Mutants & Masterminds: Harmony City - First Day of Work

[Dawn OOC]

August 14, 2008

The press had gathered tight and furious outside of One Biscayne Tower. It was rumored that today, the newly formed members of the Harmony City municipal defenders were meeting for their first formal meeting. The press was hoping that some sort of statement would be given later, or that the defenders themselves would allow themselves to be questioned. To date, not much had been released about the new super hero team, and everyone was eager to learn about them.

The Biscayne Conference Room was the largest in the building, located on the third floor with most of the other meetings spaces and offices. When the heroes arrive, they are greeted by five people and an array of breakfast materials. The oldest man in the room is also the heaviest, with a thick gut. Despite this, his white hair is combed, and his suit is impeccable.

One of the women is model-perfect. She looked like she had come off a magazine cover, with perfectly-styled blond hair. She was smiling as people came in and found seats at the big conference table, and that smile never slipped or changed.

The other woman is cute but not perfect. Her clothes, while still professional, are more relaxed than the other woman’s, and she was a red-head, not blond. There was a sweet, home-town look to her that was in direct contrast to the professional, sleek look of the other woman.

While the oldest male may have been the heaviest, he was barely ahead of the other Caucasian; this man was overweight himself. He also looked bored, or tired or both. He was not as well-dressed as the older man, but he was professional, with a collared, button-down shirt and nice black pants.

The last name was also the most famous; the black man lounging in the corner was recognizable to anyone who had any knowledge of American super-heroes. Roger Rollins, a.k.a. The Hammer, was the second in command of The American Dreamteam, New York’s municipal defenders. He gave everyone a nod and a grin as they entered.

[OOC: Settle in, get comfortable. I’ll let you all chat and role-play for a bit, then move things forward. Have fun!]

[Primax]

Charles didn't walk in like he owned the place, but he certainly acted like he belonged. As a native of Harmony City, he felt like he belonged here. As the son of the Primax, he felt like he belonged someplace like this. It was in his blood and in his soul. If only he felt less unease in the back of his mind.

Was he good enough to wear the name?

Would he do right by the city that was sponsoring him?

Would he make a difference?

And still he felt like he belonged here amongst the other specials, these other might-be heroes. He took a moment to introduce himself to each of the people present. Damn but the girls were hot. His mind quickly changed gears and he began wondering how to ask each of them out. He smiled at the Hammer's handshake before taking his seat.

[SalmonMax]

Tesseract appeared with no fanfare, no special effects. It looked like a cheesy movie edit, where the camera was stopped, someone got in frame, then the camera started again. No pop, no rush of displaced wind. Just one moment an empty spot by the table, the next she was standing there, face impassive behind her spectacles.

Without comment Tesseract sat down and said "Hello." The comment wasn't really directed towards anyone in particular. It had a sort of ritual feel to it...like someone speaking phonetically. The right word at more or less the right time, but no real grasp of why it was said or what was important about it.

She then pulled a dish of food over, peered at it for a moment, then started eating slices of honeydew melon with methodical movements, chewing each bite exactly ten times.

With the exception of the empty greeting, she didn't seem to really acknowledge the presence of the others in the room.

[Rorx]

Andy stepped from the lift and hurried over to the conference room doors, his clothes still in slight disarrey from the rush with which he had put them on after his shower this morning. His damp brown hair topped his spare 6' tall frame, which showed signs of the many missed meals over the last year.

Hope I'm not late. Stupid of me, I should have gotten to bed earlier last night, I knew this meeting was on, but no I had to go and read those Journals. Oh well, it's done now,

As he got to the doors he spotted his reflection in a glass panel nearby.

Damn, that's not going to be a good first impression for the first day on the job. Should have got some bettr clothes for this. Now there's an idea. On the job, so lets go as Dwarfstar! Much better, now in we go.

With a brief ripple through the air his clothes change into a custom of midnight black with white gloves and hood/mask, on the chest is a white disc surrounded by a corona.

Dwarfstar enters the conference room, appearing with brief ripple in the air some 5ff from the door, and walks over to the table to find a free seat (close to Tesseract, but where he can observe here without being to obvious).

