[IC] Unlikely Heroes

[Lady Seraphina]

of Dirt

Katsuro Nakamura and Cameron

With the new identities and the folder with the new assignment inside a sealed envelope Cameron made his way down the street. Things didn't work out exactly as planned this past week but there was till two more vials of the serum left if the Charlies turned out to be a bust but new game pieces involved in this whole mess did have its potential especially with how much things have been stirred up so far. It would only be a matter of time to see how far Pearson is willing to take things now that old wounds were being reopened.

Crossing the road Cameron made his way towards the park. He heard that Daniel and a few of the Charlies were in the area and instead of walking all the way back or getting Josiah to pick him up it seemed easier to hitch a ride with them.

Katsuro was walking down the block and about to turn into the park at the same time Cameron was. He furrowed his brow a little in annoyance as the game of chicken began. They were both going to walk into each other and they both knew it, but neither was about to stop to let the other through. Katsuro quickened his pace so that at least he got into the park first and walked ahead. Their broad shoulders collided. "Tch," Katsuro spat with a grimace. "Watch it, carrot top. I don't want to catch gingivitis," he added before turning away and continuing into the park.

Cameron's blood instantly went to his head. "What?! What did you say?!" he roared as he grabbed Katsuro's shoulder and pulled it toward him. Katsuro's most prevalent memories flooded his mind; namely of those just several hours ago when he panicked at the realization that his body had disappeared and the nightmare prior. Cameron understood the feeling. Nearly all the Charlies had a similar panic when they first realized that something was wrong with them and had no idea why. As he looked at Katsuro, his emotions quickly traveled from anger to confusion before he came to accepting that he was about to get into a fight with a Charlie. "Great," he hissed softly under his breath as they stared at each other with gritted teeth. "You were in that accident not too long ago," he added, with a tone that suggested it was more a statement of fact than a question.

Katsuro saw the man's face change drastically from rage to recognition, as though he had known him personally, but he could swear he had never seen this man before. He would've recognized him for sure. The mentioning of the accident made it even weirder. How could he have possibly known that he was in it? There must've been a dozen people. "Let go of my shoulder," he said calmly.

"Just making sure it's still there," Cameron replied as he let go of him. Katsuro did his best to maintain his composure, but the mysterious man's choice of words left him in a state of confusion. Even if he's just screwing with me, Katsuro thought, he knows things about me that he shouldn't know. "We need to talk."

"You can blame it all on Wilson's incompetence later on if you like. I already had my candidates chosen before that old man screwed everything up so don't think you're the only one having to deal with the mess the accident caused." Purposely skipping all formalities Cameron led the man towards a secluded bench away from the majority of the traffic within the park. "I bet you have questions swirling in that temperamental head of yours. I don't want to hear them until I'm done." Katsuro poorly held back showing his amusement and grinned a little, but he kept quiet, still unsure if he was dealing with a psycho or if he had legitimate information. Taking a seat on the bench, Cameron gave a slight shrug towards the spot next to him before continuing to talk. It didn't concern him if the man sat down or not. As long as he didn't have some sort of idiot that decided to run off, Cameron didn't care what the man did. "I'm not here to try and force things onto you or deceive you or any other shitty tactics the TSP might try and do. I'll give you the run down of things and it's up to you to decide how you want to deal with it but after your eventful night I'd say listen and choose wisely."

"You're not alone when it comes to having powers. Besides myself, we currently have eight other Supers that are from generation Bravo such as myself and two known people who are a part of the original Supers scattered between the TSP, the Reformers or off on their own. Adding in the mess the crash made last week, who knows how many generation Charlies are running around the city." That was one thing that concerned him. Adding to TSP's number was an issue in itself but having untrained individuals running around the city with no understanding of their powers would be problematic as the Charlie's powers grew stronger and potentially driven by their own motives.

"The TSP were once a secret organization within the government in charge of creating super soldiers and looking at myself and your disappearing act last night I think they were quite successful.” Cameron said, moving forward in his brief introduction. So he does know, Katsuro thought. And what I saw was real. Although a chill went down his spine, his apathetic face hid his anxiety. People with super powers sounded ridiculous, so he still wasn't going to rule out that maybe his room was bugged and that this was all an elaborate prank.

As he continued to speak, a look of disgust started to creep on Cameron’s face as his disapproval of the TSP continued to show. “Honestly if things didn’t go the way they did, there would be much we would be able to accomplish. However greedy, power hungry bastards seem to always find a way to ruin things, don’t they?”

“That’s why we separated from the TSP and the corruption they stand for. It might seem like you are being tossed into a feud between us and honestly speaking, you are. However the alternative is being forced into the TSP and their policies they try to enforce on us in hopes of keeping us under their thumbs. Besides the obvious rule of don't be an idiot and all that encompasses, the only rule, or rather guideline, we have is watching out for each other. Hell, if you change your mind and rather be off on your own or stupidly decided to join the TSP, I won't stop you. I doubt you would get that choice if you started off with the TSP."

"If you rather live in your own ignorance without us or the TSP, you might as well walk away and never use technology again. They have someone with the ability to spy on all of that and it wouldn't be long before they break down your door and nab you. I'm not here to make a choice for you. Come with me and not only will I'll teach you how to use your power but to master it. Supers were made to be extraordinary and I can help you tap into that power."

"Okay, wait a minute. How do I know any of this is true? What's your power and can you demonstrate it?" Katsuro asked, his eyes looking around. "Inconspicuously, of course."

"I already have, you just weren't aware of it. I can retrieve one's memories when I come into physical contact with them. This is how I knew you were one of us in the first place," Cameron paused, seeing that Katsuro wasn't entirely convinced. "But that probably isn't good enough, which is fine, since I just mentioned that the TSP are more than capable of spying on you using your own tech. I also saw you jumping off of something, presumably to your death. I don't know what the hell that was and I don't want to know, but you're still here and you don't strike me as particularly suicidal, but I could be wrong. So, if you still intend on ending your own life, do me a favor and join the TSP."

"No," Katsuro muttered, rubbing his tightly shut eyes in frustration. "That was just a bad dream," he assured him. So, he has something similar to mind reading, he thought. That's dangerous. This guy already knows something about me that nobody else does. He opened his eyes again and thought carefully. He realized his life was about to change forever, but it didn't necessarily need to be in a bad way. I'm a super, he thought. If he mastered whatever his power was, the possibilities could be endless. In the face of the stupefying amount of possibilities, however, he couldn't think of one thing he really wanted to do, but at least he knew where to start.

There was no telling what this man's true intentions are, but he figured that he must've been correct to say that if he didn't make a decision here and now, a decision would be made for him at some point. Katsuro figured that if he was at least telling the truth about helping him master his abilities, that was all he needed for now.

"Well, if a decision will be made for me at some point, I guess I don't have much of a choice and I just don't have enough information right now to make an educated decision," Katsuro said, feeling awkward. Although it wasn't clear, it seemed to him that this man would be the leader of the group and the fact that they met having literally bumped into each other and at each other's throats didn't sit well with him. "So my primary concern at the moment is..., which side has the prettier women?" he asked, grinning and chuckling a little for the first time.

Cameron couldn't help but crack a smile for just a moment. "That'll be with us," he played along.

"Well that settles it. The name's Katsuro, by the way," he said, reflexively wanting to put his hand out for him to shake, but that also meant that he'd learn something else about him. He hesitated. Cameron snatched it like it was prey.

"Cameron."

"Dare I ask what memory you just received?"

"You're supposed to have a date with somebody named Ariel tonight. Sorry about that," he replied sarcastically and with a bit of a smirk, understanding that because of their encounter he'd probably never see her again. His smirk faded as they got up to leave, not letting Katsuro's smooth talk get the better of him. He still didn't want their initial dispute to go unaddressed. "And before I forget; you call me carrot top again and we're going to have a problem. Got it?"

