Not Quite a House Call

February 28, 2018:

The mysterious 'Society' approaches Professor Zoom

Characters

NPCs: Titania, Absorbing Man, Copperhead, Mirror Master, Warp

Mentions:

Plot:

Mood Music: [*\# None.]


Fade In…

Professor Zoom is a relatively new player on the scene. Already he is making waves though and this sort of thing grabs attention, good and bad. This case… well.

There is an explosion that rocks its way through the northern side of the Roxxon subsid-tech warehouse, a location known to few.

The smell of smoke, burning ozone and the sounds of security screaming is audible to anyone within the near radius.

This is isolated territory, not easy to get in and out of or even know about. It took Zoom a lot of finger breaking and data cracking to find this location itself, but this mayhem being caused elsewhere? It is not his. It is someone else this time….

*

To say that Professor Zoom /HATES/ being trapped on this universe would be an understatement.

Even if he tried to leave, the anchoring would pull him back slowly but surely. it was a sinkhole in the multiverse, and he's one of the few people who can actually feel the constant tug of reality from the Negative Speed Force constantly pushing against it. One of the many reasons he's taken up at STAR Labs is to find a way to use the Speed Force to leave, one day. All of these hi-tech grabs were also to find a way to get out of this reality, and stay out.

So far, the only thing he's managed to find out is that breaking the timeline once, he might be able to do enough major changes to give him a chance at escaping, if he focuses STAR Labs from the beginning on Speed Force research. So, he keeps going for more places to build his prototype treadmill.

This time, he's working the angles at Roxxon, and as he's about to hack into the computer database, there's an explosion he didn't account for. All his futuretech bombs are in the friction pouch… someone new?

There's a blur of red lightning as Professor Zoom heads in that direction, zooming up to a nearby rooftop and using binoculars to take a look at where the carnage is.

*

The monitors near the data link up and console Zoom is close to shows a squad of security guards racing past, running towards the explosion with weapons drawn. Roxxon at least does not slouch in it's trainees, they're brave and well equipped. Unfortunately they're outclassed by metahumans.

It's a witnessed thing when a woman, muscular and broad as she is tall leaps from above landing in the center of the men and flailing once, those four security guards hurtle in all directions, only to find themselves being systematically taken down by three others 'attacks' of various sources, a ray gun, an arrow and what looks to be a massive ball and chain. These hits are not spared, these men go down violently.

The towering woman motions inside and the individual with the ray gun 'steps' in to a puddle and appears to Zoom's immediate left, unaware of the speedster just yet but looking for him. The green helmet, belt, boots and gloves a garish contrast to his own yellow outfit, held in each hand are ray guns, "Fellow rabble rouser, come out come out wherever you are." The costumed man sing-songs.
"I have beer and Tostitos."

*

Blurring his visage and distorting his voice, a red blur of lightning goes down the building to the group as Zoom starts to assess the group, the damage, and the entire area. Technology is accounted for. personnel are accounted for, escape routes are checked, and pockets are picked and replaced.

In the split second it took for Professor Zoom to do all of that, all anyone else felt was a buffet of wind as the Speedster tossed about debris from his air drag, and a trail of red lightning that looked to be going everywhere at once.

Then, Professor Zoom stops in the open, his form crackling and arcing with red Speed Force energy, and his eyes glowing red with that same energy. "I hate beer." The distorted, monsterish voice replies, "What do you want?"

*

The quick pass and scout over the four individuals reveals a bald man with a mixed body comprised of several 'elements' rock, steel, dirt and a ball and chain in one hand.

The woman, an auburn haired giantess the physical shape of an Amazon, hands on her hips.

A white cloaked man with a bow and arrow, a skull-mask showing from underneath his hood, shadowed and grinning with a quiver being reached in to.

That last figure, the one that Zoom blurred past and is now talking to familiar to him in past records, Mirror Master. One of the incarnations of him at least.

"Why pal, we want you." The man says, menace can be taken in that, especially as he is pointing his ray guns at him.

"Ease up." The towering female of the group says loudly, "We're not caped assholes here to take you in."

A rushing security guard is drawing up a rifle only to have it whipped out of his hand by a flip kicking female, her fluid almost elastic and serpentine motions a blur for anyone but Zoom, shes quick for a metahuman but not Speed Force quick. The blond coming to a standstill and that Roxxon guard drops, *gurking* and sputtering past discolored lips. Obviously poisoned. She joins the others in their horseshoe link ring around and facing Zoom.

*

The rifle is taken apart in midair in a second by Zoom, the spare parts flying about, before Professor Zoom returns to his original spot… and the sounds of the rifle parts clattering can be heard somewhere well before he's back. "Point those in my general direction again, and I'll take those apart piece by piece right in front of you slower than that. Then I'll stuff you full of the spare parts so quick you'll wonder if I tore you a new hole, or just expanded one of the old ones." Professor Zoom replies.

Then, he's over by the guard, taking the split seconds to check the symptoms of the poison. Analysis, assessment. He can whip up an antidote to whatever it is later. Then, he's back in place. "I don't care about any of you, or anyone in this wretched place for that matter. So, this will be interesting. Why should I care if you want /me/, Mirror Master?"

