**** KNIGHTSABRE
has entered chat room ****
**** DR. JACKAL has entered chat room **** DR. JACKAL: I guess we’re first. KNIGHTSABRE: Looks that way. Bunch of slackers. DR. JACKAL: Are we those annoying people that
show up at the party first and look desperate? KNIGHTSABRE: No, we’re punctual. That’s
a virtue. DR. JACKAL: How’s the weather on your side
of the base? KNIGHTSABRE: I’m guessing same as yours. DR. JACKAL: According to the computer, it’s
74 degrees in here. KNIGHTSABRE: You say that like it ever changes. DR. JACKAL: I could change it. Too warm? KNIGHTSABRE: No! It’s freezing outside.
This is nice. DR. JACKAL: I bet an alarm goes off in New York
on Vanguard’s computer if we mess with anything. KNIGHTSABRE: You know we’re finally alone
together and we’re sitting in separate rooms? DR. JACKAL: It’s that or share a keyboard,
which would confuse people. Though I do see your point. KNIGHTSABRE: Wanna cyber? ]:) DR. JACKAL: Why Mrs. Parker… KNIGHTSABRE: I don’t believe we’ve
ever tried that. And you’re a writer. You’d have skill.
You could use themes and allegory. You KNOW what allegory does
to me… DR. JACKAL: I’d ask what you’re wearing,
but we came in the same car, so that kind of kills the mystery. KNIGHTSABRE: How do you know that hasn’t
changed? :P DR. JACKAL: Mmmmm…
**** ECLIPSE has entered chat room **** DR. JACKAL: D’oh!! KNIGHTSABRE: Hey, you! ECLIPSE: Hey Sabrina! Hi Jack! DR. JACKAL: Hi, Meg! Welcome to the party. KNIGHTSABRE: How’s the mommy-2-B doing? ECLIPSE: Already starting to miss her old clothes. KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. I remember it well. Don’t
worry, they’ll be waiting for you on the other side. ECLIPSE: Yeah but by then they’ll be out
of style! KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. Where’s Chris tonight? ECLIPSE: Home. I know I’m trying not to
faint. KNIGHTSABRE: Really? Is pending fatherhood actually
keeping him home? And on the planet, for that matter? ECLIPSE: He’s making the effort. A lot
of efforts. He’s currently rubbing my feet. KNIGHTSABRE: Wow. What a super man. Must run
in the family. ;) ECLIPSE: Hee hee KNIGHTSABRE: Taking notes, Jack? DR. JACKAL: Hey, I do feet. KNIGHTSABRE: Okay, he does. When he’s not
at the office. Which is how many hours a day? DR. JACKAL: Sorry your newspaper wasn’t
on your doorstep this morning, Seattle. My wife’s feet got
needy. ECLIPSE: You guys are hilarious! KNIGHTSABRE: Tell Chris we said hi. ECLIPSE: Chris says hi. Hee hee KNIGHTSABRE: We should really do this more often.
If it wasn’t for the time difference.
**** ARMATURE has entered chat room **** ECLIPSE: I know. Hey thanks you guys for making
this thing early so us east coasters aren’t up too late. DR. JACKAL: Akim! You made it! ARMATURE: Hello, everyone. KNIGHTSABRE: Hi Akim! ECLIPSE: Akim!! Wow what time is it there? And
where is there?! I don’t even know what country you’re
in right now! ARMATURE: It’s very good to speak to you,
Megan. I am in Kenya this week. Staying in Nairobi. It’s
nearing four o’clock A.M. KNIGHTSABRE: Wow. Sorry to get you up so early. ARMATURE: It’s not early for me, Sabrina,
but thank you. DR. JACKAL: How is that NOT early for you, Akim?
That’s early for roosters, man! ARMATURE: Too much to be done, Jack. A man can’t
waste his precious time asleep. DR. JACKAL: Sleep time IS precious, pal. Hurry
up and have a kid or two and you’ll find out what I mean.
**** MIST has entered chat room **** ECLIPSE: Don’t say that Jack!! You’re
scaring Chris!! KNIGHTSABRE: Sydney! MIST: Hey, cool chat cats! ECLIPSE: Hi Syd!!! DR. JACKAL: Uh oh, the feds are in here. Watch
what you say. MIST: Because watching what you say is so your
personal strength, Jack. I don’t have to spy. I can just
read your books. ECLIPSE: Ha! MIST: Hey, Brina. Wow, Akim beat me here. Hey,
A! Hey, Preggy Meggy! ECLIPSE: Hi Syd! DR. JACKAL: Keep it up. You’ll end up in
the next book, missy. ARMATURE: Hello, Sydney. I’m glad you’re
here. MIST: Where is everyone? I mean you guys, where
are you all writing from? KNIGHTSABRE: Jack and I are at the base. Megan’s
home getting her feet rubbed. Akim’s in Nairobi. MIST: Lucky Meg. I’d better get Stephen
in here. What’s your excuse, Jack? DR. JACKAL: Uh, other side of the base, here.
