867/Meeting the clan. With a C.

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Meeting the clan. With a C.
Date of Scene: 30 March 2020
Location: Liberty Island
Synopsis: Achilles meets a couple of modern marvels!
Cast of Characters: Beatriz da Costa, Achilles, Mary Bromfield, Billy Batson




Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    It's morning, and after a hard night's ... well, she calls it 'patrolling' but last night she was more whooping it up in the clouds, probably single-handedly responsible for weird weather reports and/or UFO reports ... Bea finds her favourite resting place.
    Inside Lady Liberty's torch. Because she like irony a whole lot.
    Billy had sent her a note, so she was expecting a visitor. Or, given the way her life is going, two. Or ten.

Achilles has posed:
    It's not like Achilles goes to visit the Statue of Liberty as a normal thing. But there are times when events dictate seemingly coincidental encounters. The gods work in eff'ed up ways... and so Achilles finds himself stepping off of the ferry in less flashy clothing than usual. Just a simple buttondown long sleeve shirt and loose fitting jeans. The wind ruffles the shirt about his frame as he steps onto the island, not sure why he is here. But recognizing the feel of being guided by one of those stupidhead deities. What? He's had a -lot- of experience with that sort of thing.
    Looking skyward, and then towards the water, he sighs and shrugs, "Grandfather. I wish you would just -tell- me to go somewhere and why." he mutters as a sort of 'prayer?' for the sea god that is his mother's father.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary is still getting used to the whole Lady Shazam thing... and being in a bit of a funk about how stupid boys are doesn't help. Still, Billy noticed because of course he does, so he gave her a note to give to his Aunt Bea. And stressed that Mary was not to read it under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES.

So, Lady Shazam is flying casually around the Statue of Liberty, looking around for this Bea. And not exactly thinking to look into the actual torch for it. She doesn't exactly notice the origins of her courage meandering below, either.

Look, she's got a lot on her mind right now, okay?

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    well, that looks like ... no, wait. There's too much leg showing. And the form is wrong. So is the gender. Unless Billy can change that too?
    Bea ponders a moment, shakes her head. "No, it's screwed up enough without that."
    "Uh, excuse me?" she calls out as the girl flies past. "Are you ..." Her brain freezes. "...uh ... the sister of Shazam?" she decides is safest. Then, as if it weren't going to be obvious to anybody with half a brain cell to spare, "I'm Fire. His friend."
    Hovering out of the torch and sitting instead at the rim around the flame, Bea is now pretty obvious to any prying eyes. Like the toursts in the head, now looking up and pointing. These get a cheerful wave. "Hola, my friends!"

Achilles has posed:
    "Huh." says Achilles mostly to himself, "Oh very funny." he mutters to... well, someone he can't see or hear or.. well you get it. Flying people aren't that uncommon. But even he has heard of Shazam, to a degree. If only because a part of it all is named after him.
    But he can't fly. In fact he has no real -powers-. But he does walk over towards the edge of the island closest to the visible women in the air and lifts a hand. A hand which has a sleeve draw back from the wrist to reveal a bronze bracer. "Hello there!" he calls out in a vague hint of an English accent. But hey, he is enthusiastic and all smiles.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Lady Shazam blinks in surprise, then smiles, "Oh, you must be um... Aunt Bea?" She pivots and moves to hover near Fire, "But yes, I'm his //older// sister." Even though she doesn't exactly look it, but she stresses that just a little much as she presents a note, "He asked me to give you this, but... um..." Well, she's on fire, and it doesn't take the Wisdom of Solomon to see that's a bit of an issue with a paper note.

Then when Achilles waves up, she looks down and tilts her head, thinking Achilles looks familiar but not sure why as she smiles and waves back, "Hi there!"

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Bea looks downward and peers at the man waving to them. "You know, I think this is a range record for someone hitting on me. Or, you know, since you're in a skirt, it may be you. Wanna sit?" She pats a segment of the ring next to her. "It's actually kinda comfy, but hold on a second."
    A ball of green flame encompasses the proffered spot briefly and then vanishes into nothingness. "There. It'll be nice and warm too."
    She then holds out her hand. "I'm made of flame, but I control them perfectly. I can hold paper without burning it. And people, for that matter. Fish. Small pieces of wood. Churches. You know, the usual things."

