slowly back to Sebastian, looking over his shoulder at the frozen scene surrounding Ophilia. He made a point of looking at Mason and Vincent, both, before returning his full attention to Ophilia's twin.

"You have a plan?" he asked.

"I do, have a plan." Sebastián replied "I am going to pull Stone through, and there was a friend of my Cousin Umberto's here tonight as well. He is an investigator that I think could be a big help, I just need to find him.  The last person would be our cousin Danny. Once I get them all, I'll be happy to explain things."

"You mentioned once you wanted to know what I could do," he gestured around at the entire frozen ballroom " I guess tonight you'll get your answers."

Nemesis nodded, looking around as if to follow Sebastián 's gesture. "Some of them," he said. He was studying a frozen citizen trying to get around a chair. He glanced up and followed Sebastián to the stage. He stared at Ophilia for a long time, then turned and faced out toward the crowd, studying the scene while Sebastián did his trick with Stone.

It was easy to tell that both Vincent and Mason were as upset as he was.  The DiSantiago's face was still splotched red from his adrenalin burst, and now that the crowd was still and he had the height from the stage, he could see a man lying face up near the other two men.

Slowly Sebastián made his way to the stage, keeping his focus on the man towards the back, not the crumpled form of his sister.  Grief filled his heart, and he felt a flash of nausea. He stopped briefly at the edge of the stage, to compose himself, before carefully making his way on stage, and over to Stone.  Placing his hand on the man's back, Sebastián closed his eyes in brief concentration, making him come through.

Stone took a step and a half towars the end of the stage before he realized that something was wrong, that everything had stopped.

No, not everything, he corrected.  In the back of the room, Mason and Vinny were gathered and looking at him, Nemesis stood near Ophilia surveying the room.  He spotted Sebastian in his peripheral vision, suddenly next to him, and his head did the calculus.  He shook his head slowly at Bas and then turned away to hop off the stage, murmurring, "Unbelieveable."

Sebastián watched as the man walked off the stage, thankful for the the fact that he didn't have to explain yet again that he had a plan and would explain it shortly.  He caught sight of his sister out of the corner of his eye and unwillingly his full focus was upon her, and their cousin Danny beside her.  Sebastián walked closer, his shoes echoing flatly in the silence, until he was right upon them.  He rested his hand on Danny's shoulder, but his vision was locked on his sister, as he drew Danny out.

The screams and shouts of the panicked crowd ceased, as though someone had turned the world's sound dial to 'off'. Danny blinked, his power suddenly unable to connect to the person it was trying to heal. And then he registered the hand on his shoulder and looked up into Sebastian's grief-stricken face, and nodded. "I can't heal her unless she's with us," he said quietly, smoke vanishing as he stood. "But ya knew that, didn't ya." he said, more to himself than to his cousin. Danny's eyes swept the room, noting who was moving and who wasn't. "And ya can't turn it back, or ya would have already. What now?" he said as he watched Stone heading off towards the back of the room. 

Nodding his head slowly, his eyes never left his sister body as he quietly answered his cousin. "Thank you, for trying to save her, but there is nothing to be done, not here and not now. I need to find one more person, and I'll tell you what I want to do."  Drawing a slow, deep breath, he visibly struggled in tearing his gaze away.  With pain filled eyes he scanned the crowd, looking for Umberto's investigator.

Edison Palmer was nowhere to be seen above the tables in the mass of frozen bodies.  He located Umberto, but his friend wasn't with him.  It was easy to guess that the unlikely hero had taken cover at the sound of gunfire.

With his usual steady no-hurry pace, Stone walked back to find the shooter.  His eyes remained focused on the body face-up on the floor while he strode by Vincent.  "You're under arrest," the biker said casually to the man as he passed him and then he crouched down to examine the body.  He started with a check of the man's pockets.

Vinny's head turned to follow him and his hands balled up into fists, but he was smart enough and somewhat calm enough to keep his tongue in check.  He knew the drill, you didn't say anything until family was there and a lawyer.

Nemesis watched Stone make his way to the man on the ground. He also made note of Vinny's reaction and Stone's passing comment. Curious, he moved to join Stone.

