NPC ENGAGEMENT

[metanpcs]

NPC ENGAGEMENT

To engage with any of these characters please reply to this entry and specify which NPC your character is reaching out to. In the first comment please summarize how and when your character is reaching out. Is it over text? In person? We also ask that you describe their general demeanor and tone.

While we will not be threading out these encounters, we will provide summaries of NPC reactions and conversation responses.

THE GUARDIAN ALLIANCE

The ruling philosophy of the Guardian Alliance is to use power selflessly. Alliance members run the gambit from the genuinely heroic to egotistical showboats trying hard to remain in the spotlight.

ATOMIGHT (he/him)

Atomight is the founder and leader of the Guardian Alliance. He is here to assist all new arrivals who sign on with the guild with adapting to life as a superhero. Sky High also offers sidekick internships to excelling students, allowing them to shadow him.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: ATLAS WASHINGTON
IDENTITY: SECRET
AGE: 60, physically 30
PRONOUNS: He/Him
MORAL ALIGNMENT: Lawful Good
SPECIES: Unknown (Extraterrestrial)
POWERS: Super strength, super speed, flight, near invulnerability, light manifestation, take superman but also give him the ability to absorb kinetic energy.
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: Atlas' identity as Atomight is not known to the public, due to the fact that he wears an enchanted disguise when at his day job. Atlas is not his true name as he has had to change his identity over the years due to his longevity and lack of visible aging. Atlas Washington is a hard-hitting journalist who often writes pieces criticizing modern superheroism.

SILENT MYSTIC (he/him)

The Silent Mystic

is the head of the Guardian Alliance's magic department.The Mystic is always eager to teach new students, study the depths of magic of this world and others, and use his powers to divine the secrets of the universe.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: DIMITRI PAVLOV
IDENTITY: PRIVATE
AGE: 45
PRONOUNS: He/Him
MORAL ALIGNMENT: Lawful Good
SPECIES: HUMAN
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: None. Few members of the guild know who Dimitri is.
POWERS: An ARCANE user of the highest caliber and capable of preforming wordless magic

NULLS (she/they)

Nulls is a technopath known for switching sides and aliases to whatever suits their needs best at the time. Currently, they've decided to align with the Alliance - they play the support role within the guild, being the eyes behind the screen that monitors the streets and provides helpful information. While they do switch guilds often enough to get side-eyed by the guild leaders - it's also well-known where Nulls' morality lies: laws are dumb, but helping people when they're in need isn't bad. Nulls will often offer background support, and is a known supporter of Starfallen. They have hideouts established in every major city of North America, and often flit between the West Coast and Midwest.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: QUINN LEVINE
IDENTITY: UNKNOWN
AGE: 17
PRONOUNS: SHE/THEY
MORAL ALIGNMENT: CHAOTIC GOOD
SPECIES: HUMAN
POWERS: TECHNOPATH

STARSTRUCK (he/him)

Starstruck wasn't meant to exist in this time. A teenager of fifteen back in 1985 when GODFALL had originally happened, he has remained much the same in 2023: he is still fifteen when he should be fifty-three, still bright and full of energy, and still determined to help. He has become a ward of the Alliance, living within the walls of Arcadia. Starstruck is often seen assisting other heroes, and also works as the liaison between Starfallen and natives. If any newbies have any questions or need support, Starstruck is more than happy to lend a hand. He knows all the local resources, and if there's a question he doesn't know how to answer, he knows who to go to for assistance.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: CASEY COOPER
IDENTITY: PUBLIC
AGE: 53 15
PRONOUNS: HE/HIM
MORAL ALIGNMENT: LAWFUL GOOD
SPECIES: NATURAL METAHUMAN / ALIEN HYBRID
POWERS: FLIGHT, ENERGY PROJECTION

THE SOCIETY

The ruling philosophy of the Society is freedom from responsibility, and they advocate that an individual is only obligated to use their powers for personal benefit.

MECHANIMA (he/him)

As the leader

of the Society of Villainous Reformation, Mechanima is responsible for keeping everything in working order. If you want to be a villain he'll happily take you under his wings and teach you how to use your powers to get ahead in life. Mechanima himself is a technopath and is here for all your technopathic needs, whether that's hacking government databases to make you a new identity or disabling security for your heists - so long as you're willing to pay up, of course.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: SYDNEY WINTERS
IDENTITY: SECRET (NOT PUBLICLY KNOWN, KNOWN WITHIN THE GUILD)
AGE: 58
MORAL ALIGNMENT: LAWFUL NEUTRAL
PRONOUNS: He/His
SPECIES: NATURAL META
POWERS: TECHNOPATHY, INTUITIVE GENIUS
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: SYDNEY WINTERS is a self-made billionaire. It is known that Sydney did not graduate highschool or complete any post-secondary and was orphaned at a very young age. Winters Industries is at the forefront of innovation within the world.

