Dixie nodded when she heard the man say he was okay, glancing up to see him smile. She attempted a friendly smile back before tucking some hair behind her ears and then untucking it. She looked to another man who walked into the house, puffing a cigarette. Her nose crinkled slightly, before all attention seemed to go to the hot pink limo that pulled up in the drive. Dixie’s lips parted slightly as she watched a girl who was… well, gorgeous was the only way to describe her really, until she got up the steps and spoke. Who do I have to screw around here to get a drink? Dixie looked at the girl in shock, lips sealed and eyes wide, wondering what kind of girl said such things. It was certainly not the demure language her mother had taught her to use. If Farrah was here, she would have probably scolded this woman in front of everyone. The thought of her mom brought Dixie back to a more comfortable gaze, letting her take a deep breath.

Her attention went to a girl with mousy brown hair in a suit jacket, obviously someone already arrived or their supposed leader she ventured to guess since she emerged from within the house. The snarl forming on the girl’s lips let Dixie know she was not pleased with the crowd she looked out on, and she could hardly blame her. They did look rather like a circus at the present moment she supposed. But there was no reason to snarl and roll one’s eyes. Come in, we have much to discuss…

Dixie looked at the others before dipping her head silently and following, setting her bags next to a staircase but out of the way, before following into the living room after the girl. She stood behind a couch, not used to sitting until being invited to. Welcome to Millennia Manor. I am Titan, and Sam. The first of this team.

Dixie was inches from blurting out Nice to meet you Sam. per her manners, but the beautiful girl spoke up and asked where her room was. That was a tad rude. No no, one shouldn’t judge. She was probably just tired. Long trip. She was sure the woman would be friendlier after she was comfortable. Others began filing in, including a man in a rather intimidating, scary suit who simply said the word Frostbite. How odd. Oh that must be his name. Dixie looked back down, figuring no one would notice if she didn’t introduce herself, and she could just listen to the others and follow along.

Mack struggled to keep up with what was happening around him. So much action was going on around him, even his processor was struggling to keep up with the madness. There was the girl who had fallen down the steps, the young boy who seemed to fly in on a UFO, a woman who seemed to what Humans would call 'beautiful', and a load of others. As soon as Sam told everyone to go in, he quickly turns and walks in behind her. Sam seemed to be very bitter at times, but to him she seemed okay. Especially as she was forming a team to fight crime, rather than do crime. Though she seemed a tad bit on the mean side.

As Sam sat down in her chair, Mack moves and sits down beside her, making them kind of look like a duet; a hero with her sidekick. Though it wasn't exactly that way. Bladewolf watched as people began to move in and introduce themselves. Finally, there was a lull in the introductions, and Mack began to think about what he wanted to say to introduce himself. He had only introduced himself once, and that was to Sam. That was quite hard for him, as that was the starting point of his social and conversational programming routines. Finally, after two seconds, he had made up what he had wanted to say, and said it;
"I am Mack. Though most refer to me as 'Bladewolf'."

After his introduction, Mack looks up at Sam. The way his head was tilted, and how he was shifting a little (part of his 'showing emotions' of the social programming) simply, silently said the words: How are we going to control this amount? Even if Sam didn't understand the way he was silently trying to show himself, he would try to talk to her later. It wasn't his place to judge how she acted and organised things, but he guessed that she would hopefully talk to him about it if he asked. Hopefully.

Axle puts out his cigarette, and raises his hand "I'm Axle, I've been told my hero name is AX-L, not my idea. It's a pleasure to meet you all." He says as he then puts his hand down. He uncomfortably adjusts himself, he hadn't been comfortable sitting since the accident.

Sophie trudged up the front steps with heavy stomps, as if forcing her feet to continue moving forward. With every step she nearly sighed audibly. The short ascent left her time to quickly reflect on the colorful characters she had the joy of surveying from behind; such a brief moment was all she needed, really. An inhuman robot (and a human one), a beauty queen, a childish idiot -Sophie marked him in particular, vowing to answer any interaction with him with a sharp kick to the gut- a smoker, and... Well that was it. Two others seemed practically unnoticeable and invisible. Barely worth mentioning for Sophie. Surely they had something up their sleeve to "surprise" her with, but it was doubtful whatever it was would leave much of an impression for more than a fleeting second.

As she entered, Sophie threw her sack aside listlessly, heading over to the main event, making sure to fake a half-assed bow before Sam before taking a seat. Anything to please her royal highness. She noted her stern look and holier-than-thou visage. Clearly the leader. Claiming she was first of the team only cemented the thought. Sophie fell into a seat with a huff, bouncing upwards as the cushion recoiled. She laid claim to the armrest of another nearby piece of furniture, raising her legs to rest them upon it. The bottom of her shoes, permeated with dirt in every crack, brushed several items along the way.

Sophie would have introduced herself, but the whiny cries of a helpless beauty killed her appetite for words. She made note to kick her in the gut too when the time came. By her estimate, it'd be soon. Cracking her knuckles for relief, Sophie managed to elicit enough fervency to speak up. "Sophie," she greeted with unenthusiastic mumble. She slumped further in her chair and her legs extended out further, blocking more of the other chair from being occupied. She went silent and looked over the mansion, her ears half-trained on Sam's next words. She'd explain the details surely enough, and Sophie could already deduce a bit of what was going to be said. Superhero team blah blah, work for the mayor, blah. Something along those lines.