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary grins, "Cool, wasn't sure about that." She does give Bea the note at that point, taking the offered seat with ankles crossed in a pretty demure fashion. Apparently she's aware of the risks involved with flying in a skirt!

She then nods, "I'm still... getting used to this whole thing, you know? And the past few days have been... well, interesting. But I guess if you get your first date cancelled on because the guy would rather be with someone else, it's just as well he's out, isn't it?"

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Oh, ouch! You can see that expression in Bea's face. That commiseration of someone who's been exactly where the other has been. An impulsive supportive hug follows before she takes the note and reads it. The contents make her stifle a giggle and shake her head. Then in a sudden burst of green flame, the paper vanishes.
    "Oops!"
    If she had normal eyes they'd be dancing with mischief right now, instead of roiling, superheated plasma.
    "So, Billy seems to like you," is all she says. "He recommends you strongly."
    The woman seated next to her gets a once-over. "OK, Billy turned out to be fifteen. And I'm guessing from what Billy wrote that you're older. Seventeen? Eighteen?" She makes a wry expression. "Young enough still to find the powers thing disorienting anyway. Which is actually nice to see. More people stepping up into the heroic."

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Lady Shazam gives Bea a wry smile, "Eighteen, actually. And yeah, Billy's a great little brother. But don't tell him I said that, he'd never let me hear the end of it." She shrugs a little, "And... well, yeah, it used to be that the whole family got a little bit of his powers, but now..." She gestures, "I think I pretty much have the same powers he does, so it's a bit weird."

She pauses, then grins, "I know we're supposed to keep things secret, but you can call me Mary." Since, well, she definitely looks a lot different than mild-mannered Mary Bromfield.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    "I should warn you, Mary," Bea says, winking, "that I'm absolutely terrible with secrets. I mean all it takes is a little slip of the tongue and I'll spill that Billy thinks the same of you and doesn't want me to tell you. Thankfully I'm not the kind of person who'd make such a slip, so you're both safe."
    Bea looks down again at the guy that's waving, waving back in return. "That's a really weird thing on his forearm. I wonder what it's for?"
    Returning her attention to Mary, a gust of wind briefly brightening her core flame and sending her "hair" flying out backward in an impressive display of suddenly-lengthened mane until the gust dies out and it returns to her usual tangled mess of flame.
    "I'll give you the same offer I gave Billy. If you need someone to talk to about adjusting and coping, I'm here. I've been in your shoes, though my entry was more ramped in and I've always been a little wild. I do get, however, that whole "out of my depth" feeling. I just ... like it. So maybe I can help you cope."

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary hmmms at Bea, "Well, duly noted." She grins, "Yeah, I'm pretty sure he knows what I think of him, but... siblings, right?" A soft chuckle, and then she looks down at Achilles as well, once Bea points that out, "I'm... not sure. I guess I could fly down and take a look. Though I wouldn't want to startle him or anything."

She then glances back to Bea, grinning a little as the hair goes woosh from the wind, "And I'd like that Bea, I mean... I really just feel like I'm a bit in too deep sometimes. It's good to be able to talk to someone that's... well..." She doesn't want to say 'an adult' but it's right there. Even though technically she might be one right now.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    "Experienced," Bea suggests helpfully. "Because that's really all I've got on you. If you're anything like Shaza... Billy, you're leagues away from me in power. But it sounds like both of you are overwhelmed by it. I snuck into what I am now. I mean once I looked like a normal person who could make flames this long come out of her fingers."
    She demonstrates by extending a hand and splaying her fingers, releasing a stream of five flames, each under a foot long.
    "From such humble beginnings did this hot chick come. And even before that I didn't do anything at all, but still played the game. So I ramped into this. You got it dumped on you like ... Angel Fals.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary smiles, "Well, that's a pretty neat trick though, I can't really do anything with fire." She nods, "And, yeah, I wouldn't mind help now and then, just... it's hard figuring this stuff out on your own, you know? Well, I mean, of course you know, you just said, but still." She tilts her head though, since she said something that Mary caught there, "Played the game but didn't do anything at all?"