What am I…Miranda? KNIGHTSABRE: How’s Caleb, Syd? MIST: He’s wonderful. And looking forward
to turning 9 in about a month. Can you believe that? He and Stephen
are in the library learning about the elements and their mystical
resonance right now. KNIGHTSABRE: Wow, the time flies. DR. JACKAL: I was still learning to make that
fart sound with my armpit when I was eight. Has Stephen taught
him THAT yet? MIST: And how’s the Parker family, Parker
family? KNIGHTSABRE: The family is fantastic, thank you.
:) Samantha’s babysitting back home right now. MIST: I can’t believe she’s been
here for almost two years. And yet I still want to cry and hug
you guys every time we talk about her. I’m still so happy
for you. KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. I know the feeling, Syd. Thank
you. DR. JACKAL: Then that’s three of us. MIST: Still handling her being a super-hero okay,
Jack? DR. JACKAL: I was until a couple of weeks ago. MIST: Yeah, then there’s that. Hey, at
least you got to be there with her, right? Bright side? A family
that’s abducted together… KNIGHTSABRE: Yes, which left me the lucky one
getting to worry about both of them. ARMATURE: Yes, I meant to ask. How is Seattle
recovering? DR. JACKAL: Recovering is what Seattle does,
Akim. Just another day in the rain.
**** ANVIL has entered chat room **** MIST: How’s the weather in Nairobi, Akim? ECLIPSE: MARK!! MIST: Hey, my metal detector just went off. Must
be Mark! DR. JACKAL: Hey, look who figured out how to
use his computer. Marky Mark’s inna house. Guess that makes
us the Funky Bunch. ANVIL: Hellooooo Seattle! Well to those of you
in Seattle. We’re the early birds huh? ARMATURE: Welcome, Mark. KNIGHTSABRE: Hey, Mr. Mark. ANVIL: Akim! Well there’s tonight’s
winner for furthest from the base. ECLIPSE: We won’t know that until Jeremy
checks in. MIST: Don’t forget Gregor. DR. JACKAL: Place your bets! KNIGHTSABRE: How are Erin and Bree? ANVIL: Good, thanks. Erin’s still getting
shot at less on average since we moved here. Bree is still costing
me way too much money. I don’t remember college sucking
that much dough. ECLIPSE: That’s because you weren’t
a college GIRL Mark. Ha. DR. JACKAL: Well, it is XAVIER, Mark. Price you
pay for having a kid smart enough to get in. ANVIL: I knew I should have dropped her on her
head more as a baby… ECLIPSE: You’re awful Mark. ANVIL: I jest Meg. I’m very proud of her.
Seriously. She’s doing great. MIST: As if there was any doubt.
**** CHILL has entered chat room **** ANVIL: About her doing great or me being awful? MIST: Either or. ECLIPSE: There’s my girl! What’s
up Kyra! KNIGHTSABRE: Hey, Kyra! DR. JACKAL: I thought I noticed the temp drop.
Heh. Hi, Kyra. ARMATURE: Hello, Kyra. ANVIL: Welcome to the nuthouse Kyra. MIST: Hey, K! CHILL: hello (deep breath) megan, sabrina, jack,
akim, mark & sydney. :D ECLIPSE: Are you at the base? CHILL: yep. ECLIPSE: I miss the base! DR. JACKAL: Our base is cooler than YOUR base… CHILL: as if jack. please. DR. JACKAL: There’s that Angel Flight attitude
I remember. Heh. ANVIL: You wouldn’t have to miss it if
you hadn’t gone and got knocked up Meg. By your husband
no less. ECLIPSE: It’s all Chris’s fault!!! MIST: Yeah, I’m sure it’s ALL his
fault. I’ve seen those shoulders. KNIGHTSABRE: Down, girl. ECLIPSE: Ha! You’re making him blush. ANVIL: And that’s just soooo hard to make
him do. ARMATURE: Where’s Vanguard, Kyra? I’m
surprised he wasn’t the first one in here. ANVIL: Yeah good point. I didn’t think
he knew what the word “tardy” meant. CHILL: he’s here at the base too. he’s
just caught up in a project. he’s almost done. KNIGHTSABRE: Let me guess. He’s “improving”
something else? Haha. CHILL: lol. good guess. he’s messing with
a skycycle I think. DR.
JACKAL AND CHILL PRIVATE CHAT
**** CINCOFLEX has entered chat room **** MIST: Miranda!
**** SECUNDUS has entered chat room **** ARMATURE: Welcome, Miranda CINCOFLEX: Hello everyone!!!! ANVIL: Hey Miranda. And Kyle! What’s up
buddy! KNIGHTSABRE: Hello, Miranda and Kyle.
**** TRIPWIRE has entered chat room **** SECUNDUS: Hello, my friends. ECLIPSE: Holy cow! It’s a stampede! Ha!
Hi guys! MIST: There’s Kyle. I heard you were tied
up in Chinatown, pal. Glad you made it. ANVIL: Gregor! The European delegation arrives! KNIGHTSABRE: So where’s the circus this
week, Gregor? TRIPWIRE: Hello, Mark. And all! The Circus Fantastic
is presently in Vienna, Sabrina. ANVIL: If my geography’s still good Akim’s
still the winner I think. ECLIPSE: He is. ARMATURE: I’m in Kenya, Gregor. They’re
wondering who’s furthest from Seattle. And hello, Kyle. TRIPWIRE: I see. We’ll just have to take
the circus to Siberia then! ECLIPSE: Yes I hear it’s lovely there in
February. Ha. SECUNDUS: Nothing I couldn’t handle, Sydney.