*

Mirror Master's anger is evident in his expression, brows knit the gun being dismantled. "Aw come on man!" He drops to his knees and begins grasping up the pieces, part by part. Only to then slip out of view, appearing above then elsewhere. Juggling them as he defensively shifts around sorting over it.

"We don't care about you either but people with a lot more reach and vision than us do." The woman who has designated herself the spokesman declares, "I am Titania, maybe you've heard of us." A thumb jut towards Absorbing Man. "We're not some idiots you can just push around and we don't make house calls on just anyone."

A sigh from the Skeletor stylized individual and he lobs a smokebomb towards the far end of the warehouse, it spreads fast, blanketing the area beyond them. Nothing more than to slow incoming types, "You're loud, you're obviously superfast but you're not invincible or you wouldn't be operating how you are, you're gonna get fucked up in the end game this rate. Consider us, your insurance clause."

"Also the names Taskmaster." A two finger flick at the air.

"Best at what I do and that is everything. Right, Copperhead?"

The blonde looks over, her eyes narrowing to slits and she flicks the air with her tongue in a dismissive gesture.

*

"If I wanted to be invisible, I could easily disappear into this world. I'm not trying to be invisible, and I have my own plans." Professor Zoom replies, the red electricity starting to arc over his body and the ground again as Speed Force distortion keeps generating the by-products, "You can call me Professor Zoom. I'm the only user of the Negative Speed Force in this universe, to my knowledge, and the fastest man alive, despite what that fool Flash thinks." Then, he turns to regard the woman, "You have no idea what I'm trying to do, so it doesn't matter."

Then, when the smoke bomb is lobbed, Zoom looks in that direction… and brings his arms up to generate a vortex. Clearing the smoke. Then, he goes to work.

Professor Zoom starts to comb the building, and the block around, taking down security as he zooms about. He doesn't have time for games right now, so he's just taking everyone out of the picture.

Then, he zooms right back where he was after only a few seconds, a wriggling security guard carried back, the friction already having done some skin damage as his arm vibrates within his chest. The man isn't dead. Yet… but he can't escape the vibrating arm. Then, he's tossed side, knocked out but alive.

"But, I'm listening. I'm not going to turn down potential resources." Professor Zoom gives, then.

*

"To your knowledge." Taskmaster adds, "Weird shit springs up all the time that is not to our knowledge." The mercenary carries on while zoom ruins his smoke screen. Pausing long enough to let the man put on his show only shrugging cloaked shoulders at the others gathered.

"I fucking despise speedsters." The skull remarks.

They all nod, it is an agreed upon thing.

Titania clears her throat when Zoom appears again, "We offer one thing." She extends her palm out, inside of it is a black poker chip. "That you take this and await another meeting. Keep an open mind."

"It is worth it." Taskmaster assists, "I was reluctant at first myself but if you have big loud plans like you been showing off, you're going to need /us/."

"Be stupid otherwise." Absorbing Man grumbles, "You don't strike me as stupid. We don't approach stupid."

Copperhead is already strutting off walking back towards the north gates. Bored it would appear.

The other three linger, Mirror Master stepping after the elastic-bodied female assassin. He is still muttering about his ray gun.

*

Professor Zoom has his pouches lined with signal insulation just in case of trackers on anything he takes, and the black poker chip is put into one as he zooms back and forth. He'll take a look at the technology later. Primitive as this reality is, some of the corporate entities have passable material at least. Then, he zooms over to Mirror Master, and rebuilds his ray gun from scratch in a second. "This thing needs maintenance, and an upgrade. I can do you the favor, if you'll do something for me." Professor Zoom gives, then. "We don't have to be friends to trade services."

*

"No one here is friends." Mirror Master says despite taking back the ray gun. His glare behind goggles not visible as they make him rather hard to read other than his mouth.

"Favors we can talk about when you're initiated or we run in to each other outside of Society business." He doesn't call it the Light, that is just one the many.

Titania's hand closes back in to a fist and Zoom is already off she tips her head indicating for Taskmaster and Absorbing Man its their turn to go as well, as quick as they had arrived they are departing. Past the gates and to a waiting portal.

Manifested and held open by yet another villain in blacks and whites, arms outstretched. Just a body with eyes hard to tell if woman or male.

Once they are all near it snaps closed with a pop of air.

"We'll be in touch." Words that hang in the air behind the departing crew of villains, the distortion of the voice though that dimensional gap makes it hard to tell who said it… they are gone.

*

Professor Zoom knows better than to go through that portal and force the issue; there's probably a small army waiting on the other side, or at least traps. Without preparation and some EMPs, he's not chancing it. So, he watches the group depart.

No trackers on him for this one either, since he didn't expect to /need/ one… so he can't even get a location.

"A… society. This reality is incredibly weird. There's nothing in the records here about a Legion of Doom or anything similar. Something new, then." Eobard muses to himself. Then he goes back to that computer, and checks his hack.

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