View source for 4538/The Glory That Was Greece, And The Grandeur That Was Rome

{{Log Header
|Date of Scene=2020/12/30
|Location=Metropolitan Museum of Art
|Synopsis=We're not saying that Cassie Sandsmark is responsible for the unexpected animation of statues... but we're also not totally denying it.
|Cast of Characters=1935,168,899,1140
|pretty=yes
}}
{{Poses
|Poses=:'''{{#var:1935|Iason (1935)}} has posed:'''<br>It had been, so far, an otherwise unremarkable day at the Metropolitan Museum, with the normal volume of visitors the museum gets in the winter. Kristine Van Der Haas was escorting an important guest around the different World of Antiquity exhibits, as the Museum had recently reached out to the Embassy for the purpose of proposing a temporary expansion of their Themyscira exhibit. Whether the young curator was excited to speak to the Ambassador, whom the world knew as Princess Diana of Themyscira, Wonder Woman, it didn't show in her perfectly calm demeanor... except for the fact that some of her co-workers might notice that the woman is smiling a lot more than she usually does. <br><br>The meeting with the director had gone something along the lines of- "So as you can see, although our Themyscira exhibit is sizable, it pales in comparison to our Ancient Greece collection. It has long been a feeling of the museum that that is an oversight that should be corrected..."? and soon after, it was agreed that the Ambassador would be escorted by the curator to see the spaces they intended to use to expand the collection, should Themyscira find the proposal agreeable "As," the director had said "it would provide an even greater opportunity to understand Themysciran culture and history."<br><br>The young curator gestures to the Greek exhibit, "The director's idea is that we can consolidate the bronzes into anther wing and give this much space into which the Themysciran collection would advance..." this section is covered by bronzes- most of them incomplete or damaged, and the majority of them are identified as Roman copies of a Greek original lost to time. <br><br>All of them, except one. An image of a young man at rest, eyes closed and a pensive attitude on his face. He seems to preside over the entire room by virtue of being the only perfectly intact statue in it.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:168|Diana Prince (168)}} has posed:'''<br>Diana was a commonality in this museum over the years, she was a face that many of the regular, veteran, members of the Museum's staff were familiar with. Her 'coming out' event in 2017 had been quite the surprise to many in locations like this, that simply knew her as a leading member of the cultural anthropology and archaeology field.<br><br>Now, they're eager to get her influence on these topics and subjects. Of course, she's eager to help where and how she can too. For the meeting, Diana had discussed the impending opening of the Themysciran Arts Center on the opposite side of Manhattan. She'd said she was quite eager to setup a more open working relationship to share artifacts of cultural significance between the locations. "A symbiotic relationship in the name of the art of my people, between our facilities, is an ideal arrangement." She'd told him.<br><br>But now, in the Bronze exhibit, Diana's eyes are wandering over the sculptures and other artwork on display. Her heeled shoes impact upon the polished granite floor as she steps between the displays, wearing a blue dress and her dark hair tied back.<br><br>Her eyes end up on the young man's own, statuesque as he is. She stares at him as she replies. "Between this site, and the Arts Center we are opening, we should have more than enough space to cycle exhibits and always work in new, fresh pieces, that we recover from around the world, or donate straight from the Island itself."<br><br>Diana takes a step away from the interesting statue then.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:899|Cassie Sandsmark (899)}} has posed:'''<br>Another day, another museum, and Cassie... looks about like you'd expect, as excited as a girl literally raised in the back rooms of a museum would be for her thousandth and first visit to such an institution. Which is to say: Yaaaaaawn.<br><br>It's not that she doesn't appreciate the ancient artwork, but even without Diana's years of experience and cultural background, it all just seems terribly... normal to her. This is so her /mom's/ sort of thing. In fact, it will actually be her mom's thing since, to no one's shock, she's been handling a lot of the nitty-gritty details at the Themysciran Arts Center so that Diana doesn't have to.<br><br>But Cassie?<br><br>Cassie just wanted to hang out in the park with Diana. And with her class schedule on top of hero stuff, she doesn't really have a lot of options. So it was 'meet up at the Met while she finishes some business' or spend a few more days waiting for the constellations of their schedules to align. And thus: a Cassie! Just a moderately bored one.