Scene #803: Water, White, and Unwilling

Owner	Pose
Ayako Hasekawa	"Wheeee!" There are a lot of things the residents of Brockton Bay probably don't look twice at. People in costumes as varying and as colorful as the rainbow. Capes rushing to the scene of a crime. But how will they react to a water spirit acting like a cute witch Cape flying in the air on a broomstick? Stranger things have happened! Either way, one Ayako Hasekawa is riding on her floating broomstick, dressed like a witch with a water drop motif. Believe it or not, she is obeying the posted speed limit and traffic laws, abeit doing so in mid-air. Why? She's patrolling, of course!
Zwei	All the talk of superheros and supervillains and their implied effects on 21st century human sociology was the most interesting thing Zwei had heard on the radio during the entire trip from its home facility to the warp gate. With a huge number of places to choose from and no especially useful neutral nexus, it decided that it might as well try to observe this particular world until it could get some more bearings. Since Asche would stand out in all the worst ways, only Weiss has been dispatched, and she's spent the last thirty minutes seated by the window in a local cafe, wearing the appearance of a pretty brunette she'd seen down the street, and pretending to drink coffee while hijacking a cellphone satellite to start documenting all wireless electronic devices in the city. Maybe hack a bank or something. Who knows. Then she spies what MUST be a superhero flying around outside! Perfect! A whole half hour and no superhuman powers! Leaving her coffee on the table, she steps out into the street, smoothing down her fabricated jacket before waving her hand at Ayako. "Hello! Are you a superhero?" Concise.
Defiant	The people of Brockton Bay don't look twice at many things. Generally speaking, anything that doesn't appear to be a threat. A few people might take photos of Ayako as she flies around in an orderly fashion, but many seem content to leave her be. 'Magical' superheroes aren't anything new to this world - Myrddin, head of one of the Protectorate groups, plays up his powers with a staff and robe. But eventually someone notices and informs the Protectorate. Atop his motorcycle, as thew news of an unidentified Mover comes in, Armsmaster frowns. He turns his bike onto a new heading and heads towards the source of the report. He pulls up a short distance away and dismounts, his Halberd slung across his back.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako pulls the stick back on the broomstick hard, as if suddenly engaging a parking brake. Her broom screeches to a stuttering halt. Without the screech, of course. The broom floats down to the sidewalk and Ayako adjusts the way she's sitting so that she's sitting side-saddle on the broom. She smiles cheerfully at Weiss, "Hello! Uhh..." She glances off to the side awkwardly, "Well, maybe? I'm not exactly sure yet myself. I was going to get the paperwork and all that regulation stuff done with but... I got lost." Her right hand awkwardly rubs the back of her head as she giggles nervously. Oh, but the arrival of a certain man in blue catches her attention quickly. "Ah. Hello Armsmaster!" Ayako waves cheerfully to him.
Zwei	"Oh so you're a brand new superhero! That's perfect! I wanted to ask you some questions!" The sound of the motorcycle engine shifting to a lower gear nearby draws her attention from the floating water witch. If someone is slowing down right next to them, they must have business with her. Weiss' face doesn't so much as twitch at the sight of that halberd. Zwei processes reactions so fast that any accidental expressions would be too fast for the human eye to percieve anyways. Everything Weiss shows is deliberate; right now being a perfect smile. "That's quite a weapon there! 'Armsmaster' is it? I take it you're a superhero as well? Or did you simply acquire a piece of offworld technology from a more advanced society." Her eyes go to the head of the polearm, already scanning up and down the electromagnetic wavelength using the Mossbauer effect.