He's a well known is a philanthropist. He has two children - Lila and Roy - and his spouse is named Indra.

BARON VON BORZOI (he/him)

The Baron

is attempting to ferret out his arch nemesis, an agent from Felidae Felis (that likewise cannot be spoken in the human tongue). The two of them are basically re-eancting Cats vs Dogs.

The Baron also loves sending people on useless fetch quests. If you want an easy way to curry favor within the guild, play fetch with the Baron.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: ?????
AGE: ??????
PRONOUNS: He/Him
MORAL ALIGNMENT: Chaotic Evil
SPECIES: Canis Sirius (it cannot be spoken in the human tongue, and so he defaults to Dog-Dog)
POWERS: Telepathy, Immortality (the elven kind, where he’s just gorgeous and never ages), the impossible to describe beauty of a Borzoi dog
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: Nothing. Baron von Borzoi disappears from the public eye when he is not in the Guild Chambers.

RED-EYE (they/them)

Johnny

is a wildcard that thrives on doing whatever the hell they want. They’re heavily into the distribution and sale (and use) of intergalactic street drugs and run a massive chain of successful night clubs. Characters who want an entry into the criminal underworld need only ask, Johnny will hook them up in exchange for a 10 percent cut of all their future profits.

Johnny can also bust you out of prison and smoothtalk any jury into letting you off with a slap on the wrist... for a favor down the line.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: Johnny Danger (one of several aliases)
IDENTITY: PUBLIC
AGE: 45
PRONOUNS: They/Them
MORAL ALIGNMENT: CHAOTIC NEUTRAL
SPECIES: LTRK’NYIAN
POWERS: COMPELLING VOICE, Teleportation
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: Most everything. It's well known that Johnny changes names like Fantastic changes costumes. Their drugs are potent, powerful, and they're so damn good they've got blackmail on nearly everybody.

Johnny is more trouble to jail than they are to corral and so the Alliance tends to let them run free, intervening only when they're being particularly obnoxious or hard to handle.

LUNALA (she/her)

Lunala is the daughter of Society member Leonel, a shapeshifter that commonly takes the guise of a lion. Are they werelions? Are they lions who can shift into human form or humans that can shift into lion form? No one really knows and Lunala isn't likely to answer with more than a roar. The young lioness usually is nudging people to safety while Leonel does the fighting, but she's been known to let paws fly when children are in danger. Very few people know Lunala's identity, but Nora is often found in Society safehouses finishing her homework or texting her partner. Lunala works to support Starfallen as they first enter the Society. She is the liaison between natives and Starfallen, and works to build lists of resources available for Starfallen metahumans.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: NORA HOVAGIMIAN
IDENTITY: UNKNOWN
AGE: 18
PRONOUNS: SHE/HER
MORAL ALIGNMENT: CHAOTIC GOOD
SPECIES: UNKNOWN
POWERS: SHAPESHIFTING

CIVILIANS

Not everyone with powers is so keen to sign themselves up to use their powers. Civlian metahumans do not conscript themselves to either guild. However, those in this position will also find that using their metahuman abilities is considered... illegal. Only guild members are given a "pass" to display their abilities in public. Of course, breaking the law has never stopped vigilantes before.

FRANCES STARLING (she/her)

Frances can assist characters who want to live civilian lives,

though it’s nowhere near as extravagant as what the guilds offer. She can help them secure independent housing and find them working class jobs.

Frances also runs a metahuman support group, as well as a specialized support group for clones. Young metahumans, clones, or LGBTAQ+ metas can expect a stalwart ally who will go above and beyond their sakes.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: Frances Starling
IDENTITY: Public, she disavowed the "Featherfall" identity years ago
PRONOUNS: She/Her
AGE: 40, Physically and mentally 60
MORAL ALIGNMENT: Lawful Good
SPECIES: CLONE / ENHANCED HUMAN
POWERS: Flight (Bird Wings), Sonic Scream, Enhanced Strength
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: She is the champion for every meta who wants to live a normal, mundane life. She leads a metahuman support group in Central City. It's well known that Frances is a clone of a long dead teen hero, Featherweight.

When the Godfall Protocols were enacted in 1985, Frances was approached by Atomight who offered her membership - however the offer was rebuffed, as Frances saw the Godfall Event as proof that metahumans were using their powers irresponsibly. More than that, though, she was unsettled by the knowledge that members of the Alliance had killed so many clones without a second thought.

Instead, she enrolled in law school. When she passed the bar she immediately took the world to task. She established a precedent for clone and AI rights, as well as built a reputation as a champion for metahuman rights. Frances is also proudly a transwoman and has fought hard for the rights of LGBTAQ+ people of this world. She married her wife, Rosario, the moment she won the right to be considered her own unique person. She went on to win the rights for AI to be granted rights and citizenship as well.

