Aberrant: Infinite Earth - Cosmos Nova - [CN] Orientation Day

[Lance Kensington]

The hot water ran down his body, sluicing through the soap and washing it away. Lance ran his hands of over his face and mentally prepared himself for the day ahead.

He wasn’t really keen on joining the DSA. Being a government agent or super hero was going to be less cool and exiting than it sounded. Still, he knew if he wanted to protect what he cared about it needed to be done; at least for a little while. Once he deemed himself clean, Lance shut the water off grabbed a towel and stepped out of the tub. From the open door of the bathroom Lance could see the form of Darcy still asleep in the bed.

Darcy Hollenbeck was a former marine Major, drummed out of the Army under the auspices of ‘don’t ask, don’t tell.’ Now he was the head of a mercenary security company called Direct Action. Lance recalled their first meeting; a chance encounter in 2008 on a flight to Dubai, which lead to 3 fantastic nights locked in a hotel room, only pausing for quick bites to eat. Now nearing 50, the man was still in fantastic shape for a normal human, and still just as fun in the sack.

Lance dressed quickly and quietly, so as not to disturb his exhausted friend and slipped out of the hotel bedroom. As expected, Mr. Jarvis was waiting for him, table set with breakfast. To one side were several newspapers and an iPad. “Good morning sir,” he said in a crisp and even tone with just a hint of an upper class British accent. “I trust last night meeting with Mr. Hollenbeck was… productive?”

Mr. Jarvis’ ever so slightly sarcastic tone brought a smile to Lance’s face as he replied. “Oh indeed, we hammered out the details for our little arrangement all night long.”

“Is that what that was Sir?” Mr. Jarvis quipped as he turned to head into the hotel suite’s kitchenette. “I though the hotel had a construction crew doing repairs in here last night.”

Lance nearly snorted his coffee through his nose in amusement while Mr. Jarvis continued, “Just a reminder Sir; you have 20 minutes before you are expected. You wouldn’t want to be late for your first day of work.”

“Thank you Mr. Jarvis, I’m leaving now.”

“And your guest Sir?”

Lance was up and moving, a piece of cantaloupe sticking out of his mouth while he put on the jacket to his hand tailored Italian suit. He cracked the door to his suite open and when his mouth was empty he turned back to his trusted manservant and said with a sarcastic smile, “Let him sleep. He’s going to need it when I get home!”

With that he was gone.

[Lance Kensington]

Lance maneuvered the Bugatti Veyron sports car through the morning traffic, slipping in and out of breaks between the cars and generally enjoying the speed of the high powered machine while a heavy techno-disco beat vibrated the entire vehicle. He roared in to the DSA facility parking lot and skidded into a parking spot. Stepping out of his vehicle, Lance waved and flashed a million dollar smile at a gaggle of government workers that were still struggling to pick their jaws up off the ground after his flashy stunt driving. He strode into the building while they continued to stare and addressed the guard at the security desk. "Lance Kensington to see Director Horst. He will be expecting me."

With a flurry of activity and much fanfare Lance was escorted to the office of the Director of the Department of Superhuman Affairs. Director Joseph Horst was a man in his early 50’s, with grey, thinning hair and an intelligent gleam in his hazel eyes. If Lance had to guess, he’d say the man had a military background jut by the way he carried himself.

“Director Horst, Mr. Kensington is here to see you,” The agent escorting Lance declared.

“Thank you Agent Paulson, you may leave,” The Director said as he stood up and moved around the desk. He extended his hand to shake Lance’s as he stepped up to the young man. “Welcome to the DSA Mr. Kensington. Please, have a seat.”

Lance shook the Director’s hand and took the offered seat. As the Director stepped back behind his desk to sit down, Lance released a tiny bit of the energy he kept pent up inside, that same energy that gave him his super human abilities. He immediately noticed a slight change in the Director’s posture. If was a useful trick; being able to alter people’s first impressions of him. Unfortunately the trick only worked on a person’s initial impression and it rarely worked on the same person more than once.

“We are very excited that you have agreed to join us Mr. Kensington. I know the PR department has some big plans for you. Mostly this is just an informal chance for us to get to know each other. I like to know the people under my command. HR has all the paperwork you will need to sign before you can officially start.” Horst was speaking in a friendly open tone, unaware of the quantum manipulation perpetrated upon him. “Do you have any questions before we go further?”

“Actually,” Lance said. “I was curious why you decided to place my in the PR department?”

“To be honest Woodrow, that is where your abilities seem best suited. Why? Is there some other role you’d like to take on here?”

Lance winced slightly at the use of his birth name. “Please call me Lance, and I would like to be a field agent,” He said. His voice was calm and there was no trace of mockery. “Considering you have one of the most telegenic people on the planet in Conner Fontenot as a spokesperson already, and you have your own super heroic mascot in Tellurius, the cutey in the spandex, I don’t really see what I would add to that department. No, my talents would be wasted in PR.”

