Jack's eyes flared open.
He had fallen asleep surfing the web using his mental connection, and now he was paying the price. His mind swam as the world swirled around him. He felt sick and disorientated. He had been researching paranormals and metas to try and get a better idea of what was and was not possible with cosmic powers. However, nodding off while connected to the wifi had a disturbing affect on his dreams. He felt like he had been fighting through a swamp filled with rotting animal carcasses. The internet felt like it was infested with bugs that had been crawling all over his mind. His sense of smell was distorted. He could smell colors. He could hear brightness. He could see the sounds of distant traffic. It took him a good half hour to get back to normal. He spent most of that time in the shower just trying to get his senses to reconnect properly. It felt like a hangover, if he had gotten drunk on moonshine laced with LSD. Eventually he felt well enough to get properly dressed, ~Holy fuck. Maybe I need to stay away from the more esoteric powers for a while.~ He checked his sock drawer to see if he had any crackers stashed in there. He found a box of government issued, gluten-free squares. Taking a bite, he chewed for a few moments, then spit it out, "Goddamnit. I wonder if they have any government issued gluten spread for these styrofoam squares. I'm hungry, but not that hungry." This reminded him of his promise to eat dinner with Sass. "Oh that's right." He remarked to himself. He picked up the notes he made last night about the Rascals. They were a mid tier superhero group. They'd been around for a while now. They were a by-the-book outfit with five primary members, a number of support personnel, and were moderately popular. Where the Caretakers were a national level superhero group, the Rascals were strictly local and limited to Empire City. He likened them to a SWAT team that worked for a city specific police force, as opposed to the Caretakers who were a SWAT team for the FBI, "I forgot all about that." Not that they had SWAT teams. Here they were called WASP teams. He wasn't entirely sure why. The abbreviation made little sense to him. He had found the address of their headquarters and had made a note to stop by. It was a small fortress just this side of the border between New York and New Jersey. By bus, it'd take about forty five minutes. By air, he could make it in twenty. He paused to check his purchases yesterday from the local goodwill. He had found a bunch of shirts that had open backs, so he could wear something and still use his wings. They all resembled wife beaters of one sort or another, but were far more... sexy. It took a bit to figure it out, but he had stumbled upon this world's version of lingerie. At first he tried to find alternatives, but except for taking a shirt and cutting a hole in the back, these were his only choices for what he could wear to cover his torso, and not look like he crawled out of a dumpster. He could have bought more expensive clothes, but he didn't want people thinking Angel had money. He decided to settle on a rather tight fitting, light blue top because it stayed over his nipples no matter how he moved. Sure it was the skimpiest of the shirts he had picked up, but it stayed in place when he flew around wearing it and that's what mattered. It was okay quality and a lucky find for a second hand store. He put it on under his clothes along with the matching shorts. Now if he needed to change forms he wouldn't be half naked, like before. He'd just need to find some place to hide his clothes when he stripped. He paused for a second, then held out his hand as he tried to remember a comic book he read as a kid, "Go-Go Webbing!" Like his attempt to shoot flame, something came out. A small glob of webbing material that stuck to the wall. Well, web-like. It was more like a glob of sticky white goo. It might act as a minor hinderance to someone in combat, but it would be far more useful sticking things together, "Huh. Push comes to shove, I could attach my civilian civvies under an overhang, if I need to change with no notice." He mumbled to himself as he contemplated possible logistical issues. He checked the time and saw it was getting late. The sun was starting to set, so he could fly long distances without attracting too much attention. He changed into his new outfit. He looked at himself in the mirror as he shifted to look like Angel. He turned around a few times, examining the tight fitting shirt and the matching silk shorts. He frowned slightly, ~I look like a male Victoria's Secret model.~ He turned around a few more time then mumbled, "Is this a bad thing?" Deciding it wasn't, he picked up the small backpack he bought because it fit between his wings, double checked to make sure he didn't forget anything, then put it on while he checked to make sure the door was double locked, ~Time to go bag some bigger prey. And maybe get a free dinner in the process.~ He teleported to the roof of the motel and turned invisible briefly as he jumped to another roof. Landing in a crouch, he de-cloaked and rested a minute before repeating this a few times. When he was a couple blocks away from his apartment, he leaped into the sky one last time and began gliding towards Jersey, ~Maybe I'm being too paranoid, but I don't want anyone seeing me flying away from that place any more than absolutely necessary.