12512/Is There Life on Olympus Mons

Is There Life on Olympus Mons
Date of Scene:	01 December 2020
Location:	Tony's Office, Stark Tower
Synopsis:	Probably not.
Cast of Characters:	Athena, Iron Man

---

Athena has posed:
Tony Stark's office days are liberally sprinkled with meetings, most of which his Assistant manages to either handle personally or deflect outright. Today, however, his 10:00 appointment somehow managed to out-maneuver all attempts at either, and simply refused to be... 'handled'.

At 9:57, Professor Mildred Minerva is waiting outside his office. Her credentials check out; NYU History professor, on sabbatical. Further digging, however, shows that she achieved tenure at the University in the 1920's. She doesn't LOOK that old, or even like a college professor as the woman sits in a chair outside. (All of which would have been relayed to Tony in advance, of course.)

Iron Man has posed:
Back in the day, it used to be much harder to get appointments with Tony Stark. In the good old days when he had the world's most overqualified personal assistant/life coach. But alas, the great Tony Stark has been dumped by the probable love of his life and left to his own devices.

'His own devices' are literally what he's been left with, and he's been churning new ones out at a furious rate the past few months. But none of them are for sale, which makes his investors very unhappy.

Out in the foyer of Tony's office, an attractive and pleasant, but somewhat slack-jawed young man named Trevor is behind a desk, looking at the calendar on the holographic display that's projected up before him. The display is visible from all angles, which is probably some sort of security risk because now the guests can see Tony's entire schedule for the day.

It consists of:

10:00 - Meeting with Dr. Minerva. Hot for her age.

11:00 - 13:00 - Lunch. Cheeseburgers from that place in San Francisco.

13:00 - ? - Executive Time

Frowning at the schedule, Trevor looks a bit nervous. Either because he's new here, or because Dr. Minerva is capable of making him nervous. Probably a mix of both.

"Mister Stark, your ten o'clock is here."

A muffled voice comes over the intercom, with a sound very much like a welding torch audible in the background.

"Okay, cool. Hey, uh... Travis... would you give her a pair of goggles real quick before you buzz her in? Think Pepper kept a few loaner pairs under the Keurig."

Athena has posed:
Professor Minerva rises smoothly, moving with the grace of an athlete. Or a predator. She heard the conversation, of course, and lifts a blonde brow at the instruction.

"Goggles? I hadn't expected to be part of some lab experiment, but sure." the woman replies. Accepting the goggles from Trevor's slightly twitchy fingers, she strides into the office as she is snapping them into place.

And when she enters the office, it's with no small degree of caution.

Iron Man has posed:
The whooshing door to Tony's Office slides open to reveal a space that's waaaay too big for the amount of work that actually gets done in there. Aside from the (nearly empty) liquor cabinet and the (completely empty) cocobolo desk, it basically just looks like a cavernous open concept minus the actual concept.

Aside from the side of the room with the workbench and fabrication robots.

They're the ones doing the welding at the moment, by the way. Tony is more just supervising, with his back turned to the door, wearing a pair of slippers with his Italian suit and sipping from a coffee mug.

What are the robots manufacturing? Who knows? Well, Tony.

As he turns around, it's obvious that the suit he's wearing was not put on this morning. The tie is missing, for starters, and Tony's cheeks and chin are covered in yesterday's stubble. The mustache looks like it's still on point though.

But despite looking... hungover and sleep-deprived, Tony's eyes brighten when the woman enters the office.

"Professor Minerva! Come in, come in! Just watch your step, the bulletproof glass we tested this morning... turns out... not so bulletproof! Think we got the shards though."

Making his way over to the luxurious desk with even more luxurious chairs, he pulls out the chair in front of his desk, holding it out for her like some sort of gentleman.

He does not, however, offer to shake hands. That's... not his thing.

Athena has posed:
After taking a look around at the primal scene of creation and destruction, the Professor pushes the goggles up and back to sort of perch them into her blonde hair. Turns out it's a good look for her, as well.

