12949/Flying Lessons

Flying Lessons
Date of Scene:	02 October 2022
Location:	Penthouse - Kord Co
Synopsis:	Zinda finds a Bug in Ted's designs, and Loves it!
Cast of Characters:	Zinda Blake, Ted Kord, Joan Wright

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Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake got the referral through a friend of a friend. Honestly, she knew very little about the Kord Company, and now here she is.

The Eurocopter is painted in Blackhawk colors, and Zinda brings it in pretty hot. After circling the rooftop a few times, she sets the bird down right in the center of the helipad marker. Starting the power-down sequence, she looks around. A pool? Who the heck puts a pool on the roof?

The door opens and she steps down. She's pulled out all the stops for this first meeting. Full, double-breasted jacket, ultra-short skirt, black boots and even the Blackhawk officer's cap.

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord has pulled out all the stops as well. New Blue Beetle uniform with all the latest features. Haircut, cologne that Joan liked. He even let B10 give him a manicure. He gves a nod to his waiting bots and they form an honor guard, four to a side. Ted is at the end, with an exceptionally large bot and a tiny, almost toy like bot with a flame paint job and colored tips on the manipulators? The little one hlds a rolled up scroll and a pencilOdd. The larger bot hands a bouquet of flowers to the Beetle who presents it to Zinda.

"Welcome. Good morning! It's a pleasure to meet you. I'm the Blue Beetle, but please call me Ted."

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake approaches the welcoming entourage with a combination of jaunty sass and military precision. Blue eyes brighten as she surveys the reception, even giving a little laugh at the presentation of the bouquet. "Why, thank you honey!" she replies.

Accepting the bouquet, she returns with a cheek kiss. When she steps back her hand is still on his shoulder, which she gives a parting pat. "I was wonderin' about the 'blue' reference, but it really works. I'm Zinda Blake, Lady Blackhawk. And it's a real pleasure to meet 'ya, Ted." She looks up and down along the row of robots. "So who are these adorable little critters?"

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord gestures grandly. "These are my bots. Not quite robots and not quite my kids. These models are becoming self aware, truly intelligent beings. Th big guy is Bobo, Beetle Operations Bot Oh-One. the little one is Bailey Bee Oh Bee 10. Bailey... identifies as female. Magnetic press on nails, girly decals, a dazzler poster. She's eyeing your nail polish already. they are definitely self aware. They learn on their own and show flashes of creativity. Oh, come here Bingo... B.O.B 02. Bingo is another one. Would you like a mimosa? Bingo, make us your mimosas please."

A bot on line waves and then flies off. Anyway, I raise them like my kids, and keep the internet on lockdown and they're good people. Not an Amazo or Ultron in the bunch." Bailey is a little emboldened by the flattery. A scanner flashes over Zinda briefly, then she holds out her decorated manipulator.

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake looks as he introduces the bots, one by one. She grins when he comes to Bailey, tilting her head to peer more closely at the nails and decals. "Why ain't that adorable..." she offers. Then she turns more towards Bailey and stretches out her hands to show off the neat manicure and bright red polish. "Had 'em done yesterday."

Back to Ted, then. "A mimosa would be just great, actually. Thank ya', Bingo." Brows scrunch, then. "Amazo or Ultron? I'm assumin' those are bad-guy types..."

Turning back to Bailey, then, Zinda reaches for the decorated manipulator and looks it over quite closely. "That is real nice, sugah." She leans in closer then, whispering loudly. "I ain't got the patience to do my own anymore. If it weren't for the gals at the salon, I'd have mechanic's nails."

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord gestures. "She likes to paint them for special occasions. During the week she wears false nails that are held with magnets. She did my manicure today." He holds up a hand. "One time... I was taking a power nap and she painted my toenails and fingernails while I was sleeping. So I attended a meeting wearing gloves... and not one person told me about the lipstick and eyeliner I had on. She got some downtime for that. They hate inactivity. I think thy take after me. But... come on in. Have a mimosa and I got some rolls and such. Hey. Stop that." The last is directed at Bailey who pokes him with the scroll and then unrolls the paper to reveal a vintage Lady Blackhawk poster. "Oh yes... I was going to let her have a drink and refuel. Could we have an autograph please?" You can see the fan boy eyes through the goggles.

