Aberrant: Cognizant Chimera - Cognizant Chimera - The Early Years...

[Archer21]

And I smell bacon.

Jimmy stomach rumbled loudly at her comment. "Uh...hehe.Sorry, maybe I should grab something to eat." Standing up, he took a deep sniff of the air. "Hey! I can smell the bacon too! And the eggs and the waffles and the juice, and...", he looks at Diamond Dog, "you use the same kind of shaving cream I do! I can smell it from your head, and from upstairs too!" Excited, he walks over and grabs a plate, piling food onto it. "Maybe I got animal powers! My sense of smell, my freaky eyes...I remember now! In the lake, I was thinking about the Discovery Channel marathon I saw, and then I flew out of the water and I looked right at this squirrel, but he was up in a tree, and he looked really close up, and then I flew into the tree. That sucked. And then I woke up and I had claws, and then I didn't have a flashlight so my body started glowing..." His stomach rumbled again, and noting the stares directed at his rambling, he quickly buried himself in eating his food.

[Heritage]

Martha grins and nods as Jimmy rattles on about his sensory impressions, happy to see someone else who 'gets it'. She starts to pile food onto a plate, glancing at Jimmy's to make sure she keeps pace. She takes a bite out of a piece of bacon, and her eyes practically roll up in her head.

God damn! Lord, that's good bacon!

She covers her mouth with her hand and apologetically points at her plate.

Sorry. Bacon. Carry on, Mr. Finnegan.

[ProfPotts]

The slim brunette looks downwards a moment then up into his eyes, "I... would like that very much. Can you tell me Michael, why you actually came here? And maybe some details about what you did before, and how you are dealing with the changes that have occurred?"

The television cameraman behind her focuses in on Michael waiting for his reply. A few of the other cameramen start aiming their recorders in his direction...

The winged man allows the woman a smile, then replies,

"I suspect that I came hear for much the same reasons as you did, Miss?... I didn't get your name, sorry."

He smiles again, then continues,

"We're all here for answers about those of us who have been changed recently - the boxer just happened to provide a gathering point for us all."

"As to what I did 'before' - before the changes you mean? The same thing I do now - bring pleasure, & a firm hand, to women I permit to serve me."

Pausing just long enough for his words to have some sort of impact he adds, by means of explanation,

"I'm what some may call a 'professional dominant'."

Michael then leans close to the reporter's ear (the one without the ear-piece in it), & whispers,

"You I'll allow to call me 'Master'..." ::devil

Standing straight again, he continues as if he'd said nothing out of the ordinary,

"The changes - well, as you can see, my changes are of the physical variety."

He stretches his wings to their full, impressive, span, then wraps them around himself & the reporter,

"The wings are quite real... My physical capabilities also seem to be enhanced..."

He guides the woman's fingertips to trace over the solid muscles of his torso, whispering,

"... all aspects of my physical abilities..." ::devil

Re-folding his wings behind his back, Michael continues,

"As to the question of how I'm dealing with the changes. We'll, before I chose to make myself unique, now I really am - & it feels wonderful. There was a certain amount of confusion to begin with, naturally. If I'm to be honest, there still is. But there don't seem to be any negative side-effects from the changes that have occured to me - just some few adjustments in my life. I used to have a lovely collection of shirts..." ::wink

He again flexes the wings,

"What I can tell you, is that if this is some divine - or infernal - gift, or meant to have any purpose or significance, then someone forgot to tell me." ::sly

[phoenix]

God damn! Lord, that's good bacon!

She covers her mouth with her hand and apologetically points at her plate.

Sorry. Bacon. Carry on, Mr. Finnegan.

Eddies eyebrows rise at this, and he and Virginia exchange a look. Then he shrugs.

"So, I have a question for Mr. Finnegan and, er, Mr. Dawg. Just how strong did you guys become? I haven't seen much of the footage of your match, I'm afraid.."

"Maybe I got animal powers! My sense of smell, my freaky eyes...I remember now! In the lake, I was thinking about the Discovery Channel marathon I saw, and then I flew out of the water and I looked right at this squirrel, but he was up in a tree, and he looked really close up, and then I flew into the tree. That sucked. And then I woke up and I had claws, and then I didn't have a flashlight so my body started glowing..."

Eddie lights up at this. "You can fly? Isn't it amazing? We'll have to race, once I learn to control it better.."