Cassandra is aware that something approaches her as she relaxes in her bath but worries little over it as Flicly who's usually a good barometer of danger only looks up briefly from preening her feathers. So when the sweet you red headed girl walks into the little clearing

"Oh hello, you must be on of my new teammates, I'm Suzanne but you can just call me Suzy. I saw the heat of your bath and thought it was a fire so I came to check it out." Says the unusual girl

"Well Hello Suzy my Name is Cassandra Moonchild. she says as she stands and steps out of her bath.

There is no trace of shame nor fear in Cassie's eyes as she stands nude before Suzy. She has no body shame simply because in Avalon there is no such thing because it is a pure realm where the natural is celebrated.

"My, my you've been playing with Ursa and her scent has clung to you along with the soil of her den. If to bathe you came then please be my guest my Hero and I shall become attendant to your desires." says Cassandra indicating the bath

Ralph followed everyone else into another part of the mansion to give introduction, he also noticed Sophie's entrance and his instincts gave him hints that she was a big laugh-killer. They were certainly an interesting group heroes and a diverse one at that when it came to personalities. He decided to introduce himself and gave them all a happy grin.

"Hay everyone, my name is Ralph, but when we're out there kick'n crime in the ass, you can call me Toon Master and as you can see-" he created a cartoon squirrel that was gnawing on walnut in a hyper kind of way.

"cartoons are my thing" he said with a proud smile. The cartoon construct disappeared and Ralph wondered how they would all this team idea would turn, so far he was happy with it. For the moment Dxie and Beauty seemed like the nicer members of their team.

Quite the gathering had assembled by the mansion at this point and every curious question was replaced by another. What could the guy in armour do? What could the girls do? What could their apparent leader do? And why did they have a robot dog? Skyler couldn’t help but smile at the cluster of people appearing from all walks of life. What had they been through which eventually brought them here? What had happened, where did they come from? “She’s pretty.” Evan whispered quietly as he leaned over to speak into Sky’s ear. It was obvious who he was referring to, but Sky didn’t quite share the same view. He had never felt an attraction towards women and this one did little to tickle his fancy. He wasn’t going to deny that she was indeed a beautiful individual but not on a sexual level. Sky had in fact had his eyes on someone else for a while, a few years to be exact. It was a shame that he could never confess his feelings as he knew that they were not returned.

As they were walking through the beautiful mansion, Skyler’s eyes examined their surroundings and was immediately enchanted by the high end decor and marble. Hopefully this would be their new home and not just a meeting place for formality. “That kid has an interesting power.” Skyler tilted his head as he watched the cartoons appearing. This was most certainly something he had never come across before, and he hadn’t seen many cartoons either.

“The bad guys would be beaten by pure shock.” Evan giggled. This was indeed a unique power he possessed.

It didn’t take long before they reached the meeting area and dropped down on a coach, hearing Sam speak. She didn’t seem too enthusiastic about the whole thing, perhaps this was all being executed against her will? Either way, she was there and hopefully she was a good team player. “I’m Skyler, Sky’s alright.” Skyler began, leaning forth slightly as spoke, his hands placed together. “I’m called Sniper and I will be providing long range support unless otherwise stated.” He smiled and nodded towards the group.

“I’m Evan…” It was clear that the young blonde man was unused to larger ensembles but he tried to speak as best he could. “I don’t really have a code name and I work the computer, providing intel.” He finished with a flustered smile, attempting to stay out of eye contact with the rest.

“I’m afraid you all outshine us in the power front.” Skyler chuckled and looked at Ralph. He then grabbed a pillow and seemed to have pulled another one out of the soft, stuffed cloth, as if a magic trick. He now held two identical pillows in his hands. “But this can come in handy.”

One week prior:

Caroline finally managed to convince those left on the circus to seek help from the city itself in regards to the disappearing of many of the artists and the rogue circus. They had all decided to contact the Mayor and ask what he could do. No one had many hopes in finding their friends or family again, but it was definitely worth a shot. Caroline was among a small group that traveled to the Mayor's office after creating an appointment with him. It was a bit strange how that appointment was scheduled. Caroline and many others had tried many times before to schedule one, but it seemed as if the Mayor was always busy. It was the Mayor himself that called back and scheduled it. Everyone thought it was strange that the Mayor himself would call a small circus that had been close to going down in business ever since the disappearance of their best artists, but the appointment had been scheduled, and today was the day.

Caroline, her mother and three more artists were received with open arms by the mayor and brought to the office. Her mother was the one that explained the entire situation, and the mayor listened to it very carefully, For some reason though, he was mostly looking at Caroline instead of the one explaining things to him, and that made Caroline slightly uncomfortable. After a few seconds of thinking, the mayor gave his answer.

