Puma is contacted by a Mr. Livingston, a representative of the Secret Service. He requests aid in the security detail for future Presidential candidate Senator Matthew T. Bennet. The senator will be arriving in town for a very important fund raising event. During the last several months, the senator has received a series of death threats from a group calling themselves the 'American Freedom Force'. Intelligence sources indicate that the AFF has hired a freelance assassin known simply as 'The Assassin'. This particular assassin is considered one of the best in the world.
The senator will be arriving in town in less than a week. A Secret Service aircraft will land at the airport around 6:00 pm. A special motorcade will whisk the senator to a hospitality suite in the Municipal Convention Center where the fund raiser is to be held. After dinner, and several speeches, the senator will return to the hospitality suite and sleep for six hours before being whisked back to the airport to board the Secret Service aircraft and return to Washington to attend an important foreign policy meeting with the President.

Puma was waiting for the senators place to arrive. She saw it land and walked out a soon as the engines were quiet. "Senator welcome to Central city. Before you get in the car I want to give it the once over Puma style to make sure no bombs or anything bad! No fofonese to the secret service gentlemen but i have the advantage of super senses. Especially scent!" She started sniffing and listening for any thing suspicious.

(tag dm)
This message was last edited by the player at 19:34, Mon 17 Oct 2022.

The car is clean, and has been searched by some of the secret service personnel nearby. The senator is busy with a tablet (presumably studying his upcoming speech) and no one suggests Puma ride with them to the hotel. There are no incidents en route, and the senator arrives at the hospitality suite without issue.

"Ok senator. Here you are! Your home away from home. Try not to worry and try to concentrate on your work. We are all here to keep you safe for your visit. Leave the security worries to myself and your security people!" Molly said.  She intended to find this assassin and stop him or her before they could stop the senator.

Puma begins searching for the assassin. There's a smell of gun oil and cheap gin, but it turns out to be part of a convention. In a room off the main area is a display titled "the taste of noir" that looks to be re-creating a long departed art form. There are similar side rooms, with similar displays, all around the convention center.
It doesn't take long for Puma to find that the convention center is holding the fundraiser for the non-profit in one area, and SCIFIFANTACON in another.

"Wonderful!" she mutters to herself. This would make things harder. Still she would reamain vigilant. She would really need to be on her toes. She didn't want to leave the senator alone for too long. True he had the Secret service but still. It made her nervous. The con could very well hide the assassin. Hard to tell without more information. She better get back to the senator for now.

There is nothing untoward going on at the convention center. The various VIPs and niche celebrities at both events are relaxed and don't seem that worried. Local authorities have sent The Crusaders to liaison with Puma, and the secret service men make sure Puma knows it.

An unknown amount of time after McClain Iron Company's little "incident"...

The Stuntman was enjoying a meal composed of a Mega-Mundo Burger with cheese, lettuce, tomatoes, pickles, and mushrooms, with sides of broccoli, a bucket of fried chicken, two apples for last, and milk to wash it down. Ever since his treatments from the doctor all those years ago, his appetite had been relentless. So every time he did something of effort - heroism, action movie assistance, listening to historical lectures and trying to not go do literally anything more exciting considering he had just lived and made history - his stomach demanded tribute.

He tore through the meal with methodical speed and precision, wasting nothing and dropping nothing. So far, it was shaping to be a pretty good day. He was liking the way it was going, and nothing was going to ruin this day as far as he was concerned.

He tried to remember his commitments. Far as he knew, he had none today with Chow or Sonderheim, and he was only here just to page through the backlog of the Crusaders achievements to see what they had done before him and how it went.

He was pretty sure he had no commitments. I haven't forgotten anything, have I? His sunglasses hid his worry, and his stance as he enjoyed his Mundo-Meal made it clear he felt unconcerned.

Desiree showed up at the convection center and immediately started looking for Puma. She is on her first mission as a Crusader, although she dressed in a informal manner to more easily blend in with the crowds as she made her way through the crowds of the Sci-fi convention.  Unfortunately she got stared at a lot because of her soft glow as people tried to figure out how she was glowing and who she was cosplaying as.  She even got asked several times who she was cosplaying as and she had to explain that it was a minor power, but it didn't do anything.   As far as she knew, it didn't do anything but draw attention to her, she didn't explain that she had other powers.  Although some people did recognize her and asked for an autograph, delaying her in finding Puma.

Eventually she found a Secret Service agent who she showed her Crusader ID to, "I am here  to see Puma." She announced to the agent, trusting that he would be able to get a message to the other heroine.

She waited for his response as he got into contact with Puma.

Secret Service Agent called over radio to Puma, "Miss Puma.  I have a Crusader here by the name of Desiree Diamond."   After listening to a response over his earbub, the agent looked at Diamond, "Puma is unavailable."

Diamond nodded, "Then could I be escorted to the head of the Senator's bodyguards so I can be briefed on what security measures are in place and I can coordinate with you on what I can do to help." She requested of the Secret Service Agent.
This message was last edited by the player at 14:52, Sat 31 Dec 2022.

Darryl took what time he had to prepare and study the Senator. Pictures and V-tube videos as well as copies of his latest speeches gave Darryl enough information about the Senator to anticipate the kind of rhetoric he would be delivering at his speech. With mere hours before the Senator made his appearance, Darryl arrived at the conference center with his briefcase and other tools. He was stopped at Security, but flashed his Press Pass, then his Crusader membership card. The guard scrutinized it, then called for a supervisor to authenticate it. Under UV light, Manta Man's signature of verification could be seen. Darryl retrieved his cards and walked through the metal detector which blared an alarm. Darryl held up his Crusader card and the guards visibly relaxed. He made his way through the convention occasionally recognized and asked to pose for a picture or sign his autograph. After 20 minutes of this he made his way to the Security checkpoint for where the speech was going to be given. The Secret Service man was unsmiling as he looked at both the Press Pass and the Crusader card. After detecting metal in the briefcase, the SS man had Darryl open it. Inside were standard tools of an investigative reporter. Darryl lifted that out to show a false bottom that revealed his combat gear (armor, Luger, Nightstick) as well as a bank of fold-out trays. The Secret Service man looked through those trays and showed emotion for the first time. "You've got to be kidding......" Darryl shakes his head, saying "Nope. Only if the senator agrees, though."