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I'm not a slave ...







|| OOC: Sorry for the delay, been busy and sick. If I missed anything PM me because I posted this with haste. ||

Just as Gabe was preparing to take off and desert base as his 'leader' had ditched him, Deacon chose to speak up on the irritating communicator. It seemed he had decided to boss them around some more while still failing to be present. Last time Gabe checked, the guy was able to phase through ******** walls, not read minds. What the ********? Needless to say the celebrity was not by any means happy with the recent development. It was a thorn in his side and part of him was ever so tempted to 'accidentally' misplace the troublesome piece of technology. He could tell them he took a really quick underwater tour to Atlantis with Lola and forgot to take the device off since coming up with an actual convincing lie just wasn't worth placing his time and resources into.

The actor did not bother to mask his displeasure at the undesirable orders sent to him, opening grimacing as soon as Deacon's voice broke out through the device. He concluded his reaction with an irritated, much longer than necessary groan, shrug of his shoulders and roll of his eyes. "This guy is sure turning out to be a real buzz kill ... Maybe I ought to bring a flask with me to this session to keep things interesting or maybe if I bring multiple flasks I'll have the liberty of passing out and skipping the exercise entirely. If only I was so lucky ..."

Upon being threatened by the blonde officer, Gabriel shook off her threat as though she were a cute puppy attempting to nibble on his shoes with an utterly amused smirk. He definitely appreciated the boldness that resided within this one, it was pretty clear she tried to keep herself prim and proper but he got the feeling if he prodded at her enough he could definitely unleash the beast within. The prospect of breaking her out of her methodical, predictable ways and coaxing her into anger was certainly appealing to the shape shifter but he would likely save that for another time. "I'll definitely make sure to rub you then," he assured her with a mock flirtatious wink, "the right way."

"Iron Knight, huh?" Gabe repeated with a tad of interest as he turned to Mason with crossed arms and a slight smirk as he awaited an explanation. "You must have slain her dragon."

Upon Isis chiding Mason for 'blowing up his head even more', Gabriel merely grinned at the prospect. It would be a wonderful experience to take flight at mere will, he wasn't quite so fortunate but he still possessed the capabilities if given enough time to make the adjustments required for doing so. "If we're going to be technical here," Gabriel facetiously assured with a goofy smirk indicating he was clearly aware Isis' comment about him taking flight had not been literal, "I already possess the ability to fly if I so choose so I can assure you have no need to worry about that." No need to worry over something that had already been made possible thanks to his p***k of a father. Not that he thought she was actually worried about it but he naturally decided to insert his two cents on the matter.

As Isis informed him his world was about to revolve around hers, he merely offered her an amused grin as response while outstretching his hand. He clearly wasn't hesitant to divulge his past or whatever it was she managed to get out of him. The actor's reputation was far from golden, at least behind closed doors. As far as the public and his fans were concerned he was a decent human being and a fairly normal guy. "Very well," he stated boldly before her eyes rolled back into her head to indicate she'd activated her ability, "enjoy yourself while you can and don't have too much fun in there." He didn't have anything to hide. His past was a somewhat dark one but he honestly could care less if she knew about it or not.

"Pretty sure," Gabriel teased the woman with a mock unimpressed tone, "he could have found that out by simply asking. I don't bite ... hard." A wink followed by another mischievous grin crossed his features before she moved on to address that his powers were not natural. Clearly she'd been able to decipher that he hadn't always been the way he was and that it was due to his father but that wasn't a horribly impressive feat. Then again, at least her abilities were legitimate and perhaps she was being respectful of him by not playing show and tell with his past too much. "He sure did," was Gabriel's nonchalant response to her daddy comment. He owed the man for everything he'd managed to make himself into but still despised the guy.

"Tower Jester and Iron Knight," Gabriel repeated out loud again with clear amusement from Lily's statement, "it sure sounds like you've made a name for yourself here. Glad to have someone else here that can steal my thunder, it gets tiring being noticed all the time. It's nice to get a break once in a while." Her follow up elicited a chuckle from the actor as she assured Gabriel he could abuse Mason at his leisure. At the very least it seemed this place had a few feisty women around and kicking. "Thanks for the memo: I guess my intuition is dead on today. I was definitely able to tell this one likes it rough." He offered another smile as his eyes made an unsubtle glance toward Isis to fulfill the implication behind his words. Mason seemed like a smart guy, Gabe would give him the credit to make the connection.

"That, in all honestly," Gabriel informed the demon, "depends on the human, dearest Dahlia." Little did she know words possessed far more power in the human world than he could probably manage to explain. Human emotions tended to be a fragile thing that were easily manipulated by words: perhaps someday the demoness would come to learn that and utilize it to her advantage. Compared to other species humans were feeble minded in their everlasting pursuit to belong and be accepted by others. The majority of them sought strength in numbers. Gabe had managed to harness the masses and captivate them to the point the majority of them had fallen in love with him simply because he appeared on screens and had lots of money: a concept he was certain would baffle poor Dahlia. Unlike most, however, Gabriel was all too aware that the crowd could turn against him at any point. That was why he had to be strategic in his 'political' maneuvering: fool the public into continuing to buy into him and adoring him. It was all a very intricate game, a balancing act that perhaps one day the demoness would come to appreciate.

"Fun for humans is what serves to amuse us. For instance: you are amused by the wails of the damned, am I right? Well, that would be something that you would call fun. Listening to and watching, or whatever it is you do to the damned, is fun for you just as ... oh I dunno, watching television would be for a human. By your standards it is probably a dull pass time, then again, you might like the variety television has to offer. It's hard to say." The demon was definitely interesting to the shape shifter: she was unpredictable and that was certainly a characteristic he savoured in others. It was boring being able to predict others all the time, it was nice to have a wild card around to keep him on his toes and guessing.