"Good morning all, I'm Andrew Scott, but since we're here I suppose we are on duty, so you can call me Dwarfstar for now."

Once at the table, he pauses briefly before grabbing some black coffee and making himself a bacon and egg sandwich, which quickly disappears.

[Vixen]

Roxanne stood in her room, a few boxes in the corner, and stared at herself in the full length mirror.

She sighed. She told herself that someday she'd get used to it, to the body covered in thick fur, to pointed ears and a snout, to a trio of tails that seemed to think on their own, and in a way that's what scared her the most. That she'd look in the mirror and this would be 'her,' and normal ol' Roxanne Richardson would be long gone.

She double-checked to see if the door was still locked. Not that it'd mean much with the others, with the teleporting and the ability to knock the door down with their little finger, but people respected locks. They spoke of privacy, which she wanted a lot of right now.

She was nude, having just finished a shower, and she couldn't help but smile at the simple pleasure of doing things on your own. No question, that was a benefit. And she could look normal any time she put her mind to it. Just that it was amazing how hard it could be to put your mind to that.

Okay, let's start the day. She looked at her reflection and spoke. "Roxanne Richardson."

Her body changed. The fur retreated, the snout pulled back, the tails disappeared. She stared at herself - still white-haired and green-eyed, but other than that, normal. She could make herself look however she wanted, of course, but this was how she'd looked when awakening and it felt the most familiar. As an afterthought, she conjured up a black skirt, red blouse and white blazer. There, that'll work well.

She unlocked the door and headed out towards the conference area, putting on her best smile as she entered. You know, you're going to have to show them what you really look like eventually, came a thought in her head. And concentrating takes effort. They already know your deal is mystical hoo-hah or chi or whatever claptrap they're peddling now. Why not just relax and save yourself the headache it takes to maintain this illusion?

As she sat down, she didn't have an answer. "Good morning everyone," she said politely and with a smile.

['The Apostate']

The doors opened once again and a few flashes filled the room momentarily as the recipient of their strobing entered with a decree to those outside the meeting room just dying to get in. "No, no, really... I gotta go. Love to stay but I got things to do, worlds to save, parties to crash, ladies to love... you understand..."

They came to a solid close and a young man in super hero regalia (tights and a shameless cod piece) of blues and grays leaned against the double doors, arms spread wide as if blocking them from being battered down.

"Man, I tell ya..." The man said, panting like a hundred moose might trample him over any moment. "Spoil the ending of Twilight and people in this town go nuts."

He noticed the people around him, some struck with complete confusion and others mildly amused. He recognizes the the defender of New York and perks up a been, impressed with his fellow brother in arms' presence. "Woah. Hammer. The Hammer. Even after they put you in the mix you find the time to hang with us? Man, that is so cool."

With that he "Hammer Dances" to an empty chair next to Tesseract. Unlike the quiet woman next to him he dives into his plate shoveling in the breakfast with his fork like a man in the military having one of those 'eat it now taste it later' moments.

[Silas]

A knock on the library door drew Silas's attention, from the grimoire he was studying. Gently closing the ancient text, Silas stood and donned his flowing cloak. His narrow escape from the Dark ones had been a trying ordeal. It had taken almost all of his powers and knowledge to remain hidden from his pursuers, and by heeding the call for heroes to defend Harmony city, it would be only a matter of time before the dark ones came after him. By surrounding himself with other heroes, he believed that he could achieve two goals. Protection, and help to defeat their dark and twisted plans.

As he left room, Silas couldn't help but feel guilty and bit nervous about meeting with the others. He wasn't sure how the others would react to mysterious powers and knowledge. Or the fact that he was using them in sense. He shook his head. Using people had been a common thing during his time spent with the Dark Ones, and here he was doing the same thing here. What would the others do if they found out about his past? Could they still accept him into their ranks?

Those thoughts were interrupted by his arrival to the conference room, which was swarmed around by the media. His quite arrival caught most of them by surprise, though they were quick to recover. Numerous flashing lights went off as the cameras recorded his image of entering the room.

