[Unionverse] Capecon 2010

Starjet held a fixed smile in place as she mingled with the crowd in the hall. So far so good, she thought. There had only been a couple of incidents at the signing booth earlier, and now she was free to wander.

A baby, an adorable thing that she had very little idea what to do with, had moved on from hair-pulling to eye-gouging and her parents had snatched her away quickly, causing a minor commotion. They'd feared she would get burned or something, one of the con staff said, and Starjet supposed she couldn't blame them. Glowing eyes might mean anything.

But what she did regret was not being able to spend more time actually talking to people. There was one guy in particular, a Canuck like herself, and an army veteran who'd travelled down just for the con. He'd come as Nemesis, of all things, and decked his wheelchair with faux steam-tech. But while they were chatting happily, a group of gaudily dressed frat-boys next in the queue were getting restless (why were they dressed as neon-coloured Japanese school girls anyway?). She'd promised to try and find him later, but there was no luck so far.

-------

Meanwhile, amongst a queue of excited fans the girl who liked to call herself the Totally Awesome Overreactor was feeling less than totally awesome. She'd tried to wander around in her super-cheerleader uniform, but although she got attention, most people thought she was trying, badly, to look like some other TV super-cheerleader. That whiny regener with daddy issues. Ugh! As if!

So she faked a call to her fictional agent and made a quick exit, and returned as plain old Patricia Page. She could see Sara 'Shutterbug' darting around and snapping pics for Kapow, and she guessed that she should probably talk to some people too. Maybe collar a few quick interviews for a fluffy report piece. But... She couldn't be bothered. No matter what she told herself, she was always happier when she was just a metafan, so, she thought, that's what I'm gonna be for the day. No pretending.

Taking one of her days off from working at the Vault Reserve, Patricia Martin was doing some research. Looking like just every other fan who wasn't dressed up, she was taking pictures of the heroes and heroines in their costumes and getting a few autographs from those who offered - she wasn't quite confident enough yet to be flat out asking for them from the heroes that she would, hopefully, soon be one of.

She was looking at the shape, the cut, the colours and the design of real hero outfits. There was only so much that internet research could do, and the fleeting glimpses of capes flashing past at the speed of sound, off to rescue some innocent bystander, was no help at all. Soon Patricia - Pacs to her friends - would be getting out there and clobbering bad guys like there was no tomorrow.

The convention was a riot of colour, save for the group who had come as shocktroopers. It was either a group of well-organised fans, or some PR stunt. Pacs ignored them and carried on taking pictures of the heroines' costumes. She was leaning towards white and green, to complement her dark complexion, but she'd see what sort of designs came to mind when she got him.

The official Longbow stand drew her attention, as defeating Arachnos was a worthy cause in anyone's book, so she wandered over to get some information from them.

The 8 foot hulking muscular catgirl Amy Zon sat at her stall...just another publicity opportunity according to her agent, Gerald Fontain...unlike most of the heroes here she was use to this. Having your own line of comic books, an animated series and your own line of merchandise kind of helped you get over the shock of meeting strangers if you'd been promoting it for so long. While she was part of the Unity Vigil she was a 'seperate entity' when it came to merchandising.

Her booth was laid out in a fairly professional manner. Arranged at the desk on her booth was a large pile of 'The Amazing Amy Zon adventure!: volume 1' graphic novel ready for her to sign on request. Stacks of a 'con exclusive' Amy zon action figure where behind her hanging on pegs, it was variant on her normal outfit with the colours of her regular switched around and chains looped around her chest and labelled, 'Capecon exclusive Praetorian Amy Zon'.

Just off to the right side of her booth was set up a pickup truck for showing off her strength during photo opportunities. The other side was dedicated to the Japanese show she starred in Mew Mew power where she played 'Catgirl of Strength' and was also a 'Capecon exclusive early release of Mew Mew Power season 4'.

Amy took a deep breath, today was going to be a long day...

A little to the back of the hall Suraya the Desert Princess only just finished setting up the last bits of the Nighthunters. It had ended up a combination of the best things the Worn Cover bookstore had to offer combined with a inventory of anti-monster instructions.