[Archer21]

"You can fly? Isn't it amazing? We'll have to race, once I learn to control it better.."

Taking a moment to swallow, Jimmy nods vigorously. "Yeah, I want to know how fast I can go too. But I need to learn control too, let's make sure we choose a big open area. Running into trees hurts."

"So, I have a question for Mr. Finnegan and, er, Mr. Dawg. Just how strong did you guys become? I haven't seen much of the footage of your match, I'm afraid.."

Jimmy looks interestedly at the two boxers for their answer.

[Prince of Boredom]

(sorry all, quick time warp… and I apologize for the long post…)

April 1, 1988

“…and now back to Larry King Live on CNN.”

“Our second guest today is David Jackson, recently exposed ‘superman’”

“Well I wouldn’t call it that Larry…”

“Now it says here that you’re a stuntman, is that right?”

“Yeah, I’ve been doing movie stunt work for about 6 years now.”

“How did you get your start doing that?”

“Well, I was born in Southern California, so it just kind of seemed natural to go to UCLA when I graduated high school. I was finishing up my sophomore year, when I saw an add up on the noteboard asking for extras in a movie being filmed. So, I showed up, and as luck would have it I got to do a little action sequence, and just sort of worked my way into the biz.”

“Now we have some unique footage here of your, what are they calling it now, eruption, from your new movie coming out this summer, ‘Nerves of Steel.’”

“Well, it’s not really my movie, I just did the stunt work…”

“Alright, well let’s let our audience see it,”

The scene is a downtown city block, slightly overcast with a light mist falling on the ground. An office building to the left of the screen is engulfed in an, apparently, out of control fire. A red Dodge Viper zooms past the camera at breakneck speed, then violently crashes into a parked car. Immediately, a body can be seen flying through the windshield of the car (and it’s clearly a real person, not a dummy) and flies directly into the roaring flame of the office building.

From off set voices can be heard,

“Holy ****”, “Oh my God”, “What happened?”, “Get the pyro guys here and get that fire out now!!”

A few tense moments ensue, and then dramatically a figure can be seen walking out of the building, completely unharmed!

“Wow, that’s pretty amazing, that wasn't supposed to happen was it?"

"No, I was supposed to hit the car and then the scene was over, but instead my harnesses broke and I was flown from the car."

"We’ll be back with your questions after this…”

April 11, 1988

David walks up to the front gate of the mansion, swarmed by reporters and cameramen trying to get a picture or word from the nova.

“David, when’s your next movie?”, “Who are you dating?”, “What kind of powers do you have?”

He finally makes his way up to the guards who immediately recognize him and let him in. David is let in to the house and wanders his way around until he finds his way to the hall.

David walks in, dressed rather casually, wearing black boots, very faded and worn blue jeans, a white T-shirt and black leather jacket. He’s quite handsome in a gruff baseline sort of way.

“hmm, go figure, the party has already worked itself around the food. Afternoon all, I’m David Jackson.”

[Asbjørn]

[That should be 1998, Prince...]

Martha Cross, the Wicked Witch of West Texas. And I smell bacon.

::blink

*I'll be damned. The god damn honky tonk woman .* ::rolleyes

"So, Texas, where's your broom? Do you fly too? Seems to be a lot of that going around..."

Jimmy stomach rumbled loudly at her comment. "Uh...hehe.Sorry, maybe I should grab something to eat." Standing up, he took a deep sniff of the air. "Hey! I can smell the bacon too! And the eggs and the waffles and the juice, and...", he looks at Diamond Dog, "you use the same kind of shaving cream I do! I can smell it from your head, and from upstairs too!" Excited, he walks over and grabs a plate, piling food onto it. "Maybe I got animal powers! My sense of smell, my freaky eyes...I remember now! In the lake, I was thinking about the Discovery Channel marathon I saw, and then I flew out of the water and I looked right at this squirrel, but he was up in a tree, and he looked really close up, and then I flew into the tree. That sucked. And then I woke up and I had claws, and then I didn't have a flashlight so my body started glowing..." His stomach rumbled again, and noting the stares directed at his rambling, he quickly buried himself in eating his food.

Dog looks at Jimmy as he rambles on, smiling and seemingly not believing his eyes until he reaches the end of the monologue.

"Claws!?!" , he blurts out. "Wait a minute. You mean, like f*ckin Wolverine?" ::blink

Have you gotten to the point of calling us all together, Dawg? Or is this just jibber jabbering time?