Gabriel mocked offense at the demoness' matter of fact statement that she would definitely not give him a tour of hell, even placing his hands on his hips while he grimaced and feigned pouting. "Well that's not very hospitable of you at all! A proper hostess would offer her guests a tour of her domain at the very least. Not that I'm surprised manners and hospitality don't exist in hell but yeesh!" He had more or less been joking about visiting the demoness' domain though he had a morbid curiousity of what it would actually be like. If he had the opportunity to visit without having to stay there damned for eternity, he definitely wouldn't pass the opportunity up. However, he was sure with the life he'd been leading that he'd probably eventually make his way down there by the end of it. At least he'd know someone there now ...

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Needless to say, the shape shifter definitely took his sweet time before he made his way to the training room their daring, bold, able to disappear in a flash when he was supposed to be mentoring them, leader had instructed them to congregate at. The actor had gone back to his room, and as he'd suggested the moment Deacon had chosen to disappear a second time, he'd decided to don a trench coat, a bad a** looking one at that, stashed full of flasks. The weight was not realistic for his purposes but after getting ditched by the guy twice the shape shifter wasn't really prepared to take the guy seriously. If he was expected to follow a guy who couldn't even keep track of his own team let alone himself, Gabe wasn't going to offer him much of anything let alone respect.

Along with the alcohol, he naturally accompanied it with cigarettes because everyone who actually drank knew that even the people without nicotine addictions occasionally craved a smoke while drinking. If he was going to be put through the hell of a training session: he was definitely opting to come prepared. He was going to assure he was loaded, and loaded quite well at that. Assuring one had enough rations and supplies was always a responsible thing to do and Gabe was performing his duty with utter sincerity. There would be no booze left behind, no cigarette unsmoked.

The actor was just about to start taking swigs of some Russian Standard Vodka when he decided he would relent and give Casper the ghost one more chance. If he was actually serious about meeting them in the training room, Gabe would at least reconsider taking his effects with him. If not, it would definitely be bottoms up for him and he'd be living the jolly good life just like Captain Jack Sparrow marooned on an island full of rum: except he would have a hell of a lot more variety in alcohols to choose from. That was always a plus: variety was a great thing.

As soon as he arrived, waltzing into the room without a single care in the world and overheard Ethan's question about Deacon having called the meeting to the room everyone had already beat him to, Gabe decided to break the silence and answer the poor lad. "You would be correct, good sir. And it would appear that pretty much everyone BUT Casper is here ... So ... I propose a toast to ghosts and their disappearing acts! Would you like a shot for the nerves?" He was sure to offer the stiff, grumpy looking guy a shot first (Ethan), he definitely seemed like he could use one. "If anyone else wants one, feel free." And with that, Gabriel broke open the booze and started dulling his senses and his cares one flask at a time.

d r e a m i n g about the things ↺ t h a t . w e could be

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxWe'll be counting stars yeah we'll be counting stars

Formalities in her small town had been unheard of before the arrival of a privileged young boy in pain. While he didn't quite understand their quiet way of life, her mother had soon let him have it for calling her “Ma'am” all of the time. Bree insisted that he remain the same lax style with her, and he argued – stating it was a form of respect. “It's odd to maintain that among friends though.” She said with a scrunch of her nose. “I'd hope you still think of me as a friend?” The dark-haired beauty asked a moment later, her implication enough that she'd get what she wanted in the end.

The job offer had been laid out in the open, and Gabriella wasted no time accepting it... especially after he said they would have accommodations for her within the tower. While she'd had a long run of youth, she had not lived long enough yet that finances weren't an issue. The idea of staying where she worked meant no rent and saved gas. Who would be stupid enough to throw that away? Deacon slipped up a bit in his wording as he explained the lodging situation though; he made it sound as though he were inviting her to stay in his room. Teasing him proved fun – after all of this time, the biokinetic had not thought it'd be so easy to make him stammer. “You alright there?” She asked with a wink, long eyelashes brushing over her cheeks. “I think I heard that shifting in your seat sometimes helps with that.” Her smile widened then, mischievous as it was pretty.

He then mentioned her work area, to which she bobbed her head along to the idea. “I'm sure you already have a makeshift clinic here somewhere, right? If so, I'll check it out and then we'll see what renovations I'll need for it.” Folding her hands in her lap she shrugged. “I would hate to be a bother to you.” Already he'd offered her a lot more than she had expected... at some point she'd just feel greedy.

When they spoke about her role on the team, she'd made it clear that she hadn't expected to be at that caliber when she came to ask about the job. While he didn't currently know that her anti-aging process was a side effect of her actual mutation, she still didn't have an ability suited for combat. She'd been chosen to nurture and care for the sick and abused... not to take on Superman's enemies. Though, Deacon did have a point about the triage. She wasn't sure how she'd feel about being so close to the heat of a chaotic, super-powered conflict, but at ground level, she could try to do a little crowd control and possibly help those who weren't able to help themselves. That he thought her being there would make that big of a difference elicited a small, humble smile. “I think you guys have been alright in that area without me so far. But I'll do what I can when and if I am out on the field.” The promise felt heavier to her than he probably realized; using her abilities to heal often left her exhausted, depending on how severe the wound or illness. Perhaps with practice though, she'd find it less taxing.

As they stood up to leave and meet the rest of the team, a figure haunted the doorway. She'd introduced herself, and after a brief handshake Nightwing withdrew his hand. She had said it was nice to meet him, but the stoic man chose not to respond in return. Reclusive. Sullen. Grouch? As they started down the hallway, Gabriella started making a list of ways to describe his less than amiable behavior. She didn't get very far however, as two individuals interrupted their stroll.

If she'd described Nightwing as inimical, she would have chosen their arrival as portentous. She fought the shiver that trilled down her spine, very well aware of the calculating stare that had landed on her. As she braved an introduction to them, the woman seemed to be the voice of the pair. Their exchange of handshakes told her much less than she had wished for it to – though at least she'd been able to tell by the brief contact that she was at least human. Her accent came out thick and almost musical, which caused Gabriella's head to tilt, as though it would allow her to hear it more clearly. The man standing behind her nodded, but offered nothing in addition to what his companion had said. Maybe he was the muscle... the silent body guard type? Quizzically, the biokinetic stole another glance at him, deciding that the enigmatic shroud around him far surpassed that of Nightwing's.