Katsuro cracked a little smile for a moment before returning to his default, straight face. He was entering a totally unknown world and knew he would need allies like Cameron, but his natural inclination was not to trust anybody. He was already thinking of how to counter his ability, aside from simply avoiding physical contact. Although he had nothing to hide, the thought that he may someday have something to hide and Cameron could have direct access to it bothered him. He wondered if the memories he retrieved were random or if it had to do with what was on the target's mind. There was no way of knowing. Not yet, anyway. But no matter who it was, a good ally to Katsuro was one you also knew how to defeat. Just in case.

"Understood."

Kirra and of Dirt Collab

[Lady Seraphina]

ArcanicNeon (ReganOs)

Ester Gardner

"I-I just need to go h-home. No one will feed them, they will di... Die. They can't die. I need them." She stuttered and sobbed, clearly showing signs of distress.

Ester tucked back a piece of her strand back.

"Ok, firstly I'm going to need a name," Ester started, gently placing her hand on her forearm for reassurance. "My name is Ester."

Ester knew what she needed to do, this could end up well or end up disastrous. She looked away from the girl then back to her. She wasn't sure who this girl was, but she absolutely knew that she came back to the base with her. Ester should've caught her name sooner, maybe could've gotten to know her more. Who knows, the woman in front of her could be really nice.

"Who are they?" Ester asked "Do you have siblings? Children? Pets?" She inquired her. "Because I'm afraid you can't go home as of yet-"

Suddenly Ester remembered.

"The phone." She thought.

"But, there's another way." Ester explained, slightly cryptic but not trying to be mysterious or secretive in anyway.

[Lady Seraphina]

BlessedWrath (Weaver)

Masaru

Masaru reflected on his choices as he traced his path down one of the dirtier side-streets of the city. He could hear Sensei's voice as he placed each foot.

"You are weak, student! Your mind is distant! Pay attention!"

Then came the bamboo across the soles of his feet. He always remembered to pay attention, whether Sensei admitted it or not. That was the intent of the lesson. The world may never acknowledge your efforts, but as long as you do...that is something no one can take from you. Masaru deliberately placed each foot with that memory in full bloom, and he chanced a half-smile.

He was passing into rough territory. The last report of Sam's and Christian's whereabouts placed them somewhere in the abandoned warehouse districts, and that was well-known ganger territory. He knew the going would be tough. Yet, this was not unexpected. Masaru knew that no adverse condition would befall an Innocent at random. There had to be a cause. In fact, the entire universe was an infinite clockwork of interconnected causes and effects. That Sam and Christian were abducted were no surprise to him. It was only who had taken them that perplexed him.

"The fuck you want, Chink?" a man demanded of him. Masaru did not bother taking in the stereotypical layout of his meager encampment. He already saw a thousand ends to the battle, at least half of which involved burning the man's face with his own barrel. Instead, he shrugged and played stupid.

"Jus' a try too to get-a-by," he offered meekly, in his most exaggerated Chinese accent. He cast a forlorn glance at the barrel, which was admittedly the only source of heat in the local area. The African-American man scowled, but took a step back to allow him room.

"Wha's y'name?" he demanded of his would-be immigrant guest.

"My name-a Lee," Masaru expertly lied. "They say I get work making clothes. I get here...I no get work. I get...something else."

Masaru cast his eyes down; the surest sign of submission. Coupled with rampant stereotyping of Chinese culture, the man who shared his barrel simply assumed it was out of dishonor.

"Lemme guess. You finally get here, an' they won' give you shit. They shove you in the back of a warehouse an' expec' you t'
start pumpin' out miracles."

Masaru simply nodded. The man looked around, then shifted closer to Masaru.

"What if I told you there was another way of gettin' work?"

Masaru made his eyes brighter. Submission was key. He wanted this man to trust him implicitly.

"You get me work?"

"Sheeeeeeeet, man, I can get you work to-night."

Just show me where, Masaru thought. Let me get within ten meters of that labor ring, and I'll find them both.

"Place is just off the docks, corner of East and Shepherd. Tell 'em you're 'lookin' for honest work'. They'll get y'set up."

Masaru wore his most legitimate gratitude as he bowed to the black man. "Thank'a'you, aaahmerrricaaan."

The slave trade was booming in New York. A missing girl, no headlines, and no police actions? He was in precisely the right place. The cops would find Jimmy Hoffa before ever finding the missing Charlies. But Masaru had a chance...

[Lady Seraphina]

Perry

Maxim "Max" Emillianov

Just a moment ago Max was sincerely scared of the stranger sitting next to him on the bank, and now she had put him in quite a predicament, which, compared to what little knowledge he had gathered about life and people, was no less scary than the thought of being abducted by the American and her accomplices. Firstly, Max was right to be scared of the »aid« she could have had, since not long after he had had to blow his cover about not understanding English a guy joined the conversation, bringing her her cellphone. Whether or not he was really her husband was totally beside the point, since there was nothing against married couples committing crime together. Secondly, Max found out that his bench mate worked for this Doctor Wilson who was oh the grand miracle worker; ans according to her husband she was even more dedicated to her work with him than to her marriage. And last, but not even close to least, it was mentioned how this specialist would not take patients over normal appointments, but rather through »word of mouth«, which sounded like 18th century rather than the 21st.

The more the couple talked, the more it sounded like a perfect trap: a private little lunch together, the doctor, his assistant, and her husband, held in a location of course well known to the three and not known by the two invited Russians, one of them in severe pain and practically blind – with the exception of short episodes in which Max regained his sight. Even the conversation between the two sounded more like an agreement rather than a real flirt-and-complain.

On the other hand, though, there had been no definite sign for him to know for sure he was not to trust these people. For all he had known there were enough creepy physicians out there who thought of themselves as blessings wasted on the rested of the humanity, yet good enough in their craft for the patients to put up with all the hassle.

And Max was desperate. He was desperate and was running out of options. There was also the fact that this joined lunch was after the »normal« appointment he had later, so that if things worked out with the doctor they had found through normal means of the medical institutions there would be no need of the meeting with the couple and their creepy doctor.

“Urban Grinds?” was all he asked after the couple sounded to be done chattering, while pretending to end call with his friend - in which he talked Russian once more - before handing over his phone, so that she could type and save her own number. “Your name?” he reminded her then, since one number saved under over a hundred under a name he did not know was of no use. He did not bother look for the café since he still needed to be wearing the blindfold, and would not have been able to tell much without it, either. “Max,” he introduced himself then before saying goodbye and parting with the couple. A certain Dr. Wilson and one first name of his assistant. He could only hope there was something available about him and his field of expertise they could find on the net before tomorrow.​

[Lady Seraphina]

ArcanicNeon (ReganOs)

Ester Gardner, Vida Curacio, Josiah, and Dr. Wilson

"Okay, and where is she now?" Wilson said setting his coffee cup down as Josiah finished telling him the state Vida was in.

"She was trying to leave the infirmary...here, let me take you there and you can try and sort things out." Josiah said, grabbing the older man's shoulder before the two disappeared.

"Go find them, I just need to grab a few things in case things get out of hand and I will catch up with you." Wilson said before searching through his things.

"Fine." Josiah said, with a slight sigh before walking out the door. Enemies he could deal with, pain he could manage but situations like this was far from his forte. "Vida!!! Ester!!!" Josiah yelled, hoping that the two haven't gottten too far since he last left them.

Ester jumped at Josiah in fright. "Jesus hot sauce Christmas cakes Josiah!" she yelped, looking at him. "What? What do you need?" she asked rather harshly, still holding onto 'Vida's' forearm. "And good grief, never scare me like that again." If there was anything Ester hated more, it was being scared from behind.

"There are no promises." Josiah said with a slight smirk before looking towards Vida with slight uncertainty "Wilson is on his way."

Vida was in the middle of shaking her head when she heard Josiah yell at them. She jumped, almost literally out of her skin at the loud voice. Her eyes widened looking at the man approach them. He was one of the people that was here before them, that she remembered.

'He won't help.'

Vida shook off Ester's hand and back away from them. Her eyes darted around the hall trying to figure out where she was going to run. There had to be a way out.

Ester felt her hand shook off and she graciously complied, retracting her hand towards her chest as she watched Vida slowly backed up, looking scared, almost terrified.