Horst sat back and nodded “Lance then,” He said, sizing the young man up as he considered what he’d said. Finally he spoke. “While you make some valid points, I’m curious as to what makes you think you’d be a good field agent? Agents have to have stellar educations in law enforcement and receive intense training, neither of which you have,” he paused for a moment as if considering the possibility. “No. I could not, in good conscience, put you in the field as an agent. If you got hurt, or killed, it would be my fault; my responsibility. I won’t risk it.”

There was a long pause in the conversation as both men tried to gain the measure of the other. Finally, it was Lance that spoke first. “You are being genuine aren’t you? This isn’t a screen for some political maneuvering, you genuinely care about the people under your command,” he motioned with his hand at the people in the offices behind him. “I am surprised. I expected someone more jaded.”

There was another pause which stretched for several minutes as Lance seemed lost in thought. Finally he spoke again. “You know, it wouldn’t be that hard for me to just convince you to give me what I want. However I am not going to do that.”

“I appreciate that,” Director Horst said with a note of sarcasm.

“Instead,” Lance continued, ignoring the Director’s interruption. “I’ll tell you why I’d make a good field agent. First off, my Nova talents do not just lie in the social realms. I have been enhanced in every way that you can measure a human. I am superhumanly strong, tough and fast. My senses are enhanced and I can perceive things in ways a normal human just can’t. My overall intelligence is in the superhuman category as well and I’ve not only developed an eidetic memory and facility with language, but I think as quickly as my body reacts,”

The young man continued. “It’s not just natural talent either. Since my eruption 5 years ago, I have been traveling the world. The story was that I was seeing the world and sewing my wild oats before settling down to real life, and that is at least partly true. But everywhere I went, I went to learn something. Sometimes I had an agenda on what I wanted to learn, sometime not. As it stands now, I can perform just about any task you set in front of me. Name a topic and I will know something about it.”

Director Horst has stunned. If what Lance was saying was true, then much of the DSA’s assumptions about him were false. “ahh…” He started, trying to collect his thoughts. “Okay, well. Thank you for the honestly. To be honest though Lance, I would still feel uncomfortable putting you into the field without an assessment. If you can pass the tests required for field agent status, then we will revisit this. ”

“I understand,” Lance said.

“Well then let me make some calls and while I’m dealing with this I will have someone give you the tour.”

[Ross Shreveson]

Ross cautiously went down the hall, hands in pockets as he followed his escort to meet Director Horst. Anxiety was writ large in his expression, understandable given the changes he'd made to his life, and now... what concerned him was the question, aside from that of the newbie initiated into the government agency, was that well, this was a government agency. How much people would hold his background against him still remained up to question.

Maybe he was worrying too much. His colleagues to-be would be understanding, right? Right? Eventually he left that from his mind and simply gaped at the expanse of the DSA facility. What he'd been allowed access to for power control and practice while still in protective custody simply paled in comparison to what he could observe here.

The agent he was with stopped, and Ross realized that they were outside the Director's office, door closed shut. Another agent was outside, walking away, but paused to tell Ross and his guide that "Mr. Kensington is meeting with the Director right now." Huh. The gay playboy with all the headlines in People and gossip magazines was joining the DSA? So the man actually got serious? Or would he be hitting on other males?

Since the infamy of being a reputed mob boss' son tended to drive many people away, Ross had still not entirely latched onto the fact that with his luxuriant dark hair and sparking eyes, Kensington might hit on him. The suited agent beside Ross knocked lightly on the door, to let Horst knock they were there, and prepared to wait if the boss said so.

[SeaEagle]

Ugh... I hate this part of the job...

Kei started to finally complete her paperwork of expenditures and mission logs. Every last one... She felt like she was in school more than working in one of the most important organizations on the planet, and her procrastination towards getting the more uglier portion of her job finally got her.

She adjusts the business ensemble May got for her, and she hated it. She hates business suits. She thought as the DSA's premiere heroine she could wear the Devilion suit Karrie was nice enough to make for her. At least this business outfit was in a style that Kei liked, and it had a bit of a military flair to it. Perhaps she would wear it on another one of her Navy missions.

"There, done! Every last darned technicality..."

May walks in, wearing a typical black business suit famous for DSA agents. "Got those files done?"

"Yeah... thank god I type quick."

"Okay, get those files to the director, and fast. I'm not sure if he's having a meeting with the greenhorn."

"Oh, that new hunk?"

"Umm... you know he's..."

Kei blinked. "Taken?"

May scratched her head. "I guess you could say that, just get those files to the Director."

Kei collected the files into her binder, then started heading down the halls, her files under arm. She was just pleased seeing that she finally showed some responsibility. Perhaps Director Horst would allow her to hire on a secretary on her budget. She sees Ross and nodded before rapping on the door.

"Director? This is Kei Nakano... I have the requisition, expenditure, and mission forms you needed from me... umm... three months ago..."

She blushed and looked at Ross. "Sorry... I'm not ignoring you or anything... Just trying to get my paperwork turned in."

"Kei Nakano." The diminutive DSA spitfire says with a smile.

And she's been in the news with her Anti-Piracy success in Somalia and her rescues over the winder in the Atlantic Waters off of New England and her multiple public appearances.