"Well, he does look like an old fox." He said while looking straight at Caroline. She didn't knew if he thought that she was supposed to say something, so she kept looking straight back at him. After another pause, the mayor continued. "I do know that circus people are good at pulling some strings..." Another pause, and Caroline started thinking about what all these pauses meant. They didn't seem normal in the conversation that they were having, especially since he was staring straight at her. "Their skills are to turn others in to their puppets" And finally Caroline got it, and that made her flinch. He knew her secret. The mayor knew that she was Black Puppet, but more importantly, he knew about the darkest of her abilities. The mayor, seeing a response on Caroline, explained that he would see what he could do and that he already had some ideas about how to proceed, and after accompanying them outside of his office, he just walked back. Caroline though, couldn't stop thinking about the mayor and how he knew her secret. It was when everyone was already outside on the road, that Caroline decided that she had to know more.

"Mom" She said to her mother. "I think I left my wallet on the mayor's office. Go ahead, I'll catch up with you later."

"Are you sure you don't want us to wait here?" Her mother asked.

"I'm sure. The circus needs you there as fast as you can. It's show day, remember?" After a quick nod from her mother, Caroline walked back inside and went straight for the Mayor's office. Strangely, there was no one on the way there. No guards, no secretaries, no politicians... No one. It was like she thought. The Mayor did want her to come back. She arrived at the office only to find the Mayor waiting just outside the door. He allowed her to go inside and then closed the door with the key and the blinds on the windows.

"Welcome back miss Flint; or should I call you Black Puppet?"

The mayor asked, before sitting on his chair and inviting Caroline to do the same. Caroline though, didn't felt like sitting. She stood right in the middle of the office, starting at this man. It was obvious he wanted something from her. "How?" Was the only thing she asked, and the Mayor quickly gave his answer to that question, even if somewhat vague.

"I have my ways. I assume you're wondering why you're here now, right? It's simple. I have a proposition for you. I want you to join a team of super-heroes that I am creating."

This answer took Caroline by surprise. A team of heroes? Had he really made his research in to her? Black puppet was a solo player, only wanting to get revenge on the rogue circus that had made her father and many other disappear. She forced a sarcastic smile and answered the Mayor with a simple question.

"And if I don't?"

It was clear that the man had an advantage on her. He knew her identity, and could possibly compromise her own safety and that of her family. The mayor's surprise tough, was different from what she expected.

"You can be sure that your identity is secured. I will not reveal who you really are to the media. If you agreed to this though, I will make sure that your circus and your people will have nothing to worry about. Your circus will have enough audience to go by. Also, think about the possibilities. With a team of super-heroes, you're more likely to be able to take down that rogue circus and possibly rescue the other artists."

Caroline thought hard about what he was offering. She had already thought about having someone with her to destroy the circus. Someone like her, but the very thought of having someone around her that she had to trust was way out of her head. She knew how to trick people, so she knew that she herself, could be tricked. Even now, she was not sure if she could trust the Mayor and his promises, but this time, she decided to take her chance. If he didn't followed through, all she had to do was quit with the whole team thing, possibly even, stage an accident where the mayor would be the primary actor. Caroline agreed to the terms with a simple nod, and the mayor only escorted her out. He said nothing else, and Caroline did the same.

---

Now:

Caroline couldn't believe it. The mayor had followed with his promises and kept the circus with enough audience to get by. Now, it was time for her to do the exact same thing. She had received word that she was to show up at some sort of manor and was even provided with directions as to how got there. It wasn't far from her usual hunting grounds, so she had no problem reaching the manor. She just decided to show up late.

Caroline walked straight through the main doors while wearing her fox mask and her black kimono adorned with red flowers. She looked at no one in particular, but she did take a mental note of how they looked like and what they could do. The cartoon guy was especially interesting. Still, she decided not to give anyone any kind of word and just kept moving on to the living room. After entering, she immediately took a step to the left and pressed her back against the wall right next to the door. She said nothing else and just listened carefully.

"My, my you've been playing with Ursa and her scent has clung to you along with the soil of her den. If to bathe you came then please be my guest my Hero and I shall become attendant to your desires."

While perplexed at Cassandra's chosen words, Suzy wasn't about to give up a warm bath. Especially given her current condition. Quickly stripping down to her birthday suit, Suzy stepped into the bath and let out a sigh as her body instinctively relaxed. Tension fleeing the battle the warm waters made. While beings as "human" as she was did carry some drawbacks, moments like this made it so much worth it.

Letting out a content sigh, Suzy said "Thank you for letting me use this bath, its been ages since I've had a proper one." Giving a quick dunk of her head, Suzy began to scrub the dirt from her hair as she began making idle chatter like how nice the weather was.

Soon though, the issue of a bath reared its head like an angry beast. A little sheepishly, Suzy said "I don't wish to impose but would you help me wash my back? I can't quiet reach it without a tool." Hopefully she wasn't being too forward, this new set of norms was quiet odd to Suzy. Unlike the carefree attitude of her Earth, these people seemed to have an unusually strict set of rules that dictated their actions. Just the other day she was called what she assumed were nasty words for admiring the woman who worked at the bakery, she was nice. Suzy could just hold her breath and hope she wasn't stepping on any toe's in this situation.

Cassandra smiled as she watched this odd but innocent climb into the bath. She snapped her fingers casting a simple drying spell and reached into her travel bag for a few things she thought were needed.

