When Percy snaps, not now, Femtite’s body burns even more erratically. She wants to explode!—or burn the pants off of Chumpchange!—or ram his teeth down his throat with a flaming fist!—or…
Connie’s voice snaps Femtite away from her thoughts. Her head swivels. Her fists unclench… her fire becomes golden warmth, golden flesh… her armor whips around her glowing body as ribbons of amethyst. They clothe Femtite in a pinkish-purplish version of the borrowed school uniform.
Her glow dims so she’s not so hard to look at. Even her eyes cease to glow as suns. They are humanlike, with amethyst-toned irises.
Her eyes meet Connie’s.
“I… think so. How about you? I… was avoiding you all day, but not because you did anything wrong.
“You’re a really good friend, Connie! And we beat that thing, didn’t we? You used my fire to light your magic!”
Conflux considers the best way to track the Slipknots, and figures that Caio's wolf nose might be the best suited to try immediately. Otherwise, the more time that passes makes following their trail less efficient than just working up a location spell with the cast-off debris left behind by Bazinga and Chumpchange.
Symphony squirms a bit as Steel Guardian's grip tightens, but it's more from discomfort rather than an effort to escape. Her eyes show more alarm when Devil Diva talks about interrogating her and she leans away from the demoness.
The ringing in Horizon's ears finally begin to subside, though the voices of everyone speaking sound like they're underwater.
Steel Guardian turns towards Diva and Caio. ”Yeah, sounds good,” they say before handing the Slipknot over. ”Alright, you guys got this. I don’t know about you all, but I got things to do and places to be. Fill me in on anything interesting the bad gal has to say!” they say before starting off at a sprint out of the tunnels.
"Ki-uh, kinda? More I used a flame-sensitive sympathetic link to set up a natural and accelerable endpoint for an instance of time so that it's potential power could be inefficiently concentrated (aka "boom")into the surrounding- Y'know, sure. Yeah, close enough for government work."
She unpinned some mittens from her top and used one to wipe the sweat from her face - not noticing that her makeup hadn't survived the time vortex, or realizing that this was definitely the closest look even Femtite had gotten of her face without it. Her face looked plainer, sharper, maybe a bit younger, but the weariness surrounding her eyes more than balanced it out.
She laughed nearly silently. "Honestly, I was too busy trying to- Well, I dunno. Let's call it avoid you too- to even notice you were doing the same. Sorry. I uh... I was being stupid." And that's as deep as I'd prefer to go at this time, place, and collection of onlookers...
"Urp!" Femtite's divine hug caught her a bit off guard. "This is very different when you're half a foot tall instead of half a foot taller than me."
...
"Hey wait!" she called after Steel Guardian. "Where do you think you're going compadre? Plenty of other Slipknots on the run; this isn't the best place for tracks, but don't you even want to see what the Nose knows?" She pointed her thumb at Caio.
SG pauses and turns briefly. ”They are down one. And I don’t know about you guys, but my life doesn’t revolve around all this,” they say as they wave their hands around. ”Besides, I gotta do repairs and everything, and that takes time. Not all of us are blessed enough to just manifest their powers at will. Mine takes a ton of extra time. So, yeah, sorry, but I gotta jet!”
"Can't do that right now, but if Guardian could, let's say, make a trip to a nearby deli and bring me two or three large size subs, I think I can help."
The thought of Steel Guardian in full metal armor ordering some subs lights his mood. "No fancy cheese, please, just plain American and only if warm... Don't like it in natura... Aside from that, surprise me! A bottle of Coke as well... Anyone would like something else?" He asks, including Symphony.
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”Yeah, sure. No problem, I’ll be back in a bit. Anyone else want anything?”
Without actually waiting, SG takes off.
As Steel Guardian rockets off, Max steps up to Symphony. "Hey. Sorry about before. I didn't mean to hurt you so much. Just got a little angry. Anyway, I think it would be in your best interest in talking. What were you and your friends planning to do with that stuff you stole? And what's up with that time wraith thing?"
Shit, fine.
