maskormenace | 6th Mission / Video (Forward-dated to SEPTEMBER 7th)

[Jacob is standing in front of his communicator's camera, wearing fairly standard white-collar clothing. Judging by the office background behind him, he's just finishing his work day at the Future Foundation. One of his sleeves is rolled up, and he shows the camera the faint blue letters glowing beneath the skin of his wrist: REGISTERED HERO.]

Hey, everyone. Just wanted to say that I'm officially off the bench. I'm not happy to be Registered, but it's a lot better than living as a "Criminal."

[He rolls his eyes on the last word.]

My powers aren't being nullifed anymore, so I should be able to help out a lot more the next time things go to Hell.

Anyway, that's not all I wanted to say. I've got another question for everyone who is used to having 'superheroes' around back home. Do they always spend a lot of time arguing with each other? Or worse?

[Like RISE vs. the Justice League, for instance.]

Seems like there has been a lot of finger-pointing since the gas attack. A lot of debate. And maybe some things that needed to be said after a disaster like that. But it's been weeks, and last I heard, Crane hasn't been caught yet. It's hard not to wonder if things would be different if there was more cooperation between the different heroes.

[Jacob pauses to let that suggestion sink in, then segues oh-so-smoothly to the activities of an underground group he definitely knows nothing about.]

That reminds me- I heard on the news that some Maurtia Falls cops got busted for corruption last month. I'd love to shake the hand of whoever pulled that off. Feels like we could all use more wins like that right about now.

[And with that, he ends the transmission.]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Re: arguing - Depends on the group and the circumstances.

[But before he goes any further with that-] What were you in for, dare I ask?

Illegal vigilantism, along with some other charges. I led a team that was trying to clean up Maurtia Falls. The authorities don't take kindly to people who fight crime without Registering.

Hm. Can't imagine why. [By which he means he can definitely imagine why. Once a police state...] They nulled your powers for that? (And how, exactly?)

You bet they did. After they arrested me, they strapped a null on my ankle as part of probation. Not something you can take off without setting off an alarm.

Interesting. I'd thought they could do that with the nanites alone... Good to know, at any rate. I don't suppose they let you keep it afterwards. [It'd be nice to have a look at it. Because, you know. Reasons.]

Anyway. "Superheroes" are as prone to infighting and factionalism as anyone else - possibly even more so, if they're not used to having to compromise.

I didn't WANT to keep it. But I know someone who did. I can put you in touch with her, if you want.

People here are counting on us for protection. We can't afford to waste time arguing over politics, especially after a disaster. I think we're all going to have to make some compromises if we're going to make this whole thing work.

[Wait, really? He was just being sarcastic, he hadn't thought anyone would actually get to keep a nullifier. It'd be incredibly easy to misuse, for someone with the right know-how. ~~Y'know, like him.~~]

If you could, that'd be fantastic.

I'm afraid I'm not really up to date on the politics. Just got in last month, and all that. Do you mind giving me the Cliffs Notes?

Her name's Kanaya. I'm sending you her number now. As long as you don't say anything stupid, she should be okay with you.

[And if you do say something she considers stupid, she will let you know immediately and at length.]

I'll do what I can. I usually stay away from politics, but being an imPort means you're stuck in the middle of it constantly.

The government's sponsoring a military team of imPorts to take down super-criminals. Most of them are Registered. They're called RISE: Rogue ImPort Suppression Enforcement. The commander is Major General Olivier Armstrong. She's tough and smart. She's the one who took charge of the situation during the gas attack. Some people don't trust them. Personally, I'm still on the fence.

If you saw that anonymous post after the attack, you probably know about Batman. I've worked with him before. He's GOOD at fighting crime. But apparently that wasn't enough to stop him from being real stupid about Crane. I know he's got allies, but I don't know who they are. He doesn't trust Armstrong at all. Total refusal to cooperate: he's afraid of martial law.

I should probably mention Archangel too. That was the operation I led: the one the police came down on. We acted outside of Registration Ever since we started making noise in Maurtia Falls, public opinion in that city has gone downhill on Vigilantes.

I hope that helps. If you want a longer version, you'd probably want to talk to Will Graham. He's running the "official" FAQ now.

Kanaya? I know her, actually. Thank you, I'll talk to her about it.

[That's okay, he is exactly the same way! Except it's actually not okay because Qubit can dish it out much better than he can take it. WELP here's hoping this doesn't end badly.]

And the information is a big help, thank you again. I wouldn't call myself a political man either, but it's good to know where one stands.

Where does the Justice League fit into this equation, do you know?

Edited (I accidentally retroactive CR) 2015-09-16 03:24 (UTC)

Sorry, I don't think I do. If they've announced themselves, I missed it. Maybe they're Batman's allies. He always seemed like he had connections.

How do you know Kanaya?

All right. I'll have to look into that.

Well, we're acquainted, more accurately. I've been working down the hall from her.

I've worked with her too. She's smart. Reliable. Where are you working?

Good to hear. Starrware, at the moment.

[No point being cagey about that; Kanaya could tell him the same thing.]

Karen Starr's company. I've heard good things about their environmental research.

I'm with the Future Foundation. It's non-profit, so if you know your stuff and ever want to research outside the corporate world, you can look us up.

So have I. [He's not ... actually an employee there. Or getting paid. But if he was, he'd have plenty to contribute!!]

Future Foundation? Interesting. What sort of work do you do?

[Dear Lord Qubit how do you even eat]

The Foundation does cutting-edge research based around imPort science. We've made some breakthroughs in medical prosthetics. But I'm just the security guy, not involved in the tech. I'm in charge of keeping our place safe and our inventions out of the wrong hands.

[NOT WELL :'D]

I see. Medical applications aren't my specialty, but I'll certainly keep that in mind.

Great. Good luck with the nullifier. Weapons like that get used against us pretty often. We could all use some more knowledge of how they work.

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6th Mission / Video (Forward-dated to SEPTEMBER 7th)

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