"Vida." Ester said, "Everything will be ok, there's a way to contact other people." she explained calmly. "There's a phone down in the Command Centre." Ester stayed where she was, not wanting to approach and possibly frighten Vida in anyway. She was better off where she was standing. Lowering her arms, Ester retained to a non-threatening posture.

"A phone... No." She shook her head. "No a phone won't work. They do not know how to use a phone. no.. I don't have a phone." She reached down to pat her pocket that was empty. She only had a cell phone with basic service. She did not have enough money to afford to have her land line turned on when she moved into her apartment.

Her hand gripped her empty pocket as she felt her stomach growl. "They are hungry.."

"A phone?" Josiah said looking at Ester with suspicion, remembering now that she was making her way towards the Infirmary when the two first crossed path. Where was she and what was she doing which allowed her to know about the phone downstairs. Garret. It had to be Garret's doing.

"We will have to talk about that later." Josiah said shaking his head before resuming his attention back at the situation at hand. "Who's hungry?" Josiah said as he tried to piece things together. "Is she still going on about her cats?"

"Oh she has cats?" Ester turned to Josiah, finding out what she meant by 'Them' when Ester found her. She turned back to Vida. "Vida, What I meant is that there's a phone you can use to call someone. Like a family member or a close friend to feed your cats for you." She explained. "I don't have my phone either, it's in my loft."

She twitched when she heard him speak so casually about her cats. Her eyes lifted to look at him. The look on her face was either anger or hate. She did not even know which one she wanted to feel. "They are mine! They will die!"

She clinched her fists and looked at Ester. "No one is my friend. My family, I have not spoke to them in.. I don't remember when." As far as she knew if she stopped caring her cats would just sit in her apartment until they starved.

Ester was stumped on ideas. 'No Friends, and she hasn't been in contact with her family...' She thought. Looking over to Josiah, she just remembered the fact that he could teleport. "Josiah, you aren't allergic to animal hair by any chance?" she asked. "I'm not either but I can't teleport and I just got an idea."

"Oh hell no. I think I know what you are thinking about and that's a horrible idea." Josiah said looking at the two. "Does this place look like a zoo to you? I can trasport those cats for you Vida but I'm not bringing them here."

She focused in on Josiah again. "Where would you take them? If not here, where?"

"I'm guessing you are going to say that an animal shelter is out of the option." Josiah said as he looked towards Ester, hoping that she would have another option.

She looked at Josiah "No shelter, definitely not." Ester assured. "I could have them stay at my place and get someone to look after them." She suggested. "Other than that, the only other option is to have them here."

"No, getting others invovled could make things messy." Josiah said with a sigh. "How many cats and what all do I need to grab?" Josiah said asking Vida. "And just so you know, if they piss on my stuff while they are here, I know where a pack of hungry coyotes roam that would love a snack."

"Josiah!" Ester said angrily, looking at him with a 'What the hell man?' look on her face.

Vida listened to the two going back and forth before it all started to sink in. He was going to get her cats for her. He was going to bring them here. All the anxiety melted from her face when she heard the news. "Yay!" She threw her arms up in the air cheering as happily as child would. "Co-co and Baby are going to be here!"

She jumped around in a small circle celebrating. "Wait. Stuff. Stuff, they need it. Money." Vida slipped her hand into her pocket and pulled out her card that still had all her money on it. "Here. I don't need this. Two cats, food, a liter box, liter." She pondered what else they would need but she could not think of anything. "That is all. All they need is that."

"Okay, I'll get all of that. In the meantime the others should be getting back soon so keep an eye out for them... and her Ester." Josiah said before heading towards the infirmary to notify Wilson on what was happening.

ArcanicNeon (ReganOs), IzKripp and Kirra Collab

[Lady Seraphina]

Kirra

Tia

“Gotcha!” Tia exclaimed a tad bit too loud as she slowly wandered down the street. Although she was talking towards the direction the TSP was in, most of her focus was on the unseen and not on where she was going. Looking around, she saw that she was starting to get weird looks from strangers but seeing that she was previously stumbling down the street with an unfocused look as she mumbled to herself it made sense that people would think that she was crazy. Most of her adult life has been either with the TSP who understood how her powers worked or was on her own so she never had to think about how she was going to blend in.

However that didn’t matter to her. She didn’t care if she came off as a bit eccentric just as long as she had what it took to get what she needed done. She was finally able to piece together what she missed earlier while talking to the girl and things were aligning up nicely.

-Found them Dearie! 1:40 tomorrow@Urban Grinds-
-Sending pics now of the Reformers that will be there-

Pulling up recent picture she had of Wilson and Daniel, Tia sent them to Teddy as well as her messages. She only hoped things would turn out well tomorrow. For now though, she needed to find a way back into TSP without raising too many questions. She wasn’t ready to expose her plans for the girl to the others.

Cameron - The Next Day...

It was finally time.

With Wilson gone to some sort of meeting to scrounge up yet another Charlie, it gave him free reign to get started on preparing for the upcoming job the Time Weaver gave to him the day before. While the Charlies and the Reformers spent their time last night mingling and getting to know each other, Cameron spend his time downstairs studying the information given to him and planning out his strategy both in terms of training as well as for the job. He had plans of telling Wilson and the other Reformers today once he had everything figured out but as usual the nosy old man knew something was up and as Cameron predicted, Wilson wasn’t happy about the job given to them.

However there was payment for what all the Time Weaver has done for them up to this point and to a person like the Time Weaver, money was just a worthless amenity.

“There you are Cameron!” A cheerful voice said as Garret entered the empty meeting room downstairs. “You missed lunch and I thought you be hungry since you weren’t there for breakfast either.” Sliding a few things to the side, Garret placed the plate onto the table before looking at the scattered papers, maps flies of information that was scattered on the table.

“Not hungry.” Cameron said as he waved the man away without glancing up from his work. “Are the Charlies here?”

“Besides Callie and the new Charlie they are trying to recruit, yes.” Garret said, leaving the plate there in case Cameron decided to eat later. “What is going on Cameron?”

“Good. We need to see what everyone can do so that we know where we need to start in terms of training. Unlike us, they were not previously trained before the serum and chosen for this task. We have a lot of work to do. Get everyone downstairs. We are starting in five minutes.”

“They’ve only had one day to recuperate and even then with everything that has happened yesterday are you sure it’s a good idea to start right away? You need to at least tell me what is going on.”

“It’s not my fault they decided to spend their day fighting gang members and running around town. Five minutes and we are going to start training. I’ll get you and the others caught up later.”

Dr. Wilson

It didn’t bother Wilson that the trio arrived a bit early. It gave them time to scout out a seat that would give them a bit of privacy while they discussed matters with the man. This was how things should have been dealt with in the first place. Guns, fighting and everything that happened while the two groups tried to claim the Charlies wasn’t the way to fix the issue at hand. He only hoped that there wouldn’t be any disturbances that would cause issues to arise.

“Did either of you find out what sort of powers this man has?” Wilson asked the two but got nothing more than a slight shrug from Daniel. “I guess we will find out soon enough.”

[Lady Seraphina]

BlessedWrath (Weaver)

Samantha Cole - An Undisclosed Location​

Sam's head swam. She felt displaced; like she was between worlds. There was a distinct sensation of consciousness, but coupled with the absolute inability to act or move...even to speak. It was a terrifying sensation.

Sleep Paralysis.

The words floated through her mind as if casually intersecting with her reality, from another plane. Still...it seemed fitting. This was a problem she'd encountered only as a bystander, during group therapy. Still, that memory did not comfort her. In her transitional state, she could not see where she was, could not get up and flee...she could only wait for what came next.

Muffled voices rose from nearby; presumably an adjoining room. They sounded angry. She did not have time to wonder about the cause before two pops tore through her. The sound was nothing like the movies; it was surreal, terrifying. It was violent and brutal. It was uncaring and unapologetic. There was no preparation for it.

Still unable to move, Sam perceived the sensation of motion. The voices continued, though she could only speculate as to what they were saying. They no longer sounded angry. They sounded...pleased.
​
Hours Later
​
"Just keep an eye on her. I don't pay you to agree with me."

"Yes, sir, Mr. Mantovani. She won't get past me."

"You better make sure she doesn't. You don't want to end up like Jimmy."

