3242/Lucy in the Tower with Titans

Lucy in the Tower with Titans
Date of Scene:	05 September 2020
Location:	Main Room - Titan's Tower
Synopsis:	Karolina is brought back to Titans Tower by Donna, where she meets a Nadia who is desperate to give her a thorough sciencing!
Cast of Characters:	Donna Troy, Karolina Dean, Nadia Pym-van Dyne

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Donna Troy has posed:
    The tour had been a brief one, just long enough for the pizzas to arrive, but plenty long enough to show Karolina that this is a seriously impressive place and must have cost an absolute fortune. It's impressive enough on the Metropolis skyline, a bold T-shaped construction in an island overlooking the bay, but inside is a wonderland (sorry, Terry!) of technology and modernism.

    The tour had started, unusually, on the roof, by way of one of Vorpal's famous Rabbit Hole portals, a mode of transport as trippy and colorful as Karoline herself. The elevator (complete with talking building AI!) had been taken down to visit a few of the other levels - the impressive gym, taking up an entire floor, the labs, the crime rooms, the memorial, then down to the lobby to pick up the pizza delivery, and back up almost to the top, to the enormous common room of the tower.

    Holding a tall stack of pizza boxes (you never know with the Titans, so you always order too much), Donna strides into the main room, ushering Karoline along. "This is where we generally just hang out when we're not doing anything much else. We meet up here for meals, movie nights, game nights and so on. Plus generally... well, some of us live here, so this is kind of the living space when we're not in our private rooms. Not everyone lives here though. It doesn't have to be a full-time thing, you know? Some people just show up when they have time in their lives, to do some training or go on missions. We do quite a lot of both."

Karolina Dean has posed:
    Karolina marvels at everything. Literally everything. The wild ride has her laughing and enjoying it, cosnidering when she's all powers-out, she lives that rainbow flying life. Then it's all joy from there anyway. New things to look at. Crazy tech to check out. The gym. The labs. She keeps solemn silence at the memorial. And even gushes about the kitchen. Then finally they're in the chillout zone, and she sighs, nodding, smiling.

    "Well, I still have classes, I'm a student at NYU. And I have a garden I need to take care of, I can't just leave my plants all on their own. The fall harvest is coming up! I have some gourds and radishes and turnips to take care of!" she says excitedly. "...but I'm happy this can work with a part-time thing... I... miss helping people. I like what we did today!" she sighs, but smiles, hugging her arms against her chest.

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
Nadia is still in the common room. Currently she has tread into the forbidden territory that is Caitlin's kitchen where she is making herself a cup of coffee. She's still dressed in her style red and black Waspette armor, minus the helmet though it probably isn't far.

When Donna and Karolina enter she looks up at them with an expression like 'don't tell Caitlin I was in here'. She may be able to fly but getting yeeted off the roof is still an experience best avoided. The momentary surprise quickly changes into a bright smile, "Hi Donna!" she looks at Karolina and pauses, "No, I don't think I know you. Just when I think I've finally met everyone." she looks back to Donna and then back to Carolina, "Hi! I'm Nadia!" she grins extending her hand to the new face.

Donna Troy has posed:
    "Hey Nadia!" Donna calls out with the broad, genuine smile that lights up her face which she seems to have for all of the Titans. "Come on over! We have pizza." She drops the stack of boxes on the table for Nadia to sort through (who knows what exciting new type of pizza Nadia will find today!), pulling out a specially marked box which she brings to Karolina with a grin. "One vegan special," she announces. "Though I still do not understand by what miracle vegan cheese is even possible."

    She returns to the stack of boxes to grab something horrendously meat-covered for herself before joining Karolina back at the sofa. "Nadia, This is Karo... You know, I didn't ask if you have a codename." She glances, blinking at Karolina. "Do you? I mean it's totally okay. Some people have code names and prefer not to reveal their private identities to the rest of the team. It's allowed. Nadia doesn't seem to mind telling people her name, but she's also known as Waspette. She's one of our newest recruits and a complete genius at science. She's really cool to have around."

    "Vorp met her at a bank heist," Donna continues explaining to Nadia. "When Cait and I responded to the alert we found her doing some kind of light-beam thing. It was pretty cool."

