DreamLyrics™ Play-by-Post Forums Alternate Reality PHX: Phoenix Reform Academy Parlor room

Mariel:

She nods at Anne.

”Believe it or not, I get it, Anne. Take that as you will, but I understand.”

She looks around, then speaks loud enough to be heard.

“About another twenty and we get back together. Bring anything you like with you, but if you can keep it off the furniture I’d appreciate it. Don’t want to create too much work for the staff.”

Lamar

“Works for me,” acceded the boy, a nod to Carver before staging a comprehensive raid on the food tables. It seemed that he had quite the appetite on him, though if that was an effect of his powers, a consequence of the time since his capture, or simply adolescent gluttony, it was impossible to tell at this juncture.

He glanced up from his repast as Mariel spoke, looked around for a clock, nodded acceptance and got stuck back in to the array of consumables before him.

Ben

His first plate tucked away, Ben got a fresh cup of coffee and a danish before heading back into the parlor as the time drew near. He sat back down on the piano bench and sipped the hot brew.

Anne

She ate in a calm and routine manner. It wasn't anything exciting to her, until she hit the strawberries. Fresh fruit had always been something the had enjoyed. Finishing her array of food, she cleared her dishes. Refilling her tea and grabbing more strawberries to go, she followed Ben back into the parlor.

Cadence

With her muffin and milk, she returned to the parlor room and her previous spot on the sofa.

Lamar

Once he was done and tidied up after himself, he returned to the parlour empty-handed and resumed his seat. No distractions, just poker-faced focus on the matters at hand.

Mariel:

She doesn’t give any additional undue attention to Peri, not wanting to refocus attention on her unless she asks for it.

“All right. Opening back up here. First things first, well address a couple of unanswered questions ...”

She looks over at Lamar.

“Quite often the children of heroes are put into what more or less amounts to an apprenticeship. One on one with someone considered appropriate, or Alternately something like a magnet school. To be honest, it would be somewhat hard to set up that competition, largely because many of the parents of those children would be opposed. And as I think many of you might know there is little as stubborn as a parent with an idea. If an opportunity presents itself, we will see what happens.”

Ben

He nibbled on his danish and kept his peace, watching for Lamar's reaction. He had doubted that there would be anything like the scholastic debates that his old school had done. No, this was more about reconditioning the children of criminals before letting them back into society.

Right!

Cadence

Cadence absently shook her head as Mariel talked about opportunities presenting themselves. She had 'zero' interest in the harebrained notion of powered teens squaring off against each other in some extracurricular ego masturbation. Probably best not to say that aloud. She really didn't want to socialize and wanted as little contact with other people as possible. The fact that she was settled into this dorm environment with everyone else in this room was 8 too many.

Lamar

The best information had been gleaned when the incongruous question had been asked, given there was nothing entirely equivalent for those of more salubrious backgrounds and risking any child through deliberate proximity with powered criminals should be a flat out 'no'. But what it could reveal was which staff member had the best poker face, who was quickest to see the implications, and how willing they were to sugar-coat that 'no' into a 'maybe'.

"Those parents would be right. There are people in this room who have done heinous things, speaking with the certainty of being a person in this room. Powered or no, children are children, and some risks are beyond the pale. I'd wager that not one of the students here can freely walk out the front door right now without serious repercussions, and reformed or no, innocent or no, that's not a level of potential threat any parent would want their child to face. So, why isn't the answer a definite negative, given there's no direct equivalent and we're talking about juvenile dependents going into a risky situation?"

Mariel:

“Because there are various sorts of competitions. In person? No. On the other hand, there have been before remote quiz competitions, essay contests, video games - all manner of competitions that require no direct contacts. Something of that sort might possibly be on the table at some point. Are we going to arrange a football match on the lawn? No.”

Grey:

“I want you all to realize something - we are determined to give you every opportunity we can, give you a chance; but in the end, that is what this is, a chance. An opportunity to rise and be something other than what it is assumed you will become - in some cases by others, in some cases by yourselves. A chance that not everyone out there wanted to give. I’m not saying this to make you feel a sense of obligation. Obligation, duty, whatever you want to call it if it exists at all will only come from you and the choices you make. This is not a summer camp; it is not a game. There have been many victims created by your circumstances - I want to make sure that you are not just another on that list.”

She gives a brief look and a raised eyebrow to Lamar.

Kemp:

“No, Lamar. You can’t just walk off. You are at some level considered a danger, if a recoverable danger. You are restricted- and at some level, however relatively cushy, this is a substitute prison albeit one with a purpose other than permanent confinement and punishment. That in mind, however, we wish to be as creative as possible about giving some outlets where we can for normal activities for teens. Competitive sports for example”

He says drily.