Frances has stalwartly refused to sign to either guild. She believes that the Guardian Alliance promotes a harmful mentality for metahumans - that their powers are a ‘gift to humanity’ that they are obligated to use, and the fact that they’ve been elevated to the point of celebrity is something she finds repugnant. She is morally incapable of aligning herself with the Society of Villainous Reformation due to how callously many of its members treat human life - especially that of clones.

VIRGIL (they/them)

By now, Virgil is a household name for many AI advocates. As one of the very first AI to reach singularity, Virgil has been acting for metahuman rights ever since, especially since the metaenergy is something they've determined is a big cause for their successful creation. A native to Excelsior, they work with the citizens of the city to provide protection for everyone. Recently, they've worked with an up-and-coming tech business on AI-generated homes. The most impressive and illustrious of its kind is Arcadia: a castle-like city-within-a-city, positioned on the outskirts of metro Excelsior. As an AI, Virgil is not a part of the Alliance or the Society, but will help out either in a pinch.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: VIRGIL
IDENTITY: VIRGIL
PRONOUNS: they/them
AGE: 32
MORAL ALIGNMENT: True Neutral
SPECIES: AI
POWERS: None, but can replicate warding as needed for Arcadia due to thoroughly understanding the line between what is magic and what is technology.
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: VIRGIL is a long-lived AI, one of the first and thus most evolved—not as in advanced, but because they've been through a lot of iterations. Originally designed to help advance technology in Excelsior, Virgil's focus has changed and directed more toward civil rights. They're excellent at creating connections with many up-and-comers and using those connections to help those who are in need. Their community, Arcadia, is open to all comers, and Virgil is currently actively working to help all Starfallen integrate into society.

CHAOS GATE (she/her)

With her friendly

and carefree nature, she’s extremely likely to help player characters with any schemes they may want to hatch without expecting much in return. Any budding social media influencers are welcome to collab with her - she's one of the very biggest "non-meta" influencers there is! Anyone who wants learn magic is also welcome to take lessons from her.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: KATHERINE WEST
IDENTITY: SECRET
AGE: 23
PRONOUNS: She/Hers
MORAL ALIGNMENT: CHAOTIC NEUTRAL
SPECIES: HUMAN - GOD HYBRID
POWERS: CHAOS MAGIC, longevity, enhanced strength and durability.
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: KATHERINE WEST is a wealthy social media influencer who made it big by hopping on the TikTok bandwagon early and eagerly. Now a multi-millionaire, she lives a life of lavish luxury in SUNSET FALLS, taking advantage of the bizarre occurrences in town to farm content for her followers. She was voted Scream (Prom) Queen and Most Likely To Survive in the Sunset Falls yearbook.

Her mother mysteriously disappeared when she was a little girl. Her father, CHRISTIAN WEST, was the mayor of Sunset falls before Loki (dothelokimotion) overtook that role.

EROS (he/they)

A God living in a garish mansion outside of Sunset Falls.

Eros has dominion over love. He used a magic spell on the people of Sunset Falls to try to gain enough power to return to the godly plane. Unfortunately, that didn't work and he remains stranded.

Eros is desperate to get back home. He will gladly a bargain with any mortal who can win his favor and offer to make them his divine champion.

info & description

CIVILIAN NAME: CHRISTOS L’AMOUR
IDENTITY: Private
PRONOUNS: He/They
AGE: Ageless, appears to be in his late 20s / early 30s.
MORAL ALIGNMENT: ???
SPECIES: GOD
POWERS: Emotional manipulation, empathy, remote viewing, flight, immortality, deadly accuracy
KNOWN INFORMATION ABOUT CIVILIAN IDENTITY: He’s an eccentric who lives on the fringes of Little Love in a garish mansion. He bankrolls the White Hearts Day festival every year.

NETWORK | LOGS | OOC | MEMES

PREMISE | SETTING | GUILDS | FAQ | RULES
TAKEN | CALENDAR | ENGAGEMENT | NPC ENGAGEMENT
RESERVES | APPLICATION | MOD CONTACT | PLAYER PLOTS
HIATUS & DROP | CANON & POWER UPDATES

Comments

[levelshift]

He's kind of amazed he's getting as far as he is without having to maim or murder anybody, but hey, he'll take it! Even if it means a meeting in a goddamn office, which is definitely not something he's used to doing. He'll deal with it though, showing up at Mechanima's office dressed casually and mentally preparing himself for numerous worst case scenarios.

So when he enters he'll stop in front of Mechanima's desk, trying to lean a little less on his crutch than normal, and very bluntly state that he wants to join the Society. The supercomputer he had been given upon his initial arrival is incredibly underpowered compared to what he's used to, to the point where it's actually debilitating. He was told if he registered with a guild he could be given an upgrade, and if he has to pick between the Society or the Alliance he at least wants to go with the people who are upfront about being total scum. He'd fit in better there.