"Okay, then anyone have plastic baggies? Mine are highly chronally compromised at best, and even then that Depends on if that's what's crinkling beneath my shorteralls... I can find em. Not as immediate, but it'll give time for Iron Giant to recharge, Scooby to find some snacks, and me to change."
"...Okay," Horizon speaks up as he claps his hands together, feeling like its resounding underwater. That was probably still not a good thing long term, but he'd deal with it as it came up. "We could go after the rest of them, but that recent tussle with the chronowraith has probably knocked all of us for a loop. Now we're down someone, I think the best thing to do is turn Symphony in and call it for the night," He suggests to the group, turning away and bringing up his communicator to his mouth close. Mostly to whisper so Symphony wouldn't hear the plan.
"Their group is close as family, so they're not going to leave Symphony in a jail cell if they can help it. We should stake out where she'll be held and wait for them to show up. I know it's time consuming, so I think we should do it in shifts of two." He says so they can only hear.
Out loud again, he speaks up as he looks at the ceiling. "Great, we'll have to mention the damage in the report to the Alliance so they can make sure its not in any more danger of collapsing - but good work Indarius! I knew I could count on you!" He tells the Nova, giving him a thumbs up.
After embracing Connie, “You’re the smartest I know. If you’re not going out tonight, we should talk.”
As for clothing, she says, “You can always wear the school uniform I left in Max’s bag. Not your style, perhaps, but it is more age-appropriate than an ill-fitting dinosaur pantsuit.”
* * *
Hearing DD, Femtite turns to Symphony with words of her own:
“What is up indeed? That time-wraith thing turned my best friend into a baby and an old lady! You dared call us horrible when your pal manipulates an adolescent’s life span and summons trains full of innocent people as missiles?
“That same sociopath left you to take the blame. You should tattletale. Where are Timestamp, Chumpchange and the uninteresting one?”
Femtite opens her palm. An orange fireball appears. Femtite casually tosses and catches it like a sporty human might do with a softball.
She gives Symphony an expectant look.
Symphony shrinks away from Devil Diva. No longer held by Steel Guardian, she backs away but knows enough not to try running.
She shrugs at Max's questions. "We're going to deliver it to the buyer. Simple as that. And we don't know about George. It just showed up. Wrecked our holding cell, freaked us out. But T-S kind of... made friends with it."
Femtite's added presence and accusation sours her disposition. "We just wanted to get away! And all that you said happened came from George! It's you who freaked out and started attacking him! We don't control him! That's all on you!" Symphony shouts back.
She folds her arms and shrugs her shoulders defiantly. "I don't know where they are. They went thataway." She jerks her head in the direction of one of the tunnels.
“Your phone,” Femtite says calmly. “Unlock it. Give it to me.”
She casually chucks the fireball over her shoulder. It bursts into a fireworks display.
Femtite holds out her now-empty palm.
"I'd do what she says. If you thought I was bad, you wouldn't want to see her when she's angry," Max says helpfully.
Symphony scowls at Femtite and Devil Diva, but relents. She slowly moves her hand to a pocket on her thigh. She pulls out a phone and puts her thumb on the pad, holds it there for a couple seconds, then passes it to Femtite. "There."
Femtite shows Devil Diva the contact list, then asks her to “kindly cup your hands,” then places the phone so it rests. “And… try not to move.”
Femtite shrinks to Schooltime Barbie to a golden spark to absolutely nothing.
The phone in DD’s cupped hand forms pinkish-purplish crystals. The screen pops forward, breaks neatly into rectangles, and pinkish-purplish bars form a trim.
The phone is now a rectangular prism—the same height as originally, but its depth is equal to the width. Once the transformation is complete, Devil Diva finds herself holding a miniature phone booth!
Its windows light up bright yellow. Our comes Femtite, wearing a dress exactly like Tinkerbelle’s (or Tinklebrie’s, for those who remember Fem’s tee shirt).
She flutters—with golden fairy wings on her back—and tells her friends, “I made a tracker. I need only dial one of Symphony’s contacts, and you can view the map app on the booth’s windows.
“Technically, I would be locating their phones. Oh… and I’ll need a coin to operate it.”