The arabian born super-hero was just trying to show a young woman basic vampire-awareness when a kid ran up to her screaming "Look it is Desert Princess from TV! You know... the International Idols!". He looked up at her holding his signature book.

Suraya smiled and apolagised at the young man. Leaving him with the manual she had in her hand. Then she bowed down and took the signature book. "That is me... What is youre name?", She said smiling...

"Make it to 'Jack' please ma'am!", he replied smiling wide.

More than a little at home at conventions Becky bounced through the crowds with excitement. Usually she attended conventions for video games and all things techy, but today she'd made an exception. Of course a wanted villain turning up in Paragon City was a risk, especially considering the fact the building was filled with capes and her choice of costume. Unable to resist she'd put together a costume that closely resembled the combatwear of her partner, Headbreaker, although she'd cropped her t-shirt to make it a little more femenine, especially as it was getting to the point she'd soon no longer be able to show off her stomach. Usually in good shape, Becky's stomach now had the slightest curve to it, hinting to the observant and those that knew her well that her unborn baby was growing and settling.

Briefly she considered approaching Starjet, who she knew had had the occasional interactions with The Corporation in the past, but as a young heroine dressed in black and neon green teleported over she scrapped the idea and instead wandered contentedly, thrusting her hands in the pockets of her baggy camo trousers. 'No wonder Bill wears things like this' she mused silently 'these are damn comfy'

((Metafanzine Published by @Chaos Bunny))
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Lexie Lock sat at the nighthunters with Suraya. She was dressed in her Mentalist girl costume watching the crowds come by as she tried to close her mind to the noise of all the thoughts of the people in such a tight space.

Lexie finally got the sounds to a dull hum when someone approached her...

"Excuse me Miss" The large man said "Do you have list of all the items you sell at the Worn Cover"

"That would be a little difficult" Lexie replied "Our inventory changes a fair bit but I do have a list of our best items and whats on sale let me get you one"

Lexie went to the back of the stall to get the man a list but when she came back he had gone.

Missy Winters was in familiar territory. In her years as Miss Teen, when she had the distinction of having more licensed products that Bart Simpson, she had attended countless conventions. But that was when she was one of the strongest and cutest beings on the planet. As cute as she may have looked in her pink jeans and white St Tidus Angels tee, she felt like a fraud.

“Hey, Missy,” said Comic Book Dan, one of Capecom’s organisers. “Glad you could make it. Do you want a skinny latte before we let the cattle at you?”

Missy gave a natural doomsday device stopping smile. “Sure, that would be nice. But I don’t think many people are going to want to meet me this year, Dan. You know it’s like a year since I lost my powers.”

Dan lead her through a corral of partition boards to her table. “You’re kidding, right? You’re still one of the biggest draws at the con. Word on the street is that some guy from Talos has one of the ultra rare Miss Teen dolls in the cobalt blue variant costume for you to sign.” He paused and coughed. “You do remember that…”

“Yes!” she said. “They don’t like it when you take them out of the box. Even when it’s a doll of you!”

He motioned for her to sit. “Besides, there’s a lot of interest in your merchandise from year one and two. One guy quit his job at Terra Volta to run a Miss Teen store on eBay. Retro is big business.”

Missy looked stunned as if Dan had kicked her in the shin. “I’m 19 years old! How can I be retro?”

Outside the convention hall, a jet black Aston Martin rumbled to a halt. The driver's door opened, and a man climbed out. Standing just shy of six foot in height, immaculately tailored in a bespoke suit purchased at great expense on Saville Row, London, blue eyes swept across the gathered horde.

On the far side of the car, a woman, several inches shorter, dressed in an outfit that the generous might call 'revealing', also stepped out into the morning air, a broad grin plastered across her face.

"Oh, come on, Dicky! Surely this is better than a stuffy old physics conference. And I know that it's more fun than a meeting with the board of directors."

Richard Huntington threw an exasperated grimace at his younger sister, even while he ruefully admited - even if only to himself - that she was right.

Stepping smartly round his car, Richard offered an arm to Samantha, took a deep breath, and braced himself.

The onslaught was everything he feared.

Sammy was in her element, smiling, shaking hands with innumerable admirers - as far as Richard could tell, they were mostly spotty teenaged boys (and their fathers), but there were a few young women scattered in the mix. Sam always managed to catch a lot of attention, and he was extremely grateful that he had so far been unmolested . . .

