1466/Plugging Into the Web

Plugging Into the Web
Date of Scene:	01 May 2020
Location:	Upper West Side
Synopsis:	Spider-Man reaches out to Scarlet Spider with his own Spider-Comm rig. And it isn't even Christmas.
Cast of Characters:	Peter Parker, Ben Reilly

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Peter Parker has posed:
It was getting late, but certain things still had to be done.

He had spent a suspicious amount of time at Ironworks fabricating these Spider-Comm sets and now it was time to get everyone connected.

He had sent the text to the contact number Scarlet Spider had given him. If all went well, it would be the last time he'd have to do so.

Spider-Man landed on the roof of the Metropolitan Museum of Art and waited, hoping Scarlet Spider could make it.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly has been a little quiet lately. Active but not as active. Stopping smaller crimes, not tangling with some of the bigger groups and what not. A spider is gonna spider though. So when Peter called him Ben was a bit busy, but still managed to carry on the conversation. A few street toughs roughed up and then webbed up and stuck to light poles for the police to figure out down the road. He's a few minutes late for the meetup, but not too late. There's the soft and very recognizable thwip of a webline and then the scarlet figure of Ben Reilly drops almost soundlessly to the roof next to Peter. "Hey Spidey."

A backpack is put down and a sewing kit is pulled out. There's a slice in the fabric along his calf, the red line that is there has already stopped bleeding and is closing up slowly but surely. Blazingly fast by human comparison. "I need to figure out some kind of self healing material. Stitching things back together is getting old. So what's up? Need help with something?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey turned around and smiled wryly under the mask.

"Well, technically, yes. I have this brand new rig, optimized and custom for your needs."

He unzipped the backpack and took out a small cardboard box, one originally designed for a StarkPhone.

"I present to you...your Spider-Comm hardware."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly cants his head slightly to the side, expressing his confusion while still having the mask on, though there's a bunching near the eyeplates under his mask suggestiong a furrowed brow. "A StarkPhone? I mean they're nice and fancy but not sure... how that..." He pauses briefly. "Oh. Oh. It's inside the box?" There's a light chuckle from him as he ties off the needle and thread, a temporary fix until he can get some time to actually repair the suit. Then his hands reach out to take the box from Peter's. "Spider Comm. Does that make me an official Spider person?" He asks, the smile audible in his voice, a happy little note to it. "Do we get a secret lair too? Or is that too villainy?" He asks, his tone soft, more subdued, like the humor is a bit forced, but such a natural part of his routine that he does it anyway. But his hands carefully open the box to reveal what's inside.

Peter Parker has posed:
Initially, it doesn't look like much. A set of eye inserts to fit inside the mask, a set of wireless earbuds (complete with charger), a thin strip of fabric designed to go around the neck, and a pair of thin cloth gloves.

"The inserts go inside the mask, the gloves go on under your costume gloves. Put everything on, and let me know when you are ready."

And with that, he turns around to give Scarlet his privacy.

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly looks at it all in confusion for a moment, but it doesn't take long for him to figure it all out, his head bobbing up and down a little bit. "What's the battery life like?" He asks curiously as he examines everything. When he sees Peter turn away he laughs a little bit, but does as well, turning his back on Spider-man so he can slip the mask off, though the hood is pulled up to cover his hair. His hair is probably longer than Peter's at this point, but it's... still Peter's hair. So he pulls the hood up before slipping his mask off and fits everything into place before slipping the mask back on. Then he does the gloves as well, keeping his hands out of sight. Scars are very recognizeable. They're very personal. They have stories, and they're easy to spot. And fingers tend to pick up lots of little nicks over the years. So he keeps his hands hidden as he slips the gloves on as well then slips his on. "Okay."

When Peter turns back Scarlet is adjusting the webshooters around his wrists. "Need to get access to a machine shop so I can redesign these things. Too bulky." He mutters as he adjusts them. "So the gloves under, will they interfere with my grip within my suit? What's the tensil strength on them?" IE how careful does he need to be about them?

Peter Parker has posed:
Spider-Man says, still not looking behind him, "The gloves have fingertip pads that are built to interface with the augment reality interface." He takes out a small tablet, tapes a few buttons...

And the world changes for Ben as the heads-up display comes to life, displayiing a message: CONFIGURATION MODE.

"Now, read the words that will come up on your screen."
Another button-press, and anohter box comes up:

"I am Scarlet Spider. My voice is my passport. Admit me."