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake keeps her focus on Bailey, at least until Ted holds out his hand. She takes a closer look. "She did a real nice job, I'll say that." Zinda offers. The grin broadens at the mention of lipstick and eyeliner, but at least she doesn't giggle.

"I sorta get that. I like to stay busy, myself." Zinda replies. "One reason why Blackhawk Freight execs wanna keep me out of the boardroom an' let me fly whenever I want to..."

Accepting the drink, Zinda takes a rather deep sip as the scroll's purpose becomes more clear. Her head tilts at the sight and she grins. Broadly. Reaching out, she carefully fingers one of the edges before looking back to Ted. "You sure? This one's an original." She laughs, then. "Then again, s'pose I am, too." Zinda accepts the pen, looking around. "Let's go over to a table an' sit. I ain't in no hurry."

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord nods and a little awestruck leads her to the dining area and table. Eight sensor system watch as the bots for a circle at a respectful distance. Bailey flits off somewhere, once relieved of her poster carrier duties. Ted holds a chair for Zinda, just beating out Bobo. He then pulls his goggles down and his hood back. "Thank you so much. It's an honor. Thank you for your service."

"Now what can the Blue Beetle do for Lady Blackhawk, or Ted for Zinda?"

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake sits down, carefully placing the mimosa glass far away from the vintage poster. She picks up the pen, but doesn't sign just yet. When he pulls down the goggles and hood she smiles, as if liking what she sees.

"You familiar with a Quinjet, Ted? Cute little plane used by SHIELD and the Avengers. Vectored thrust. Agile as all get-out, but it's still a school bus with wings. I heard you were one of the best there is with tech, so I wanted to kick around ideas."

Looking down at the poster again, she asks. "Want this 'familiar' or fancy?"

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord hrms. "Not /too/ familiar. I have a lady friend." He chuckles at that. Yeah Joan'd murder him. 'So vectored thrust, a but a bit smaller, cause you aren't hauling the Hulk and/or Thor... maybe room for four?" His wheels are already turning. Maybe an ionic effect like the bots and the Bug use for hovering and such? I can definitely hook you up. Probably something that'll qualify you for astronaut in terms of altitude.

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake laughs softly at the girlfriend remark, but she nods sagely. "Most of the boys I signed pictures for had girlfriends, honey. Don't you worry." After a moment she scratches in the lower right corner of the poster.

'Ted,

It was a real pleasure meeting you!

All the best,
Zinda'

Putting the pen down, she turns her attention back to the conversation. "Room for four, maybe six." She pauses. "You familiar with the B-26 from my era? Twin engine, lotsa guns, space for a jump team. Nice transport, but she could fight when she needed to. I wanna push that envelope a bit. Can you gimme somethin' that'll fly like a fighter but still has space to haul a few friends?"

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord hrmms some more. "Yeah... I could do a slick job. Just understand, this craft will have Kord Co. proprietary technology so you'd have to bring 'er in to me for major servicing. B-26... I'll pull up some diagrams. -Korri, give me a B-26 American bomber cockpit design, please." A remote on Ted's desk flashes (blue -but you knew that.) A large television proves it is actually a monitor -or both. A number of cockpit views are shown and he choses a technical drawing. "I'll get the actual plane technical drawings. Yeah this is nice. You want the exterior to look like a P-38? I always wanted to do one of those. Never had time. Never got to fly one. Uhm... I can show you the systems I plan on using. They're in use on the Bug. You can take it for a spin, see how you like it. I... can bring it here." He toys with the hood and goggles.

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake looks thoughtful, settling back with her glass to listen. "Well ideally it'll be sorta like a cross between a B-26 and an' F-16, but that's a bit of a contradiction." Zinda's eyes widen a touch as the images start flashing across the monitor. She leans forward a bit.