~ And with that, he headed off to Rascals HQ.Sass' arm had almost completely healed. Regeneration was the most common form of fast healing in the world, but the problem was it was expensive and could take a while. For example, Fully replacing an arm could take weeks, and was way more money than most could afford. Her broken arm would have taken her out of commission for at least a week, if Angel hadn't sped up the healing process with a flash heal. Instead it only took ten hours to get to the point where it was merely sore. She could have spent another day in the hospital and finished healing completely, but she was always worried about the group's budget. This was a corner she was comfortable cutting. She hated being the responsible one, but someone needed to be to keep the lights on around here. Going after Toady Troll without backup almost ended in a complete disaster. Toady was a substantial bounty and he capture was a much needed cash infusion to get the budget back under control. If they had failed to take down Toady or had to deal with the full cost of recovery, she didn't know if the team would have survived financially. Medical expenses were killing them, as was the usual case for most superhero team. Sass' problem was that the rest of the team either didn't seem to understand exactly how bad things were, or if they did, they didn't care. Most superhero teams would murder for a good healer. Regenerators were well looked upon because most of them were not going to be that big of a burden, budget wise. This was why Sass tolerated Grease. She was an asshole, but Grease was a cheap asshole. She was a speedster and good at avoiding blows, yet could take a shot as well. Alas, as they say, she did not play well with others. Getting her to use team tactics was like pulling teeth. She almost always fought alone on the battle field and the team paid a price for it. Leadership was Sass' role. She'd studied group dynamics at the so-called super college where you picked up advanced courses for superhero group management. Someone had to be the 'heart' of the group. Someone was the emotional center who kept everyone else together. Normally that wasn't supposed to be the leader, but Sass was rather pig headed. If a role in the team wasn't being played, she stepped up and handled it. She'd pulled this group together by her personality alone and kept it functioning by sheer force of will. They were going to be the best, one way or another. She paused and closed her eyes as a wave of mental exhaustion overcame her. The stress was wearing her down and she knew she was flagging. She paused to open up a desk drawer and opened a hanging folder. She peered inside for a few seconds and gazed upon the picture within. She took a deep breath and closed her desk as she felt her mental resolve solidify and vowed to redouble her efforts. She would do whatever it took to take her team to number one. This brought her thoughts back to Angel. ~Why has nobody picked you up yet?~ She started going over the reports again. She had asked Wanderer to turn up what she could about this Angel, but nobody knew anything, ~Your flash heal wouldn't be that useful in combat, but back at the base in a support position just handling recovery, he could save us so much money. Heck, he'd save anyone money. So either you are so new nobody knows about you, or there is something so fundamentally wrong with you that you aren't worth it.~ About one out of nine superheroes were male. It was just a statistical fact. For so many, many reasons, this led to all sorts of problems when it came to integrating them into teams. It didn't help that the past few years the government was using affirmative action to force superhero teams to take on male members. The problem was most people saw male superheroes like Wonder Man and thought all male superheroes were as talented. The truth was she'd let anyone on the front lines if they had that level of ability, but almost none of the male applicants had the skills, talent, or training to hold their own, much less contribute to the team. Her steadfast refusal to hire a male superhero just for show has hurt them in more that one way. The one time she broke this rule they were still paying for it. Regardless, she was never going to stop looking for that unicorn, a male superhero who was actually, tactically effective in the field. She sighed and leaned back in her chair. She talked to herself as she often did when she was trying to organize her thoughts, "It's been days. It's like you fell out of the sky then disappeared just as fast. Why can't anyone find you?" She rubbed her tired eyes as she continued her musings, "Just who are you really?" "Thinking about our angel?" Sass looked up to see Grifter. She was standing there in full costume, as usual. She never was seen without of her equipment. Of everyone in the group, she wasn't meta active. She was also the most dedicated. She had trained herself to near perfection. What she lacked in raw power, she made up for in skill and an absolutely insane level of dedication to the cause. She never let her guard down, and so she never took off the gas mask. In many ways, Grifter was a rock that Sass depended upon. A true believer that never surrendered, never wavered, and wanted the number one more than anyone. Well, she certainly had a reason to prove herself. She was the team stealth expert. Sass had been working with Grifter for so long, it no longer shocked her when Grifter just appeared in her office. Sass straightened up in her chair, "Yeah. I want to nail him down as soon as possible. We are never going to make it to the