video; backdated to 10/28

[you_tried]

[ Squint your eyes a little everyone, when the feed opens the camera catches the direct glare of the hot sun. Whoever is holding the communicator has it positioned at an odd angle, so the video captures clear blue skies, though the sound of the ocean can be heard with the occasional tropical bird cawing somewhere in the distance. The camera jolts without warning, dipping low enough to capture what appears to be a boat deck.

Off camera, Karen’s voice can be heard snappishly saying: ]

Are you still trying to take a selfie? Could you put that down for one second?

[ The camera jerks again, capturing an image of a chest that might be familiar to those of you who own the Booster Gold Mancalendar™ (you’re welcome). ]

Is it sooo wrong that I want to document this?

I guess we can document the part where I throw you off the boat.

You wouldn’t. There’s jellyfish in there! Probably. And besides, you never said there was a rule against selfies. It’s an American tradition.

Just try me, and Jesus, would you focus on steering the boat? [ Something splashes up beside the boat, seizing Karen’s attention for a moment. She groans loudly. ] We’re getting too close to those things.

Those things are Hawaiian squeaking sharks, and they’re our friends. Say cheese, guys!

[ The camera’s focus wobbles down off the side of the boat, zooming in on a group of splashing, smiling bottlenose dolphins, which are indeed getting very close. And then: a thump. ]

... oh, God. What was that?

Uh… maybe start guessing what it wasn’t and we’ll narrow it down…

[ The clicks and whistles of dolphins grow louder. If you happen to speak dolphin (or even if you don’t), they sound… pretty pissed. ]

MICHAEL.

WHAT? It was an accident!

[ The camera jerks again, horror movie shaky-cam style, as more dorsal fins rise from the water. Did you know dolphin pods can get really, really huge? Well, now you do. ]

Crap. Does anyone know how to say sorry in dolphin?


( ooc: red is karen and blue is booster! replies from karen will have the ID read as “karen starr”. booster's reads “booster gold,” but who cares. no dolphins were harmed in the making of this post. )

Comments

[liverletdie]

At least sharks are quiet, though.

[boobwindow]

Personal experience?

[liverletdie]

I've...had my experience with deep-sea fights. Namor likes punching me into the ocean.

The sharks are normally quieter than the other sea creatures who get their gills ruffled.

[boobwindow]

Gee, I can't imagine why someone would be doing that.

[liverletdie]

Hey, if you've met Namor, this isn't even a "me" thing.

This is a Namor thing.

[boobwindow]

Don't think so. Who is he supposed to be?

[liverletdie]

King of the ocean. Very angry, once tried to flood New York City because he thought we terrorized Atlantis.

It's a running theme.

[boobwindow]

King of the ocean, huh? He doesn't happen to go by any aquatic-themed superhero names, does he?

[liverletdie]

[ A put-upon sigh. ] It's a pun.

He calls himself the Sub-Mariner.

[boobwindow]

That's not so bad. The king of Atlantis in our world is pretty nice from what I've heard.

[liverletdie]

Maybe where you're from.

Namor's got a hot head, and he regularly teams up with Doctor Doom, if that says anything.

[boobwindow]

Doctor what now?

[liverletdie]

Doom. And he's about as bad as the name implies.

[boobwindow]

[ She sobers up a bit. As ridiculous as the name is, she knows sometimes even the most cheesy-sounding villains are the real dangerous ones. ]

How bad?

[liverletdie]

[ A soft hiss. ]

Megalomaniac, runs his own country --

Expert in both science and magic. About as smart as me when it comes to electronics. We both built time machines and got trapped in King Athur's court once. Sent ourselves back in time again recently -- er -- before I came here, recently, anyway. [ So a long time ago. ]

I don't know if there are words for how bad he actually is. He's been a pain in my ass -- but not nearly as much as he's been in Reed Richards's.

[boobwindow]

A dictator?

[ This guy does sound like bad news. ]

You both have successfully built time machines? I didn't think something like that was entirely possible, or safe. I've always imagined time to be dangerously fragile. Butterfly effect.

[liverletdie]

They are. Nomally, in my experience...things tend to work themselves out, in a way.

I think the timestream is pretty self-protective. Twists things to work correctly.

At least, that's the best way I can describe the couple of times I've been exposed to it.

[boobwindow]

Why on earth did he build a time machine anyway?

[liverletdie]

I don't know, because it's Doom? Probably to kill Reed Richards as an infant, or something.

[boobwindow]

Richards... any relation to that kid that was here a long time back, Valeria?

[liverletdie]

Yeah, he's her father.

And she calls him "uncle Doom". It's...weird.

[boobwindow]

A guy that's trying to kill her father and she call him uncle?

[liverletdie]

He apparently helped her be...born?

Reed was never really clear, I think it still... unsettles him.

Not that I can blame him.

[boobwindow]

I wouldn't either. Valeria was pretty young, so she might not... completely understand it.

[ But she was a super freakin' genius so... ]

[liverletdie]

No, I think she understands it.

She's smarter than I am

I just think she doesn't care.