He stood a pace back and to the side, giving his partner room to work as the biker searched the man. "What was that about?" he asked, thinking he already knew the answer.

"He gunned him down.  I saw it happen," Stone replied in his neutral tone without looking away from what he was doing, a jerk of his head towards Vincent indicating who 'he' was.  "He's not carrying now, so the D's probably hid the gun somewhere while Timex had the world stopped, which adds conspiracy."

Stone stopped a moment to look across the room at Sebastian.  "Which means he's under arrest, too, I guess."  With a shrug and an absent scratch of his cheek, he resumed his rummaging.

Vincent lifted his eyebrows up as he listened to the two heroes talk.  "Don't mind me."  He said amicably as he stepped away from the body to give Stone more room.  "Don't worry, I'm not going anywhere.  Not till we fix this."

Nemesis nodded. He trusted Stone enough not to ask stupid questions. "We deal with it after," he said. "I want to know what he has planned. Hell, I want to know HOW he can do this." He sighed again and jerked his chin at the dead man. "Find anything?"

The man, now staring blankly skyward, a faint scar on his face stretching from ear to chin, a snake tattoo peeping from behind his white collared shirt, and a bullet hole exiting just above his left eye, carried little on his person.  He was dressed in a plain black suit, neat white shirt spotted now with crimson, and a black tie.  He wore two watches, one analog frozen on the exact current time; the other, digital reading simply 00:00:23.  He carried a cellular phone, illuminated to indicate a recently received picture message.  A white envelope was folded in half in the inside breast pocket of his jacket along with a pair of sunglasses.  Finally, a set of keys in his pocket seemed typical at first, but upon closer examination revealed a Lexus car key, two more unmarked keys, and one odd-looking cylindrical key sprouting stubby, radial teeth.  As if to dissolve any remaining doubt, a compact, custom designed 45-caliber precision rifle lay at his side.

Stone reached up and behind him to hand Nemesis the folded envelope.  He studied the keys, and then flipped open the phone to take a look at the message.

Stepping off the stage, Sebastián started peering behind and underneath tables, focused on finding Umberto's friend.  Maneuvering through the crowd, his gaze passed over the people, with their expressions frozen in fear and panic, their bodies frozen in mid-motion, as they had tried to escape.  After abit of searching, he found him on the ground, not cowering but protectively shielding a woman. "Huh. Go figure." He said quietly to himself as he  rested his hand on the top of Edison's head, and tugged him through.

Edison's reaction to the transition was unusual but not unexpected. He looked around in immediate consternation, his hand placed against his chest as if reaching for something. He quickly took stock of the situation, sparing a concerned glance at the frozen woman he'd been sharing the space under the table with, and gazed at Sebastian with an odd calculating look. "Impressive," he murmured, his voice pitched low to reach no one else besides the psychologist.

Noticing the others moving around, he demanded in a louder voice, "What's going on? What just happened?" His face was a perfect image of concern and confusion.

"Mr. Palmer, I understand this is confusing for you, and I promise I'm going to explain things as best I can very shortly. I understand from cousin Umberto that you're a bit of an investigator. I would greatly appreciate it if you could help me, with this situation."  Sebastián reached down, to help the man to his feet. Keeping his back to the rest of the room, he whispered under his breath, "I need Edison, the family friend, so there is no need to think I've broken your trust."  Keeping his eyes locked on Edison's he once again spoke in a normal volume "Can you help me?"

In a face meant only for Sebastian, Edison grinned, "I trust ya, Doc." For the benefit of the audience, his face composed to evoke concern and sympathy, he replied, "I'm not a professional by any means, but I've had some experience in that regard. I'll help in any way I can. With that in mind, could you please describe the situation. I heard the shots and saw that man fall, but more than that I can't say."

There was no way in God's Green Earth that Edison would admit being a witness to Vincent's action, but he also wanted to get Sebastian's impressions of what had happened. He assumed Nemesis had been the target of the shooter, but he wanted to get his facts straight before making any pronouncements.