The tongs again. MIST: I heard. My watch commander checked in
with me. Four arrests. Nice work, Kyle. CINCOFLEX: It’s so nice to see so many
of us here! SECUNDUS: Thank you. ANVIL: We’re not all here yet Miranda.
Vanguard’s late! Loser!! MIST: Can you drop by for dinner after we’re
done here, Kyle? CINCOFLEX: Don’t pick on Vanguard Mark!
I’m sure he has his reasons. ANVIL: Yes. He’s working on a skycycle
at the Angel Flight base. CINCOFLEX: Oh. Okay go ahead and pick on him.
ECLIPSE: Ha SECUNDUS: Would love to, Sydney. Thank you. MIST: Great. Drop by whenever. We’re not
starting until we’re done here. Stephen’s cooking. ANVIL: What no dinner for the rest of us? ECLIPSE: Yeah! MIST: Are any of you living in San Francisco
and helping keep my city streets safe? ANVIL: Okay she’s got us there. And tell
Stephen to give it up! The man can’t cook! I sauté
rings around him. KNIGHTSABRE: Uh oh. Someone’s got purée
envy. ANVIL: Besides he’s a doctor. God knows
where his hands have been. ARMATURE: Are you in Seattle or Gotham, Miranda? ECLIPSE: Ewww. I hope he scrubs first. CINCOFLEX: Still in Seattle Akim. We go back
to Gotham in the spring. Ah Seattle. Where every girl can be a
hostage! MIST: At least you’ve had plenty of practice
being kidnapped, Miranda. CINCOFLEX: Very funny Sydney. Look who’s
talking. At least no one tried to sell me. ANVIL: Don’t take this the wrong way Miranda
but you’re a lot easier to understand in chat. ECLIPSE: Ha CINCOFLEX: There are many delicious parts of
me you can kiss Mark. May I suggest one? KNIGHTSABRE: Haha MIST: Cinco shoots, Cinco scores!
**** TOMARSSUK has entered chat room **** ANVIL: Tommy!!! KNIGHTSABRE: Tommy!! :D ECLIPSE: Hey fuzzy man!!! CINCOFLEX: Hello Tommy! SECUNDUS: Welcome, Tommy. TRIPWIRE: Greetings, Tommy! ARMATURE: Hello, Tommy MIST: Tommy baby! TOMARSSUK: HELLO EVERYONE KNIGHTSABRE: How’s life in Anchorage? TOMARSSUK: VERY GOOD. WE HAVE A NEW PIZZA HUT.
AND I HAVE NEW NEIGHBORS BY MY HOME. THEY ARE VERY FRIENDLY. THEY
HAVE TWO CHILDREN AND A TINY DOG NAMED HERCULES. ANVIL: Tommy! Lay off the caps lock man! TOMARSSUK: THE WHAT? ANVIL: The “caps lock” key on your
keyboard. Do you have it on? TOMARSSUK: I DO ANVIL: How about turning it off? TOMARSSUK: I LIKE THE BIG LETTERS BETTER ANVIL: It looks like you’re shouting TOMARSSUK: I AM NOT SHOUTING. I AM TYPING. CINCOFLEX: Let him use the big letters Mark!
Lay off! MIST: It’s really good to see you, Tommy. TOMARSSUK: YOU CAN SEE ME? I DID NOT THINK MY
CAMERA WAS ON.
**** ELECTRO MAN has entered chat room **** ECLIPSE: Figure of speech Tommy. Ha. ANVIL: Heeeeeeere’s WALLY! KNIGHTSABRE: Hi, Wally! Glad you made it! CINCOFLEX: Hello Wally! ELECTRO MAN: Hello all. Sorry if I’m late.
I had to close things down at the museum. MIST: Hi, Wally. You’re not late. People
are still showing up. You beat Vanguard! ECLIPSE: How’s Holly doing Wally? ELECTRO MAN: She’s doing fine Megan. Thank
you for asking. In just three months she’ll be a college
graduate. ECLIPSE: That’s great! TRIPWIRE: And how is her training going, Wally? ELECTRO MAN: Gregor! Wonderful to hear from you.
I wish it was going faster. With things being as crazy as they
have I haven’t had as much time as I’d like to work
with her. But we’re starting to get back to it. It would
be easier if I still had powers myself of course. Ha ha. But she’s
going great. She did a good deal of practice herself before she
dropped the big bomb on me. TOMARSSUK: I THINK IT IS VERY EXCITING THAT YOUR
DAUGHTER HAS POWERS WALLY. ELECTRO MAN: Thank you Tommy. Sometimes I’m
not sure how excited about it I am. Ha ha. But most of the time
I am. She’s a good girl with a good head on her shoulders.
