Anonymous Text;

[gloves]

[ Even though she’s posting anonymously, it might very well be obvious who she is to anyone who knows her, or who knew other versions of her here, or who knew her counterparts in other universes. But Rogue’s hoping that anyone who figures it out will keep their lips zipped. At least publicly. ]

Quick question: how common are power mimics here? Because I can cover my hands and keep half my powers under wraps. But the other half... I’ve got a boss that’s pissed because I’ve shorted out a dozen microwaves and light fixtures, decayed an entire walk-in freezer of food, and accidentally warped all the doors where I work.

Are there other power copiers here? I don’t even know the technical term for it. Just that I’m on probation and if something happens again at work I’m probably going to end up fired. And if anyone else has experience with this, I wouldn’t mind a bit of help if you’ve got any to offer in the control department.

I’ve heard that people convicted of crimes get their powers neutralized, so I guess that sort of thing is an option. But when you’re from where I’m from that’s not my first choice.

Comments

[helpdesk_hero]

I've made suppressors before, but they're so short term that they don't do very much for me.

I'm less a power mimic and more... a special form of uncontrolled telepath. It makes problems.

[gloves]

How short term? I’m guessing too much to get through an 8-hour shift?

[helpdesk_hero]

One hour, then you recharge it for three. I can't perfect the battery.

[gloves]

If I had any technical know how at all...

It’s a start though.

[helpdesk_hero]

It means I can touch people, and that's something.

[gloves]

You’re not worried about that sort of thing ending up in the wrong hands?

Genuine question. Not arguing.

[helpdesk_hero]

I have only made two of them. One I wear constantly. The other is in the hands of someone I trust. Both have variable passcode systems.

I've a lot of reason to distrust the tech being abused.

[gloves]

See, if more people were like you there'd be less of a chance of people starting to build giant robots.

[ Which might more or less give away who she is (assuming David hasn't already figured it out), but screw it. She doesn't really know the guy, but she hasn't gotten any bad vibes from him yet. ]

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[drivesadesk]

I don't think I know any power copiers, but how do your powers work? Would you be able to take someone else's power to replace your existing inconvenient power, or do they stack?

[gloves]

Here’s the sort of answer everyone loves: it depends.

[ She really is genuinely worried about saying too much about her powers. Especially after that alternate universe visit. ]

They can stack. But not always. Mostly, right now, I just want to stop randomly “sprouting” powers I don’t know how to use.

[drivesadesk]

Right. So even if you absorb a power you know how to use, that might not get rid of the ones you don't know how to use. And you might just end up absorbing another difficult power.

Maybe I could look into whether any imPorts would be able to make some kind of neutralizer? I know it's not a great option, but at least it wouldn't be the government?

[gloves]

The more I think about neutralizers, the more I think about all the ways they can be misused.

[ The one that David had been talking about, at least, had been limited enough to make her less worried. And it's bad enough that the government has something more powerful. The idea of a permanent neutralizer falling into the hands of the wrong person sounds terrifying. ]

[drivesadesk]

Yeah, can't blame you. I know I wouldn't want them used on me. I mean, my physiology is listed as one of my powers, so I don't even know what neutralizing them would mean for me. Although I got lucky enough that my only power that I didn't have back home is just for making myself look human.

[gloves]

How necessary is it to 'look human' here?

[ Her own view on this sort of thing is a little pessimistic, and other mutants she's interacted with here don't seem to be doing much better, but she is curious what this world seems like to a person who maybe wasn't persecuted for being different in their home world. ]

[drivesadesk]

It's not really. I mean, people will mob you with attention because you're an obvious imPort, but it's all positive attention even if it gets a bit annoying after a while. It just feels weird being able to walk out without any sort of a disguise and not have to worry about being seen.

[onthe_threshold]

Whoa whoa hold up, they neutralize us?!

[gloves]

[ Well. Shit. ]

Stay out of trouble and you probably won’t have any problems with that.

[onthe_threshold]

The likelihood of that happening is pretty slim, sweetheart.

But this isn't about me. Look, I've spent plenty of time training people with different powers and the fundamentals of control stay the same. The biggest problem with people like you is lack of nuance so shit goes sideways really fast. How long do you retain your copied shit?

[gloves]

Oh good, it’s like you already know me.

Look, the power I’m having problems with is new. I seem to keep the power until I copy another one... usually. Sometimes it doesn’t work like that. It’s not a lack of nuance. It’s a lack of consistency.

[ It’s also a lack of nuance. ]

[onthe_threshold]

Doubt it. I just got here, not counting a month in another universe everyone but me hated.

Consistency is what lets you develop nuance. Ok so you just got this new one. Next question: do you meditate?

[gloves]

How on Earth did you not hate that?

You know what, never mind.

And you're kidding, right?

[onthe_threshold]

I'm a government created supersoldier who has been training since I was five. I didn't even notice it was a different universe for like a month.

No, I'm really not.

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[rebelarrow]

My world does not contain any power mimics [That he knows of.] but it does contain an entire race of people with mental abilities. We all utilize shielding techniques to better control our abilities.

I can't guarantee it will work for you, but I am working with another not from my world and it appears to catch on in his case.

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[gloves]

People like telepaths?

[ Which also makes her nervous. She's seen what can happen when a telepath is compromised. ]

[rebelarrow]

Telepathy is one of the official Psy designations, yes.

[And just so happens to be one of the two abilities Judd was born with.]

But there are also telekinetics, foreseers, psychometrics, and medics, to name a few.