Aberrant: The Middle Children of History - Sun and Surf

[Mech]

He provided Rorx the coordinates and several images of the area around the Laie hotel where he'd rented their rooms. The boards were already rented and all that was left was for the second nova to arrive. Laie was on the Northeastern side of the island, not quite the perfect surf locale, but until Connor was sure he wouldn't make a complete idiot of himself, he didn't really want to surf around others.

He'd been very discreet in arranging things, and a few small favors to certain people guaranteed a certain degree of privacy. "Thank God we can both Teleport, or this would be a whole lot more difficult to pull off."

It was bright an sunny on the island of Oahu, and the winds and seas were highly conducive to surfing. It was about ninety degrees out, and the air wasn't half as humid as his home state. There was a fairly cool breeze blowing from the northeast.

Connor wore a simple T-shirt and bathing suit with sandals, the normal beach attire with a pair of sunglasses being the main thing blocking his identity from everyone else. "It won't last I know, but I plan on at least starting the day as just a normal guy out to enjoy the beach today."

[Rorx]

Darren had been excited about the prospect of the trip to Hawaii ever since it had come up on the OpNet, and to be truthful he wasn't sure which of the three things he could think of he anticipated most.

1. Finally getting to surf at Hawaii

2. Meeting a genuine movie star like Mech, or

3. Actually meeting another Nova.

Regardless of that he had done his research carefully, ever since Mech had suggested using GPS coordinates as targets for teleportation Darren had started looking up a series of progressively further sites to use as practise, with a variety of photographic images to help if he felt the coordnates were a bit to indistinct.

With a daysack of clothes (and cash/cards/passport) packed and two surfboards selected Darren was ready almost as soon as the message came through from Mech. Last details were to tell a couple of his friends he would be away for a few days and ask them to keep an eye on the house, book the days off work so they wouldn't put him on call, and to let the mountain rescue team he WAS still available by phone if they need his help (after checking his phone was set up for international roaming). Then it was just a matter of grabbing the bag, his beach bag, his own surfboard and the one he had chosen as a starter board for Mech, Attuning it all and jaunting across to what looked like a quiet corner near the hotel in the photos Mech had supplied.

The first thing Darren noticed on his arrival was the heat, a distinct change from North Wales, although he was glad for the pleasant sea breeze, the next was how bright the sun was here, but at least he had remembered to bring his shades in his beach bag.

Right then Daz, you are here. Welcome to Hawaii! And no trouble at all to make the jump either, I think I might become a regular! Next I better track down Mech and see what arrangements he's made about rooms, drop my bag off, get changed and then we can hit the beach.

As he was thinking Darren made his way from the corner garden by one of the hotel restaurants back around towards the beach and more public areas looking for Mech.

Well I don't see any Gundam robots around so it could be almost any of these guys out here. Lets try that telepathic scanning then, it worked a couple of times at home, I just hope I know enough from those interviews I watched to lock on to him...Nope, nothing. So that could mean one of three things, 1. He's not here yet, 2. He's here but I dn't know enough to lock on to his location, or 3. His got some kind of mind shield that blocked my attempt to locate him. Think, think, think... Ok, he hasn't surfed before,so concentrate on the guys who aren't actively surfing, perhaps those that are watching them most intently, and no-one else said they were coming so his probably on his own. That narrows it down to about 5 people from this crowd... he's too fat, that one's to absorbed in oiling himself, so that means it's that guy.

His target chosen, Darren makes his way across the beach, still in the jeans and t-shirt form of his Eufibre that he left Wales in, and shifts the bags and boards to one hand. Approaching his 'target' he holds out his free hand, "Hi Connor, good to see you." God I hope I'm right!

[Mech]

Connor smiles and returns the handshake. "Good morning Darren. It looks lie we've got almost perfect weather for surfing."

He chuckles noticing the boards. "Hell I guess we've got enough boards now,I'll show you to the rooms and you can change if ya need to."

