Fuck the UN. They only know how to screw us all over, really. A WALL. We told you about the Wall. We can all thank the UN for backing THAT lovely fool's endeavor. [But let's not get into that, because he can already feel the Hermann part of his brain flare up at the thought and Newt can focus enough to keep on topic. Sort of. Sometimes.]
[To be fair, past-tense is applicable since they're not here...]
And in other news, Plutonian is just as cagey as you about the alien thing. Rude.
But okay, so you patrolled? Or what? Did you have, like, a big red phone or something that the Mayor called you on and was like "Paradigm! The City of Townsville is in trouble!" How did word get out that you were needed? When did you decide to act--like what level of threat was deemed something you would pursue and what was left to a local level? Was it natural disasters or epic boss fights? Because, really, you assemble a team like that and it goes hand-in-hand, you get enemies, like...each season's baddie is worse than the last. Right? That's just how it works. That much superpower always is a magnet for villainy.
True, but the supervillains were starting to act out well before we put the team together. [Although it was still after Tony made his debut, for the most part. The timing's close enough to send conspiracy theorists into fits.]
So it's a combination of villains, natural disasters, man-made disasters, et cetera. A lot of the detection aspect is just taking advantage of infrastructure that's already in place - [which they are not always authorized to do] - along with independent systems I've developed. The deep-space sensor network is mine, for instance.
Deciding to intervene is essentially a judgment call every time, though. Things like supervillains, hurricanes, alien invasions, then yes, we'll be there. But things like street-level crime... we stop it when we can, naturally, but it's too ubiquitous. Trying to "wipe out crime," or somesuch, simply isn't feasible. That said, a number of members do take patrols, but in limited areas. For instance, Bette has D.C., Tony has Sky City, and so on.
If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding!
Alright, yeah, each hero has his or her own home turf. That makes sense. You can't squish them all into New York City or something.
I know you had a no kill policy... Did that hold true for your entire squad, or was that just your own personal choice and if you didn't kill them, what did you do with the villains? Were you into rehabilitation, or just jailed them, and if you jailed them, where and how did you keep super-villains with powers? I mean, you can't just put them in a regular jail cell and expect them not to break out. And probably team up, because that's always how the comics work--you put them all in an asylum or something and they don't really become friends but they realize, 'hey, we can be a team and beat the hero team' and so they do and--
How did people react to your presence? We see how people here react to imports, but were you guys popular, like rockstars--Jaeger pilots were like rockstars in our world--or did you inspire a lot of suspicion since powers were relatively new and probably unexplained... How DID they get their powers, the ones who weren't alien, anyway?
How can ye have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?!
[Waits a second after Newt asks all that, just to be sure there's not more...] Do I have a word in edgewise here? All right. [He loves ya Newt but please...]
It's a little of both, public opinion is. When we were first getting started, nobody knew what to make of us, and yes, people were suspicious. Part of our goal in founding the Paradigm was to show people we're on their side, that they can trust us. The no-kill policy ties in with that. It's a matter of accountability. We hold ourselves to the highest moral standards at all times, both to prove our own merit and to set an example for supers not affiliated with us.
As for the villains... it does present a bit of a problem, for exactly the reasons you mentioned. Jailing them's often the best option, just to get them off the streets, and we do have some facilities to that effect, but it's all experimental at this point. And as you said, they're remarkably good at circumventing whatever measures we take. It's a problem we're still working to address.
No, you don't get a word in edgewise. You know this is how I operate.
And okay. So, this is kind of what you'd like to do with your squad here? The same thing? Showing people we're on their side, we're good imPorts, holding us to a high standard and accountability? ...Sounds good, really. You know you have my support.
What were your guys like? I mean, besides their powers?
They're some of the finest people I've ever had the honor of working with. Where do I even begin...?
There's the Plutonian - Tony. He was the first one to make a public debut. The team was his idea, as a matter of fact. He's easily the most powerful force for good that the Earth's ever seen, and I don't say that lightly.
A better question would be "what didn't he do." He's saved too many lives to count, including mine, many times over. Never hesitates to answer a cry for help. He's the kind of man who will turn his back on an enemy to protect someone's dog.
[That actually happened! And the more he thinks about it, the more convinced he becomes. Modeus was lying. I'd never do anything to harm him. Never.]
As a matter of fact - did you ever get to meet Superman, while he was here? They're uncannily similar. I about had a heart attack the first time I saw him.
[Newt's a bit skeptical of those kinds of guys, but okay, he guesses Tony sounds awesome.]
I didn't. I met Steve Rogers, who wasn't an alien, so far as I know, but seems to be the same kind of personality: good guy, rescues people, cats from trees, etc. A golden retriever, and nice on the eyes, too. The kind of guy you want to be rescued by.
[This slips out before Newt can catch himself.] So, what happened to him?
[Well, now it's bugging him. Because something did happen to Tony. He squeezes his eyes shut, rubs his forehead with a couple of fingers, trying to think. What happened... to...
The man I murdered is you.
His eyes snap open, wide with horror.]
Oh, my God.
[He remembers now. He remembers everything. The last he saw of Tony... a withered, irradiated husk of a man, six-fingered hands scrabbling pathetically in the dust... wisps of life, once part of him, scattering to every corner of the multiverse... Tony, brought low for the first time in his life, hateful and afraid. Tony, dying.
Qubit's stomach turns, and he stands abruptly, taking his face out of frame. His leg bumps the table, and the comm falls face-up, providing a lovely view of the ceiling.]
[He doesn't know WHAT is wrong, only that something clearly is and he stands, as if that will do any good, as if he can actually go after Qubit and check on him or try to make right whatever he did that upset him and SHIT. There was a reason Qubit didn't talk about his teammates, wasn't there. Whatever spell or change had come over Qubit had now broken, and Newt had ruined it further with that horrible wakeup call.]