next level without a team healer." Grifter chuckled softly, "I wouldn't mind nailing him, either." Sass scowled and held a finger towards Grifter, "Hey! That sort of talk is exactly what we need to avoid. We are still paying for the last sexual harassment lawsuit from the that guy we tried to integrate into the team." Grifter raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, "That was Grease, not me." She glanced at the papers on the desk, "But you are right, if we could avoid that situation arising again, he would be exactly what we need. Not only for his healing power, but as a diversity hire. Our reputation is still recovering from the Balloon Boy incident." Sass covered her eyes in embarrassment, "Don't even say that freak's name. I was too trusting. He completely changed after we brought him on board with all that 'change the culture' and 'do better' nonsense!" She rubbed her eyebrows then let her hand drop into her lap. She spoke to the air, bitching at someone who was no longer here, "How about you actually do your job and pull your weight, how about THAT? How about you don't waste our team funds buying new clothes?" She shook her head and made a quick slashing motion across her neck with the flat of her hand, "Never again. No socialists. No activists. No ideologues. We do not need that toxic shit in this office. If I ever hire a guy who has his hair dyed a strange color again, please shoot me in the head." "Even if he's a healer?" Grifter tilted her head to the side. Her question was laden with implication. Sass took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "Gosh, I don't know. We need a healer BAD... maybe. I don't know." She had a look of exhaustion in her eyes, "Can't we have one good thing happen around here without it coming with a massive price tag?" She scrunched her eyebrows together as if she just realized something she missed, "Wait, why did you come in here, anyways?" "Oh, right." Grifter hooked a thumb over her shoulder and casually remarked with a tinge of amusement, "Your angel is waiting for you down at the front gate." Sass sat up bolt straight in her chair with wide eyes, "Really? That's great!" Grifter leaned over Sass' desk and took control of her computer. With a few clicks, Grifter brought up the camera at the front gate. It zoomed in on Angel. He was dressed in the sort of nightwear a prostitute would wear while lounging under a streetlamp in a red light district. He was smiling and looking cheerful like he didn't have a care in the world. Angel then noticed the camera zooming in on him and waved while holding some rolled up piece of clothing for inspection. He energetically pointed at it. Grifter gave Sass a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. "He says he brought his footie pajamas."
Jack's eyes flared open.
He had fallen asleep surfing the web using his mental connection, and now he was paying the price. His mind swam as the world swirled around him. He felt sick and disorientated. He had been researching paranormals and metas to try and get a better idea of what was and was not possible with cosmic powers. However, nodding off while connected to the wifi had a disturbing affect on his dreams. He felt like he had been fighting through a swamp filled with rotting animal carcasses. The internet felt like it was infested with bugs that had been crawling all over his mind. His sense of smell was distorted. He could smell colors. He could hear brightness. He could see the sounds of distant traffic. It took him a good half hour to get back to normal. He spent most of that time in the shower just trying to get his senses to reconnect properly. It felt like a hangover, if he had gotten drunk on moonshine laced with LSD. Eventually he felt well enough to get properly dressed, ~Holy fuck. Maybe I need to stay away from the more esoteric powers for a while.~ He checked his sock drawer to see if he had any crackers stashed in there. He found a box of government issued, gluten-free squares. Taking a bite, he chewed for a few moments, then spit it out, "Goddamnit. I wonder if they have any government issued gluten spread for these styrofoam squares. I'm hungry, but not that hungry." This reminded him of his promise to eat dinner with Sass. "Oh that's right." He remarked to himself. He picked up the notes he made last night about the Rascals. They were a mid tier superhero group. They'd been around for a while now. They were a by-the-book outfit with five primary members, a number of support personnel, and were moderately popular. Where the Caretakers were a national level superhero group, the Rascals were strictly local and limited to Empire City. He likened them to a SWAT team that worked for a city specific police force, as opposed to the Caretakers who were a SWAT team for the FBI, "I forgot all about that." Not that they had SWAT teams. Here they were called WASP teams. He wasn't entirely sure why. The abbreviation made little sense to him. He had found the address of their headquarters and had made a note to stop by. It was a small fortress just this side of the border between New York and New Jersey. By bus, it'd take about forty five minutes. By air, he could make it in twenty. He paused to check his purchases yesterday from the local goodwill. He had found a bunch of shirts that had open backs, so he could wear something and still use his wings. They all resembled wife beaters of one sort or another, but were far more... sexy. It took a bit to figure it out, but he had stumbled upon this