the Clinic (Open character-based RP)

{Ian} “Ella, I wasn’t talking ab-….I mean that’s not what-er…nevermind. I guess we can talk about it some other time.”

Ella nodded nervously. She was somewhat excited to have a chance to talk to Ian, but nervous about what he might say.

{Ian} “Heh, so….what else do you guys have planned? I’m free for about an hour or so while Ed is doing his tests so maybe I could hang out with you.”

Ella straightened up her posture and a small timid smile lightened her face when Ian asked if he could hang out with them. She looked over to Kruth’T for his approval to see if it was okay with him if Ian ‘hung out’. Her large expressive eyes swelled with hope, displaying a silent ‘Please’.

[ QUOTE ]
Ed stared coldly at a part of the wall across the room when Sis mentioned the wheelchair. He wasn’t a normal handicapped, or handicapable is what optimistic refer to them as, that had come to terms with his condition yet. It was downright annoying having it thrown in his face like Sis did but he just groaned inaudibly to the question. “I haven’t been able to walk normally for months now,” he answered tersely. “It was either a wheelchair or a walker and I’d rather not look incapable and old at the same time.”

[/ QUOTE ]

Sis winced a little. Edward wasn't the first person she'd run into who'd lost the use of his legs, and for some reason, they all seemed rather testy about it. With good reason, she reminded herself. Still, he'd been walking yesterday, right? That was a great trick...

[ QUOTE ]
Thinking back to yesterday, it did look like he was able to walk normally, at least to Sis. He hadn’t told her much nor had he much of a chance. “I wasn’t really walking yesterday, more like floating in the air with my feet touching the ground. I used my telekinesis to move my legs like normal. I still have function in my legs but it’s very basic. I was actually going to do some leg work here.”

[/ QUOTE ]

"...oh. That explains it then." Sis eyed him critically. "And I guess you'd rather not have to use the telekinetics on yourself if you can avoid it, huh?" She nodded slowly, almost to herself. Sis was silent for a moment, and then asked quietly, in a musing tone, "Have you considered an exoskeleton?"

[ QUOTE ]
Finally turning toward her, Ed cocked a brow, “Jackie who? Is that who you’re here to see?”

[/ QUOTE ]

Sis jerked her thumb over her shoulder in Jackie's direction. The trainer was working with another patient, one who appeared to have a shoulder injury. "Jackie, the trainer. I had my torture session earlier." Sis grimaced as she shifted her weight from one foot to the other. Her knees were going to be very unhappy for a while yet. "She's tough, but she knows what she's doing." Pausing, she gave Edward yet another critical look. "You were going to try to use the machines on your own, weren't you."

<Ian> “Heh, so….what else do you guys have planned? I’m free for about an hour or so while Ed is doing his tests so maybe I could hang out with you.”

Kruth'T nodded, noting Ella's expression. "You are more then welcome to join us, while you are able of course." He paused for a moment. "As for what we have planed latter, I don't know. I was thinking of firing off another set, and then getting a few moments of practice with my usual weaponry."

He then glanced at Waires. "If it is permitted of course." He directed towards Waires.

Ella smiled in a way that resembled cheeriness, when Kruth’T welcomed Ian to join them. She bounced lightly with joy on her feet almost to the very tips of her toes.

Waires went over to the computer to check Kruth’T’s file again…

((Chotic, you can go ahead and decide if your usual weaponry falls into the safe to play with at the Clinic category, or if there is a powered down mock up for you to use))

((/ooc Thank God my back is better - finally! Sorry that I've missed so much.))


Orchid's powers of concentration kept her focused on the target ahead as another arrow found it's mark.

"You know what I miss most?" she said to no one in particular as she lowered her bow, "I miss the 'thwack' sound I used to hear when real arrows from real bows would hit a paper target on a giant haybale. Ah well... at least this is relaxing and good for training the mind to concentrate."

Orchid then sighed contentedly and looked to the small audience gathered around Ella and Kruth'T. A tranquil smile crept across her dark lips as a twinkle of dark purple appeared in her eyes.

((Welcome back!!! I am glad to hear that you are feeling better!))

Orchid saw Ian and not wanting to be rude to him extended her gloved right hand while she held her bow in her left hand.

"Hello, I'm Orchid. Please excuse my strange attire - bit of an allergy to sunlight. Are you a friend of Ella's?" she inquired just as Kruth'T was about to make introductions. "Have you met our friend Kruth'T here?" Orchid introduced Kruth'T before he could introduce her to Ian.