“Is not happening. But as Mariel says, competition takes many forms and many Cary no risk.”

Ben

"So let me get this straight. Even though I have never broken any significant law or used my abilities to harm anyone else, I am deemed a criminal for the actions of my parents alone?" he asked, shaking his head.

"You guys do realize that such an attitude by the authorities is likely to backfire, right?"

Kemp:

“You are considered a potential danger by them, yes. Fair or not, there it is. Things are what they are Ben, not what you might wish them to be. Laws are what politicians make them, not what I would wish them to be. You are considered a deadly weapon by the system. No argument you make to me, or to those sitting here with me is going to change that. It is not our choice. We do what we can with Things as They Are. Our desire is that system, for all it may be, does not chew you up and spit you out broken on the other side. If you want that system changed ... try writing to Eidolon. Your letters can join mine on his desk.“

Ben

He just smiled.

"That is okay sir. You have been straight forward and provided me with the information that I need for my attorneys. I will try to be helpful here and make your life a bit less stressful."

He sat back and sipped his coffee. His father had taught him valuable lessons about many other things then just the use of his burgeoning powers.

Peri

She didn’t have any questions, so she just sat and observed silently - taking the measure of the other inmates in this nuthouse.

Lamar’s trying to talk people into a corner, probably to get a sense of what he can get away with. Ben’s asking pointed questions while being unfailingly polite. Making sure they know he’s not happy with his current circumstances, while making sure not to cross the line.

Those two would be trouble. Don’t get drawn in unless you can play the game as well as them, otherwise you’ll end up taking the fall.

The other boys had probably been here a while, so they weren’t asking too many questions. The long haired one thought he was a comedian, but nobody else thought he was that funny. Might be a way to deflect attention away from himself, but she wasn’t sure yet.

The girls...

Cadence. Saying and doing outrageous things to keep people at arms length, but you want her on your side.

Anne. Wary. Wounded. Didn’t seem to trust anyone, including herself.

Dash, quiet, low self esteem and little confidence. Still, there was strength there.

And then there was herself. Used to being the grown-up, being the responsible one. Now, away from the person she looked after, she felt adrift. They kept talking about the future and possibilities, but the future was never something she’d had the luxury of thinking about, at least more than a week or two in advance. College. Jobs. A life of her own. Her future had been an unbroken chain of days looking after her father, fighting against him to try to keep him alive for another day. One day at a time. That’s what they said in the booklet about drinking that she’d picked up from the lobby of the municipal library. She’d tried to get him to read it. He’d ripped it up and threw it on the floor.

Anne

She found the questions interesting in and of themselves. She had questions, but they weren't the kinds of questions she wanted to ask in public, possibly not even in private. Most of her life had been concentrated on how to make her the best form of whatever her mother felt at the time. It meant she learned a wide variety of things. To that end she had no idea what she should study or even try to explore. She had acted in reflex to keep herself alive, and it had left her with many identities, she guessed.

For now she remained quiet and listened. That was important. She watched th others. Ben would be trouble to the establishment, but would he be difficult to them? Tough to know from such a short meeting. No, observe and listen. Learning was key right now in all forms.

Mariel

“You can still ask more questions, but first we get a few things out of the way. We’ll be doing a series of academic tests to figure out where you sit now, so we can set your academic lesson plans. These tests aren’t something for the records, nor something you need study for. It is just to get a baseline and figure out where your gifts lie. We will also be doing some careful exploration of your ‘powers’ to figure out some particulars there. Even if your interest is in not using them it is best to know what you are not using. General law regarding powered individuals and relevant history, as well as ethics will start right away.”

She pauses.

“Also, an account will be established and funded in your name, from which you can purchase various necessities such as clothing, and some luxuries. Computers and such will be provided.”

Ben

"Is the use of our powers for your testing mandatory? I have already been mentored extensively in my abilities by my parents and I would rather not have anything on the record." he asked, glancing at Mariel.

Lamar

Hand lifted in a minor pacifying gesture, the boy sought to mollify those he’d pushed and tested.

“Thank you for your answers. I hadn’t considered remote, zero-contact activities against the disparate apprentices to be a viable option, thus I stand corrected and still have much to learn. I offer reassurance that I fully intend to take the opportunity offered, and have no plans to even attempt to leave. I am fully aware of what this is and of my status, and cannot in good conscience deny that status is merited. That said, while I relish the academic tests ahead, exactly how thorough do you intend to be with testing my powers?”

Kemp

“That, Ben, is one of the things that we will be going over in “powered law”. Powers must be registered. Especially those which can be used with deadly intent. Off the record is no longer an option you have. It wasn’t really an option you had even before now, you just were skating under the radar. You have now appeared on the scopes and that sort of anonymity is no longer possible.”

