11050/Heroic Downtime

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Heroic Downtime
Date of Scene: 12 February 2020
Location: Upper East Side, Manhattan
Synopsis: The Titans take a break from patrol to have shakes. When along came a spider who sat down beside her- err, them...
Cast of Characters: Volt, Stardust, Kian t'Kaeh, Ghost Spider




Volt has posed:
The night is dark and full of terrors!

Well, usually. And surely at some parts of the world. Maybe even somewhere in the city. But insofar, Volt, Stardust, and Kian have been roaming the skyline, calling back and forth on patrol and finding none of it. It has been unusually dead. That's fine, though. At least in Volt's book. Not every night has to be filled with ne'er-do-well's engaging in shenanigans. And at a certain point, they opted to take a break and reconvene atop a mid-sized building.

Volt would be the second to arrive at the destination, because he had to make a brief and very pedestrian stop beforehand at a fast-food joint. Yes, in costume. He got looks, but mostly in good spirits, greeting with smiles and pleasantries. But finally, the new(est?) member of the Titans is joining the rendezvous via grappling hook, ascending the side of the building and launching a few feet over its edge. With a cape-flutter, he descends onto the flat of the rooftop, a trio of milkshakes securely tucked in left arm.

"Alright, so I got peach, strawberry, and banana. Who wants what?"

Stardust has posed:
"I'll fight anyone for the strawberry," Stardust replies with a grin that says she's not serious. Probably. Taking the shake before anyone else can, she perches on the edge of the roof and looks down at the streets below. "Boring night," she comments. "Are the bad guys on strike or something? How are we supposed to catch them if they don't actually show up? I call that cheating."

    Stardust looks over at Volt with a sudden grin. "So. You're with the Titans. You're patrolling. You have a costume. Starting to feel like a celebrity yet? 'Cos that happens. And it's weird. Give it another few weeks and you'll never be able to Google yourself." She takes a sip on her shake. "Take my word for it. Just don't go down that rabbit hole."

Kian t'Kaeh has posed:
    "I think I like banana?" Kían says dubiously.  "I can never remember.  I know for certain I like the purple stuff in the pitcher, but none of those are purple."  He shrugs, feathers rustle.  "Take your pick, and I'll have whatever's left.  As long as it's sweet, I don't really care."
    He grins at Colette.  "I don't mind if the bad people don't show up.  That means they're not hurting innocent victims."

Volt has posed:
Volt purses his lips contentiously at Stardust. That strawberry was totally his. But he lets her have it, and then Kian gets the banana. "Boring ol' peach for me," sighs the teen. He's not terribly fussed by it, though. He was sure to get one of everything he'd be into, and he hasn't had this stuff in what feels like forever.

Turning, Volt takes a seat on the edge of the building on Stardust's left. "Mnh," he nods after taking a draw on the sugary drink. "I'm cool with it being a slow night. Good for the heart. You focus so much on finding problems, you don't get to appreciate-," he pauses to motion out over the sparkling skyline, "-this. This is a view not many people get."

With a backwards tilt, he nods at Kian. "And that's good, too. Or this place is straight up crawling with caped crusaders and we're just late to the party each time tonight."

With a grin, he leans forward again. His visored gaze shifts sidelong to Stardust and the grin spreads boyishly. "Not gonna lie. It's pretty cool. I was sort've a local fixture in Mutant Town before I joined you guys, but this is next-level. I figured it would be, though." His boots bump against the side of the building in a careless rhythm as he continues, "Mostly just happy I can be doing something that matters. Even on a night like this, folks seein' us around has to be reassuring. Know what I mean?"

Stardust has posed:
    "It means they aren't hurting innocent victims /tonight/, Birdy Buddy. When we're around to stop them from doing it. Which means they will still be around to hurt innocent victims tomorrow, when we might not be there. Plus, you know. I like punching faces that deserve to be punched."

    Stardust arches an eyebrow in Kian's direction. "Sorry, but I do. It's satisfying knowing you're making the world a better place in such a physical way. I guess that's a human thing. I mean think of it as a crude version of your... redaction? That's the word you used. I mean someone who goes out and hurts an innocent person is clearly having a problem with empathy, right? Well they find it easier to empathize if they've been the one feeling powerless for a change."