With that Connor takes up the rented boards and leads him over to the side of the hotel and to a pair of doors. "The one on the left is yours, mine's next doors. Make yourself at home, I took care of everything. I'll be waiting down by the water."

[Rorx]

"Well, I had said I had one I could lend you. We can try them all out and see which suits you best to start with."

Entering the room Darren quickly does an examination of the place, trying to pick up on any potentially individual features, like wear patterns or places in case he wants to 'port back here later. After all it would be embarassing to intrude on someone by accident because they had a practically identical room. Slinging his day sack of clothes onto the bed, he changes his Eufibre into a short legged and sleeved wetsuit, with a waterproof pocket for his phone in case the Mountain rescue team need him.

In all it is less than 5 minutes before he rejoins Connor back on the beach, assessing the waves and comparing the height and estimated weight of the other Nova to the two rental and his spare board to see what the best match might be.

"Right, ready to get wet then? Those rentals don't look bad, with your height and build I reckon this one might be best for you to start out with. Don't worry though, with even half the agility you've shown on screen I expect you'll be out there with the bulk of the local boys before the day is through."

Darren then leads the way into the water, starting to explain the basics of moving out on the board and balancing in the various area of the board for the ride back towards shore.

[Mech]

Connor nods and takes the offered board. He listens carefully as Darren explains the basics of surfing and smiles. "Ok, let's try this out." Connor strips down to just his bathing suit and takes the board out into the surf, getting on and starting to paddle out to the waves.

He didn't go all out in it, simply because he didn't want to give away his identity just yet.

[Rorx]

Damn, he's going to be good, but then I should have expected that with all the gymnastics and fight sequences he does in the movies

"You're doing real well Connor, in fact are you sure you haven't done this before? A couple of surfing movies hidden in your past or something? We'll just do a couple here then you'll be ready to move out on to the bigger waves with the rest of the guys."

As Darren predicts even without using any of his powers just some of his 'natural' agility and the body control from his job Mech soon at least equals many of the guys on the beach, and could easily surpass them with just the effort to use all his natural talent or skill.

[Mech]

Connor merely smiles. "Nope, we used to do some wave and wakeboarding on the lake back home, and I was decent at waterskiing, but nothing like this." Connor yells over the roaring surf. He picked up pretty quick, and indeed once he got the basics down he could shame any baseline on the beach. He rode one last wave in and then waited for Darren to come in.

"Alright, I think I've got the hang of it enough to where I won't make a fool outa myself in front of a crowd. Whadya say we go hit up one of the big beaches? You wanna hit the Banzai Pipeline, or one South by Wakiki?" He knew either would qwuickly become a spectacle, but then again, there was part of him that was unbothered with having people watch him, you couldn't be a god actor without it to a certain extent.

[Rorx]

"Oh, the Pipeline by all means", Darren replies with a grin.

"How did you want to get there? Hire a car, grab a hotel bus, or do you have the data for a 'port?"

[Mech]

"Ive got a Jeep for the ride. No need to give away the fact we're novas up front by just porting there or Flying over." He smiles and hefts the boards onto a shoulder and heads for the bright red jeep wrangler sitting in the nearby parking lot. He picks up his shirt on the way and straps down the boards he grabbed. He then puts his shirt back on and his sunglasses.

"Come on, there's plenty of daylight left, and if we don't beat the lunch rush it's gonna be a pain to get a halfway decent spot." His tone is light, it's clear he's enjoying himself here.

[Rorx]

Darren follows Connor to the Jeep carrying his share of the boards, and grabbing his beach bag as they go past.

"Well, lead on McDuff. By the way, you could easily move up to the orange and gold board for the next beach. We could leave the ones we don't need with the Jeep perhaps?"

[Mech]

"Sounds good. I don't think anybody's gonna mess with them." The drive to the Pipeline takes about twenty minutes through traffic, and Connor parks in one of the main lots. The beach is crowded, but not overly so. Women in bathing suits are everywhere as is to be expected. "Darren we're gonna have to be quick about this. Leave what you don't need in the Jeep, because we're probably gonna get mobbed. Just play things cool and we might avoid getting mobbed."