Golly I can't wait to get into my flight suit again... She thinks.

[Lance Kensington]

With the first knock on the door, Director Horst hung up his phone and said. “Excuse me Mr. Kensington; my next meeting appears to be early.” As he reached for the handle, a flurry of knocks was accompanied by a muffled voice, which Lance heard with perfect clarity. Kei Nakano a.k.a. Umiwashi or SeaEagle in English first addressed the Director though the door, then introduced herself, presumably to the first person to knock.

When Horst opened the door, He was confronted by Agent Davis, the escort for Ross Shreveson, another young mutant joining the ranks. Before he could address them however, the petite spitfire that was Kei Nakano was thrusting a file folder of paperwork into his hands. “Thank you agent Nakano,” He said. As she turned to leave, he spoke again, “Hold up a minute SeaEagle. I’d like to introduce you to two new members of our growing family here. Thank you agent Davis, you may go.”

The agent, who up until now had been staring at Kei with a mixture of awe and desire, snapped back to attention and nodded at his boss. With a final look over his should at the Asian nova, Davis disappeared back to whatever it was he was supposed to be doing. “I am please to finally meet you Mr. Shreveson. Unfortunately I have something I need to attend to so I must postpone our meeting. I would like you to meet another new recruit,” The Director said and stepped to the side; revealing Lance, who’d, been quietly listening and observing. “This is Lance Kensington. Mr. Kensington, I’d like you to meet Ross Shreveson and agent Kei Nakano. Mr. Shreveson is a new recruit like yourself, and as you no doubt know agent Nakano also goes by the name…”

“SeaEagle,” Lance finished and turned to address the tiny super hero. “Yes, I am familiar with your work,” He was smiling as he offered her is hand in a handshake and when he turned to the adorably attractive young man before him his smile broadened as his eyes absorbed the masculine beauty before him. “And it is my pleasure to me you Mr. Shreveson.”

“Yes well,” Horst started before Lance could say something inappropriate. “Agent Nakano, since your paperwork is completed, I think it would be a good idea to give our two new recruits a tour of the facilities here, and introduce them around. That will give me time to clear my plate for our meeting.” That last statement was directed at Ross.

[Ross Shreveson]

Ross opened his mouth to greet Agent Nakano, when the door opened and he saw Director Horst explain things. Vaguely. He heard and comprehended, but it was a little of a surprise to be face to face with Mr. Kensington, talk of a number of upper society gossips in New York. At the compliment and handshake and look, Ross found himself flushing adorably.

Lance was a looker. Wicked eyes and chiseled features made Ross redden a little more from looking for a moment, before he quickly snapped his gaze around to the Director and nodded. "That's fine. It's... a pleasure to meet you both. I'd love a tour." What the heck is going on, Ross? Nearly getting tongue-tied was not expected.

[SeaEagle]

Kei scratched her cheek. The 4'11 sprite of a 20 year old almost looked quite younger than she was with her expression. And it was one of disappointment. Damn, looks like I got intercepted and shot down... She thinks as she looks back up. She looks about wondering if May would miraculously re-appear and save her with some dire mission... And it looks like my S&R is not gonna arrive in the nick of time...

"Alright, Director Horst, I can take care of the tour."

"Good, Agent Nakano." Director Horst says, smiling, and knowing he has one less thing to worry about. "I am sure you'll get good remarks from the two greenhorns here. Some responsibility would do you good. You are one of the faces of the DSA. Nice outfit by the way. Fits your personality."

He pauses for a second. "Also, I would hope you take this as a lesson to remember to get your paperwork in, in a timely manner, Miss Nakano. This job isn't all about being a superhero and saving the world... there is the drudgery."

"Now if you excuse me..."

Before Kei could get a word in Director Horst closes the door. Kei sighed and looked at the two gentlemen before her. One quite hunky and the other cute in his own way. This cushioned the blow enough to her schedule. She was thinking of doing some flying in the Dragon to test some new calibrations the brain-trust was doing to the fly-by-wire system. Although a tour would take a couple hours she could catch up via a high-speed flight.

"Alright gentlemen... first off, Welcome to the Department of Superhuman Affairs." She says with a smile. With her long hair and smile and her choice of outfit she seemed more like a young teenager, her schoolgirlish blush didn't help matters. "As a Agent I've spent my time here at the Langely headquarters. I usually do some of my work at the Minneapolis offices, but I am able to be anywhere in the country in no time."

She straightens her business ensemble, turning on her "Professional" mode. "So, before we begin, gentlemen, any initial questions as we start heading to the main office?"

[Lance Kensington]

"Nope, I'm good," Lance said casually, flashing his million dollar smile at the other 2 Novas.

"Right then, lets get started," The petite nova started. "So this is the main building and as you are already aware, houses the majority of our administrative offices," Kei led the two new recruits through the offices, introducing them to important people and the various department heads. Most of the office workers, while having met a nova or two and being familiar with SeaEagle, were unused to seeing a pair of super humanly beautiful men come wandering though their work space. Their passage cause quite a stir and whenever they stopped to talk to someone, a small flock of rubberneckers would gather until their superior would inevitably shoo them back to work. For his part, Lance listened quietly and patiently, while Kei described the various departments and what they did and He was charming and polite where he needed to be.