    "You got the T-Com lite now," Donna tells Karolina. "So you can come and go as you like. New York's not a problem - I work there a few days of the week myself, so if you ever need a ride, just ping my T-Com and ask. See how you get on, join a training session or two."

    "Oh, when I say come and go as you like? That won't give you access to the secure areas, you'll need to be accompanied by a full member for that. And... don't try. You'll get a warning from the T-Com if you're trying to go somewhere you shouldn't. There are security systems. I suggest you don't mess with them. They're usually non-lethal, but to be honest I don't know what some of the magical wards even do, and I can make no promises as to which dimension you'll end up in. "

Karolina Dean has posed:
    Karolina is happy to meet the other girl, and she reaches out to grasp the offered hand, shaking it gently. "And there's how many of the Titans here?" she asks, considering the space, and that she's met four already now. "Pleasant to meet you, Nadia! Or... Waspette?" she tilts her head slightly, not sure which the girl prefers. "Is it always that? Or only when she's in costume?" she queries, then takes the box with her pizza in it. Vegan cheese sorcery aside, it's got tomato sauce and zuchinni and tomatoes and onions on it, and is probably one of those neat cauliflower crusts, too!

    "Oh, um... code names? No.. none of the others had code names, either. We were just us..." she considers her last group of... 'powers'. "So.. just Karolina is fine? I mean, my nickname was 'Lucy in the Sky' because of the lights and I love the Beatles but... I never wore a mask or anything..." she explains, taking her seat with another little shrug. "Plus it's kind of hard hiding me when I'm.... turned on?"

    She frowns, that wasn't the right choice of words, and since she's glowing now, she's got a tint of pink on her cheeks. "...I mean like, you saw...." she holds up her arm, the bracelet sliding down halfway to her elbow. "I light up like fireworks in a mirrored room..." she smiles. "And.. I'll be careful."

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
"There's coffee if you want some." Nadia informs Karolina after shaking her hand. For her part, she has already poured herself one of those oversized novelty mugs full of the stuff. One is left to wonder if she ever actually sleeps.

The presence and mention of pizza immediately gets her attention, "Pizza!" she exclaims and begins sorting through the boxes to see which if the thousands of potential combinations from the possible ingredients list have been ordered this time.

"Vegan cheese is made from plants Donna. Plant have proteins and fats just like animals that can be used for it. Plant milk can be made from seeds, nuts, soybeans, a bunch of different things and then that milk can be turned into cheese. It's a neat process." Nadia informs Donna helpfully.

The topic of codenames elicits a small shrug from Nadia when Donna begins talking about her situation, "Nadia is the only name I've ever really had and it's not like the people who would come looking for me wouldn't instantly see through any cover I set up anyway. Waspette is more recent, isn't it cool though?! Janet even made me this amazing suit, though I tweaked most of the tech myself."

There is a pause when Donna describes 'light beam things' and Karolina descibes 'fireworks in a mirrored room' "Wait you do what?! That sounds really cool, can I see?!"

Donna Troy has posed:
    "Sorcery," Donna says, dismissing the science of vegan cheese with a wave of her hand. "Probably dark sorcery at that. Will no-one think of the poor cows and goats?" Probably not, Donna's probably eating them right now. Does Giorgio do goat pizza? Unlikely. Maybe she'll suggest it next time she's there.

    "It's useful if codenames are a little shorter than that," she tells Karolina with a grin. "I mean when you're yelling to someone in the middle of a fight, you want something shorter than 'Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds.' Still, Lucy works. I always thought that was a pretty name."

    "I'm kinda the other way around. I mean... Troia is my codename, but it's actually my real name. People call me Donna... Donna Troy, but that's actually a name I came up with to pretend I was... well. I'm from Themyscira, if you were wondering at the accent, Karolina. We don't have two names on Themyscira, just one. Back home, I'm Troia. When I came to America I picked the name Donna Troy. When I became a superhero... it was kind of an excuse, you know? Finally I could have people calling me by my real name again, even if they didn't know it was my real name. Nowdays though, I'm used to both. You can call me whichever of those names you prefer."

Karolina Dean has posed:
    "I mean... Karolina is fine..." the blonde says with a little shrug, before tucking into her pizza, listening to all the talk of codenames and other places and other things. She finishes a slice, blinking at Nadia, then looking to Donna for advice. "Umm.... I guess... should I?" she asks, then carefully sets her box aside and stands up.