<br><br>While Diana chats 'exhibit rotations' (FASCINATING), she hangs a few steps behind, going through something on her phone in the way all young people do when they want to tune out on the world. She's paying so little attention that she actually ends up nearly bumping into Di when she stops to check out the unusual statue. That at least makes her look up from the screen. "Hey whats- huh. That one new?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1140|Donna Troy (1140)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"There are conceptual complexities with curating an exhibition of Themysciran works which you'll find unique," Donna says to Kristine. Once more this is decidedly Donna rather than Troia - even if she still had her armor this is hardly the setting to show up in costume, but she has been looking decidedly civilian ever since returning from space. She's along as an ambassadorial aide, because - well because it's hard to keep Donna away when it comes to this kind of cultural exchange. She takes a lot of pride in Themysciran arts.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"We have a history unbroken since the Mycenaean era. What you think of as 'ancient Greek' was a short-lived parallel in the development from the Aegean bronze age - one with a certain amount of interchange in the pre-Roman era, but we have two millennia of artistic development in isolation since then. The current style is a kind of neo-classicism, but we've been through periods of significant deviation. Periods of abstraction, periods of neo-Cycladism and so on. It would take some arranging, but we might be able to ship a representative sampling of the changes in artistic fashion over the last three thousand years or so. It would be nice to present something to the world that lets people see that Themyscira is not simply an Attic survival."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Yes, this is Donna. She takes her arts seriously. Much as she, too, would love to hang out with Diana in the park, she can easily get lost in a museum. Systematizing the art history of Themyscira in terms of the art history of Man's World is one of the many things on her extensive to-do list. As an immortal you can afford long to-do lists.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1935|Iason (1935)}} has posed:'''<br>The curator smiles brightly at Diana's words, and nods in acknowledgement of Donna's, "Of course, the opportunity to observe the development of a culture left entirely to its own devices is... well, unheard of. Not for a civilization that has lasted /millennia./ Just between us, our entire staff gets palpitations at the thought of seeing more-"<br><br>Cassie's remark stops her for a second, and then she ahs, "Oh, this piece- yes, it's fairly new in that it has only recently been placed in the exhibits. We've had it for quite some time but there was a long process of clean-up and identification... for a considerable amount of time there was doubt as to its authenticity, but professor Kapatellis was able to confirm within a reasonable margin of doubt that this is the only complete surviving work of the sculptor Aristokrates."<br><br>Clearly a subject she has some interest in, Kristi proceeds, "Through corroborating written records and accounts, we know now that this was a piece comissioned by Theon of Alexandria, and it stood in the gardens of the Museion..."<br><br>At the back of the hall, a man watches the exchange. He doesn't seem to be part of any touring group, but stands completely by himself. He is dressed as one would be for a New York winter, with a hoodie and a scarf, as well as gloves. The strange thing about him is that what little skin that is visible, mostly around the eyes and forehead, is completely white, like chalk or marble. <br> <br>

:'''{{#var:168|Diana Prince (168)}} has posed:'''<br>As she'd started to step away, Diana eyes roamed over the other items nearby. Passing by Cassie, she shows her a soft knowing smile, well aware that the young woman was more than ready to leave as soon as possible, and she was trying her best to make sure they did just that. Donna's words, along with Kristi's, draws Diana's attention back to that statue in-question though and she eyes it a moment longer. "It is astounding that it is in such good condition too." She idly comments before her eyes slip away from it again.<br><br>She notes the man across the room in the hoodie, as she's quite adept at keeping her senses tuned to the others around her. His pure white skin tone is noted as well, but she doesn't linger her gaze as they seem to be nothing more than a simple museum goer attempting to enjoy their afternoon like everyone else.<br><br>Diana's eyes look back to Kristine then. "Well." Diana says, trying to keep things moving so that Cassie doesn't pull a knife on any of them. "I hope that you come to the grand opening of the Arts Center, Kristine. I believe it will be a place that you will find a lot of interest in."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:899|Cassie Sandsmark (899)}} has posed:'''<br>Oh /gawd./ She's made a terrible mistake! Show just the slightest bit of interest and look what happens! This lady is going to keep going until she's given Cassie the full history of the statue, its origin and cultural context, and every other bit of relevant information. Her mom goes on like this too. AND DONNA. Really she's just surrounded by these people!