4641/It's always Sunny in Titan Towers

It's always Sunny in Titan Towers
Date of Scene:	07 January 2021
Location:	Main Room - Titan's Tower
Synopsis:	Victor returns from vacation, Kori is playing Animal Crossing, and Nadia took a lab shower. Context.
Cast of Characters:	Koriand'r, Victor Stone, Nadia Pym-van Dyne

---

Koriand'r has posed:
With so much going on in the world, duplicates and friends going to and from space, one would expect to find the fiery haired Titan in poorer spirits. Those people, however, do not know Koriand'r. The eternally bright spot in the tapestry of darkness is rarely dower, what a terrible day it must be to find the Tamaranean Princess not smiling!

Today she's seated on a bench in the foyer of the Tower playing a handheld videogame system! Obvious that she does not fully grasp the concept by how she turns it to move the character, but enjoying herself none the less! Tongue poking out the corner of her mouth, she's shouting quiet come on come on comes and yeeehaaaas!!, but mostly she's just keeping an eye on the doors!

What with news people coming by or the occational visitor, she likes to be the first face they see! At least in those days where she's around the tower.

Victor Stone has posed:
The elevator in the main room lets out a cheery chime and the doors slide open, revealing a figure that is certainly not unfamiliar, but that has been scarce around the tower in recent weeks: Vic Stone, alias Cyborg, carrying a suitcase under one arm and decked out in sunglasses and an absolutely enormous pair of blue board shorts. He should probably be wearing flip-flops to complete the look, but he's never found a pair with the structural integrity to survive more than a day of basic use.

He leans out of the door, looking to one side with an oddly furtive posture, but there's no getting past Kori's view, positioned as she is. His eyebrows rise into view over the frames of the shades and he says, adopting his most casual tone of voice, "Oh, hey, Kori."

He just made off with the Titans' submarine for a few weeks, with no word on where he was going. No big deal, right?

Koriand'r has posed:
Kori varies in her presence at the Tower, subject to the needs of Queen and Country (AKA: Her day job with Janet Van Dyne's clothing). The comings and goings of the vehicles for a Titan who can fly is.. negociable, but it's hard not to notice that the Sub is gone!

Or that Vic has returned.

Wearing... summer wear.

Kori glances up over the edge of her Switch, giant grin on her face! "Best friend Cyborg!" The device is tossed down into the seat beside her as she stands, crossing the distance to him with her arms open. Intention is fully obvious, she is a Hug seeking missile!

"You have been gone and I have missed you very much!"

Victor Stone has posed:
Vic knows better than to get between Koriand'r and anything she wants, especially if that's a hug, so he quickly drops the case -- which clicks lightly to the floor, suggesting that it contains little beyond a bit of clothing -- and throws his arms open to return the gesture.

"Hey, thanks, Kori!" he says. "I missed you, too!" It's a bit of an odd thing to say, since after returning from a long and isolating space journey, he seemed to decide to leave almost immediately. Still, the hug is warm and obviously sincere.

"What did you get up to while I was away?" he asks with a grin when he finally releases her and pulls back from the embrace. "Fight off any supervillain attacks? Invent any new foods? Beat any video games?"

One of the army of Roomba-style robots that he has built to maintain the tower trundles over, takes the suitcase that he set down, and rolls away toward his room with a demure whistle of greeting.

Koriand'r has posed:
It is arguable that of the Titans, Vic and Koriand'r give the very best hugs! Which makes a hug between them a very dangerous thing indeed! The perfect storm of affection, one might say. Kori's arms tighten around the massive cyborg, all smiles as she leans into her desired embrace. Even after releasing him, she remains close. Well within his personal bubble, but she's always been kind of iffy on observing such things as space.

"OH! I have been doing modelling for Janet Van Dyne!" Which was the case after the Titans broke up following the fight with Doomsday. "But recently I have helped with the rescue of Nadia Van Dyne-Pym and I beat Cyberpunk. I found that Keanu Reeves was very good in this particular depiction. Though I do not believe he is well suited for shouting."

"How about you? Have you been on vacation to Hawaii?"

Victor Stone has posed:
Indeed, Vic usually has to carefully calibrate his hugs so as not to cause affection-based injuries, but Kori is tougher than most. He's had time to get used to Kori's novel approach to personal space, and just nods along with her narration of her recent activities, chuckling at the limitation she notes in the actor's range.

When she finishes on her question, he gives a sharper laugh and answers, "Nah, those Panama Canal guys get all weird about 'cargo manifests' and 'flying flags,' so I stuck to the Atlantic. St. Croix, actually -- clear water, nice beaches, don't even need a passport. Oh, and rum factories. Can't forget those."

His eyebrows lower a little as he asks, "What happened with Nadia? Glad to hear you were on the case, at least. Any trouble I should know about?"

Koriand'r has posed:
"Oh, she was taken by Russians." Kori answers matter of factly, nevermind with a smile, and her hands on her hips. Casually discussing a friend being kidnapped is par for the course, but it's arguable she'd find some kind of optimistic slant to view it from.

