Players:
Summary: Alex visits the sharpest member of his new pack.
Date: March 16, 2009
Darkly Gleaming
Rating: PG
NYC - Greenwich Village Apartments (Victoria's Apartment)
This is the address he was given, along with the name. Stuffing the note into his pocket, Alex Summers steels himself and knocks on the door. He's clad in a basic containment suit. His hair is hanging to the sides slightly as he waits. Alex Summers. His face is one that's been in the news before, back when he lead X-Factor. He's no stranger to that or the government… and that's why he's here, today.
There's the sound of quick footsteps and then the handle turns and the door opens. A very strange and starkly unnatural woman is there. She offers a simple polite smile. "Hello, what can I do for you?" Behind her, the apartment is quite clean and spartan, although a few places on the walls bear some gouges.
Not at all what he expected, but Alex has been a staff member at Xavier's. He's seen plenty of weird. "Pardon me for interrupting your evening. My name is Alex Summers. I come representing the United States Government. I'd like to have a word with you, if you don't mind." He says, nodding softly. "It's nothing bad, just an… offer we have for you." He runs a hand through his hair as he waits to see her reaction.
Victoria starts to look a little cautious as the man mentions the Government, but her expression lightens somewhat when he speaks of an offer. "I'm willing to hear it. Come in. I'm sorry I can't offer you a drink or anything. I don't keep any consumables in my apartment." She opens the door further to allow entry. In a small area in one corner is visible some kind of workplace, with various blocks of coloured glass. Some have been shaped into detailed representations of people, animals and abstract objects.
Looking around Alex notes the decor. "Hmm. Obsidian. Lots of quality obsidian as well. Hard to get without diving into volcanoes." He says, offering a half a smile. "Well crafted." He nods. "But you're not here to hear about things you already know. As I said, I'm Alex Summers. I've come to see if you're interested in an organization we're putting together. I don't know if you heard of X-Factor… in either of it's incarnations. We disbanded because of an accident. However, the government has need of it's own group of superhumans. We've been watching, Ms. Routhe. Do you have the desire to help your country and your people?" He asks, raising an eyebrow. He doesn't know how her reactions go, but… he's playing it as he normally does.
"Thank you. I craft sculptures out of glass and obsidian to get by. It's not much, but it's enough." She gestures toward a shelf of finished products, all of varying colours and sizes. The ones made from obsidian show a level of detail far in excess of the glass items. "Ah," Her eyebrows raise, she appears interested. "I have not heard of X-Factor before but that sounds like exactly what I've been trying to get into. I ahve been trying to contact the X-Men for some time, but they have been… difficult."
"Actually, it's not X-Factor. They decided on a different name this time, because not all of our number will be Mutants. And… the X-Men are always difficult. If anyone would know, it would be me." Alex says with a half a nod. "Being devoured by a living island. Finding out your father, whom you thought was dead for over half of your life is alive and well in space. Finding out your brother leads a team of," Alex lifts his fingers into quote marks, " 'terrorists', and joining them. But regardless of it all, Cyclops still has a twelve inch steel rod up his ass. He doesn't know how to look at the big picture." He says with a bit of a grin. He can't help it. That's Scott.
Victoria nods as she listens to the tales about the X-Men. She winces slightly. "A twelve inch steel… Ah, did he have some kind of spinal injury? He looked alright last time I saw him." She pauses. "Ah, well. I presume this is a new team of superpowered individuals being assembled. May I ask how many count themselves members so far?"
Alex blinks. Once. Twice. A third time, and then he realizes. This woman has no sense of humor. Great. The anti-Guido. "No, he's not been injured that I know of. It was a figure of speech. At present… me. You're the first person I'm approaching. Actually, it's a recycled name again. Not X-Factor, but Freedom Force. I'm fine with it. I don't care as long as I get to do the right thing." He explains. "If you sign on, we'll be two. I have at least two more people to contact, possibly three." He explains. "And maybe more, if they're discovered. I'm not sure yet."
Victoria nods simply. "Freedom Force," she muses over the name. "That sounds alright. I do wish to start working to defend our world against the invasion as soon as possible. When do we start? Additionally, since you have approached me I presume you know at least a little about the nature of my powers. I have difficulty fighting opponents without causing lacerations or deeper tissue damage. I hope this will not be a problem."
"I'm assuming that's on a hand to hand level. You simply have to be careful. There was a girl once that had a similar condition. Admittedly, I don't know the extent of your powers, but Penance did her best to keep her cuts shallow, and when she could, she would ball her fists rather than let her bladed fingers do damage." Alex explains with a nod. "Mind you, we're working for the government. They understand, as a whole, that some things happen, but we're going to do what we can not to kill, if there's any other option."
"I have some skill at unarmed combat," says Victoria, looking at her hands and flexing her fingers. "I presume the government would provide training to help improve my ability. At present I am most skilled at using blades or a manifested sword. I can fight unarmed, but this relies more on my enhanced physiology than martial skill." She nods again. "I do not like to kill. I understand that sometimes it is necessary, but should be avoided if possible."
"Of course. We'll have regular sessions of training once this war is over. And if you're good with a sword, with the strength you must possess, you should try a hammer sometime. Lots of bludgeoning power." Alex nods, shrugging a bit. "I'm going to try to get a group together soon, so we can attempt to go to LA. To break down the field over California or find our own way in, so that we can free it. I haven't seen my brother's people or the Avengers going after those yet, they seem to be focussing on here. Someone needs to do it."
Victoria holds her hands in front of her and a black shaft appears. A heavy block forms on one end, and there she is holding an obsidian sledgehammer. There's a slight reddish glow and a scent of sulfur as it forms. She hefts it and then probes the join between the shaft and the head with her fingers. "I prefer finesse over brute force, but this may work in some cases. Repeated impacts against hard targets may damage the join here. I can resummon the obsidian if that occurs." The weapon vanishes into nothingness and she lowers her hands. "You are likely aware of my efforts to aid the X-Men in disabling the barrier here. I am willing to travel to LA to help disable that barrier as well."
"Alright then. When we get ready to go, I'll contact you. And if things work out, we may have ourselves a new group out there. One that America can be proud of." Alex says with a nod as he looks towards the door. "If you'll pardon me, I do have other's to contact." He tugs a card out of the pocket of his jacket. "Here. If you'd like to contact me in the meantime, this is my information."
Victoria accepts the card and briefly looks it over. "Thank you. I look forward to working with you. If I run into anything that I feel requires your attention, I will contact you. You may call me at any time, if you wish. I am often right here."
"Please do." Alex nods, as he moves towards the door. "I'll be in touch." And with that, he steps out to go find the next person on his list.