For the most part though, Lance was far more interested in all the eye candy wandering around. There were several office workers and agents he found met his standards (meaning they had a penis and weren't completely tragic looking), but by far the person who drew his attention the most was Ross. He was young and clearly had similar gifts in the appearance an people skills department. Lance found himself wondering what he looked like naked, and wondering if he had any measure of superhuman endurance.

The tour continued, and by noon, Lance had felt like he'd glad-handed just about everyone in the building. Kei took them to the Cafeteria for lunch and as they waited in line she said "After lunch I'll take you to see the really fun stuff. The Ops Center is pretty cool and is where most of our missions are run out of. The Training Room is top notch and has been upgraded to handle Alpha level novas like us. And finally The Labs. That place makes Q from the bond films look like a rank amateur!"

[SeaEagle]

She grabs her usual, the biggest plate of spaghetti they would allow. Since they started serving it, and her higher higher metabolism craved it, it's been a constant lunch-time friend. She observes how Lance and Ross make their choices. In a way she wanted to understand the two newcomers. Particularly Lance. He's been pinging on her radar the whole time they have been together. But in this setting such a thing would be improper.

Ross on the other hand drew a blank to her. He was cute, in his way, but compared to Lance he was a small planet orbiting a bright star. Important, possibly even hospitable, a discovery waiting to happen but obscured by the obvious. Then she wonders why she made such a reference. Karrie or Rob would think of this stuff, or that goofy chick in the lab coat over in Japan, or that crystalline genius from Germany that has made himself scarce.

She smiled. "I'm going to be honest, when I first arrived, I was... quite intimidated. Just a few days prior to getting signed up to this outfit I had just rescued my flight instructor out of Lake Superior. I was scared yeah... more for her, but when I had arrived... I was darn petrified."

She turned to Ross and Lance. "Trust me... the first couple of days tend to be more rough than the rest of your career."

Kei looked average, and she's been strangely on subject - something that her reputation in the DSA didn't seem to fit of being the hyperactive dogfight-happy superheroine.

[Ross Shreveson]

"No kidding." Ross had settled down a little, but he still felt jitters from Lance's presence, having sneaked a few looks towards the other man- yep, attraction. It came as a surprise, but Ross would have to think about it later. As long as he could focus on his own spaghetti and what Kei was talking about- though her level behavior wasn't lining up with the whispers he'd heard.

"So what about Telluris and... Karrie, was it? I think that's the name of who my DSA watchers were calling Horst's Headache Hellion?" He mused and asked, before flushing from the act of gossip. "Sorry, it's just what they were throwing around while I was in protective custody. Can we meet them?"

[SeaEagle]

Kei happily nods. "Yep. They're probably in the lab."

"Once we're done here we'll head over there... can't wait to see things."

Kei more than everything else loved the gadgets and other things in the Lab. To be honest it did make her feel like James Bond.

[Lance Kensington]

The cafeteria food was the same quality as pretty much every cafeteria Lance had ever been to but that didn't stop him from grabbing enough food to feed 3 people. In addition to the Spaghetti, he also grabbed a garden Salad, Lasagna, a small mountain of Tater Tots, a couple of pieces of grilled chicken, some sort of Jello-fruit salad concoction and a huge piece of strawberry cheesecake. He looked at his companions who were looking at his mountain of food. "Sorry, big appetite for a big metabolism. Gotta feed the machine," he said with an easy smile.

"You know, this isn't the strangest place or circumstance I've ever found myself. Hell it's not even in the top five," He said then attacked the food mountain with gusto. Even while gorging himself, Lance somehow made it look graceful. Not a crumb was spilled, his clothes remained neat and unsoiled and even the little bits of sauce at the corners of his mouth looked adorable until he wiped them away with his napkin. He listen to both Kei and Ross discuss the lab and some of the other novas while he chewed and swallowed.

"I'm eager to meet the other Alpha novas here too," Lance said when his mouth was clear of food. "Aside from seeing Telluris in that adorable spandex outfit of his, I'm curious to see just what kind of research facilities are at our disposal. So this Karrie person is one of us? That is fantastic. I've met so few super genius novas, and none who were working in the applied sciences."

[SeaEagle]

"Aircraft require what fit it's high performance needs as well, Lance."

She smiled and nodded, eating more of her Spaghetti.

"Karrie is one of the best Geniuses I've run across... of not the best. Then again she designed my outfit when I am usually on missions. Although it took some damage, so the braintrust here at the DSA is fixing it up for me. Karrie herself though is whipping up something for me that I think will come in handy if I need to be all sneaky-like. That... and it'll keep me dry in the rain. I like my armor when I have it active to look it's best... rain makes it sorta spotty. Not very professional."

She looks forward to putting it on when it's done... she felt like a student at Hogwart's waiting to get her hands on some forbidden magical cloak.