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Bea laughs then, mostly at herself. "I'm a thrill-seeker, Mary, always have been. Modelling wasn't enough, so I did stage shows. Those weren't enough so I joined ... well, I became a spy. Then while doing that I got the beginnings of my flame powers. After that it just kept going and going and going until now I'm this hot chick flying through the skies!"
    She jumps off the torch, flies a few aerobatic loops before settling back in. "One difference between you two and me is I LOVE this. I've ALWAYS loved action and danger and thrills. But I still can understand enough that I think I can help."

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary grins, "Hey, I'm not saying I //don't//... I love flying, and having powers? It's really cool. It also can just..." She hmms, then hops off her perch, doing a few rapid loop de loops, mimicking Bea's moves as she then pirouettes and lands back on her spot next to Bea.

"It can be a bit overwhelming, but I... well, I like it. I just worry about doing the right thing with it, if that makes sense?"

Achilles has posed:
    Really? He waved, said hello and was promptly dismissed? Achilles sighs and shakes his head. His close cropped blonde hair catches the sun as he turns to head into the statue. So many stairs. It certainly is a good thing that he is in such good shape. But even so, he pauses once or twice on the way up. If only to avoid showing up looking winded and sweaty.
    Yes, appearances can be important.
    What? Anyway, it's maybe fifteen to twenty minutes later that he steps out into the torch's railing and wanders around it until he sees the gathering once more. It's not that he is not recognizable to those who have met him before. He's just never actually sat down with and spoken to the Marvels before. He is aware of them, but he was supposed to be dead all this time. So... he lifts a hand again and calls out, "Hello again!" But this time... he is a lot closer.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    "Oh, you'll do the right thing if you've got the heart for it. Or, you'll do the wrong thing and make it good. What's here..." She touches her chest. "...beats what's here..." She taps her temple. "...when it comes to doing good. Overthinking leads to indecision and indecision ALWAYS leads to regret."
    She opens her mouth to speak more when Achilles suddenly appears a whole lot closer than before, immediately under where the pair are sitting. This seems sufficiently disconcerting that Bea takes to air, flames flaring up in the sudden breeze, quite accidentally making her look a whole lot more threatening while they fan out behind her, flickering like a bonfire.
    "Whoah! Where didyou come from!?"

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary blinks, "Um... he came from the doorway there, Bea." She smiles and, because of modesty concerns, descends down to stand on the walkway, not too far from Achilles. She tilts her head, looking at him curiously.

"You... seem familiar, sorry to make you walk all that way, I wasn't sure if you wanted a conversation?" She blushes a bit, "I mean, I'm used to people waving when I'm flying about, I didn't think anyone would actually come //up//."

Achilles has posed:
    Again, Achilles has no idea that he might look familiar to these people. Or at least to one of them. When Bea does her fire trick, he steps back a half pace, hands coming up, "Whoa whoa... I can leave if you would prefer it." he says, before glancing to Lady Shazam? Shazam Girl? Whatever. "Though. Please do not take this in a creepy old man way... I think that I would remember meeting someone as youthful and vital as you young lady." He says with an odd grin on his face.
    "But seriously. I do feel like I am -supposed- to know you. I recognize the look of course... who doesn't? But.. again, do not take this wrong but.. you are a lot more shapely than I expected the person wearing that look to be."

Billy Batson has posed:
Tea Parties! A method of extortion of older siblings is what they are! Okay small lie, not shopping, having tea with a silly ten year old girl you better never play poker with. As Shazam. Wearing a gosh darned hat. Fortunately Rose showed up to take over and he changed to Billy in time. Now back to Shazam again he lit out after Mary, only returning briefly to returned the darned hat. Lady Liberty beckoned, one brief stop. He lands at the base, waves to some tourists snapping photos of it and then him. He walks over to two rangers, a little older fellow with white hair, beard and 'stache and a taller ginger.

"Bill, Clarence, here are those coupons for Planet Herowood. For you and the staff. Thanks for the bagels the other day. I gotta go. Big meeting. Upstairs. That gets him some winks. "The brunette? My. Sister," he directs that last at a younger ranger who suddenly finds a tourist to be informative too. With a smirk he flashes upward to the torch. His flight slows then stops as he spots the blond man talking to the ladies. There's that weird tickle in the back of his head, magic?