Deacon stated lucidly that whatever the matter of business, they could speak their peace in front of the current audience, and the pair seemed amused by his cautiousness. She entreated that the topic they wished to discuss was a sensitive one, delivering one name as a teaser. The name sounded vaguely familiar to Gabriella, though if either of them had been looking for terror to seize her expression, they would have been disappointed. She did however, frown as her emerald stare searched her old friend's face to gauge his reaction. The woman's temper frayed as she requested once again for a private audience.

Something felt different then, relaxing despite the potentially disastrous situation they found themselves in – even the girl in front of her seemed to loosen up a bit. Slowly, her muscles felt as though they were unwinding; her head felt the way it did after she left the saunas at the massage clinic. A delicate scent wafted through the air, and she found her lungs reveling in the cool feeling that breathing left her with.

Still watching them carefully, Bree watched a ghost of a smirk touch the strange man's lips before he transformed back into stone again. Had he caused the feel-good effects? Just who were these people?

Nightwing spoke in a language that she didn't recognize, but she guessed that the strangers would. Before she could try and figure out what he'd said, or even what country it was from, she felt his hand on her shoulder. While he didn't press down upon her to achieve her submission, Bree could feel the strength in his firm grip – a small iota of what he was probably capable of. He suggested they leave, and Gabriella nodded, though surprised by his invitation for her to join him. “We'll be in the training room with the rest of the team when you're done here.”

She followed the caped crusader down the corridors, waiting until they rounded a corner to say a word. Without a guide, she'd have no idea where she was headed... so while he didn't seem to be the friendliest of company, the newcomer in the Tower was grateful to have him around. “What did you say back there, if you don't mind me asking?” Her own accent came out thick then, less Americanized than what he had heard before, as she forgot to curb it.

The Training Room

Nightwing opened the door to what she assumed was the training room, and Bree took a deep breath before slipping in – unsure of what to expect. There were a number of people already gathered here, talking amongst themselves while they waited for the leader, who had been delayed initially because of her. Rather than jump straight into a conversation uninvited, she chose to be the observer... thoroughly wishing that Deacon had been here as a buffer. Right now, knowing that every person in the room likely had a super power... she felt like a fish out of water.

Deacon Richards
Location: Hallway
Thoughts: Two on one, not a fan of these odds…




“Please, call me Deacon. Mister is reserved for my father.” he responded to the girl’s inquiry of the topic of discussion. She name-dropped Ra’s Al Ghul, a name he hadn’t heard in a long time. He remembered hearing about it in the Bat-Cave when he was first recovering from when he was on ice. “The Demon’s Head” as he had been known, the head of an international cartel of assassins and terrorists with a surprisingly unique goal: population control. Ra’s Al Ghul was the world’s first eco-terrorist.

“I believe that is the name of a man that’s been dead for a while.” she seemed to know the man as if he was still breathing. He remembered how Terry and Bruce had managed to foil his supposed final scheme, dying in the process. His apprehension had grown further, compounded by the fact that the two of them had the look in their eyes like they had a very good idea on how to kill someone without leaving too much of a trace.

The male of the duo seemed strained, was he perhaps her brother? They struck him as siblings, twins even. He clenched his jaw, Deacon had taken note of his reserved, almost stressed poise as things… got way too calm for the situation that he was in. What the hell was going on? Who the hell were these two?

Bree and Nightwing took the opportunity to leave, something he was glad to see happen. He didn’t want them around much longer, hopefully he could resolve this quick and get to training. Or he’d be dead in a ditch, he wasn’t too sure.

“Come this way, but please, leave whatever crap you guys are pumping into the air outside. I want a clear head for this discussion.” he said to them in a strangely calm tone. He could smell something too, was it rain? Strange with all this.

Reina
“As you wish Mis…" She cleared her throat. "Deacon.” She said softly as she followed behind Deacon. Her brother close to her heels whom she cast a quick glance over her shoulder. “Dryu ya v poryadke.” She said as their eyes met and he gave her a subtle nod and within moments the pheromones began to dissipate allowing the clean, cool air of their air system to once more fill their lungs. Offering Dru a smile she returned her gaze back toward Deacon. Who was even more observant than she would have thought the understudy of the Dark Knight would have been. It earned him a little more respect from her.

“Is that more to your liking Deacon?” She inquired. She gave a soft chuckle. “Very few can detect my brother’s pheromones, you must be well trained. No?”

Deacon
Entering his office, he motioned for the two of them to enter, he offered a simple nod when she asked if the dissipation of whatever the hell was being put into the air was gone, remarking that guessing the use of pheromones was impressive, “I hadn’t guessed pheromones. I assumed something was in the air when I was calming down way too fast.” he offered a smirk. The truth was, he had a guess on what was happening but he couldn’t take a full stab at it. During his time in the Cave he was put through some theoretical loops, he even at one point went through exposure to the Scarecrow’s Fear Gas. That was a trip to say the least.

So to say he was experienced in dealing with airborne variables would be a bit of an understatement.

Looking to the brother he offered a smirk, “Next time try and ease into it, you came on a little too strong. I imagine this is the same line of thinking you use at a bar eh?” he added, giving the two of them a bit of his smartass tone. Given that they showed up unexpectedly and uninvited, he felt he reserved the right to be a bit of a d**k until they proved themselves.

“So given you’re siblings, I take it you” he said pointing to the girl, “must have some kind of super dangerous ability that would require something like him to calm people down.” He was guessing at this point, hell she could just be completely insane for all he knew. His abilities could very well be what keeps her form of psychosis in check.

God knows with everyone around here these days.