The eyes of the rooms occupants quickly fall on him, as he slowly makes his way inside the room. As he nods to those gathered acknowledging their presence, he scans the others mentally measuring them. "Greetings my fellow defenders. How goes the day?"

[314_Omega]

Omega opened the door and walked into the conference room. He said nothing as he walked to the breakfast table and grabbed a handful of silverware. Taking the fistful of utensils Omega found a seat and sat down, the chair creaking under his weight. The clock read precisely 9 am. "Are we intending to start on time?"

[Rorx]

Dwarfstar looks bemused as Ditto enters the room, but still nods politely to each member who enters the room. After a pause with no-one entering he addresses the welcoming commitee, or whatever they are.

"Well, there are 6 of us here, how many were you expecting in total? Should we get underway or did you wish to wait for any others that are due?"

[Brightstar]

Brightstar bursts through the door with a few seconds left before the clock ticks over to 9:01. "Sorry, alarm clock had issues."

She was dressed in a pair of bluejeans and a goldish colored tee-shirt. She quickly grabbed a plate and took an empty seat at the table next to Omega.

[314_Omega]

Omega looked at her for a moment, "Kallen would you like me to look at your alarm clock later? It would be no problem to repair it." Omega even affected a smile but what should have been a friendly sign instead looked off somehow, probably because, like any other expression Omega ever attempted to display, it did not touch his eyes which remained cold and unchanging.

[Brightstar]

"I do not know if it can... Yeah that would be great thanks." The implication clear that once again she'd blasted the alarm clock to shut it off.

[Rorx]

"I see you two are used to working together, that could be a benefit to the group in the future."

Damn, how stupid does that sound? Just shut up man and let the officials take over.

[SalmonMax]

Tessaract's owlish, unblinking gaze slides to each newcomer momentarily. She stares at Dwarfstar and Omega a moment longer than the others.

Abruptly she says, "I am Tesseract. I was told that I need to speak more often. I am working to do that. It is not easy to think in words."

She pauses and adds, "I hope to have interactions with all of you."

[Brightstar]

And here I thought I was the alien here... That is not fair, maybe she has had some real trauma that made her that way. In the last months I guess I have learned of stranger things.

Kallen nods. "Yeah I hope it does." She looks over at Tessaract and smiles. "Do what makes you comfortable. Don't try to force anything, that just leads to problems later."

[SalmonMax]

Tesseract looks over at Brightstar.

"Explain."

[Brightstar]

"If you do not wish to speak, then do not. Granted communication is essential in the operation of a team, but if it causes problems to communicate vocally, then perhaps there is another method you are more compfortable with."

She continues eating.

[Rorx]

"Does that mean that you list Telepathy or similar amongst your talents Kallen"

Dwarfstar looks slightly worried at this prospect.

[SalmonMax]

"There is a delay of 14.8 milliseconds in translating thought to words," Tesseract muses. "Additional delays are incurred in the physical act of modulating airflow to verbalize. These delays are within observed parameters for human interactions, and are not a problem."

"I anticipate reducing translation delay over time."

[Guest _Brightstar_]

"Nope. No Telepathy." The beautiful young woman sitting next to Tesseract spoke up while contiuing to eat at a rapid pace. The assembled weren't even sure if she was chewing. "But oh man I can't to blast stuff with these... uhh.. maser, phaser, laser uh thingies..."

Brightstar looked to Brightstar. "What do you call em, the blaster jobba-dos?" And then looked to Tesseract's plate and pointed to what was left. "You gonna eat that?"

[314_Omega]

Omega looks at Tesseract, "Yes, my own translational system has been augmented by applied practice. Though I no longer track the statistics on a constant basis my data indicates that i have achieved a rate of 9.32 milliseconds. As you say though, human interaction protocols define a wide window for acceptable reply time." Omega stops and picks up a spoon, swallowing the whole thing in a single gulp. He looks to the others, "Are any of you able to modulate and transmit radio waves? If so we could perform near instantaneous transmission over a far greater distance than by sonics."

[SalmonMax]

Tesseract's eyebrows furrow a bit, giving her a bemused expression, and she lifts a hand up to touch her jaw.