"I'm also liking the new design they're giving the vest and suit I'm getting... I guess the constant nautical operations I've put in and being from the Land of 10,000 lakes is influencing their marketing decisions in aspect to how to market my look."

She adjusts the sailor-collared business suit she was wearing and continues. "I think it's better to earn your name than to claim it. They call me Sea Eagle because of what I've accomplished. I thank god I have saved more lives than I have taken... so many more."

She stops for a second to clear her head, shaking off the regret of failing peaceful resolution.

"Anyways, once we're done here we should head to the Lab... Rob and Karrie are great. And they're fellow geeks, nerds... whatever, they're awesome."

[Ross Shreveson]

"Sure, it sounds good." Ross said, finding it internally hard to differentiate whether he really meant the trip to the lab or licking the sauce off Lance's cheeks. Bloody hormones. So after this was over, he was going to ask Lance out. But not too far- Ross had very little experience either way of the swing. So he dug in more fiercely into his own sizeable bucket of spaghetti, backed up with pudding, garlic bread, meatballs, fruit... he was a nova too.

[Lance Kensington]

Lance kept eating while Kei talked. more than one other table watched in amazement at just how fast he packed the food in yet remained so clean and neat. "So," he said. "What drew you guys to join the DSA?"

[SeaEagle]

Kei scratched her head.

"Honestly... I wanted to know what I could do with the powers I gained. When I managed to rescue the instructor I crashed with when I erupted, I knew I was wanting in terms of knowledge in regards to my powers."

She sighed. "Of course, in the process I realized I'm just as much as someone who can take lives as one that can save them."

She paused, looking at the table. She starts eating again, at a faster rate. Someone like her as a human would be probably asking for several weeks of exercise just to take the pounds off.

"I... I don't want to cover that aspect of my job."

[Ross Shreveson]

Ross looked a lot more skittish at that question, and found it hard to decide whether to open up or say little. With memories of the bloody pictures shown on TVs and the comments of 'mob violence' attributed to the causes of the deceased reaching that state, he really came to the conclusion to not get deeply into it.

"I don't want to talk about it much, period. Basically, I was in a troublesome situation around the time I got my powers, so I went to the FBI. Naturally, having been sheltered by the government, they were already angling for me to join the DSA. I figured it was for the better, so I agreed."

[SeaEagle]

"Right, that..."

"Well our pasts are just that. The past." She clapped her hands together once, a look of sudden recollection crossing her face. "Oh! I know!"

She runs over to the desert table and grabs three slices of apple pie and places whipped cream on them and brings one plate for Ross, one for Lance, and one for herself. "I always find enjoying a slice of apple pie among friends to be a highlight of the day."

She smiled... her previous nervousness was gone. She loved these two. Hell, she's not met anyone in the DSA she didn't like now. Even with the bad start she had with Karrie back on Connor's boat. She happily eats her pie, looking forward to moving on.

[Lance Kensington]

Lance listened attentively to the others talk smiled when Kei brought the apple pie. They were both keeping their cards close to their chest. Understandable since they were all still basically strangers to each other. He took a bit of his pie, savored it for a moment and then spoke.

"I find myself here by way of a bargain that a cynical person might call blackmail," He said casually.

"Are you saying you've been blackmailed into joining the DSA?" She said, her voice rising just a tad louder than she intended and filled with more than a hint of indignation. The heads of a few people sitting close by turned to look at the group for a moment before turning back to their own business.

"No, no, you misunderstand," He said waving his hand as if the accusation of blackmail was a trifling thing. "Let me start at the beginning,” Lance paused momentarily, as if to collect his thoughts. “So, several years ago I met a very lovely older gentleman on a trip to Dubai. On the plane we got to talking and after introducing him to the mile high club he told me all about how he was drummed out of the Marine Corps during the 'don't ask don't tell' years and how he'd started his own security company."

"At the time, he was looking for investors to help him take his company to the next level and considering I was, and still am, always looking for businesses to invest in; naturally we struck up a partnership. Fast forward a few years and the company wins a bid on a contract in Afghanistan. The American military needed a peace keeping force in an allied civilian town that was part of a critical supply line but couldn’t spare the soldiers to police it themselves. Everything is fine until some sort of political maneuvering shook up the DOD and someone in power who doesn’t like my friend began to make things difficult for him. There is a chance that not only will he loose the contract but Direct Action could be declared illegal; its employee’s declared war criminals."

“Wait a minute, wait a minute. Are you saying you run a Mercenary company?” Kei said skeptically. “Uh, how does that jive with what we do here exactly?”

Lance dismissed Kei’s concerns with a gesture “I am investor, a silent partner at best. I don’t actually run anything. That is what Darcy is for. Anyways, when it became known that I was involved with Direct Action, Director Horst contacted me and offered me a deal. If I signed on with the DSA, he and his superiors would use their own political clout to make Darcy’s problem go away and everyone is happy. So here I am.” He ended with a shrug of his shoulders, as if to say it was no big deal.

[SeaEagle]

"Part of your assumption is true, Lance. I also know Director Horst is known to reward new members in one way or another. I pretty much was able to complete my flight training, and I got the keys to my own fighter jet... well, I don't own it, it's for my use."