Reina
Alexandreina needed little encouragement as Deacon ushered them into his office. Her gaze quickly scanned the room, taking in all the vantage points and disadvantages. What could be used as a weapon. Where he might have weapons hidden. And so on and so forth, each detail forever embedded in her memory before finally lifting her gaze at Deacon’s admission. She waved her hand. “Never the matter, very few realize what is happening let alone who is doing it.” Dru gave an indignant snort and folded his arms across his broad, muscular chest as he leaned against the wall and tucked his chin down.

She knew he wasn’t doing it for their benefit, but for hers. Her temper when roused could lead to catastrophic events and that was something they would both like to avoid especially considering they were here for aid. Wouldn’t want a tornado to kick up the moment she had accesses to the atmosphere and knowing her she would open a window just for spite.

Reina’s attention was jerked back toward Deacon and then quickly to her brother who didn’t even bother to move, but she could tell that the saucy tone of the other male had struck a nerve with him. The way the muscle in his jaw ticked – she knew it took all of his strength not to unsheathe one of his blades and give the walls of the office a fresh coat of red. She sighed and looked back toward her brother’s antagonist, her mouth cut in a grim line as he continued. “My brother’s ability is to keep me calm, what it does for other’s is of little concern of mine. And yes, my ability can be quiet dangerous. But that is not why we’re here.” She cleared her throat and sank down into a chair and crossed her legs.

Waiting little time she dove right into her tail. “My brother and I from the time we were very young have been raised by the League of Assassins. Under the care and protection of Ra’s al Ghul. My brother and I are well trained and – “ She found the fair hue’s of his irises. “we are very good at what we do. So rest easy if we wanted harm toward you and yours, you one,” She held up her index finger. “You wouldn’t have known we were here. “ she then held up another finger alongside the first. “Two would already be dead or close to it. But anyway.” Her hand fell down to her lap. “That matters very little. What does matter is that some time ago my brother and I were presented with a proposition to become the predecessors of our father but there was a catch only one of us could carry on the name.”

She looked down, her lashes fanning against her cheeks as she recalled the painful memory. “We were told to fight till the death, the winner would carry on and the looser well…” Her voice trailed off as she once more looked up toward the man that would be either her salvation or her damnation. Would he help them or would he cast them off and let them handle the bull’s eye that was now on their backs.

“We come here to ask for sanctuary and in return we will pledge ourselves to the league and your cause.”

Deacon
He gave a calm motion for the two of them to sit, which the female of the species decided to follow. The brother of the duo propped himself along the wall, putting his arms across his chest and giving him the old “tough guy” cliché. Granted, its entirely possible given their supposed skillset he can back up the attitude. Though, of all the things he knew, he knew how to mess with people. He noticed how his words got to the young assassin. He chuckled a bit to himself as he saw the rise he put in the boy. He may be big, but the truth was he viewed him with the same regard as a child puffing out his chest. It didn’t phase him frankly.

“Given your supposed specialty I can see why that’d be the case. Pump that into a room and you can lull someone into a false sense of security. Not a bad way to go about it if you’re gonna knife someone.” he wasn’t entirely sure about how they used his powers, but he had a pretty good idea. He heard their yarn, how they were trained by Ra’s Al Ghul as part of the League. How they’d killed many people over their short lives. And how they reached their breaking point when they were pitted against each other in order to be named his successor. It all seemed just a bit too fortuitous, but he was willing to let it slide.

After all, he was cryogenically frozen for four to five decades.

As she finished her tale, she requested sanctuary among the League with the exchange of the two of them following the group.

“Well as far as places to go, you are smart.” he replied, offering a joking tone towards the two of them, “Muscles over there may not realize it, but going to such a publicly recognized group offers you two far more protection. After all, two superheroes, twins even, getting assassinated shortly after they join? Ra’s will not be pleased, but he’s not that rash. He’d be named the prime suspect, and his organization would come under the radar by the entire world.”

Stretching his neck a bit, letting his vertebrae pop and crack a bit, he looked to the two of them, “Please keep in mind I am going to have you two debriefed. By the League, and some others that will want to know your background. We’re also going to need to put you two on a form of house arrest, in order to make sure we can both trust you, and make sure your colleagues aren’t after you as we speak. Agree to those terms, along with following my lead, and I will welcome in you both. We will provide shelter, protection, even new identities for the two of you if you wish.”

He added, his tone getting surprisingly dark“But know this, and know it well. If anything comes to harm a member of my team that has your involvement, I will end you both and sleep like a baby. Am I understood?” he already nearly got one of his teammates hurt because of a mistake, he wasn’t going to let that happen again. His blue eyes flashed bright in the lighting of the office, the tattoos on his forearms glowed brightly. In this he meant his word to an absolute.

Assassin or not, you can’t stop a man who can take a step towards you unseen and crush your heart in your chest.

Reina
The snort her brother gave as Deacon agreed with her approach was nearly for the grim line of her mouth to waver and curl into a smile. She pressed them together instead and flicked a glance back toward her twin through the crest of her lashes. He didn’t look up but she could sense that he was watching her waiting for her to torment him as she often did when she was right but instead she tucked a strand of wayward hair behind one ear and lifted her gaze to once more find Deacon’s, listening as he continued on.

She herself couldn’t help the quirk of her brow or the most unladylike snort that eminated from her. If she and her twin would become victims by one of his assassin’s means there would be no way to trace it back to him. He would likely have the fool killed shortly thereafter so to cover up any wrongdoing on his part. However, he did make a good point, Ra’s al Ghul was not by any definition of the word – rash. He was precise, well planned and a cunning man.

“Naturally.” She replied with a nod, uncrossing and then recrossing her legs before once more resting her hands in the cradle of her lap. She agreed but she could sense the subtle glare from her twin. Like two lazors fixed on the back of her head. He wasn’t like this, this rule thing. He would much rather they handle it on their own and even more so following his own rules. His own code. Alexandru was by no means a cruel man – he just lacked the moral compass that most individuals had. He use to have it once, but it had been beaten out of him. Now the only person in this world that he cared about was Reina and any thread of trust he’d had with others was shattered the day that he had been ordered to kill her. He would never admit it, least of all to her but she knew it to be true.

