2013.05.05 - A Monument to His Hammer

The construction equipment and fences have finally been removed from around the new science and engineering building that has been built on the NYU campus. The building is modern in design, slick glass and metal walls and sharp corners, with a large concrete pavilion spread out in front of it. The pavilion is currently filled with metal folding chairs occupied by students, staff, and a range of important individuals who have turned out for the grand opening ceremony. Just in front of the huge front facade of the building is a podium and several more chairs with more important faces, mostly school staff. The center of attention, however, is the well dressed man of average height standing in front of the podium with a microphone, motioning back toward the building. "...And I can only hope that the new Hammer Industries Science and Research Building will help to bring a host of new talent into this changing world," Justin says with a flair of his hand. His speech, which has gone on for a painful fifteen minutes now, finally seems to be wrapping up.
"I hope that they got someone other than Hammer industries designed this place." Ulrik says in thickly accented English as he stands in the crowd watching as the building as Hammer makes his speech. The blonde teen stands there with his hands in the pockets of his thin sweater jacket, hair sticking out from under his flatcap rather messily. Apparently he did not get dressed up for this particular occasion. He does look the building over appraisingly, he'd seen it being built but it's still worthy of inspection.
A soft hum fills the air as an object appears from the sky. To many the sound is recognizable sound of the Fantastic Four's Mark 1 Fantasticar, lovingly dubbed the 'Flying bathtub' by the Thing. Its slow as it starts to circle the grounds, most likely looking for a spot to set down, a head peeks over the side. "Susan, I do believe we're late." Doctor Reed Richards, Super scientist has come out of his tower to greet the young minds of the college and give the new Hammer Building a proper and analytic look over.
"I /told/ you we should have left fifteen minutes earlier," is Sue's reply to Reed, but her tone is not at all scolding. More fondly mocking. "I hope we're not going to create too much of a fuss showing up this late." She's not peeking over the side of said bathtub, more than content to wait until it's safely settled on the ground. She might have no problems at all traipsing about the city with nothing but an invisible force field between herself and streets and cars, but this so-called Fantasticar... she just can't convince herself that it's truly safe.
"So I..." Justin Hammer trails off as he looks up at the strange vehicle coming into the area. It's a very recognizable piece of equipment, and he can guess who's aboard. This could either be a great piece of publicity, or it could steal his spotlight. His expression drops slightly at the thought of some of the local supers upstaging him. Forcing a smile and looking back to the audience, the CEO picks up where he left off. "And so I hearby open this new building for the betterment of us all." One of the occupants of the chairs by the doors rises, taking the microphone from Justin and handing him a pair of scissors. Grinning widely, Justin cuts the ribbon strung across the front doors with a dramatic flourish.
Of course when the fantasticar shows up, a lot of the attention turns towards it, and that included Ulrik. The blonde haired young man can't help but applaud the entry. Whether Reed meant to do it or not it's a pretty good entry. The actual opening of the building is given golf claps from those around him and himself. "Wow. So Reed Richards actually took time to come here. Pretty amazing really." He says laughing softly.
As the Fantasticar settles on the ground. Reed looks over the panels and sets the biometric locks. As he opens the side, he holds up a hand to an on coming student. "No worries. It's completely green and leaves a minimal carbon footprint. Thank you." He isn't sure if that was the question that was to be asked or a question on any number of subjects he's well known for. For now he's here for another reason. With that said he adjusts his bowtie and offers a hand to Sue to help her out of the 'tub'. "Shall we?"
Sue Storm smiles and follows Reed out of the 'bathtub' vehicle, having chosen to wear a ruffly white blouse and jeans to this event, hoping to not look too casual or too formal. Kind of a difficult balance. She takes a breath as she steps out of the vehicle, expecting the worst of such a public entrance.
Justin Hammer continues with the forced smile as he shakes the hands of the folks sitting in the chairs in front of the building. He swaps a few words with a couple of them, then turns to the same aid who handed him the scissors. He hands them back to her and growls something under his breath, causing the woman to visibly flinch. The woman nods then turns away as Justin turns back toward the audience. He walks away from the podium and toward the students, shaking hands and speaking with a few of them as the crowd starts to break up.
It's only the polite thing to do but Ulrik does get in the line of the people that are shaking hands with Justin Hammer. The blonde does shake the man's hand as he says,"Pleasure to meet you Mister Hammer. Hope all is well inside." He says pleasantly. While he's still in the early years of his studies, he does get introduced a bit by one of the teachers that is standing around as one of their students.
"Excuse me Sue." Reed says as he cuts his way through the crowd. It takes some time. A few students welcome him, but finally meets up with Justin Hammer. "Mister Hammer, it's been quite a while." Reed pauses as he smiles. "1996 I believe it was. You called me a hack scientist and my invention for a laser gyroscope was not just impossible, but not very cost effective, if I remember correctly." he reaches out to offer the other man his hand. "I'm sorry to hear about your drone project." Nothing rude is said really, just professionalism and the high road is taken. Kinda.