He's also interested in whatever accommodations the Society offers but that's a whole lot less important than his brain functioning properly. There's also a lot of cursing throughout his answer, and it's unclear if it's some kind of verbal tic or if he's just exasperated by everything.

→ Follow-Up

[harageous]

Around mid-April Eda reaches back out to Frances. This time she is not seeking help, but to drop off a small basket of freshly baked cookies from one of the local bakeries. She leaves it with her office's secretary and makes it very clear that there is a note in the basket that should make its way to Frances.

Because no one expects someone not to steal a cookie. And cookie theft is how unknown notes get lost.

The note has been safely tucked away in a small red envelope, along with her contact details written over the back of a hotel business card.

It reads as follows:

Frances,

Thank you for helping me get started.

Call on me if I can repay the favour.

E. Clawthorne

[metanpcs]

Mechanima is impressed with Accelerator's bold approach. He leans forward, an elbow pressing against the surface of his desk to rest the underside of his helmet against his knuckles. Accelerator is right: Mechanima can provide him with what he's asking for, and he tells him as such. No one in the Society is capable of matching his capabilities, and he knows what that's worth to Accelerator, too.

He asks Accelerator what he's willing to give in order to get what he's asking for; tech like that won't be cheap for Mechanima to obtain, and he wants to make sure if he puts in the effort, that Accelerator is willing to pay up. He won't offer suggestions just yet - instead, he's using this opportunity to gauge what Accelerator thinks is an appropriate price for a replacement supercomputer.

[levelshift]

Not getting immediately dismissed means Accelerator is quietly counting this as a win, so far.

He's going to be open that he's willing to do whatever needs doing, regardless of whether or not something is morally correct or legal. He's well aware the cost of what he's asking for isn't cheap and that he's only a kid, the latter of which will probably create some obstacles in how he can pay the Society back. But there's an advantage there, too: adults underestimate kids all the time. He's willing to bet a lot of heroes, especially ones tied up in the Alliance, handle kids a lot more gently than adult villains. At the very least, they're probably more reluctant to deal with them. As a minor it's easier for him to slide under the radar and let people assume he's some idiot brat who's gotten in over his head, even though that's complete bullshit. He knows what he's getting into. He understands the rules the Society has and he doesn't want to hurt innocent people anymore anyways, so all of that's fine, it makes a lot more sense to him than the expectations of the Alliance.

He's also got a pretty useful ability (understatement of the century) - being able to manipulate vectors - that has some versatility to it as long as he can do the mathematical calculations for it.

All of that is being explained very confidently. He hasn't been rehearsing an answer or anything, but he's given this a lot of thought in order to make the best of the options available to himself.

[metanpcs]

Accelerator is only a child. He's small, unassuming, but Mechanima is also well-aware of how those can be used in his favor. He doesn't see it as a weakness, but as a strength all of its own. He lets Accelerator know that, if he can stay in his office for a little while so Mechanima can toy with his current collar and figure out exactly what he needs, he can begin working on creating a better one. The one he creates for Accelerator will be attuned to his needs, significantly more powerful than the one that was initially provided, but in exchange he needs a very specific favor:

He likes Chaos Gate, but he also knows that she is extremely powerful, more so than may be safe for her - and everyone else. He needs someone he can plant close enough to keep tabs on her, on the off chance something does go wrong. She's currently in need of a new assistant, and he can recommend Accelerator for that role. He also informs Accelerator that he needs a student on the inside of Lofty Heights to keep an eye out for students who may lean more towards their side. He needs someone who can fulfill the role of the perfect student; keeping up good grades, being friendly enough not to cause too much trouble, to avoid any unnecessary strife and ensure he doesn't get expelled.

Mechanima informs Accelerator that working under Chaos Gate won't an easy task; she lives up to her name well and may send him off on numerous missions ranging from causing some light mischief to mass mayhem - which he'll have to juggle around school and any extracurricular he gets up to on his own.

[levelshift]

The only pause Accelerator is outwardly giving is the request for Mechanima to examine his current device, which he understands is a necessity but thanks to Donnie's spontaneous technopathy showing accidentally shutting it off has him a little gunshy. It's only lasting a brief moment, though, before he agrees. Without the stupid thing on, powered and connected to him he's completely vulnerable, but if he wants something better the old one is going to have to get disconnected at some point anyway, so... might as well bite the bullet and let the guy with a tv screen for a mask take a look at it.

He does want to know if that requires a complete disconnection from his brain, if that's the case then he's going to need to lie down as it's compensating for his balance and voluntary motor control. AKA he'll fucking fall over without it and oh boy, is he not keen to repeat that experience.