There's no friendly greeting or smile. He looks serious for once. "Yes Lady Shazam, he seems very familiar. Like an uncle I'm meeting for the first time but who you know is a relative." Let's not discuss his uncle Eb who stole his trust fund and threw him out of the house.

Beatriz da Costa has posed:
    Rising up into the air in surprise give Bea a view of a clock tower. She gasps. "Oh my!" she exclaims. "I have a business meeting to attend with some of our suppliers!"
    Hastily she addresses Mary, "ReallynicetomeetyouweneedtokeepintouchI'llcontactyouthroughyourbrothersorryforthesuddenrushbye!" She burns brighter and passes the guest, "Nothingpersonaljusthaveameetingtogotoandcoolbraceletyou'vegotbye!"
    In all that she completely misses Shazam's arrival as she speeds off, barely subsonic, as a huge green meteor streaking through the skies toward Chelsea and the garment district.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary chuckles, "Well, it's not a problem, but... you do seem pretty familiar." She blushes a bit at the shapely comment, and then oh right her brother's here!

She looks over at Shazam and grins, "Hey, yeah, he really does, now that you mention it. Though... hrm. I'm sure I'd remember meeting him." She offers Achilles her hand, "But yes, I go by Lady Sha... er, well, you know." She coughs a bit, "It's nice to make your acquaintance, mister..."

Achilles has posed:
    Nodding his head, Achilles glances over towards Billy. He inclines his head and smirks a bit, "Yeah. I figured that. I've... heard about a wizard by that name. Supposedly invoking some aspect of some ancient old fuddy duddy that he never really possessed in the first place."
    Yeah, he's talking smack about the Wizard Shazam. But he accepts the proffered hand, giving it a firm (for human strength) shake. "The name on my Driver's License is Angelo Tampambulos. But... I suppose it would be rude of me to not introduce myself truly." A pause, and then he adds to both fliers, his eyes trailing off the way the naked looking fire lady left in. I mean come on. MALE... then his eyes drift back and he shrugs, stepping back to lift his arms and reveal his bracers. Bracers made of celestial bronze by Hephaestus himself. An ancient Greek style bronze helm appears on his head as he adds, "-You- can call me Achilles of Pthia."
    "But, as the great American author once said, "Rumors of my death have been greatly exaggerated."

Billy Batson has posed:
Shazam works his Wisdom like never before, the tickle in his head growing. Bracers. Like Amazons wear. Is he a male Amazon? Can he do that... not an Amazon thing so much as an Age of Heroes thing. Blond hair. His eyes widen and he lands to bend his knee before the man. Not a god. Demi-god. Not Hercules. He's seen pictures of Hercules. Shazam bows his head as he hears the name alsmot simultaneously with figuring it out, He picks his head up and says, "Are you talking smack about Shazam? I thought you guys were like a superhero group and you fought the Seven Enemies and all that... "

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary blinks, "Wow... well, hrm, brother, it might be that this is a bit more complicated than we thought." She smiles warmly at Achilles, "If it matters, the wizard did think enough of you to say that one of our gifts was your courage. So old 'fuddy duddy' or not, he did like you at least."

She glances back at Shazam, "Well, it's not like you got a lot of in depth background from the wizard before all... well, all of this, right?" She's trying to understand what exactly happened here, since... well, yeah, this is a bit of a surprise to her, too.

Achilles has posed:
    Seeing the muscles paragon of goodness kneel before him, Achilles shakes his head. He dismisses the helmet and snorts, "Young man, get on your feet. You should kneel before nobody. You are a hero." he states, a voice that he has used in the past when training troops. A voice like that of a drill sergeant.
    But then he looks up to Mary and shrugs his shoulders, "I'm a bit confused myself. What group? I heard of the wizard, but only in like.. whispered fearful voices. But as for your wizard, I was merely denigrating his choice of me for... for whatever he.." And then he looks to Mary as she states it was for courage. "Seriously?" he asks as he stuffs his hands into his pockets almost petulantly. "Courage. The hell would -I- know about courage?"
    Then he shakes his head, "What sort of courage does it take to fight when you can't be killed? What sort of courage does it take to fake your death and let the entire Greek Army think that the person they pinned all of their hopes on, is dead?"
    He sighs and adds, "I've played dead all this time because I did not -want- to be the subject of some mistaken adulation, and did not want to be the one held above others. Now, in this day.. -you- can be that person and I can just be me." he says, gesturing to Billy.