She smiled. "I'm sure that the Director isn't holding it over your head, I don't think that is his style."

"Honestly, I don't have a problem with Mercenaries unless they're trying to shoot me down, then... I take exception."

She finishes up her pie and waits until the rest finish up. She takes care of the dishes and after a last refill of refreshments, she straightens her blazer. "Well, time for the next part of the trip, the moment everyone has been waiting for."

She leads everyone through the halls until she gets to an elevator. She lets Lance and Ross enter first before entering and closing the doors. She then presses a password combination on the elevator control at a rather fast rate. "Don't worry you'll get the code soon enough."

A special security console opens up and she swipes her id badge through it.

Recognized: Special Agent Kei Nakano, Codename Sea Eagle, 3 commendations, 1 sanction for delayed paperwork.

Note for the day: Please complete your paperwork, Miss Nakano - Dir. Horst

Messages: 0[/code]




Kei blushes as she accesses the menu,



[code]Elevator Control> Access Level Under 3.

Console> Starting Elevator - Destination: Main Laboratory

"I always love this part."

After the elevator arrives and the door opens, Kei walks out first, letting Lance and Ross to soak in Karrie's lair. The door closes behind them.

"Welcome to the DSA Laboratory. Or as I lovingly call it, Karrie's Playground. Karrie is probably working on some project..." She says looking around. She sees her repaired Devilion and vest sitting on a counter. She squeals with delight and picks it up."Yes! it's fixed! Looks better and... heeee!"

She was completely happy at this point. She saw her recommendations for the repairs were adhered to, although she knew some things were are annoying to her sensibilities. Kei took it more as fitting what the DSA was looking for in a "marketability factor" for Kei's image. For instance the navy blue sailor collar on the now orange vest, and the new color scheme of the DSA blue and white suit, with the DSA logo prominently displayed on the shoulders.

She giggled, hugging her gear. "Oh... there isn't a uniform. Horst encourages us to take our best judgement if we start to develop a persona."

She picks up the new navy blue beret made for her with the DSA logo on the front.

"So... time to let Karrie know I'm here."

The room they were in was an outer foyer, there was a set of clear, security glass doors separating the outer antechamber and the laboratory. The table her suit was on was built into the wall with a clear shield she opened and closed with her thumbprint and a retinal scan.

She does the same thumbprint and retinal scan to open the comlink and airlock control. "Karrie... it's Kei. Thanks for fixing my gear from the Calamari fight. I hope you're feeling better from that... anyways they got me leading the Greenhorn tour and Your a stop on it. Permission to come aboard?"

She smiled and waited.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

There was no answer, and the three novas looked at one another. “Is this normal?” Lance asked after a moment.

Kei laughed. “Don’t ever use the word ‘normal’ to describe Karrie.”

As if the words had been a prophecy, the doors burst open and a form rocketed through them. A young woman with copper skin sprawled to the floor, firing back into the lab as she fell. Her air gun fired with soft coughs, almost unheard over her Stallone-like roar. Her engineering overalls were gray but that was where her outfit ceased being normal. She had a sash around her torso with tribal markings; there was war paint over her face. A red headband, just like Rambo’s, was tied over her forehead. Her eye protection appeared to be night vision googles. “DIE WHITE MAN!” she screamed before she rolled to the right, just ahead of a volley of paint splatters.

The woman’s roll fetched her against Lance’s legs. She twisted to look up at him, then pulled her googles up. Lance and Ross found themselves making contact with a pair of large brown eyes. But aside from their cute factor, the most interesting thing about them was the incredibly keen intellect in them. “Rob! Better put up the toys. We have guests.” She started to rise, adding, “Hi, Kei. Hi, guys. Welcome to Horst’s Hell.”

[SeaEagle]

Kei blinked, thinking she should have put the rain poncho on she has in her file bag in it's outside pocket. In fact at this point she starts putting it on.

"Oh dear... forgot that goes on, can't begin to count how many times I was the victim of a stray paintball."

She smiled, and nodded. "Oh, don't let us interrupt." She says with a wicked grin. If there was anything Kei appreciated, was a little disregard for decorum.

"This is Lance and Ross. The greenhorns I was mentioning from before."

She hands a couple cheap rain ponchos, one to Lance and Ross. "You two might need these." She says, already wearing a semi-clear pink rain poncho.

[Ross Shreveson]

"Maybe." Ross mused, taking one under his arm to quickly don if needed. "Hi." He said. "This is paintball day, week, or something?" Somehow the name Horst's Hell made absolute sense here.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

“No, you don’t schedule paintball time,” Karrie said as she stood up and pulled the goggles off. She shook her hair, letting the two braids flop around her face like overly long ears. “You have paintball time. You experience paintball time. You live paintball time.”

A lanky man leaned around the door and shot one more time, his gun pointed down at the woman’s ass. Karrie leapt and spun, shrieking in surprise. “Sorry.” Rob “Telluris” Lehnsherr didn’t look sorry. “Feather trigger.”