<br><br>And yet, its not like she wants to be rude, or mean to the presumably very nice lady who is just trying to do her job and being extra helpful offering all this information. "Oh yeah? That's uh, that's pretty cool. Aristokrates huh? Cool, cool." She feigns interest, feigns familiarity with the topic even, although she's probably (sadly) a lot more knowledgable about this stuff than she'd even give herself credit. Just from familial osmosis. That said, she's definitely never heard of any Aristokrates or Theon of Alexandria.<br><br>Maybe if Kristine realizes Cassie's a dumb kid she'll stop bothering her and she can get back on her phone!<br><br>Or there's plan B: "Isn't that interesting DONNA? The Museion!" Woosh. But maybe she can divert Kristine the Energizer Bunny at her sis!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1140|Donna Troy (1140)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna's not really paying much attention to the statue in question until the Curator starts on the story of it, which draws her attention back to the bronze. "Theon of Alexandria... the father of Hypatia? The second Museion?" she asks curiously, studying the statue's face. <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Second Museion? Well there's a historical mystery rather casually cleared up. The real consequences of that culture that has lasted millennia may not have entirely sunk in yet. It continues. "Hypatia was permitted to visit Themyscira. Very few were at that time. We still have some of the notes she wrote -- she was working on a commentary on the work of another mathematician at the time. Not much though, just a few scraps. Apparently she had intended to write the entire commentary during her stay, but she became rather distracted by an Amazon called Chryseis..." <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna blinks a few times and turns away from the statue. "Uh... Chryseis made astrolabes at the time. She said that Hypatia was keen to learn the advances we had made in the field. Yes Kristine, you must come to take a look at the Arts Center. I'm sure we can arrange for a little preview for you before the opening..." Perhaps some historical mysteries are best left mysterious, and it is perhaps best to hope Kristine's mind isn't blown by the realization that 'she said' actually meant 'she said to me', and that there are people on Themyscira alive today who knew Hypatia personally.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;'Knew'. Yeah.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna rests a hand on Cassie's shoulder and grins, welcoming a change of subject, kinda. "Temple of the Muses, literally, Cass. Actually that's where the English word 'museum' comes from, so we're in a museion right now. Is it too cold for ice cream? I suddenly have an urge for ice cream. We should go get one after this. I just spent three months in a place where they don't have ice cream, and that's too long. You up for an ice cream after this Cass? Di?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1935|Iason (1935)}} has posed:'''<br>Unfortunately, Kristi is paying attention to everything the Amazons are saying. Closely. Because of course she is. He blue eyes go very, very wide all of a sudden and she tilts her head. <br><br>"Wait, go back for a second, you said that you know someone who personally met-"<br><br>"H y p a t i a"<br><br>It isn't Kristi who says the name. The voice sounds... strangely resonant, as if a bell had spoken and left a sudden silence in its wake. <br><br>The young curator slowly turns around. It hadn't been any of them, because it was a /male/ voice. <br><br>Her back was turned to the statue, but any of the Amazons could have seen what Kristi did not: the bronze lips actually moving to say that name. <br><br>"Did any of you...?" Kristi asks, her eyes darting to this side or that.<br><br>In the back of the hall, the chalk-white figure suddenly stands a little straighter, a little more attentive.<br><br>There's also something different with the statue- but only to someone who paid attention to its appearance originally. Its eyes are now open.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:168|Diana Prince (168)}} has posed:'''<br>Diana moves over to stand between Cassie and Kristi so that they can all stare at Donna together as one while Donna replies. For Diana, her response to Donna's informative knowledge on this matter and subject garners a grin that grows across the Princess' lips.<br><br>She takes a moment to lean over toward Kristi, to hover her chin above-and-beside the Curator's shoulder. "She is our compendium of relations from a long time ago." The Princess quietly says to the other woman, mostly because she's ever-impressed with just how much knowledge Donna has taken in about the history of Themyscira.