Danny had been looking down at Ophilia, the fingertips of his right hand drumming drumming drumming against his leg, expression blank. He finally sighed, shook his head slightly, then stepped off the stage, giving the frozen statue that was Carlotta a raised eyebrow and a pat on the shoulder as he moved past her. Sebastian was speaking quietly with one of the guests, and Stone, Nemesis and Mason were all standing near Vinny, looking down at what had to be the shooter. Danny stopped and looked down at the man who'd shot his cousin, face closed, but his eyes narrowed. He took a deep breath, seemed to shake himself just a bit, then waited to see what Sebastian's plan might be, eyes settling on Nemesis.

Glancing over to where it seemed everyone had gathered, Sebastián started walking slowly that way, "Do you mind if we walk and talk? It seems everyone is milling about the same place, which will make going over my plan easier."

"As for your questions, I'm afraid I might not be much help." He stared off a bit, remembering the moments leading up to the Event. "I'd been sensing something was wrong before it happened, but I could not put my finger on what was wrong. The feeling got stronger, more foreboding as time passed. Phi, for whatever reason, made her way to the stage..." His voice cracked, and he stopped briefly to compose himself. "That was the last I saw of her.  Shortly afterward I felt pain in my chest, then in my head. I really didn't see much after that, until.... this." He gestured around at the statue-like crowd.

Edison raised an eyebrow in arch amusement. "So you're saying you're not responsible for everyone playing 'Freeze Tag'?"

"No, I am responsible for this. What I meant was, I was incapacitated just after the first shot, and while the assassin was eliminated.  As soon as I was able to react, I stopped everything."

His face fell as part of Sebastian's lecture finally clicked. He swung his head towards the stage, his new vantage point giving him a better view. The clump of people, the fallen figure. "Oh, shit," he breathed, overloading the expletive with more raw emotion than could be considered possible.

Edison turned back, and Sebastian caught a rare glimpse of the man unmasked, without artifice, without pretense. "Tell me you're working on fixing this," he said tautly.

Sebastián nodded once to Edison, and gestured towards the cluster of men they were approaching. "That's why I picked all of you,  to help me fix this."

As Edison and Sebastián closed on the others, they saw Stone with a cell phone in his hand and Nemesis with a white envelope.

Nemesis opened the envelope and shuffled through the contents. It was easy to see there were half-a-dozen or so photographs, which he sifted through fairly quickly, pausing a moment longer on one of them. There was a hotel key, a piece of paper with a yellow sticky note attached which Nemesis took a moment to study, and another piece of paper with hand writing on it. His face revealed little but it was obvious he wasn't happy about what he found.

Stone looked through the messages, which looked to be statuses on a timeline.  There was the word "Syndicate' which he knew would mean something to Nemesis.  With a quick series of button presses he opened up the picture message.

"Oh, geez," he breathed.  Stone's head drooped and he took a deep breath.  This was going to hurt.  Behind him he could feel Vincent crane his neck to look over his shoulder.

The biker stood up from his crouch and turned to Nemesis.  "You need to see this," he said in as quiet a tone as possible while handing the open phone to his teammate.  "I'm sorry, man."

With a puzzled frown Nemesis took the phone from his friend and teammate. He studied the phone for several long moments. Stone, the closest to him and the person with the best vantage point, saw his jaw muscles tighten, his lips compress. Nemesis dropped his head back to gulp in a ragged breath of air and returned his attention to the phone, cycling through the messages with his thumb as Stone had done. He stopped and again stared at the phone for a long while before handing it back, along with the envelope and it's contents. He cleared his throat and turned to Sebastian without meeting Stone's eyes.

"Talk to me," he said, his voice rough. "Tell me what you have in mind, how you're doing this...everything."

Sebastián turned his head, shifting his attention from Edison to Nemesis. As his gaze swept over the group of men, he saw that investigation of the downed man had begun, but little more than a phone and an envelope were visible.  His mind drifted, wondering what had been discovered, before realizing he was stalling, putting off revealing what he'd kept secret for so many years.  Mentally reminding himself what was at stake, and why he had to tell these men exactly what he was capable of, he drew a deep breath, and let it out slowly.

