2013.07.11 - Purple and The Brain

Brainiac 5 has been essentially living in his lab lately. That's not so unusual, but even his associates have noticed that he's been increasingly reclusive and obsessed with his work. The current bright, sunny summer day finds Brainy shrouded in the darkness of his lab, as he's been so still--his eyes are even closed--that the sensor-based light controls have determined that he does not need any illumination. Still, several tall, thin tubes stand before him: one casting an eerie emerald green glow; one filled with a cloudy, milky white substance; one empty and dark; and one filled with a bluish, dimly glowing murky liquid.

Dude, you're breaking into the Legion Headquarters I know. Shut up.

He wasn't -really- breaking in. He was... well, yes, he was breaking in with non-harmful intent. His attempts to get someone to talk to him had seen little to no fruit, and it was getting to him. He had cut a deal with a morally-questionable occultist, and that had given him no answers- and plunged him into an IOU. This time, Vorpal was going to get -someone- to answer him. One way or another. Nicely, of course.

Unfamiliar with the layout of the place, the Cheshire cat relies on his ability to become invisible and to teleport to avoid being detected, at least initially. When he steps into the laboratory, he knows that at least this was a place where he could find answers. Hesitating for a second, he exhales and lets the invisibility wash off from him as he materializes out of thin air at the entrance to the laboratory-- not a well-thought entrance, since the sensors would most likely report his appearance...

In the instant that Vorpal appears, the laboratory instantly transforms.

In a fraction of a heartbeat, the tubs slide smoothly down into the large central console, an armored sheath enclosing them as they go, and then the entire central console breaks apart, different elements of it sliding away to vanish seamlessly into the ceiling and floor. Abruptly, the lab is just an empty cylindrical room.

The lights spring to full illumination, and Brainy's chair dissolves into the floor. The green-skinned scientist himself stands, opening eyes that glow solid magenta. A vague sheen ripples over him as his forcefield engages, and then the room shifts slightly again: ports open in rows all along the walls, revealing energy emitters that no doubt offer no small range of possible harms to would-be infiltrators.

It's all done in the space of an instant. Then, Brainiac 5 speaks. "Identify yourself and explain your presence immediately, or you will be disabled and placed in holding stasis for interrogation."

Apparently, he's a geek of the "highly territorial" variety.

  The cheshire quickly puts his hands up to chest height, open in the universal sign language for 'I Do Not Wish To Die.' "Keith O'Neil--- Vorpal, registered with the B.S.A... It wasn't my intention... I'm a... was a friend of Booster Gold..." He remains perfectly immobile, to emphasize his lack of hstile intent.

For a moment, Brainiac 5 shows no signs of reaction, but then a glowing holographic panel appears in the air, displaying Vorpal's registration information, and then the green-skinned scientist seems to relax slightly. The weapon ports begin to cycle closed, but he does not drop his forcefield. "Vorpal. This is a restricted area. You should not have entered without permission." Then, dispelling the hologram, Brainy folds his arms across his chest. "You were a friend of Booster Gold. Please explain your use of the past tense."

Vorpal frowns at this, "I'm sorry... I know I shouldn't be here, but I couldn't get -anyone- to talk to me, and it was starting to drive me up the..." What, he didn't know? "... I ... has nobody told you? Michael is ... gone." He looks somber. "Gone, or dead. I can't find anyone to give me an answer. I had John Constantine search the afterlife and all he could tell me was that, as far as he could find out, Michael didn't -exist-. It was all over the news, some six-armed monstrosity attacked him and then made him explode..."

Those glowing eyes of Brainy's flash, and he turns away from Vorpal. A modified version of the central console rises from the floor again, and holographic displays begin winking into existence all around the lab. "COMPUTO," the scientist instructs, "Activate planetary scans for Booster Gold's location. If these fail, prepare a probe to scan the nearby solar system."

This done, Brainiac 5 turns back to face Vorpal. "I have accessed the reports of Booster Gold's disappearance. I have been engaged in sensitive experiments that have distracted me from monitoring news items. Now, please tell me in great detail what transpired in this 'explosion.'"

"I know as much as you do," Vorpal says, staying where he is because he is not sure if he is allowed to approach or not yet "Michael was shooting a commercial, and there was an altercation. All the clear footage was confiscated by S.H.I.E.L.D, but there was some cameraphone footage leaked to the web. Some... six-armed woman attacked, and she hit Booster with something that looked like lightning, but it was hard to tell. Then Booster began to glow and he flew upwards and... well... exploded." He trails off, sighing. "And I could not find anyone to help me. That's why I contacted John Constantine."