"Point? The chitchat is the point, man. ::wink We're just making introductions."

"Everybody, this is Peter Finnegan, who thinks we oughtta be superheroes or something. He's been reading too much Spiderman and wants to know what y'all wanna do with your powers. Personally, I just wanna find out what the hell this is and share a meal with people in my kind of situation."

"So, I have a question for Mr. Finnegan and, er, Mr. Dawg. Just how strong did you guys become? I haven't seen much of the footage of your match, I'm afraid.."

"Ain't all that much to see, really... The first rounds I'm bitchslapping him around, and then he goes down in the fourth. That's where it gets interesting..."

Dog stops as he realizes he's about to go off on the wrong track, takes a deep breath and explains.

"The point is, the match doesn't really show that much since we stopped it right after I ... changed. We haven't armwrestled or anything after that, but I think the heaviest thing I've lifted so far is my jet." ::biggrin

Dog grins and looks at Finnegan.

"No bullshit. I had to change to do it, but I lifted a god damn jet plane."

[Archer21]

"Claws!?!" , he blurts out. "Wait a minute. You mean, like f*ckin Wolverine?"

Jimmy, mouth open to take a bite of his bagel, stops. "Er. You mean like the comic book guy? X-Men? No, not like that...these were like, uh...damn, I don't know. I didn't look at them real close. I guess I could try to make them come out again, if that's okay..?

"No bullshit. I had to change to do it, but I lifted a god damn jet plane."

Eyes wide, Jimmy asks, "You lifted a jet? That's unreal! Man, wish I could lift a jet! Wait, what do you mean by change?

[Asbjørn]

Jimmy, mouth open to take a bite of his bagel, stops. "Er. You mean like the comic book guy? X-Men? No, not like that...these were like, uh...damn, I don't know. I didn't look at them real close. I guess I could try to make them come out again, if that's okay..?

"Sure. As long as you don't use them on anybody..."

[Archer21]

"Sure. As long as you don't use them on anybody..."

Jimmy quickly shakes his head in the negative. "No way, man. I don't want to hurt anybody."

Setting down his bagel, the dark-haired programmer looks at his hands, palms towards himself, and narrows his eyes, concentrating. Slowly, his fingertips lengthen, turning darker and hardening into slightly hooked claws. A pained expression on his face, Jimmy bites his lip. "Well, I did it. My head is killing me though." He looks closer at his newly grown talons.. "Huh. Well, these look like badger claws." He glances up at Diamond Dog and grins weakly. "Must've been your Wolverine comment. Wolverines, real ones, are related to badgers, you know. They're both part of the Mustelidae family of mammals, and..." Realizing he's babbling again, Jimmy flushes and goes silent, looking down at his hands.

[Asbjørn]

Eyes wide, Jimmy asks, "You lifted a jet? That's unreal! Man, wish I could lift a jet! Wait, what do you mean by change?

"You're damn right it's unreal. I couldn't believe it myself. Worst part is I think I could do better than that..."

He gets up from his chair and looks around before his eyes return to Jimmy.

"What do I mean, change? Don't you watch TV, man? Here's what I mean..."

Dog takes a deep breath as a look of concentration crosses his face. He winces as if in great pain, then his skin starts to shimmer and go clear as crystal. His muscled arms turn into seemingly chiseled crystal as the organic lines of flesh and sinews turn hard and linear.

When the transformation is complete, his entire body looks like it's been cut and polished from a huge diamond. His mouth is carved on a rock hard face, and even his eyes seem to be made of the same material. His voice is as deep as before, but with a more hollow ring to it when he speaks again.

"I think my skin is diamond or something. It's hard as hell, anyway. I took a Desert Eagle point blank to the chest, and I didn't even feel it."

[ezekiel]

"No bullshit. I had to change to do it, but I lifted a god damn jet plane."

Eyes wide, Jimmy asks, "You lifted a jet? That's unreal! Man, wish I could lift a jet! Wait, what do you mean by change?

"You're damn right it's unreal. I couldn't believe it myself. Worst part is I think I could do better than that..."

"Do you hear that Englebutt?! Jewelboy here can lift planes! - Lance eyes DD with an impish grin - My, my, how big you must feel..."

Turning his gaze to Finnegan

"What, exactly, did you have in mind Mr. Finnegan?"

