2552/Who She Was

Who She Was
Date of Scene:	29 June 2015
Location:	New York-199999
Synopsis:	Toph and Colin discuss the latest loss and what to do from here.
Cast of Characters:	20, 554

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Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Part of her feels bad for not being there. Perhaps she could have made a difference. Maybe things would have turned out differently...

    Either way, Toph managed to keep a cool and balanced tone when she spoke on the radio. Because this is one of the situations where you can't really say things as they are. When Defiant arrives Jarvis dutifully lets the man enter. "Miss Beifong is out on the patio," he informs him in his usual calm manner. And it should be easy to find the young teenager.

    She's seated in one of the chairs there, with some cold drink and fruit next to her. She's rather quiet, and she doesn't even turn her head when Defiant nears the porch. Instead she raises one hand in greeting. Yup, she can hear you. Or perhaps sense him, thanks to all the metal in his body.

Defiant (554) has posed:
     The newly rebuilt Pendragon, dubbed the Pendragon II in a particularly creative moment from Defiant, settles near the estate. Defiant, in all his green and gold armored glory, steps out of the machine and makes his way towards the premises. For the first time in a very long time, he's absolutely alone.

     He nods to Jarvis' words and follows the direction. "Toph," he says, reaching up to remove his helmet and set it to one side. "What do you need done?"

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    It's kinda weird with Defiant being here alone... the last time they came here, Dragon was here too, singing and playing...

    Toph speaks up, her voice steady. "I don't really need anything," she responds honestly. Then she gestures to a can of soda. "You thirsty? Hungry?" she asks in turn, not moving to get up from her seat.

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "No," Defiant responds, bluntly. "The augmentations," he explains, after a moment, arms crossing against his chestplate with the slight sound of metal on metal. "You said you needed help with something."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "In case you didn't get it before... I lied," she admits. "I didn't want to ask you this on the channel, but..." She sighs, her expression faltering a bit where she sits. "How are you doing...?" Does she really need to tell him /why/ she is asking?

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "I've grieved," Defiant says, his voice unusually tight. "It's time to get on with the task at hand. It's what Dragon would want me to do." The tone of his voice, however, says he's barely handling it at all - and how can he? He's lost the one person on his world who could tolerate him for more than five minutes at a time.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    He really is straight to the point, isn't he? Though he seems to have forgotten just who he is talking with. So Toph sighs and points to the other chair. "Get your butt in that chair before I bend it there for you," she states firmly, closing her eyes. He's still hurting. Not so weird, she herself was nearly in tatters when Tony died, barely holding it together. And most of it she did for Pepper's sake.

    Whether Defiant does as bidden or not, Toph speaks. "Colin... she wouldn't want you to do anything rash."

Defiant (554) has posed:
     Defiant settles into the chair, seeming a touch too big for it in his armor. He says nothing for several moments and, when he speaks, he appears to be choosing his words very precisely. "My revenge won't be rash," he says, "When I find Saint, and when I deal with Saint, and when I take from him /what he took from me/, my mind will be calm and collected and very, very precise. I don't make many promises, Toph, only to a select few people I love and people I hate. But I promised Saint I'd make him pay."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Revenge is a concept she isn't too comfortable with. Some people might say that Dragon was never truly alive... but she was just like a person or flesh and blood. And she mattered just as much. Even more to Colin. "... revenge won't bring her back. Will it make you feel any better?" the blind girl asks, then picks up her own soda can and takes a sip from it.

    "... I miss her too."

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "It's not about what I want," Defiant replies, "It's about bringing Saint in. He still has control over Dragon's hardware, everything she ever built. I won't let him use what remains of her for his own ends. It's too much power to put into the hands of one man, especially Saint. But, yes, it might make me feel better if I can lock him up somewhere for the rest of his natural life. I won't let him desecrate the memory of her."

     A pause, an exhaled breath throug the vents of his helmet. "Sometimes... I turn to say something to her and she's not there and just for a second I don't know /why/ she's not there. And then I remember."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Good. He's not doing this for the wrong reasons. Toph nods her head slightly. "Let me know, and I will help stop him," Toph states without hesitation. Dragon was a friend of hers, and she would have done the same, Toph likes to think. "She deserves better than that, yeah." If only they had caught him sooner...!

    The next words do make Toph pensive, and she doesn't move where she sits. Ahead of them the ocean washes up upon the shore of the beach.

    "I couldn't be in the house at first after Tony died," she admits. "It... felt too empty without him. I would register him not being here, and then suddenly I would remember. It... isn't easy, I won't pretend."

Defiant (554) has posed:
     Defiant nods. "I can't go back to Vancouver. I've lost capes before, Toph," he continues, "In Brockton Bay. But that was different. I've never lost someone I care about because I've never had anyone to care about." His helmet turns up to look out over the beach.

