2012-09-06 Close Encounters

Drifting to the floor of his meditation room, Zen slowly unfolds from the lotus position and stands up, limping slightly in the simulated gravity of his ship. The bleating of his lame, flip phone is what pulled him from the trance. He wasn't quick enough resurfacing to catch it, but at least he knows how to redial. He nods as he gets the coordinates from Spider-Girl, and makes for the transport pod. Like a transporter would. Also, he flips the stupid gravity off so he doesn't have limp so damn much in his own home. He arrows down the corridors, comfortable enough in zero-G, and finally into his pod, which jets out and down at break neck speeds.

A few minutes later, he has parked the pod out behind a dumpster at the back of the rec center, and lets himself in through the locked door, re-locking it behind himself. Sheesh. Ninjas. |"Anyone here?"| he asks tentatively, broadcasting to anyone nearby, but not outside the center. |"It's Zen."| Oh really? It's /that/ head-talking, blue alien. Phew. Cuz that other guy is a jerk.

Jynn waves to Spoiler who has left, then nods to Spider-Girl as she web-slings towards teh rec center. Which left only him, Majorie and Laura. But the make it fine and once everyone is in, Jynn is about to head back out into the hallway when he hears someone speaking in his head. Looking down teh hallway, Jynn sees Zen remembering him from the other night, "Go into the gym and sit down, the girls are all in teh showers washing up." he says to the alien. Jynn then goes back into the gym, there are only a few lights on and he didn't want to have any others on right now, didn't want to give away that they are there right now. "Who are you?" he asks Zen having actually the time to ask.

Figuring out how to clean herself and her suit without exposing her face is... interesting, but Spider-Girl manages. And then it's right back into the suit. It's already skin tight and black, like anyone could even tell the difference if it's a bit damp. Pfft. She wraps a towel around herself over the suit anyway, and wanders out into the gym with her arms full of her loot.

"How's your leg?" Spider-Girl asks Zen with a lopsided smile, speaking aloud -- but in fluent Spanish. She hitches up to sit on a bleacher and starts riffling through her new toys. Hm. Gotta compare with Laura's haul, like, asap. Thank goodness she has a phone now.

Zen keeps broadcasting broadly, instead of just one-to-one, and the effect makes it easy for someone to tell where he is, if anyone is wondering 'Gah! Where did this voice in my head come from?!' He stops to consider Jynn's words, turning his head in the direction he can sense the ladies' minds. Wheels turn. No, Zen, you can't pull off the, 'I'm an alien, co-ed showering is totally normal for me.' Plus, he's pretty sure that one girl is too young on any planet. No go! |"Ah yes, I remember you from the thoroughfare crash. My name is Zen. Spider-Girl sent me directions to meet you all here."| He peers about and sees Anya chilling in the gym area. |"Much better, thanks."| He says to answer her question. |"You all left filthy footprints outside. Were you hiking in filth?"|

Well Jynn doesn't know that Zen can broadcast his thoughts, but oh well. Looking to the alien, Jynn nods his head, with all he's seen recently no Jynn doesn't freak out, but he does wonder how the alien can breath and all that stuff. And when Zen looks towards teh womens gym, Jynn doesn't say anything, if they kick his ass for going in, Jynn would only watch. Stretching out a bit, he sits down but watches as SPider-Girl sits near by. "Hey you can all chill out here for a bit I need to go clean up those tracks, then we have to leave." he says. Nodding his head to Zen about where they seen one another, "Yes, thats where I saw you the other day. But I do need to do a bit of cleaning." he says. He gets up and heads off.

"We'll get out of your hair soon," Spider-Girl promises Jynn, offering him a jaunty salute from her perch. "Thanks for the lift and the wash, dude." In lieu of a name, he is simply... dude.

"Sort of," Spider-Girl replies to Zen, sliding back into Spanish. She shakes out the beekeeper suit and holds it up so he can see it. "We ran into these guys stealing some jewels, they were escaping through the sewers. I think they got away with the stones," she notes, sounding disappointed. "But we did rescue a woman they'd taken, so. It evens out."


 * "A good plan, Jynn"| Did the young man ever give his name? Sometimes Zen picks up things by accident. |"The olfactory sensor on my scanner was seriously offended by that van, too. I'd recommend burning it, but then, I don't really know how thorough your law enforcement is about such things."| Peering around to see Spider-Girl on the bleachers, Zen nods, and shrugs indicating her understatement. |"Well yeah. A life is definitely worth more than some gaudy stones. But then, I suppose Sans-Claws isn't making jewelry out of it, huh?"| He walks slowly up the bleachers and looks over her booty. Her STUFF! Ok? Geez. People.

The yellow hazmat suit gets draped over her lap and Spider-Girl reaches for the next bit o' gear -- in this case, the sonic rifle, which she eyes before laying it on the suit. The goggles soon follow. "I have no idea what that jerk is up to, but something smells rotten, and I do not mean the van," she notes with a thoughtful, thin frown. She scoops up the first aid kit next and snoops inside a bit before she eyes the letters on the outside. "A.I.M.," she recites. "Wonder what that stands for... I swear, if we're dealing with bad guys who print their organization name on their kits..."