[Asbjørn]

"Do you hear that Englebutt?! Jewelboy here can lift planes! - Lance eyes DD with an impish grin - My, my,  how big you must feel..."

Turning his eyes on Lance, Dog starts walking in his direction.

"And what's your gift, punk? Being a pain in the ass? You're good at it..." ::angry

The muscles of his arms flex as he approaches him, and despite the alien face it's plain to see that he's not happy. He stops right in front of him, a diamond forefinger pointing to Lance's chest.

"You're a guest in my house, asswipe. If you don't wanna learn to fly as well, I suggest you act the part. Didn't your momma teach you any manners? Well? You stayin' or leavin'?"

[Nullifier]

Dog takes a deep breath as a look of concentration crosses his face. He winces as if in great pain, then his skin starts to shimmer and go clear as crystal. His muscled arms turn into seemingly chiseled crystal as the organic lines of flesh and sinews turn hard and linear.

The unobtrusive looking young man who's been quietyly munching on large plate of sushi seems to be waching Diamond Dog intentely as he goes through his change. [Quantum Attunement on, mr. St, sir. ::bigsmile ]

"I think my skin is diamond or something. It's hard as hell, anyway. I took a Desert Eagle point blank to the chest, and I didn't even feel it."

Finishing one last bite of sushi, he puts the plate down on a nearby table and starts off in deep voice that belies his rather unimpressive physical appearance, "Actually, from what I can tell that's not quite accurate. Your transformation turns your body into a substance with a similar crystaline structure as diamond, but there are definately differences. Oh, and the change seems to radiate from a point in your brain..." Realizing everyone's looking at him now, the young man smiles a friendly seeming smile and continues, "Sorry 'bout interrpting. Name's Gabriel. I can fly, and a few other things. One of them happens to involve seeing the internal structure of things on a sub-atmoic level, if I concentrate. By the way, low Earth orbit is an ideal place to practice flying, if you can survive there that is. But I digress. Like I was saying, I can see the internal structure of stuff if I concentrate, like I was doing when you transformed, Mr. Jones. In fact, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I'd like each of you to demonstrate an ability of yours for me, so I can get a good look at what's going on, and maybe start formulating a coherent theory as to what's happened to all of us. Don't worry, I only need once. Nowadays my memory's photographic. So, what do you folks say?"

Gabriel looks around the rooms at the people gathered there and waits for a response.

[ezekiel]

Turning his eyes on Lance, Dog starts walking in his direction.

"And what's your gift, punk? Being a pain in the ass? You're good at it..." 

The muscles of his arms flex as he approaches him, and despite the alien face it's plain to see that he's not happy. He stops right in front of him, a diamond forefinger pointing to Lance's chest.

"You're a guest in my house, asswipe. If you don't wanna learn to fly as well, I suggest you act the part. Didn't your momma teach you any manners? Well? You stayin' or leavin'?"

Lance hides his face in mock fright, his voice vaguely reminding the party goers of Jeremy Irons at his most despicable.

"*gasp* I think I angered it, Englebutt!"

Looking back at DD with an aweful smirk on his face

"I'm not some white trash wrestling fan DD, deal with it. Now sit down, relaaaaxsss, pretend I didn't say anything and just listen to Finnegan, my man, talk. I promise I'll behaave..."

[brilyn]

I took a Desert Eagle point blank to the chest, and I didn't even feel it.

Bill was keeping himself to hims 'til this point. (He speaks with a fairly thick midwestern accent. Think John Wayne.)

::angry

"Ya did what? I swear, some people ain't got the sense god give'em at birth..... Ya not think o' trying an ARM before ya try your chest? I ask ya......"

"........"

"Sorry 'bout that..... My name is William Erikson, but y'all can call me Bill. I'm a gym teacher, in the local high school back home, so I'm kinda used to people doin' dumb things.... It just touched a nerve, is all.

"Well, might as well tell ya 'bout myself. I been teaching at the high school for a couple years now. Lived in the area all my life. Couple days ago, there was a accident in the street. During the course o' the accident, I was knocked into the path of a trans-state bus. Rather than becoming a smear, as is usual in such instances, the bus hit me, and stopped dead, wrapping the engine block 'round me. I didn't budge one inch, or so I'm told.

"Anyways, when I came to in the hospital, the doctors told me my body was tougher than normal. There were havin' a *hell* of a time taking blood samples, and the rest. I healed up pretty quick too. Took a couple days instead of a couple weeks.