Sam stirred, prompting the attention of her gracious hosts. She made two adult males -one in some kind of suit- but that was all she could determine. The sedative was still coursing through her bloodstream, which made it difficult to decipher any specific details. One of them had mentioned a name, but...it all started slipping away. She battled the drugs to stay awake, but there was more to it than that; there was another fight going on, and she couldn't be sure what it was she was struggling against.

There was a brief silence, during which Sam felt sure she was being studied. At the end of it, the taller man bent down over her and grasped her chin. She felt two fingers prying open one of her eyelids. She could feel her eyes rolling about in her head, and couldn't make them focus on anything; brief glimpses were all she managed.

"Your boys used too much. I told them I needed a variable-dosage delivery system."

"Sorry, boss. The place we ripped them off from..."

"I'm not interested. Fix the problem."

He let her go and turned to face his accomplice. It was the tone in his voice that she remembered. It was cold, heartless. It was menacing.

"If she dies, there will be a lot of new openings in my organization. Get me?"

"Y-yes, sir."
​

Masaru

Masaru prowled the docks, in search of his connection. A light burned in the window of a trailer, beside a docked freighter. No legitimate business had any claim on this late hour, so he advanced.

There was a line of grubby-looking drifters queued up to the door of this temporary office. Masaru noted at least four wearing gang colors, two with suspicious-looking bulges in their clothing, and a guard who absolutely showed no shame about carrying. This had to be the place.

After a short introduction and a search for weapons, Masaru was admitted entry. He tried not to think about the two men who were caught trying to enter without disarming. A too-well-dressed man sat behind a scavenged desk and eyed him as he sat down.

"What brings you to my office?"

"I looking for honest work." Masaru offered meekly.

The man smiled, but it was for nothing innocent. Masaru gave off the vibe of a fresh mark. One more immigrant who wanted to bring his family over to 'the new world', and could be exploited every step of the way.

"Any skills?"

"Yes," Masaru answered quickly. "I very good at physical job. Can lift many pounds."

"Excellent. Mark will show you to your new assignment after a brief background check."

Masaru knew what that meant. They wanted to know if he had any family; any loved ones who would notice if he went missing. He only hoped that his contacts with the Reformers had managed to properly obfuscate his public record in such a way as he couldn't be identified by these small-time gangers.

People like these worked for someone. The man behind the desk was not in charge; Masaru knew that. He was a glorified door-man, who was allowed the great privilege of believing himself to be important. No...to get to the man in charge would require inside access...which was exactly what he was about to achieve.
​

Samantha Cole

Sam finally awoke in a cold, damp room. She could hear practically nothing, which meant isolation from the city or insulation from sound. Odd, that that thought would cross her mind in such a situation, but she buried it for the moment.

A quick look around the room revealed the interior of an abandoned warehouse; same as before. It appeared as though Mantovani's men were not terribly original when it came to hideouts.

"Or," Sam allowed herself to think. "This isn't a hideout at all, but just a place to get rid of people who know too much."

As she acclimated herself to the idea of conscious thought, she became aware of a small point of minor discomfort on her left arm, near the crook of her elbow. She angled her head to take a look and managed to discover the clear signs of a needle. Whether it had been an injection or a blood sample was not clear, but she noted that the person responsible had taken the time to patch it up with some clear, reinforced tape and a gauze swab.

"Not your average dope dealer, then..."

Just at that moment, one of the doors opened. It was a loud, unpleasant sound; cold and industrial. She heard the same heel-toe click of fine Italian leather as Mantovani approached.

"Well, well..." Mantovani breathed. "Look who's finally awake."

Sam's brain tore itself in half over whether to scream at him or keep her mouth shut. Mantovani flashed that asinine, flagrant grin and circled around, taking his time with his words.

"It occurs to me," he offered, as he made his way around the back of her chair, leaving her field of vision. "That we really only have one thing in common."

"Yeah, what's that?" Sam couldn't help but blurt out.

Heel-toe, heel-toe, heel-toe, round to the other side, Mantovani made his way back into her peripheral vision. He was holding something. It looked like a small tube.

"Usually, when somebody has something I want, I just take it. You'll notice I have already done that." Mantovani pointed at her left arm. "But there's a little more at stake than just this." The little tube could be seen more clearly now. It contained a red liquid.

"If you were anyone else, you'd already be dead. I don't like to drag things out. But...I just had to know..."

"He's got my blood." Sam's heart skipped a beat.

"Now you have a choice to make." Mantovani waggled the little tube in front of her. "Now that I have this...I don't really need you anymore, do I?"

"...no." Sam whispered. She knew it was true. Even if all he could gain by her blood sample was confirmation of the serum, that would still give him targets to acquire. If he managed to prove that Supers were real, he would never stop coming after them; Reformers or TSP did not matter.

"It's like this," Mantovani intoned, with a casualness behind that deadly-serious tone that did not sit well at all with Sam. "You get the same deal as they did in The Old Days. Silver or Lead."

"Silver or lead?"

"Yeah." Mantovani beamed. "You work with me, you get the silver. You fuck with me, you get the lead. Got it?"

As if to punctuate his point, he pulled his handgun from his jacket and flicked off the safety. Just past him, Sam could see two men struggling with the obvious corpse of a long-dead man. The door almost obscured them, but she still saw it.

Mantovani waved the gun in a circular motion, as if to indicate impatience. "Sooo..."

"Fine." Sam grated. "Ask your questions."

[Lady Seraphina]

Ryver et Rhine (Dear Karma)

Callie Wright, Daniel, and Dr. Wilson - Urban Grinds

"This is such a lovely place!" Callie squealed, as she picked up a tiny dog-eared menu card off the table and began studying the names printed under the bolded and underlined title "Light Bites". The young woman read each name out and rattled on about "how cute" everything sounded or "yum" when she thought the description sounded particularly appetizing. In short, within a span of 5 minutes after entering the establishment, Daniel and Wilson more or less figured out that Callie enjoyed any dish that was tooth-achingly sweet and hated anything dunked in grease, unless it was a deep fried chocolate smothered mars bar.

She faltered after catching a glimpse of the look currently written on Dr. Wilson’s face. Apparently, she assumed, he seemed to think her food choices didn’t constitute an ideal diet for anyone, man, woman or children. Thus, her lips puckered into pout. Bully that man, she thought. He is willing to tolerate greasy bacon and eggs, but why can’t he love chocolate. They were so, so yummy and sweet and... pretty. Most of them anyway. "Ah, come on, Dan," she clung firmly to her addressee’s arm. "Not you too! Desserts and sweet things are simply too fab." She tried making a prolonged eye-contact with the man almost like she was willing him to take sides in this non-debate.

Finally, admitting defeat, Cal tried a different tactic in order to get what she wanted. One that she believed would be much better than cajoling the men into admitting sweets were as tasty as greasy bacon and eggs drowned in bubbling oil. [color=Magenta]"Oh, oh! Since we’re early, would it be okay to order first? Or... do we really, really have to wait to see if he comes?" Cal stared earnestly at Daniel while hovering her finger down at Item 042 "Homemade Pancakes with Berry Compote and Chocolate Sauce". "I mean we didn’t have much of a breakfast. Or hardly any at all, because," she lowered her voice conspiratorially. "There was no bacon."

"Did either of you find out what sort of powers this man has?"

Someone cleared his throat before speaking. The sound of Wilson’s voice made Cal pulled away from Daniel. Her eyes swiveled towards Dr. Wilson instead and she tilted her head as Daniel shrugged. A slight frown wrinkled her smooth forehead. That super hero talk again? She nibbled the bottom of her lip. What was with their obsession with "powers" anyway? "Um... powers?"

"I guess we will find out soon enough."

"Hey!" Cal rested her hand onto the edge of the table, leaned forward and waved her hand vigorously in front of Wilson. "I have a question... why are you so," she paused, trying very hard to find a substitute for the word "obsessed". "... always ask about powers?" She dropped back into her seat, having successful gotten Wilson’s attention. "I mean it feels like we’re in (you know) an episode of Alphas or Heroes." Cal shrugged. "I mean is it like a code word or something? Or something with the Illuminati? I... guess I’m tired of pretending I know what you mean when I really don’t."