<br><br>Of course, the male voice that comes from the STATUE changes the expression on Diana's face from a playful one to a much more serious and confused one. Her dark eyebrows lower down and her eyes focus on the face of the statue.<br><br>They're all keen enough to know that it just spoke, but... why, how, so on and so forth.<br><br>"It would seem that there is more to this piece than would meet the eye." Diana glances to Donna. "You woke it up with your insight, dear sister." Diana chides her.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:899|Cassie Sandsmark (899)}} has posed:'''<br>While Cassie is not quite the scholar that her mother is (OR DONNA), by the time they get a generation further along with their ancient tale, from obscure father to more famous daughter, she does seem to catch on: "Oh, the math lady," she declares, looking over at Donna as she comes to stand beside her. It doesn't seem to surprise Cassie that she'd popular (WINK WINK) with the Amazons, although she ends up tilting her head in thought. "Was that like, a secret visit? They couldn't have still been interacting much with the rest of the world at that point, right?"<br><br>She pauses, and even starts ticking off fingers with her thumb on her non-phone hand, as if doing the math for when all of this was in her head. OR TRYING. She's even less of a math person!<br><br>"Donna we were literally having ice cream when you got back and found us," she points out with a little eyeroll that this is only now coming up as some great joy that the wayward Amazon has been deprived of. And now it's cold! Though she ponders, and suggests, "We could go to Dylan's Candy Bar?" Of course Cassie knows all the famous and popular places. And, she's usually up for a sweet treat!<br><br>Like the others, she glances over toward the statue as it speaks. She's surprised but... not, honestly, SHOCKED surprised. When you're a superhero, this kind of thing happens. Heck, she and Diana once had to save her mom from a living statue back at her own museum. So, really, not her first rodeo!<br><br>So instead, she quips in Kristine's direction: "Hah, guess I was on to something when I said that one looked a bit different, right?" She turns around, and puts her hands on her hips. "Yo, statue, I gotta warn you, if this is like, one of those 'you have disturbed me and I must now go on a rampage of revenge' things- you've got terrible timing. So let's, like, step it down a notch, kay?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1140|Donna Troy (1140)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna turns slowly and stares at the statue again. She was looking the other way when it spoke, but she sure notices the eyes are open now. She stares at it hard. "Kristine," she says slowly. "Without wishing to give you an aneurysm, things are different on Themyscira. I mean Homer wrote about mom, and our aunt married /Theseus Wanax/."<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She's just talking to keep her mouth busy at this point, a fact reinforced when it becomes clear that she won't let the ice cream issue drop. "YOU were having ice cream, Cass. That just makes it worse! I missed you by minutes. When I got to that ice cream place you were already gone and I went chasing after the pair of you without stopping to try the goodies on offer. You know we were on a planet called Nim where I tried one of their sweets, and it was like this... gelatinous... sweet-and-bitter... gunk. It was disgusting. The only saving grace it had was that the portions were small. It was not a great culinary venture. And no, it was quite rare that visitors were allowed back then, but less rare than it is today. Which is going to change." She can't quite let that one drop either.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna shifts her eyes briefly from the statue to Diana and back. "Not my fault, sister! How was I to know it was going to come alive? If anyone calls me Pygmalion, I'm punching them. Umm. I suggest we clear the room. Katherine, can you tell security to clear the room?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1935|Iason (1935)}} has posed:'''<br>Poor Kristine! Donna lays a bomb like that at her feet, and she has to get security to clear the room. She has questions! But, also, one of their permanent exhibits has just spoken, so perhaps Donna's advice is sound. With a hurried nod, she rushes over to security and with frightening expediency the room starts emptying out. <br><br>The pale man, however, seems to be slinking in the opposite direction from the exit. The security guards have not gotten to him yet.<br><br>The statue is changing, slightly. The shiny finish of bronze is starting to dull a little, seeming more closely related to skin than metal. The eyes are slowly starting to acquire a life-like luster, and his bronze hair starts darkening. <br><br>"H y p a..."<br><br>The words are interrupted as Cassandra speaks to him. In a show of puzzlement, the statue furrows its brows and says, in Greek, "&lt;W h a t d i d y o u s a y?&gt;"<br><br>The way he speaks is slow, and the strange resonance is present, but it starts decreasing by the second. The more that his metal looks like skin, the less metallic the voice sounds.