It's so odd a thing to say. "I don't want them to see which vehicle is ours because I want it and our stuff to be here when we get back, the price of fame." He shrugs and smiles as he unstraps the board he's taking. He zips the jeep keys in one of the pockets on his trunks and nods. "Let's go."

He takes his shirt off, revealing the impossible perfection only a nova can have and starts Heading to the beach, thanful most people are too used to people arriving to really take notice. Of course as soon as he gets up on his first wave and rides, the combination of the water covering him, his natural good looks, and nova-level control of the board quickly start to draw attention and looks from those on the beach.

[Rorx]

Darren rolls down the top of his Eufibre wet suit and rolls up the legs in order to conceal the Eufibre changing into a pair of trunks, although with an unusual bulge at the small of his back for the pocket his phone is in.

"I know I'm still only plain compared to you Connor, but having two Nova physiques on display might split some of the attention slightly. So what is the plan once you do get recognised? Leg it for the Jeep, stay in the water until they get bored, or 'port out?"

[Mech]

"Enjoy it until it becomes a nuisance, then leave. There's alot of beach on the island, and several other major islands we can hit too. This just happens to be the best."

[Rorx]

"Well, lets hit the surf then."

Darren's general athletic training and Nova agility obviously don't match up to Connor's, but it still more than matchs anyone else's on the beach. However, his years of surfing experience show in the range of maneuvers and tricks he demonstrates, before Connor flawlessly copies them.

[Mech]

Connor does his best to not hog the spotlight, I mean this trip was meant for everyone to have fun. He purposefully doesn't copy everything he sees Darren do, and Rides several more waves before going ashore. There's at least a dozen girls and guys waiting there when he trudges ashore.

He runs his fingers through his hair and smiles.

"Hey guys what's up?"

There's a virtual explosion of chatter as he's recognized and everyone seems to be a fan. Through it all he maintains an easygoing smile and nods. "Easy, Easy everyone I'm just here with a friend to enjoy the best surfing in the world. There'll be time for autographs and all later." Darren pulls a pretty wild trick on a goodsized wave and Connor chuckles. "There he goes now." The group ooh's and ah's dutifully, now keenly aware of two nova surfers on the beach.

[Rorx]

Darren keeps the difficulty of his maneuvers at moderate or above, testing his new agility as much as anything else. After all he only erupted less than a month ago and doesn't know if he has found everything out yet, let alone tested his new limits at all.

He spots the crowd waiting for Connor when he lands on the beach, and waits a heartbeat before pulling a backflip on the board as he tips down the front of a wave. As he lands and easily spots the crowd and Connor looking his way, he casually salutes them and tries to telepathically send to Connor Thanks for the spotlight man

Not used to attention yet, Darren doesn't come all the way in, but starts back out, looking for the next big wave.

[Mech]

Yer welcome. It wouldn't be cool of me to hog it all. he sent back.

He excused himself from the beach-goers and headed back out into the waves, continuing to wow the growing audience, Who was getting quite a show from the two nova surfers.

[Rorx]

Hey, you got the message this time! I tried to do a scan to find you when I first arrived and got nothing, so I assumed that you either had defenses, or that I hadn't got a good enough impression of you from the interviews I watched online to get a lock. Which do you think it was? Oh, by the way I haven't let anyone else know about this telepathy business yet, I figured I'd go talk to Ptesan-Wi, or however your meant to say it, about the whole 'psychic' stuff.

As it approaches lunchtime Darren shouts across to Connor to see if he has any plans made, and notices a commotion out in the deeper water amongst a small group of surfers who had been resting there.

[Mech]

I don't really know. PW does seem to be the resident Telepath that you wouldn't have to contract.