There! She finally said what had been disturbing her about this whole charade. It had been all fun and games, but now, the joke seemed to have gone a little too far. They’ve gone out of their way to recruit others too (or so she had been led to believe but he could be involved in this as well).

"And, oh hi!" A smiling blonde waitress approached them after she had mistaken Cal’s waving as their group trying to get her attention. "Yes, we’d love to order! I – er – I’ll have the pancakes, one hot cocoa, one strawberry tart, one brownie with ice cream and..." her eyes wandered over to Wilson and Daniel. "...maybe you should confirm their orders with them." She said with a polite smile, waving the waitress towards Wilson first. She locked eyes briefly with the man in question, as she worried whether her order was going to be green lighted. Thankfully, it seemed that they were willing to let it pass this time round, despite her outburst just moments ago.

She laughed occasionally in response to the waitress’s friendly bantering, but seeing that the woman seemed particularly enamored with Daniel, Callie allowed her attention to slide. She had stared at the door for a bit, hoping the man would show up, but after a few fruitless seconds, she allowed her eyes to rove once more. Today seemed very quiet, she concluded. Only three other tables were occupied.

At the table closest to the window looking into the park, a couple sat opposite a well-dressed man who was appeared to talking very animatedly. He was, without a doubt, some sort of salesman, an insurance salesman perhaps. Slightly in front of them was a group of four teen girls who alternating between chatting and texting. Occasionally, they’d snapped a selfie or two. Only once did they ever take a we-fie.

Cal’s eyes soon found those of the single customer sitting two tables down. The young woman, who seemed to straddle between her late teens and early twenties, was currently facing Wilson’s back and thus (sort of) looking directly at Callie as the blonde happened to be sitting directly opposite him. Cal tried breaking eye contact, but those warm expressive eyes seemed to bore into hers. Her knee-jerk reaction was to pull backwards slightly, blink slowly and finally turn to her right. This resulted in Callie making renewed eye contact with Daniel.

“Daniel,” she pounced on him before he had the chance to look away or pick up the conversation where they had left off earlier. "What did you order? Did you order pancakes too?" She clapped her hands together and her face lit up. "Pancakes with anything sounds so much better than the other things on the menu. Don’t you agree?" Despite her trying her very best to ignore the woman, Teddy’s brightly colored clothes kept drawing Callie’s eyes back towards the table behind Wilson. "How about you, Dr. Wilson?" She asked politely so as to include the elderly man into their current topic. "I'm sure you'd love the break from bac -"

She stopped chatting when she heard the phone in her hand ping. Cal felt her heart racing slightly, as she saw a blue light blinking at the top left hand corner of her loaned Samsung phone indicating that she received a new text message. "Do you think?" She looked at Daniel and then at Wilson. "Yes, I think it's him!" She pressed the long button along the right side of the phone and swiped across the screen towards it. Cal began bobbing excited as soon as she saw who the sender was. "It's him!" She informed the other two.

[Lady Seraphina]

Nemaisare

Thea 'Teddy' Palmer - Urban Grinds

Deep breath.

In and...

She wanted to hold that breath forever, because she knew that once she let it out, she was either going to walk in there and change her life forever (yesterday warranted a few dramatics, so sue her), or she'd be turning around and hiding in her room until someone came to find her. Tia'd said the choice was hers. But it was only hers if she made it, and put in the effort. Wasted opportunity if she didn't, but... Was she even making the right choice? Did it matter? The world had gotten that little bit stranger and maybe her life wasn't ever going to be the same anyways. Maybe she was just dreaming. Though she'd never deliberated this long in front of a cafe door in her dreams before. For that matter, she couldn't remember ever actually visiting a cafe while dreaming. It was usually something far weirder, like getting an oldfashioned hand clock installed in her forehead by autonomous robots ruling over human kind. (She was still very certain they'd been trying to help with the chronic human problem of not keeping track of time and no one had thought to remind them that humans couldn't read their own faces.)

If she was going to go through with this, it had to be now.

Teddy exhaled, grabbed the door and stepped inside. Glancing around, it looked pretty ordinary. Calm, subdued, but friendly. An open atmosphere with far too many empty tables to choose from. The few people already ensconced chatted with each other, mouths moving in a variety of contortions that shifted their expressions. Heated debate at one table, she thought. Animated storytelling at another. Or, whatever that fellow was doing waving his arms about and the two others smiling and nodding as he went. Another quickly filling up with other girls, who were either very good friends with nothing more to say to each other or strangers from the same church group, maybe? They didn't really look like they were there for each other. Anyway, as they all settled into their seats and pulled out their phones. All in all... Pretty ordinary place. Coffee smelled alright. So did the food as she walked past the arguing men. No faces she recognised though.

Good. Smiling to herself, a little nervously, granted, but pleased that she'd at least arrived before anyone else, she took the chance to get herself settled. She picked a table that gave her a relatively good view of most of the cafe, and when the waitress came by, ordered a spicy vegetarian sandwich because why not live a little, and a milkshake, just in case by spicy they meant really fricken hot. The waitress was very obliging about having the order pointed out to her, had a wonderful smile and nice enthusiasm. Teddy liked that, it might put this place on her list of reccomended places.

The lovely wide windows at the front of the building more than made up for the older lighting they employed. The flickering over her head was lost with the height of the ceiling and the natural light streaming in, so, for all her nerves, she was actually sort of enjoying herself. The atmosphere was nice, anyway. Particularly after the avid debaters left to take their gesticulations somewhere else. And the sandwich, when it arrived, was definitely spicier than she'd been expecting, not bad, it just made her blink a lot and definitely cleared her sinuses.

So, she almost missed it when the group came in. She had to do a double take, but yes, possibly, probably. A quick check on her phone, and they matched. There was the grey-haired man with the thin mouth who looked stricter than he wanted to be. Probably his glasses and the way he kept his hair trimmed. And the other guy, Daniel? Yes, Daniel. And a lady. That one wasn't in Tia's texts. But she came in with them, and she stayed with them, sat down at the same table as them, and her mouth never seemed to stop moving. Well, it didn't really change anything in her plans. Just that it felt a little safer to be going up to three strangers when one was a lady. Were they meetings someone else? Or was the talkative woman the one they'd come here for? She hadn't asked Tia about that. Probably should have.

It left her not knowing how much time she had left to dither. She still had to work up the courage to say hi. She could still back out, she didn't have tp do this, but, no, no buts. She didn't have to. She was going to though. She would, and to prove it, Teddy texted Tia.

-Found them. Deleting stuff now.-

There, now she couldn't turn back, or Tia would have to ask why and she'd have to come up with a valid excuse. Then, following her plan, she deleted the whole bunch of messages they'd sent back and forth since the hacker had interrupted her discussion about hummingbirds. Then she deleted Tia from her contacts. If there was any chance that they'd look through her phone, she didn't want any evidence of the other side on it, since Tia had made it pretty clear they weren't on friendly terms, these two groups of people that could do weird things. (Freaks was a little easier to think, but she didn't want to number herself a freak so she figured they wouldn't like her thoughts going that way either)

She'd just have to hope Tia could find her again, because she'd have no way of starting the conversation herself. Especially not if that chip Tia had given her didn't work. Teddy made sure it was still in her pocket before she took another bite of her sandwich, tearing up as she chewed through a jalapeno pepper and trying not to be too obvious about either her discomfort or her staring at the trio. it was an effort to turn her head though, to look somewhere else, act casual, pretend she was interested in some other conversation. Even though she was almost certain the woman had just said something about powers.

She'd been paying particular attention after that bout of handwaving. She wasn't sure what else she'd said, but she looked a little confused. Maybe she was the person they were here to see. It would have been far more useful if she could have seen the men's faces, she realised, but it wasn't as though she could predicted where they'd sit. Well, maybe there was someone out there who might have managed that, given as she'd just met a woman who could read texts with her eyes closed. Frowning at that thought, and thinking that Tia probably would have warned her if one of them could read minds or that sort of thing, she worked on finishing her sandwich while they ordered, guessing that she had a bit of time.