Femtite reworks the phone on a near-subatomic scale. She enters the phone booth and finds a quartet of phone contacts that are in close proximity to one another, moving in unison along one of Halcyon's major thoroughfares. (Incidentally, the four contacts are listed as C, CC, L, and #.) The four contacts slow down, and eventually stop about one and a half miles from the current location.
Just as Femtite registers the coordinates of the stop, the feed is interrupted by a cartoon character looking very similar to Bazinga! A sudden flash of light hits her and she sees her face's still image in the phone booth's screen. The cartoon waggles its finger at her. "Don't you know this phone doesn't belong to you? As punishment, I'm sending this image to all sorts of people who really *hate* sneaky sneaks who stick their noses into places they don't belong! Shame on you!"
Even though Femtite has the address of the place where the four contacts stopped, she realizes her likeness was just sent out to any number of recipients!
The address is the main office of Lovelace International.
Femtite flutters out of the phone booth. When the door shuts behind her it collapses in DD’s hands and emits a serpentine puff of smoke.
The four-inch fairy grows to her full human size, and her clothing becomes the schoolgirl outfit again.
“Lovelace International is where the men have gone. So what’s the order of operations, Horizon?”
|
Caio turns to Percy to thank him. "Thanks about the coin... first time I was shot and gladly it just hit my arm. I guess I'll have to also work on another sigil, one that could make a force shield against projectiles."
Indarius nods, "Can't fix the fleshy bits, but a spell like that can rewrite inanimate things." He motions to his arm and drops his voice tone, "I'd say i'm in the wrong line of work if that was possible." He gives a weak chuckle.
Looking to Connie sharing a moment with Femtite and rather occupied by the radiant pixite, Percy starts over towards Shin who is still talking way too loudly.
"...Okay," Horizon speaks up as he claps his hands together, feeling like its resounding underwater. That was probably still not a good thing long term, but he'd deal with it as it came up. "We could go after the rest of them, but that recent tussle with the chronowraith has probably knocked all of us for a loop. Now we're down someone, I think the best thing to do is turn Symphony in and call it for the night," He suggests to the group, turning away and bringing up his communicator to his mouth close. Mostly to whisper so Symphony wouldn't hear the plan.
Out loud again, he speaks up as he looks at the ceiling. "Great, we'll have to mention the damage in the report to the Alliance so they can make sure its not in any more danger of collapsing - but good work Indarius! I knew I could count on you!" He tells the Nova, giving him a thumbs up.
Picking up his book and sliding it into his satchel, Percy quickly casts a cleaning spell on it to remove the blood from his hand. Making another motion towards Shin.
Everyone see's Indarius looking intently at Horizon casting a few handsigns and muttering under his breath for about a minute before he actually heads over.
Max just looks on in wonder as Femtite does her thing, transforming the cell phone into a crystalline phone booth. ”It’s bigger on the inside,” Max says quietly, unable to resist the line.
She scowls when cartoon Bazinga appears, but luckily it doesn’t seem to affect the results. She smiles when Femtite grows again and reveals the location of the other Slipknots. ”Awesome job!” Max says, then awaits Horizon’s orders.
Horizon's quiet as he converses mentally with Indarius, though he doesn't seem too perturbed to have him speaking directly to his mind. He leans in to Indarius to whisper directly into his ear.
Horizon actually does have first aid materials in his utility belt, as he takes out bandages and antiseptic, working to patch up the Nova's wounds. "Stay still for a bit," He says as he works, while speaking up to the waiting team.
"We go and patch ourselves up. I know you two are still ready to rumble, but Indarius is injured, Caio's probably wiped from his own transformation, and Conflux went through a pretty traumatic transformation event. I'm still feeling off from whatever that thing took from me, and SG's gone off on their own again. But, I'll give you two a mission for yourselves to scout out the location." Horizon tells DD and Femtite.
"Do not engage them on their home turf, though. Promise me that you'll only surveil and report to the team after you think you've gathered enough information, okay?" He sternly presses them, wanting them to understand.
Femtite replies, “Ooooh, a special mission. What’s the purpose exactly? Confirm they are at Lovelace International? Find out what they’re up to?
“Yes, do-not-engage. I promise.”