She’s going to turn out fine. MIST: And of course you already had all that
practice training Sabrina and Jack’s daughter behind their
backs, Wally… (She types with a wink) DR. JACKAL: And don’t think I’ll
ever let him forget it. ELECTRO MAN: And I’m sure he won’t.
Ha ha. Hi, Jack. KNIGHTSABRE: She couldn’t have had a better
teacher, Wally. DR. JACKAL: Ahem. KNIGHTSABRE: Okay, she had two equally good teachers. ECLIPSE: Ha CHILL: hi to all the newbies!!! :) CINCOFLEX: Hello Kyra! SECUNDUS: Good evening, Kyra. TRIPWIRE: Hello Kyra! Greetings from Vienna! ANVIL: Just waiting for the sausage joke… ELECTRO MAN: Good to see you darlin ANVIL: No he can’t actually see her Tommy. MIST: And hey, how’s your head doing, Wally? ELECTRO MAN: Just fine Sydney thank you. Sad
to say it’s not the first time I’ve been knocked out
and kidnapped in my career. I still feel pretty foolish about
it. Hurt my pride more than my head. MIST: Come on, Wally, the guy was an internationally
known assassin. In a power suit. That’s not something worth
beating yourself up for. ECLIPSE: Really. ELECTRO MAN: I guess he did just fine beating
me up himself. Guess I shouldn’t help him with his job. SECUNDUS: How are things at the museum, Wally? ELECTRO MAN: Much better Kyle. The press is no
longer camping out in the parking lot. I hate to say it but the
Karrigon invasion was the thing that finally got them off the
Twostep story. KNIGHTSABRE: At least something good came out
of it. DR. JACKAL: I think a few things did. It brought
the city together. Made a few heroes, like that Dane Casey kid
at UNCLE. And we found out about an undersea race of people living
right off our coast that somehow none of us knew about. And they
seem to be on our side, now, so that’s good. Plus Chris
learned not to fly into a magical force field at mach one. ECLIPSE: Ha! He “heard” that. MIST: Yeah, speaking of “how’s your
head?”… ANVIL: Did we confirm that Thresher girl is actually
our Thresher’s sister? DR. JACKAL: Seahawk says so. And Sydney did a
background check and the info seems to match up. ANVIL: Wow. Interesting family. Two Threshers
and a Sea Wasp. CHILL: if this is his sister shouldn’t
we be trying to reach out to her? DR. JACKAL: From what I understand, and from
the little bit I talked to her, she’s not exactly thrilled
with humanity. Unfortunately, those of us who knew Chad didn’t
get to know him long enough for him to open up about his family,
but based on one sister going villain and another one hiding under
the sea for years, I get the idea their situation was less than
ideal. I’m sure there’s a reason she wants nothing
to do with the surface world. I agree, Kyra, that we do need to
reach out to her, but I think we have to do it carefully and slowly.
Since she’s made her life with the Cassians, and since they
just had a breakthrough in their opinion about humanity, maybe
she’s started down that road, too. Let’s look into
it over time. KNIGHTSABRE: I agree. TOMARSSUK: I’M SURE DEEP DOWN SHE IS A
VERY GOOD PERSON. ELECTRO MAN: I think these new heroes may have
a better shot at reaching her than we would actually. There’s
a bond there already.
**** VANGUARD has entered chat room **** ANVIL: Oh look who decided to finally show up! MIST: Hi, Robert! ARMATURE: Hello, Vanguard. ECLIPSE: Hey V! DR. JACKAL: Oh, take your TIME why don’t
you, Robert? Sheesh! CHILL: lol VANGUARD: Sorry, everyone. Had to wrap something
up here at the Gate. KNIGHTSABRE: Yeah, we heard. Skycycle. Much more
important than us. :) SECUNDUS: A pleasure to have you with us, Vanguard. CINCOFLEX: Hello Robert!!! How’s Bethany? TOMARSSUK: HELLO VANGUARD ELECTRO MAN: Hello Vanguard. Don’t worry
you’re not the last one in the door. VANGUARD: Hello, all. She’s doing fine,
Miranda. CINCOFLEX: When are you going to make an honest
woman out of her?! TOMARSSUK: I THOUGHT SHE WAS ALREADY AN HONEST
WOMAN. CHILL: lol. she is tommy. another figure of speech
**** PHANTASM has entered chat room **** VANGUARD: Sorry, Miranda. That’s classified. DR. JACKAL: Coo roo coo coo, coo coo coo coo!!!
Canada’s invading, eh? MIST: Hey, John! ANVIL: Saluting the Colonel here KNIGHTSABRE: Hi, John! CINCOFLEX: Hello John!! PHANTASM: Yeah yeah yeah. Don’t you people
have anything better to do than hang out in chat rooms like a
bunch of horny high school kids? TOMARSSUK: HELLO COLONEL CLAYTON TRIPWIRE: Greetings, Phantasm! DR. JACKAL: I told you. This place is lousy with
feds. They’re everywhere. ANVIL: Yeah but we’re outside his jurisdiction
so we’re safe with him around. MIST: Congratulations on the big Mandate bust,
John. I just read the brief on that this morning. PHANTASM: All in a day’s work Syd. Not
too hard to outsmart a terrorist group that isn’t even smart
enough to realize how gay their name sounds. ANVIL: Oh-oh here they come. They’re the
Maaaan-daters. DR. JACKAL: Nothing shows your age like a Hall
and Oates joke, Mark. KNIGHTSABRE: Where’s Jeanette this week,
John? She hasn’t answered my emails. ANVIL: This coming from a man who had an album
on the charts at the same time as them… PHANTASM: On assignment, off the continent. I
could tell you more, but I’d have to kill you. CHILL: hi john. how are the kids? PHANTASM: Growing like a fungus Kyra. They’re
doing great. Andy just won another junior martial arts tourney.