"You are aware I have some control over time.  Aside from being able to freeze time, as I have, I am able to open a portal, a gateway if you will, to a time of my choosing. Once the portal is open, anyone I choose to can pass through it, and they will be taken to the time I chose when I created the portal. The limitation is the portal is fixed, meaning I cannot open a portal here, that opens in New York. Where ever the portal opens from, is where it takes me.  For example, if I was standing here, and opened a portal to 11:59:45pm December 31st, 1900 , it would take me to that time, on this very spot.' He paused, looking around at the men gathered here, studying their reactions before he continued.

Danny nodded.

Sebastián's pulse quickened, his stomach was doubling over on itself, but he willed himself to continue. "It is my plan to find out when exactly he" gesturing at the downed man "started his day, and stop him from coming here, and killing my sister. She will be alive, he will be alive and hopefully arrested, everyone wins. Originally I was thinking that an hour or two would be enough time for us to track him and set things right. However, now I'm not so certain."  He studied Nemesis' face as best he could, trying to see what was behind the goggles, and the mask.

"You stopped time," Nemesis said carefully. "Just here, or everywhere?"

"That is difficult to answer. Near as I can guess, time is stopped everywhere." as he spoke he reached up and brushed a hand across his forehead, wiping away a few beads of sweat that were starting to form. "One time, I stopped time and traveled about 5 miles from where I stopped time, and things were still frozen. That was about as far as I could get before I had to let things go back.  It is much easier to do this when I'm the only one. With all of you here, well it's becoming a bit taxing." Sebastián was trying to conceal his fatigue, but between the emotional drain of losing his sister, and the strain of supporting a frozen time and 6 extra men, he was starting to fade.

"So we go back ta this mornin, then try and find the bastard," Danny said. "Ok. I'm in. But what're the rules? Are there any? Do we have ta avoid ourselves or any of that Star Trek stuff?"

Sebastián shook his head. In another time, another place that might have drawn out a chuckle, but the pain of loss was still fresh in his mind, there was no laughter to be found. "First off, time traveling is not something I suggest lightly, this is a serious, dangerous situation.  I've not done this often, and when I've gone into the recent past, if I had the chance to interact with myself I took great pains to avoid it, and I would suggest we all do the same.  I do not know what will happen, to be honest, and I'd rather not find out. Secondly, we need to be really careful, granted, we are not likely going too far into the past, but even so a slip of the tongue in the wrong spot could make trouble for us, maybe not right away but in the future.  Lastly, we need to be aware that we could do everything right, and still things won't work out the way we hope."  Sebastián's eyes unfocused, as if he were remembering something, and if it was possible, they took on even more pain and sorrow.  "However, this is a risk I'm willing to take, and I hope all of you are as well."

"Oh, I think we'll put a stop ta this, sure and we will," Danny replied, blue eyes gone hard. "And what's on the phone?" he asked Nemesis.

Nemesis opened his mouth but nothing came out. He glanced at the phone in Stone's hand and swallowed, trying to push the pain down. He was momentarily saved from comment by Edison's interruption.

"If I may interject something," Edison piped up. "I've worked with Nemesis before, and he can vouch I have certain... gifts that may be useful in this endeavor." He turned to Stone. "Could I have his phone for a moment? I may be able to get an impression of where he's been."

Stone tossed the phone casually to the other man and walked over to the bar.

Edison easily caught it out of the air. He noticed Nemesis about to speak and surreptitiously slipped the phone into a pocket in his jacket.

"Listen up." Nemesis again seemed in control, both of himself and the situation. He held up the envelope and it's contents. "In my hands I hold evidence of a bomb." He handed them to Sebastian first but continued talking. "My guess is the bomb is at the Justice Department downtown. It's scheduled to go off at ten-thirty tonight. It would appear that Assistant Dee-Ay Kate Sutherland might be another target."

Sebastián took the envelope, and carefully examined the contents, while listening to Nemesis.  He wasn't exactly sure why he was getting to look at it, but he wasn't about to ask questions.  As he scanned the papers, his cousin, Vinny sidled up next to him and put a supportive arm across his shoulder, as he studied the documents with him.

He took a deep breath before continuing. "The shooter was after me. That's clear. Ophilia--" He paused, swallowed. "Ophilia's death was not his intent. The people who did this, however, know a great deal about me and they've killed someone very close to me. That being said, whatever happens we need to stop that bomb from going off. That has the potential of causing the most deaths, the most collateral damage. Ideally we'll be able to save Ophilia--and my friend--but I'd like to eliminate the group responsible and stop that bomb no matter what."