    Volt's pursed lips get no visible acknowledgement from her, but Stardust noticed. Next time, she'll make sure there are two strawberry shakes. She's not sharing this time, though. He'll have to live with the peach. After all, he bought it. "It's not all fun. I mean it /is/ cool when you get recognized and cheered. It feels good, you know? I mean we do some outreach stuff. The Titans. Visiting youth groups, children's hospitals, things like that. From time to time. The reactions... makes it all worth it. But there's a down side too. I mean I'm not exactly the most recognizable cape given I change my costume just about every day, but there are times when you don't want to worry about who's pointing a camera at you." She breaks into a grin. "'Cos I guarantee you, the first time you mess up in a funny way, it's going to be on Youtube in /minutes/."

Ghost Spider has posed:
There is a flash of movement in the Dark night that is Full of Terrors.

It looked like a mix of white and red really, perhaps pink if one got a good look. Which honestly isn't the best color scheme if one is about to be Dark and full of Terrors really.

A couple of heartbeats later a woman in a distinctly Spider Themed costume archs into view and lands with a thomph, definitely the superhero landing pose, on the roof where the Titans seem to be having shakes.

She did catch that last bit though from Colette "Or the Daily Bugle.. JJJ is a complete jerk... so .. .patrol break?" pause "Is it just me or is it really quiet tonight?"

Kian t'Kaeh has posed:
    Kían sips the remaining banana milkshake, and looks satisfied with that.  "I still have trouble understanding why anyone would do that to someone else," he says dubiously, "even though I know it happens here.  I wish I could redact this world sometimes, and I know who I'd start with... but I haven't the training or the power.  It takes a really strong telepath to make those kinds of changes in a mind.  And anyway--/kya/!!"
    The appearance of someone wearing a spider-themed outfit has definitely caught the little birdman off guard, and he takes up a position bravely hiding behind Colette.

Volt has posed:
Volt has some things to say on what Colette was bringing up, but the sudden appearance of movement catches his attention. His focus sharpens, free hand lifting at the ready to tap a toggle on his visor. If something can't easily be seen through the green-tinted lense, perhaps switching visual modes would help.

Alas, it's not necessary! A vision in white springs up like kabuki theater, getting a small jolt from the green-and-black-clad cape. Fortunately it's only a physical jolt of surprise, and not a literal arc of electricity, and he quickly settles back into his seated position. "Aaand hi to you, too," he muses to the newcomer. He has no idea who JJJ is, but he doesn't need the 4-1-1 to know it's someone who gives bad press.

"I'm not too worried about it. Y'gotta learn to laugh at yourself. As long as those screw-ups are the exception and not the rule, I mean." He takes another draw on the peach milkshake and glances back at Kian, but ultimately opts out of commenting on the ongoing beef with Robin. Just doesn't seem like the night for it.

Finally, his focus settles on the new arrival. "'Sup. I'm Volt. Sorry, I don't have another milkshake. Didn't know we'd be havin' guests." A perky smile follows, despite.

Stardust has posed:
While Kian and to a lesser extent Volt react with caution to Gwen's arrival, Stardust's reaction is rather different. She grins wide, and calls out "GW... Spider-woman! Been aaaages. How are you?" She turns to the others, giving a reassuring 'it's okay, I know her' nod that the previous makes totally unnecessary. "This is Spider-Woman," She explains, equally unnecessary. "She almost joined the Titans once, a while back. I also totally blame her for the amount of Asgardian mead I drunk this one time..."

    Back to Gwen, still grinning, Stardust gives a nod of acknowledgement. "Yeah. Patrol break. It's not just you. We couldn't find a single face to punch. So we got shakes". She holds up her shake, shakes it, then takes a slurp by way of demonstration. "How are you doing? Spider stuff still working out for you?"

Ghost Spider has posed:
Gwen in her suit coughs lightly, the masks white eyes going wide then narrowing a bit.

How the hell do they do that.

"Ghost Spider now a days... the Avenger sued me for copyright and trademark infringement." which is patently not true, but it was pretty damn confusing for people at times.

"Good to see you Stardust.. and .. Asgardian mead is.. yeah."

"I mean... spider stuff is kind of my life these days... though I do have a band and a day job but yeah.. spiders. I was punching ninjas for a while there with some mutant animals.. that was a thing.. but seems that has quieted down too." she nods to Volt and Kian.

"I don't bite.. I'm not a spider under the costume."