Beat the living crap out of a bunch of other 8-year olds. Trixie’s
grades are off the chart. Maybe this Trixie will end up smart
enough to not marry a Quest. KNIGHTSABRE: Hey, that’s my boss you’re
talking about, Clayton. Haha. ANVIL: Used to be mine too. But not any more
so bash away. TOMARSSUK: I LIKE HALL AND OATES ELECTRO MAN: Good to have you here Colonel. MIST: I heard you went on that raid yourself,
John. PHANTASM: Yeah felt like getting out of the office. VANGUARD: You might consider work duties a little
safer considering your age, John. PHANTASM: And you might consider ******* yourself
Vanguard. PHANTASM: What the ****? PHANTASM: Vanguard! Did you put a ******* curse
filter on this thing? CHILL: lol VANGUARD: After the last experience, yes I did. ECLIPSE: Ha! PHANTASM: Oh, come on! How old are we here? VANGUARD: Future generations might read these
transcripts, John. I’d like to have them think a little
more highly of us. PHANTASM: **** future generations ANVIL: While there is no cure for tourettes there
are new treatments. Ask your doctor for more information. CHILL: lol!! PHANTASM: What you cut out ALL curse words? VANGUARD: Mostly above “PG” ones.
I guess you’ll just have to discover which ones over time. PHANTASM: **** **** ********** ************ ****
***** **** ********* ass ***** ********** ********* bitch ******
******* ***** CHILL: omg. lol VANGUARD: I should have been more specific about
“over time” MIST: I’m glad he’s matured with
age. PHANTASM: What I can’t even use combinations?! VANGUARD: No. PHANTASM: ***** PHANTASM: Hey! That was in French! VANGUARD: I covered several different languages.
I guess you’ll need to find more creative ways to express
your feelings. PHANTASM: Fine. PHANTASM: Scrotum juggler. PHANTASM: Heh heh heh. CHILL: LOL ECLIPSE: I don’t want my baby picking up
this kind of thing through osmosis. Hee hee MIST: Head of a major intelligence agency, ladies
and gentlemen. Your Canadian tax dollars at work. ANVIL: Oh it’s only Monopoly money anyway. ARMATURE: If Vanguard actually has such skill,
perhaps you might see if the Circus Fantastic is hiring, Gregor. MIST: (is laughing her ass off) ANVIL: Give it up for Akim! DR. JACKAL: Three point shot plus free throws.
Nicely done, Akim. KNIGHTSABRE: You ever notice how just having
John in the room lowers our collective character? TOMARSSUK: I DON’T UNDERSTAND ELECTRO MAN: You don’t want to in this
case Tommy. Trust me. TRIPWIRE: I’ll see if I can put in a good
word. ANVIL: No retort Vanguard? VANGUARD: Sorry, I was busy uploading a virus
to the BRAND mainframe. CHILL: LOL DR. JACKAL: You think he’s kidding… CINCOFLEX: ******* MIST: Miranda!! CINCOFLEX: I was just seeing if Vanguard included
Portuguese. Wow he’s thorough. VANGUARD: Et tu, Miranda? KNIGHTSABRE: Oh, good Lord. ECLIPSE: Oh my God stop making me laugh!! I have
to pee!! CHILL: LOL
**** NIGHTSHIFT has entered chat room **** ANVIL: And there’s Chicago! MIST: Harry! What’s up, girl? KNIGHTSABRE: Hi Harry SECUNDUS: Hello, Harry ARMATURE: Welcome, Harry TOMARSSUK: HELLO HARRY NIGHTSHIFT: Hey hey, everybody! Sorry I’m
late. Chicago traffic, what can I tell ya? It’s a winter
wonderland. DR. JACKAL: Hi, Harry. You’re not the last,
so don’t worry about it. TRIPWIRE: Yes, who else is missing? VANGUARD: Good evening, Harry. NIGHTSHIFT: Did I miss anything? MIST: Yes, you did. A diabolical villain wove
a spell and turned us all into 12-year olds. KNIGHTSABRE: Looks like Chelsea, Matt and Jeremy
left to go. NIGHTSHIFT: Oh, speaking of that. Chelsea’s
not going to be able to make it. I talked to her last night. She
says sorry. ANVIL: There’s a shock. NIGHTSHIFT: She’s mobile right now so she
can’t get to her computer. She was on her way to New Mexico.
Some kind of lizard demon cult or something she’s tracking.
I do have her vote, though. ANVIL: So she actually answers **your** calls
huh? KNIGHTSABRE: Mark, be nice. NIGHTSHIFT: She’s busy, Mark. Unlike us,
she’s still active. And she doesn’t have a home base.
