17984/Sometimes the Heroes Need a Hand Too

Sometimes the Heroes Need a Hand Too
Date of Scene:	18 May 2024
Location:	City Center - Metropolis
Synopsis:	Robin makes contact with a new, nascent hero who needs some guidance on her budding powers. He is going to see if Thunderbolt can help her.
Cast of Characters:	Candace Hill, Damian Wayne

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Candace Hill has posed:
Candace had an idea. She had a plan. She was going to spend the afternoon flying. It was fun at first until she lost sight of the New York Skyline. Once outside of city limits she accelerated to a little better than Mach 1. She soared through the air trying to find her way back to New York City. Quickly another city came into view. This one definitely wasn't New York City. Still it was identifiable by several familiar buildings. She slows down and takes in the Metropolis skyline.

As she flies she enters the city limits and flies her way toward the City Center. She lands and doesn't get much attention. "huh. I guess there are more flyers in Metropolis." She comments and looks around. She asks a few people how to get back to New York City. She gets laughed at more often then not. She shakes her head and sighs. "I guess I can just use my phone's GPS." She gets out her phone and begins looking up directions to NYC.

A moment later, "YOINK!" A young guy yells as he runs by and swipes her phone.

"Hey give that back!" Candace calls back and begins chasing after the guy.

Damian Wayne has posed:
It's pretty rare for Robin to be out and about in the daylight hours. It's challenging enough to disguise one's identity with a little diamond-shaped mask, but to do it out in broad daylight? But sometimes there are social functions to attend on behalf of the Titans, and today Robin was visiting a local bookstore to promote youth reading.

He comes walking out of the bookshop holding a copy of a controversial, unauthorized biography of Batman. By all accounts it is full of utter nonsense, but Damian decided he should probably read it just in case.

That's when he hears the young woman yelling at the phone thief. Man, that dude's luck couldn't be any worse, could it? Robin is directly in his path. "You probably could have avoided a life of crime if you read more as a kid," Robin quips as he whips the hardcover book at the man, hitting him directly in the throat. The book and the phone hit the ground and the thief drops to one knee, clutching his throat and gagging.

Robin approaches him and sets one hand on his should. "Shhhhhhh, relax, just breath. It'll pass."

Candace Hill has posed:
The girl races after the man only to see him taken out by, "Robin?!" She blinks and looks around. "I'm in Metropolis, right?" She asks as she moves towards the downed man. "I will take my phone back now." She crouches down and takes the phone. She checks it quick to make sure its still usable. If not she has a pretty good way to get a new one. Which apparently she will need. As she looks at it she frowns, "Aww man! You broke it!" She exclaims to the man who likely broke it when he hit the ground.

"Well so much for that idea." She looks at Robin and smiles, "Don't suppose you know the way back to New York City? I kinda got lost." She comments as she looks at the downed man. "That had to hurt. Probably better than what I'd have done though. I don't have much control yet." She blushes and looks down.

Damian Wayne has posed:
Robin lifts a hand and whistles sharply when he notices a MPD cruiser coming up the street. "Hey, officer!" the costumed vigilante calls out. "We need you over here."

"Aw man couldn't you just lemme go? You already broke my neck," the recovering thief whines.

Robin uses his forefinger and thumb the flick the man on the tip of his nose. "Shut up and start worrying how you're going to pay for that phone."

"You're the one who made me drop it!" the thief grumbles.

He gets another flick to his nose.

A crowd is starting to gather, recording this with their phones. Everybody is hoping for a quick trip to fame, or at least to the next viral video.

"New York? Yeah you're definitely lost," Robin responds. "The Hyperloop will get you to New York in maybe five minutes or so. You could also go to the Themysciran Embassy and see if Wonder Woman will give you a ride in her jet." That's...that's gotta be a joke, right? But he's so deadpan.

Candace Hill has posed:
Candace smiles, "I umm... don't really need a lift. I can follow the hyperloop though. That should be easy enough." She smiles a little smile. "The Phone is the least of your worrys right now." She comments to the man who destroyed her phone. "You should take some time and learn from this. You don't need to steal phones to get by. Surely you have better talents cause honey, This ain't a talent of yours." She comments.