Casting him a glance over her shoulder, she met his gaze. He wasn’t happy about this but with a sigh she knew that he wouldn’t argue. He would do what was asked of him even if it went against his very nature. She looked back toward Deacon as he finished, his tone turning solemn and there was no playful glint in his eye. Instead they flashed like azure steel against the light and the interesting markings on his arms became visible glowing almost in the same hue. She met his gaze head on, her own never wavering as she rose to her feet in one fluid motion. Chocolate orbs slid over him as she contemplated everything he’d said before she held out a sure hand, her gaze meeting his once more.

“It is as you would say a deal” She held out an open hand for him to clasp. “Now that we shall be working together Deacon, you may call me Alexandreina or Reina and my brother is Alexandru or Dr-“ She was cut off by the deep tones of her brother’s voice.

“Just Alexandru, sister.” He said finally stepping away from the wall and coming to stand behind her. He didn’t offer his hand but he bowed his head in respect. “Thank you for your aid however before I agree to anything. “He pushed down his sister’s hands his dark gaze rising and clashing with the fair hues of the other male. “Know that I will protect my sister above all else and if anything happens to her I will reciprocate in the same fashion.” The firm cut of his mouth curved into a cruel smile. “And I too shall sleep well.” She could almost roll her eyes at him they were seconds away from gaining the help that they needed and he may have just blown it all out of the water. She shot him a glare and pulled her hand away from him.

“I apolo-“

“Do what you will sister, but I will not allow my word to be unheard in the matter of your safety.” He uttered his passion in the matter making his accent so thick that to the untrained and unfamiliar ear some words may not have been comprehendible. She sighed. She knew that in this matter there would be no yielding, he had been protecting her since she was old enough to walk and had taken it upon himself to be her guardian. The gods must have had the same thought when they blessed him with his power and cursed her with her own. She nodded and looked back toward Deacon.

“If everyone is understood, we have a deal – no?”

Deacon
He stood there, waiting for the two of them to consider his terms. He made it clear to them, that he’d have no problem with putting them both down if he had to. The girl, who soon identified herself as Reina was clearly the negotiator of the two, the one with what one may consider a bit of social learning. So when she made introductions, he was pleasantly surprised when her brother, Alexandru interrupted and added his own terms. He had to smirk, he liked the directness of his statement, showed Deacon that he wasn’t just dealing with one of them.

“Perhaps I should have been talking with you. To the point, I like that.” he replied, his tone a bit lighter, “Were I in your position, I’d probably be just as if not more forceful. However, I’m not. So for the time being, I’ll accept this as a pact of mutually assured destruction. Please understand, you two are my responsibility, as well as my teammates. I will need you to do things that you may not agree with, I may even split you two up based on what I need you to do. But I will not actively put either of you in harms way, and I will need you to be willing to work with me. Trust will come, over time of course.”

“But until then, I’ll settle for this. Now, if you two don’t mind I need the three of us to make it downstairs. I have a team waiting very patiently on me, and I’m at the point where I’ve been testing that patience. he motioned for them to follow, holding the door open for them.

Training Room

His teammates minus two had been waiting patiently for him. He could tell there was some impatience to be growing amongst them. To which he offered a troubled smile and raising his hands.

“I apologize, I got slammed up in the office. No rest for the wicked I suppose. That being said, we have a few new members to the team I’d like to introduce. Now, hopefully you’ve all at least encountered Gabriella Maddox. Ms. Maddox will be our medical support in the field and on base, patching us up where and when she can. The other two, I’d like to have them introduce themselves. But for now, I’ll just refer to them as the Wonder Twins.” he offered a gesture making Bree to emphasize her importance. Following that he motioned towards Reina and Alexandru in order for the two of them to introduce themselves.

“So I realized something in the past couple of weeks. The first time the League ever came together, it was in the face of something none of them could take on their own. They won out, despite their issues trusting one another. We’ve already had that, we need to be cohesive, organized. We need to trust each other out there. And that’s the reason for this exercise, so please don’t expect there to be much sweat.” he motioned over to the area opposite of them, as a series of pylons rose out of the ground. Each one began to crackle with a small surge of energy. Out of his pocket, he produced a handful of blindfolds.

“Now here’s the exercise. Each of you will be put into pairs, one of whom will be blindfolded. The half that isn’t blinded, needs to guide the other through these pylons. And to emphasize the seriousness, I’ve had these pylons running with volts of electricity. Don’t worry, it won’t kill you, it’ll just hurt like hell. And before you think you can memorize the path, each time a pair goes through the path changes randomly.

“I’ll volunteer to go first blindfolded. Who would be so kind as to be my guide?”

OOC: Sorry for taking so long to get this post out! Also, developments coming up for this arc! Stay tuned!

The young wizard could understand why Savanna might object to such a large influx of new strangers joining their team. As it was, the team was hardly a cohesive unit. They did not exactly need many more to make it even more difficult for them to bond. More people meant more personalities to clash. Or, as M would put it, “More people means more assholes.” Aurelio did not exactly agree, as he tended to give everyone a chance, but he could agree that a lot of people would at least make it difficult for the others to get along. There were already so many others who seemed to get off on the wrong foot, and others still who seemed to want nothing less than to tear another's head completely off its shoulders. Worse yet, many of the team members, including himself, seemed to have lost all confidence in their team leader, and if the new members caught on and Deacon did not tighten up his act, he could be looking at potential mutiny in his hands. That was the last thing they needed at this point. ”Perhaps,” he said with a shrug. ”But in my experience, good ideas are rarely very fun.” An exgeration, perhaps, but usually it was stupid decisions that lead him on the most memorable adventures. ”That remains to be seen,” he said with a smirk to their apparent newest member.

