2014.03.02 - Coffee, Honey and Light

Sunday. Normally the campus is quite less crowded on the weekends, but even then it is still crowded in comparison to other places, as the coffeeshops are open all the week to feed the students in their eagerness to learn or have parties. Since that makes the campus a goodplace to meet people you don't happen to have an exact adress off, Julie has thrown herself onto the campus, searching for a good cup of coffee with milk, suggar and cinnamon and some faces she might recognize. Obviously she does so in a dressing fitting to the weather, which is a long, brown coat over a thick wool pullover and a pair of jeans and... Ugg Boots. As she entered a coffeeshop, she hummed the tunes of Take Me on the Floor, glancing over the people and at the list of offers till it was her turn to order with a smile. "A Tall Latte please."
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Sunday is definitely a day that Karen Kent spends pretty much esconsed in a corner booth from the moment the on campus coffee shop opens. A small stack of textbooks next to her and a laptop computer in front of her. The reddish-blond is dressed in casual clothes. A black t-shirt that bears the words I <heart> Superman in red letters. A pair of blue jeans and hiking boots. There's a nice thick wool navy pea coat next to her also. Already there are a couple of empty coffee cups on her table and a couple small plates that might have held pastries. A notepad in hand with a pencil in the other and the girl seems to be drawing something.
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It takes some time for the girl on the counter to prepare the ordered drink, in which Julie looked around some more, the humming on her lips having changed to Greenday's Coming Clean. Eventually she picked up the cup and steered to the sugar buffet to add her cinnamon sugar. Sweet, warm and wintery. With a light sigh she glanced over the coffee shop once more, then directed her steps to one of the very few still free chairs, which happened to be the one opposite of Karen. "Excuse me... Do you mind if I sit down here for my coffee?" she asked, in the left hand her cup, the jacket open far enough to allow a look onto the grey sweater carrying a square of blue, red, yellow and white fields, each bearing some black glyph or sign on it - a clover or cloud, a star, a prism and cubes gathering on the lower half.
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Glancing up from her drawing, Karen's bright green eyes settle on the girl before her. She arches a brow slightly and then nods "Oh yeah, sure. Sorry...been here since they opened and didn't realize the place had filled up." She glances around at the crowd that's formed on this cold wintery day and she seems to smirk slightly before looking back to Julie. "Um...I'm Karen. What's your name?"
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It takes a few moments in which Julie frees a spot for her cup by stacking the used ones of Karen. Offering her a hand she smiled as she eventually answered "I'm Julie, nice to meet you." Her blue orbs looked back at Karen, noticing both were strawberry blondes. Then er eyes wander down a moment, reading the text on the shirt before returning to the green eyes of Karen. No need for my eyes are up here in this meeting it seems. "I love Superman? What a perfect timing - did you saw the YouTube video yet? He so came back!"
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Karen drops her notepad and you can now see that it contains a HIGHLY, almost photo-realistic, pencil drawing of Superman in his new armor. Guess that confirms that she has seen the video. She shakes Julie's hand and smiles a bit. "Yeah. I caught it. He's changed a bit though." She takes a moment to re-arrange a few of the textbooks and her laptop to make room and you can see that what she's studying seems to be Engineering-based and also Computer-aided Design. Apparently the girl is a bit of a nerd. "I was wondering if it was the same guy until he revealed his face on camera. Also saw some other videos of people responding to that Darkseid guy's threats."
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A slight sigh comes from Julie on the mentioning of the videos "yea... one of them is a student of mime. But really, I doubt that this Darkseid is the biggest threat earth heroes ever faced. I mean Skrulls, Snakrs, Kree, Red Lanterns and Galactus to name just a few. There are entire races and even gods out there that want to conquer earth. He might be top tier, but... No chance he will win in the end." It takes just the time of a sip of coffee to get a grin into Julie's face "Because at some point they will find his Kryptonite or other Achillis Heel and use it against him." With a nod she takes another look down, onto the drawing this time "Wow, either you have a really good immagination or a photographic memory and tons of talent."