world's version of lingerie. At first he tried to find alternatives, but except for taking a shirt and cutting a hole in the back, these were his only choices for what he could wear to cover his torso, and not look like he crawled out of a dumpster. He could have bought more expensive clothes, but he didn't want people thinking Angel had money. He decided to settle on a rather tight fitting, light blue top because it stayed over his nipples no matter how he moved. Sure it was the skimpiest of the shirts he had picked up, but it stayed in place when he flew around wearing it and that's what mattered. It was okay quality and a lucky find for a second hand store. He put it on under his clothes along with the matching shorts. Now if he needed to change forms he wouldn't be half naked, like before. He'd just need to find some place to hide his clothes when he stripped. He paused for a second, then held out his hand as he tried to remember a comic book he read as a kid, "Go-Go Webbing!" Like his attempt to shoot flame, something came out. A small glob of webbing material that stuck to the wall. Well, web-like. It was more like a glob of sticky white goo. It might act as a minor hinderance to someone in combat, but it would be far more useful sticking things together, "Huh. Push comes to shove, I could attach my civilian civvies under an overhang, if I need to change with no notice." He mumbled to himself as he contemplated possible logistical issues. He checked the time and saw it was getting late. The sun was starting to set, so he could fly long distances without attracting too much attention. He changed into his new outfit. He looked at himself in the mirror as he shifted to look like Angel. He turned around a few times, examining the tight fitting shirt and the matching silk shorts. He frowned slightly, ~I look like a male Victoria's Secret model.~ He turned around a few more time then mumbled, "Is this a bad thing?" Deciding it wasn't, he picked up the small backpack he bought because it fit between his wings, double checked to make sure he didn't forget anything, then put it on while he checked to make sure the door was double locked, ~Time to go bag some bigger prey. And maybe get a free dinner in the process.~ He teleported to the roof of the motel and turned invisible briefly as he jumped to another roof. Landing in a crouch, he de-cloaked and rested a minute before repeating this a few times. When he was a couple blocks away from his apartment, he leaped into the sky one last time and began gliding towards Jersey, ~Maybe I'm being too paranoid, but I don't want anyone seeing me flying away from that place any more than absolutely necessary.~ And with that, he headed off to Rascals HQ.Sass' arm had almost completely healed. Regeneration was the most common form of fast healing in the world, but the problem was it was expensive and could take a while. For example, Fully replacing an arm could take weeks, and was way more money than most could afford. Her broken arm would have taken her out of commission for at least a week, if Angel hadn't sped up the healing process with a flash heal. Instead it only took ten hours to get to the point where it was merely sore. She could have spent another day in the hospital and finished healing completely, but she was always worried about the group's budget. This was a corner she was comfortable cutting. She hated being the responsible one, but someone needed to be to keep the lights on around here. Going after Toady Troll without backup almost ended in a complete disaster. Toady was a substantial bounty and he capture was a much needed cash infusion to get the budget back under control. If they had failed to take down Toady or had to deal with the full cost of recovery, she didn't know if the team would have survived financially. Medical expenses were killing them, as was the usual case for most superhero team. Sass' problem was that the rest of the team either didn't seem to understand exactly how bad things were, or if they did, they didn't care. Most superhero teams would murder for a good healer. Regenerators were well looked upon because most of them were not going to be that big of a burden, budget wise. This was why Sass tolerated Grease. She was an asshole, but Grease was a cheap asshole. She was a speedster and good at avoiding blows, yet could take a shot as well. Alas, as they say, she did not play well with others. Getting her to use team tactics was like pulling teeth. She almost always fought alone on the battle field and the team paid a price for it. Leadership was Sass' role. She'd studied group dynamics at the so-called super college where you picked up advanced courses for superhero group management. Someone had to be the 'heart' of the group. Someone was the emotional center who kept everyone else together. Normally that wasn't supposed to be the leader, but Sass was rather pig headed. If a role in the team wasn't being played, she stepped up and handled it. She'd pulled this group together by her personality alone and kept it functioning by sheer force of will. They were going to be the best, one way or another. She paused and closed her eyes as a wave of mental exhaustion overcame her. The stress was wearing her down and she knew she was flagging. She paused to open up a desk drawer and opened a hanging folder. She peered inside for a few seconds and gazed upon the picture within. She took a deep breath and closed her desk as she felt her mental resolve solidify and vowed to redouble her efforts. She would do whatever it took to take her team to number one. This brought her thoughts back to Angel. ~Why has nobody picked you up yet?