"I think the -real- limitation has always been the laws of physics. Somethin' big enough to haul is too heavy to maneuver." She looks curious, then. "The Bug? That like a plane or somethin'?"

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord says,"There's no easy way to answer that.. except to show you." He touches the control on a throat mike and lets out a piercing whistle. "Follow me!" He hurries back outside. Out on the river a huge spray of water appears as huge object rises to the surface, and keeps on going. A gigantic metal bug rises into the sky shaking water off it before flying to the penthouse. Thrusters flare with blue light. They should be enough to knock you down but the breeze is quite bearable. The Bug lowers a line with a combination seat/stirrup on the end.

Ted looks at Zinda and blushes a little. "I'll go first." Yep, that is a short skirt indeed. Two disks deploy from his back. He steps onto them and they lift him up. "Oh uh, unless you rather I give you a lift?" He holds hands out awkwardly.

Zinda Blake has posed:
He whistles for his plane? Okay, Zinda is really curious now. She rises when he does, leaving the drink and poster on the table. Zinda laughs softly at that, shading her eyes as the thing rises into the sky.

"That's a pretty big bug." she declares. The seat lowers and she's already stepping up when he offers to go first. A soft chuckle and she tips her hat. "A gentleman, too." she replies. "No, y'all go ahead. Wouldn't wanna cause any 'domestic' problems."

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord says, "Yeah. Right. It'd be just my luck, Joan comes in to catch me with you in my arms. Thanks." Disappointed? Not at all! But how often did you get a chance to cradle carry a boyhood heroine? He starts to rise, staying on eye level with Zinda. That's well above shirt level, high as that may be.

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake stands there in full Blackhawk uniform, complete with double-breasted jacket, short skirt, boots and cap. Ted is slowly riding the lift up to the hovering Bug while Zinda waits for her turn. "Sugah, you an't the first fella' I met that had a gal back home. Nothin' but respect." she replies.

Joan Wright has posed:
Perhaps Ted should look into membership to the JLD because his prediction was spot on. As Zinda's taking the lift up there is the loud cry of a woman's voice from behind. "WAIT! WHAT'S GOING ON?! PUT ME D- OH-! DON'T PUT ME DOWN!"

As with all the grace Zinda presents as she rides the lift up, there is a little floating bot parade zooming up to the bug's entrance. Leading the way is a Bailey carrying a familiar flapping yellow and green fabric. Soon after Several bots have joined their manipulators together and are carrying a rather surprised looking Joan who unfortunately has a lovely view of the ground below as she's being more or less carried ass first to the entrance way.

Ted's previous concerns aside, there's likely a good chance this is not the entrance Joan wanted to make. If she had been given advanced notice that she was going to be making an entrance.

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord watches Joan b bot handled in the Bug. "Next time let me know you're on your way. You could have saved yourself cab fare and an elevator ride. He flinches at some unheard signal from Joan as the bots release her. "Uhm I was going to let Zinda fly... could she have the co-pilot seat for this trip?" Ted and the bots flinch.

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake makes it up to the Beetle the slow way, greeting Joan when both get to the top. "So you're Joan." she replies, after introductions are made. "Real nice to meet ya', honey." Looking around inside, the pilot instinctively moves towards what she expects to be the cockpit. "Co-pilot's seat, hmm?" Oh yes, she looks curious. "So long as she's got a stick an' a rudder, we're in good shape."

Joan Wright has posed:
Wide eyed but now safely situated in the bug, Joan is quiet for a few moments. She looks to the bots quietly before looking over to Ted "I don't ev-" She blinks, looking over to Zinda. And then the attire. The name starts to stick. "...Lady Blackhawk?"

As Joan's brain reboots, she looks over to Ted. "She knows more than I do about flying. Of course."

Pushing herself up, she looks to Bailey who is waving around the bright green and yellow fabric to her. "Thank you Bailey but I don't think I need the suit."