Max nods. "Got it, jefe. Lead the way, Femms."
Despite her bravado, the demoness still can't shake the guilt she feels for hurting Symphony, not the hopelessness left from the vision she experiences. But she puts on a brave face for the sake of the mission.
Already a significant distance from the Halcyon Prep campus, the pair find an access ladder to the street level and discover that they're not all that far away from the Tower District -- the central hub of Halcyon City that features the mega-skyscrapers and highrises. The streets are multi-layered and packed with vehicles going up and down ramps stacked one upon the other. The massive steel and glass buildings turn the streets into labyrinthine canyons with the rumbling skyrail echoing overhead.
Block after block are traversed until the pair locate the Lovelace International Plaza, a dizzyingly high skyscraper with an ornate fountain and intricate concrete and steel statuary surrounding the structure. Street and pedestrian traffic is thick even at this time of day (about six o'clock pm).
The Lovelace International Tower is a fortress, with numerous private security guards showing the emblem of Coyote Solutions, outfitted with tech and weapons more advanced than most militaries.
=====================
Symphony appears sullen and withdrawn after her phone is used to locate the other Slipknots. She is quiet but compliant if you attempt to move her.
|
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The tiny bat-like creature flutters down to Devil Diva and lands alight on her giving a little fuzzy chitter at her. Indarius looks over while helping Horizon fix up his arm. "Nice catch out there DD, I think the little guy wants to with you, to uh.. keep an eye out and all that. If anything goes wrong I'll know through -Shh-ahhh-." Percy is reminded of the wound when it's exposed to air and anti-septic while the wound isn't exceptionally bad itself, quite a gash on his arm it looks like the temporal trait of 'George' has caused it to fester far beyond what the time passed would allow meaning it was extremely sensitive to the touch.
It was her nature to mutter her disagreements, but Shin was still hard of hearing so Connie ended up declaiming her response instead. "As someone who is Very capable of announcing for herself when she is too traumatized to keep going, I would like to say that I'm not any more traumatized than I started the day. But I should take some time because my rings all changed and my reagents have gone through the chronological washing machine too.
"And yeah Femms, I'd love to borrow that uniform. And a quick curtain from your camo field."
"So Horizon, should we keep her in the Can back at our base? It'll keep her nicely nullified."
And in our possession while I whip up a little procedure...
Max smiles at the fuzzy little bat on her shoulder and reaches to gently stroke his fur. She turns to Percy before she leaves. ”Don’t worry, I’ll take care of him. And you should take care of yourself. Get some rest so your wounds can heal. You’re a vital part of this team, and we need you at the top of your game.”
She gives Percy’s uninjured arm a squeeze before heading off with his familiar.
***
Once they arrive at Lovelace, Devil Diva skulks about in the shadows, trying to case the joint.
“I don’t have Love Bug, The. Mel the Mechanic is fixing it. I can provide cover without it though. Adding clothes to my body is just a matter of turning energy into matter.”
And Femtite knows how to meet standards of beauty that are goddesslike. Tinkerbelle is the ultimate beauty if she is small like a woman’s hand. At nearly six feet tall…
Femtite’s skin brightens as her generated school uniform spirals around her as ribbons, then as amethyst particles. They converge back onto her as knee-high boots, a skirt, a shirt with an F in a pentagon on it, and a large cape.
Femtite holds out the cape to provide cover. She closes her eyes, “Tell me when I am permitted to open them, Connie.”
Femtite’s golden aura becomes pinkish-red. She is definitely blushing, and probably trying to back out of a conversation she herself started.
“Where I come from, everyone is female. So when you are of age to mate, it is not hard. Usually, we maintain a compatible size. For example, those on guard duty clothe in armor and stand at least twice the heights of other pixites.
“Here, most girls are interested in boys and… it might be for the best. I am both flesh and fire, and told my mother if I kiss a girl, I might seriously burn her. Anger is fire. Passion is wildfire.”
She says this like someone who studied the reproductive system and aced the test.
“So what if I have feelings for someone, and she probably is interested in boys, and we probably can just hold hands and sit next to each other at the movies and maybe dance, but never kiss? If she doesn’t like me, that’s the easy part. But what if she does?