She was just taking a soothing sip, or well, making a forceful extraction attempt, of her milkshake when her staring was noticed. The lady was looking around, letting the others order in peace, presumably, and their eyes met. Blue, she thought. The woman had blue eyes. Or light eyes anyway, they might have been grey, and she held herself still, dropping the straw so she could smile at the other woman while wondering if she'd been caught out or if this was just one of those awkward accidents. Whatever the case, she wanted to make a good first impression, but it seemed it was only an accident as the other swung her gaze away and threw herself right back into conversation.

Okay, almost, she'd held her ground at least, right? She could do this. She'd told Tia she was doing this. She needed to do this. Taking a breath, Teddy put her milkshake down and was just starting to consider her approach as she pushed herself up, when the woman started getting excited over her phone. Alright, not yet. Hopefully they wouldn't rush out the door. She settled back and took another bite of her sandwich, considering her options. Maybe if she said she thought they'd been talking about something she'd been thinking about lately. Because of weird things happening. Was that too much? What if they were just talking about some X-Man movie, or something? Wait and see. She pulled out her phone to try and look distracted, but held it so that she could still see them by looking through it.

She only hoped she wasn't being obvious.

[Lady Seraphina]

Perry

Maxim "Max" Emillianov - Urban Grinds

The specialist had not dismissed him, nor had he sounded exactly confident about plausible diagnosis when he prescribed a bunch of tests, Max had lost the count, specially because he had to decide whether or not to pay for tests which would in the long run (judging by the doctor's reaction) would provide more questions than answers. He tried to see it as a small consolation that Viktor agreed with his impression of the specialist. Maybe now that his sight was taken (there were short episodes in which he could see again, some times vague shapes and sometimes with bright colors and full details) he had already started coping by sharpening his other senses, providing him for instance with better insight about the doctor judging by his tone of voice, without having to depend on facial expressions.

A lunch at a Café was much less expensive than any of the tests, both friends had agreed. They would strictly stay together, and refuse to leave for a more private location, and try to get behind this Wilson's case. Even fortune seemed to smile upon their decision, or they preferred to believe it did, and Max could leave the blindfold in his pocket, braced with ordinary shades against the light piercing through his skull. He could even tell general shades of light intensity, even though not in conventional colors he knew and mostly shades which made little sense compared to what reason dictated they should stand for. Yet alone the fact that he did not have to keep his eyes closed all the time was nothing short of a good omen. Maybe it was excessive stress or some nonsense of the sort and went away given time, without them having to do anything about it.

Entering a random Café with shades on and speaking Russian rose stares in most parts of the world, though. Having shades on and speaking French would have most probably been "fashionable", speaking British English (not the one real Brits spoke on random streets, though, but rather the one famous actors did) would have been "classy", speaking something Scandinavian (even though most people had no idea how languages spoken in Scandinavia differed from one another) would have been "eccentric". Russian was not rare enough to be considered exotic, nor was it chic and romantic by reputation, and did not even have the merit of not being recognized by the majority. But today Max did not want to care about people, today he was fed up and in pain and insecure and needed the sanctuary of his mother tongue while speaking with his life long best friend.

"About how old were the couple?", Viktor tried desperately to get a clue of what they would be looking for once they opened the door and entered Urban Grinds. "Not old, I guess?" All the confidence Max has built up about the development of his new skills was fading as he realized how little he could tell about the two he had met yesterday without having been able to see their faces. "And what is old?", Viktor tried harder. "Like parents' age?" It was not the best he could do, Max knew well, and was waiting for Viktor to lash out some form of anger at him any moment. Instead his friend took a deep breath and pulled the door open. "There must be at least three of them at the table", Max tried harder to be helpful, "The couple and this Wilson." Slightly pursing his lips Viktor added "If none of them is late." While Max was trying to persuade his friend about how he did not believe they were the latecomer kind of people, Viktor took Max' cellphone out of his pocket and called the number the woman had saved.

Fortunately there was only one woman who looked at her phone at the right time, and she even looked up and waved at them. Hanging up and putting the cell in Max' hand, Viktor grabbed his arm in order to lead Max to the right table "Found them.", he said. A rather shy "Hello." from Max and a friendly "Hi, hope we are not too late." from Viktor were all that was said before the two friends stood a bit awkwardly at the table, still uncertain as to whether or not they should just take seats and order, or to wait for a word of invitation from the doctor who had supposedly hoped to spend his day off quietly with his assistant and her husband. Gently Viktor put Max' hand on the back of a chair. From beneath the shades one could see a shadow of disbelief in Max' stare as his fingers realized to which object the bizarre shapes his eyes saw actually belonged.​

[Lady Seraphina]

Kirra

Dr. Wilson and Daniel - Urban Grinds

With Wilson deep in his own thoughts and Callie off on yet another tangent about something she found off the menu, Daniel closed his eyes briefly and did his best to tune the bubbly woman out just enough to have better focus on the situation at hand. His powers were not as automatic as he wished them to be but with the aid of being able to tune out his other senses such as sight or hearing, it gave him the extra edge to get the job done. Focusing first on the group, he struggled to distinguish Callie from the huge surge of power sitting besides the two of them. That was to be expected coming from one of the last remaining Gen Alphas. With enough determination Daniel wondered how much practice it would take before the doctor could surpass the traditional five level rating that the Supers were given but knowing the old man's demeanor Daniel knew it would take much for the man to actually try.

Extending his parameters Daniel could sense another Super not too far from them. The man must have arrived. He was about to open his eyes when he thought he saw someone else further away but before he could confirm it, someone grabbed his arm and in turn broke his concentration.

“Ah, come on, Dan,” Callie said to him as the man tried to quickly fill in the gaps he missed “Not you too! Desserts and sweet things are simply too fab." However the one-sided conversation didn't get too far before Wilson spoke up.
The new Charlie wasn't the only one the Reformers didn't know what powers someone had. Sure, they knew that the people they gathered was a Charlie but in terms of powers, they only knew about the ones that has already been seen. He could already imagine training being chaotic with the limited resources they have compared to when he went through his own training with the Bravos.

A shared look of concern crossed between Wilson and Daniel as they listened to Callie's question. Did she really not know or understand what all has been happening? Between Wilson and his own powers there was no way they could quickly prove what they have been saying to be true. How could they convince her? Seeing the old man deep in thought as Daniel presumed to chose his words wisely, Daniel allowed the doctor to take the lead but before he was able to the waitress came to take their orders. Another opportunity missed but Daniel knew that another one would come up later on.

Daniel was a bit surprised how long it took from when he first noticed the presence of another Super from when they joined them but shrugged it off thinking that the gap of time could be due to nerves to wanting to observe what they were getting themselves into. Unless there was actually a second Charlie out there.

"No, not at all." Wilson said with a polite smile. "Please, sit down. The waitress just took our orders but once you know what you want, we can call her back."

A stray questioning glance made its way to Daniel and although as quick and unnoticeable it was to the others. Spending years with Wilson Daniel knew exactly what the old man was trying to say. When he spoke to Wilson the night before Daniel purposely left the information about the probability of the newcomer's friend coming along knowing quite well that Wilson would disapprove of it. But what was done was done and being blind the man needed to find some way to get to the cafe even if it meant involving one more person.

"We have told Wilson a little bit about your situation." Daniel said after things started to settle down. "but I think it would be best if you told us a little more about what has been going on with you."

Jenna Baxter

Feigning a headache after lunch, Jenna excused herself to her room under the guise of sleeping it off. After everything that has happened in such a short time she needed some time t herself to sort everything out. With a heavy sigh the woman sat down at the foot of her bed and buried her face in her hands.

Why did it have to be me...

When moving to New York she knew there would be changes and life would be flipped around. Little did she know she would be cursed with absurd powers, wanted by the government and kidnapped by some rouge group hidden away underground. To top it off she was torn away from her closest friend. Alongside Emma Jenna knew she would be able to get though these trials but without her, could she.

I don't think I can do this...