Connor nods as he dismounts his board and hoists it up on a shoulder regarding lunch. "plenty of great places around here, you pick."

He turns to regard the commotion and his smile disappears. "What the hell? Is that a shark?" He drops the board on the sand and launches up into the air going for a closer look.

[Rorx]

Shark? Well its a risk we don't often get in Cornwell and one I've never seen in North Wales.

Darren quickly reattunes the board etc. he is using, then before teleporting out there he sends to Connor.

How do you want to play this? You could blast it, we could grab it and move it a long way out, or I could attempt to order it away? I know I can call animals to me, but I've never tried sending them away so I don't know if that would work. Either way I'll try to pick up an image of the local ER and start getting any casualties there.

Jaunting out to the site is no problem, with Darren arriving as Connor flies up, and he starts to evaluate the situation.

[Mech]

You get the wounded guy out of here or at least to the beach so the EMT's can handle it, I'll handle the shark.

Connor hangs in the air a moment and then goes metal and shifts and grows into one of the many forms he's grown accustomed to. The fifty foot Superior gundam touches down in the surf and with inhuman precision grabs hold of the attacking shark. It was a fairly larger hammerhead at eight feet, but looked like a bass in the mech's hand.

It was pure grandstanding on his part, he could have easily shot the shark but thenanimal rights groups would have protested, even though the shark had attacked someone. Satisfied that Darren and the lifeguards on duty could handle the swimmer who'd been attacked, and that this was the best way to handle things, He lifts back into the air and flies out to sea. About fifteen miles out he releases the shark with an underhanded toss.

"And stay gone. Always something to mess with my damn holidays."

[Rorx]

Darren turns to the other surfers on the scene while he grabs hold of the bite victim and Connor goes Mech in the air above them.

"Ok guys which of you can describe the local ER for me, in as much detail and as quickly as you can?"

Darren appears to listen carefully to him, while in reality lifting the descriptions and memories straight from his mind. Once he feels he has got enough information, he turns and stares in the general direction of the town, "Right, got it. You guys bring his stuff to the ER as quick as you can, I'll see you there."

And with that he 'ports into what was the quite driveway of the local ER, along with the bite victim, a surf board and several litres of water that was on them all. Abandoning the surfboard, he picks up the victim and carries him at a run into the ER proper, shouting ahead of him,"I got a shark bite victim here! Where do you want him?" in his unmistakeably British accent.

As he waits for their responce he sends back to Connor, Here's the data on the entrance to the ER, probably better than jumping into the middle of it all. It's up to you what you want to do, but I'm going to grab a coffee and see how this guy does for an hour or so, get back some juice while I'm at it and then head back to the beach unless you have other ideas? His mates should be on the way soon, so I reckon I can probably get one of them to give me a lift if you want to wait there or going to somewhere else.

A senior looking nurse bustles over with a clipboard, while a couple of others start work on stripping any remaining clothing in the area of the bite and cleaning it up for sealing/bandaging, taking the guy off it a side room as they do so. Darren follows as far as the door,while starting to answer the nurses questions to the best of his ability.

[Mech]

Connor hovers above the beach for a moment and then returns to his normal form. He quickly scoops up the boards and loads them on the jeep. Then he drives hard for the hospital where Darren and the victim were. He parks in the garage and nods to the security man on duty. "There's probably gonna be a crowd after me. if ya could hold them off as long as ya can."

Recognition flashed in the guard's eyes and Connor made his way inside to where The patient and Darren were. "Sorry, had to go teach that hammerhead a lesson it won't forget."

He looks to Darren. "How is he?"

[Rorx]

Darren has only just finished answering the last of the nurses many and repeated questions, and is returning to the treatment room with a couple of coffees when Connor arrives.

"Hi Connor, he'll live, although he's lost a chunk of his right thigh so he might well lose the leg. They've put him out for now and will be moving him up to a room when they have finished in there."

"So did you kill the shark or just dump it? How long do you think we should stay here?"