Orchid wasn't intentionally being rude she just wanted to enjoy her relaxed state of mind by being friendly. She was having to make an effort to remember social protocals after having been in self-imposed exile from people for so long.

She wanted to laugh as she had felt their eyes watching her during the release of the arrows as they flew into the target in the lane ahead. She surmised that they were examining her like some microbe under a microscope for some as yet unknown purpose.

How could she explain that she had had lifetimes of practice? How would they understand that in a state of total focused concentration she had shot the last couple of arrows with her eyes closed? Would it have been rude to laugh as she 'felt' the presence of each of their eyes watching her, hearing each heartbeat and exhilation of their breath with hers, sensing each ruffle of leaves in the trees around them, each fold of the breeze in time and space? How would they possibly understand the total sensitivity to a melding with each molecule, each atom?

Then Orchid grinned to Kruth'T, "I think you shot very well for your first time practicing archery. It takes a bit of practice to master and become familiar with the equipment. You know, when I was younger, I used to teach..." Orchid's voice trailed off as her eyes went back to a distant time in her collective memories...

Then her eyes shot to Ian, "Do you shoot?"

Edward sighed at Sis’ suggestion. “An exoskeleton? Well I shouldn’t have to use devices to make up for my short comings. I never have and it’s….” He cut his sentence short by gritting his teeth. He was going to say it wasn’t fair that he needed devices just to walk when he could lift buses and leap over buildings normally.

He looked toward Jackie’s direction that Sis pointed out. He couldn’t say he’d ever seen the personal trainer here as he was too stubborn to sign up for sessions and would rather go at it alone.

[ QUOTE ]
"You were going to try to use the machines on your own, weren't you."

[/ QUOTE ]

Ed returned her critical look, “You believe that would be dangerous, don’t you?” He didn’t really want an answer to that and just wheeled toward the leg press machine. With a little wheelchair dexterity, Edward abruptly stopped which pushed the chair forward a bit then shifted his weight in the same direction to eject himself from his seat. He leaned against the machine and moved himself in the right direction to get settled in then pulled his legs on with his hands.

“So, I hear you’re having trouble with your legs or knees?” he smirked before checking the weight and adding the right amount of resistance he was used to with a bit of telekinesis. “I bet the story behind that injury is pretty fascinating. I’d rather you tell it to me when you have the time, however,” he said, hinting he came upon that tidbit of information through means other than actually hearing it. Edward then began pumping the weight with his legs slowly, to get a feel for the resistance before going into a moderately steady pace.

~~

[ QUOTE ]
"As for what we have planed latter, I don't know. I was thinking of firing off another set, and then getting a few moments of practice with my usual weaponry."

[/ QUOTE ]

Ian smiled at a chance of learning more about his new friends, “Usual weaponry? Is it something I might know of? If not, I’ve been told I’m a fast learner. Maybe you could teach me how to use it.” As he spoke, he continued to watch Orchid pull and release her bow. He became more conscious and stopped staring with such intensity when she lowered her bow. Ian tried staring off at the target instead.

[ QUOTE ]
"Hello, I'm Orchid. Please excuse my strange attire - bit of an allergy to sunlight. Are you a friend of Ella's?" she inquired just as Kruth'T was about to make introductions. "Have you met our friend Kruth'T here?" Orchid introduced Kruth'T before he could introduce her to Ian.

[/ QUOTE ]

“Oh, nice to meet you. But no, I met them both yesterday at the meet and greet. I didn’t get much of a chance to really talk with them however,” Ian said with a grin and gave her gloved hand a quick shake.

He continued to watch, trying not to make Orchid feel uncomfortable and focused more on the arrow and it flying into the target. He wasn’t sure why he chose not to stare though, he never had trouble staring at women before. Sis seemed down to earth and mellow, he could stare at her all day and probably make her grumpy or annoyed. Or Ella and her exotic features and she probably wouldn’t mind him staring much. But Orchid, she just seemed more aloof and he got a strange defensive feeling when he watched her too long. He would have redirected his chakra into his eyes to activate the enchantment within them and look over her but that might seem suspicious on his part. Yeah, he’d peek at her some other time when she wasn’t aware or ask around about her…..just to figure some things out.