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:168|Diana Prince (168)}} has posed:'''<br>Of course, for Diana, she's not really focused on the conversation of the past in the now, let alone the recent past at the ice cream shop where Donna had just missed she and Cassie upon her reappearance from the terrible culinary experiences of the planet Nim...<br><br>No, Diana's focus is entirely upon the statue that had just spoken. She does a full circle around the statue with her eyes going up and down it until she's back around on its left side. She can see the changes happening to its skin and when he speaks again she glances to her companions, toward Kristi who's 'alerting the authorities' and then back up to the statue-man when he speaks once more.<br><br>Diana's response, offer him her right hand, for stability and for greeting. "Hello." She says to him in English before she switches to Greek herself -"I am Princess Diana of Themysciran, daughter of Queen Hippolyta and these are my sisters. Troia and Cassie." She motions tot hem both in turn before she puts her eyes back upon the 'man's' as he awakens further in to this world.<br><br>"We are here to help, please, do not hesitate to ask questions or tell us how we might do just that." She instructs him as he surely must be adjusting to whatever magick this is that is seemingly wearing off... or only just now getting started?<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:899|Cassie Sandsmark (899)}} has posed:'''<br>Cassie continues standing there in her just slightly aggressive, fists on cocked hips pose, tilting her head as she regards the statue. At least it's not immediately leaping around to smash anything, like last time! When it speaks up, though, she siiiiiiighs. "Oh jeez. Well, of course it- he? Doesn't speak English."<br><br>"&lt;Yes... hello! My name is Cassandra. We come in peace! Do YOU come in peace?&gt;" Normally this is where she'd put a joke about how he better if he doesn't want to leave in pieces, but the pun doesn't exactly translate. Also, her Greek is... really slow and awkward, so she's basically speaking like a little kid. She's been studying OK!? But she has like a gajillion other subjects.<br><br>Ultimately, she shoots a helpless sort of look back and forth sideways between Diana and Donna, as if they might have some better clue what to make of this situation. Nevermind their slightly better linguistics. "He's asking for Hypatia, or, at least, seems to react when we mention her," she points out, all helpful like. "I hope we're not gonna have to be the ones to break the bad news..."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1140|Donna Troy (1140)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Nothing like a security issue to take a historian's mind off those bombshells. While Diana and Cassie concentrate on speaking to the statue in Greek, Donna keeps her eyes on the security detail clearing the room out. "We may have to, Cassie," she says, her eyes on the crowd. "It's entirely possible that he's sixteen hundred years behind in current affairs. But let's do this gently." She keeps her speech to English, assuming that an old Alexandrian statue is probably not good at the language. <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna catches sight of the pale man, and moves off to intercept him, trusting her sisters to deal with the statue itself. "Hey, you there! Please follow the security guards and clear the area," she says firmly, pointing towards the door. "We have a security issue. You will be able to resume your tour of this exhibit when security gives the all clear. Thank you!"<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;From historian to security guard in a matter of seconds. Donna gestures with her head in the same direction she was pointing, for emphasis.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1935|Iason (1935)}} has posed:'''<br>The young man looks disoriented as he takes Diana's hand for balance. He does look relieved at hearing a language he recognizes, even its kindergarten variety as it is in Cassie's case. <br><br>"&lt;I... you are Amazons?&gt;" the youth's eyes widen, his face looks more lifelike with each passing second, until it almost looks like there is real blood under the skin, which faintly shows the hint of veins at the same time that his hand grows warm. <br><br>"Oh, I am sorry" the strange man says to Donna as she begins giving him instructions. "I was... transfixed by the craftsmanship of this." The incomplete bronze before him is not that remarkable, outside of its historical significance. The man's gloved hands reach for his sunglasses and starts pulling them down, "Remarkable." <br><br> At that moment, the statue starts to speak again"&lt;You... spoke my sister's name... Hypa-"&gt;<br><br>There is a brilliant flash of light, like lightning suddenly falling into the hall. The remaning civilians let out a shout and several drop to the ground, clutching at their eyes as the blinding light dazzled them. The blinding light that came from the perfectly white eyes of the man. A resounding crash also sounded at that very moment and Diana woud have felt the statue-boy's hand let go of hers without a sound.