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Julie smirks a bit as she pulls her phone out of the pocket as if to look at the time or something. "Well, Superman is really tough, but I guess there are some other heavy hitters out there that can stand toe to toe against him... uhm... The Green Lantern Corps maybe, possibly the Patron Saint of Gotham or Thor. I'm just glad that they are on Earth's side." When Karan goes to get herself a new cup, Julie types some short tweet, giving her a smile once se comes back. "I'm actually trying to get a degree in Xeno- and Metahuman Science." Possibly not the most obvious way to say that she studies Heroes, but the hint is there. Besides that she wears a pullover with the logo of four kids that had been in heroing some 4 to 8 years ago and which had one of them resurfacing at times nowadays.
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Karen blinks a bit at the course of study and then chuckles "I didn't even know those were options." You know she's seen the pullover and logo but if she recognizes it, she's very good at concealing that fact. Really in truth 4 to 8 years ago she was in stasis in a starship still traveling towards earth in the hopes of raising her cousin as a proper Kryptonian to rule these so-called earthlings but there's really no need to bring that up. She sighs softly after a sip of her steaming coffee and asks "Gotham? Isn't that...Batman's stomping ground?"
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"The very Patron Saint of Gotham." Julie answers with a wink, searching in her pocket for a business card. "well, both are only options in the AoT, but hey, someone has to make proper notes and rate threats for humankind." Then she turns her eyes out of the window, where some students start to scream and run "Crud... what's up out there?"
Well, out there are students running away from a threat not yet visible from the coffee shop, as it is behind the bushes.
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Julie for sure can't do this full spectrum vision, but Karen will easily spot the small batch of people in blue and yellow suits with goggles that look like facetted eyes trying to capture some of the students with what seems to be beam weapons or splash grenades.
In the cafe however people go to watch either from the windows or try to flee faster than the people outside reaching them. "Academy of Tomorrow. I have no idea what is going on out there, but it is for sure wrong." Julie commented as she quickly emptied her coffee cup. "Shall I help you gather the things?"
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Karen frowns deeply at what she sees but it can be easily interpreted as being upset about lots of people running this way. Karen just nods and begins packing her things into her backpack...a rather large one that seems more like a military-type rucksack than a school backpack but then lots of students like to use military type gear and she could very well be a military brat too. "Man I hope this isn't another of those school shootings. That would suck!"
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Quickly Julie helps stuffing the things into it without breaking them, then looks for the window once more before a sensation junkie presses himself into the gap between her chair and the window, but she can catch a glance on what seems to be uniforms. "I doubt school shooters wear yellow jumpsuits..." she mutters as she tries to make the way for the exit, so she could use some cover at the side to turn Lightspeed.
The H.I.V.E. Drones out there obviously closed in, trying to abduct students or herd them together for taking.
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Karen apparently is stronger than she looks because she hefts that easily what must be 40-50 pound rucksack of textbooks without falling on her butt. Yeah, likely an army brat. She's obviously well-toned and muscled without being 'butch' or 'weightlifter-like' if her abs are any indication. Once she sees that Julie appears distracted and not looking at her, she quickly makes sure that everyone else is focused on the windows as she makes her way to the back hallway where the bathrooms are as well as the back door. Definitely an army brat since instead of trying to get a better look, the smart girl gets the hell out of dodge! Yes...run AWAY from trouble. Once outside though, it's a quick effortless leap to the roof where she stashes her gear and lets her clothing morph quickly into her newest Supergirl look. The wig and contact lenses also vanish into her gear bag revealing her bright blue eyes and golden blond hair.