As she laid out few items she heard Suzy ask if she could help wash her back.

"Of course Sister I would be happy to assist, in fact if it wouldn't offend I'd like to offer this hair cleanser to help restore your lovely red hair to a state that befits a young woman." says Cassie as she kneels behind Suzy picking up a sponge.

Cassie begins soaping up Suzy's back as she hums a light air that she herself hums at times when she's bathing.

Flicly in a nearby tree chattering at Cassie hops from branch to branch offering advice unasked.

"Please ignore Flicly she's the worrying sort and should be keeping a look out for anything headed this way Says Cassie with a giggle

*
Fingertip's digging into smooth leather, the demon leaned back into her makeshift throne, pulse thickening under her golden skin. With a pause, breath hitching, Aaelith cocked her head to the side, struck into a sudden silence. Her domineering smirk fading into a thin-lipped smile, a pinch in the smile forming a dimple on her right cheek. One second, she was pure control. She had already sent a fully grown man reeling - her usual cat-like finesse at play, leaving her to sidle down into her seat with her mask of dominance. Control was everything, and to show it - to masterfully project it. That meant everything.

Her eyes moving downward to stare at the presence suddenly near her feet, Aaelith lifted a brow in curiosity. No matter how long this mutt had been at her side, it was foolish of the robotic beast to be so trusting. It was foolish to invade her space. Still - she made no move to shoo the beast away, remaining silent, yet disgruntled. Noting the motion of his head moving towards her, she glanced back down - the bored look still hanging upon her smooth features. If a robot could convey meaning, she would have presumed the look she was being given now, was one of questioning. She couldn't gather anything from the eyes, which were nothing but red lights. She could, however, see the slight tilt in it's head, similar to that of a child, innocent and inquiring. Narrowing her eyes, the woman gave the slightest nod, almost unnoticeable. Even so - it was there.

Sam was surprised, to say the very least, that she had been met with introductions of any sorts from these people. She would have been fine if they had not offered anything, as she had been welcomed to view their files before they would come to join her. She knew them. Something that she wouldn't care to admit any time soon. From her perch, she had keenly taken in everything about the newcomers. From the way they moved, to the way they spoke. Well - not everything.
Licking her bottom lip, Sam took the opportunity to give another once over at those in her presence. They all seemed strong - capable. Each had already proved very different in the way they moved - the story that their body told was strikingly diverse.

---

The first to introduce themselves - besides Sam, had been Frostbite. Sam was taken aback at that one. She had expected he would be one to keep to himself, yet there he was, offering his alias. It wasn't the most outgoing thing, mind you, but it was surprising nonetheless. Giving a small nod of acknowledgement to the large blue brute, she turned her attention to another who had caught her eye.

Next, had been Dixie. Or at least that's what she presumed to be the southern bell, as she had adorned herself in a dress fitting of the country and matching boots. According to her file, she had quite an enchanting ability. A lycan of sorts, or werewolf. She had thought of these creatures as nothing but fancy human lore until reading the file that told her different. The girl had taken to looking to the ground now, not offering her name. Sam shrugged nonchalantly, if she didn't want to join in on the fun - why stop her.

She listened as the mutt gave his introduction - his metallic and tinny voice reverberating through the large room. Sam shifted in her seat warily, eyeing the puzzling blonde with her fiery gaze. Lifting her chin to get a better view of the woman, only to stop her movement part-way in shock. Sam blinked dumbly as the woman dropped into a careless bow - obviously gauging for a reaction. Which Aaelith didn't give....until her caked boots nudged against the clean furniture. Sam had taken the liberty to actually clean the place, not her first idea of fun - for this woman to come in and - and... Biting her bottom lip, Sam gave a strangled smile - a mixture between frustration and something else entirely. She was impressed. Irritated - but impressed. She had barely heard the mumble that pushed it's way past her lips. "Sophie"
She would make sure to remember this one.

The youngest within their group - came forth with less reluctance. He was all smiles and bubbly laughter. Sam inwardly groaned at the sight. Too happy for her tastes. She watched with vague interest as he seemed to project a cartoon-like squirrel out of thin air, which was gnawing on a nut like a druggy on heroin. She gave a sigh - and nodded. Saying nothing, she pursed her lips. This was one of the many moments she would come to question why she had left her realm in the first place, at least there she would have been spared the emotions of bubbling human beings. Ugh - they where all just.... Sam brought her right hand up to her temple, rubbing the soft skin, hoping it would relieve the headache she knew would appear anytime now. Complicated - that's what they were. Complicated.

Sam had spaced out then, fingers still lingering against her temple. She had missed the introduction of both Evan and Skylar, yet when she came to, she focused on the pillows that one held in his clutches. Ready to reprimand for whatever the man was planning - hoping to hell it wasn't fight with the lavish cushion's. She would not clean up feathers from the ground - her day was already proving to be both physically and emotionally exhausting. And, she hadn't even gotten to letting them set off on their own yet.