[ QUOTE ]
Then her eyes shot to Ian, "Do you shoot?"

[/ QUOTE ]

Ian had been thinking through hundreds of scenarios and outcomes and possible times when Orchid would be vulnerable in the few seconds she was talking with Kruth’T, some including when she was eating in the cafe or relaxing in the hottub or sauna. It was when she moved her eyes toward him that he broke his train of through and discovered he was again glaring at Orchid with very intense mauve eyes.

“Oh, um, not really. I trained in archery a bit but it’s not my forte. I’m much better with a katana. In fact, my favorite pastime is dueling meta-humans and heroing pros. I don’t always win but it’s still fun. Hehe, I hope to get a chance at facing the members of the Freedom Phalanx someday…hehe and um…beat them…” Ian’s grin faded to a forced smile after he went into his ramble. He had long moved his gaze toward his feet and his cheeks became slightly flushed.

He finally brought his eyes up, still with a forced smile. “Soo…you’re an archer? Like Manticore?”

“Soo…you’re an archer? Like Manticore?”

Orchid grinned a slightly wicked lopsided grin as she replied, "I'm many things to many people... but no, I'm not an archer and not at all like the great Manticore. I don't have the soul of a hero." A wave of purple flashed across Orchid's eyes as she lowered them to look at her feet.

Orchid grimmaced slightly as she remembered the stories of how Manticore had failed in protecting the heroic Sister Psyche. She had determined long ago that she could never be a hero, it would just be all too painful to lose friends and loved ones.

Orchid snorted then raised dead calm eyes up to look into Ian's face. She smiled a slightly toothy smile to him. "No, I'm no hero, I just have incredible luck to be in the right place at the right time on rare occasions. I could never think of myself as any kind of hero to anyone."

"Go on... change in front of everyone... scare the bejeebus out of him." The inner voice prodded Orchid to do what she was determined not to do. "For that matter scare the snot out of all of them... You know you want to. It would be fun!"

Orchid groaned and put her hand to her temple. Then she returned her bow and quiver of arrows to the drawer in the holographic vault.

"I'm sorry, I uh... think I have a migraine comming on. Please, excuse me" was all Orchid said as she gave her apologies to the little group she had had so much fun with.

Half walking, half running she made her way to the path and followed it through the woods. She began her inner dialogue with the voice that up to now had been quiet.

* * * * * * * * * *

"Oh for pity's sake... you're growing weak Orchid" taunted the voice.

"No, I'm growing stronger. I'm more in control. In control of you and you can't stand it. You're afraid... I can sense it" replied Orchid.

"Do you really think they don't know that it's me in control of you? Come on... you know you have power. Why don't you use it and be done with it?" said the voice again.

"Because it's wrong! It goes against the mandate and you know it!" argued Orchid.

* * * * * * * * * *

Orchid didn't know when she reached the door to her room she only knew she was getting more and more angry at the voice that so inhumanely chided her to commit an act she knew she couldn't commit...

She slammed the door to her room before collapsing onto the bed and breaking down into tears.

"I can't.. I just can't..."

Ella silently waved bye to Orchid as she raced off.

She continued to stand off to the side awkwardly still unsure on how to act with her over abundant emotion being around Ian, so watched Orchid’s retreat until she disappeared in the trees from sight. Then as a simple exercise, she mentally calculated how long it would take Orchid to get back to the building at her current speed.

Ella turned back to watch Ian and Kruth’T. She fidgeted nervously with the zipper of her pull up as she watched them.

…

Kia had just finished grooming, after a long morning of spa treatment. Including massages and seaweed wraps.

It would take real torture for her to admit that she enjoyed it.

Having a less complicated grooming process than Hali, Kia snuck out of the room on her own, to see if there was any trouble she could find elsewhere.

Orchid's frustration and anger grew as the voice continued to chide her.

Voice: "You know what you're capable of... You know what you're programmed to do.... Just do it - it would be easy and then you'd be rid of me."

Orchid: "Programmed? Programmed! So the 5th Column did brainwash me. I refuse to be an agent of their twisted ideology."

Voice: "How droll... are we reverting back to this again? You'll do the mission you've been selected to do!"

Orchid: "And just what mission is that, exactly?"

The voice was silent as a defensive bubble of what appeared to be nether formed around Orchid. A haze of blacklight eminated from her eyes as her sybiote spoke in it's calm voice to her.