"As for now, I seem to be able to take good wallop without being hurt. And I'm pretty damn strong. I was pretty damn impressed with my strength, until about a minute ago..... I can lift about a ton, but a Jet is WELL beyond me....."

[Asbjørn]

"I'm not some white trash wrestling fan DD, deal with it. Now sit down, relaaaaxsss, pretend I didn't say anything and just listen to Finnegan, my man, talk. I promise I'll behaave..."

Dog's finger stops in mid-poke. Thinking for a moment, he seems to relax, then

"Yeah. You do that."

Obviously still in a dark mood he walks back towards the tables.

"Ya did what? I swear, some people ain't got the sense god give'em at birth..... Ya not think o' trying an ARM before ya try your chest? I ask ya......"

Turning a dumb expression on the speaker, Dog says

"Oh, yeah, massa. Why didn't I think of that? Cause I's just a big dumb negro, right?"

"You think I'm a f*ckin' moron or something!?! ::angry Of course I tried an arm first. Watch your mouth, ok? Just because I ain't throwing him" - he nods towards Lance - "...through the roof, don't mean I aint pissed off, ok? And you do not want to get me pissed off."

Having had that little blowout he walks back to the chair he was sitting in, changing back to his normal color on the way.

[ezekiel]

In fact, if it wouldn't be too much trouble, I'd like each of you to demonstrate an ability of yours for me, so I can get a good look at what's going on, and maybe start formulating a coherent theory as to what's happened to all of us. Don't worry, I only need once. Nowadays my memory's photographic. So, what do you folks say?"

"Of course Mr. Gabriel. Angel of death is it? Purely for the sake of science of course, I'm using one of my...gifts..right now. DD's listening very hard to what I say for the moment and I do apologize Dawg. You were just so very very frightening, yes you were. So I wouldn't advise any of you, and that means you Englebutt, to try anything unless you think you can take Die-O-men here as well... ::devilangel "

[Nullifier]

"Of course Mr. Gabriel. Angel of death is it? Purely for the sake of science of course, I'm using one of my...gifts..right now. DD's listening very hard to what I say for the moment and I do apologize Dawg. You were just so very very frightening, yes you were. So I wouldn't advise any of you, and that means you Englebutt, to try anything unless you think you can take Die-O-men here as well...  "

Gabriel blinks a few times, taken aback by the recent exchange. Seeming to recover, he says, "Gabriel's my first name, no mister necessary, thanks. " With that he picks up his plate of sushi from the table he placed it on a few moments before and goes back to munching on it.

[malkboy]

(Outside the Mansion)

"I'm what some may call a 'professional dominant'."

The reporter's nose wrinkles up and she gives the winged man a glare that would freeze even the hottest of passions.

"SO, what you're telling me, MR. Warlock, is that you are in the habit of making slaves out of women. Not a very pleasant profession, and certainly not airable on public television. Why don't you just go join the meeting and maybe I can catch someone who I can use on air."

With that she turns on her heel and walks away, waving for her camera man to follow her.

(Inside the Mansion)

"Everybody, this is Peter Finnegan, who thinks we oughtta be superheroes or something. He's been reading too much Spiderman and wants to know what y'all wanna do with your powers. Personally, I just wanna find out what the hell this is and share a meal with people in my kind of situation."

Finnegan shakes his head at Dawg, "I don't think we should be stereotyped into super heros at all. Super Heros are near perfect, something a human never could be. But I do want to know what people plan on doing now that the can do what they can do, yea."

...

Finnegan looks a bit disappointed, "Man, I only tried to lift the Humvee. Didn't have a horrible amount of problem with it, but I don't think I can lift a jet. Then again, you were a stronger guy to start out with."

Finnegan watches on as Dawg plays who's got the more intresting change with Jimmy.

"Do you hear that Englebutt?! Jewelboy here can lift planes! - Lance eyes DD with an impish grin - My, my, how big you must feel..."

Turning his gaze to Finnegan

"What, exactly, did you have in mind Mr. Finnegan?"

...

The muscles of his arms flex as he approaches him, and despite the alien face it's plain to see that he's not happy. He stops right in front of him, a diamond forefinger pointing to Lance's chest.

"You're a guest in my house, asswipe. If you don't wanna learn to fly as well, I suggest you act the part. Didn't your momma teach you any manners? Well? You stayin' or leavin'?"

...