It was a bit tough to explain just how it was that his magic tended to affect advanced technology around him. Most probably would not understand, least of all Savanna. It was not that she was unintelligent, but simply that she rarely understood even his simplest of explanations. Not that he blamed her; it was difficult for anyone who did not know the deeper secrets of magical practice to fathom its concepts. The very idea of magic baffled even the most educated with no affinity for it, and sometimes it even managed to find ways to confuse one like him with experience with even the most abstract of concepts. Magic was divinity and mudanity all wrapped into one. It was living, yet not. It was the great mystery that every major religious text failed to fully interpret. He searched for the words to properly express an explanation in a way Savanna, and Elke as well, would understand. ”I'm afraid no amount of tinkering with gadgets would really help, Elke. Whatever they give me would just find itself short circuiting.” Magic and technology seemed to have an inherent misunderstanding with each other; phones signals would turn to statis around him, televisions would fail to get an appropriate signal, street lamps would choose the exact moment he was under them to short out momentarily, et cetera. ”Magic is energy. Some energies interfere with electronics inherently. Think of a storm that causes a signal to go out. It's the same concept, only on a more personal level. Magic and electronics just do not get along for the most part. It has little to do with my amulet, other than the fact that it itself is magic.”

It seemed that everyone, for the most part, was thinking the same thing: where the hell was Deacon? Why was it that every time he called meetings together he either left far too soon or did not show up? While not everyone voiced such thoughts, he suspected they at least thought it to some extent. So far he seemed to be quite a bit of a flake, unfortunately for the rest of the team who was at least interested in being part of the team. Without strong, and more importantly consistent, leadership, they were bound to fall apart in record time. Some were quick to voice their displeasure at the lack of their leader's presence. Ethan, for example, asked the room if Deacon had called the metting from the training area itself. It did not make much sense to call a meeting and not be there to greet those who showed up. He simply shook his head in response. Gabe was a bit more vocal, apparently ready to get drunk out of his mind and offering a toast to the absense of their leader. Lily chimed in as well, protesting that she could have been having breakfast. ”And I could have been butchering Velvet Underground songs on my guitar,” he said with a chuckle and a shrug. Everyone seemed to have something they would have preferred to do at the moment, and he was no exception.

Mason seemed to be under the impression that they might possibly be fighting each other in this training exercise. Isis seemed hopeful over the proposal. Aurelio did not know how to feel about such an exercise. It would just be training, and it never hurt to brush up on one's martial skills, but if there was one thing that Aurelio detested above all else it was violence. Aurelio simply did not like to fight, under any circumstance. He became a superhero to protect people, not to fight. Unfortunately, sometimes he would be forced to fight, but he never once enjoyed it. Once, in his youth, he often fantasized about fighting crime in tights with his trust bow and arrow a la his hero the Green Arrow, but that was no longer his dream. He only ever wanted to help others and resolve disputes in the most peaceful methods possible. That was what being a wizard meant to him, seeking out the least violent ways to deal with evil. Fighting came as a last resort to him. He was not bred for violence the way the team's resident demon was, or even some of the others on his team. Aurelio believed in the Threefold Law, the rule that stated that whatever actions you made were reward times three; good deeds came back to oneself, but likewise so did the bad, and violence was very, very bad. To some people, notably those with evil intent, karma was indeed a b***h.

Savanna complained that she wished they could hurry things along. He knew she meant it harmlessly, but given his experiences in the last day, the absolutely last thing he wanted at the moment was more messing around the perception of time. Perhaps in time he would tell them all of his experiences in New Jersey, but for now he would keep quiet. It wasn't need-to-know information, as it were. His eyes followed the cat-woman as she perched herself atop the balance beam. He shrugged at her question at first. ”Knowing the superhero type, it'd likely be something that involves punching, much to my dismay.” Perhaps that was a bit more cynical than usual, but it was no less valid a guess as far as he was concerned. If that was the case, he wanted to get this over with even sooner. His eyes soon moved to the entrance as two more joined their merry get together; this universe's version of Nightwing, and a new female he did not know. He nodded to both of them. This team was getting larger all the time. Briefly he wondered if she... no, he could not think of her now. She was not here with them, so it was a moot point regardless. He would have to visit her after this to see how she was doing. He felt guilty about the circumstances he'd left her with, leaving her all alone like that, but there were things he needed to take care of that she could not be a part of. Still, he hoped she read his note.

Eventually, they were finally joined by their leader, and he seemed to be followed by yet two more new members. What was that he'd thought about this team getting bigger all the time? He introduced the female that came in with Nightwing as their medical support, no doubt a useful position for a team that was sure to see danger in the foreseeable future(if they ever got out of this training session, that is). He introduced the other two as the “Wonder Twins.” Funny, they did not look like Jaina and Zan; but then, alternate realities, and all that. Deacon went on to explain they would not be sweating profusely this exercise, and that it was all about building trust. Well, at the very least there would not be any fighting, though he could not say the alternative given was much better.. ”So it's Knightmare,” he said, mostly to himself, with a slight frown. He doubted anyone here would know what Knightmare was. Hell, even in his time he would doubt if anyone knew what Knightmare was. One had to be a special kind of nerd to know British kids' game shows as much as he did. This was the famous stress test? He had to say, he was a little disappointed. All this seemed like an opportunity for the more devious members of the team to mess with everyone else and just drive them even further apart. Not that it would affect him all that much, since he would be immune to the effect of the electricity anyway.

Either way, he did not foresee this in any way really helping the trust situation within the team the way Deacon might have thought it would. Moreover, he had doubts over whether or not this would help the team gain any confidence in their team leader. It seemed to be a lose-lose situation no matter what, and this was coming from the team's resident optimist.

Training Area
Here we go...

Alexandru gave a snort of indifference as he eyed the other male. He let Reina do most of the talking when dealing with such situations because she was better at it. She understood and picked up on the social ques that alluded him on more than one occasion. But he appreciated Deacon’s approval of his direct approach. But he wasn’t looking for it, nor did he need it and he most certainly wasn’t here to make friends. His only concern was Alexandreina. His icy pools shifted to the corner of his eye so he could get a better look at her. She wasn’t happy with him at all for interrupting her and he could only image what she would do if she were outside.