Somewhere deep inside, a part of Sebastián howled with anger.  He had suspected Phi was not the target, but suspicions only went so far.  Rage slowly built, as he realized he had been right. His sister had been taken in by some idealistic fool, and she'd gotten killed for it.  He knew, logically she did what she did to protect someone, someone important to her, but logic was meaningless to him.  Trying to calm himself down, he thought about what else Nemesis had said. The bomb might be Nemesis' focus, but it wasn't his. Once Ophilia was safe, he would be more than willing to help with the bomb, it would be what she would want him to do, but saving her would be his priority.

Edison curbed the impulse to snatch the photos from Sebastian and look at them right away, composing himself to wait his turn. He did mention, "That does beg the question. If the shooter's goal was to assassinate you, why carry evidence of another attack? Was he supposed to have set the bomb himself? Has he done so already?"

Nemesis offered a one-shoulder shrug. "'I'm not going to look a gift horse in the mouth in regards to the evidence. We take what we're given and we run with it. We're looking for a group who calls itself 'Syndicate'. It could be one person, but it's likely an organization, or at least an affiliation. I've made a lot of enemies so I'm not going to speculate just yet, but it's definitely someone with resources. This is not just about someone trying to shoot me. I've obviously managed to piss someone off well enough that they're going after people I know, as well. Why Kate Sutherland was also included I have no idea, unless it's simply that she's also been somewhat heavy-handed on crime. The photos are a clue, as is the bomb, the texts in the phone, the schematic and whatever those numbers mean." He nodded to the packet in Sebastian's hand. "We just have to put it all together."

"Hey."  Vincent chimed in, his voice huskier than it had been previously.  "I've heard that name before.  Syndicate...  It's big. ...eh.."  He swirled his free hand in the air close to his ear as if he was willing his mind to connect the dots.  "Resources.  Heavy hitters, they're new.  ...ah...fuck.  This may not be that cut and dry."

Sebastián shook slightly, as a wave of fatigue washed over him. The gauntlet of emotions coupled with exerting his power  was starting to take their toll, stopping time was definitely harder if it was more than just himself.  "I do not mean to rush any of you, but we should decide how far back we need to go, so I can begin preparations. I cannot hold time still forever, sadly."

"No."  The one word wasn't  spoken loudly but it carried a certain force, nonetheless.  Stone punctuated it by closing his Zippo with its usual light metallic snap.

The smoke from the cigarette in his mouth curled up and around his semi-shadowed face as he stood behind the dimly-lit bar.  He was removing the stopper from a bottle of Gentleman Jack.

"You want to stop that bomb, I'm all in.  But... this goin' back in time shit ain't right," the biker said as he filled a double shot glass with the amber fluid.

Sebastán looked over towards the bar, focus shifting to Stone. "Well, I hope you are fast, because once time starts back up again, you have 23 seconds exactly to get to the Justice Department, and find the bomb. Best of luck to you."

Stone stopped in the act of raising the glass to his mouth.  He paused for a moment and then shrugged.  "Well that sucks," he said before taking his drink.

Vinny continued to support his cousin with one arm, while his free hand began clenching and unclenching.  His gaze strayed to Mason and there seemed to be a silent understanding that passed between the two of them in that moment.

Turning his attention to the men gathered around him "I had prepared myself for the eventuality that not everyone would be willing to accompany me, so for those of us who are going, I do really need a point in time to be decided upon, so I can prepare."

"Simple enough," said Danny. "Give us tha most ya can. This needs undoin, both fer Ophilia's sake, and whoever else he lost." he continued, gesturing at the phone.

"What he said," Edison concurred, "although perhaps with a bit more grammatical clarity." His mind was already churning over the possibilities. With this line-up, he was sure they'd be able to save the day without much effort. Certainly making it feasible for someone like himself to take advantage of the opportunity of going back in time. Oh, the things he could do! After making sure that Phi was safe and the bomb threat was thwarted, of course.