Last to offer an introduction - was Miss Mathews. Her pink dress shining as she stood, semi-drunken smile on her face. Aaelith leaned back into her chair. This should be promising. Oh, and indeed it was. Beauty had spared no detail she saw as important, giving a little back-story as well, her enthusiastic clap had caused Sam to wince - the faint pain in her temple pushing once more against her cranium. Tonight - she would have to turn tonight. Neglecting her actual form had begun to wear at her, turning her mood even sourer than she would regularly behave. When the other's would busy themselves in their rooms, she would seek to go into the gardens, into the vast woods provided for such a situation. If the mayor had done something right - it had been that much.

---

Certain that their little round of "Break the Ice" had finished, Sam lifted herself from her chair, careful in stepping over Bladewolf and to the center of the room where she hopefully would be heard and understood. To say it once was pain enough - especially in her current state. Once she had found her way to the middle of the room, or something close to - Sam stopped and stood, statuesque in the unreasonably extravagant room. Another thing to thank the Mayor for.

"Now - I don't want to drone on about the wonderful opportunity the Mayor so kindly gave us, as much as you don't want to hear it." She decided to skip the spiel, figuring it would at least save some time, if not save her from another headache inducing position.

"So, instead I'm going to tell you what the plans for today are," Making sure to shift during her speech, to allow her voice to carry directly to each individual before she shifted back to her original location. "For the rest of the day, you can feel free to explore the manor. The only rooms off-limits to you, unless you are given permission by the owner - are the chambers of your fellow teammates. Each room is password protected - by a finger scanner, and requires the voice activated permission of the member assigned."
Perhaps the extra security had been unnecessary, but Sam had wanted it that way. No way was she going to risk anyone stumbling into her room after editing just a mix of her voice - no, they would need to use her live finger, able to read her heartbeat, to get into her room. Or anyone else's for that matter.

"We are currently located in the housing section of the manor - which includes: The dining room, living room, family room, computer room, gym, and the training center. Upstairs is the lab, library, infirmary, and the emergency contact station - which is also located in the underground jet hanger. Besides this - there are two wings of the mansion. The right wing, for all of team two. Each wing has the individual team members chambers, allowing privacy and a personal space. Left wing, for team one, is exactly the same. There are bathrooms in each room, and their is a view overlooking opposite sides of the manor each wing. This area is where the team members will normally congregate outside of missions to talk or work."

With a smirk, Sam thought over her next course of action - teams had already been decided, so, why not move the show along? "Now, I'll be listing off the members of team one, each of you will have a room in the left wing - and the members I mention will be the Ike's you will be going on missions with - so at least try to get along. The same goes for all on team two." She then proceeded to list off all on team one - followed by team two. Her voice was still soft and relaxed - but she was rushing now, clinging to her words to make sure she didn't lapse in her speech while in such a hurry.

Clasping her hands together, careful not to make a loud clap, and turned on her heel. "Meeting adjourned, you may proceed to your rooms - or explore a little before tomorrow. That's when the real fun begins." Her mind wandered back to earlier in the day, the face of another struck into her mind. Pursing her lips in thought, Aaelith dismissed the meeting, and began down the left wing towards her chambers. Inevitably closer to the face she had so vividly remembered.

Mack saw the subtle nod of Sam, and then turned back to look at the others as they went on introducing themselves. He made sure to pay attention to all of what they had to say, making sure to have all of the information that was said stored in his database. It was all quite interesting. He felt like he no longer had to fear being caught by the military or some organization that would use him. He felt as happy as an AI could feel. Probably not, but near it.

As Sam rose and began to speak, Mack already knew that he had been assigned to Team One, with Sam herself. Once Sam adjourned the meeting and began to walk off, Bladewolf stood up and looked around at all of the members one last time, before proceeding to follow Sam quickly. Once he had caught up with her, he didn't say a word for a few seconds, but then when they were out of earshot he says; "What are your thoughts?" He asks very quietly. "I think they are crazy. Most of them, at least." Mack intended to follow Sam straight into her quarters. He trusted her the most. Especially since he knew that she wouldn't accidentally hit him with her powers. Then again, he didn't really know what her powers were. He knew they were some sort of magic rather than sciency things, since she didn't seem to carry around anything like a weapon or tools. Not that he could see, anyways.

"Hmm..." Axle hums noticing the way Aaelith, or Sam as she prefers to be called, shift in her chair and pursing her lip, especially when that woman, Beauty, spoke up. Axle completely understood, he didn't feel comfortable when she spoke either. She didn't seem like she would be much of a team player, either of them.

He stands up and begins to leave, taking off his jacket. He goes through the door, removing his tie. Then down the hallway, removing his vest. Entering the dorm area and removing his shirt. He enters his room and removes his shoes, socks and belt.

"Fancy!" Axle says at the sight of his room. Just then Axle notice something in the forest through his window, "Oh. My. God." He says as he notices what appears a woman in a rock tub, no wait, two women. "Where are some binoculars... Why couldn't I have injured my eyes in the crash..." He finally finds some binoculars. "Eureka!" He says in victory. He looks through them. "God bless America..."