"I'm sorry to have to contain you, Orchid. You were becomming a danger to yourself and those around you. The voice has been quieted from tormenting us - though I don't know for how long." A calmness began to warmly wash over Orchid and her agitation and frustration faded away.

"Who really is in control of me?" questioned Orchid.

"At the moment, I am part of you and in control of preserving my host body" replied the symbiote.

Orchid tentatively reached out a hand to touch the inner confines of the nether bubble around her. It quietly hummed where she touched it as tendrils of blackness followed where her fingers traced.

"This is so bizarre - and a bit unnerving..." Orchid marvelled at a newly discovered mystery like a child with a new toy, unaware at what was happening outside her room.

((Welcome back Rakash, I'm glad your feeling better.))
Waires quickly scanned Kruth'T's file, and found nothing under the heading of weapons. (What few weapons Kruth'T had, were donated to the Vanguard for study.) However, he did find what Kruth'T was referring to under the listing of powers.

Meanwhile...

<Ian> “Usual weaponry? Is it something I might know of? If not, I’ve been told I’m a fast learner. Maybe you could teach me how to use it.”

Kruth'T considered this, while Orchid introduced her self. While he doubted that Ian was physically able to fight as he did, but he had ran into a few who were. Still it wouldn't hurt to find out.

These thought vanished when Orchid held her head in pain. He wanted to help her, but didn't know how. So much about these strange alien beings were a mystery to him. He knew that he could spend the remaining life span and still only understand a fraction of these people. When Orchid ran back to her room, Kruth'T could only watch.

When she vanished from sight Kruth'T turned to Ella. "I think." He started to say, and then stopped, and took a deep breath. "I think, I'm done now." He then put the weapon, and it's ammunition away.

[ QUOTE ]
[ QUOTE ]
"You were going to try to use the machines on your own, weren't you."

[/ QUOTE ]

Ed returned her critical look, “You believe that would be dangerous, don’t you?” He didn’t really want an answer to that and just wheeled toward the leg press machine. With a little wheelchair dexterity, Edward abruptly stopped which pushed the chair forward a bit then shifted his weight in the same direction to eject himself from his seat. He leaned against the machine and moved himself in the right direction to get settled in then pulled his legs on with his hands.

[/ QUOTE ]

"It's dangerous when you're not injured too, you know." Sis watched his display of independence blandly. "More people get injured from using weights incorrectly then get injured by working or sports." She shrugged and scooped up her bag, turning away. "Suit yourself."

[ QUOTE ]
“So, I hear you’re having trouble with your legs or knees?” he smirked before checking the weight and adding the right amount of resistance he was used to with a bit of telekinesis. “I bet the story behind that injury is pretty fascinating. I’d rather you tell it to me when you have the time, however,” he said, hinting he came upon that tidbit of information through means other than actually hearing it.

[/ QUOTE ]

Sis paused. "Miss Priss wasn't welcome up there, so you aren't either," she said through clenched teeth. "You want to know? Ask. Out loud." Keeping a tight grip on her bag, she strode across the room and out of the door. [censored] telepaths.

Still seething, Sis managed to swipe a sandwich and an apple from the cafeteria and wolf them down on her way to the Spa. She was shown to the locker room by a cheerful attendant.

"Okay, now, for your treatment, you'll need to take off your clothes and put on this robe-"

"I have to what?" Sis stared at the young woman.

"Well, you can leave your underwear on, but take everything else off. We've provided flip flops and a nice comfortable robe for you," she replied perkily. "Now, you're getting a deep tissue massage, so I'm sure you'll be completely relaxed when you're done. Enjoy!" The attendant flashed a smile and bounced out of the locker room.

"..."

With a sigh, Sis opened her assigned locker and began to change clothes. Saffyre is soooo dead...

"Excuse me? You are Mary, yes?"

"AHHH!" Sis jumped and whirled around, clutching the robe to her chest. "Don't DO that!"

"Oh! I'm so sorry. I did not mean to startle you." The eight-foot tall blue-skinned woman with two feet of antennae sprouting from her forehead bowed to Sis. "I am GG. I will be your massage therapist today."

"...h-hi." Sis quickly shrugged into the robe. "Um...nice to meet you, GG. You can call me Sis..."

"As you like. Right this way please!" GG turned to lead Sis towards a treatment room, a shimmer of translucent scales catching the light.

"You have wings," Sis said.