"oooo yes! I enjoy rum quite a lot! Especially when it is used for the base of a cake. I do not remember where I had rum cake, but it was delicious." Nodding definitively, she beams at her mechanical friend. "Have you only just returned?" Nudging at his suitcases with the side of her foot indicatively.

Kind of stating the obvious, really.

"Have you heard about all the doppleganger stuff? Also, it is possible, but unlikely, that Gar has died. I do not believe it myself, but.." That is the only time her smile flickers, but manages. Only because she's convinced it is not true, perhaps.

Victor Stone has posed:
"Russians. Of course," Vic rolls his eyes and shakes his head, as if chiding the largest country on Earth for generally naughty behavior. "Always some kind of trouble in Russia, isn't there?" Kidnappings aren't exactly new to the well-established Titans, either. I mean, sheesh, they've been friends with Dick Grayson for more than a week. "Glad you got her back. Hope she wasn't too stressed by it -- she seems resilient, though."

Her comments on rum get a laugh, and he agrees, "Cake is a great way to enjoy it, but you can't really sit and eat cake at the beach, so I mostly had Mai Tais. Maybe I'll have some rum cake to celebrate getting back, and to help my system adjust." He gives her a lopsided grin. "Yeah, just getting back -- hope you guys didn't have any underwater missions while I was gone.

He is about to affably answer that no, he hasn't heard about the doppelgangers, but then instantly sobers as she continues. "Whoa, hold up. Run that by me again? In a little more detail?"

Koriand'r has posed:
"Oh. Well rather using water in the mix, you use low proof rum which adds the spice flavor, which I personally think mixes better with the sweet notes." Kori begins going into greater detail about the concept of a Rum Cake rather than Gar's supposed demise.

"Some recipes call for chocolate icing, but I do not agree with that personally. I think it mutes the rum, but I think it comes down largely to opinion and preference."

Victor Stone has posed:
"Right, yeah, I --" Vic tries vainly to derail the Great Tamaranean Baking Show for a second, lifting his metal index fingers as if to catch Kori's attention, but then gives up and waits for a natural break in her conversational rhythm. Again, they've known each other for a while.

"What about more details about Gar?" he suggests when he can. He's a little impatient with the suspense, but these kinds of detours are sometimes to be expected. "Something about being possibly dead? Maybe start from the beginning on that one and tell me what happened."

Koriand'r has posed:
Kori blinks a few times, following Vic's finger as it raises and tries to direct her back from her rambling jibber jab on Rum cake, "oh... Oh yes, of course you meant Gar." It seems so obvious /now/. Her grin folds a little, lowering her voice just so with a glance hither and fro.

"I spoke with Terry who says that Gar's doppleganger boasted about killing our Gar. I have my doubts, but I am a glass is half full kind of person." She murmurs quietly and glances at the elevators, "There is a bit more information about it on the Titan computers if you would like to read Vorpal's report. Wonder Woman was there as well, used the lasso of truth to assure validity, but..."

It's clear she's /trying/ to stay positive.

Victor Stone has posed:
Vic puts the pieces together quickly. "So, with the lasso in play, the doppelganger -- I'm assuming we're talking an identical duplicate who want to kill you, like in folklore? -- had to at least believe that he'd killed Gar. But if BB faked his own death to get away from the ganger, that would still work. The worrying thing would be that he hasn't made contact yet." He pauses, frowning, and then tilts his head to one side. "Am I basically getting it?"

He can read the reports later -- for now, it sounds like he should focus on his friends. They already thought they'd lost the three spacefarers, so this would hit even harder than usual. That said, like Kori, he's gaming out scenarios that might offer the possibility of his friend's survival.

Koriand'r has posed:
"Yes, that is my belief on the matter." Kori bobs her head to Vic's observations on what she's said and how she's reading it. "I do not believe that Gar is dead. I will not be so crass as to I will believe this when I see a body, but this is accurate all the same." A small sliver of her smile returns, curling at the corners of her mouth with a bright flash of green in her already very green eyes.

"We have survived far worse than saucy tart duplicates of ourselves claiming superiority."

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
Nadia hasn't been seen much recently, at all really, since she barricaded herself inside of the lab after reporting the original Doppleganger incursions to the Titans. She's been working on -something- in there for days, though what is anyone's guess.

Can't stay locked away forever though.

"I do not believe he is dead." Nadia says seemingly appearing from thin air in the lounge. In fact she just entered at a very small size and was observing for signs of being a doppleganger in the two Titans present. "Think about it, he can be literally any creature including fantastic beasts. There are some truly amazing abilities in the animal kingdom. Without a body I simply can't believe it. He could have turned into a Tardigrade or something, tiny and nigh invulnerable, to escape notice." Though she seems as much determined to convince herself of this as the others.

Victor Stone has posed:
This Vic is obviously a doppelganger: his skin is darker than usual, he's wearing sunglasses and board shorts, and hasn't he been away from the tower for weeks? Blast him, Nadia!