Dixie looked up each time someone introduced themselves, just enough to put a name with a face. She had to admit, some of their superhero names made her smile softly to herself, but then again, the one she had picked out could be laughable as well. She had no idea. The robot dog seemed nice enough. The girl named Sophie seemed rather boyish in her motions and attitude. Ralph seemed rather silly, but that was always nice to have around she supposed. Sam and Evan seemed rather nice too. Beauty spoke of things where Dixie had no idea what she meant really, but she could understand that her powers seduced villains into submitting at least. That would have to be useful. All their powers were probably more useful and less horrific than her own she suspected. She didn’t notice anyone else enter with her eyes, but her nose picked up a new scent as another person entered the living room, glancing over to see a person with a fox mask just standing there. Dixie’s eyes widened, a little terrified as to why anyone would need to wear a mask. Were they deformed? How frightening…

She quickly glanced away and back at the floor at the thought, fidgeting with her fingernails until her ears twitched and picked up the sound of a chair creak. She looked up to see Sam moving to the middle of the room and addressed them all once more, saying they could all head to their bedrooms. Finger scanners and voice recognition? Wow, this was high tech. She’d never known that sort of thing existed just for simple bedrooms. After all, they could hopefully take care of themselves. Who would try and enter a hero’s bedroom without permission? Someone silly no doubt. Oh well. At least she was protected by more than her own abilities. Not to mention she hoped all the others in this house would have her back in an emergency, like she would theirs. She sincerely hoped they could become like one big, dysfunctional, but loving family. A small hopeful smile appeared on her face at the idealistic thought.

Dixie nodded when Sam said the meeting was adjourned, staying back for just a second so she didn’t get in anyone’s way who was trying to leave. After Mack and Axle though, it seemed no one was in a rush, so she hesitated before quickly slipping back out. She walked over to her bags she had left and began rolling them slowly down the way Sam had gone, looking side to side shyly at the doors until she saw one with her name above the scanner. She stopped in front of it, feeling silly as she had no idea how this worked. But Sam had said it would scan her fingers right? So Dixie placed her hand against the electronic looking pad and yelped as it kicked to life, light running over her hand. She had jumped back as well, so a robotic voice came out saying “Incomplete”. Shaking a bit, she put her hand back on it and held it there, looking like she was in pain although she was really just nervous as it scanned her hand. “Dixie Milne. Timber Wolf. Set Password” it said, making Dixie freeze. What sort of password should she have? ”Uh… Um…,” she mumbled to herself. ”Ice and Fire?” she said, her accent making the word ‘fire’ especially unique. “Accepted” said the robot voice. A click was heard, and Dixie slowly moved her hand from the scanner to her door, pushing it opened. When it allowed her in, she breathed a sigh of relief. Well, so far so good!

Once they began exploring the mansion, they got a feel for how big it really was. One could get lost in there. At least it was an exceptional view, so you’d have something nice to look at while running through the countless doors in an attempt to find the exit. “Our rooms are over there.” Evan stated, motioning towards the corridor. While Evan had a room alongside the others, he wasn’t officially part of any one team, but rather acted as intel for both. “I’m going to check it out.” Evan reached over and opened the high security door into his room and the first thing he laid his eyes on was an entire wall covered with screens linked to a large computer. “Oh my God…” He nearly dropped to his knees before running over to the IT department. “This is amazing…” Evan reached forth and gently stroked one of the screens.

“I’m heading down to the training area.” Skyler would freely admit that he knows nothing of computers and has little to no interest in them. The only interest he has stretches as far as the intel he gets from Evan. “Try not to hack into their system and get us thrown out.”

“Uh-huh…” It was obvious that the blonde haired young man was only barely listening to his friend.


“So I’ll see you later.” Sky finished and dropped his bag in his own room which didn’t quite have the same additions that Evan’s did. He continued with heading down towards the training area, seeing a few others along the way and nodding his head in greeting as he passed them by. He knew that he would probably spend a lot of time in the training room, sharpening his favourite activity. Once in position, Sky lowered himself to his knees and placed his suitcase on the floor before unlocking it and turned to see the incredible high tech training simulations stretching out before him. This was going to be amazing. Skyler’s fingers wrapped around the hilt of his Colt handgun, the mantle sliding into place automatically as he slid a newly replicated clip into the slot. With a deep breath, Sky turned the system on and tried to understand how to navigate through the virtual training system. Luckily, the instructions were easy enough to follow and before long he was able to start the training program.

“Phase one, activated.” A robotic voice appeared, echoing through the large room. Seconds later, several virtual targets appeared at the other side of the room.

“Wonderful.” Sky grinned and raised his gun.

Ralph was happy to hear the introductions of his teammates and hoped now that they had some common ground, they would get to start fighting crime. He then noticed Axle looking at something in the forest with binoculars. Ralph was curious and created cartoon binoculars to have a look. Unlike regular binoculars, Ralph's cartoon ones had a pair of pointed eyeballs stretch out of the place where the lenses were and Ralph got a clear view of Cassandra and Suzy. His mouth fell open and he exhaled liked he was hyperventilating and he began to drool.

"There is a God," he said as he continued to stare, and cartoon fireworks went off above him. Now that was the kind of bath that he liked to see, and he kept staring at the two women. They were beautiful naked, but if Beauty had with them, Ralph probably would have had a heart attack or suffered from a terrible stroke.