When he doesn't offer a hand she doesn't seem offended, and even adds a smile all her own. "Apparently that wasn't in the fine print, either." she replies, carefully toeing some glass shards with a sandal. The woman does accept the offered chair, and slides into it before settling.

She'll wait for him to light or perch or continue pacing, whatever he seems most likely to do, before speaking.

"You are a busy man, Mister Stark, so I'll get right to the point. I'm here because I'm interested in the Avengers Initiative." And yes, she refers to it by the SHIELD project name for some reason. "More specifically, I'm interested in offering my support."

Iron Man has posed:
Pushing the chair forward, with one hand, which would be more impressive if there weren't tiny anti-grav discs under the chair legs (don't ask), Tony makes his way around the desk to his side.

The chair on his side is nicer.

"Much appreciated! Normally I spend the first half of a meeting playing Sudoku in my head. I had a chip installed. But uh... this is refreshing!"

When he sets his cup down on the desk, it becomes possible to ascertain that there is no coffee at all inside of it. Though it looks like there's some other brownish liquid instead...

"I've gotta say though, that is not what I thought we were having a meeting about. But it's cool, I like surprises."

He leaves his mug chilling where it's at, and takes a seat. Immediately, he looks uncomfortable, so he tries to lean back in his chair a bit.

That makes him look even less comfortable.

"But the Avengers Initiative is definitely in need of some fresh perspectives right now. Our resident magician is uh... actually, I can't talk about that. But I mean... our accounting department alone is... dammit, I can't talk about that either."

Leaning forward, Tony strokes his chin, looking somewhat embarrassed.

"Thing is, I can't really talk about ANYTHING related to the Avengers Initiative. That's going to make this conversation all kinds of interesting, isn't it?"

Athena has posed:
The Professor watches him, closely, as he shifts. Thoughtfully. Analytically. Athena is not only Goddess of War, but Goddess of Wisdom, which means that her observations are very much like those of a psychologist or a psychiatrist, only on a much higher level.

"Mister Stark, I didn't come here to discuss the Avengers Initiative, per se. I've studied your methods, your successes as well as your failures. I know your Team's strengths and weaknesses as well as I know your own. Like I said, I've come to offer my support."

The woman leans forward a bit, resting elbows lightly upon her knees in a most unladylike fashion. "You are, of course, doubtful. Suspicious. Distrustful, even. Perhaps you are considering whether or not you should active the room's safeguards. After all, who am I *really*?"

The smile returns, then, with more than a touch of mischief in those gray eyes. "You are aware, of course, that the old stories of the gods are not without truth. Your teammate Thor is a good example. Have you ever thought, however, that such things are not restricted to the Norse beliefs?"

Iron Man has posed:
"Ha. Don't forget about Hercules! Ha! What a ham, that guy..."

Tony chuckles as a few choice memories flicker through his brain. Compared to the walking disaster that is Hercules, Thor is much easier to manage. And he doesn't leave statues of himself in the lobby of Avengers Mansion as a 'present.'

"Man, I haven't talked to Herc in... it's been ages. Last time we went to this bar on Titan and we got so...." Tony clears his throat, and returns his attention to his guest. This is apparently not a story that would have been appropriate for a Business Meeting.

"But... yeah... the whole 'god' thing? Not so much of a believer in all that. Now, clearly, some of these guys have abilities that you don't see on Earth. But I mean Thanos? What's up with that chin? Looks like a shaved ballbag..."

Once again, Tony returns his attention to his guest, as he rapidly ventures off into territory that isn't appropriate for a Business Meeting.

"So... what was your question again? You wanted to run the Avengers Initiative?"

Athena has posed:
The Professor smiles, even chuckling softly at the mention of Hercules' exploits. "Yes, I'm very aware of his Legend, as well as his reality." she replies. "I do understand your skepticism, of course. After all, you are a man of science not a man of faith..."