"...dissonance," she says quietly, not really addressing anyone. Then she looks at 'Brightstar' beside her quizzically.

She turns to look at the other Brightstar. Then back at the one beside her.

"You were a man in different clothes," she states. "I've eaten enough...but I still experience a physical desire for food."

Tesseract looks at the melon slice on her plate, with what might be suspicion.

['The Apostate']

"Oh for crying out loud guys." 'Brightstar' spoke up. Her form drifted to silver and shape became vaguely humanoid. In less than a second there were two Omega 314s in the room.

"I can process in 9.13 milliseconds." He said in a perfectly modulated voice while rocking his head back and forth. "Here is my dork card to prove it. One more punch and I get fourteen free days of World of Warcraft."

'Omega' shifted and wavered once more becoming Tesseract. "Normally I'd have a rebuttal oh, Glossy One, but I fear my melon is about to pounce on me in 5.1383 milliseconds, yet I still experience a physical desire for it. I know that when I put it in my mouth the matrix is telling me it's juicy, and delicious..."

With another waver and a shift in form that sounded akin to water sloshing in a bucket and his shape being molded like clay Tesseract became the young man named 'Ditto'.

"Christ on a cracker people." He looked to Hammer, raising his hand as if in class. "Can I get my own room? These guys are creepy and I fear for my self and my ant farm."

[Rorx]

Dwarfstar has to repress a grin as he replies.

"You already have your own room Ditto, but I wouldn't count on that helping you much if they did decide to come after you."

He pauses briefly before adding, "I wouldn't mimic any alarm clocks around here either if I were you"

[SalmonMax]

Tessaract watches Ditto's outburst not impassively, but with eyebrows raising in surprise.

"Have I made a mistake?" she asks.

['The Apostate']

"Eh, inanimate objects are difficult." Ditto curled his lip dismissing the thought of morphing into non-living objects. "People are easier. So, uh, yeah. I'm Ditto and if you can't guess why you're probably not eating enough green veggies."

He looks to Tesseract. "Not as far as I know, but wow are you wound tight. Man."

[Rorx]

Dwarfstar turns to Tess and replies in a gentle voice.

"No, Tess you are doing fine. It seems that despite his mimicry, Ditto might have a little difficulty making allowance for those unfamiliar with local speech patterns, but hopefully you'll both learn as we go along."

[SalmonMax]

Tesseract absorbs that, with a faintly confused frown. She was 'wound tight,' which seemed to have negative contextual cues, but was not a mistake. Was this social complexity indicative of trancendent potential, or was it a reflection of innate limitations in human thought and communication?

More observation was required.

She speared the last slice of melon on her fork and chewed it slowly. Despite not needing more calories, based on her researches, she found the experience of tasting the melon to be...pleasant. It seemed an odd thing for such an involuntary emotional response to be tied to something as simple as chemical fuel. More research was required.

['The Apostate']

Ditto's eyes grew wide as Tesseract said nothing and just seemed to methodically chew her melon. He looked to Hammer and the other 'staff' that had come to greet them.

He raised his hand up to his cheek, attempting to 'block' Tesseracts line of sight of sight and while hiding behind his makeshift 'you can't see me' shield pointed in her direction with his other hand.

'Creepy' he mouthed silently to the large men.

[314_Omega]

Omega's form shifted into that of Ditto, "Is taking the form of others of some social relevance?" His voice was spot on but lacked emotion still. "Hello, I am Ditto now. Is this what is meant by 'walking a mile in his shoes'?"

[Dawn OOC]

"Shall we get started?" the oldest man asked, grasping the chance to start the formal part of the meeting. He spoke with a precise, careful voice; he sounded a lot like a politician, in his speech patterns.

"I'm sure you're wondering who we all are. First, let me say that the citizens of Harmony City are in your debt," he added, looking over everyone at the table. "Thank you for answering the call. I am Dennis McCrae, your liaison to the city. It is my job to intercede for you with the city when misunderstandings occur, to work with the police and other emergency services in a time of crisis, and to advise you in all matters political when you require guidance. I am here to help you, and you will find that I am more than qualified to aid you."

