[ text / action ]

[microbrobotics]

[ Hiro has wasted zero time in getting himself settled in at StarkTech. Little plastic bins of tools and supplies have been showing up at his designated work area all week, and now here's the kid himself with a box of tools on one side and a fresh pad of paper on the other. All ready to get started and make some brilliant engineering designs!

... Okay, maybe this one isn't the best idea. He scraps it, crumples the paper, and tosses it into a bin. Same with the next one. Annnnd the next one. Before long the bin is overflowing and Hiro's pad of paper is completely blank. Ugh, he hates starting new projects. Once he's rolling, then there's no stopping him - but starting up from nothing? Complete and utter mind block. Sure, he's got some thoughts from the week so far, but actually sketching out possibilities and implementation strategies is making his head hurt just to think of it. And the background noise from his technokinesis is terribly aggravating under those circumstances.

Use that big brain of yours to think your way out. Look for a new angle. That's what his brother would have done.

So that's how Hiro comes to be hanging upside down from his chair, head braced against the floor while he levitates his comm in front of his face. At least he can practice his technokinesis like this. ]

okay guys name like. the COOLEST thing you've ever seen, tech-wise. because wow i am dry on ideas today and I need something SUPER AWESOME to build.

or if you have something SUPER AWESOME that needs repairs i guess i could do that too. genius engineer and all.

[ Humble, isn't he. For the vast majority of folks out there, the only thing he's going to do is text ... but if you happen to stop by StarkTech (or work there), you can see him in his all his upside-down glory. ]

01 ▷ video

[nostalgiabomb]

[ Hello, network. The feed opens up to shelves and shelves of stuff -- stereos, power tools, appliances, speakers, the works. You name it, you see it. There's even a display rack of guitars hanging on one wall along with amplifiers. And, whoa, hey, was that a horse from a carousel? What the heck?

Today you'll be treated to the dulcet tones of Rupert Holmes' voice as he sings "Escape," though the music is indistinct and soft, almost as if it were playing over headphones. ]

Okay, look-- [ The camera flips around to a dude looking pretty aggravated, and-- oh, hey, those headphones we mentioned earlier are hanging around his neck. ] --I've only been working here for, like, a day or two? But I think it's time for some serious changes. So we're implementing a new rule at the pawn shop, alright? If you're gonna mess around with the guitars, the following songs are now banned.

[ He ticks them off on his fingers as he names them: ]

"Smoke on the Water." "Sweet Child of Mine." "Back in Black." "Purple Haze." "Crazy Train."

And "Stairway to" friggin' "Heaven."

We all get it, rock star. You kinda know your way around a guitar, and you kinda know, like, the first couple bars of the cool parts, but you're seriously not impressin' anyone with your half-remembered riffs.

So to anyone who wants to come in and plans on playing even one note of those songs -- and trust me, I'll know, -- be advised: I have guns. I will use them with extreme prejudice.

[ He pauses for a beat, scrunching up his lips, then he shrugs. ]

Pretty sure that's it. Have a good one.

[ -- and the video ends. ]

6, Video

[darwinatrix]

[The tall woman is sitting down, one leg crossed severely over the other; she regards the camera with an icy blue stare.]

I am Major-General Olivier Mira Armstrong, of Amestris' North Army. By now, you've seen posters and heard ads, all from people professing to work and bring peace and harmony to this nation's population and her ImPorts, if only you vote to put them in power.

I will not be running for the available positions.

Politicians speak honeyed words, but it is the strength and fortitude of the soldiers in the trenches that wins a war. Is it not the duty of the strong to protect the weak? Is it not the duty of the shepherd to guard his sheep? Is it not the duty of the sentry on the wall to stand guard for those who live behind it, safe, happy and oblivious? We here, we who have been granted superhuman powers- we are the strong. We are the shepherds.

Cast your ballot as you wish, but don't fool yourself into thinking that a simple bureaucrat can affect change more than your actions can.