“Do I just end up getting in her way? What is she wants a normal girlfriend? One who doesn’t consume germs and fungi? One who won’t literally become fire when she loses control? One who…”
Femtite stops herself from saying the third thing.
“If you got any advice, I’ll listen.”
Femtite asks DD, “Do you have any means of hearing the enemy? I can fly through walls and become difficult or impossible to see.”
”Um...” Max begins when Femtite asks how’s she’s adjusted to her involuntary change of sex. Before she can answer, though, the pixite goes on to explain what she really wants to ask. Max considers things for a few moments before responding.
”Hmmm. Well, the first thing I think you should do is talk to this girl you have feelings for. You need to tell her how you feel and find out if she has feelings for you. You have to both be on the same page to decide if you want to move forward together.
“Relationships don’t always have to be physical. Some people have healthy and happy partnerships without ever being intimate. But, I gather that you want that physical intimacy. So, if that’s what the other girl wants, too, then you can work together to find a solution. Luckily for you, you have teammates who are skilled with magic and technology. If they put their heads together, I’m sure they can come up with something that will allow you to kiss without burning her.”
“Haha… no, I’ve never… I mean. I’m in no hurry for that. I haven’t even ovulated yet.”
She Her tone suggests she is completely comfortable discussing her menstrual cycle, but the topic of kissing makes her blush. But she recalls her mother’s research on Topical Taboos: religion, politics, the scientifically-proven fact that men are evolutionary inferior to women. Menstruation is supposedly on the list too, even though Femtite always sees those Always ads…
She clarifies, “Becoming a subatomic particle resets my cycle. Or, so goes a theory.” She laughs a little, almost bitterly. “That’s a theory about me personally. I’m not just different here, but in my own world too.
“I think I like being different here, where I’m surrounded by differents.”
Not wanting to make DD, formerly Max, any more uncomfortable than she already has, Femtite says, “Sorry to drop all of that on you, DD. I’m grateful for the advice. Same page… can I quote you?”
Unfortunately for Max, there are very few shadows in which to skulk about. It's a very busy plaza, with pedestrians hustling in every direction, buskers performing, and tourists gawking at everything around them.
Because they've only made one public appearance, Devil Diva and Femtite are not recognized by that many passers-by, but their distinctive look draws attention. Some people obviously assume the two are well-costumed buskers themselves, and attempt to snap pictures and take selfies with them. One performer with his impressive physique body-painted like Captain Stalwart's uniform takes up a fighting pose with Max, much to the delight of numerous onlookers!
Femtite draws even more attention, through her glowing form and intense beauty. Tourists hoping for a glimpse of one of the fabled superbeings of Halcyon City and even jaded locals can't help but train their cell phones on the beautiful Outsider.
In trying to assess the best way to get Max inside the Lovelace International building, the easiest way would be "the door." However, while the entryway and atrium is large and airy, there are a significant number of guards about. And given the attention that Max is drawing, she'll be noticed. However, if the Slipknots are inside, they'll have to come out sometime. If they leave through the front, they'll be easy to spot from the plaza.
What do you do?
========================
Symphony's eyes go wide at Conflux's suggestion. She shakes her head vigorously. "I don't need 'nullification.' I won't use my power. I haven't since you caught me. Don't-- please don't gag me. Last time..." She hangs her head and looks away. "It was bad. Please."
What do you do?
Femtite says, “Oh, what amazing cosplay designs! Say, girlfriend,”—Femtite will later explain she’s trying to avoid using names.—“we might be out here for a while. How about we go to one of the Starbuckses?
“I’m gonna change in the ladies’ room so I can hide in plain sight.”
Max is embarrassed by all the attention she's getting, but at least it's positive. It's better than people screaming and running away in terror, she supposes. She plasters on a fake smile and plays along with the buskers, flexing and posing in what she hopes is a mostly masculine manner.
She nods to Femtite and follows her to Starbucks, trusting in the pixite's plan to hide in plain sight and stake out the building.