<br><br>When the light clears, the youth is on the ground, as if he had fainted, but the color of life is slowly drawining out of the body, which is starting to become statue-rigid again. <br><br>The chalk--white man turns around and starts walking towards the exit with a quick stride. "I shall make my way out now, shall I?"<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:168|Diana Prince (168)}} has posed:'''<br>Diana, is quick to glance over to Cassie and her valiant efforts with the language, which gets a quick and soft expression of endearment from the Princess who then looks to Donna to see whom she is addressing. The man with the alabaster white skin she'd seen earlier. But, the Statuesque man coming to life takes her hand and she certain to look back to him.<br><br>"We are." She says at his question of them being Amazons. "We have much to tell you of your sister, if you are able to list--" The flash comes, the light fills the room and robs Diana of her own vision, even if the bright light doesn't 'hurt' her, it does make her fall back on her other senses. She can hear the screams, feel the man's hand leave her own, and when the flash fades, she moves to crouch beside him as he's now upon the floor. A quick look over his form and she looks up to the man who's now chooing to retreat.<br><br>"Stop him." Diana says calmly to Cassie and Donna, either or both if they choose. "He seems to know something."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:899|Cassie Sandsmark (899)}} has posed:'''<br>Cassie is just thrilled that the statue hasn't immediately gone on a rampage. It's already a better day than these things usually turn out to be!<br><br>... it may have something to do with the fact that said statue is rapidly growing less statue, and more real boy. "You seein' this? This is some real Pinocchio sh-"<br><br>Fortunately the young Amazon's sailor's mouth is interrupted by the sudden flash of light, which also seems to interrupt whatever answer the man formerly known as statue was trying to give. Like Diana, she's quite unprepared for it, and gives a bit of an 'argh!' as the light dazzles, lifting up a hand by reflex and turning her head slightly from the source. Which is really the first thing that gives her any indication Donna has more on her hands than museum tourists, because she wasn't paying that 'clear people out' stuff much attention.<br><br>Dazzled and a bit confused, she might well have lost track of the escaping fellow, except he goes for the pro move of announcing his escape. Quips, respect. But also dumb. Cassie is in post-school clothes, so her lasso's not quite as on-hand as it might be otherwise, but this doesn't stop her from heeding her mentor's command!<br><br>And so she does things the classic Cassie way: headfirst, with a flying tackle aimed at the dude.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1140|Donna Troy (1140)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna's lasso is on hand though - she doesn't go anywhere without it. It's not instantly on hand, wrapped around her waist as a belt beneath her jacket, but the suspiciously eager excuses the pale man had made about that rather uninteresting bronze has her reaching for the lasso , if not in any great hurry. <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Then the flash. Donna squeezes her eyes shut and shields them with a forearm, but even with those fast reactions, when she opens her eyes again she's blinking bright afterimages that render the world around her too vague to make out. She hears the steps of the pale man moving away. Hears his voice with that quip, and the slightly accelerated beat of his heart as he moves to make his escape. She hears the thudding of Cassie's feet on the hard floor.<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;The lasso comes loose, glowing in her hands. She waits a moment, all attention on her hearing, focusing her mind intently. She swings her arm back, and waits a moment longer. Memory of long afternoons drilling with Philippus, wearing a blindfold and trying to lasso the sword out of the Amazon general's hands barely intrude, so instinctive has the process become. <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She jerks her arm forwards, whipping the lasso out to meet the pale man's legs - timing it, she hopes, to entangle him just at the intersection of his path and Cassie's, to stop him from escaping her charge.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1935|Iason (1935)}} has posed:'''<br>The statue-man remains immobile on the ground. Whatever life he seemed to have had once is quickly leaving it. He doesn't even respond, if addressed.<br><br>The fleeing man feels *extremely* soli to Cassie as she collides with him. It's almost like flying into a granite column instead of warm flesh. Donna's lasso does what it intended, although the Amazon will notice that it takes a little more pull to down the man than it would have been required for a normal man.