Suzy tilted her head slightly in confusion as Cassandra talked of her pet, or was it companion? She definitely seemed talked of it like it was more of a person than some random bird. Odd. In her time not many people kept pets, sure there was the dog on some street but beyond that she didn't see much. Yet that could have been just because she never really left the confines of the compound. Now that she mentioned it, Suzy didn't think she ever did actually leave her home. Never really had a reason, the horror stories that her parents told her kept her inside.

With a shake of the head Suzy banished the bad thoughts away, her upbringing wasn't the best ones but her parents did it all to protect her...she was sure of it. Feeling a little uneasy, Suzy decided to bask in the feeling of the bath. Her parents never understood her fascination with baths and showers, perhaps it was because she couldn't float. Cursed to sink to the bottom of every body of water known to mankind. Maybe it was just the feeling, how it danced over her sensors like a bunch of little ballerina's. For one reason or another, the feeling of warm water around her and being above it was something immensely pleasing to Suzy. As content as she was, Suzy began to sing her new favorite song for the 38th time.

I'm waking up to ash and dust
I wipe my brow and I sweat my rust
I'm breathing in the chemicals

Halfway through her song, after Cassandra had finished washing her back from all the dirt, stink and grime from her tussle with what she could only assume was called an Ursa, Suzy climbed out of the tub and began to vibrate at a high rate. The vibrations shook Suzy, the water clinging to her body, and the ground around her at a high frequency with the consequence of giving her voice a reverberating quality, water falling from her body, and her feet digging into the soil. Dry save for her hair, Suzy walked over to her pile of clothes that the mayor had given her and reluctantly put them on. Partly because she didn't like clothes in the first place, but mostly because they were so ugly. She liked her suit that her parents had made for her and was safely folded in her backpack. People from this time didn't have style like her time did. Well maybe style isn't the right word, but it was a necessity to wear armor. You never knew when some crazed gunman would show up.

Anyway, the mayor was right she guessed. It would be a little weird to wear armor all the time here. "People would get the wrong idea." he said. And so, with a heavy heart she put the ugly clothes on as she wrapped up her song. With a huff, Suzy mumbled "At least they are comfortable." under her breath as she zipped up the jacket. Sniffing the clothes, Suzy realized however that they too weren't very fresh. The smell of wet Ursa and dirt clung to it like those clamps back at home. Thankfully the mayor had said that there were some accommodations due to her special circumstances of arrival. Probably more ugly clothes though.

With a sigh, Suzy took a several small metal cylinders shaped much like pens and quickly put her mass of hair into a bun before turning to her new friend and saying, "Cassandra, if you don't mind me asking. What can you do? I mean, from what little the mayor man said we all have something that makes us special and I was just curious."

Moving to a nicely sized boulder, Suzy bent down and uprooted it from the ground. It was hefty and a little awkward to lift but she did it, by her calculations it was about 1,357 pounds. Well below her limit. With a wide and tooth filled smile, Suzy said "As you can see, I can lift."

With the meeting finished, Frostbite made his way to the front to retrieve his bed and install it into his room. As he was making his way there, he thought about those he had just observed.

Their leader, Titan, didn't seem overly thrilled about working for the mayor, as did some of the others. She seemed... Hostile, deceptive and possibly cruel, underneath that poorly concealed mask. He's seen, during his merc years, similar characters as ones who never play all their cards unless the worst actually comes into play, even then they still hold back some of their aces. He doesn't recognize her name from his researching, but he simply could have missed it. While he didn't have to like her, he would certainly respect her position.

Beauty Matthews, alias 'Kisses Galore', was certainly worst than he thought. He easily found info about her as she seems to love to be in the spot-light. His first actual impression? She was a spoiled rich brat who liked being a glorified stripper when working her 'day-job' or when 'subduing' criminals with her powers. Since her powers are based on 'love' and manipulation, he'd have to watch his back around her.

Then there was 'Toon Master', who was probably between 14-15 years of age. While the child had a lot of energy and was far more childlike and innocent for Frostbite's liking, he could not deny that this child's powers were dynamically useful. The child also didn't reveal his identity while doing 'hero' work, meaning he wasn't stupid either. Though hiding one's identity from the mayor was probably beyond any of their capabilities, the fact the child wanted to hide his actual life from people (also enemies) was wise enough. Irrelevant of what this child's abilities are, however, he was still a child who will most likely interfere or slow down the team due to his yet-to-be fully developed nature.

Also there was 'Sniper', real name (as given) is Skylar and his friend Evan. While Frostbite has seen the aftermath of his battles, Sniper's overall non-lethal methods would obviously make it harder at certain points in his conflicts, however, his constant success has proven his capability to deal with other 'supers' through his time. Despite his research though, Frostbite didn't know he had a friend who worked with him. It only made sense when some of the situations he was in seemed like a second pair of eyes watching him. They would have made great mercs if they wanted too. Sniper's duplication power, or at least it seems to be, might have some use, Frostbite will have to observe and see what downsides this may have.