Nemesis held up a hand as he looked at Sebastian. "Let's say we go back in time and fix this. Let's say we even manage to avoid the other versions of ourselves." He waved his hand around. "How does this change? How do we come back so that it's all right?"

Sebastián was expecting this question, and nodded at Nemesis as he asked it. "Currently it is 10:29 and 37 seconds. Once we fix everything, and are ready to return to this time, we will come back to this room or as close to it as we can without being seen. The portal is extremely obvious, so I would like to keep people from bearing witness to it, if it is possible. I will make a portal to tonight 10:29 and 37 seconds. We will step through the portal, I'll unfreeze time, and... life goes on.  The bomb will be stopped, your friend will be alive, as will my sister."

Nemesis mulled that over for a moment. "So...um...we'll just step in where we left off? No alternate timeline or paradox stuff?"

"Ideally yes, that's what will happen. Am I an expert, no. I've not done this extensively, I can't say with 100% certainty that there will be no paradoxes, but I strongly believe there won't be, provided we take the precautions I mentioned earlier."

"That's cool fuckin' shit, cuz."  Vinny said with a proud lilt as he gave him a quick shake with his supporting arm.

"You're not buying this shit, are you?" Stone asked Nemesis calmly from behind the bar, gesturing with his smoke.  "You really think Seabass here gives a shit about the bomb, or anything except what he wants?"

Sebastián slowly turned his head towards the bar again, his voice calm and firm. "Originally, Phi was my main priority, that is true. That was before I knew about any of these other tragedies, but I do now. There were other things I could have done, other venues I could have taken, if all I wanted to do was save Ophilia, but I had a feeling, a tickle in the back of my mind that this was something major, and I wanted nothing left to chance. I don't need YOUR help, but I thought it prudent to have more than was necessary.  That was before I found out about Nemesis' friend, before I knew about the bomb. Now things are more dire, more dangerous.  You sit there and judge me, without knowing anything about me other than my last name. If you think so little of me, and what my motivations are,  join us, watch me and then perhaps you can judge me."

Stone took a drag and blew it out, and stared across at Nemesis through dark lenses.  "You don't actually trust these squids, do you?"

Edison jumped before Nemesis could answer, "There's not a question of trust. I truly doubt Sebastian here isn't sincere about rescuing his sister from her fate. In any case, it's the only chance we have, unless you have some other brilliant plan in mind. And as for the bomb, if you're concerned about it, why don't you come along and make sure it's taken care of? What are you afraid of, Mr. Stone?"

The biker didn't respond to or even acknowledge Edison.  He merely continued to look at Nemesis, waiting for the man's answer.

"We don't have a choice," Nemesis said after a moment. "The bomb goes off in twenty-seven seconds. If Sebastian hadn't stopped time, it already would have." He reached up and touched his goggles, as if he might remove them. He let his hand drop and sighed as he turned toward Stone.

"We really don't have a choice," he said again. He sounded tired. "What do I do? Stay here and do nothing? If I can stop the bomb I will. If all I can do is save Phi or--or Pops, then I'll do that, too. Whatever. If Sebastian can give us a chance to save somebody then we have to take it. Hopefully we can do all three, but even one is better than none. I have to try. I have to.." His mouth opened again but nothing came out. He took a deep breath and let it out slowly..

"What else can I do?" he whispered.

In response, Stone just shook his head slowly and sighed through his nose.

Danny had remained quiet, watching and waiting for Nemesis to make up his mind. "That's sorted then," he said. "We do what we're paid ta do, right? Sure and this time it's affectin our own, but that doesn't matter." He made as if to grasp Nemesis on the shoulder, but stopped. Instead he turned to Sebastian. "Lets go - ya said this was hard, and I'd rather have ya clear and in charge of yer faculties if you're ta be our guide." He cast a look at Stone, but it could have meant anything. 

Edison rubbed his hands. "All right, then, Now that that's settled. The game's afoot, to steal a phrase." He glanced over to Sebastian with a wry grin. "Do we need to hold hands or click our heels?

Sebastián shook his head at the suggestion, passing the envelope to Edison so he could focus on the more immediate task at hand. "No, once the portal is open, we just walk through."