"SHIELD was on site?" Brainiac 5 asks, turning to regard Vorpal with sudden, if brief, intensity. "Interesting. I will have to pursue that angle as well." Several of the holographic screens display various frames or video of the incident, focusing on the six-armed figure or the apparent detonation as COMPUTO attempts to enhance the low-quality video. "I will investigate the matter. Now, please stop standing there like an arrested criminal. Your identity has been verified." The chair rises back out of the ground, assembling itself out of nanoparticles, and Brainy sits back down, beams of light pulsing from the ceiling to reflect against the silvery discs on his forehead as he interfaces with the COMPUTO system.

Vorpal exhales a little. "I wasn't sure. I'm sorry I broke in, I know it wasn't good, but Booster is the only person I really knew here. I don't really have very many connections at all." he approaches Brainiac, "What should I address you as? Like I said, I have only spoken with Booster, and I met Lighting Lad very briefly when Booster had me train at the gym here once."

"I am called Brainiac 5. You may also address me as Querl Dox, Querl, or Mister Dox." Brainy pauses to glance at Vorpal. "I have, of course, more familiar monikers, but as I do not yet know you, it would be forward to assume undue familiarity. As for Booster, I will do what I can to find your friend."

Vorpal tries this out in his head. Querl, Querl, he hoped he could say it without mangling it. "Thank you, Mister Dox." he goes for the safer route "... as to the attacker, is there any way to find out who she was? I can produce an image of her... however blurry it was because of the video quality."

"On that point, I will confer with SHIELD," Brainy replies, closing his eyes as he focuses on his network connections. "I am currently compiling all available data. How may I contact you if I have findings to share?"

"Well.. here's my card." Vorpal profers it-- it's a simple purple card with white writing on it listing his name, codename, phone number and email. "...I don't have a secret identity. It's impossible, when you're stuck with a shape like this."

A small robot flies down from SOMEWHERE and takes the card, whisking it away to be scanned and input into Brainy's databases. "Noted. However, I must disagree. Your physical form does not preclude a secret identity any more than mine does. Dermal synthetics, holograms, hard light constructs, nanosimulators, or any number of other options would conceal your identity."

Vorpal chuckles good-humoredly, "Yes, they would, if you have access to them. I live in a tiny flat in Gotham I share with someone else because the only work I can get is as a registered hero with the BSA. Understandably so, business owners aren't keen on hiring someone like me because they assume that a supervillain will see me and try to blast me-- and their business. I can create illusions..." and saying this, he becomes the spitting image of Superman, even down to the voice "... but while I can create static illusions and keep them going for a very long time, active illusions such as those that cover a person up and change their appearance take a lot of focus. I can't keep those up for more than an hour or two, otherwise I get these splitting migraines and I can't summon illusions until I've had a good lie-down and slept."

"Interesting," is all Brainy has to say on the subject for a moment. Then, after apparently processing a few more data dumps, he says, "In any case, a career with the BSA is a reasonable choice. We of the LEGION do much the same. And it is, I suppose, nice not to have to hide."

"When you have others around to back you up, I'm sure. I don't quite have that luxury and now I'm in the Joker's short list for a cement ride down the river," he chuckles. He'd spent some sleepless nights after the Arkham breakout. He knew it was impossible to hide himself, the Joker might decide to send someone after him. "Thank you for your time, I didn't really mean to take so much of your time. I should get going..." Getting out should be easier than sneaking in. After all, he could say he had been talking to Brainiac, right? It was true.

"The Joker has others to worry about," Brainy says with a sort of verbal shrug. "And you should seek allies to support you." Then, without further comment on the situation, he settles back into his chair. "As I said, I will inform you of any relevant discoveries. I have also granted you security clearance for a one-time direct path out of the base. Good day, Vorpal."

, Vorpal thought. Allies were a commodity neophyte heroes didn't really have. "Thank you, Brainiac," Keith says, stepping back towards the exit. "Have a good day--- again, sorry for the intrusion." He walked out, hands in pockets and thinking. Maybe there was a way he could disguise himself--- Constantine was an occultist. It'd mean entering into another pact with the devil, but....