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The Drones close in to the coffee shop and Julie takes her chance to mutter a quick 'costume on' as she gets behind a sign when noone looks. A short wave of space distortion ripples over her body as her casual clothes and costume change places within two moments. And up zooms Lightspeed, the prism on her chest matching the one she had had on her pullover a few moments ago. No change of her hair and eyes though.
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A light hop up from the roof puts Kara Zor-El into a freefall to land behind the Drones. She says in a deeper voice and tone than Karen's "Drop your weapons and surrender. That is -not- a request." The Girl of Steel casually crosses her arms over her chest, almost seeming to emphasize the symbol of the House of El. A symbol that most of the world and even some worlds beyond recognize.
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Such as the Drones - but in their Hypno Pollen fogged mind they start to fire instead of dropping their guns, trying to engulf the Kryptonian in a cloud of the stuff to try and incapitate her.
Julie on the other hand zooms in from behind, the arms crossed in a similar fashion as she descends "Just in time to assist the major players take the fight, don't I?" she comments, flashing a grin. "Lightspeed and... of of Superman's girls for the rescue!" With a much more silent whisper she adds quickly "Sorry, I can't really keep you apart"
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Supergirl is pelted with the Hypno-Pollen but instead of falling under the sway of whomever is controlling them, Kara Zor-El begins to gag and cough, her eyes tearing up and she staggers backwards as she immediately tries to get away from this brand new experience. The Girl of Steel has never even had a cold before much less having to deal with effectively being Maced for the first time! The stuff actually seems to be making her sick as she stumbles backwards and retches onto the cold sidewalk!
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What seems to be a sign of weakness draws the bee-imposers to try to keep her down, continuing their use of the gunfire on her, but some turn and try to do the same with Julie on her rainbow trail, dusting the area with the yellowish powder.
Julie is quick enough to evade the first shover of the powder upwards and search for a hankerchief in her pocket as a makeshift pollen filter, but as she ties it fast a load of the golden stuff turns her red and black costume into what looks dirty yellow and orange. In a grunt she zooms in and tries to kick one of the Drones that get closer to Karen into the belly, to buy her some time.
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The Girl of Steel is trying hard just to catch her breath and to that effect, she feels something happening that has never happened before. She is confused about this and rapidly becoming more and more -afraid- of what's happening to her previously invulnerable body! With a look of horror that will likely be caught on who knows how many cell phone cameras, Kara Zor-El sneezes. Yes, a sneeze, but from the Maid of Mights extremely powerful lungs, that sneeze is likely to hit with almost hurricane force-like winds in a small cone in front of her...which just happens to be facing the Drones as she was planning to laser their guns in the hopes of stopping this assault on her biology! The powerful blast of air from her lungs will likely expel most if not all of the pollen but it also blasts her in the opposite direction as she was definitely not ready for her first ever sneeze!
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No matter if it was intended or not - the burst of air not only kicked some of the eight drones to their backs, but also sent Lightspeed off her intended path by a few yards. The remaining Drones try to gather a bit tighter to make their assault worth it, aiming at the more serious threat - after the down of some of their men that would be Sneezy Supergirl.
Julie outmaneuvers the sudden gush of wind with a sound of surprise, doing her best to come back on one of the still standing ones in a loop to strike him down with the fists on the lower back, so it might get very painful in the kidneys.
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Kara feels SO much better after that sneeze! She holds her breath now though and turns her gaze on the armed men with their Pollen Guns. It is NOT a happy look. In fact it's a look that rapidly turns her blue eyes a blazing red. Literally! Twin beams of concentrated heat blast forth and immediately cause the Pollen Guns to malfunction, heat up to ridiculous temperatures, and maybe even explode if there are heat-sensitive parts inside. She stands her ground and quickly disarms the perpetrators!