She’s living out of motels. Cut her some slack, big guy. VANGUARD: Have I mentioned how much I appreciate
her keeping her very sensitive and classified Forte computer in
cheap motel rooms? ANVIL: I’m just saying. There’s a
pattern. But I’ll leave it at that and drop the point. DR. JACKAL: We’re lucky to get this many
of us. We figured some wouldn’t be able to do it. It’s
not a big deal. MIST: Oh, and Megan. Don’t forget you’ve
got your appointment with Stephen in two weeks. ECLIPSE: How could I forget! Chris is coming
and we’re turning it into a little vacation. So we’re
hoping you and Kyle can show us around town. MIST: Great idea! We’d love to. SECUNDUS: It would be a pleasure, Megan. I look
forward to seeing both of you. DR. JACKAL: Does it creep anyone else out that
Stephen knows what all our wives look like naked? PHANTASM: Not as much as it creeps me out that
he knows what WE all look like naked. DR. JACKAL: Come on, you know you live for those
little checkups, John. PHANTASM: Hey you’re the one that keeps
asking him “You want me to cough again? Huh huh do ya?” KNIGHTSABRE: Children… ANVIL: I’m just guessing but did you use
a lot of lead-based paint in the original Forte base? TOMARSSUK: I DO NOT HAVE A WIFE. I AM HOWEVER
DATING VECTOR. DOES STEPHEN KNOW WHAT SHE LOOKS LIKE NAKED? KNIGHTSABRE: I don’t think so, Tommy. Haha.
He’s Forte’s doctor, not Northguard’s. TOMARSSUK: I KNOW WHAT SHE LOOKS LIKE NAKED.
I THINK SHE LOOKS VERY NICE NAKED. CHILL: OMG! LOL ECLIPSE: Tommy! Stop sharing!!! MIST: I am not listening. La la la la la… PHANTASM: Let the boy express himself! Go on
Tommy. Detail. Just remember certain words might get bleeped out… KNIGHTSABRE: Sydney, track Jeanette down for
me, please. I’m calling her right now. ANVIL: Remember that online slang dictionary
I pointed you toward Tommy? After you’re done here I want
you to go look up “TMI” buddy. TOMARSSUK: DID I SAY SOMETHING WRONG? MIST: Women generally don’t like it when
their boyfriends talk about their nakedness with others, honey.
Even if it’s a compliment. PHANTASM: That’s why it’s important
to only talk about it with other GUYS. We’ll talk later
T. NIGHTSHIFT: Wow, guys, that villain did a REALLY
good job, didn’t he? TOMARSSUK: I WILL REMEMBER THAT. THANK YOU SYDNEY. CINCOFLEX: Well. If it’s a compliment… MIST: Miranda! Quit helping! CHILL: lol KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. CINCOFLEX: I wouldn’t mind a little bragging
from Bruce. KNIGHTSABRE: Sure, says the lady who got the
mystical fountain-of-youth treatment a few years ago. If the rest
of us had your body we probably wouldn’t either. DR. JACKAL: I know this is the part where I’m
supposed to jump in and defend my wife’s body, but based
on the silence from half the room, I think we’ve embarrassed
them enough already. ARMATURE: There’s a fine line between embarrassment
and diplomacy, Jack. ECLIPSE: I’m not letting Chris be in the
room when I’m doing these things anymore. He’s going
to think my old teammates are all a bunch of degenerates. CHILL: his super senses serve him well. ;) MIST: Yes, a little maturity might be in order.
John. PHANTASM: Jack started it. DR. JACKAL: Did not. PHANTASM: Retard. DR. JACKAL: Retard infinity.
**** HAMMER has entered chat room **** KNIGHTSABRE: Saved by the Hammer! Haha. Hi, Matt. DR. JACKAL: Matt Collins, accountant to the rich
and famous! SECUNDUS: Hello, Matt. ECLIPSE: Hi Matt! ANVIL: Hey Matt. Got any pictures of Tommy’s
girlfriend naked? Wanna buy some? NIGHTSHIFT: Hey, the Hollywood Hammuh! Hi, Matt! ARMATURE: Greetings, Matt. TOMARSSUK: HELLO MATT MIST: Hi, Matt. Good to see you, babe. ELECTRO MAN: Hello Matt. Great to have you with
us. HAMMER: Good evening, folks. Sorry I’m
late. TRIPWIRE: You’re still ahead of Jeremy.
Hello, Matt! CHILL: you’re second to last so don’t
sweat it. and hi! :D NIGHTSHIFT: Let me guess. You’re still
at the office. HAMMER: Of course I’m still at the office.