Feeling tears start to well up in her eyes, Jenna quickly brushed them away. She couldn't cry now, not with everything that was happening. She didn't want the attention she might get if someone came in and saw her face raw from crying. Moving towards the mirror in the room, the woman checked her appearance a breathed a sigh of relief to see she stopped herself soon enough.

Emma what would you do...

Hearing a knock at the door Jenna turned around and saw Garret popping his head in. "Hey! Cameron wants us to meet up with the others downstairs. I'm going to get the others first but you should make your way down there."

"What does he want?" Jenna asked a bit confused. Besides bringing in a new person that a few of the Charlies met yesterday she didn't know of any plans they might have today.

"You'll see when you get down there." Garret said he left.

Here I go...I guess...

Walking downstairs Jenna saw a few of the Charlies were already down there and it didn't take long before the remaining members followed her down.

"Do you guys know what's going on?"

[Lady Seraphina]

Izkripp

Vida Curacio

Vida had been stuck in her room since her cats arrived thanks to Josiah. She had spent the time since then trying to get her cats use to their new environment. Her black cat, Co-co, was quick to adjust as he was already curled up on her bed a sleep. She reached up to pet his soft fur and smiled. "We are together." She stroked his fur a couple of more times then slide down to look under her bed where her other cat had been hiding since she arrived. The tri-colored calico, Baby, was more of a scaredy-cat compared to her furry adopted brother. She reached under and gave her a good pet relieved to fell her more coursed fur under her hand. "I missed you."

Wiggling out from under her bed she sat back and looked at the contents of her room. There was a liter box, a bag of liter, and some cat food. Rest of her room was rather empty. "This space will fill with time." She said letting her eyes rest on the cat food thinking of when Josiah popped back in with her cats and the things she asked for. She had been so excited and overly joyed that she forgot for a moment her anxiety with people and gave Josiah the biggest hug she had given in a long time. She could not thank the man enough for giving her back her life.

Blinking she looked away from the cat food and to the ball of fur sleeping on her bed. "Co-co do you want to come with me?" She asked standing up. She patted his head before picking him up in her arms. There was no protest as the cat leaned against her allowing her to carry him. They had wanted to talk to them about something and she did not want to go alone. She walked to her door and turned to look back towards her bed. "We will be back Baby. Watch the house." She smiled and hugged Co-co as she made her way to the others.

She walked down the steps and stopped short of the clearing to look around gauging how many people were there. Even though she now had her cat, she was still nervous around others, especially groups. Seeing a few people she scanned for a seat quickly. As soon as she found one she darted over to it and sat down placing her cat in her lap as she did. He did not really seem the mind the motion and sat on her lap completely use to her moving where ever she wanted.

[Lady Seraphina]

of Dirt

Katsuro Nakamura

Katsuro tried to soak in as much as possible as he was let into the base and shown his room. He was quiet most of the way, not sure how to feel about the situation he suddenly found himself in. On the bright side, he didn’t have much to leave behind. He was kind of a nomad on the streets of New York, living off what little he won off local karate tournaments and the well-off women he managed to woo as he wandered. There were no friends or family to speak of. His not being able to see Ariel again didn’t bother him much. They didn’t know each other well. It was a lifestyle that didn’t require him to anchor anywhere for too long. He grew accustomed to the pattern and saw himself doing it for the rest of his life.

Still not sure what his powers really were, he felt like he needed to learn to walk again. It was possible that all his skills and talents would be totally inapplicable in his new environment. He’d have to learn a new game. The thought was both intimidating and exhilarating. Although he was in an uncomfortable spot at the moment, he knew there was tremendous potential. He had an ability that possibly only he possessed and he was dying to know how it stood up with the others in terms of power level.

He was sitting on his bed when Garret came around to inform him of Cameron’s wanting to meet everybody downstairs. Katsuro gave him a nod as he got off the bed and stood up. Everybody I’m going to meet will have some sort of power, he thought, as if to remind himself. He wondered how many were like Cameron and Garret, who had years to perfect their abilities. How many were like Katsuro? He ran his fingers through his short hair and quietly huffed away his apprehension before making his way down to meet the others.

There were two petite women; one with a cat. For all his thinking about how much less powerful his abilities might be, he couldn’t have expected to see less intimidating people. Then again, he wasn’t sure what to expect. The room was awkwardly quiet, even after Jenna asked if anybody knew what was going on. “I've just been recruited,” Katsuro answered, hating to have to demonstrate his ignorance. “I’m Katsuro,” he added, forcing a small smile. “How long have you guys been here? With the Reformers, I mean,” he inquired, recalling chunks of the load of information Cameron dumped on him not too long ago. If they’re Charlies like me, then they were part of that accident as well, Katsuro thought, considering the idea that it technically wasn’t the first time he’d seen these strangers.

[Lady Seraphina]

BlessedWrath (Weaver)

Samantha Cole

"Fine," Sam grated. "Ask your questions."

Mantovani grinned and his gun fell to his side. Sam visibly relaxed, but only enough that she could breathe without effort. Her captor took the time to choose his words as he withdrew a small remote from his right breast pocket.

"We’ll start with this." A monitor to her right clicked on. From the distances involved, Sam guessed it to be at least 60", which was only another indicator that the man had money to burn. The video’s low resolution and timestamp in the lower right corner suggested a security feed. It depicted an unconscious Sam, deep in the throes of auto-drawing. Her arm rapidly swept across an invisible canvas, despite her deep sleep.

"Umm..." Sam worked for the words, but the lies did not come as quickly as they had before.

"I don’t need to remind you of the penalty for wasting my time." Mantovani interjected.

Sam shrugged, though the motion was significantly curtailed by her restraints. In truth, she suspected it was important, but had never bothered to actually investigate. From time to time, when Sam was asleep –or even some times when she drifted into a daydream at her desk- she would awake to find strange scrawling in her journals, on her walls; anywhere she could find room. Sam had heard of sleepwalking, but…sleep drawing?

"No clue," Sam offered weakly. "Sometimes I draw in my sleep."

Mantovani huffed, unimpressed. There had to be more to it than that. But he had other ideas on his mind.

"Let’s try something else," he said knowingly. "Which processor does my phone use?"

Sam made a face before she could stop herself. The look she gave him was a profane amalgam of incredulous confusion and condescending disdain. Given all that had transpired, and was still unfolding, what had that to do with anything? Mantovani made his eyes hard and tapped the gun on his thigh.

"You’re not really going to make me repeat myself, are you?"

"How the hell should I know?" Sam spat back. Mantovani cleared the distance between them with three strides and shoved the barrel of his gun into Sam’s chin.

"I don’t know!" Sam screamed. She looked like a panicked animal, trying desperately to put some distance between herself and the gun, despite the fact that her restraints made that impossible. She twisted her body in any way she could to make that happen, even though the inches she gained would not have made any difference in the damage a bullet would inflict.

That reaction was what made him believe her. It was irrational; driven by fear. There was no thought of deception. The only thing that mattered to her was getting away from his weapon.

"You don’t know." Mantovani repeated. Sam shook her head, trying to choke back tears. "Maybe I’m asking the wrong question." He spent some time pacing before rewording his question. "What kind of processor?"

"I don’t-" Sam began, but realized immediately that her intended response was untrue. In the time it took her to speak those words, she saw the chip in her mind. She saw every trace, every component. She saw how the energy was directed, manipulated, stored and released. Though she had no name for any of these things, she did know what they were. Sam had been unconscious when Mantovani finally made her hold that phone. He had gotten his way after all. Sam just hadn’t been asked to recall the information she’d gained from it yet.

"I don't know what it's called." Sam tried to deflect the question with clever wording.

"But you do know what it is." Mantovani replied evenly. Sam nodded, looking at the floor.

Mantovani snapped his fingers and one of the doors opened. A man in a suit made rapid progress toward the center of the room, carrying a large notepad under one arm.

"Draw it."

The newcomer released the restraints on her right arm and tried to hand her the notepad. When she refused, he looked at Mantovani, who impatiently gestured toward her. His accomplice shoved the notepad under her arm, into her lap, and made her take the pen.

"You draw that chip," Mantovani ordered, gently placing the barrel of his gun against her temple. "Or I paint this room." This time there was no whimsical gesturing; just a click.