She trails off as Tony finds his own tangent in Thanos. And his... chin.

The woman rises when he remembers that she's in the room again. And at his question, she simply laughs. "Run the Avengers Initiative? Oh my goodness no. I wish to join the team more directly. I am Pallas Athena, Goddess of Wisdom and War. If you will have my assistance, then you will certainly profit by it."

Iron Man has posed:
"Huh."

For a moment, it's all that Tony can really think to say. It's an unexpected turn in a morning that's already had several. This time when he leans back in his chair, he looks a lot more comfortable. He might be stuck there a while.

"Well... uh..."

It's still taking a few seconds for Tony to come up with an appropriate response, but don't worry, he'll get there, and when he does it'll be a response for the ages.

"Huh. You're full of surprises, Professor. But as you mentioned, I'm not really into the whole believing in things I can't see thing. In fact, I usually make fun of people who are. You know, respectfully, behind their backs, but it's funny to me."

He drums his fingers on the desk in front of him, looking a little bit out of sorts. He's pretty comfortable turning people down for a job they're not qualified for, or because he doesn't like their shoes. But this is something else.

"So... having said that... if you're actually THAT Athena, well... it'd be pretty dumb not to at least bring you by for an evaluation. I'm a little bit fuzzy on my Greek mythology though. Athena was the..."

Tony thinks of how to put it as eloquently and inoffensively as possible.

"Is Athena the sex one?"

Athena has posed:
Athena laughs at that one, even loudly. Then she... MOVES. One moment she's standing before his desk and the next she's standing on it. Well not exactly -on- it, since her sandals don't quite touch the desktop.

And where did the shield and spear come from, anyway? The former is raised in a ready stance, but the spear is held vertically. Unthreatening. Where the goggles were once perched now rests a golden, Corinthian helmet, sitting up and back to expose her face.

"No, Mister Stark, I am not the 'sex one'. You refer to my sister Aphrodite. The redhead. Do you wish to offer a challenge to test the truth of my words?"

Iron Man has posed:
"Jesus!"

To say that Tony looks shocked would be a bit of an understatement. True, he's used to seeing transformations and sudden movements, but he's also a guy who's pushing fifty with a heart condition.

He doesn't go into cardiac arrest, this time, but he only juuuust manages to avoid falling backward out of his chair.

"Gotcha. So Wisdom and War is one goddess, Sex Stuff and... Crops?... is the other one. We uh... didn't really require much reading of the classics at MIT. I actually didn't really go to class much at ALL, if we're being honest. I just kind of turned in a robot at the end of the semester and they let me graduate early."

He's babbling away, possibly to avoid actually having to offer any sort of challenge. But a quick sip of whatever is in his coffee mug seems to calm him down, though he has to kind of reach around her legs to grab it. It makes for an awkward moment, but it's over quickly.

"I actually WAS about to ask you for some sort of demonstration. Ever since I brought that Spider-Woman cosplayer in for a tryout, well, the rest of the Avengers would make fun of me if I did it again, and I'm supposed to be their leader. This though... it's pretty convincing, but maybe a challenge IS exactly what we need here..."

Sliding his seat back, Tony stands up, though his head is still only at like waist level since she's floating above his fancy cocobolo desk.

"Do you happen to be any good at Galaga?"

Athena has posed:
Athena doesn't move her feet as he reaches around her legs, at least not until after he gets his coffee. Then she sort of... hovers... back down to the floor. A bit showy, perhaps, but effective enough to answer immediate questions. And besides, floating with his gaze at waist level is a bit too distracting.

Athena's clothing has shifted as well, now that she lowers the shield to the floor with an audible *clunk* to lean it against the desk. Golden breastplate, blue skirt, greaves, the works. The spear joins the shield, and she sets the helmet casually upon the desk top. It's not like he's actually USING the desk, anyway.

"Galaga? You refer to the video game, of course." she replies, a sparkle in her eyes. "Head to head? I will grant you two out of three attempts to best me."