She looks around and notes that the crowd is forming. Candace isn't wearing her goggles right now and she is without her suit. That makes things a little more difficult. She kinda shrinks away a little not wanting to be the center of attention. Turning to Robin she smiles, "Oh thats right! The Themysciran Embassy is in Metropolis. I completely forgot. I umm... I'm really out of place." She comments as she looks around at the crowd again. Its really getting to her. She really doesn't want to be the next big thing. At least without her suit and cape.

Damian Wayne has posed:
The flagged-down officer pulls his vehicle to the curb and approaches. Robin explains the situation and the officer takes the man into custody and takes him away.

The costumed crimefighter picks up the context cues that Candace must be some form of super. Follow the Hyperloop without actually needing to get on it? He also detects her mounting discomfort. "Perhaps we should talk sometime in private," he suggests. He tugs a card out of one of his utility belt pouches. "This is my public-facing number. It changes every week. So if you want to contact me on it you have until midnight Tuesday night."

Candace Hill has posed:
Candace nods and accepts the card. "You must go through a lot of cards." She states as she looks it over. "I'm Candace by the way. Candace Hill. New York City Native who just kinda... wound up getting lost. I was just going to use my phone to find my way back before this guy stole it." She looks at Robin curiously. "I will likely call you very shortly." She states as she looks upward, Looking for a place she can land and quietly talk to Robin without a bunch of bystanders listening in. "I am sorry I got into this mess. I didn't mean to cause any trouble."

The girl finally has had enough of being on camera. She slowly backs away, getting out of the groups attention and getting away. Once clear she finds her way to an alley way and takes off upward into the sky. She quickly finds an empty rooftop and then remembers. Her phone was destroyed. "UGH!" Rapidly she takes off flying back to New York. "Time to take Ted up on the offer for a new phone." She states.

Within about two hours, she is back in the big city and has a new Kordtech phone. She quickly gets the sim card changed out and she makes the call.

Damian Wayne has posed:
A few hours later, Damian is in Titans Tower reviewing some information on the computer when his cell rings. The device automatically connects remotely to the Bat Computer and utilizes military-grade algorithms and encryption breaking to return data about the number that is calling. One side of Damian's mouth cocks in a grin. It's the girl he met on the street earlier. He's going to mess with her.

He opens the line but presses a button to insert a voice filter, making him sound like some movie-scene kidnapper using voice disguise technology.

"This is a secure line!" the robotic voice informs. "Explain how you got this number or your device will be destroyed. You have ten seconds to comply!" Not normally a jovial person, Damian is actually having a challenging time not breaking out laughing right now.

Candace Hill has posed:
"Errr I umm. I was given a card from Robin!" She panics a little as the voice on the other end gives her the business. "Please don't destroy my phone. If I go through a second phone in one day my boss is going to kill me!" She laughs nervously. Of course that probably wouldn't happen. She is pretty secure in her job at the moment and things aren't that bad. "If you can put me on with Robin that would be for the best. He told me to call him at this number." She states as she tries to sound a little more at ease even though she is really kinda freaking out right now. "This is Robin's phone number, right?" She gets out the card and double checks the phone number to make sure she got it right. The number is right on her end.

Damian Wayne has posed:
Damian clicks off the voice filtering switch. "It's cool, it's cool, this is Robin," Damian explains. "I was just messing around. I'm glad you were able to get a new phone because I don't think that loser can afford to buy you a new one. But we do some liaising with the Wayne Foundation for victims of crime, so I don't doubt we could have gotten you a new one if it came down to it."

After a beats of quiet, Damians starts back in, "I feel like there was something you wanted to tell me earlier but didn't want to with all of the people and phones in the crowd. I want you to know you can trust me if there is something you want to get off your chest."

Candace Hill has posed:
"Yeah I have a pretty good job so I just went out and got another one. I drive for Ted Kord right now. Its not every job that ya get to drive a Bugatti from time to time!" She laughs. "I understand. Thankfully I was due to get a new phone anyway. Got a nice employee discount too."