    "I'm kind of low on power, though... I need the sun to refill, it's just how I work.." she gives a sideways smile to Nadia, and slips that medicalert bracelet off. The moment it leaves her fingers, dropping to the top of her pizza box, her entire body is bathed in a rainbow aura of light. It's like her entire being is a whitebox lamp filled with constantly cycling multicolored LED's. The fact that her skin is a shade of pink can barely be discerned under the dazzling array of color that engulfs her from head to toe, even her hair and clothes included. She's got enough juice for that, at least, and the tips of her toes are pointed downwards--because she's hovering about six inches off of the floor.

    "Hi..." she says timidly, but these are her new peers now, too. She bites on her lower lip, chewing for a moment as she looks between them, and hugs her arms tight around herself for a moment. "I'm an alien."

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
Nadia's attention is drawn to Donna for a moment, "But which name do you like better?" she asks curiously.

And then Karolina does her light show, "That's amazing! How does it work?!" Nadia has forgotten both her coffee and pizza for a moment in the fascinated distraction of floating rainbow person. "So, which part of sunlight? Like is it the ultraviolet radiation? Because I'm pretty sure I could replicate that. Sunlight really isn't anything special it's just photons and radiation along the electromagnetic spectrum. I don't think it would be too difficult to make you some sort of charging station!" For SCIENCE! of course.

Donna Troy has posed:
    "Honestly I do not mind, Nadia," Donna says with a smile. "At first I did kind of resent having to change my name to... well. Keep secrets. When I first came here, Themyscira was not known to the outside world, and I was under orders from my mother not to reveal anything to the people outs... here." She laughs a little. "When your mom is the queen, you don't argue too much! But really... I mean both names are important to me. Troia is my real name, the name I was given by my mom. That's important. But Donna is the name my friends know me by, and that's important too. Both names have a lot of meaning for me. "

    "Donna grins at Karolina's display, then turns the grin on Nadia. "Pretty, huh? It's not just for show though, she can use it for projecting energy at the bad guys, or creating shields. No sciencing her any more than she wants to be scienced, Nadia. However curious you are!"

    Donna laughs and turns back to Karolina. "You must be really popular at raves," she says. "I'm kinda tempted to order up some EDM right now, but we don't want to tire you out. Maybe after you've had time to recharge a little. What species of alien are you?"

    It might be a little disconcerting for someone to take that revelation quite so casually, but an explanation of just how casually Donna takes it follows very quickly behind. "We've currently got... uh... twenty-two members on the roster, I guess? We've been growing fast, it's hard to keep track sometimes. Of those, two are also aliens who absorb solar radiation to power themselves up. I'm sure you, Supergirl and Starfire will have plenty to discuss. And codename or not... if you do want a costume, mask, things like that - you know, just to keep a little bit of separation between civilian life and heroing - we can help out with that."

Karolina Dean has posed:
    Karolina blinks. She had known she was going to be the center of attention while doing this, but she's still caught off guard by the acceptance and the unbridled enthusiasm. Despite looking like a shimmering rainbow painting of herself, she's able to speak quite normally. "I don't actually know how it works?" she suggests. "...or how I work? I just... I think I'm made out of... star stuff. I don't have blood in the normal sense? And... If I were to hazard a guess it's probably the actual radiation? I've tried the blacklight thing... it doesn't work..." she laughs.

    "I think I'm ok without the costume. I've spent a long time hiding who I was, in a few ways... I guess running into you guys is a way to accept that I like helping people?" there's a little shrug again. Ok so maybe she's not so sure. But the enthusiasm and kindness are infectious.

    "My parents... said we were Majesdanians..." she explains by way of answer, "..but I don't know where that is. And... my parents were..." She emphasizes 'were'. "..very... very bad people..." she goes quieter and quieter, and reaches for her bracelet.

     When she makes contact with it and slips it on, she lowers to the floor, and the multicolored aura of light around her fades completely, leaving what looks like a human girl with a penicillin allergy standing before the pair of Titans. "...I'd like to think they still loved me, though."

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
Nadia makes a face like that really didn't answer her question, but her smile never truly fades, "You could combine them, Donna Troia!" Truly, she is a genius.