"I guess I picked a bad time to go off the grid," he says with a slight, guilty frown. "What do you mean when you say these guys are claiming superiority? I kinda know the folklore, but I'm imagining these aren't that straightforward. Unless they're from some Germanic equivalent of Themyscira I haven't heard about."

He crosses his arms, obviously not floating the possibility all that seriously -- although if the others claimed such a thing, it's not like it's any less believable than anything else in his life.

Koriand'r has posed:
Kori turns towards the sound of Nadia's voice and beams a bright smile, waving her hand over her head as if the tall redhead and massive metal-man weren't obvious! The look on her face practically screams HELLO BEST FRIEND NADIA, WE ARE OVER HERE.

"Hello best friend Nadia! It is good to see you leaving the lab. Do you require a bath or perhaps refreshments?" This seems far more important than convincing herself that Gar isn't dead. Which isn't to say she doesn't care that Gar might be dead, she absolutely does care. She will absolutely destroy anyone who harmed a single green hair on his green head if it turns out to be true.

But for the sake of argument...

"Oh, they are from a different dimension where everyone is super evil and mean. Or just different. It is always oposite day in this dimension." Explanation in the simplest of manners for Victor.

"It is an entire dimension full of assholes."

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
Nadia smiles at Starfire and shakes her head, "I am fine. It's good to see you again. I actually have a shower and kitchen in the lab, or at least in my lab." Though she doesn't elaborate on the difference or how they overlap. "And Vic! Welcome back! ...have you talked to Donna?" There is the barest hint of suspicion, though so far as she has observed, he seems okay.

She nods her concurring with Starfire's assessment. "It is an alternate Earth that was under the control of a powerful planet devouring space entity with an unpronounable name called ZZGU for short. That Earth basically became Hell on Earth for about forty years controlled by ZZGU until recently liberated by a task force from Earth and now apparently many of them still under ZZGU's corrupted mental influence seem to have decided our dimension is much nicer and they should kill their counterpart and move in. If you're wondering how I know, my Dad and I built the device SHIELD used to detect all of these dimensional breaches. I was standing in Operations at the Triskelion when all of this was first detected."

Victor Stone has posed:
"I'm sure they're just misunderstood," Vic tells Kori, but his voice is wry. If she, of all people, is passing such harsh judgment, they can't have much in the way of redeeming qualities. Not to mention the idea of someone who would try to kill Gar...

He waves as Nadia approaches, giving her the knowing smile of a fellow lab dweller. "Nope. Just got back from the Caribbean. I'm sure I'll run into her before long, though. She'll probably be mad that I took the sub." If he's a doppelganger, it's of the laid-back beach bum variety.

Of course, her long soliloquy on the nature of the dimensional invasion harshes his mellow a bit, and he has to switch to strategic mode. "So are they constantly walking among us, or hopping through dimensional breaches to stage surprise attacks from their own Earth?" he asks.

Koriand'r has posed:
"It is possible that they are misunderstood, yes! But they are hurting people for no particular reason.. so their nature is objective to their reality. On their own Earth, I would argue, they are wonderful people who only need to be hugged out of their poor life choices." Kori says to Victor, beaming a very bright smile.

"Here on this Earth, where they are attempting to kill my friends for the purpose of replacing them, they need to be beaten to death with their own arms."

Glancing back to Nadia, she grins all the more. "Oh, that is good! You should not go around smelling like six day old eggs. Which are tasty, of course, but not suitable for social aromas." Said while sniffing in her friends direction expressively. "You do not smell like eggs."

Nadia Pym-van Dyne has posed:
Nadia shakes her head at Victor, "It seems to be numerous one time crossings, the initial wave was somewhere around 5000, though how many crossings before that wave remains unknown, when they were still trying to bring ZZGU to this Earth. But we don't have enough data to make any hard conclusions, yet." The idea of getting away to the Carribean is an appealing one, though there is still the slightest bit of suspision. Suddenly the world is a lot more like her childhood, the world of lies she supposedly left behind.

She smiles at Starfire again, "I am glad I don't smell like eggs, I have been accused of having lab funk before and have been trying to be better about it, at the very least once a project is finished. There is still a lot to do to detect and deal with these dopplegangers. It would be a lot easier to come up with a detection method if I had one to study..."

Victor Stone has posed:
"You make an interesting point," Vic tells Kori with a nod and a twist of amusement on his lips. "Everything is relative. Still, I usually beat people senseless with /my/ arms, but everybody's got to have their own individual style, right?"

He runs the backs of his fingers across his jawline, staring into the middle distance thoughtfully. "You need one captured, huh? I'll let you know if mine comes after me." After a second, he adds wryly: "He'll probably be kind of a pushover." At least he didn't leave his sense of humor off in space.

But sense of humor or not, he knows better that to jump into a discussion of what his female teammates smell like. He'll just be over here, voicing no opinion on that question, thanks.