"Of course Mr. Gabriel. Angel of death is it? Purely for the sake of science of course, I'm using one of my...gifts..right now. DD's listening very hard to what I say for the moment and I do apologize Dawg. You were just so very very frightening, yes you were. So I wouldn't advise any of you, and that means you Englebutt, to try anything unless you think you can take Die-O-men here as well...

Finnegan aims his gaze towards Lance as Dawg takes his seat, focusing on him for a moment before his moving towards him his body forming what seem to be multiple copies of himself that appear to loop around both Lance, "Your mistake... I've had enough of your mouth already..."

(edited to fix continuity)

[brilyn]

Oh, yeah, massa. Why didn't I think of that? Cause I's just a big dumb negro, right?"

Bill colours (in anger) at this, but keeps his mouth shut. ::angry

[Heritage]

"So, Texas, where's your broom? Do you fly too? Seems to be a lot of that going around..."

Martha shakes her head as she licks some syrup off her fingers.

Naw, I just had a house dropped on me - literally. Woke up in a hospital when I shoulda woke up dead; healed up right quick, too. Strong as hell, but I'm having trouble working the bugs out - darn good at lifting, same as you, but other stuff is a might trickier. And don't even think 'bout shootin' me with no bullet, 'cause that sh*t'll hurt , even if I do heal up faster. There's a bunch of other stuff, but I'm still testing it all out, in case it's temporary or somethin'.

Martha nods at everyone who enters (giving David Jackson an appreciative once over), and laughs at Bill and Dawg's bullet exchange.

However, she becomes alarmed by the notably increasing tension in the room, and steps forward with her arms extended.

Well, now - isn't it amazing how fast it all becomes a pissin' contest? Mr. Dawg here was nice enough to give us all an invite to his place, and we're just 'bout ready to get into a dust-up! Lotta strong folks in this room, and some folks brought their girlfriends along with 'em, plus all them innocent folks outside with all them cameras an sh*t. Might be a good idea we all keep cool heads in here, case this big ol' house come down on us while the whole world's watchin'.

[Archer21]

Sincerely starting to regret his decision to come to this meeting, Jimmy, claws forgotten but still extended, backs himself up against the nearest wall. Staying as motionless as possible during the building tension, Jimmy's skin flickers fitfully, his exposed arms, head and neck all adapting to the colors of the wall and surrounding furniture. Jimmy himself doesn't seem to notice the chameleon-like transformation, his senses entirely focused on any possible danger.

[Nullifier]

Finishing off a bite of sushi, Gabriel shakes his head and rubs his eyes, blinking a few times. Then he smiles broadly, and says in an inhumanly charismatic voice, both deep and loud enough to be heard by everyone in the room, "Thank you all for the demonstrations! I believe I have located the source of our abilities. Now, if you'd all care to calm down and listen to me for a moment, I'd be willing to share that information with all of you. So, how 'bout it?"

[Asbjørn]

Finishing off a bite of sushi, Gabriel shakes his head and rubs his eyes, blinking a few times. Then he smiles broadly, and says in an inhumanly charismatic voice,  both deep and loud enough to be heard by everyone in the room, "Thank you all for the demonstrations! I believe I have located the source of our abilities. Now, if you'd all care to calm down and listen to me for a moment, I'd be willing to share that information with all of you. So, how 'bout it?"

Dog brightens up, and smiles at Gabriel.

"Now that's the kind of thing I wanna hear. Pete! Don't bother with the kid. He ain't worth it. Let's listen to what Gabriel has to say, in stead. And miss Texas is right too, it wouldn't look good if we started tearing the place apart live on TV..." ::confused

He turns his attention to Gabriel, before he looks back at the scene behind him.

"Er... Pete? Am I hallucinating, or did you just grow clones or something? Oh what the hell. Let's hear it, Gabe."

[Nullifier]

Er... Pete? Am I hallucinating, or did you just grow clones or something? Oh what the hell. Let's hear it, Gabe."

Still smiling, Gabriel begins, "Thank you for your patience, Mr. Jones." Pausing, he looks around at the room, "All of us with these special abilities seem to have a number of internal differences from 'normal' people. However one of these differences seems to be ubiquitous, at least with regards to all the 'novas' in this room. There seems to be, within each of our brains, a lump of tissue that's emitting and channeling a sort of subatomic, or quantum, radiation or energy. I don't really have the medical or scientific knowledge necessary to really define any of this stuff very well, but it seems like this lump of flesh is the primary source of all of our abilities."