Kian t'Kaeh has posed:
    Kían peers out from behind Colette, and then -- based mainly on Colette's apparent familiarity with the newcomer -- steps out from behind her.  He bows slightly.  "/Kié/... Spider-Woman?  Ghost Spider?"  He turns to Colette in genuine confusion.  "I thought spiders had more legs."

Volt has posed:
"Ghost Spider," Volt repeats with an assenting nod. Jotted down to memory. But that perky smile spreads, taking on a flavor of teasing mirth. "Yeah, /that/? Unconfirmed. You might have a face like the Predator under there." He raises his free hand, fingers splayed in front of his mouth to give a couple 'clamp' motions. Maybe they'll get it. Kian almost certainly won't.

Speaking of, the quirky behavior is given a brief glance before returning to Gwen. "That's Kian. He's our alien."

Stardust has posed:
    "You know how Robin's not actually a bird?" Colette says to Kian. "Same thing." Slurp.

    That explanation is clearly enough for Colette, if only because she has been through this with Kian so many times before and he ought to understand it by now. She sometimes wonders why he's not puzzled about the fact she isn't actually a pile of finely granulated stellar debris. Aliens can be so /literal/.

    "Ghost spider. Cool. Suits the uniform. Ghost Spider, meet Volt and Kian, two of our newest members. Kian's an alien. He flies and doesn't punch people due to being a pacifist. He can also control electricity. Now I know what you're thinking, shouldn't it be Volt who controls electricity? Well yeah, he can too. It's all the rage these days."

    Colette gives Volt a nudge. "I've seen her face. She's no predator, believe me. Be nice. If you're really lucky, she might even let you see her face one day. "

    One thing Gwen said gets Colette's particular notice. "You're in a band? Cool. What do you do. I sing. Did I mention that to you? I don't think I ever did. Mostly we talked about pizzas, hair care and what it's like superheroing, and... " her brow furrows with concentration. "Actually I can remember so little of that night at Thor's party I'm not sure of everything we talked about. Tell me something, do you remember anything about uh... waking up on a viking long boat? Like... in space? 'Cos I never figured out if that part actually happened or not."

Ghost Spider has posed:
The white eye of her mask, just one widens a bit like she is arching her brow under it. "Come on.. I just said I wasn't a spider under it Kian." not quite pronouncing it right. Gesturing to Colette when she has her back like that. "Right.. Robin isn't a bird.. . I mean yes I have seen a ton of mutant animal people in the last year in this city and yes they are from a form of mutagen .. and yes I may have had a tussle with a mutagenic spider..."

Okay just stop Gwen not helping.

She glances at Volt and his predator comment and gestures. >>THWIP>>> snagging his shake right out of his hands and winging it back over to herself. Her free hand peels her mask up over her nose so she can sip the shake. No predator from the nose down at least, probably quite pretty from the partial view.

"Drums ... I'm a drummer.. and no I ... can't say I remember a space longship very clearly.. but that does sound like an Asgardian thing?"

Kian t'Kaeh has posed:
    "Yes, well, I suppose I've gotten used to people claiming the names of birds when they haven't wings of their own," Kían says, stepping out from behind Colette... until >>>THWIP>>> and back he goes again.
    Jumpy little alien, isn't he?

Volt has posed:
Volt notes the nudge, Stardust stealing his attention for a moment. But before he can respond, there's sudden movement and he tenses, ready to respond! But with what, he's not sure immediately. Did she just shoot a web at him? Like Spider-Man?

Ohhhh, okay. Spider things. Right.

But now she's thefted his milkshake. Which, okay, fair - but that's his milkshake! The tradeoff seems to be that he won't have to wait long to get a look at that face. An obsidian eyebrow perks behind the visor, watching intently - though it stops at half-mast. Disappointing. He clicks his tongue and whirls around on the edge of the rooftop to plant his boots upon its solid surface.

"Really Kian, it's kind'a weird that you're the one who /doesn't/ have a bird name," he teases. But the poor lil alien is huddling back again, so he's moving on along to the white-clad female.

"I always wanted to pick up guitar, but I never really had the time." Volt glances again to Stardust. She sings? Did that ever come up? He doesn't recall it ever being mentioned. His attention returns to the ghosty spider. "And you may not have the Predator face, but you're totally a thief," he accuses in jest. "Plot twist. We took a break and the crook came to us!"