Defiant	"Water Witch," Armsmaster says, by way of greeting, as he turns the visor of his helmet to look at each of the people before him. His lips are pursed in a slight frown. From what Zwei can determine, his polearm is incredibly advanced and far more than the simple weapon it seems to be - it's packed with all sorts of technologies and weapons, all miniaturised to an absurd level and daisy chained together like an incredibly efficient honeycomb. He levels an armored finger at Weiss. "But you. It is quite a weapon. And another superhero has just made me aware of what you're doing - utilising a telecommunications satelite without authorisation. Consider this your only warning." Friendly sort.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako's eyes brighten when she hears the word 'questions'. It seems she happens to like answering questions! "Oh oh, ask away! Although I have to admit I might not know the answers to a lot of them." She giggles a bit nervously and then looks over to Armsmaster. "Uuu..." Ayako whimpers softly as she mistakenly takes the pointed armored finger at pointing at herself. "I'm sorry! I got really really lost... and so I flew lower and slower and... and... well... I got even more lost. I feel like I've been circling the same block over and over about five times already and-oh." Yes, she just realized he was pointing at Weiss instead of her. She calms down pretty quickly after that. Ayako's gaze turns back at Weiss. "You shouldn't do that type of thing. They're going to get mad." Understatement!
Zwei	"I assume Water Witch and Armsmaster are pseudonyms, correct? Something to do with a cover identity? I guess nobody has the technology to track everyone by brainwave patterns yet. Oh and these people probably aren't registered with any kind of collective network, so you'd have to sit in a public place and scan until a superhero you'd previously recorded wanders in." Weiss really sounds like she's actually contemplating this. Of course, she has absolutely no reason to try and figure out a bunch of superhero's civilian identities, but the thought exercise is entertaining. She laughs at the mention of the satellite, bright and clear, and obviously not apologetic at all. "Oh? Someone was actually monitoring that thing? Don't worry, I'll put up my own satellite later~" Letting the disguise fall, the brunette's cute, girlish features scroll away in place of the Armiger's more refined default appearance, followed by her long hair fizzling back into existence down her back. "I like your weapon by the way~ It's charming~"
Defiant	Armsmaster just stares at Ayako as she tries to explain things to her. Why is she doing this? Armsmaster isn't concerned with anything she just said. People are strange and confusing. He's just about to hold up a hand and cut her off when she begins to warn the other woman. "I see," Armsmaster says to Weiss, with only a slight bit of disdain. Jealousy, perhaps? Feels like his ego has been slighted? Who knows. "She was, yes. And do not try flattery on me, it won't work." His body language has shifted slightly as Weiss has revealed her true appearance - almost like he's getting ready for a fight.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako nods her head once. "For me, at least, yes! It's a Cape name. Because in Brockton Bay, you do as the Capes do!" She glances skyward for a moment as she thinks, "Hmm... I don't mind using my normal name, but... that doesn't fit as well with everyone else, so... yeah." She nods her head once and then giggles naughtily. "I don't have any brainwaves sooo..." A playful wink. "Then again, it's not like I'm in super disguise or anything." "Whoa!" Ayako startles visibly and grabs onto her broomstick to regain her balance. Weiss letting her disguise drop startled her! But once she gets over her surprise, she smiles cheerfully. "Oohh. I like your ponytail, by the way~ I usually have one just like it~" She says in a similar way as Weiss did complimenting Armsmaster's Halberd. "And he's serious, you know. Flattery really won't work on him." She nods her head once.
Zwei	"Oh but I mean it! You're close to hitting the highest degree of miniaturization physically possible, but everything I can scan is so quaint~ It's like a giant mancatching tool! I'm impressed you managed to get that far with this world's primitive level of technological advancement!" Weiss' smile becomes a little more coy as she fixes Armsmaster with that luridly green stare. "I can sense your pulse going up by the way. It's probably not in your best interests to pick a fight here." Her attention switches to Ayako in an instant. "Oh! Thank you! The Collective regard humans as the most aesthetically beautiful of the one hundred and eighty documented sapient species, so I was modelled in aristic tribute to them! I'd noticed that you're made of nothing but water and some trace contaminents, but I figured that was your superpower!" Seriously though, she hasn't actually stopped using the satellite. Reduced the amount of its bandwidth she's hogging up maybe, but that's only because she's isolated every banking computer in the city.