There was the blond, bio-limbed man named Axle, alias 'AX-L'. While he was a lay-low, kind of take to the media as a hero, Frostbite managed to connect some of the reports of such a man beating up criminals of various descriptions. A man who gets straight too the point it seems, when dealing with information. This pleased Frostbite, meaning the man takes his job seriously and keeps it separate from his personal life-style.

Sophie, alias 'Rakshasi'. The name Rakshasi, from what Frostbite could find, was a female variant of a mythological Hindu spirits called Rakshasa. These creatures were, in short, brutish, bloodthirsty and vile, and from Sophie's track-record, it seemed to fit. However, when directly translated (from Indonesian or Malay), it can mean 'Monster', when used commonly. Whether or not she chose this name for that reason or on purpose is unknown to him however. Besides that, he knew little about her powers or her weaknesses but was not going to underestimate or openly insult her, as she has left most of those behind her nothing but puddles of blood and flesh.

By this time, Frostbite had managed to get to his door after dismantling the lid off of his bed to put it into his room. The door asked him emotionless-ly, "Daniel Heart. Frostbite. Set Password." Frostbite groaned inwardly, seems the mayor decided to let them know that he knows who they are. Ignoring this, Frostbite thought about what his password should be, it had to be something he didn't forget. The answer crossed his mind and he gave the soulless machine his answer, "Dead Cold." The machine responded shortly afterwords, "Accepted." and revealing the scanner he was to use. Frostbite again groaned inwardly, placing the bed's lid down, going through the 2 minute shutdown sequence with his battle-armour before he could get out and then exposed his hand by dismantling the glove on his Life Suit, which ended up with him basically taking off the entire arm of the suit, have the device scan his blue hand with black fingers, for it then to open the door and have him reverse the 6 minute adventure of putting everything back on again. When he had done so he spoke to the door, "Remain open." It responded with a 'Affirmative'. He then placed the lid into his room and continued back to the front for the rest of his stuff.

He was going to have to change the annoying scanning device with something else. Probably another password based system that would only work from his suit. While, on top of that, having this secondary password change every 10 minutes but only feed his suit the new password when within a certain range of his room. He had seen this stuff used on the market, though it still annoyed him that he had wasted about 10-15 minutes to get off his gear to simply put it back on again. With that mental thought locked away for later, Frostbite continued his personal review and opinion of the team so far.

Then there was the robot, called itself Mack with it's alias probably being it's second name 'Bladewolf'. Whether it was an actually independent machine or one controlled in the background, it made Frostbite partially nervous. Out of all these 'allies', this machine could be used as an informant for the mayor, besides Titan. He has seen reports to a robot dog helping people, which were all pretty much dismissed by the police. This didn't change Frostbite's mind, he would have to watch the machine and see what it does.

That was all of those that introduced themselves, those that remained silent were either completely cowardly, like the girl who didn't seem overly confident, or preferred not to reveal anything, like the one who hid behind the fox mask. This meant they had no experience or professional sense and probably will end up as dead-weight to the rest of the group. If there were others to come but haven't arrived yet, Frostbite already didn't like them as they have wasted time.

By this time he had finished moving all his stuff into his room and connecting the various water hoses to the bed that someone had put there on purpose, He would have to wait for 2 hours before the bed was ready to use, so he used this time to explore the mansion, to identify where he may spend his time as well as where he won't be spending his time.

Skyler's eyes traced the constantly appearing targets quickly and with a great display of reflex. Seven shots emptied out his handgun and the clip was quickly replaced by another before the process was repeated. "Four point one seconds." The robotic voice stated, narrowing down the statistics of Skyler's training session. "Accuracy rating of ninety-seven percent."

"Damn it..." The young man cussed and moved some bangs from covering his eyes. It wasn't good enough, not at all. He wanted to be able to cut it down by a second and raise his accuracy to a hundred percent. This wasn't satisfying by a long shot. "Run it again." Sniper reloaded his gun and prepared for the second go, the voice activated system starting the training session anew. The process was repeated, fourteen targets appearing two and three at a time. Each bullet flew to hit its mark, a small spark igniting every time. So far, so good. He had gotten seven down without a problem, another three followed once he quickly reloaded his gun. Two more went down, perfect. Number thirteen wasn't quite as spectacular however as the bullet only grazed the side of the target. which brought him off course and the last target suffered the same outcome. Two more shots put an end to the training session.

With a deep breath, Skyler rubbed his forehead before reloading his gun once more . "Run it again." The kid was stubborn, that was for sure. In fact, the training session continued another two times before he scored his final record which would bring him to satisfaction..

"Three seconds." The female robotic voice began. "Accuracy rating of one hundred percent."

"There we go!" Sky smiled brightly and wiped the sweat from his forehead. These sessions could actually be rather taxing with the targets appearing randomly anywhere in a 360 degree angle around him, spiraling as they did. "Start phase two."

"Phase two activating. Ruined city. Take cover." The voice replied.

"Wait, what?" The entire room synchronized into a virtual battlefield with various points of cover appearing on the ground just before virtual enemies released fire from the other end of the room. Skyler dove behind a ruined brick wall and couldn't help but laugh. "God this is real, I wonder what would happen if I get shot..." He peeked out from cover and pulled back just before a bullet hit the wall, causing small pieces of stone to fall off. "Better not find out."