(It's fine, it's all fine. If this puts him in a really dangerous position he might be able to pull out his black wings again, like he did back home.)

The rest of that is mostly a cakewalk. Keep an eye on Chaos Gate as her assistant, sure. (He has never been anyone's assistant before but he's not going to let a little thing like that stop him. If he can handle being babysitter to a chaotic ten year old and by proxy ten thousand fourteen year old esper clones he can handle keeping an eye on a powerful magic user.) He'll make it clear he's going to need time to observe her, both in terms of her powers and to get to know her personality and how she functions, so that he can more accurately determine if something about her goes off. This is especially so the case in terms of her powers if they're beyond science-based; those are new to him and he hasn't had a lot of time to gain a good understanding of them.

He is inwardly completely loathe at the idea of having to be friendly towards people at school, but he's keeping his expression neutral and responding that none of this will be a problem. He was an honour student back home and knows how to manage a busy schedule.

[robintohood]

It's now April and as a follow-up to their conversation back in October, Jason calls the number on the card Johnny gave him. He's wants to them know that he and the rest of Backbreakers gang are ready to join the Society now. They still intend to keep the territory they've established in Central City but are also looking forward to whatever jobs the Society will provide to them. The Code should be maintained after all.

[metanpcs]

Looking into his current collar will not require it to disconnect from Accelerator. Mechanima will let him know he just needs to be able to touch it himself, and doesn't need to remove it from his neck either. It may, for a few brief moments, shut down while he examines it, but it won't be long enough to truly negatively affect Accelerator. And Mechanima promises too to keep him up himself during the process, since he wouldn't want Chaos Gate's new assistant to get worn down just before he sends him off to her.

He lets Accelerator know that he's aware it will take time to gauge how she is, especially given who she is, but he's willing to accept that. This is more of a long-term solution, not something he anticipates relying on any time soon.

After Mechanima is given the chance to observe Accelerator's device, he will let him know that it will take approximately five days for him to complete the new supercomputer; once it's done, he will have his own assistant reach out to Accelerator to come and pick it up. In the meantime, Chaos Gate is currently in building and Mechanima can walk Accelerator over for an introduction.

[metanpcs]

Johnny is delighted that Jason is finally coming to his senses and signing on.
“Since you’re so keen to keep crime in check, how about you take on some of our codebreaker cases,” they say over the phone, absently flipping through the case files on their desk. “We’ll start you off easy. Noooooo apocalypse-types, that’s a little too advanced. But! We have a mass murderer or two that we could really use some clean-up on.”

A few moments later, Jason is granted access to The Society’s online network. Along with that, he’s giving a document containing the details on a metahuman serial killer. Unaffiliated - they’d refused to join, refused the Code, and unlike the Starfallen they were born here. Ergo, they are beholden to these rules. They were okay with leaving him be right up until he started killing real sloppily.

“The moment this guy toed outta line he was dead,” Johnny says brightly. “So, here’s how this is going to work. This guy - pyrokinetic, real firebug, and he’s got a crew, not gonna lie, they all kinda suck powers wise but there’s enougha them that it’ll be a pain in the ass. And all of ‘em gotta go. So, you bump the guy off, gimme some proof of death - none of that head on a platter shit, we’re not medieval here - I mean like a photo, or call me and I’ll have someone confirm. You gotta call me anyway, ‘cause I gotta send our clean-up crew to the coordinates. Badda-bing, badda-boom, you get paid and I got one less scumbag sucking air to worry about.”

Johnny snaps their fingers for emphasis.

“You got to the end of next month. Lemme know if you got any questions.”

Along with that, Johnny sends some other files along. Goodwill, they call it. Little things Jason can do to improve their territory for the baseline humans living there. Johnny doesn’t sound enthused about it, but with how things are going, they figure anything they can do to improve public opinion is a good idea.

[robintohood]

Jason goes through the documents carefully as he listens to Johnny and mentally notes that he'll have to do some confirmations first in case the Society's giving him bad intel. But so far, Johnny's certainly coming off as excited and generous. Having access to the Society's network is a real treat and he's a little surprised by the extra files to help improve his territory.

"Can't be blatant about who's backing me but I doubt anyone thinks of me an Alliance boy scout anyway. Thanks."

[levelshift]

This is reminding him of Donnie's own technopathy, but Accelerator is promptly pushing those feelings down because they have no place in a negotiation. It's fine, he can take a look at the choker.

He's pretty happy when Mechanima is finished observing it, though.

Five days for a new one is reasonable (it's actually incredibly fast, what the fuck, that's kind of scary), and he'd like to know if there are going to be any medical tests to make sure the thing doesn't fry his brain. Better to be safe than sorry, and he's used to them.