He continued on " It seems the general consensus that more time is better, and I anticipate that 6 AM this morning should give us ample time to accomplish all three of our goals.   If you have any other investigative work to be done here and now, I would do it while I prepare the portal."

Giving his cousin a pat on the back silently thanking him for his support, he scanned the room looking for a spot with enough open space to make the portal without coming into contact with any body or any thing. 

"So," Danny said, looking at Edison. "What did ya get off the phone? Ya said you could pick up vibes 'r somethin, yeah?" 

"Well," Edison coughed self-deprecatingly. "Things have been a bit busy for me to do a proper reading. But I suppose now is as good a time as any." He placed the envelope in one pocket as he produced the phone from another.

"I hope you're not expecting any pyrotechnics," he warned Danny good-naturedly. "This sort of thing is neither reliable nor visually demonstrative." He placed the phone on the palm of one hand while he covered it with another. He was curious about what it contained that had caused Nemesis and Stone to react the way they had, but he figured he'd have a chance to satisfy his curiosity later.

Closing his eyes and centering himself, he tried to open himself to any impressions the cold metal had captured.

The phone warmed in his hands.  There was nothing at first.  No, not nothing - darkness.  Then, in sepia flashes he glimpsed the world from the perspective of a cell phone camera lens.  The inside of a hotel room.  A man, the same face as the one that lay before him, sans bullet hole.  A hotel bed.  A briefcase and a laptop.  Pieces of something disassembled.  The images were fractured and too rapid to make sense.  He felt a pull, then was swept back.  There was a murder - no, an execution - a man tied to a chair.  Then a young woman in a suit.  Then Nemesis.  A building downtown.  A building outside of town.  His vision swarmed with complicated schematics.  Illuminated digits - time, counting up, counting down.  More faces, similar to the assassin's but different.  Gears to a mechanism.  Means to an End.  Money... drugs.  Fear.  Hate.  Death!  Anarchy!  Chaos!

Burning like a raw ember, Edison's hand snapped open involuntarily and the phone plunged to the ground.

Danny nodded and let the man do his thing. "I wonder if it's as easy as goin to your person and Ophilia, and warnin em... gettin em safe and out of harms way while we go after whoever's plottin this mess?" he said to Nemesis. "Sounds like Sebastian can give us plenty of time fer that."

Vincent shook his head at that.  "You don't know Baby, you tell her to stay away and she'll get here twice.  ...besides, she wasn't the target."  He jutted his chin at Nemesis.  "He was."

"I don't know," Nemesis replied skeptically. "Even if that doesn't screw things up for every one, our best chance of success lies in the fact that they won't know there are two of us--" He broke off, frowned. "Two of each of us here. Now, I mean. Or will be." He let out an exasperated sigh. "Whatever. They won't know that we're coming after them. They'll be doing their plotting and moving and what-not while we track them down. We'll know where and when they'll strike, so if nothing else we can prevent it, but changing our routines--" He stopped again. "Changing the routines of our alternate selves might tip them off and we'll miss our chance."

He shook his head. "I think we need to play this out in super-secret mode. Not let anyone know what we're doing."

Danny considered this for a moment. "So by that ya mean ya know who they are then? That note and phone and whatnot tells the tale?" He'd gestured towards Palmer when he'd mentioned the phone, and his gaze settled on the obviously flustered detective and the phone, which now lay on the ground. 

"Certainly gives us a good starting point," Nemesis replied. He picked up the phone and thumbed through it again without further comment.

"Not as good as I'd like," Edison said. "The only certain thing I got off the phone is that these guys aren't just criminals. They have some kind of philosophy. Lots of plans. Today is just the beginning." He sighed and closed his eyes, struggling to make sense of the tangled impressions.

"Our shooter has family who are also involved in this," he continued. "He got ready at a hotel downtown. They might have assembled the bomb there, too. And they killed someone else today, or recently." The psychic gave Nemesis an apologetic look. "Maybe I can get more off the photos."

He took the envelope from his pocket and became absorbed in its contents, examining each item carefully with his eyes and then his fingers. "Toddberry Asylum?" he murmured. "Another target? Weird. Hmm..." His hand closed around the unmarked key and he smiled triumphantly.

"I think we have a destination," he announced. "Stewart Recency Hotel. Fifth floor."