He turned and indicated the other three people in the room. "These are our administrative assistants. They will man the front desk in the lobby in shifts. Currently, they each work eight hours a day, seven days a week. As soon as we secure part-time help for the weekend, they will only be here on the weekdays. Now, I'll let them introduce themselves."

The red-headed woman was the one to his right, and she smiled and said, "I'm Samanatha, and I'm the eight to four shift. So you'll see me at the desk during the day."

The man was next and he said, "I'm Chad. I have the graveyard shift - midnight to eight in the morning. If you know of anyone seeking part-time work who is qualified, please let us know. I need my weekends."

The blond woman, still with that dazzling smile, added, "I am Abigail. I work from four to midnight. It's nice to meet you all."

['The Apostate']

"Abby," Ditto said in a normal tone as he oogled of the attractive blond. "I'd like to be the first to say: Day-um! You is fine!"

When Dennis sighed and resisted the urge to slap his hand over his face Ditto looked about to everyone else.

"What?" He asked, unsure about what was wrong with complimenting the woman.

[314_Omega]

Omega flowed an his appearance became a man of mixed ethnicity with dark eyes and medium skin tone. Save for the lack of hair and the coldness of his eyes he was somewhat handsome. Then he ate another spoon and dispelled the illusion of normalcy.

[Rorx]

Dwarfstar chuckles and shakes his head.

"It looks like Tess and Omega are not the only ones who may have trouble with normal or polite conversation."

He turns to face Ditto.

"That, my friend, comes under the heading of things you are only meant to say inside your own head, or perhaps in private conversation with the person in question, rather than aloud in public."

Turning back to the official he almost pleads, "Please continue."

[Silas]

Silas watched in silence as the others discussed trival matters among themselves, the nature of which meant little to him. Was this how it was going to be like working with other super powered individuals? This would take a lot of getting used.

Moving from his spot in the back Silas watched as the one called "Omega" shifted his form and then ate a spoon. If not for his mystical training he would have no doubts that would have qualified as strange, but to one such as himself there was little that could surprise him.

Silas looked at Ditto and only shook his head at his crude attempt at a compliment. "My apologies kind lady. It seems that even some people have yet to learn common manners. It is a pleasure to be working with you."

[Dawn OOC]

"Thank you," Abigail said, "but that is unnecessary. His comments do not bother me enough to attempt sexual harassment charges."

Hammer was quietly cracking up in the corner as a flustered Dennis tried to find the words to explain why those comments were not appropriate. "I think that Mr... er, Dwarfstar has covered it well. "Do we have any questions?" Dennis asked quickly.

Samantha was staring at Omega, her eyes wide. She wasn't sure she'd seen what she'd just seen. But she was sure she'd seen something weird.

[SalmonMax]

When Tesseract sees Omega eat the spoon, she blurts, "You are made of metal," then looks over at the people introducing themselves.

"Are you normal human beings?" she asks the staff members matter-of-factly.

[314_Omega]

"Technically I am made of a vast colony of nanites, but were you to break down my composition into an elemental accounting over 98% of my mass is comprised of metallic elements yes." Omega studied Tesseract for a moment, "You do no behave like the others. Your speech and actions are closer to my own. Are you an artificial being? An organic construct perhaps?"

[Dawn OOC]

"What? Yes, of- Yes, I am," Dennis said quickly, his face a little red.

"Oh god," Chad whispered, pressing his fingers to his temples and lowering his head. "I left Los Angelos for this?"

"Yes," Samantha replied, still staring at Omega. "I'm one-hundred percent bonifide mortal human."

"No, I am not, but I am not at liberty to discuss my nature," Abigail finished, making Sam's head snap around and stare at her.

[SalmonMax]

Tesseract watches each as they reply, filing away Omega's answer as well. It was good there were some ordinary human beings, for control purposes. Nonhuman intelligence was an unanticipated wrinkle, and technically outside of her purview...but she had some freedom to determine implementation of her purpose.

Belatedly she remembered something she'd been told at the hospital...an appropriate response to a fulfilled request.

"Thank you."

She then looks back at Omega and says neutrally, "I am biologically human, with modifications. I was made and sent to find evidence of potential for trancendence in human beings."