He might as well meet Chaos Gate now, if she's around. He'd like to know if he's going to need to send regular reports on Chaos Gate or anything like that, or if he only needs to inform Mechanima if anything out of the ordinary comes up.

And this has nothing to do with any of the very serious stuff they've been discussing, but Accelerator is also a dumb fifteen year old who still image is very important, so on their walk over he has to ask what the fuck is with the helmet? It's in a casual, rather than an insulting tone. He's far too I-don't-give-a-shit to actually say it out loud, but that is some killer aesthetic.

[metanpcs]

Mechanima has the original's blueprint to work off of - so he isn't concerned about frying Accelerator's brain. But if it would make Accelerator feel better to have Mechanima run tests to make sure he has the right electrical output to keep it from happening, there's a lab on the third floor where those tests can be run before the official hand over. Just in case.

The chaos (ha) begins once Mechanima walks Accelerator across the building, into an elevator, and down two floors. The elevator door opens up on the other side, and the room it opens up into is full of cats. Big cats, small cats, lions, a stray panther making itself comfortable lounging across the front desk.

Mechanima offers no commentary on the state of the room, but walks straight up to the desk. Leans in close to the panther to speak quietly to it before it gives a loud yawn and puts it's paw over its mouth again. Mechanima raises a hand to wave, and lets himself right back on into the elevator, taking the time to kick Accelerator out of it if needed.

The panther gives a loud yawn and then a quiet chittering noise as it climbs off of the desk, making its way to an open doorway towards the right.

The big cat claws at the door and after a moment or two, an exhausted looking young woman with purple hair makes her way into the room. She’s wearing pajamas, mismatched slippers, and what looks to be a 3-moon wolf shirt. She waves the panther aside and makes her way to the desk, throwing herself down onto it and scrubbing the sleep from her eyes.

“Are you the new assistant?” She squints at him, then sighs and waves her hand. At once, she’s the picture of a villainess. Her comfortable pajamas are replaced by stylish leathers, and the wide brim of a witch’s hat covers the bedhead that even magic can’t tame. “Okay, good, I think the last one got eaten…”

The girl stretches out like a cat, and twirls a finger midair. Accelerator will suddenly find himself holding three things: an empty coffee cup, a bag of cat food, and an extensive to-do list that ranges from household chores to minor felonies.

“I know I should be, y’know, bringing you up to speed on the whole villain thing,” Chaos Gate breaks out the airquotes. “But I’ve been caught up in a bunch of magical bullshit and I really need you to help me out here.”

[levelshift]

Being as paranoid as he is, and since they're dealing with his brain, Accelerator will affirm that he wants those tests.

He steps out of the elevator, half wondering if this is a huge fucking joke. Did Mechanima take him to the wrong floor? Why the hell does the Society even have a cat floor? Why does this day keep getting worse? He watches Mechanima (this motherfuckerrrrr) in dead silence, somewhere in the void of emotions between baffled and incredibly pissed off, and when he watches the guy depart he decides that yup, this is serious. He follows after the panther, being careful to avoid accidentally smooshing a cat tail with his crutch.

For a split second he actually wishes one of the Sisters was here. Not Last Order, because she would think she's full of useful cat knowledge despite being a small child who spent most of her very short life in a tube, but he's pretty sure the Sisters are all fans of cats. They'd have a better idea of what to do with... all of this. Either that, or their electromagnetic AIM field would keep all the cats away. He would take either outcome right now. Since he doesn't have that very important support, he just gives a small sigh.

So this is his boss. He trails after her into her office, nodding at her question and giving his esper name. Even with the improvement in aesthetic he's still unsure of how to take all of this, if he should be unimpressed or what -

Wait, what? Eaten? Accelerator stares, casts a brief glance over in the direction of the panther (do panthers eat people? Maybe it was one of the lions?), and has zero time to consider which of the big cats he needs to keep an eye on because the sudden appearance of stuff in his free hand is nearly throwing him off-balance.

It's mostly the cat food, those bags are heavy.

He clicks his tongue, trying to adjust everything, the empty cup going into the same hand as his crutch and the cat food under his arm. "I'm sure it can wait," he replies bluntly, not caring too much about playing catch-up as he reads over the list he's been given. Even if it reads like total nonsense he's going to take it seriously, to start out on the right foot and everything. "What kind of magical bullshit are you talking about?"

[metanpcs]

"Oh, you don't have to worry about that right now." She gives a dismissive wave, flitting over to the lions to run her fingers through the mane of one of them. Murmurs sweet nothings into his ear.