[Mech]

"It's good that he'll live. I'll see what I can do if he ends up needing a prosthetic."

He chuckles when asked about the shark. "In front of that many people? No way. I just tossed it back into the Pacific about fifteen miles out."

He shrugs to the rest. "However long you feel like staying I've got my cell with me, so they can call us when the guy wakes up. Earlier you mentioned food and a bit of a break. We can go back to the hotel, or we can go find a place to Relax on some other part of the island."

[Rorx]

"Yeah, I've already given them my cell number, so we can split anytime. If we move now perhaps we could stay ahead of your fans. As to where, I don't really care. We could grab a late lunch somewhere. I don't know about you, but I've generally got a normal size appetite, although I know most novas need a whole lot more. So I'll let you choose where we go."

[Mech]

"Alright then. He looks to one of the victim's friends. "You guys know a restaraunt around here that's got some sort of all you can eat buffet?"

One looked at him, recognizing him almost numbly. "Yeah, about four blocks from here they've got a place called Aloha Jack's. Best seafood on the Island, he's got just about everything you could want there."

Connor nods. "If you guys want to join us feel free. If you would keep me posted on your friend. If finances are an issue, give me a call." he leaves then, waiting as Darren follows.

Together the two of them drive to Aloha Jack's. It's right on the beach, and a fairly good sized restaraunt. They're met at the door by a young hostess. "Just the two of you?"

"No, probably gonna have at least two more, and maybe more once people figure out where I went." She looked at him for a minute and then recognition flooded her eyes and face. "You're..."

He smiled. "Let's keep it quiet. We're just out to enjoy the surf and good food of Hawaii. We were told this place has the best buffet around, so here we are. You may want to tell your chef to cook up more mahi-mahi and if he's got it some swordfish."

He looks over to Darren. "You got any requests you'd like to see?"

It seemed ludicrous that he was asking for certain dishes on the buffet, but the hostess understood that most novas could eat immense amounts of food. He was actually naming things he planned to eat alot of, and thus was trying to make sure there was enough for everyone.

[Rorx]

"Nah, as I said earlier, I haven't got your appetite, I'll just try a little of everything, and that includes the bar, until I find what I like best."

Turning to Connor he asks, "So where do you want to sit, in the middle where we can push tables together, or a table at the back near a door?"

[Mech]

"somewhere with a view of the beach and access to a door is preferred." He looks and finds just the table. The hostess nods and seats them there. Another female waitress arrives in moments. "What will you gentlemen be having?"

"Buffet and tea for me to drink, you may as well bring a pitcher of the latter."

The Waitress looks to Darren "..And you sir?"

[Rorx]

"Buffet, and start with a pint of the first lager on the righthand end of the bar."

Turning to Connor he explains, "It doesn't have an effect any more but I find I still like the taste of a tube with a meal, a leftover from my student days I guess. I'll just work my way along to find the one that tastes best to me with what I'm eating at the time."

After the waitress has gone Darren continues,"So more surfing this afternoon, or sightseeing? I thought I might have a look at one or more of the volcanoes while I'm here."

[Mech]

The waitress leaves and returns with their drinks after a moment, also bringing them plates for the buffet. "We can do both, there's plenty of islands to see, and it ain' exactly hard to find a volcano."

Once the girl arrives with the plates, he gets up and heads to the buffet, returning with a plate stacked high with swordfish, mahi mahi, and barbecued prawns. "Not alot of fried foods, but these are all fresh. Much fresher than you'll get anywhere else."

[Rorx]

When the food arrives Darren excuses himself for the mens room, coming back with his Eufiber in jeans and a t-shirt rather than the trunks they were before.

"Ok then, lets have a leisurely lunch for an hour or two, depending on the crowds of course, then head over to that other beach you mentioned this morning until sunset. Then tonight we can see what else the island has to offer. You're right the food is excellent here."