"You are quite observant," GG replied with a slight smile.

"Er...sorry." Sis managed a sheepish expression. "I'm still not totally comfortable with all this," she added, gesturing to the Spa at large.

"I understand. Well, perhaps it would help to know that super-powered humans, or metas, are paired with super-powered therapists, like myself. I am what humans call an empath." GG flashed a brilliant smile as she opened the door to the treatment room.

"So, shouldn't you be in a hospital or something? Like a nurse?" Sis eyed the massage table with trepidation.

"I am more as a combat medic than a nurse, yes? Please, lie down on the table, under the sheet. You may hang your robe on the back of the door. I will be back in a few minutes."

"But-" Sis stared at the closed door. "...I hate Saffyre. I really do." Continuing to grumble her displeasure, Sis followed GG's instructions, slipping under the sheet and trying very hard to relax.

"All set?" GG knocked on the door and poked her head in. "Ah, good. Very well, let us get started. Now, I know you have knee injuries, yes? And are often on the front lines? Yes, yes. We will focus on the upper back at first, then move down the muscles. This may hurt..."

-----

((GG is a character of mine I wanted to introduce. She'll be a massage therapist, working at the Spa and with injured folks from the Clinic. Let me know if your toon would like to make an appointment. ))

Ian narrowed his gaze at the retreating Orchid. All he could think to himself about her was that she was ‘peculiar’. “Was it something I said?” Ian finally said to break the silence.

[ QUOTE ]
"I think."

[/ QUOTE ]

Ian turned toward Kruth’T, his expression shifting to a more innocent look of intrigue.

[ QUOTE ]
He started to say, and then stopped, and took a deep breath. "I think, I'm done now." He then put the weapon, and it's ammunition away.

[/ QUOTE ]

He was sort of sad the whole situation fell apart after he arrived. Ian could only guess his questioning and gawking made her uncomfortable and caused her to excuse herself. “Should we go after her?” he sighed to the others. His gut told him she might need someone but his gut was getting him in trouble lately.

~~

Without missing a beat, Edward continued to pump the leg weights. Sure, he though about what Sis said and surmised she had some sort of past digression with a telepath and maybe she’d decide to talk about it. But at this moment, he honestly didn’t care. He was focused on pressing the weight with his legs.

At first it was awkward to get the movement right, that’s why he started out slow, but once he forced back the resistance a few dozen times, it was much more natural for him so he sped up. After a couple of hundred presses, he was completely use to the weight so used some light telekinesis to increase the weight without stopping and doing it manually. This is the way Edward worked out, increasing the weight until usually there was no more weight to add. The workout varied in duration depending on if he lost himself in the adding of weight which often made him late for other appointments, like his psycho-advancement tests.

{Ian} “Should we go after her?” he sighed to the others.

“…” Ella almost said ‘I dunno’ but stopped semi-trapped in her own awkwardness at the moment. Instead she simply looked back and forth between Ian and Kruth’T, when she felt awkward at that she simply stared at the wall of the bunker and the hologram of Waires.

Her brain started deconstructing the bunker as a mental exercise. Working faster and faster though how its foundation was fabricated and then reinforced. Where the holographic projectors were placed, and how they weakened the structure for their necessary wiring. How the bunker was powered and air supplied to it….

When the hologram of Waires caught her eye and she realized that she had been staring, Ella blushed embarrassed. In the ambient light it was almost impossible to tell the white skinned girl was blushing however.

She stared back at Waires meeting his gaze. She had seen him in the cafeteria on occasion. He was actually only four feet tall and just as wide. A dwarf, like a real fantasy dwarf. It showed in the disproportion of the hologram. However, he liked to appear larger and intimidating at the range.

Ella finally looked back to Ian and Kruth’T, some of the awkwardness finally shead.

“I want to do something fun” She stated simply.

[ QUOTE ]
"All set?" GG knocked on the door and poked her head in. "Ah, good. Very well, let us get started. Now, I know you have knee injuries, yes? And are often on the front lines? Yes, yes. We will focus on the upper back at first, then move down the muscles. This may hurt..."

[/ QUOTE ]

"OW!"

"Are you quite alright?"

"...yeah, just walked into the table. I'm all kinds of stiff too." Sis rolled her shoulders. "Are you sure this is a good thing? I mean, I've been doing fine 'til now..."