She sinks back a bit and drinks some more of her coffee when Donna asks her to ease off the Science, "Fine..." her teenager-ness clearly showing, "It'd be really cool though." She adds looking in Karolina's direction again. A pause, "See Donna?! She doesn't know how it works, she should find out! We should find out! To help her!"

Nadia drinks some more of her coffee and ponders, "Okay black lights don't work, those are pretty basic though, there's still a lot of things we could try if you want to come and visit the lab sometime. We have coffee and sometimes Caitlin makes cookies, her cookies are /amazing/."

Donna Troy has posed:
    Donna reaches out a hand to give Karolina's shoulder a gentle squeeze, a mute moment of sympathy for the pain Karolina's showing. She looks at Karolina with a faint smile for a few moments before nodding her head and lowering her arm.

    "I haven't heard of your race, Karolina. But I know people to ask." Donna's smile widens. "If you'd like to know more, that is. About your heritage. It's possible we have something in the database, but the Green Lanterns are sure to know. If it would help put your mind at rest, I can contact the Justice League and arrange a meeting for you."

    Donna holds her hands up in surrender to Nadia. "I said no more sciencing than she wants, Nadia!" she says, laughing. "If Karolina is willing, and you think you can help her learn about herself, of course that's fine. Don't be so eager to unfold the universe into comprehensible components though! The universe is a more interesting and exciting place when it has wonders in it we cannot fully explain." She gives a small shake of her head, knowing that's an argument she's unlikely to be able to persuade Nadia of easily - though maybe when the junior science genius has had more time to see what magic can do, she'll come around.

    "That's not really a combination, Nadia." Donna fishes around in the box for another slice of pizza. "Troy is just the English spelling of Troia. Actually the name was kind of given to me by someone I met in Italy, when I first left Themyscira. She knew who I was, so she called me 'Lady Troia'. In Italian, that's 'Donna Troia'. That's what gave me the idea."

Karolina Dean has posed:
    "I... don't know..." Karolina seems reluctant. Reluctant to persue her heritage, really. "...earth is my home now, you know? I was born here. So... even if it's my people it isn't my home that's out there?" she juggles her thoughts but seems to come up with a logical excuse. Maybe. But she does seem sincere about this being her home. "They confirmed what I was not long before they died, so I don't know anything about it anyway?" She sighs, leaning a little into the momentary touch. "Sleeping dogs..." she adds, then settles back down on the couch to nibble on her pizza. "...are they vegan cookies?" she then asks Nadia.

    "Look, just... point me to a comfy place to sleep, or prop me up next to a window... I don't know if I want to take the hyperloop home at this hour, and I don't have neough power in me to fly... so... can I crash here tonight?" she asks, though she yawns quite big, blushing deeply as she clamps her hands over her mouth.

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
"Of course Lady Troia," Nadia says with a grin and an exaggerated bow, though it's all in good fun.

She blinks at Karolina, "I suppose Vegan cookies are theoretically possible, though I've never had one before. I've never had a lot of things though. Caitlin could probably make you some. Do you actually need to eat or can you like photosynthesize?" The important questions.

She stacks a few pieces of pizza on a plate and grabs her massive mug of coffee, "Anyway I should probably get back to the lab before something explodes. But there should be somewhere you can sleep in the dorms." She looks to Donna as the authority figure in the room.

Donna Troy has posed:
    Donna raises a hand, shaking it slightly. "Don't want sciencing, no sciencing," she says after she's finished her current mouthful of pizza. "Don't want lessons in xeno-anthropology, no need for that either. Do want makes you comfortable, Karolina. Nobody's gonna push you. Hear that Nadia?"

    Donna licks her fingers then sticks her tongue out at Nadia. "None of that, you. Still, better than Caitlin. Ever since she found out who I really was, she calls me 'princess' any time she wants to annoy me." She rolls her eyes. "One day..."

    Donna closes the box of pizza and hops to her feet. "Karolina - I'm sorry, we've kept you here really late talking away! If you like I can fly you back to New York, we'll even beat the Hyperloop that way. Alternatively we have plenty of guest rooms. I'll sort you out one and you can get home in the morning if you prefer. Unless you'd like to spend the morning sunbathing on the roof with our other solar-powered alien friends."

    Donna tilts her head thoughtfully, and smirks with amusement. "I wonder how many species there are out there who are solar powered. Maybe we can collect the entire set!"