"But anyway. Yes. There is something I wanted to talk about. Do you know anyone who can help train powered individuals?" She asks curiously. "I flew to Metropolis by accident. I also do some crazy stuff with energy. I kinda absorb energy like I am some kind of battery. I can also release it and stuff. I actually was in a fight with some robot drones recently and was able to help out fighting them but I am still nervous about using my powers on normal humans. I don't want to wind up killing anyone if you know what I mean."

Damian Wayne has posed:
Okay, keep calm, Damian. You got this. Damian modulates his voice for complete calmness. He doesn't want to give her anything to get nervous or scared about. "Okay, well I'm very glad you chose to trust me with this. And I know I can connect you with the right people, Candace. Can you maybe...can you maybe tell what sort of powers you've been manifesting?" A swallow. A brief pause. "It will help me to figure out who might best be able to help you develop them."

Candace Hill has posed:
Candace takes a deep breath. "I absorb energy like solar and I've absorbed heat from someone's body through a handshake. Also I absorbed electricity from the robot drones. That was fun. I can discharge the energy I take in. I Do that through bursts or beams. I can fly. That is a big one. I can go over Mach one at flight. I was tested by Blue Beetle for the speed. Wound up accidentally getting a fine from the FAA for a sonic boom over New York City." She frowns. "Err... I think thats everything. I mean aside from being quite athletic and not getting sick really. I don't think I ever got sick."

Damian Wayne has posed:
Unbeknownst to Candace, Damian is recording this entire conversation, though no doubt one might expect to be recorded when literally calling Robin. He listens intently, utterly focused on her description. This...this is a big one. Not just some kid who can turn the light on and off at will. Big Guns are going to be needed for this.

"That's quite a heavy load to bear alone," Damian says, choosing his words carefully. Don't want to spook her. "Has Blue...has Blue Beetle been mentoring you then?"

Candace Hill has posed:
"So far, yes. He is a big help with the flying. He can't help as much with the energy stuff. He did help me out with a suit, that is a huge help. It was awkward the first time I wore it but now I am getting used to it." She smiles a little even though that is unseen. "While flight is important, I need to learn to control my energy projection and absorption. Like If I'd have hit that guy earlier with a blast I dunno if it would have knocked him down, knocked him out, or worse. Its why I didn't use my powers."

Damian Wayne has posed:
"Candace," Damian says with utter calm. "I want you to listen to me very closely. I'm going to talk to the Titans about you to see who we can pair you up with who might be able to help you learn to control these abilities. But before them, I am /urging/ you not to use your powers. I know there must be enormous temptation but you will have to live with any mistakes you make for the rest of your life."

"I'm thinking if I can connect you up with Donna Troy or Impulse or possibly Thunderbolt, they would be good..." Damian pauses, thinking. "Yeah, Thunderbolt. I bet she would be a great choice. I'm going to reach out to her on your behalf, okay?"

Candace Hill has posed:
Candace nods slowly, "I will do my best. Robots are one thing. People are another. I can go all out on a robot drone and no one will get hurt but people..." She frowns. "If a person gets hit with my power, there is no telling what it could do." She sighs. "Oh! The Titans! That will be super cool! I looked up to you guys for a while." She smiles . "I've heard of some of them. Oh sure! By all means. I am game to learn whatever it takes!"

Damian Wayne has posed:
Damian texts a phone number to Candace's phone. "Candace, I just texted a number. This is the Titan's public message line. Nobody will answer but you can leave a message. If your phone number changes before someone contacts you again, please leave your new one on that line. In the meantime, I'm going to reach out to Thunderbolt. Expect a call from her. And I'm going to call you every couple of days to see how you're hanging in there, alright? You're not in this alone, I promise you."

Candace Hill has posed:
Candace nods, "You've got it. I should be okay. I won't use my energy powers as much as I can. Flight... well I will only do that if I need to or if I am training with Blue Beetle." She comments as she considers this. "That is something I have really been questioning... the way I got my powers was unusual. Unusual enough that Dr. Hank Pym and Dr. Hank McCoy were geeking out over it."