GG shook her head sternly. "You do not sleep much, yes? You have trouble relaxing. Always moving...ah...what is the word...twitchy, no? That is not fine."

Sis grimaced. "Nail, head. I just don't have that much time to even try to relax. Invasions, investigations, incursions, etc."

GG smiled and patted Sis's shoulder gently. "Meditation may help, yes? For now, I think you should try swimming. It helps to take much pressure off your-" She stopped speaking at the look of absolute horror that came over Sis's face. "There is something the matter?"

"Um...well, only if I haven't gotten a care package yet...The...um...only swimsuit I have with me is...floss. Yeah." Sis shoved her hands into the pockets of the robe.

"Ah...that is easily solved." GG beamed. "Do not wear it!"

Sis lost all the color in her face. "D-don't wear it? Are you KIDDING?!"

GG blinked. "You do not approve?"

"Look...I don't mind short shirts, hip huggers, shorts, and boots. Really. But I don't need to show the world the rest!" Sis' cheeks were starting to regain color...a bright red. "I mean...besides, it's not like it's a private pool..." she grasped at a possible explanation that would let her object without seeming like a prude.

"I...see. Yes. Perhaps shorts and t-shirt would work better." GG nodded firmly. "You should spend time today in the whirlpool. An hour, at the least." She tapped Sis in the middle of the back. "A jet here, please. And I will see you tomorrow." GG checked a clipboard. "Ah...the same time!"

Sis managed a smile. "Sounds great..."

"For now, I will show you to Alyse's room."

"Um...what?"

"The seaweed wrap." GG led the way down the hall to another treatment room and knocked on the door.

"I'm gonna be sushi?" Sis made a face. "I don't know about this..."

Alyse poked her head out and grinned broadly. "GG! Mary! C'mon in, I've got everything ready. Just hang your robe on the back of the door and lie down on the table..."

"...it's Sis," she muttered half-heartedly, looking between the two women. GG made a shooing motion and Sis sighed. "Fine..."


((Alyse is an open NPC. ))

<Ian> “Should we go after her?”

At least I'm not the only one confused about this. Kruth'T thought to himself.

Mentally he debated to pros and cons of going after Orchid. He knew how he would react if she was a member of his owen species. However, while there were similarities between the two peoples, there were also some vast differences.

Kruth'T was still debating the subject when Ella said “I want to do something fun”.

This had the effect of bringing Kruth'T out of the mental maze that he had been running to a halt. Ella's statement didn't sit too well with him, so a small part of his mind worked on the problem.

"Very well, any ideas?" He asked, a ting of curiosity in his voice. "I'm okay for a while, just so long as it doesn't involve bodies of watter." He joked.

((/ooc Ugh, silly ice storms knocking out power for 5 days!))

* * * * * * * * * *

The shield of nether encompassed Orchid as she traced delicate pictographs with black tendrils following her fingertips.

"This is very odd and yet... somehow familiar" was all Orchid mused as an orderly peeked through her door to check if she was quiet.

He blushed when she turned softly ultraviolet glowing eyes upon him, "I'm sorry, just doing my job. How are you feeling?"

Orchid thought for a moment before answering, "I don't quite know. Is that strange?"

The humming of the nether bubble around her grew slightly louder and began to spin slowly on a hypnotic vertical axis.

"I think a specialist might be in order." The orderly was quickly paging someone to examine the phenomena around this most unusual of self-committed patient.

Orchid began to fade from view in a haze of ultraviolet light and dark wispy tendrils of nether.

"Nurse!" was all the orderly managed to yell before Orchid blinked out from view...

The humming noise had stopped as a barely discernible orb of ultraviolet light and nether tendrils bobbed it's way down the hallway from Orchid's room.

* * * * * * * * * *

[ QUOTE ]
"Very well, any ideas?" He asked, a ting of curiosity in his voice. "I'm okay for a while, just so long as it doesn't involve bodies of watter." He joked.

[/ QUOTE ]

Ella frowned but only slightly. Her idea of fun was going over to the lake and seeing what there was to do there. They have paddle boats that look like fun.

“There are tennis and basketball courts” She was sure even with their overly stringent security restrictions that they’d let her have a tennis racket.

“Well, let’s go,” Ian agreed, speaking of the tennis and basketball idea. He started walking away from the bunker and toward the wooded path that lead back. “I’m not so bad at basketball but I have a bit of trouble with tennis….it’s kind of hard for me to pull my slashes, er, I mean swings. I hit the ball out a lot.”