"That's Shadowe, isn't it? Whaddya mean 'who's Shadowe?' Him!"

"Ohmygod, like, wow, there he is! He's gorgeous!"

"Huh. Shadowe? Yeah, I know about him. I heard as how he's cheatin' on his missus."

"Shadowe! Shadowe! C'n I have yer autograph?!"

A veritable wave of bodies surged towards him, and he fondly imagined for a moment that he would be able to get away with becoming invisible and flying overhead.

An instant before the nearest person reached him, though, there was a flicker of almost-movement before his eyes, and suddenly three lithe women in the black-and-green combat gear of Knives of Artemis faded into view in front of him.

It took every ounce of self-control on his part not to react with surprise at their sudden appearance, but Richard was a past master at hiding his feelings from the general public, so he smiled and leaned forward.

"Well, hello, ladies. Wasn't expecting to see you here."

Melissa Montrose, leader of the troupe, turned to look at him through her visor.

"Sorry, Doctor. We... wanted to get out of the house, and this was... well, too good to pass up."

With a quiet chuckle, Richard shook his head. "Quite alright, my dear." He had to speak quite loudly to be heard over the sound of the crowd, but he was confident that nobody would catch everything he said.

Looking at the three young women, he thought frantically for a moment or two, then nodded decisively.

"Julie, stay with Sam, please. Melissa, Marie, if you'll come with me, we can head inside."

Julie Slater, the one of the three that actually disliked Richard, simply nodded, though there was no doubt in his mind that she was relieved not to be spending any more time in his presence than strictly necessary. Sam would make sure she enjoyed herself, too.

He took two steps toward the main doors of the convention hall, then paused - Melissa Montrose and Marie Hawkins carried on for a moment or two longer before they realised he was no longer keeping pace with them, and turned to look at him.

A mischevious smile crossed his lips, and he cast his eyes around at the crowd that was now giving him something of a wide berth - many of them couldn't figure out if the girls were really assassins, or if this was all some elabourate act, and they didn't want to press too close if the former were true.

"Let's do this right," he grinned, and twisted the dial on his wristwatch.

In the depths of the basement beneath Huntington Manor, a signal triggered by the watch activated a complex set of authorisation protocols. A manequin inside a sealed chamber created a pulse of energy, piggybacked on the city's teleportation network.

To everyone watching Richard, it seemed as though he faded from sight for an instant, then...

Towering six inches over six feet, the bulky suit of black and grey power armour flashed into existence. An impassive reflective visor turned slowly, looking at the crowd for a long moment, and then the man inside grinned to himself, before walking forward.

"Come. We should be going inside. Luminescence can find us later."

Thus flanked by two deadly young women, for whom the phrase 'armed to the teeth' wasn't necessarily hyperbole, Shadowe swept his cape dramatically and stalked into the hall.

* * * * *

The wall of sound when they arrived inside made Richard flinch in the instant before the suit compensated. Normally, given his own choice in the matter, Richard would have snuck off to one side, strolled around the outskirts of the room, and wormed his way through the crowd. But he wasn't here as a fan - since he'd never really understood hero-worship - he was here as a presence. Something of a surprise addition to the convention's guest-list. Mostly because he hadn't wanted to be stuck behind a desk signing autographs, photographs, copies of his Doctoral thesis that he knew even the most ardent nerd couldn't understand a tenth of.

The two young women accompanying him, though, were another matter entirely. Marie had always been a bit of a geek, and the biometric scan data on his heads-up display showed an elevated pulse and breathing rate that he had learned to associate with cautious delight. Melissa, though... the woman was actually grinning, rather than looking around with her usual calm, passionless expression!

"I'm sorry, Doctor," she half-shouted, correctly guessing why his helmet had been aimed in her direction for several long seconds. "I'm going to abandon you at some point today, to have a look around!"

Richard almost laughed aloud, which wouldn't match the normal severe behaviour of Shadowe. "Of course. Later, though. For now... head to the Unity Vigil stand, see who's around."

With an overdramatic gesture that would have made Samantha collapse in gales of laughter, he clenched his fist...

And all three of them vanished from sight in the blink of an eye.