Billy Batson has posed:
Shazam gets up. "I was named a Champion by the Wizard Shazam, last of the Council of Wizards. My name is an acrosti-- acro-- the Letters stand for..." He quickly rattles off the names and the traits associated with each one. You were named to gift me your Courage. And I wasn't kneeling like an obedience or worship thing... it was gratitude. I read about you in the Iliad and... you tried to do the right thing. You admitted when you did wrong... you turned down rewards. You were kind to Patroclus and Lady Briseis when... you could have been like Agamemnon, who was totally a tool to you by the way. Anyway... whatever the Wizard did, I read about you and I try to do like you would. With people. I can hurt them without lifting a finger, by my words and vice versa."

He listened to Achilles words and now says, "You were fighting the Trojans so long... I get it. You checked out. I saw the aftermath of one sword fight and I nearly hurled. Yeah... you made mistakes I make mistakes... I gave my powers to this one for starters and the jury is still out." He gives Mary a playful shove. That would knock over a house.

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary smiles a bit at Shazam, and is nice enough not to correct the grammar at least. Though she oofs at the shove, "Hey, I'm still your big sister, even if you got the powers first." She nudges Shazam back, then looks over at Achilles, "It was... well, it was war. There's no victory in war, only losing. But... the Iliad says that you were killed by Paris? I'm guessing that's not entirely accurate?" She sounds more curious than anything else, and then adds, "I mean, I don't want to make you uncomfortable with that, if you don't want to talk about it, of course."

Achilles has posed:
    Sighing softly, Achilles shakes his head, "Okay. Let me put it this way. Yes, some of the major elements of that story happened. Most of the story was used to... gloss over the worst parts, and to..." the mention of Patrocles stops him mid-word, eyes clouding over with a visceral memory.
    Even after all of this time, it hits him like a freight train. He turns and grips the railing.. hard. He's not superhuman, but he's strong. After three slow breaths... anger management is something he learned over the centuries for sure... he turns back and nods his head, "Forgive my... reaction." he says with a shrug, "It is amazing how something that happened three plus millennia ago can still strike me as if it happened yesterday." he adds.
    "But.. yeah. When I tell you that it was a savage ten years of war... most modern people have no idea what it means to fight nonstop for -ten- years... with close in blades and spears." He shudders, "It was so much killing, and everyone expected -me- to win the whole war for them." He takes another long breath, looking off into space with that thousand yard stare. "Homer did get one detail wrong. I am not invulnerable... I -can- be hurt. I always could. I just... can't die." He shrugs and spreads his arms out, "Yes, I got shot in the stupid foot. I decided on the spot to let them think it was killing me. It wasn't like they had modern medicine. They had no idea I was still alive. So... that was how I got out of the war... I just couldn't keep it up. Not after killing the Amazon Queen's sister -and- seeing how terribly the Greek victors were behaving once they got loose in the city. I just couldn't be -one- of them anymore.... it had to end, and for me, it did."

Mary Bromfield has posed:
Mary looks at Achilles, then reaches over and well... she gives him a hug. Or tries to, anyway, if he'll let her. "Look, we're not going to judge you for what happened then. That was... well, a different time, different standards." She backs up a bit, looking at Achilles, "My brother and I... well, obviously we didn't know everything that happened to you, and even the truth gets blurred over three thousand years and change. But, well, if you ever need someone to talk to, or just sit quietly with, I'd be happy to fit that bill. And I think my brother feels the same way."

She looks about to say something else, then her phone buzzes an alert, causing her to reach down into her sash and pull it out (what, there's pockets in there!). "Um... okay, looks like some guy with a fishbowl for a head is wreaking havoc in Brooklyn!" She looks at Shazam, then smiles at Achilles, "Hope to see you soon!" With that, she zips off into the sky, soaring quickly towards Brooklyn!