Symphony's dread seeps into Connie's gut, but she rolls her eyes regardless. "Sheesh, I'm not gonna do anything permanent, and I don't need to bring you somewhere special just to gag you. Yeah you stole something, but you just stole something, and yeah, you've been well behaved since. It's just gonna be something like noise cancelling headphones. You'll still be able to make noise and hear, it just won't go as far. We're talking minimums of security, yeah?
"But I'll tell you what. You tell us what you stole, what it's for and who it's for, then that steps up how well behaved you've been, and then probably we don't even need all that. How's that sound?"
Femtite says, “I don’t want you to have to buy coffee… I can slip into the ladies’ room easily while you stand in line.
“I was thinking of full armor. But hiding my face won’t fool anyone who’s already seen me in amethyst armor with a sunfire glow. So how about an angel at your side?”
(If any male Starbucks employee tries to stop Femtite from using the ladies’ room, she will clutch the hem of her miniskirt and stretch it down and claim Auntie Flo is visiting. With a woman, she’ll lead with ‘my friend’s in line.’)
Once behind closed doors, Femtite comes out of the restroom looking literally like a goddess. She has a pinkish-purplish toga with sandals, straps crisscrossing up her otherwise bare legs. She is crowned in a golden halo hovering overhead, glowing gold like her hair. And from her back, angelic wings with a phoenix tone—pinkish-purplish feathers with a soft golden glow at every tip.
And of course, she has perfect skin.
“Let’s not do coffee, or I’ll have to go again.”
* * *
“Not that I’m complaining. Clothing is my favorite part of the human existence! I really adore that uniform and the fabric is so soft! You may not feel the difference unless you’ve worn socks weaved of amethyst.”
Max looks at Femtite with wide eyes as she comes out of the bathroom looking like a glowing goddess. ”Um, wow,” she says. ”I don’t think you’d have to worry about anybody not catching feelings for you when you look like that!”
Including myself, Max thinks but doesn’t say aloud.
”Let’s, uh, get back out there, yeah?”
|
|
Grateful for DD's concern for his wellbeing he allows Horizon to finish patching up his arm before he looks towards Symphony's response. "What do you mean last time? I thought the authorities had some sort of nullification binds or something, or is that just more news junk? Also why are you all out here stealing things anyway, what made you turn to this?"
Femtite smiles. ”The two of us should easily draw a crowd. Let’s have some fun. We’ll claim a spot right across from the entrance and work the crowd.”
* * *
Outside, Femtite just has fun. “How’d ya like a picture with an angel at one shoulder, devil at the other? We just need a bit of space—cheeeeese!—one photo-op at a time. No, you don’t need to pay—cheeeeeeese!—this is our fun…”
Since the purpose is to watch the door, Femtite will hover as needed, and if crowds start to thin, she’ll use her shrinking power for angel-on-devil’s-shoulder shots, and offer to make angel-on-your-shoulder poses when that starts to wear thin.
The re-appearance of the glowing being -- this time dazzling in ethereal, goddess-like beauty -- certainly draws the crowd. It gradually grows in size, especially when the pair accept photos and selfies and start posing together.
After close to a half hour goes by, the crowd doesn't seem to abate. Max feels someone grab her arm. It's the buff Captain Stalwart along with a Praetoria modeling one of the skimpier costumes the hero had worn. She whispers, "Are you going to be doing this much longer? We make a living doing this, you know."
"Yeah, I mean, your makeup's great and all, but there's a right way and a wrong way," the Cap adds. He leans in closer, studying Max's skin. "Is that makeup?"
Femtite and Max can see several other buskers scowling in their direction.
What do you do?
Almost as entranced by Femtite’s beauty as the crowd, Max is happy to pose alongside the pixite. She relaxes more as time passes, beginning to enjoy the attention and attempting a few more provocative poses if asked.
She yelps, though, when Captain Stalwart grabs her and the two buskers confront her. ”Oh! Sorry, we, uh, we didn’t mean to take any of your business away from you. Maybe we could, uh, do some poses with you as well? You can keep all the money, of course. That’s not what we’re here for.
“Would, uh, would that be okay? Or is there something else we can do for you?”