You think this company could run without me here every waking
moment? CINCOFLEX: Not with Grav at the helm. KNIGHTSABRE: How’s life at Armor, Matt? HAMMER: Busy, busy, Sabrina. A CFO’s work
is never done. Especially not the way these guys spend money. PHANTASM: Bunch of prima donna magazine cover
cookie cutter hos for hire. HAMMER: I thought I smelled John. ECLIPSE: Any celebrity stories this week?! HAMMER: Let’s see… Shockwaive’s
in New Zealand doing security for Leonardo DiCaprio for his press
junket for “The Beach” there. ECLIPSE: AAAAAAA!!!!! CHILL: :O CINCOFLEX: Oooooohhhh HAMMER: Thought you’d like that. ECLIPSE: She’s so lucky!!!!! PHANTASM: Give it up ladies. She’s just
there to keep the press off his back while he’s out hunting
for kiwi weewee. ECLIPSE: Shut UP! He is SO not gay!!! CINCOFLEX: Why do you think every man that’s
prettier than you is gay John? ANVIL: Did she just call me gay? PHANTASM: No you’re confusing her with
your wife Mark. MIST
AND PHANTASM PRIVATE CHAT ANVIL: The bitterness of the unpretty. So sad. TOMARSSUK: I DO NOT THINK THAT LEONARDO IS GAY
EITHER. HE SEEMS TO LIKE WOMEN VERY MUCH. ECLIPSE: Thank you Tommy. So there John. NIGHTSHIFT: Polar bears know these things. They’ve
got MAD gaydar. VANGUARD: Isn’t it a little hard for her
to do security when they’re surrounded by dozens of photographers
all the time? She’s not exactly low-profile. HAMMER: I think that’s the idea. Everyone’s
focused on the two of them, but then we have our undercover people
in the crowd doing spotting. VANGUARD: That makes good tactical sense. ANVIL: So this isn’t just an excuse to
get her on the cover of every tabloid in the world and get free
publicity for Armor Security huh? HAMMER: Wouldn’t be my area. I don’t
do marketing. I just write the checks. ELECTRO MAN: I still need to get one of your
original Hammer costumes for the museum Matt. HAMMER: I totally blanked on that. Sorry, Wally.
I’ll have Lisa get that shipped to you this week. ELECTRO MAN: Thanks Matt. It’s very much
appreciated. ARMATURE: How is Lisa, Matt? HAMMER: Still loving L.A., Akim. I think they’ve
given her her own private parking spot on Rodeo. You think Armor
can spend money… KNIGHTSABRE: Speaking of Lisa, when are you guys
finally coming to visit, Matt? DR. JACKAL: No kidding! We’re still holding
off on the San Juan Islands trip until you guys make it. What’s
the deal? HAMMER: I’m really sorry, guys. Things
have just been extra busy with the company lately. We’re
getting a lot of new business, which means more work and more
meetings for me. Just been swamped. KNIGHTSABRE: All work and no play, Matt… DR. JACKAL: Yeah, sounds like you need a break.
Come on, it’ll be great. I’m sure they can spare you
for a couple of days. HAMMER: Not at the moment they can’t. But
yes, we do need to make that happen. I’ll check my schedule
and check with Lisa. I’ll have to get back to you on that. KNIGHTSABRE: Just let us know. We’ll work
around your schedule. DR. JACKAL: And don’t worry. We’ll
be taking my boat, but we don’t have to stay on it. I’ve
got a friend with a cabin on Lopez Island, said I can use it whenever
I want. So all we gotta do is pick a date and pull the trigger
on the deal. HAMMER: Sounds like a good time. I’ll work
on that. TOMARSSUK: THOSE ISLANDS ARE VERY BEAUTIFUL.
MARION AND I SPENT SOME TIME THERE. ANVIL: I don’t know where the rumor started
that Tommy’s a bear. That boy is a **dog**. CHILL: lol MIST
AND HAMMER PRIVATE CHAT NIGHTSHIFT: Hey, Kyle. How’s your dad doing?
**** LIGHTSEDGE has entered chat room **** CHILL: jeremy! DR. JACKAL: Finally, the whole gang’s here. KNIGHTSABRE: Hi, Jeremy. CINCOFLEX: Hello Jeremy! NIGHTSHIFT: Jeremy! How are you! ECLIPSE: Hi Jeremy! ELECTRO MAN: Glad you made it Jeremy. Welcome! ANVIL: I think he should change his hero name
to Tardy Boy. If he had a brother they could solve crimes. SECUNDUS: Hello, Jeremy. LIGHTSEDGE: I know, I know. I’m late. Sorry.
I’m on dial-up here and I had some connection problems. KNIGHTSABRE: Where are you this month, Jeremy? LIGHTSEDGE: Nepal ANVIL: Oh we have a winner! Sorry Akim. ECLIPSE: Wow NIGHTSHIFT: Are you climbing Mount Everest? Why
do you rich guys always feel you need to do that? SECUNDUS: Where in Nepal, Jeremy? LIGHTSEDGE: Kathmandu. Decided to give the students
a little R&R and get out of the mountains for a few days and
into the big city. They earned a break. ARMATURE: That’s a very exciting city. LIGHTSEDGE: Yeah, and did you know its sister
city in America is Eugene? How weird is that? Just found that
out in a pamphlet in my hotel room. PHANTASM: Makes perfect sense. Nepal. Oregon.