“I’ll feather your trigger!” Karrie snapped, her hand resting on the blob of red paint decorating her right ass cheek. “That stung!”

“That’s what you get for setting your velocity higher than we agreed.”

Karrie made a dismissive waving motion. “It’s not like it hurts you, big baby. Unlike me, you have earthen-rock-gravity skin or something. Anyway… this is new people. New people, this is Rob.”

[SeaEagle]

Kei leaned on the wall, looking for a certain something.

"So, you guys been busy? Surprised you're chipper with how busy we've been."

She smiled. "To be honest... I'm glad you guys can do this here."

She looked to the two scientists. The dynamic duo of the lab. "I'm surprised they call this hell. Hell is a punishment, and here... at least for you guys, it's like the Elysian Fields."

[Lance Kensington]

"Why hello there," Lance said when the cute native woman crashed into his legs. He casually dismissed the offered poncho with a casual wave of his hand saying "I won't need that."

Before he could offer his hand she was up on her feet and introducing them to Telluris, one of the DSA's poster boys. "A pleasure to meet you both," Lance said with genuine warmth. "I'm Lance, Lance Kensington."

He swept past the others and into the laboratory proper before anyone had a chance to reply, carefully stepping over and around the various multicolored spatters of paint that marked the furious scene of a recent paintball battle. His hands were folded behind his back as he nosed around, careful not to actually touch anything. He glanced at everything, rapidly taking in the details of the various projects with a vaguely bored expression that fooled all but the most observant of people. "So this is the famous DSA think tank? Where all the magic happens?" He said, a slight smile gracing his features, before stopping in front of a half completed device. "Hey is this a quantum entanglement communicator?"

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

The room that Lance had entered was rather large. Long counters ran lengthwise around the room; shelves divided the counters periodically, providing spots for tools or parts. In the back corner, a truly impressive amount of parts and pieces was spilling off of a massive shelving unit, providing bits for future inventions. Overhead lights cast a surprisingly warm light; a closer look confirmed that they were full spectrum bulbs.

“No,” Karrie said, her voice holding a bit of annoyance at Lance’s presumption. “It’s a neural interface for piloting a plane.” When Kei made an excited noise, Karrie added, “Without requiring trepanning, even.”

“Yay!” Kei all-but cheered.

“And it’s Horst’s Hell. Demons love being in hell, remember?”

“Actually, think they’re in torment, too.” Rob pointed out shrugging a little.

“Fuck if I know. The last time I was in a church, someone had died.” Karrie threw her hands up in the air as if utterly exasperated with the entire concept of church. “Also, I thrive on being busy, so long as it’s with real work and not bullshit.” She leaned against a counter, crossed her arms and asked, “Anything in particular you wanted to see?”

[Lance Kensington]

"I see," Lance said in a distracted tone. Karrie saw a familiar look in Lance's eye. It was the look that she knew she got when she latched on to a project or mentally disassembled and new piece of technology that came her way. Her further irritation changed to a whisper of smug satisfaction when Lance's brow wrinkled, an indication that something hadn't clicked for him.

Lance realized that he'd been staring at the interface for a minute or two and turned to regard the others who were all watching him. A quick read of the tension in the room and subtle (and not so subtle) body cues, Lance realized he'd overstepped. To Karrie he said, "I'm intruding, I apologize. Sometimes I get ahead of myself and step on toes," He flashed his killer smile at the offended genius. "Will you forgive my rudeness?"

[SeaEagle]

Kei happily wandered about, looking at some of the projects being considered or tinkered with. Giggling, she knew it was better not to touch certain things. Giddy to try on her new outfit she heads to the bathroom. Noting various pieces of rather mundane artwork on the walls, mixed with various scribblings of mathematical formula in one of the stalls. Kei... sort of remembered from one of her more boring science classes it may have had something to do with the Lorentz Force. In fact scrawled nest to it was "Use The Force!!!" next to it.

Kei couldn't believe she was laughing at a nerdy mathematics joke.

She swapped her clothes into her newly repaired suit, stowing the poncho and her business clothes. She was careful with putting on her repaired suit. The sound of the relief valves letting out the trapped air from putting the suit on as the memory polymers contracted to her body was a fun sound to hear. She then puts on the vest and notices the pockets at the bottom were removed, in favor of having them attached to straps near the waist on the suit itself. Noting the change she looks in the mirror, straightening out the beret she puts on, before stepping back out.

"Thanks again, Karrie. You've definately earned my Gunea-Pig time." She says grinning.

She decides to pull the poncho out again, if only to wear it like a cloak. In a way it fit her eclectic ways. And probably bad fashion sense.

[Ross Shreveson]

"Ross Shreveson." Ross told them, still looking disorientated and out of his element as he stepped over and around paintball splatters to look around. "Well, it does all look impressive. Even if I barely understand any of the techno-lingo or what I'm seeing."

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

The smile didn’t do it. It was the sincere apology coupled with the camaraderie of SCIENCE! “Sure,” Karrie said easily. And for her, it was forgiven. “So you are the fresh meat? Horst must have been looking in some interesting places to find you,” she told Lance before glancing at Ross and noting, “and he found you on the set of High School Musical, didn’t he? Admit it. You’re going to teach us about the wonders of best friends and not cheating on our tests, aren’t you?”