Defiant	Armsmaster reaches behind himself and pulls his Halberd from his back. He crosses his arms, letting the weapon rest against one of the shoulder guards on his powersuit. His pulse /is/ going up, and the pair might hear a telltale metal screech as his gauntlets squeeze the metal haft of his weapon. He knows he's close to hitting his limit, getting to the point where he has to swap components out as opposed to continually adding to his weapon. And the fact that this thing can be so- Dragon speaks into his ear. "Keep it together, Armsmaster. I'm still getting some data I've not seen before. She's going for the banks." "I told you to stop," Armsmaster says, tersely, "And I am now ordering you to stop, by my authority as Protectorate commander of this city. It is not in my best interest to engage you, no, but I can have six other heroes vectored to this location in minutes. Cease your activity."
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako nods her head quickly, "Oh, I agree with The Collective there. My own body shape is modeled after my own experiences to create an aesthetically pleasing appearance that appeals to as many types as possible but with my own tastes mixed in." She then stops-and looks upset! "Excuse me? Trace contaminents?!" Her cheeks puff out in a pout. "I'm made of pure water! I don't even have any hydronium or hydroxide ions in me!!!" Yes, triple exclamation marks. It seems this is actually something Ayako gets very serious over. In fact, for a moment, she seems even more riled up than Armsmaster! Although it passes quickly. She's still pouting, though in a cute way now.
Zwei	"Don't be silly. There's dust on the surface of your skin and clothes. That's just unavoidable. I didn't mean /inside/ you~" That almost sounds . . . apologetic? Kinda. Maybe. "If it's worth anything, I think your choice of appearance really suits you!" Weiss is far less apologetic to Armsmaster. The man doesn't exactly look like he needs coddling and reassuring anyways. "Oh? So you still have someone monitoring that satellite? I thought you were just tipped off when I booted off all the cellphone traffic. You people are /really/ stingy for using third rate broadcast arrays like that. Couldn't you build something way better with your expertise?" She picks the closest bank to her current physical location, simultaneously accessing all open chequings and savings accounts, while fixing Armsmaster with the cheekiest grin imaginable, knowing he must be following it. She withdraws precisely one dollar from every account, and then deposits each dollar in the numerically adjacent account, accomplishing absolutely nothing. The satellite connection drops. "In that case, I would have to bring Asche here as well. Six at once is probably a little much for Weiss. That would also mean blowing up pretty much this whole city, which I don't want to do because I want to see more of it right now!" She pauses just a moment. "Though I have no idea what this protectorate is or why I should care- nevermind. Found all the relevant data. Wow you're pretty highly ranked too!"
Defiant	Ayako is made up of water? Interesting. Armsmaster files that away for future reference. He keeps his visor firmly fixed on Weiss and it's pretty clear that he seems to be doing his best to glare a hole straight through her. "And if you bring more, we will do the same. Eidolon, Alexandria, Legend, Chevalier, Dragon. /Scion/." Zwei might've been able to find that Armsmaster is rated as the seventh-best cape of his world, and that those names he listed are all regarded as being better than him - more powerful, more adaptable, more well-liked. "Suffice to say, it is my /stringent/ recommendation that you do not cause any further trouble, particularly if you want to see more of this city that does not include a holding cell. Am I understood?"
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako shakes her head. "Even on the outside, I keep myself clean. Can't really call myself a water sp-hmm.. witch otherwise!" Her pout does vanish once Weiss says that her choice of appearance suits her though. "Oh, the same to you! The hair and eyes work really well together." She nods her head quickly. As for everything else Weiss has said? She doesn't seem to care much. Yes, even about the blowing up of the city. She does however, agree with Weiss about wanting to see more of the city. "Oh, yes yes. I do want to see more of the city. Maybe then I won't get lost so easily." Her gaze goes off to the side and she grins playfully.