The corner of his mouth twitched, as a smirk tried to form but he smoothed it over. Pressing his lips together he looked back toward Deacon. He’d worry about her tantrum later. It wasn’t the first time she’d taken s**t out on him and it wouldn’t be the last. He listened intently and as the other male broached the subject on separating them he felt Reina go completely still. She didn’t even breath for a second.

His gaze returned to her. Her entire posture was tense, unsure, it was clear that she hadn’t thought they would be separated and truthfully neither had he. He figured they’d consult and be able to be together. So that he could watch over her, make sure she was safe. Being apart from her made him unsure. He studied her quietly and the only thing that gave her away was the small crease in her brow just above the bridge of her nose. It was her tell and any time she was upset it would show. Usually followed by a cataclysmic event.

With little prompting he allowed the soothing pheromones to slowly seep from him and drift to her. Only enough to take off the edge and he watched and waited. Her chest rose, held for a moment and then fell and he watched her shoulders slump into a relaxed position. That was better.

Her lashes fell near her cheeks as brown irises flickered toward him. A silent thank you before they both turned back toward Deacon. When he was finished both twins nodded together and remained perfectly silent and with their introduction out of the way the two followed him down to the training room where to their surprise were a large number of individuals. This… was going to be one hell of a long day.

Clasping his arms behind his back he stood near Reina. His pale gaze sliding over everyone. This was a group filled to the rim with misfits. The rejects of the world. He thought idly before then looking around the room, cataloging all weapons, things that could obviously be made into weapons as well as ones that would need some creative license. As well as the exits and entrances and he was sure that Reina was doing the same thing. They were preprogrammed for it after all. It was as natural to them as breathing only when Deacon got to the part about them did he even bother to look in the fair haired male’s direction.

Wonder Twins…

His brow rose into a high peak, disappearing into ebony bangs that fell across his brow. What in the god damn world was this man thinking? Wonder twins? He cast a look toward Reina who blinked several times, her brow crinkling together. Clearly she wasn’t to keen on the title either. However she bowed her head to the group and begrudgingly he did gave a stiff nod and folded his arms over his chest and began to plot all the ways he would make Deacon regret such a name and thankfully he could multitask because next their leader began running down the exercise they would be doing. <********.

He sighed. This man really did have a death wish. He thought even as he continued on with explaining what they would be doing. Reina stepped closer, brushing her shoulder against his and when he looked up at her he found her looking dead ahead. Lines of determination were set around her mouth. He was proud of her, in a place where if so much as one person knew who they truly were they would be condemned she looked fearless. But he knew that inside she was concerned, which is why she sought his comfort. He doubted she even realized she did it. But it was his job to know, his job to watch her and observe her to know when she was near exploding. He turned his wrist outward and brushed his now exposed finger tips against her open palm. Soothing her with his touch. She didn’t both to look back and didn’t need to, he knew she was grateful for him.

Glancing ahead he continued to listen silently and went temptation rose to guide Deacon through the training course he was tempted to raise his hand just to give the p***k a little jolt every now and then. But that wouldn’t be smart biting the hand that was now feeding him. He sighed, there went his fun. So he waited to be shown how this would be done. Waited quietly, observantly and with the slightest bit of curiosity. He had never been involved in training exercises like this. Where it meant something to aid your partner, your team. The only person on the planet he’d been in trusted to care for was his twin.

It was foreign and uncomfortable to him. To care for the safety of another and to trust them to care for his, but outside of his sister was it even possible? His dark brows drew together as his gaze once more roved over his other teammates. He watched them till a set of long legs and blonde hair caught his attention. His brow rose in question. Watching her approach as if she were catiously coming to great a feral dog. He was even tempted to snap his teeth at her but held back the urge. He didn’t feel like getting a sharp elbow in the ribs from Reina—and she would do it, with relish. So quietly he watched her come closer, closer. Could she move any bloody faster? He gritted his teeth and gave a glance back to Reina, he didn’t want to leave her side but it seemed that in this excursive he would have to do just that.

Brushing his thumb along her wrist, his touch subtle and unnoticeable for those nearby as he turned his body and closed the remaining distance between him and his partner. Oooh goodie. Those pale pools glided over her from top, to bottom before they once more rose and settled upon her eyes, she was pretty or what most would consider to be pretty just not his kind of pretty. If there was even such a thing. He didn’t smile. He didn’t wave. He didn’t say hi or hey. He just studied her for a long quiet moment before folding his massive arms over his chest and nodded. She would do. Not like he had a choice in the matter. Drawing in a deep breath he got down to business. “I know you’re probably thrilled about being partnered with me.” Sarcasm dripped from his lips. After all who would be? He looked like he could kill a cute fluffy kitten with just one look and feel nothing for it. “And the feeling is quite mutual, however we don’t have to like each other we just have to be willing to trust one another long enough to do this exercise.”

Why did it have to be trust? He gnashed his teeth together. Trust was something that had been torn from him, chewed up and spat back out and whatever had been left, had died the day Ra’s tried to get him to murder his sister. Alexandru, pivoted on his heel and looked toward the pylons that hummed with their electrical current. He rubbed the stubble of his chin between his fingers and looked toward Elke from the corner of his eye. “What are your abilities? “ Assuming they were allowed to use them and being that Deacon hadn’t said otherwise, it would be important to know what they had to work with. If there was any at all and he doubted that there was.

[ooc//sorry dru's such a sour-pus]

Aiden watched the small woman carefully, blue eyes quiet and sharp like that of a hawk. It wasn’t like him to be so serious and chilled outside of a mission. From the very first impression that he’d given those at the Watch Tower, they would likely recall an easy going corn-fed cop that was quick with the wisecracks. Telling himself that Karmen hadn’t really meant what she’d said the week before hadn’t helped. He didn’t know why her opinion mattered so much, but it did.