[Ross Shreveson]

Ross flushed but instinctively scowled too. "No..." He sighed, uncomfortable, but decided if this place had the name Hell in it, there wasn't much worse that could result from talking about his past. "That would have been lovely. I've spent a year or more in fairly clandestine witness protection by the FBI until I reached age 18 and could join the DSA. My family was... well-placed in organized crime, and I didn't want to get involved... my eruption was guaranteed to make 'no' not an option to the folks."

He tried to brush it off with a grin, "Well, they trained me a bit and the experts said with my constantly growing level of telekinetic power I could protect myself. So don't challenge me to thumb wars or tug-o-rope. I can sing and dance though."

[SeaEagle]

Kei grinned. "Admit it, you can sway the world with your voice."

"We've got a lack of negotiators in the DSA." she sighed. "So what's your gig, Lance?"

She just couldn't take her eyes off of Lance, although Ross was a looker himself. It was a fine distraction from her recent humbling by a demon-squid of hell.

"Good at fighting mutant squids?" She said with a playful grin.

[z-Coyote-Mad Scientist]

Karrie watched, bemused, as Kei utterly ignored the incredibly surprising story that Ross had been in witness protection at age seventeen because he'd gone state's evidence on his family. It was a far, far, far more interesting story than whatever Lance's gig was - unless Lance's gig was totally working for Ross's family. Kei was a little confusing to Karrie right now, but she was used that. People often confused the brilliant inventor.

"So, Ross... you're in witness protection? How interesting." Her brown eyes were locked on him again. You going to start talking in a New Jersey slur soon?"

[Ross Shreveson]

"Wrong side of the Hudson, Karrie." Ross told her, a hint of amusement at how she was playing this sort of comment lightening his mood with the situation. Glancing around, he found a stool to sit at before going on. "And was in witness protection. What I'm given to understand as per today, I am part of the DSA, redshirt or not, and the government will fix me up with some kind of reasonable living arrangements, trained me in basic power control and self-defense... and they're pretty sure my powers will protect me from hitmen on rooftops with sniper rifles. So here I am. Shall I perform a musical number for you guys about cliques now?"

[SeaEagle]

Kei conciously not brought up his time in witness protection. It seemed rude. But seeing Karrie's reaction to Kei's avoidance of the matter... seemed to trip Kei up. That and she was quite distracted as well.

"Ross... what makes you think you're a red-shirt? I sure as hell see everyone here as valuable. And I know the Director does as well."

She sighed. "And I didn't really read either one of your files. I don't have the time. They don't call me the pint-sized workaholic without reason. I think I'll have to catch up however, and whenever I can."

"I honestly care about the now with you, Ross, not the then. That is all that matters. Some of us have bad histories, some not so bad. Hell someone like Lance here has probably everything go their way."

[Lance Kensington]

"I'm still waiting for my musical number," Lance said with a mischievous gleam in his eye. He tactfully avoided the pitfall of dragging Ross back into memories of what was clearly an uncomfortable history. With the context from Ross' story, Lance was able to make a connection to the Shreveson name and was quickly able to paint a mental picture of what growing up in that environment must have been like. He pulled his phone out of his pocket and fiddled with it as he said. "I'm sure I have some music on here that would work."

At Kami's comment he turned a quizzical look at her. "What makes you say that? Is it because I'm good looking and have money?" He asked. He didn't seem offended by her comment but genuinely curious. She also wasn't the first person he'd encountered who held that opinion based on his appearance and wealth. "I've faced plenty of challenges both before and after my eruption. Me being here, for example, is an attempt to handle a situation that hasn't 'gone my way'."

[SeaEagle]

Kei sighed. "There I go, talking faster than I should."

She shook her head, partly embarrased and partly ashamed. "Sorry... My ignorance is showing again."

She sat down, steepling her fingers and resting her head in her hands. "Just... nevermind."

[Lance Kensington]

"Relax, don't worry about it," Lance said casually. "It's a common point of view and from a certain perspective it's not wrong. My money and looks open a lot of doors for me but they also bring baggage of their own. Just remember that people are people and regardless of their financial status; all people have issues and problems of some sort." Lance was smiling softly as he spoke. Never once did he come off as conceited or disingenuous.

He turned back to Ross. "So I'm curious, What is witness protection really like? Is it at all like the movies, where they stick you in some little town in the middle of nowhere?" He sat on the edge of one of the tables. "And what about now you are free of the program, where have they set you up? Is it some dingy little apartment or somewhere decent?"

[SeaEagle]

Kei had to remember she wasn't exactly busted broke either. She had a good portion of money, and it always seemed to refill after her massive expenditures, particularly lately wwith her suit, the repairs, and now a cloak she comissioned as well. She wantred something for her missions when she's out in the rain. She hated looking like a drowned rat. She nodded to Lance's comment, and waited to listen to Ross a little bit before saying anything else.