Leading the group towards the courts, Ian was in a pretty good mood. The weather was nice, he didn’t have a chip on his shoulder like he sometimes did and he was semi-free to just goof off and meet people rather than do work. Turning his head toward the others to show off his pleasant grin Ian asked, “So, I tried looking up more info on some of you guys but they don’t let anyone in the records department. Can you guys do any little tricks that demonstrate your powers?” His cheeks reddened slightly, he was so used to jumping through hoops to entertain some of those staying at the clinic, it was strange being on the other end. “I’m just a bit curious as I’ve never seen either of you outside of the clinic or anything.”

Orchid was aware that she had changed, yet she was unaware of just how she had done so.

She seemed to go unnoticed by the Psych Ward staff as her nearly invisible form bobbed it's way down the hallways to the great outdoors. She was comfortably numb in this state of anti-being. Aware and more importantly, warm, for the first time in a very long time.

"How strange" she thought as she followed the signs to the archery range where she last saw her new friends. "I'm not cold, I almost feel alive again." She brushed by a fir tree, the scent so strong she could taste it and is was not wholly unpleasant.

Everything seemed brighter and her senses seemed more heightened. The white clouds in the glowing blue sky seemed tinged with baby pink - the intensity of colors made her darkly shining eyes ache. The smells in the air around her she could taste - the trees, the rich earth, the ozone, the wildflowers - it was enough to overwhelm and saturate every pore of her body now exuding their smells.

The soft singing of the birds was amplified and caused her ears to twinge now and again. She could hear the voices of people talking from good distances away as if they were right next to her.

The ultraviolet orb that was now Orchid trailing dark tendrils continued bobbing down the path to rejoin the other inmates of the asylum. . .

Ella smiled and skipped down the path to follow Ian.

“Well they have a driving range if you don’t want to pull your…slashes” She smiled broadly.

Truth be told, Ella liked using the tennis serve machine to see how far she could drive the tennis balls. She isn’t allowed to use the serve machines anymore. She is allowed three tennis balls a week now.

[Ian] Ian asked, “So, I tried looking up more info on some of you guys but they don’t let anyone in the records department. Can you guys do any little tricks that demonstrate your powers?”

Ella knew that her records would lead nowhere. They actually changed the fake name she was booked under weekly, and that there was nothing factual about what was actually in her record.

Nevertheless, what really puzzled Ella is she figured that she displayed plenty of her powers last night.

She’d let Kruth’T field the powers question. She hadn’t figured out his yet herself, and it will give her time to see what Ian was fishing for.

Kruth'T fallowed Ian, and Ella as they headed toward where they were going. In relief, he opened his senses back to normal levels.

<Ian> “So, I tried looking up more info on some of you guys but they don’t let anyone in the records department."

Kruth'T was surprised, he didn't expect Ian to attempt to look into his records. Then it occurred to him that yesterdays' events had probably caused him to do some digging. Not that there would be much for Ian to find, the Vanguard held most of them. And they were notoriously tight lipped.

<Ian> "Can you guys do any little tricks that demonstrate your powers? I’m just a bit curious as I’ve never seen either of you outside of the clinic or anything.”

Kruth'T saw nothing wrong with Ian's curiosity, and knew just the thing. It had certainly impressed Linnorn and War Piper. "Okay just wait a moment."

Once they stopped Kruth'T walked up to a tree, and brought his hearing up to his highest sensitivity. With a single delicate looking claw, he started tapping out Ians' heart beat. Then Ellas', a squirls', and then a couple of birds on a nearby branch. All five of his fingers was tapping out a different sequence of heart beats, and keeping perfect time. For a moment he thought about using both hands, but then discarded the notion as showing off.

When Kruth'T stopped he said, as he brought his hearing to normal levels. "I generally don't bring my hearing to those levels, as it would be distracting in a crowded area. But it has proven useful, epically when tracking criminals." He laughed, remembering the startled looks of criminals, who had thought they had managed to find safety.

Kruth'T then shook off his memories, adding "But as for my past, I am kinda stranded here. At least until my people find me at least."

[ QUOTE ]
"The seaweed wrap." GG led the way down the hall to another treatment room and knocked on the door.

"I'm gonna be sushi?" Sis made a face. "I don't know about this..."