He had an even and unperturbed voice.

He looks over to Lamar:

“At a minimum we will meet the standards necessary for registration - which is a convoluted area of law which can vary depending on category of power. So to some degree, until it starts it will be difficult to tell.”

Peri

Testing of powers. Now that was a potentially relevant topic.

“How do you deal with cases where powers are completely unknown, even by the student?”

She could see how they’d get started with cases where the student had already begun to explore their abilities, but not how they’d approach it with her.

Anne

She had expected that they would want to know more about her and what she could do. She wasn't sure how that would play out, but she didn't have ot know yet. She would kill for her mother, she won't kill for them.

Grey

“Unusual, but not unheard of. Usually change causes manifestation - and if the manifestation is in a controlled environment, then perhaps we can ensure that it is not a painful one.”

Cadence

Cadence sat quietly, eating small bites of the muffin in order to make it last and give her the appearance of business so she didn't have to participate or say something more troubling than her already established rebellious sarcasm. She listened well enough, even between moments of day-dreaming or void-like zone-outs.

Lamar was a super-genius type. He wasn't afraid to let everyone know either. Most super-genius types were that way. The sense of arrogance might not even be intentional, then again... in her biological mother's case, the intent was always to make sure everyone knew she was the smartest in the room and that everyone else was stupid and little more than minion material. That probably came from two factors- One, she was evil and evil sucked hard. And two, she was a sociopath and she really only could conceive of her own self interests as being important. Hopefully this Lamar character wasn't a sociopath because it didn't seem like they could null the 'Brainiac' thing.

And then there was Ben. Kinda cute, bordering on hot... but he was the perfect example of Privilege. He had money and an inflated sense of his influence. He made sure everyone knew he had money and access to lawyers. Sheesh, they've been very kind in trying to tell him he didn't have any of that right now. His grasp on smart things made him a candidate for a Brainiac type as well, and he sure liked to think he could spar with the Keepers of the keys about his rights. Hah! Maybe he actually needed to read the Freak Laws. Yeah, that's what people like her, before she knew she was a freak, called the rules that governed Freak City. Where she grew up, being a mutant or a super or powered, or whatever it was supposed to be called was all the ame thing... a freak. There weren't any in Gun Barrel City, which wasn't a city. It was barely a town. But it had a stoplight installed last year at the four way and new signal lights with fancy arms for the railroad tracks as well. Modern progress, right?

Whatever. Ben was in for a struggle if he couldn't get past the notion that he had any leverage about his constitutional rights. Even she knew that if you are powered and unregistered then you are automatically one step inside the villain category as far as the law was concerned. As for money, unless ben had a stash in his pocket, there was no money he was going to be able to get his hands on to pay his lawyers, who were probably laying low themselves. Sure, being on retainer for Villains probably made the Fed types real interested in digging through your life.

"Or, you can just get your butt kicked until you lose your shi... crap and then you explode... faster, but hurts more..."

Okay, so keeping her mouth shut was never going to be a workable plan.

In the back of her mind were the questions about her Mother's actions and if the Heroes had figured out what she had truly intended last night... Cadence was afraid to ask if Alchemy was alive. She tried to kill her, kill her so dead, so fast, that she couldn't shift herself to energy and then remake herself back into matter. All part of her plan, right? The Heroes would never hit her with enough force to kill her as long as she had the hostages. Cadence didn't even know who the hostages were, just a shield, that was the plan. They were always going to die. Did Alchemy survive it? She hoped she wasn't because, if not, things were going to get really bad, sooner rather than later.

Lamar

A couple of those that had been silent now spake, which was an ideal time to back off and listen, and to take stock of all the others present. It was too early to make any judgment calls: Anything could be a front, a facade, a persona for the benefit of the authorities. By the same token, no-one, absolutely no-one, should be dismissed out of hand. This chamber was filled with Gods and Goddesses, and any last one of them could be as capricious as Loki, as feckless as Zeus, as murderous as Huitzilopochtli.

Take the Destroyer of Worlds for example. There was every chance that that wasn't hyperbole in the slightest. No-one save she had the truth of the matter. Peri, claiming powers unknown, had infinite potential in every direction. Ben, extensively mentored and off the record. Anne, a quiet one, which meant wariness was in order. Dash, so powerful that she couldn't even be seen properly, such that he might surreptitiously try a few other kinds of eyeball at some point. Norton, brave, foolhardy or potent enough to fling idle insults at another deity, reputed to heal. Paul, Torrance, the courtesy of those who had been around powers for a while. The teachers, all of them Powered, some still active duty by the look of it.