[Mech]

Connor nods as he finishes his first plate and goes back for another. he returns, this time his plate has a veritable mountain of sushi. "Unlike you, I do have a nova appetite. As for gameplans that sounds fine, There's supposed to be some sort of Party on Wakiki beach tonight, so I figured we'd end up there. Lots of lovely ladies, more good food and besides, parties are always fun."

[Rorx]

"Sounds good to me, start off by surfing there then just follow through with the party scene. Mind you I suppose there is a party of some sort for someone virtually everynight at Wakiki."

Darren eyes what is obviously going to be one of several more plates that Connor will need. "Well, I'd heard about it of course, but since you're the first other nova I've really met I hadn't experienced how much you guys need to put away in person before. You want me to go get your next one ready in advance for you? I was going to go by the bar anyway."

[Mech]

Connor shakes his head. "Nah I got it. and I suppose you're right about there always being a party here."

He stopped eating when he mentioned Connor was the first other nova he'd met. "It's fairly common in First Generation novas. You're lucky in that you don't have it. It costs an arm and a leg and If I didn't make the money I do, it wouldn't be easy to eat like I seem to need to."

Next time they do a big nova party you should go. It's a great way to meet new people."

[Rorx]

"Yeah, I couldn't make do on the salary I've stil got as a park ranger, although I don't know if I'll stick with that or try for somethng else yet. I think I'd rather find something that I can do more part-time or more infrequently so I can spend some time working out my powers and what I can do with them better. but even without the typicla Nova appetite I've still got to put food on the table in the meantime."

"Yeah I saw some of the posts leading up to the recent one, but I didn't erupt until about the same time as the party, or perhaps just after, otherwise I'd have made a point of being there. I certainly hope to make the next one."

"I heard there was some trouble there of some kind, some gate-crashers or something? So what's the story on that?"

[Mech]

Connor's smile vanishes. "Some uninvited guests arrived and caused a scene. They were not prepared for the novas present and beat a hasty retreat. I must admit I never actually saw a nova crap their pants before that. It would have been much funnier if it hadn't killed the party."

He leaves and returns with another plate, this time with shrimp, swordfish, and some sort of fried filet. A second pitcher of tea is brought and he refills his glass. "The Food is excellent, but the tea isn't sweet enough."

[Rorx]

"What sort of tea is it? Perhaps they have some honey you could add."

Darren looks briefly around the slowly filling room. It seemed split between people from the beach and those dressed more for town, perhaps those that had followed news of their presence at the hospital.

"You seem to have a pretty good relationship with your fans, or do you expect to get mobbed later?"

As Connor starts to answer Darren spots the first media van pull into the beach carpark.

[Mech]

Not the kind you add honey to, I assure you. But yeah, I like to think I do well by my fans. I make alot of public appearances helping others out even when I'm shooting, but there are times when my fans can be a little much."

He spots the media van outside and frowns. "I hope you realize that if that van's here about the shark, you're the one who's gonna be in the spotlight." He hands Darren the keys. Get the jeep and meet me a block east of here at that gas station we passed on the way. I'm gonna go pay up and disappear."

He walks over to where the register is, points back to his table and lays three hundred dollar bills down. The Clerk behind the register starts to stammer, but he shakes his head. "I ate alot of high dollar food. Tell your boss this place is great and that I'll likely be back. And tell the cook he did a damn fine job. That was the best swordfish I've had in a long time."

He passes back by the table. "Unless you want to deal with the media I suggest we leave now."

[Rorx]

"Gas station one block east, got it. Although you do realise I never driven on your side of the road, don't you? Anyway, I'm just an unknown who brought in the victim, not the famous and heroic Mech who took on the shark singlehanded to save the beach." He finishes with a big grin as he turns toward the doors and the jeep.

Pausing in the doorway Darren buries his quantum energies deep within him, so that when he steps out into the carpark there are none of the most obvious nova signs about him.

Going to the jeep he passes the media without a glance from them, and manages to get to the gas station with little trouble, undorming on the way.