Stardust has posed:
    She hadn't intended to, but seeing Volt's shake go flying, Colette starts to feel a little guilty about not sharing the much-desired strawberry shake after all. Without a word she holds it out to Volt, offering him a replacement.

    "Drummer, huh?" Colette grins wide. "Almost a pity you /don't/ have eight limbs. Imagine what you could do with six drum sticks. Maybe we should do a jam together some time, or something. Has anyone ever done a fully super-powered band before? That could be a good gimmick. Go on stage in costume." No, Colette has yet to mention anything about singing to Volt. She does very occasionally sing in the Tower, but only when she thinks that nobody is around to hear. Not that she's shy about it, just that she usually doesn't want her two worlds to collide. "How about you, Kian? Do you play any weird alien musical instruments? We could probably figure out how to make one for you."

Ghost Spider has posed:
"Mhm Drummer" back to Collete, sipping the shake.

I mean she wwas going to give it back to Volt but then she sees Colette offering up her shake like that. "Hey now... thief is much too low class for me. I am obviously a larcenist or something fancy sounding."

Her free hand reaches up to pull her mask back down and she walks over offering the peach shake back as well, or to Colette at this point.

I mean sure with her metabolism and workout she consumes an epic amount of calories but she was just teasing and not out to commit vile shakenapping.

"You should totally battle the Vulture... he is like 120 easy but he has these mechanical wings and commits all sorts of crime... I feel like I am going to be sued by the AARP everytime I fight that guy..." yeah that was directed to Kian.

Then back to Colette. "We should totally jam...and I don't think anyone has.. I mean we could maybe do a gig with Dazzler..."

Kian t'Kaeh has posed:
    Kían blinks at Volt.  "Why would I need the name of a bird?  I'm already clan Káeh -- the hawk clan."  He spreads his wings -- yes, marked like a red-tail hawk.  No, he doesn't have a red tail.
    He peeks back out from around Colette, and watches... Ghost Spider Woman, was it?  Something like that.
    He looks up at Colette.  "I recognize those as words, but I have no idea what she's talking about...."


Volt has posed:
Volt doesn't deprive Stardust of the strawberry milkshake. It's the superior one of the three, after all. He'd have to be some kind of monster to take it from her. Besides, the new face (so to speak!) wants to play, Volt's down with it. He likes people who don't take themselves too seriously. And he's obviously not terribly fussed about the milkshake, but he'll take it back when she holds it out.

"Nah-uh," he denies. "To be a larcenist, you've gotta steal something with more value than this." The milkshake is given an indicative waggle before he sucks a draw from it. Is he bothered that her mouth was on it? Apparently not.

After all, she doesn't have Predator mandibles.

"Thing about that," he adds, motioning the shake towards Kian, "is he's a pacifist. Like Stardust said. Gotta hug it out."

Stardust has posed:
"Petty larceny," Colette says with a nod. "That's a thing, right? I mean it's the best kind. You don't really want to be holding up banks, it doesn't exactly fit with the hero image. The odd drink though? Seems entirely fair to me." Her mind drifts to herself and Robin stealing drinks from a bar a few weeks ago, though in their defense it was a bar owned by gangsters. And was on fire. Admittedly Robin started the fire, but again, gangsters. Okay, she probably shouldn't mention that. "We've all done it." She glances at Kian. "Probably."

    "Mechanical wings! Those are the best kind too," Colette responds to Gwen. "I mean I wouldn't want to tear someone's actual like... flesh and bloo... bone and... whatever else makes up wings. Feathers. Muscles. All that stuff. Mechanical wings though? Fun. The look on someone's face when you fly up behind them and tear their wings off, when they suddenly hope /real hard/ that you're the merciful type of hero, not the demented vigilante type...."

    Colette interrupts her flow to look at Kian and see if he's going pale. "I did say I wouldn't do that to actual wings. You heard that bit, right? But you know. Parademons. It was a good way of dealing with them." She's not mentioning that in the case of Parademons, she was not the merciful type. Maybe it's time to change subject, Colette. Fast.

    Slurp. "Dazzler? Nah. Got me. I'm a better singer than her." That's a confident statement, even if she does say it with a grin.

Ghost Spider has posed:
"I mean.. it was a little petty... stealing his shake to make a point" and it was, very punny Colette.