Zwei	Weiss does Armsmaster the indignity of snickering at him. Now that she knows his rank, she knows he can't just start a dirty street brawl in the middle of broad daylight. The temptation is there however. Zwei doesn't really know whether it wants to antagonize the resident superheros just to see what happens, or offer them some kind of help, likewise just to see what happens. "It's really hard not to tease you! Has anyone ever told you that? Every time you say something it sounds like a dare! It's like you're challenging me to push your buttons, just so you can cut loose! I know it bothers you to think that a total outsider has the power to disrupt your form of law and order, but did you ever stop to consider that I could do something /for/ you instead? Don't get me wrong! I'm not playing with your telecomm infrastructure out of malice! It's curiosity mostly. This is the first planet I've ever been to!" Weiss goes as far as to wink at Ayako at the mention of seeing more of the city, and especially at the compliment. She'd simulate a blush if it wouldn't look weird on her paper complexion. "How about instead of hacking this hilariously primitive bank security, I offer you something, and you pay me for it?"
Defiant	Weiss can almost certainly see Armsmaster clench his jaw, looking like his teeth are about to /shatter/. He could attack her, maybe even strike her down. The Protectorate would look the other way, once he provided his helmet recording and Dragon provided her own data... but it's impossible to know what resources this thing might be able to draw upon. And so, he has to bear it. "And what," Armsmaster begins, "Could I possibly want from you?"
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako stretches and takes off her witch hat with her left hand, shaking it up and down gently and a blue pillow falls out of it-which she quickly catches with her right hand. Her hat is gently placed back on her head and she shufffles through her muffler's pockets and takes out a black elastic band. With one swift motion she sets the pillow in place on the end of the broomstick by the sunflower and secures said pillow in place with the band. She lies down lazily on her stomach on the broomstick, resting her head on the pillow. She carefully positions herself so that the brush of the broom makes it impossible to look up her skirt from any angle. And after that? She just lazily watches Weiss and Armsmaster.
Zwei	Oh now that smile just gets sly. Weiss isn't even trying to appear genial. She's not going to try and mask it with sweetness that will only come off as insincerity. No, she knows when it's best to show your cunning right on your sleeve. "The civilization I'm from isn't concerned with seeding life and protecting primitive civilizations. My directives are pretty clear in that I am to side with the most powerful and technologically advanced factions only, and allow them to wipe out all competition, thus reserving resources for those most likely to actually be relevant in a hundred or a thousand years. No matter how much I peruse this database however, I find an astonishing number of these superheros don't actually fully understand their powers, but were simply given exceptional abilities and use them to hold their positions. The only people registered with the Protectorate that seem to be interested in scientific progress, and of any interest at all, are you, and this Dragon person you mentioned. What would you be willing to do for access to schematics and materials used by someone who has all of physical science recorded in their head~?"
Defiant	Whether Zwei knows it or not, she has found Armsmaster's weak point. He's a superhero, he abides by the law and he has the spotless record to show for it. The only point of contention is this recent business with Skitter, but that will all be acknowledged once he brings her and the rest of her gang in. He is, simply put, great at what he does. He's spent his whole life being good at it. And yet he hates the fact that villains are let go. He hates the fact that people who hurt others are left to their own devices if they don't go out of their way to hurt civilians. He hates the fact that, with the power to stamp out all supervillains, the Protectorate simply... ...doesn't. Technology is power, that much is obvious to Armsmaster. But he is hitting his limit. Even with Dragon's assistance, it is taking him longer and longer to maintain his lead over people like Dauntless. Maybe, if this was something where he could maintain deniability, he might accept the offer. But he'll never be the best Protectorate cape if he starts cutting corners, accepting help that almost certainly has strings attached. "Do I seem stupid enough to accept this offer? You've demonstrated a powerful ability, that much is obvious. There is no way that the schematics and ideas you provide isn't to your benefit in some way. I cannot be bought." But some part of him would leap at the opportunity.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako yawns and nestles her chin into her soft pillow. "Only a hundred or a thousand years? You're generous. If it were up to me, it would be waaaaaay longer than that." The sunflower at the end of her broomstick bounces around a bit as Ayako blows at it for a few moments. "I don't care about physical science... There are far more worthless and worthwhile at the same time things to learn about and see." Her lazy gaze turns towards Armsmaster, "But that's just me."