Alyse poked her head out and grinned broadly. "GG! Mary! C'mon in, I've got everything ready. Just hang your robe on the back of the door and lie down on the table..."

"...it's Sis," she muttered half-heartedly, looking between the two women. GG made a shooing motion and Sis sighed. "Fine..."

[/ QUOTE ]

Alyse's cheerful face appeared over Sis. She was upside down. "How are you feeling?" she chirped.

"...like a baked potato. Are we done yet?" Sis tried to move, but was wrapped too tight in the towels and heat blanket. Overall, it had been a weird experience. Alyse had applied the seaweed and mud concoction with a large paintbrush, then layered towels on top. The last step had been to tuck a giant heat blanket, like the ones marathon runners used after a race, tightly around Sis.

She had, of course, immediately tried to see if she could wriggle her way out of the layers. The most she'd been able to do was loosen some of the lower towels, but that was it. Alyse was very good at what she did, which Sis was starting to imagine was torture. She could have sworn that Alyse had put a Barry Manilow CD on before she had left the room.

"Okay, Miss Grumpy, you're just about done. Now lie still while I unwrap you, and then you can go to the shower and clean the seaweed mud off." Alyse began removing the heat blanket and then the towels, one layer at a time.

"Now remember, this treatmeat is designed to give your skin an infusion of moisture and help smooth out any rough edges, like on your knees and elbows. Since you're outside almost every day, you'll want to do a wrap like this at least once a month, if not more often. It'll help your skin recover faster from all the sun, pollutants, and Vahzilok juices you end up exposed to. And you should always wear a sunscreen! Too many superheroes forget that." Alyse shook her head as she removed the second to last layer of towels. "I swear, in a few years, we're going to start seeing Heroes with skin cancer. They remember their helmets, but not their sunscreen."

"Okay, now, go ahead and get up and bring your robe. I'll show you to the shower."

"Um...what about the towels?" Sis managed to sit up. She was still covered in at least one layer.

"Oh, you'll take those off in the shower. It'll be fine. They're washable!" Alyse beamed, handing Sis her robe. "l'll be right outside."

"...this place is a madhouse," Sis muttered to herself as Alyse left the room. Struggling to stand and not lose all the towels, she shrugged into the robe and slipped on the flip flops. With a quick glance around the room, she opened the door.

"Okay, now, once you're done with your shower, you're free to go. Make sure you check out with the receptionist and turn in your locker room key for the day. Don't forget, at least one hour in the whirlpool this afternoon! It was nice meeting you!" Alyse beamed at Sis and pointed her towards an empty shower stall. "See you soon!"

"Hopefully not!" Sis replied under her breath as Alyse left the room. The locker room was deserted, so Sis stepped into the shower and put the water on full blast, as hot as it would go. So far, this was the best part of the whole Spa experience.

A while later, Sis pulled a brush through her hair and put it up in a ponytail. Leaving the towels and robe in a hamper, she made sure she had all her things together and headed for the front desk, key in hand.

"Here you go," she said, dropping the key into the receptionist's hand.

"Thanks! See you tomorrow, Miss Sis!"

"...tomorrow? Oh, right, the massage." Sis nodded unethusiastically.

"And a facial! It'll be very relaxing. Have a great afternoon!"

"...a facial." Sis sighed and quickly exited out into the afternoon sunshine. Now seemed like a great time to wander the grounds. Anything, to get as far as possible from the cheerful Spa ladies.

Once they stopped Kruth'T walked up to a tree, and brought his hearing up to his highest sensitivity. With a single delicate looking claw, he started tapping out Ians' heart beat. Then Ellas', a squirrels', and then a couple of birds on a nearby branch. All five of his fingers was tapping out a different sequence of heart beats, and keeping perfect time.

Tapping... tapping...

It was enough to drive a sane warshade nuts, nevermind Orchid in her altered state as she followed the sounds.

It was an excruciating assault to her overly sensitized ears - the sound of 5 claws tapping on treebark like some distant concord of Pantheon drums or a gigantic leaky faucet in the solitude of night.

Tapping... tapping...

Orchid rounded a corner of the pathway and stood bobbing in all her ultraviolet orbed glory, dark tendrils of nether snaking from her etherial body.

Tapping... tapping...

Orchid saw it was Kruth'T and rather than glowering at him she merely stood with non-descript hands over her ears. She wasn't sure anyone knew she was there. She wasn't even sure that she was there.