<br><br>As the man goes down, a hard *crack* can be heard, like marble hitting marble- and as the man impacts the ground, his scarf and hoodie fall away from him to reveal a perfectly-sculpted, white and /cold/ face. Even his hair is sculpted and colorless white, like a marble statue.<br><br>Instantly, he tries to struggle and to push Cassandra away, in order to run towards the door if he can. Unfortunately, he is tackling with Amazons... and the lasso still has him.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:168|Diana Prince (168)}} has posed:'''<br>Diana is worried primarily for the man on the ground, what had been the statue that had come to life. She does, however, hear the sounds caused by the collapsing Marble Man when Cassie tackles after Donna snares. "What on Earth..." Diana mutters under her breath.<br><br>She stands once more and starts to walk hurriedly across the museum room to where Cassie and this Marble Fellow are, her heeled shoes impacting upon the polished surface.<br><br>When she reaches them, she stands above the man whose hood has fallen back to reveal that rock-like face. "Who. Are you?" Diana bluntly asks, no Lasso of Truth to back her up in this moment as it was not meant to be a day, or moment, where such a thing would be necessary. It's not /far/ mind you, it's just out in the car!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:899|Cassie Sandsmark (899)}} has posed:'''<br>"Ow!"<br><br>That is Cassie's somewhat less than dignified reaction as she hits the fleeing man and discovers, well, a -second- statue doing a bit of walking and talking. Certainly, she's capable of flying right into (and sometimes through!) solid granite, but that doesn't mean it's entirely pleasant, especially when it happens unexpectedly. And she was definitely expecting something on the softer, squishier side of the spectrum.<br><br>Still, courtesy of Donna's assist, the guy goes tumbling over, and the younger Wonder ends up atop him. And here, she puts her Amazon training to use, including their (admittedly occasionally suspicious!) penchant for wrestling: quickly she adjusts from merely being in an unceremonious pile to a proper grappling mount, and then promptly hooks her arm under one of his, grabs her wrist with the other hand, and bends his elbow down to the ground. Rock or not, she figures the principles and body mechanics of the lock should apply, which push the tension onto his joints. If he was flesh and bone, it would be very painful.<br><br>He is not, so who knows. Maybe he'll just snap his own arm off struggling. She's kinda OK with that.<br><br>"Settle down, buddy!" she growls, using her up-close scrapping to apply a little extra intimidation while Diana strides over all classy and diplomatic-like!<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1140|Donna Troy (1140)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;Donna realizes very quickly that she has made a mistake. The lasso tightens around Marble Guy's legs and tightens - and starts to slip through her fingers. She had not expected this much momentum. She mouths a word under her breath that is known outside of Themyscira to a few scholars of Old Luwian, where it is recorded as 'Ke-we-das, hieroglyphic Luwian (hapax legomenon) from the Karahoyuk corpus, tablet 47, pos. deriv. proto-Anatolian kuwa- (soil), meaning unknown'. In Themyscira the word is known and notorious, and Donna hopes it was unvoiced enough that even Diana's sharp ears didn't hear her say it. <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;It's fortunate that Cassie made the intercept - it gives Donna time to tighten her grip. She shouldn't have made assumptions, shouldn't have gone easy, but she did. Unforgivable. She blinks upwards, her vision clearing, and swings the far end of the lasso up over a support beam in the high roof, then pulls the end back down, levering Marble Guy's legs up a little. As she walks over to join Cassie and Diana, she reels in the rope, keeping his legs slightly off the ground so he has no leverage there to counter Cassie's grip on his arms. "No," she says grimly to Marble Guy. "You won't make your way out now. You'll explain exactly what you are up to. Or I'll haul you up to the ceiling and then let you drop on your head, and keep doing it until you have either told us what we want to know, or you are nothing more than a heap of calcite dust the museum can use for repairing damaged frescos. Either way, suits us."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1935|Iason (1935)}} has posed:'''<br>The marble man is quickly immobilized by the quick effort of the wonder sisters. At first, he seems absolutely outraged, but when he notices who it is that is addressing him, his face scrunches up in a rictus of hatred.... which is very surreal, like watching living marble move. "Amazons!"<br><br>It is clear that he had been paying attention to the statue and not the women. His face definitely reads 'foiled plan' all over it, written in sheer fury. He struggles, but it is futile... and with one last baleful glare, he says "Never you mind. I will bide my time."