Symphony scowls at both Indarius and Conflux. "No, the nullifiers for someone with vocal powers is a high-tech gag. And it sucks. It hurts. They don't even take it off for meals. I had to eat through a straw."
She gets more cagey when asked about what the Slipknots stole. "Tech stuff. Baz knows what it does for certain. All I know is it had something to do with anti-gravity. But not, like, true antigravity. And it's for a buyer, through a broker. We were getting picked up by Chicle. She was the go-between."
Percy's question elicits an aggravated sigh. "There's good money in it. It's all corporate espionage stuff anyway. It's not like we're out to hurt people. We're just trying to make enough to get out of some bad debts and have money left over to retire."
=========================
The buskers agree with Max's offer, and soon the pair find themselves posing with the nearly naked Captain Stalwart; a similarly nearly naked Praetoria; a lanky, double-jointed fellow doing a passable impression of Yeoman; and other people dressed as various heroes of Halcyon's past and present.
After nearly a half hour passes and the sun is throwing a golden light into the plaza through the skyscrapers, a man in a business suit and mirrored sunglasses approaches Devil Diva and Femtite. "An acquaintance of the Slipknots would like to speak with you. Would you follow me, please?"
What do you do??
Max tries not to stare too hard at the barely dressed buskers she’s posing with. She is partially successful.
When the man in the suit approaches, she gives him a dubious look. She leans over to whisper to Femtite. ”Horizon said do not engage, just observe and report. What do you think? Do we go with him?”
She looks for Percy’s familiar too, hoping it will keep an eye on them and alert the others should anything untoward happen.
|
|
Percy looks away at Symphony's explanation of things, "That's pretty awful, sorry they didn't have more humane ways of dealing with your powers. While I understand they're trying to keep their own safe that's still not right."
He makes another small gesture towards Connie, "Maybe we can make a silencing charm with the both of us putting our heads together?"
When his arm was patched up Percy looked to Shin, "We going to call this one in from here or bring her back to the base to hand off?"
The bat familiar chirps from a position nearby, a nook in one of the various stoneworks of the place, but over the din of the crowd it likely goes unnoticed.
Shin was standing back, listening and assessing how the different team members took to interrogation to file away for further use. He turns to Indarius and Conflux and shakes his head. "No need to give anyone a clue to where our base is, so let me call up the authorities and we'll set up a handoff."
He looks curiously at Symphony though, taking a moment to speak with her. "Thank you for your cooperation. I understand that you're just doing your job - like I'm doing mine. But sometimes you have to do questionable things to get out of a bad situation," He empathizes with her. "I'm going to ask that you be kept out of nullifiers so long as you stay on your best behavior, okay?"
Femtite nods at DD’s whispered warning.
She says to the man, ”We’ll be here same time tomorrow and tell you if a meeting’s on. For now, send a message. Symphony’s fine.”
Notice the effect of her ability to meet and exceed human standards of beauty, Femtite speaks with authority and full confidence that the guard will deliver the message without delay or quarrel.
If for some chance the man insists on the meeting, Max will reluctantly agree. "We can bust out if things go sour," she whispers to Femtite.
Connie sighed as Shin made his decree and motioned him over for a sidebar. "Horizon, I didn't want to make a thing of it, but you kind of f+$+ed up when you played the 'turn off the werewolf' music in front of the mimic with sonic powers. Even if we hand her over afterwards, I need some time with her in a secure location first to fix that. We don't need her using that knowledge, and we don't need her spreading it around."
The look Horizon gives the mage could curdle blood. Conflux actually sees a tiny vantablack crack appearing briefly from the corner of his mouth. "I did what Caio asked me to do, to use that music when we're out of the fight to keep him docile and not fly out of control. Until we figure out a better way to manage that, I'll have it ready for every fight. Yeah, eventually the bad guys will catch on, but this early it's unlikely one person seeing it will make a difference there."
He takes in a steadying breath before continuing. "Furthermore, and I want you to understand this, she has rights. The right to be treated fairly by heroes capturing her, the right to her representation in court, and the right to her mental and physical well-being - which means, we don't f*** with anyone's brain like that. Ever. Are we clear?"