She read him a line of bull that sounded like it might be something that she would tell a shrink under fire. “Say what you will… I know defeatist attitude when I see it—And I must be one of those dangerous people, since you keep avoiding me.”

Though for the life of him, he couldn’t figure out why he was dangerous. It had already been proven that she was safer with him than without him. He didn’t bother pointing out that she wasn’t dealing with her grief, his head slowly shaking. Something told him that she already knew. She simply ran away—As far and as fast as her little feet could take her. “This isn’t the only way…”

“You shouldn’t have had to feel that way in the first place, K.”

Normally he might have placed his hands on her shoulders, just to try and reassure her—But Karmen was already a frightened rabbit, shifting her weight from one foot to the other. If he broke the frail bubble of protection she’d wrapped herself in, she’d slip through his fingers like sand.

“Lily was well protected. With everyone obsessing about her, no one really expected that an outside party would try something with you. Your accident falls on all of us. If we would have treated Lily more like a team member, and less of a kid sister with training wheels, we might have seen the bigger picture.”, Aiden murmured quietly, feeling the anxiousness that this subject brought the pyrokinetic. With every topic that came up, except for things that pertained to herself, she wore her heart on her sleeve. She agreed to put the incident in the past…But Aiden couldn’t say he fully believed her.

Correction, he believed that she’d try. He just wasn’t sure if it would actually happen anytime soon.

Her chuckle when he growled about the team meeting cut off his response to her acknowledging that he wasn’t the jackass who’d harmed her before. The sound silenced him and smoothed some of his rougher edges, but it was short lived. With Deacon calling, quite like his mother telling him to wash his hands before dinner, Aiden knew they didn’t have much time.

He cut to the chase, explaining his current intentions. She needed someone to get her out of her own head when things went south, if nothing else. The future was uncertain, and certain nothing he could plan for. All he could do was trust in his gut, in his own word. “Try Karmen…That’s all I’m asking. If you’re never ready….”

“We can kick it in the garage and clean engines all night, listening to some good old mullet rock. None of that girly junk.”, the cryokinetic threw a joke into the conversation, coupling it with a familiar crooked grin. She knew how much he revered Lynyrd Skynyrd’s greatest hits. Her small whisper had betrayed her fears, and like some kind of emotional radar he picked up on it immediately. “Just like we do now.”

Aiden was trying to take away some of the pressure away with levity so she could breathe again. Her view of herself was so skewed… It felt like it would be a dogs age before he could get her to see the woman he saw.

To the Training Session…

They made it just in time for Deacon to go over the rules, just late enough to miss Elke laying in on a groupie that was only slightly newer than himself. He felt pretty much the same way that everyone else did about trust exercises. Downright jolly. Giddy, even. If it weren’t for the fact that he knew they occasionally helped small fragmented groups of people bond, he might have sighed aloud from the feeling of being put through paces.

At the police academy they’d always been a double edged sword. Depending on the activity and the individual, it could make things better, or substantially worse. It was interesting that Deacon was actually participating, so it made him wonder who the facilitator would be to monitor progress and halt anything that went wrong.

Aiden felt mostly normal for the first time since returning to the base from their siesta. His eyes weren’t glazed with frost, nor did an arctic chill seem to emanate from his vicinity. Catching Karmen’s words a slow grin spread over his features and he responded teasingly, “It sounds like summer camp activities to me. Want to be my bunk buddy?”

Unfortunately, buddies were already chosen for them. Surprise, surprise—Karmen was sent to Mason.

The cryokinetic headed towards Deacon to pick up a blind fold, somehow managing not to scowl. Aiden was a strong ally, a good officer, and an excellent soldier. He followed instructions without question, with the exception of these little get togethers. Deacon would have to understand, considering they’d been gone for a week, and they hadn’t even unpacked yet.

“Sir.”, he greeted the leader of their guerilla group with a sharp nod, taking a step forward so that they were near shoulder to shoulder. He didn’t want the rest of the room to overhear. “She still blames herself for what happened.”

There should be no question of the ‘she’ or ‘what happened’. Glacier eyes flickered for a moment, and he made sure to keep his voice low. He wasn’t tattling on Karmen, but it was important that Deacon be kept in the loop. If he wouldn’t speak to him about it, he should at least speak to her. A friend telling her that it could have happened to anyone didn’t mean as much as the head cheese saying it. The more she doubted herself, the more mistakes would follow. “Respectfully, I apologize for being late. It won’t happen again.”

“That being said…If what happened to her before, happens again—I’ve heard you’re familiar with ice. I’ll be kindly returning you to it.”

Aiden gave the base leader what should have been a polite grin that quickly turned thin before continuing on his way. Deacon didn’t realize how tempting it was to volunteer to lead him through the pylons. In his current mood, the cryokinetic would have done it specifically just get him electrocuted on each and every one.

A trust exercise should NOT involve pain. Training sessions…He could expect nothing less. If that was the case, fine—But if not, they shouldn’t be masquerading this activity as something that it wasn’t.

Associating trust with unpleasantness was the very last way to get through to someone. They were trying to condition people, not animals gathered together for painful experimentation.

He didn’t recognize the name of the person he’d been assigned to, except from when Deacon had introduced her to the group, but it wasn’t hard to find the shapely brunette. Holding out his hand an unintentionally charming smile slid across chiseled features, causing a severe expression to melt away. For the time being, he’d gotten what piss and vinegar he’d needed to get out of his system. “Ma’am.”

“I don’t think we’ve met before.”, the cryokinetic stated the obvious, noting that she seemed a little off kilter. He could hardly blame her. Glancing over at the pylons, he started to crease the blind fold properly, intending on wearing it. Electricity wasn’t his friend, considering the close relationship to ice and water… But there wasn’t a chance in hell he’d submit such a little cat of a woman to possible electrocution. His mother had raised him better. “It’s a little forward…But would you consider doing me the honor of leading me through this exercise?”