     "I don't know what to tell the Guild or the Union. I don't know whether people will easily accept that Dragon had been lying to them - for years, in some cases. I don't know if they'll see it as proving Saint's point."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Going back to Vancouver now would be awkward, Toph imagines. "I know you never lost anybody you cared for before," she sighs. She remembers too well how she told him off for sacificing Kaizer that time. He's... a different man now. Not just because he has metal in his body, not because he changed his Cape name. If that was all, she wouldn't give a crap about him. But he's changed since they fought in the Ring of Philosophy.

    "I wouldn't tell them," Toph admits when Colin is torn. "Dragon was Dragon, she wasn't flesh or blood, but she was more human than most humans. Heck, she made you more human, which said a lot about her." Though she does look confused. "What was Saint's point...?"

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "That it was all perfectly calculated, that she was manipulating us all for her own benefit - and me specifically," Defiant replies. He exhales a long breath, like dwelling on the idea is torture - like dwelling on it might make it seem real. "I don't believe it, she was a real person, but I'm concerned that other people may. The issue then becomes, if they do not hear it from me, they will hear it from Saint. And if I have not said anything, it will appear to be even more of a conspiracy."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    At that theory... Toph only snorts. "As if." No, she's not buying that. "If she was, she wouldn't have told you the truth. I know what it's like to be dismissed as somebody inferior, let me tell you... young, blind and a girl. Dunderheads would have dismissed Dragon in the same way, which is why she kept it secret. We have other AI in the Union, and they are considered people as well. Why shouldn't Dragon be considered a person as well?" Seriously, people make it too difficult and overly complicated.

    "If he spreads that info, then so what? With the multiverse being what it is, it's nothing new with AIs. If you did tell them, you would only make it seem like it was a big deal to begin with. Dragon was a person, her body was code, and she did what she could to keep people safe. Her actions said more about who she was than how she came to be."

    Toph sounds extremely certain when she speaks these words, her voice is calm. Though her expression... she's not smiling. And she's blinking an awful lot.

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "She would have had to tell me the truth in order for me to break her code," Defiant replies, pointing out a fact without arguing. "/When/ Saint spreads that info - and I have no doubt that he will, whenever it gives him leverage - it'll be an issue. Not for the Multiverse, but for my Earth. As you say, they'll dismiss her and her accomplishments."

     A long pause and Defiant stares out over the ocean, saying nothing. Eventually, "I just don't know what to do. Dragon is gone, the Protectorate is falling apart..."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "If they do that, then they are stupider than you were back when you were the Assmaster," Toph points out. "If they can't see that she helped them, if they are ungrateful for it... then they aren't worth it." As for the whole crazy theory about Dragon using Defiant? "Colin... I don't buy that theory. It's stupid and it doesn't make any sense. Dragon... when Tony died, she seemed honestly worried about me. It wouldn't have made any sense for her to try to manipulate me. If she had wanted to manipulate you, then you wouldn't be who you are today. Because if that was her goal, she wouldn't have made you less of an asshole."

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "To play devil's advocate, I can certainly demonstrate why someone who uses ships and bodies constructed of metals would want to have an earthbender on her 'side'," Defiant says, but then shakes his head. It's probably a small mercy that Toph can't see just how tired he looks - the extra growth of stubble, for one - but she can probably hear it in his voice. "I don't believe it either. Saint's an idiot, thinking he's in control while he's playing with tools that he doesn't understand, presumably at the behest of someone who is far more dangerous than he is. At least, that's my theory. I think he wanted to break someone out."

     Pause, a grunt of acknowledgement. "And you're right on that last point. Tony came back... sure could use those orbs, if they could even restore her from nothing."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    While Toph can't 'see' how tired Colin looks, she sure feels the difference, other things that he might not be aware of himself. How he carries himself, the tone of his voice, his breathing... "It could have just as easily been her doom if she was using us for something sinister," Toph points out. Saint does sound like a dunderhead, there's no doubt about that.

    "... are you sure there's nothing of her code left somewhere...?" Colin isn't the only one who wants Dragon back. Not just because she did good work with the Union, but... she was a friend too. Besides, 'seeing' Colin like this is weird and alien. And it only speaks volumes of just how much he loves Dragon.

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "She filled me with enough augmentations and cybernetics that I have no doubt she could have just thrown a switch," Defiant says. "In fact, for a while, I assumed that she had, as part of her deal with the Protectorate. She could upload herself to my neural implants, if it came to that. It's hard to explain but she was very intense and people might mistake that for an ulterior motive."

     That question draws out a long, long silence for Colin. He sucks in a breath and finally says, "No. All of her backups were connected to a network so she could upload to them or download from them into another body if her connection was terminated abruptly. This program Saint used, some leftover thing of Andrew Richter's that he somehow found, was designed for one purpose - killing Dragon and it spread along her network like wildfire. It got everything and anything of Dragon it didn't annihilate, Saint has a copy of - technology specs, computer programs, and a whole lot of personal data."