Hey! Oh, fuck. Qubit? Man, I'm sorry. I was just-- You okay?
[Qubit does call back, eventually. It takes him about 10 minutes to feel like he's regained his composure sufficiently, although inside he still feels pretty wrecked. He does audio instead of video this time, and his voice almost sounds... heavier than a few minutes ago. Like he just went through eight-odd months of character development all at once.]
Sorry about that. Sabriel's people must have found what they were looking for.
![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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[To be fair, past-tense is applicable since they're not here...]
And in other news, Plutonian is just as cagey as you about the alien thing. Rude.
But okay, so you patrolled? Or what? Did you have, like, a big red phone or something that the Mayor called you on and was like "Paradigm! The City of Townsville is in trouble!" How did word get out that you were needed? When did you decide to act--like what level of threat was deemed something you would pursue and what was left to a local level? Was it natural disasters or epic boss fights? Because, really, you assemble a team like that and it goes hand-in-hand, you get enemies, like...each season's baddie is worse than the last. Right? That's just how it works. That much superpower always is a magnet for villainy.
all in all we're just another brick in the Wall
So it's a combination of villains, natural disasters, man-made disasters, et cetera. A lot of the detection aspect is just taking advantage of infrastructure that's already in place - [which they are not always authorized to do] - along with independent systems I've developed. The deep-space sensor network is mine, for instance.
Deciding to intervene is essentially a judgment call every time, though. Things like supervillains, hurricanes, alien invasions, then yes, we'll be there. But things like street-level crime... we stop it when we can, naturally, but it's too ubiquitous. Trying to "wipe out crime," or somesuch, simply isn't feasible. That said, a number of members do take patrols, but in limited areas. For instance, Bette has D.C., Tony has Sky City, and so on.
If you don't eat yer meat, you can't have any pudding!
I know you had a no kill policy... Did that hold true for your entire squad, or was that just your own personal choice and if you didn't kill them, what did you do with the villains? Were you into rehabilitation, or just jailed them, and if you jailed them, where and how did you keep super-villains with powers? I mean, you can't just put them in a regular jail cell and expect them not to break out. And probably team up, because that's always how the comics work--you put them all in an asylum or something and they don't really become friends but they realize, 'hey, we can be a team and beat the hero team' and so they do and--
How did people react to your presence? We see how people here react to imports, but were you guys popular, like rockstars--Jaeger pilots were like rockstars in our world--or did you inspire a lot of suspicion since powers were relatively new and probably unexplained... How DID they get their powers, the ones who weren't alien, anyway?
How can ye have any pudding if you don't eat yer meat?!
It's a little of both, public opinion is. When we were first getting started, nobody knew what to make of us, and yes, people were suspicious. Part of our goal in founding the Paradigm was to show people we're on their side, that they can trust us. The no-kill policy ties in with that. It's a matter of accountability. We hold ourselves to the highest moral standards at all times, both to prove our own merit and to set an example for supers not affiliated with us.
As for the villains... it does present a bit of a problem, for exactly the reasons you mentioned. Jailing them's often the best option, just to get them off the streets, and we do have some facilities to that effect, but it's all experimental at this point. And as you said, they're remarkably good at circumventing whatever measures we take. It's a problem we're still working to address.
no subject
And okay. So, this is kind of what you'd like to do with your squad here? The same thing? Showing people we're on their side, we're good imPorts, holding us to a high standard and accountability? ...Sounds good, really. You know you have my support.
What were your guys like? I mean, besides their powers?
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... You keep using past tense. They're still alive, Newt.
[Aren't they?]
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What ARE they like? Happy?
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They're some of the finest people I've ever had the honor of working with. Where do I even begin...?
There's the Plutonian - Tony. He was the first one to make a public debut. The team was his idea, as a matter of fact. He's easily the most powerful force for good that the Earth's ever seen, and I don't say that lightly.
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[That actually happened! And the more he thinks about it, the more convinced he becomes. Modeus was lying. I'd never do anything to harm him. Never.]
As a matter of fact - did you ever get to meet Superman, while he was here? They're uncannily similar. I about had a heart attack the first time I saw him.
no subject
I didn't. I met Steve Rogers, who wasn't an alien, so far as I know, but seems to be the same kind of personality: good guy, rescues people, cats from trees, etc. A golden retriever, and nice on the eyes, too. The kind of guy you want to be rescued by.
[This slips out before Newt can catch himself.] So, what happened to him?
1/2
2/2
Qubit stops mid-sentence, his eyes glazing over for a second. He blinks a few times and shakes his head clear, but still seems mildly disoriented.]
... Sorry. What was the question?
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[Well, now it's bugging him. Because something did happen to Tony. He squeezes his eyes shut, rubs his forehead with a couple of fingers, trying to think. What happened... to...
The man I murdered is you.
His eyes snap open, wide with horror.]
Oh, my God.
[He remembers now. He remembers everything. The last he saw of Tony... a withered, irradiated husk of a man, six-fingered hands scrabbling pathetically in the dust... wisps of life, once part of him, scattering to every corner of the multiverse... Tony, brought low for the first time in his life, hateful and afraid. Tony, dying.
Qubit's stomach turns, and he stands abruptly, taking his face out of frame. His leg bumps the table, and the comm falls face-up, providing a lovely view of the ceiling.]
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Hey! Oh, fuck. Qubit? Man, I'm sorry. I was just--
You okay?
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I'll call you back.
[His thumb has to fumble with the display a bit (is his hand shaking?) before the feed goes dead.]
Pt 1 of idk
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Offended aka worried
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Wait. Where DO you live? Why do I still not know this?
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audio
Sorry about that. Sabriel's people must have found what they were looking for.
audio
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