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Indeed the guns explode - in a rather huge dust explosion, as every fine enough material - just like Hypno Pollen - is flammable. The sudden blast of fire knocks down all but one of the drones, but yet none is incapitated. However, the last drone standing ends up flying with his legs pressed together and the hands on the groin only seconds after the fireball, as a black dusted Lightspeed scraps herself from the ground after she has been pressed to it in the explosion, one knee extended just to where it hurts most. A few second pass then she lands again, the pain wincing drone hanging from its costume which Lightspeed took in the neck. "Who needs another beating?"
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Moving with a burst of super-speed, Kara dashes forward and grabs two of the drones, one in each hand, and knocks their heads together with just enough force to render them unconscious. This is the Maid of Might and while she might not be quite as strong as Superman, she's more than strong enough to treat these minions like so much paper. She drops those two and looks at the others that are still on the ground. "SURRENDER!" she yells at a volume that will likely be heard for several blocks around and makes the windows of buildings quiver!
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The Drones seem to look through Kara for a few moments as she screams at them, then they try to get onto their feet to flee. "The HIVE will win in the end!" one screams, then they seem to be surrounded by some sort of glittering light as their boss seems to have had enough and teleports them away, including the unconscious and pain ridden ones.
Julie pressed the hands onto her ears on the scream, shaking the head as the goons vanish to nothing, leaving only scraps of their guns, some rests of pollen and burnt stuff. "Wheee, seems like someone tucked their stinger away after getting a good beating. That was an amazing sneeze."
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Kara actually looks a bit surprised at the teleportation and then she looks a bit...angry. She reaches up to wipe that pollen stuff from her eyes and then looks at the voice. Realizing she was just drinking coffee with this girl, Kara frowns slightly and asks "You're a paranormal?"
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"I'm Lightspeed, member of PowerPack." Julie answers and points up try to tell to get away from the cameras in the cell phones. The changes of Kara however make her hard to notice "you happen to know me?" she asked as she zoomed up a few yards, continuing the ascend.
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Definitely understanding the need for privacy in this Smartphone camera age, Kara just nods and pushes herself away from the ground almost casually. She follows Lightspeed up and says "PowerPack? Hmm...never heard of them before but then I have only been on your planet for a little over a year. Still haven't caught up on all the history as yet."
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"Well, we were likely the youngest heroes of our time when we started." Julie said with a little smile. A short time she searched in her pocket and managed to pull out a photo book, in which she had taped in some notes from the newspapers, showing the few reports they had been on in contrast to the major players like Spidey, Cap, Batman and Supes. "Want to take a look?"
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Kara arches a brow and accepts the photobook. She flips through it quickly, her mind essentially recording the pictures and articles like a camera anyway. She nods almost casually and says "Oh so you're not an active hero anymore?" She offers the photobook back and continues to rise as far as Julie is willing to go. "Lightspeed, huh? So does that mean you can fly as fast as light?"
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Julie shakes the head slowly, smiling a bit "hey, I had chosen the handle back then when I started. I am not that fast, but I can break the sound barrier." she answered taking it to slip it back into the pocket - which does not even bulge as it is an extra dimensional one. "I had taken a time off. I am back to business, but the rest of the pack did not come back. Possibly they just need some more time."
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Kara chuckles softly and nods "Okay. I can understand that. I can't break lightspeed either though I haven't really tried to see just how fast I can go outside the gravity well of earth. I know the moon isn't far once I get out of the atmosphere." She watches the pocket and tilts her head "That's a neat trick." She flies closer and reaches over to examine the material of your suit. "This isn't an earth made material is it?"
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Julie pakes a bit distance to get the grabby fingers at bay "He... No, it's made by the Kymellias." Glancing over at the clock tower she sighs "Ah, it's a pity, bit I got to scoot."
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Kara actually looks a bit ashamed as she realises how rude that was. "Oh. Sorry. I am still learning about this world." She follows your gaze and then nods "Very well, Lightspeed. Thank you for your help with those men. Take care." At that, the Girl of Steel arcs over and accelerates away towards the West. Perhaps she can talk M'gann into making some more of that Pasta dish she made the other day.
Category:Log