Sue Storm nods to Reed as he steps forward to greet Hammer, staying by the 'bathtub' hopefully out of the way. She smiles a hello to the pale-haired student amongst the university crowd, then looks at the building itself. It's actually pretty nice-looking building, and she's hoping it helps more kids learn to love the sciences and realize their intellectual potential.
Justin Hammer smiles as he shakes Ulrik's hand. "Pleasure's mine," he says to the young man. "And business is good, thanks. So what are you majoring in?" He might as well scout some potential new talent while he's here, since Hammer Industries can always use good engineers. Especially with the turnover rate. The new voice calling his name grabs Justin's attention, and his head snaps toward Reed Richards. He smiles wide, though it has the hint of a grimace to it. "Doctor Richards, good to see you again. I-I hope you didn't take the words of an over-ambitious young startup too seriously. You've obviously done well." There's an edge in the man's voice, and he intentionally avoids any mention of the failed aerial drone project that injured 46 at Nellis Airforce Base last year.
"I am currently studying physics." Ulrik says blinking a little bit,"It is a pleasure to meet you Mr Hammer, and it is an honor to meet you Doctor Richards." The teen says in his thickly accented English before he glances to his watch,"I have to go to an English class and as you may hear, it is not my strong suit." He says in a self-deprecating manner before wanders off heading to get his backpack from one of the people he'd been standing and slings it casually over his shoulder.
"Better than most Mister Hammer." Reed pulls his attention from Hammer to the young man. "Always a pleasure to meet a young man ready to learn. Have a good day and learn as much as possible." Reed says enthusiastically as he waves to the young man. Then he turns back to Hammer. "So do tell me about your building? Is the concrete blast rated? What is the max tonnage the floors can accepts. And are the rooms have flame retardant paint?" Yes Reed knows what makes a good lab.
Okay, there's a fine line, and that crossed it. Sue steps over to Reed and puts one hand on his arm. "I'm sure everything is fine, Reed. Hello there, Mr. Hammer. This is amazing. Are you going to show us around the new building?"
Justin Hammer nods to the departing student. He'll remember the kid's name and may check up on his studies later. He turns his attention back to Richards. His borderline overdone friendly attitude is stretched thin in spots. "The building? Yeah, the building is state of the art. Set up with the best money can buy. Spared no expense, it's got all the bells and whistles. Newest computer systems and cutting edge equipment." He not-so-gracefully dodges the direct questions about the building. After all he's a weapon's expert, not a construction worker. He hired an architect to take care of that part. Sue's appearance helps Justin put some of the friendly air back in his tone. "Miss Storm, I know you by reputation but I don't think we've met." He holds out his hand to the woman.
Reed raises a brow upon seeing Hammer greet Sue. As Sue does her thing Reed excuse himself quietly and returns to the Fantasticar. a few buttons are tapped. What is he doing?
Sue Storm shakes Justin's hand, using a solid grip -- she's not one of those women who does one of those weak, limp-handed little handshakes. "I'm glad we finally get to meet. This building is really great, I know the science department is really going to enjoy it." Here's the kicker. She sounds truly sincere.
Justin Hammer returns the shake, impressed by the woman's strength. That's rare to find. He glances to Reed, his composure again slipping as the scientist takes his leave. Shrugging it off he looks back to Sue. "I hope they do. I like to try and help where I can. Y'know, give back to the community. Can't have a better tomorrow without good minds." Yep, good ol' Justin, giving back to the community. And getting a tax write off, and some good publicity. It's all win. "So, shall I show you around, or are you two on your way out?"
Reed taps a few more buttons and before walking back over to Sue. Once there he puts his arm around her shoulder as he looks to her then to Hammer. "Actually I think we'll take that tour. I would really like to see what you've given to the sharp minds of our future." He's not looking for a fight nor is he trying to undermine Hammer. He's just looking out for the students who will soon call this place 'home'.
Sue Storm looks at Reed as he puts his arm around her shoulder, then gives Justin a smile. "Thank you for taking the time out, I know you must have a busy schedule."
Justin Hammer turns toward the building, sweeping his arm toward it as he does. "For you two? I'll always set aside the time. Right this way." He starts toward the building, nodding to a few people on the way. When they reach the large glass front, the CEO pulls open the door and holds it for both Sue and Reed. There's a few people wandering around the cavernous entryway, mostly school staff. Most of the students have dispersed by this point. The inside of the building is clean lines like the outside, with large stone reliefs along the back wall of the entry way, over the lower hallways. It's a showpiece as much as a functional space.
Overall the new facility appears to be up to snuff. The building itself is well built, with two levels of functional space above ground and a large basement. The upper floors are mostly lecture and demonstration style rooms, with the ground floor being primarily laboratory space. The basement is split between labs with more specialized equipment and storage. Everything is of high-quality, with a lot of big names like GE and Honeywell present. The only items that carry the Hammer Industries logo seem to be related to the security systems, along with the large plaque in the entry way. The students of NYU should be safe working in the building, at least.
Category:Log