What choice did she have? Sam drew.

[Lady Seraphina]

dpickle

Patrick "Pat" Anderson

As soon as Pat returned to the base after the "shopping adventure", the weight of the whole ordeal finally caught up to him. He had barely landed on his bed when he fell asleep, more exhausted than he'd been in years.

Pat awoke the next day barely less tired than when he had fallen asleep. He could have easily slept for another four hours, but the lights had come on outside his room, shattering the near-perfect darkness he required to sleep. He instinctively reached for the pill bottle he had beside his bed at home before remembering that he was about as far from home as he had ever gotten. Pat spent to morning half asleep in bed going over the past few days events. He wasn't pleased with his situation, but it was probably the best he could hope for all things considered. It wasn't like he could just go back, all the TSP had to look for was the apartment with more drugs in it than your average street gang. Still, Pat wasn't one to let something like this drive him out of a bad mood, so when Garret came to bring him to some meeting, he made sure to put up the appropriate amount of fuss before leaving his room.

As Pat entered the room just as some new guy, "Katsuro" finished introducing himself, saying that he had just been recruited (Pat suspected "abducted" was probably closer to the truth). Was he the reason for this meeting? Some kind of new guy meet n' greet? If that was the case might as well get this thing over with so he could go back to his room.

"Pat Anderson. And we're about as new here as you are." Pat slowly walked to one of the empty chairs before taking a seat. "So would I be safe in assuming your a new Charlie?"

[Lady Seraphina]

Prince of Seraphs

Christian Tylers

Christian felt groggy and unfocused. Of course he didn't have any form of sight to be blurry but the noises all around him came in waves, loud and soft and completely unintelligible. The ground under his body felt strange, hard but loose and uneven like a street corner or an alley, pavement. Something about that didn't seem right in his head but Christian was having trouble concentrating. Finally an image stirred in his mind that caused everything to become clearer. No, not an image, it was more accurate to say that it was a series of sounds, smells and tactile impressions, the ring of a voice, the echo of footfall, the smell of a generic shampoo applied just a little too sparingly. A name came with these impressions: Sam.

It was like an electric bolt struck Christian's brain. Like that moment when you wake up tired and realize that you're an hour late for an appointment and in the next second you are wide awake and running for the shower. Christian shot to his feet. What had happened? he asked himself. Then the memories started to resurface. Chasing Sam through the streets using his ability to guide him, finding the girl diving for cellphones in a deserted part of the city. The mobster that had attacked the two of them. Then of course was the interrogation. Christian remembered snapping the chain on the handcuffs even if it was accidental, prying the link loose to free his hands. He'd been so close to getting them both out of there then at the last second... what had happened?

The fog in Christian's head had begun to subside and as it went he could hear the things around him more clearly. Voices, pedestrians, traffic, a bit of construction in the distance. He was on a street. Or more likely from the feel of the pavement that he'd woken up on and the brick wall he now leaned against he was in an alley. They'd simply dumped him out in public. That was when pieces of what the man in the suit had said had Christian was being sedated came back to him.

"Cut the blind one loose... pathological liar... track him... lead us straight to them... subdermal... ditching... Take the girl to Site B... not finished..."

It was still a bit foggy and disjointed but Christian could remember certain phrases accurately. He scratched absentmindedly at his forearm as he thought about what he could piece together. They'd cut him loose to track him back to the Reformers, that much was obvious even if Christian hadn't heard the conversation. Evidently however they didn't need two pieces of bait and so Sam was somewhere still in trouble. At this Site B. Though Christian didn't know how long he'd been out. He didn't feel hungry yet so it couldn't have been more than thirty two hours but that still left them enough time to have transferred Sam several times. Besides it wasn't like Christian was aware of where they had been in the first place. If he'd been able to focus his power of awareness maybe he could have gotten a better read on the world outside the warehouse but as it was Christian didn't have anything to go on.

The spot on his arm that Christian had begun to scratch suddenly exploded with pain. Christian's muscles froze and he clamped down on it to hopefully stop the pain. In another moment the stinging subsided and Christian made sense of another part of the fragmented conversation he remembered. "subdermal". The man in the suit had implanted him with some sort of tracking device, none to gently either. It stung like a bitch right now and once that subsided the itch returned. It was like the world's worse mosquito bite, except a thousand times more dangerous. For all he knew if he kept scratching at it the device might puncture a vein or an artery. It wasn't like thugs were very exact about fine detail work.

Christian used the rough brick wall to guide himself to the street. As he approached the sound of traffic and people talking grew louder. The man in the suit had dumped Christian in a highly populated area. Presumably so that he would have no trouble finding his "friends" or asking someone for help getting to a payphone. Christian felt mildly insulted that even a mob boss felt the need to give Christian an extra helping hand. He was blind not useless. Of course the feeling was instantly dwarfed by that of worry for Sam. Christian couldn't go back to the Reformers because of the implant in his arm but Sam was in far more danger. She was still a prisoner.

It happened too often, Christian getting away from harmful situations while others around him paid the price. He wasn't going to let it happen this time. Sam had a gift which it seemed the man in the suit was at least partially aware of. That made Sam valuable to him, at least for the moment which meant that Sam was useful enough to him that she would be kept alive. At least for the moment. How long she stayed alive was more than likely completely dependent on how she could help him. Since she had yet to fully comprehend her powers that meant that she might die in a moment or spent the rest of her life a prisoner. Christian couldn't let that happen, he'd failed to protect people close to him before, he couldn't let it happen again.

First though Christian had to get himself straightened out, come up with a plan of attack and of course find where exactly Sam was. None of those were exactly easy tasks so Christian decided to start with the simplest. He needed to disappear. If the Reformers found him it could very well start some sort of war between them and the Suit's mob. The TSP would inevitably get involved then all hell would break loose. No Christian needed somewhere to hide, at least for the interim. To get a decent hiding place Christian needed cash. Almost unconsciously the blond man reached into the pocket of his jacket and pulled out the straight hard square of plastic he'd been given earlier that day, or had that been yesterday or the day before? It was the debit card the Reformers had given Christian. What had they said about it "eight hundred dollars for the essentials" Christian considered for a moment that using the card might alert the Reformers to his location but then he reasoned that if he withdrew the money all at once at a machine in no way related to where he was or had ever been and tossed the card afterwards the Reformers would have little enough to go on.

Christian knew a couple of specialty bookstores that would have tactile maps designed for people like him. A couple were limited to New York and Christian wasn't exactly sure how far outside the city they had come but some of the stores were rather popular chains and while the blind community might have been limited they kept a small stock of useful materials just in case.

Christian asked directions to the nearest Black Bond Books and in about an hour had a set of tactile maps for the area under his arm. They were contained loosely in more of a binder type design so that the uneven surfaces would not be compressed in anyway. He found the important things, street maps marked with the braille symbols for bank and bus. It wasn't exactly difficult to get onto the bus without a fare. Christian didn't like playing the sympathy card often but when he told the driver that he was blind and had lost his bus pass the driver gave a grunt and what Christian failed to see, a hand gesture to proceed. There was an awkward moment of silence before the driver realized his mistake and restated his decision in words. Grateful Christian made his way to one of the seats and waited till his stop was spoken by an automated voice.

Christian pulled the cord and left the bus, at this point he was really wishing he had his White Cane. It made traversing unknown places so much easier. Instead Christian was forced to fish an old pair of opaque sunglasses out of his jacket pocket. He rarely wore them but always had them on hand just in case. Not everyone recognized the significance of the black glasses but enough did that Christian managed to get to the bank without too many problems though having to ask how much further his destination was was rather embarrassing.

Finally finding it Christian felt his way to the bank machine set into the wall outside the bank. He found the card slot with his fingers before pushing the Reformer's debit card into the slot. The buttons were all marked with braille to ensure that people like him could use the machine and it read each of its directions out loud. Christian requested the full amount be removed from the eight hundred dollar limit and the machine was more than happy to oblige. Christian left the card in the machine for the Reformers to find.

He had capital now, that was the easy part, now came the complicated details. How exactly he could possibly rescue someone from the mob with no sight and limited telekinetic capabilities.