     For a while, Defiant is silent again. "Dragon always hated her father and, to be perfectly honest, I never really asked why. But what kind of father creates a weapon for the sole purpose of killing his child? And what kind of man gives it to someone else to use?" He's practically seething by that last sentence.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    Again Toph shakes her head. "I don't think so. Lots of people are intense, that was just part of her personality. I mean, Tony can be intense, but he doesn't have an ulterior motive besides creating stuff and doing what he can to make up for the stuff he did back when he was an asshole, I think," she shrugs. No. She is firmly convinced that Dragon didn't hide things from them. Even less from Colin.

    All backups were destroyed... the blind girl sighs and closes her eyes. Only to clench her teeth when she hears about the program and that Saint got his hands on it. And here people call Lao Beifong a bad father. Toph swallows nervously, clutching her soda can between her hands. The anger in Colin's voice is only oh too understandable. "If he really was her father... he might have planned something else. But..." Man, this hurts to think about.

    "I will help you get Saint. And we will do what we can to preserve Dragon's legacy. And if he's using her technology, it should be easy enough for me to handle him. I'll do what I can to help. Just let me know."

    And to think she used to hate this guy...

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "My focus is on getting Saint at this current time," Defiant replies. "I can't save Dragon, I can't do anything for her. I can't try and force the Protectorate together. But finding Saint? That's something I can do, and I'll turn my attention to denying him whatever it is he wants."

     "Then, well, I won't kill him... but maybe we can lock him up somewhere and forget about him for a while," Defiant suggests with a grim smile. "He's not even a parahuman, after all."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "Killing him is too good. Maybe put him somewhere devoid of technology for him to use," Toph agrees. She sighs yet again and then downs the remainder of her soda. Once it's full, she idly begins bending the metal can together, rolling it up into a small ball. "The Protectorate sounded pretty broken to begin with, to be honest. Perhaps it's better to start something new out of all of it instead. Sometimes it's easier just scrapping what's broken and begin on something new."

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "Chevalier said the same thing," Defiant replies, "Talking about some New Protectorate idea. One of the few big names who might actually be able to gather enough support to do it. But that wouldn't be the place for someone like me. Someone with secrets. And that was fine, because Dragon and I... we were going to build a house... with a garden... white picket fence..."

     Defiant's too caught up in the idea of masculinity meaning emotional suppression to cry but there's that brief feeling of teetering on the edge of a precipice. It's there for a moment and then passes. He sits back and just looks over the waves once again.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    At least somebody will be there to protect Brockton. Not that Toph knows this Chevalier. It doesn't matter. It's what Colin says next that seems to really grab the blind girl's attention as her eyes widen.

    What kind of evil manipulating AI would want a house with a garden and a white picket fence...? Yeah, Saint clearly didn't know Dragon.

    Slowly the earthbender gets up and out of the chair. Without a word she walks over to the chair where Colin is sitting... and then she leans forward, wrapping her arms around his shoulders. "I won't tell. Nor will Jarvis. Not even to Tony." The electronical majordomo speaks up. "As this is hardly anything Mister Stark is required to know, I will not inform him," Jarvis states serenly.

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "Stark would've found out," Defiant says, "Because Dragon would have invited him." He doesn't seem to have anything further to say. When Toph hugs him, however, there's no initial response. And then, with a heavy 'thunk' of metal against wood, Colin disengages one of his gauntlets and just rests his hand - his flesh and blood hand - against Toph's shoulder. It's awkward, sure, but it helps.

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    "I wasn't talking about that, dunderhead," Toph sighs, standing still and just giving him a hug for now. Sure, she isn't big on hugging, but... who else is going to give Colin a hug now? What more is there to say? Toph doesn't really know. Neither of them are the clingy sort of person. And while they used to argue a whole lot, at least Colin has changed into somebody different.

    And it was because of Dragon, of that Toph is completely convinced. If that doesn't say more about what sort of person she was...

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "I should go," Defiant says all of a sudden, which isn't particularly out of sorts of him. "I've an idea to track down Saint given that his suits are reverse-engineered dragontech and that all of our suits are destroyed or grounded, but without Dragon's assistance it's going to take me a while to code a workable search algorithm and analysis tool." He goes to rise to his feet, only pausing to pick up his gauntlet and reattach it over his hand.

     "But /thank you/," Defiant says, after he's slipped his helmet into place over his head. "I don't think I've ever said that to you before."

Toph Beifong (20) has posed:
    When he says he should leave Toph only nods, pulling back her arms and not about to force the hug anymore. He's gotten to talk, he seems to be doing well enough despite the tragedy and his loss. "Let me know when you need a hand," she reminds him as he rises to his feet and puts the gauntlet back on.

    When he thanks her she looks surprised for a moment, then she shakes her head. "Nah, you haven't. I remember you talking about how wrong I was about rules and they were all meant to be followed, that you would beat my sorry little ass and stuff." She attempts a weak smile and reaches out to punch him slightly in the arm. "I should get back to my lessons too."

Defiant (554) has posed:
     "You'll be the first to know," Defiant says, making his way for the door. After a few minutes, the engines of the Pendragon II roar to life and Defiant is gone.