Zen sits on a bench one down from Anya's, straddling it, facing in toward the gear, ninety degrees from Anya's facing. With just the two of them left now, he transitions to just one-on-one speak. |"That is strange. I've seen criminals use aid organizations and such as a front. But you've never even heard of this group before?"|

"Not that I know of," Spider-Girl admits with a frown. This is bothersome. She sets the kit down with the rest and laces her fingers together, turning her palms out and stretching her arms in front of herself. "Laura found one of their coms on the highway, and the lady we rescued said they were holding her somewhere outside the city. Probably between here and New York, given the ruckus on the interstate," she murmurs, in the tone of someone thinking aloud. "Maybe we should do some snooping. See if we can figure out where they're holed up."


 * "Now /that/ is an excellent idea. Take the fight to them. Set it on your own terms. I hope you'll let me help. Have you taken any of them alive?"| Zen is eager and enthusiastic, but is cautious when he reaches out to rub the material of the hazmat suit between thumb and forefinger. Look Ma, no pinkies! |"I believe my standard interrogation techniques would work on humans."|

"The NYPD have a few in custody from earlier this week, unless they made bail or something," Spider-Girl replies, grinning at Zen. "For most people, all you'd need to do is just... look. I don't know if that even counts as an interrogation." She shrugs, then taps her chin thoughtfully. "If you wanted to ask some questions, the theft was in Queens, so they'd have been held at the local precinct before being transferred to county. While you do that, I can see if Laura's up for some tracking."

Sure, Zen doesn't really parse someone's individual words when holding a conversation. But he does squint off in the distance briefly while he puzzles out the acronym, getting the meaning of the letters, rather than a literal translation. |"Oh, the local law enforcement? Will they let me interview the captives? Pretty sure I can't pose as one of you."| He smirks, in his way, and looks a little puzzled, but then, interviewing captives is probably pretty uncommon in most civilizations.

"Do they need to know?" Spider-Girl has been spending too much time with Laura. She folds her arms across her lap and thinks, squinting behind her mask. "You're still pretty low profile, right? So they probably wouldn't just invite you in or anything, not like they probably would for a member of the Justice League or something."


 * "Yeah,"| Zen nods. |"Several people know about me. Including the Martian with that JLA. But nothing public, no."| Zen pretends to be occupied with the gear for another moment before he says, |"So I don't think they need to know, no. I should be able to get in and out without being noticed. Do you have laws regarding telepathic intrusion yet?"| What an interesting, straight forward, specific question.

She's actually glad he asked. Spider-Girl's life is just that weird. "No, nothing like that. They'd be impossible for our police to enforce." How would the average human beat cop even verify that the law had been broken to begin with? "Telepaths here pretty much operate on the honor system. Or... don't. Depending on the telepath."


 * "I thought as much. Which would normally pose a problem for my own way of doing things."| Zen is quiet for about as long as it would take someone else to take a long breath. |"But these men have been hurting people. And obviously plan to again. I've seen them turn their weapons on unarmed people."| His undercurrent of distaste and anger is palpable. Then it breaks like a wave on the beach as he imposes his meditative calm on his emotions again. |"Ok, I'll do it. We need to know what they know."|

Even though she remembers how /weird/ it gets when in contact with him, Spider-Girl reaches over to briefly lay a light, supportive hand on Zen's shoulder all the same. "Only if you're certain. Laura has a very good nose, and access to their communications," she notes, smiling at him. "I don't want you feeling obligated to compromise your principles for this, no matter how nasty they are." A beat. "But, if you /are/ sure... then thank you."

Zen sits up straighter at Anya's physical contact, tense for a moment, and then relaxes without shrugging away from her. Her perception of his intentions, and emotions, while in contact with him becomes crystal clear, and sharp as a knife. His communication is even more down the spectrum toward raw thought rather than literal language than normal, as well. |"I know. I am sure. I've looked inside. I know what my Masters would say."| The effect of such pure mental contact could easily leave someone feeling heady, like having just huffed pure oxygen, cold enough to almost hurt the nostrils. |"And I see your intentions are pure as well. Please forgive the intrusion."| He is earnest in every way, and his apology is sincere, but it's also like him apologizing for being blue. It's just what happens.

Woof. All things in moderation. Spider-Girl blinks rapidly beneath the mask as she takes her hand back and gives her head a short, slight shake, as if it might put everything back where she's used to it being. That is... trippy. "It's okay. It's kind of nice to hear it from a voice besides my own," she admits with an odd smile. Then, she stands so she can get rid of the towel and start gathering up her AIM swag. "If you need anything, you have my number, and I'll call you if Laura and I find anything."

And its back to much more linear language in the mind-speaking. He nods at all the stuff and asks, |"But, do you have a vehicle? We're a long way from your city. Let me give you a ride, at least?"| In his 1000 mph bubble thing? How does someone pass that up? I mean, seriously.

"I would love a ride. Thank you, Zen." Spider-Girl doesn't even know what she's getting a ride in, but an alien just offered to give her a lift. /Hell yes/ she's gonna take him up on it. She has a very positive attitude about this! "Not all the way back to New York, though. I need to see Laura. Can you drop me off?" she asks, waiting for him before she starts for the door. "I'll call her to find out where we should be headed."