~ She started going over the reports again. She had asked Wanderer to turn up what she could about this Angel, but nobody knew anything, ~Your flash heal wouldn't be that useful in combat, but back at the base in a support position just handling recovery, he could save us so much money. Heck, he'd save anyone money. So either you are so new nobody knows about you, or there is something so fundamentally wrong with you that you aren't worth it.~ About one out of nine superheroes were male. It was just a statistical fact. For so many, many reasons, this led to all sorts of problems when it came to integrating them into teams. It didn't help that the past few years the government was using affirmative action to force superhero teams to take on male members. The problem was most people saw male superheroes like Wonder Man and thought all male superheroes were as talented. The truth was she'd let anyone on the front lines if they had that level of ability, but almost none of the male applicants had the skills, talent, or training to hold their own, much less contribute to the team. Her steadfast refusal to hire a male superhero just for show has hurt them in more that one way. The one time she broke this rule they were still paying for it. Regardless, she was never going to stop looking for that unicorn, a male superhero who was actually, tactically effective in the field. She sighed and leaned back in her chair. She talked to herself as she often did when she was trying to organize her thoughts, "It's been days. It's like you fell out of the sky then disappeared just as fast. Why can't anyone find you?" She rubbed her tired eyes as she continued her musings, "Just who are you really?" "Thinking about our angel?" Sass looked up to see Grifter. She was standing there in full costume, as usual. She never was seen without of her equipment. Of everyone in the group, she wasn't meta active. She was also the most dedicated. She had trained herself to near perfection. What she lacked in raw power, she made up for in skill and an absolutely insane level of dedication to the cause. She never let her guard down, and so she never took off the gas mask. In many ways, Grifter was a rock that Sass depended upon. A true believer that never surrendered, never wavered, and wanted the number one more than anyone. Well, she certainly had a reason to prove herself. She was the team stealth expert. Sass had been working with Grifter for so long, it no longer shocked her when Grifter just appeared in her office. Sass straightened up in her chair, "Yeah. I want to nail him down as soon as possible. We are never going to make it to the next level without a team healer." Grifter chuckled softly, "I wouldn't mind nailing him, either." Sass scowled and held a finger towards Grifter, "Hey! That sort of talk is exactly what we need to avoid. We are still paying for the last sexual harassment lawsuit from the that guy we tried to integrate into the team." Grifter raised her hands in a gesture of surrender, "That was Grease, not me." She glanced at the papers on the desk, "But you are right, if we could avoid that situation arising again, he would be exactly what we need. Not only for his healing power, but as a diversity hire. Our reputation is still recovering from the Balloon Boy incident." Sass covered her eyes in embarrassment, "Don't even say that freak's name. I was too trusting. He completely changed after we brought him on board with all that 'change the culture' and 'do better' nonsense!" She rubbed her eyebrows then let her hand drop into her lap. She spoke to the air, bitching at someone who was no longer here, "How about you actually do your job and pull your weight, how about THAT? How about you don't waste our team funds buying new clothes?" She shook her head and made a quick slashing motion across her neck with the flat of her hand, "Never again. No socialists. No activists. No ideologues. We do not need that toxic shit in this office. If I ever hire a guy who has his hair dyed a strange color again, please shoot me in the head." "Even if he's a healer?" Grifter tilted her head to the side. Her question was laden with implication. Sass took a deep breath and let it out slowly, "Gosh, I don't know. We need a healer BAD... maybe. I don't know." She had a look of exhaustion in her eyes, "Can't we have one good thing happen around here without it coming with a massive price tag?" She scrunched her eyebrows together as if she just realized something she missed, "Wait, why did you come in here, anyways?" "Oh, right." Grifter hooked a thumb over her shoulder and casually remarked with a tinge of amusement, "Your angel is waiting for you down at the front gate." Sass sat up bolt straight in her chair with wide eyes, "Really? That's great!" Grifter leaned over Sass' desk and took control of her computer. With a few clicks, Grifter brought up the camera at the front gate. It zoomed in on Angel. He was dressed in the sort of nightwear a prostitute would wear while lounging under a streetlamp in a red light district. He was smiling and looking cheerful like he didn't have a care in the world. Angel then noticed the camera zooming in on him and waved while holding some rolled up piece of clothing for inspection. He energetically pointed at it. Grifter gave Sass a sympathetic pat on the shoulder. "He says he brought his footie pajamas."