Popping a piece of tuna nigiri in his mouth and chewing it slowly, the young college student looks around at the others in the room again, waiting for a reaction.

[Bahamut810]

"Ummmm...ok. So...there is a little brain tumor in in my head letting me do all this? Is it going to spread and kill me...us, or what?"

[Obsidian Shade]

Andric was still eating and listening. He didn’t moved and followed the discussion with his dark eyes. He seemed to be a little bit frustrated. But there were enough people argueing heatedly to forget about this silent guy.

No matter who would be the strongest or loudest, he thought, it was just a question beeing last man standing.

[Heritage]

"Ummmm...ok. So...there is a little brain tumor in in my head letting me do all this? Is it going to spread and kill me...us, or what?"

Great, so we all have super-tumors.

Martha notices Bill's expression, and approaches him, hand extended.

Bill, wasn't it? Sorry, guess we weren't properly introduced; name's Martha Cross. Is this your wife?

Leaning in a little closer to Bill, she whispers through a grimace.

Didn't mean to laugh atcha back there, Bill - all this talk is just so damn weird, ya know? No hard feelings, okay? Put it all behind us?

Suddenly she stiffens, and peers around.

Say, where'd Jimmy go? I can still smell 'em around here somewhere's.

[ezekiel]

Finnegan aims his gaze towards Lance as Dawg takes his seat, focusing on him for a moment before his moving towards him his body forming what seem to be multiple copies of himself that appear to loop around both Lance, "Your mistake... I've had enough of your mouth already..."

Lance looks around at the Finnegan's and continues in his slow, infuriating diatribe

"Oh dear Gilligan, you brought your crew! How nicsssse. Now what are you going to do? Kill me? Please, that's not quite like the hero Dawg makes you out to be."

Finishing off a bite of sushi, Gabriel shakes his head and rubs his eyes, blinking a few times. Then he smiles broadly, and says in an inhumanly charismatic voice, both deep and loud enough to be heard by everyone in the room, "Thank you all for the demonstrations! I believe I have located the source of our abilities. Now, if you'd all care to calm down and listen to me for a moment, I'd be willing to share that information with all of you. So, how 'bout it?"

Lance looks around seeing the tension in everyones eyes. The Finnegans and the changed Dawg next to him, for brief moment he seems unsure of himself but lets Gabriels soothing voice do its work.

"Yess, of coursse Gabe."

Dog brightens up, and smiles at Gabriel.

"Now that's the kind of thing I wanna hear. Pete! Don't bother with the kid. He ain't worth it. Let's listen to what Gabriel has to say, in stead. And miss Texas is right too, it wouldn't look good if we started tearing the place apart live on TV..."

"I do apologize Finny. - Lance wipes dust off of Finnegan's shoulders before heading towards DD and offering his hand - and to you Dog. I so appreciate your inviting all of us. I have hastened things though haven't I? Idle chatter can get so boring so fast..."

There seems to be, within each of our brains, a lump of tissue that's emitting and channeling a sort of subatomic, or quantum, radiation or energy. I don't really have the medical or scientific knowledge necessary to really define any of this stuff very well, but it seems like this lump of flesh is the primary source of all of our abilities."

"Mosst interessting Gabriel, most interesting indeed. Is there a doctor in the house? Letss cross our fingers, those of us whose gotss them, and hope you're not all going to die of brain tumors"

[Bahamut810]

"Lets hope we dont all die from this. Or from what people think of it..."

he brightens up.

"But, anyway...lets set all this in the past. What is on our agenda for tonight? Im sure Mr.Dog had more of a reason to invite us here then to let us stuff our faces." ::sly

[ProfPotts]

The reporter's nose wrinkles up and she gives the winged man a glare that would freeze even the hottest of passions.

"SO, what you're telling me, MR. Warlock, is that you are in the habit of making slaves out of women. Not a very pleasant profession, and certainly not airable on public television. Why don't you just go join the meeting and maybe I can catch someone who I can use on air."

With that she turns on her heel and walks away, waving for her camera man to follow her.