Zwei	"I think you're grossly overestimating how valuable you are to me." Weiss states plainly. There's no reason to lie. "What could I possibly demand from the Protectorate that I can't get on my own? When I can do stuff like this." Extending her hand vaguely in Ayako's direction, the air suddenly begins to swirl as it is compressed into her palm, rippling visibly with the vacuum, as solid gold pools between her fingers and resolves into a perfectly shaped brick of bullion. "There's nothing I want from you, and nothing I want from this planet, except information, and to do what I was assigned to do. What I want is to see how this world reacts when someone with ostensibly no parahuman abilities at all soars to the top of the food chain. I want to see what happens when this priviledged class of exceptional sapients is run by a man of science rather than a bunch of child gods. I want to see if people like you can get off your little rock and make something of yourselves in the next few centuries rather than spending the rest of your species lifespan beating up petty crooks with wizardy. If you can show me that world, that's all I really need~"
Zwei	tThat said and done, Weiss spares a little bit of time for Ayako. "Oh, we finished it already. Like, /finished/ finished. For a while, filling out the little gaps still left in our knowledge was all there was to do, but once that was all wrapped up, you have to find new projects. I guess I agree in that sense."
Defiant	"If you want to soar to the top of the food chain, then you can take it up with Scion," Armsmaster replies, with no small amount of wry mockery. "But I will not betray my oath and honor by agreeing to some Elite with delusions of grandeur. This conversation is over."
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako shakes her head slowly, "Only information? You need to get a hobby or two to have some fun. That way..." She smiles softly, "You can do both at the same time and help break up the monotony." A bright giggle escapes from her lips. "Oh, good, good. New projects are always nice." Her gaze turns back to Armsmaster. "Oh, he said it. He said it. Seriously too."
Zwei	Armsmaster finally does get something of a frown out of Weiss. A deliberate one, but a frown nonetheless. "Well, if you're really fine with being second best to everyone else, that's fine too. I can always find someone with more ambition and see if they can surpass you and your limited worldview." She sounds about as nonchalant as it gets. Discussing an obvious conclusion. Like talking about bringing an umbrella when it's raining outside. "I don't know whether it's some backwards promise you took to consolidate power with only those who were born with it, whether it's your pride refusing to accept help when offered, or if it's just an unhealthy level of paranoia, but if you won't change your mind willingly, there's no point." She tosses the gold brick on the sidewalk for some lucky sunnovabitch to find later. "Of course, if you /do/ change your mind . . ." Radio details are suddenly uploaded to his helmet. "You know where to find me~" With that, she turns her back on him as well, focusing on the much brighter and cheerier 'superhero' instead. "I kind of consider this my hobby, but if you've got another idea, I'm all ears~"
Defiant	With nothing else to say, Armsmaster stows his Halberd on his back and then makes his way over towards his motorcycle. In another moment more, he's gone - off to investigate something else, or perhaps to get away from someone who had cracked his facade, even for a moment.
Ayako Hasekawa	Ayako shakes her head slowly and smiles cheerfully. "Oh no, it's important to find the hobbies you like and want to pursue yourself. It gives you that extra little push and... it's half the fun of searching." She stretches lazily on her broomstick. "Oh, but speaking of searching... I think I'll find a nice bit of water to soak in this city to help make myself un-lost first." Her pointer finger idly flicks the broomstick, "Until next time!" And she floats slowly off in search of a fountain or a lake.