Ben Reilly has posed:
Ben Reilly wasn't expecting the full HUD to pop up in front of him. And it surprises him enough that he jerks backwards and ends up flat on his backside. "Oh. Oh wow. This... this is waaaay beyond what I was expecting. How on earth did you afford this?" He waves a hand in front of his face a few times to check how the world interacts with his vision and the HUD. "Nifty." It takes him a moment to realize that he's been asked to do something. "What?" He asks, looking up then goes quiet a second. "Oh. Okay. I am Scarlet Spider. My voice is my passport. Admit me." Given that his voice and Peter's are... the same. How does that work? "Soooo this is super cool. But battery life? Resistance on the gear? Like if I get knocked in the head by someone who sturdy is it? Sturdy as we are? Or just a bit sturdier than regular electronics?"

Peter Parker has posed:
Spidey chuckles as Scarlet Spider ends up on his Spider-Butt. "Battery life is 24 hours. The earbuds have their own charger, and the other component are qi-enabled. There is a charging pad at the bottom of the box. The lenses are made of safety plastic with a thin layer of liquid-cast display for the HUD, so it won't crack or shatter."

The display runs a progress bar, then comes up, superimposed over his normal vision. "There is a manual in a file on the rig. Has a 512 GB memory card. It will show you how to configure everything, set up and use the subvocal microphone, the instant-messaging and cell-phone communication, and how to update the database files.

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Good battery life and storage and everything." Scarlet Spider's hands curl and then grip eachother, twisting and moving, testing to see if the gloves restrict or mess with his grip on the hands of his costume. "Won't mess with our grip? Holding onto walls and what not?" He asks curiously as he looks back up. "Thanks ... Spidey." He caught himself, but he was clearly about to say something other than Spidey, or just oddly stopped mid sentence. Either one is slightly fishy. Ben is not good at the whole subtlty or keeping a secret thing.

"This gear is wicked. And I maintain. Waaaay more expensive than you could have afforded." There's a definite question in there, but he won't push it any further than that. "And now we can stay connected. We need eachother we can call. Who all is in the little network? The spider girl that was with you when we met, myself and you. Anyone else?" He asks as he fishes into the system, or tries to, looking for a contacts list.

Peter Parker has posed:
There are three other contacts - SPIDER-WOMAN, WOLF SPIDER, and SPIDER-MAN. "I haven't been able to get in touch with a few others, but I'm working on it...and as for affording it, let's just say i've had a reversal of fortune, and can now afford myself again." He snickers. "There's also a private database that you can add info to on any subject. No one fact is more important than any other one fact."

He smiles wryly. "I tested this rig on myself, and already able to interface without any trouble."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"Ah. And since the spider people powers seem to be pretty much on par with eachother your testing it is as good as everyone testing it. It's strange really, just how much all of our powers are alike. You'd think even given differences in genetics that the process would make us different. Who is wolf spider? Is that the uhhhh creepy guy who talks to himself like he's two different people?" Scarlet looks up from messing with the new system to offer a head tilt forwards and an extended hand out Peter's way. "Well I hope that reverse of fortune doesn't change you. Down to earth Spidey is best Spidey. Too many heroes get too full of themselves. But something tells me that won't be you."

Peter Parker has posed:
Spider-Man nods. "Yeah, that's the one. Wolf Spider, or just Wolf. Sometimes he and I are going to have a proper sit-down about all this."

Spider-Man looked around, then said, "Anyway, the Comm system runs on its own network protocol, but you can have it send notifications to your regular phone. That way, you won't find yourself lacking information."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"That's useful. Leaving the phone in the backpack is a pain in the butt. Leave it in there and might miss people calling or trying to get a hold of me, leave it out and I'm not ready to spring into action. And a second, heck a quarter of a second to put the phone away could cost someone their life. I'm not okay with that." Scarlet dips his head again and lifts it back up. "Thank you. This is really cool. And if you need anything let me know. I might not have the facilities to fabricate fancy tech, but I can help with design and what not. This is good for something." Ben's hand reaches up and taps the side of his own head, letting it wobble back and forth for a couple of seconds.

Peter Parker has posed:
Spider-Man nods. "Put it through its paces. Test all the functions, see how it holds up." He smiles wryly under the mask. "And myh next project is an improved version of the suit. So I hope that works out well, too."

Ben Reilly has posed:
"If you have access to the facilities to make this, then you could do a LOT with your suit. I'll toss some ideas your way if you want. Though you'll probably think of anything I would so it's probably unnecessary. Knife resistant fabric for starters." He turns his head to look down at the rough stitching to hold together the calf of his suit. "I'll test it out and let you know. Keep in touch Spidey." Ben rises to his feet and sketches a sloppy salute in the direction of the spider in red and blue before he turns and thwips off into the night.