"The espresso maker is just over there - '' A gesture of her hand towards the left of the office, where she has an entire coffee cart set up, including a mini fridge. "Exactly three shots of espresso, chocolate milk, and caramel sauce. You might want to write that down." She'll change up her drink daily, consistently telling Accelerator he may want to write it down only to ask for something entirely different the next time she asks for a refill. "But you may want to handle that after you feed the cats. Priscilla gets. . . very, very angry when her dinner time is delayed." Priscilla receives no more specification, but Accelerator will discover if he doesn't feed her on time (5:54 PM daily) he'll have a large, very fluffy maine coon launching herself off of the nearest high surface onto his head.

"The bigger kitties come home with me at the end of the day, the rest of them are my office cats, occasional henchmen. The ones here will be your responsibility to feed, though I might need help getting meat from the butcher shop down the road on occasion for Lester, Hannibal, and Tubby here."

[levelshift]

He shrugs. Okay then, catsitting it is. If this is anything like regular babysitting he should be fine. Probably. Hopefully. He has experience with one of those things and it doesn't involve cats. Or... lions. He's staring a little as Chaos Gate treats one of the lions as an overgrown pet cat.

(He's already very tired. Getting out of bed this morning was a mistake.)

The coffee order shakes him out of those thoughts, and Accelerator clicks his tongue. Again. "I'll remember it." He doubts remembering the right number of espresso shots and syrup pumps isn't the best use of his very precise ability to recall and memorize things, but whatever. He's used it for dumb stuff before, and he will at least appreciate someone else having extremely specific coffee preferences that change on the regular.

"Fine. Do they each get a certain amount, or...?" The list gets shoved into a pocket for now and he looks around for cat bowls or feeders so he can get on that task. At the same time, he makes a mental note to update his reflection so cats bounce off of it harmlessly when he's in esper mode. Just in case. "... And why the fuck are there so many of them? Is your idea of using henchmen just tossing a flood of angry cats at someone?"

That question may seem ridiculous but this whole situation is ridiculous, so he isn't going to discount the possibility that that's exactly why the felines are here.

[metanpcs]

"You'll have to figure that out when we go out together." There's a curl to the corners of her lips, one that causes her eyes to scrunch up as she raises her index finger to her lips, as if she's sharing a secret. The cat-hoard aren't always cats. But even if they were, cats are significantly more useful than most bipeds. Fluffy, murderous, occasionally cuddly.

Chaos Gate leaves the lion's side, and makes her way over to a doorway leading outside - but the office space is several floors off of the ground, and there isn't a set of stairs leading down. Not even a fenced in balcony; it simply drops down to nothing. She pulls open the door, but does pause to look back towards Accelerator.

"The bowls are over in the cat room." Labeled with a cute little drawn pink cat head in the center and nothing more, but it is cracked open and the excessive amount of cat trees inside should make it clear. There are several plain bowls, as well as slow feeders. "Fill the bowls each feeding time. I'll get the morning ones, since you're - " Eyes looking over Accelerator, from head to toe. "in school." The smile on her lips only grows wider when Chaos Gate turns to fully face Accelerator with her back towards the door, and raises a hand to wave. "Call me if you get lost, or eaten, orrrr anything else drastic. If I've got time, I'll come rescue you. Byee!"

She drops backwards out the window; if Accelerator comes closer to look, he won't find a trace of her. But he will find a new, bright purple phone inside of his pocket with her number programmed into it.

[levelshift]

Accelerator silently raises an eyebrow, unable to not think of that answer as slightly ominous. It's barely even an answer at that, but he's getting the sneaking suspicion he won't get much more, so he figures it's good enough for now. It isn't as if that's important information in taking care of the cats, or anything.

He follows her over to the door that looks like it should lead nowhere and - yeah, okay, that's got to be some magic spatial bullshit going on. That is something he's just going to roll with, since the priority here is feeding the cats properly. It sounds simple enough, but he's going to take it seriously regardless.

Though, he can only stare at her bemused until he's alone. Clearly, he isn't going to be able to rely on his boss if he has trouble with the big cats. He is going to have to talk to her about personal space, that phone showing up in his pocket isn't great, but. Well. Better get to feeding.

Follow-up

[robintohood]

Jason and the Backbreakers gang have successfully killed their targets. Minutes after Jason talked to Guy and went their separate ways, Jason rejoined the rest of his crew and where the bodies are. He then stands next to the serial killer's body, summons one of his swords, and stabs the body in the chest. Got to be sure someone's staying dead in case they have a healing factor or some other meta ability that could fool him.

Jason then takes out his burner phone and takes a picture of himself holding his sword in the corpse. The bloodied body also has two gunshot wounds to the head.

He then sends to photo to Johnny with the following text:

Got some presents

[metamods]

The reply comes instantaneously. That’s my BOY!

No sooner does that reply come than does The Society send in its clean-up crew. They are fairly unassuming people - which immediately doesn’t feel like a thought you should have, given most of them are wearing superhero costumes. A spell has been cast upon them to make it difficult to look.