"Pacafist... what.." then distracted "Mechanical wings are amazing yes can break them like that... but seriously I don't get Toomes's motivation. Genius level inventor. Mechanical wings. Can actually fly. Should be in an old persons home.... and then he just goes and robs banks and stuff... I mean who does that?"

She shakes her head. "So .. yeah we should jam and you can prove you are a better singer than my bands lead singer... thouh if she knew I was jamming with another superhero and moonlighting on her she would flip out at me." there is a laugh. "Worth it tho..."

Kian t'Kaeh has posed:
    "*Mechanical* wings?"  The little birdman sounds genuinely offended.  "That's just not... it's against... *mechanical*?  Nnh...."
    In the middle of that, he stepped out from behind Colette again, and now his wings are spread a bit.  And he gives Colette a look.  No, *A* *L*ook.  "Don't tear off wings, even mechanical ones.  Just disable them.  Bad omens."

Volt has posed:
Milkshake retrieved, crisis averted, jokes he would've made were made by other folks, so Volt slips back from the fore. Instead, he moves a little further down the rooftop to prop a boot upon its edge, letting the wind play through his cape. It'd be the classic superhero gargoyle pose, if he didn't have a milkshake in hand, and straw in mouth.

Stardust has posed:
    "We need to trade idiot villains stories some time, Ghosty. I mean the stories I could tell you about Doctor Light, or The Rebus, or that guy with his trashy robots... but maybe just a jam session, I'm not trying to put your singer out of a job!" Colette replies to Gwen's laugh with a small grin. It would be quite funny to see. And Colette IS pretty confident about the quality of her voice. After all, her vocal coach keeps telling her that she could be something special if only she actually ever attended class.

    With her beloved strawberry shake safely in her own hands, Colette slurps thoughtfully, looking over the cup at Kian. "So, what you are saying is... breaking someone's wings, fine. Tearing them off, bad... omen? Interesting. You must tell me more about the history of your planet some time, Birdy Buddy. I'm guessing your people's past was not as peaceful as its present?

    Slurping up the last of her shake, Colette rests the cup on the edge of the roof, her eyes travelling towards Volt. Cape. Volt's cape. She's tempted to yank it and do the 'no capes' speech, but somehow she refrains. "I'm getting hungry and apparently villains are allergic to today. Ghosty, you wanna come back to the tower for something to eat? Been a long time since we shared a pizza. Guys? Feeling hungry?"

Ghost Spider has posed:
Gwen's stomach audibly rumbles, good call back to her metabolism being wicked fast and terrible. "Ah yes, I would definitely like to come back to the tower and devour a pizza or two." the head bobs a bit there.

She looks thoughtful. "Can I catch a lift Stardust or do I need to try to swing over to your Island?"

Kian t'Kaeh has posed:
    "Breaking wings is also bad," Kían says flatly.  "And we don't have a violent past.  You can't have violence in a telepathic society, not unless you want everyone to go mad... did you say pizza?"  If Kían had shifted gears any faster, he'd've blown his transmission.

Volt has posed:
Volt sucks on that straw pensively, visored gaze overlooking the glittering city lights. His arms fold over his upturned knee, the wind continuing the play along the hem of that cape. Edna Mode can suck it, he knows he looks cool. That's why this is his 'public superhero' attire. There's a reason for things. He'll have to explain it sometime.

"Nah," he finally replies, gaze shifting sidelong to the gathering at his left. "I'm gonna keep lookout for a little bit longer. See if anything pops up. Besides, s'good real-world training."

Stardust has posed:
    Colette nods her head at Volt, all business. "Keep your com at the ready. I can be back in minutes if you need a hand. " She stares at him a few moments, then breaks into a smile. She has a different attitude. Maybe because she's been in the business a couple of years longer. Maybe because she can change her look with far less trouble than he went to. The dramatic pose, the fluttering cape, none of that impresses her. But the man wearing them? So far, he has. "Look after yourself as well as the city, 'kay?" she adds.

    "I said Pizza," Colette confirms to Kian. Her eyes move to Gwen. "You can fly yourself there though, Birdy Buddy. I'm not carrying both of you. It's not so much the wieght as the awkward. I've carried two people before, it makes me feel like I'm a passenger plane." She flashes Gwen a grin. "Sure thing, hop on!"