<br><br>And with that, something... somewhat horrifying happens.<br><br>The marble man falls apart. It is as if his body deconstitutes itself, so that it breaks into pieces of marble, clattering down onto the floor, leaving tangled clothing behind.<br><br>And a brilliant spark leaps from the remains and flits away, disappearing through a wall.<br><br>Another, weaker and duller spark slowly emerges from the clothes and ambles its way towards the prone figure of the young statue-man. As soon as it enters his body, the bronze one again fades back into skin, and his chest begins to rise and fall. He is, however, completely unconscious.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:168|Diana Prince (168)}} has posed:'''<br>Diana, of course, looks at Donna when she hears her sister mutter that. She moves her eyes from Donna's face, to the lasso in her hands, almost as if she noted Donna struggling with the instrument, which was more than a little uncharacteristic for her sister. But there's larger matters at hand here. She looks back down to Cassie, and then to the Marble Man as he replies, then weakens and breaks.<br><br>Seeing this, the Princess steps back on her heeled shoes and watches the marble fragments crumble and pour out of the clothing. The glitter of light is seen, eyed and observed as it flutters out of the room. "What kind of magic is this?" Diana asks everyone within ear shot.<br><br>Her body turns toward the Statue Man, and she moves back toward him then, stepping to his side. She observes him again before looking to Cassie and Donna. "He needs medical attention." So she believes anyway, at least to be examined. "We should take him to the Titans Tower, or the Hall of Justice. Somewhere that is not a public place. We do not know the danger of this magic yet."<br><br>The last thing they need is a whole hospital of crumbling marble people after all! "I will summon the Jet to transport him." Diana adds as she looks up to Cassie. "Raincheck on the park?" This is the nature of these three women's lives.. oddities, all the time.<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:899|Cassie Sandsmark (899)}} has posed:'''<br>"... Ok that is definitely a way to get out of that hold," declares a somewhat perplexed Cassie, as the thing she was sort of jokingly considering might happen actually does in fact happen!<br><br>She ends up sitting in what is now more a pile of rubble and rough gravel with some pants wrapped around it, still holding the arm she was so purposefully controlling. Well, mostly just the wrist now, as it's also broken down into smaller bits. With it in hand, she looks back over her shoulder at Diana.<br><br>"I was gonna ask you to give me a hand, Di, but..." She waves the bit she's holding, grins, and shrugs. HUMOR.<br><br>Mostly, it turns out that sitting on a pile of broken rocks is super uncomfortable, so she gets up, dusting off her backside. "Uh I think this is all a bit beyond medical- oh you mean the OTHER statue." She furrows her brow. "And by the way how many freaking animated statues are there in this museum? You should get that van der hoosiwhatsit lady back here and make her explain herself, this is a statistically improbable number of rogue talking statues! She could be a villain or something."<br><br>This is not wholly serious. Maybe a little. Mostly she just seems a little annoyed, robbed of both her opponent and her afternoon in the park/and or eating custom boutique candy and ice cream. "Yeaaaaaah."<br> <br>

:'''{{#var:1140|Donna Troy (1140)}} has posed:'''<br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;This time Donna is more prepared. She's paying attention. When Marble Guy starts to disintegrate into dust, she quickly adjusts her grip on the lasso to compensate, and doesn't fall over in an embarrassing fashion. However she does find herself dangling a pair of pants on the end of her lasso, which is slightly embarrassing in itself. With a flick of her wrist she lets the pants drop and reels in the golden rope. <br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;"No fair," Donna complains. "He did it to himself before I had a chance to do it. Still, my point holds. Marble dust. That's good clean calcite, the museum can use that for patching and restorations and stuff. Right, Di?"<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She steps over to join Cassie by the pile of rubble, picking up a pinch of dust between her fingers and rubbing it curiously, letting it drop back into the pile. "Hmm. Interesting. Pygmalion indeed. To animate a statue would take an enchantment or a soul. Perhaps these animating forces run out over time, and this guy goes around stealing the /psyche/ of other animated statues?"<br><br>&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;&nbsp;She glances over at the figure of Iason. "Though this one... appears to be more flesh than bronze now. So it's not a simple... I don't know what it is. I haven't studied enough magic. I'm not clear whether this guy needs a doctor or a mason, though."<br> <br>
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