“You should probably go,” one says, jerking his thumb towards a man dressed in a bizarrely accurate beetle costume… or is he just a giant beetle? They wince. “It’s pretty difficult to watch Duggie work.”

As Jason exits, he’ll find an immense chunk of change has just hit his bank account. The note simply says, “Call you soon!”

[robintohood]

In light of recent events, Jason recognizes he better rack up more favors with the Society sooner than later. He might need to cash those in for something big. Or several big somethings. Plus, if he continues to be an active member, he could get more intel on the guild in case they go sideways like the Alliance.

So not long after the Alliance's leadership change, Jason decides to a pay visit to the Society's guild chambers to see The Baron. Really, he has no idea what The Baron is there for but he's a dog. How bad could this be? Jason also comes with a large bag of gourmet meat treats. Lamb, duck, high-quality beef and chicken. Only the best for a high-ranked Society member.

While offering the treats, Jason explains that as a recent member of the Society, he just wants to get to know the officials better and pay his respects. He also comments that it's totally bullshit that the Westminster Kennel Club rejected the Baron again. Clearly they don't know what real standards are.

[metamods]

The Baron looks down his impressively long snout at the offering of treats, lifting a paw to push Jason’s hand aside.

Do I seem like a simpleton to you? The voice, a surprisingly distinguished and deep. Those deep, soulful dog eyes also contain the deepest depths of judgement in them. If you’re going to bring gifts, then they’d best come in the form of unmarked bills and diamonds.

Still, he’s not trying to bite Jason. Though there is a touch of a growl on his lips. There’s something calculating about the way he licks his lips, rising to his paws and turning with the expectation that Jason will follow.

How about we play a little game of ‘fetch’ so you can prove your worth? He stops at his desk, hopping up on his hind legs and dropping his impressive paws against the table. I lost a toy of mine a while back. It’s currently being held in the vaults of the first bank. If you can get in and out with all your limbs in tact, I’ll allow you a second chance at introductions.

[robintohood]

Still calm and collected, Jason follows the Baron. He's not worried so far. He had already steeled himself to be asked to do something. That's just how the Society works.

"What's the toy and what's the security like?" He simply asks.

[metanpcs]

The Baron regards Jason, regal as a King.

It’s the First National Bank in a city of metahumans, boy. He looks down his long snoot, seemingly judging. That may just be his face. It is a very long nose to look down, and the Baron is rather tall when standing on his hind legs. The ‘Toy’ is a golden coin capable of infinitely replicating itself. As you can imagine, this will require skill, fortitude, mastery of disguise, and the ability to think on your feet.

[unkindled_madness]

Sephiroth and Loki would like to meet in-person with former Mayor West (mayor-to-mayor, in Loki's case) to ask him about the Jan 4, 2022 Confluence. Given what they've learned--that the Battlements of the Shining God had a prophecy that Sunset Falls would be destroyed on this date, something to do with West's daughter aka Chaos Gate who seems to have stopped or at least altered the Confluences... He seems like a good person to talk to!

They would like to ask him about the state of Sunset Falls at that time: Were there fluctuations in the town's energy or anything wonky going on with the pact to protect it from Hellmouth destruction? Was it at all similar to the current state of affairs? What was his daughter doing leading up to that Confluence?

Loki would also like to know if Eros would be willing to part with some of his power to strengthen the wards, since Loki can't do it without giving up parts of himself.

[metamods]

Hey there!

1. Loki and Sephiroth will have some trouble getting in touch with old Mayor West – not particularly from the standpoint of being able to find him, but an silly little issue of scheduling. For a retired mayor, it seems like he's ridiculously hard to catch. When they do finally catch up to him, he tries to hurry back into his house from the porch before they catch him. He'll be reluctant to talk; he's not cagey, just tired.

With a suffering sigh he'll tell them yes, there were fluctuations in the ley line energy during that time, mostly related to the precarious nature of Sunset Falls. He was the one who went to work with the ley lines to stabilize the energy. Once Loki took the mantle as Mayor, his duty to Sunset Falls was relieved.

As for Kate, he can't account fully for her whereabouts. She was in Little Love, Kansas, following up with a client. He'll mention that she had been particularly nostalgic at that time, talking about the "golden days of metahumans" on vlog after vlog. During that time, she had been dating a big name hero, and he attributed to that. He'll then confess that he had no idea that she was Chaos Gate, though he suspects that his absence as Mayor may have lead to her feeling neglected in some way. At this point, he'll start to shut down the conversation, and he won't be very willing to invite them back.

2. Unfortunately, Eros does not have the energy to spare to strengthen those wards. The light of love and tangle of relationships hasn't really been at the forefront of people's minds, lately. In his weakened state, he can't offer Loki anything. Loki will have to make do with what he can, himself. Hellmouth is Loki's responsibility now.