She pauses, looking back to Ted, "... I don't need the suit, right? I have no idea what the kids brought me into."

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord says, "It works more like a helicopter, so the controls are laid out in a similar manner. I figured it hovers, make it a similar lay out for other pilots... as well as Joan. She can attest it's pretty easy to handle. It accepts vice commands from me. Uhmmm Ms. Zinda wants me to build er an aircraft... no legs this time. I told her the Bug has a great engine system and I'd like to let her fly it and get a feel of it." With that he sends the bug out over the East River, almost skimming the waves. As the river flows into the harbor, then the Atlantic, he rises to 6000 feet and hands the yoke over to Zinda. "No suit. Bailey, carrier. Now!" The bot flies over to a specially formed seat for her and locks herself in.

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake is already looking around for the controls to get familiar. "She's a quick thing, alright. Moves more like a spaceship than any sorta plane I ever been in." She settles into the co-pilot's seat, finding the controls as she takes one last check.

"Looks pretty intuitive to me. Everybody strap in." And when all looks secure, she pulls back and takes the altitude straight vertical, up to 20,000 feet. "Real good climb rate." Then she flips the Bug into a classic rollover-dive engagement to see how well it handles like a fighter.

Joan Wright has posed:
"Mind you I don't do the impressive stuff you are known for," Joan responds, looking over to Zinda, giving a smile as she heads over to a side seat, "Ted gave me the basic tutorial to make sure we don't crash or if I need to make an emergency landing." She starts to buckle in, "The bug does most of the basic stuff."

As Zinda takes over and they start to feel the straight climbs up, Joan's fingertips grasp upon the underside of the seat she's strapped into. Do not underestimate the death grip when the proper motivation is present. And yet she's smiling.

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord woots as Zinda puts the Bug through its paces. He takes the yoke back, "Here -as for maneuverability... the Bug does a 180 brakes to a halt then rapidly accelerates back along its path, throwing in a few side drifts. He hands the yoke back to Zinda. "Your turn."

Zinda Blake has posed:
"Ooooh, nice!" Zinda exclaims. "See what I mean? Conventional flight is pretty much always goin' forward for lift. Except helicopters, which follow their own set of rules. This lil' thing handles like gravity an' physics just don't apply anymore."

She goes straight vertical, twisting in a rapid spiral all the way up another 10,000 feet. "How high did you say she'll go again?"

Joan Wright has posed:
As Zinda and Ted discuss the cans and can nots of the Bug, Joan stays in her seat. To be honest they all do. Safety restraints are funny that way. But suffice to say she's here mainly for the actual ride. And because the bots sort of yanked her on to begin with.

But how often can one say they were on a ride piloted by Lady Blackhawk?

She does her best to be professional but there's a slight muffled squee as they start to spin.

Ted Kord has posed:
Ted Kord says, "Anything over ten miles and NASA says please let them know. I am planning on going to... the Blue Area of the Moon, at some point. Knock yourself out, Lady B. You haven't even got one yellow light yet! Here, retract the legs, you can really make speed... let me get it. Throw the auxiliary leg generators into engines." Oh, there's a yellow light! Ah gone. I build pretty good. Nothing against you."

Zinda Blake has posed:
Zinda Blake chuckles at that, looking both amused and curious. "Well honey, we ain't really dressed for walkin' on the moon." she replies. Watching as Ted retracts the legs, she laughs. "Wait. That was all with the gear down? Tell me we weren't on full flaps, too."

Zinda will put the Bug through a few more standard maneuvers, then she tries the less conventional. Sliding straight sideways, without so much as banking. Straight up has already been done. Straight down is just as easy.

"Oh I think I like this already." she replies, pushing the throttle forward and heading out to see. "How fast will she go?"

Joan Wright has posed:
How fast will it go with the gears up?

How fast will it go?

Well, the world itself may never know but for those on the ship, including the humans three.

That question is soon answered, punctuated by Joan letting out a loud, "WHEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEE!"