Michael watches the woman for a moment as she leaves, then says to the crowd in general, a slight smile playing on his lips,

"Ah well, not an entirely unfamiliar reaction. I just love an open-minded media. Strange really - the fact that I look like the devil incarnate doesn't bother her - but the lifestyle choices of my friends & I she condems out of hand. Classic." ::rolleyes

Glancing back towards the mansion, he then asks,

"No reporters in there yet? Are we already having meetings behind closed doors? Segregation & elitism? And they say I'm the bad guy..." ::sly

Smiling for the cameras he adds,

"Well - I for one have nothing to hide. I'll gladly answer any questions a bit later - & you could check out my web site 'Warlock's Dungeon dot com' - but make sure the parental controls are set, okay? It's not stuff for the immature..." ::devil

His eyes drift over to the female reporter... ::sly

Suddenly the winged man crouches low, then leaps high into the air, unfolding his wings, & drifting slowly down on the other side of the mansion's fence. Through the gate he calls to the reporters,

"I'll see if I can get them all to come out & share a bit, shall I?" ::wink

With that, he folds his wings, & strides up to the mansion's door, knocks, & waits for an answer.

[Nullifier]

"Lets hope we dont all die from this. Or from what people think of it..."

he brightens up.

"But, anyway...lets set all this in the past. What is on our agenda for tonight? Im sure Mr.Dog had more of a reason to invite us here then to let us stuff our faces." 

Gabriel watches and listens to the back and forth, quietly munching on some sushi as he does so. Finally, when Cid makes this comment, Gabriel frowns and says, "I could be mistaken, but I thought that talking about our powers and unique situations was our agenda for tonight. As to these 'tumors' killing us, they seem to be enhancing rather than malignant. Considering the levels of energy they're putting out, and their interconnectedness to the rest of the brain and body, I'd bet that if they were going to kill us, we'd be long dead, n'est pas? Also, some are bigger than others, suggesting that yes, they can grow. By the way, their initial growth is probably to blame for all those headaches I've heard are associated with the 'eruption' process..."

Realizing that he's babbling again, Gabriel stops talking and goes back to eating his sushi.

[Edited for name change. Thanks Heritage! ::wink ]

[phoenix]

"All of us with these special abilities seem to have a number of internal differences from 'normal' people. However one of these differences seems to be ubiquitous, at least with regards to all the 'novas' in this room. There seems to be, within each of our brains, a lump of tissue that's emitting and channeling a sort of subatomic, or quantum, radiation or energy. I don't really have the medical or scientific knowledge necessary to really define any of this stuff very well, but it seems like this lump of flesh is the primary source of all of our abilities."

Eddie frowns. "That seems a little unlikely, Gabriel. A single tumor that lets people pick up 747s? Of course, I'm in no position to be incredulous, but..."

[Nullifier]

Eddie frowns. "That seems a little unlikely, Gabriel. A single tumor that lets people pick up 747s? Of course, I'm in no position to be incredulous, but..."

Gabriel stares at Eddie for a moment, mouth open, incredulous at what he just said, then bursts into loud, roucous, uncontrolable laughter that goes on and on for several minutes. ::blink ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1 ::smiley1

[Bahamut810]

Cid looks suprised by the out burst and smiles a bit himself. ::blink

[Heritage]

Gabriel stares at Eddie for a moment, mouth open, incredulous at what he just said, then bursts into loud, roucous, uncontrolable laughter that goes on and on for several minutes.

Seeing that Gabe's not showing any sign of stopping, Martha nods to herself.

Okay, well, now we know who all the crackheads are - good to know.

She cocks her head for a moment, then turns to Dog.

Hey there, Mr. Dawg - pickin' something up on the TV band. Some weirdo with wings wants inside, looks to be a real barrel o' laughs.

[Prince of Boredom]

David walks over to the table and grabs a handful of sandwich meat, then walks over to Martha (she seeming to be the least crazy person here).

"So you're from, Texas, whereabouts?"

[Heritage]

"So you're from, Texas, whereabouts?"

Odessa, 'bout an hour south of Lubbock, at least way I drive. Live in Aspen now, work as a trail guide; y'know, Outward Bound, stuff like that. Help find lost hikers and the occasional convict.

She inspects David carefully for a moment.

David, I want a beer - you think it's too early for beer? Let's have us some beers.

[Archer21]

The danger in the room seemingly lessened, Jimmy's skin reverts to normal and he steps away from the wall. Or at least he tries to; both of his palms feel like they're glued to the wall. Doing his best to suppress panic, he clears his throat. "Uh, excuse me...can anyone help me out here? I think I'm stuck."