Both popular destinations for dirty hippies. NIGHTSHIFT: Wow, actually springing for a hotel
for you and the disciples. I thought you guys only slept on mats
on the floor. LIGHTSEDGE: We do. We’re just doing it
in a hotel. I needed the phone line, and they earned some running
(and hot) water, so I figured, why not. ELECTRO MAN: What time is it there Jeremy? LIGHTSEDGE: It’s after seven a.m., Wally. CHILL: what’s for breakfast? LIGHTSEDGE: Nepali tea and strawberries. ANVIL: Dude you’re in semi-civilization!
Got some waffles or something at least. ECLIPSE: Yum. VANGUARD: Don’t mention food around Megan
right now. She’s liable to start chewing on her keyboard. CHILL: lol ECLIPSE: If you put some chocolate syrup on it
I just might. LIGHTSEDGE: I’m the last one here, you
said? I don’t see Chelsea. ANVIL: Here’s a big jaw-dropper. She backed
out Jeremy. Imagine that. LIGHTSEDGE: Guess I shouldn’t be surprised. NIGHTSHIFT: Will you guys give it a rest? God! LIGHTSEDGE: And what did I win, again? KNIGHTSABRE: You’re furthest away from
the base. Akim’s in Nairobi, Gregor’s in Vienna. ANVIL: I’m in Ohio. Obviously I’m
not bragging. TRIPWIRE: And hello, Jeremy. TOMARSSUK: HOW ARE THINGS GOING WITH YOUR STUDENTS
JEREMY? LIGHTSEDGE: Hello, Gregor. And everyone. Going
fine, Tom, thanks. They’re coming along great. Some are
naturals. Some…less than natural. But they’re all
hard workers and very dedicated. A couple of them really needed
this in their lives. The change in them is remarkable. ANVIL: Work that Yoda fantasy. ARMATURE: I think it’s very commendable
what you’re doing, Jeremy. I’m excited to see how
it all plays out. SECUNDUS: As am I. NIGHTSHIFT: I know this is really weird, but
does anyone else feel like Hologram should be here with us? ANVIL: Actually I was thinking the same thing.
Creepy isn’t it? SECUNDUS: It’s understandable. He was one
of us. And was our friend. ANVIL: Even if he didn’t really exist. CHILL: well i like the real one better anyway.
:) NIGHTSHIFT: Yeah, is he going to be making it
for the big cross-dimensional summit this summer, Jack? DR. JACKAL: He’s on the list. NIGHTSHIFT: Good. I can give him another awkward
and confusing hug. ANVIL: Hey at least our Hologram ceased to exist.
He’s got a better excuse for not being here than Chelsea… DR. JACKAL: Well, folks, last thing I want to
do is stop us all from catching up, since we get to do it so rarely,
but I think we’d better get down to the purpose of this
little virtual gathering. I know some of you expressed to me that
you’d need to keep this fairly short. Plus, you know, Megan
has to pee. CHILL: lol ANVIL: And think of what Jeremy’s hotel
phone bill will be for this. NIGHTSHIFT: Please. Like he can’t afford
it. LIGHTSEDGE: It’s there if we need it, Harry,
but it rarely gets used. We generally get by on what we can carry
and work for what we need. PHANTASM: Shut up and drink your tea hippie. DR. JACKAL: So if no one objects, shall we get
started? ARMATURE: I agree. ECLIPSE: Let’s do it. TOMARSSUK: I AM READY CHILL: lead on doc ELECTRO MAN: That sounds good. DR. JACKAL: What I’d like to do is just
spell out the points here, and things would probably go faster
if we kept the chat to a minimum. I’d like to get it all
out and then, after, address any questions and then move things
along to voting. Sound good? VANGUARD: Sounds like the best way. CINCOFLEX: What Vanguard said. KNIGHTSABRE: Take it away, Mr. Parker. ANVIL: Ladies and gentlemen. Your master of ceremonies.
Dr. Jackal. DR. JACKAL: Thank you, thank you. …and
boy, are my arms tired. ANVIL: Rim shot DR. JACKAL: Take my wife. Please. MIST: YOU take your wife. Workaholic. PHANTASM: I’ll take his wife. CHILL: john! PHANTASM: What? We got Mormonism in Canada too. ECLIPSE: Hee hee DR. JACKAL: Well first, let me say that it’s
great to have you all here. I know we don’t get many chances
to get us all together, even like this, so this is really a treat.
It’s great to see everybody, and great to hear that everyone
and their families are doing well. We’ve all got very busy
schedules, and I appreciate everyone taking the time out of theirs
to be here. And let’s take this opportunity to once again
thank Vanguard for putting this web site together for us to make
things like this possible. ANVIL: Thanks Vanguard ARMATURE: Thanks, Vanguard SECUNDUS: Thanks, Vanguard CHILL: thanks vanguard! NIGHTSHIFT: Thanks, Vanguard! CINCOFLEX: Thanks Vanguard! ECLIPSE: Thanks Vanguard! MIST: Thanks, Vanguard ELECTRO MAN: Thank you Vanguard HAMMER: Thanks, Vanguard. KNIGHTSABRE: Thanks, Vanguard. LIGHTSEDGE: Thanks, Vanguard. PHANTASM: Whatever TOMARSSUK: THANKS VANGUARD TRIPWIRE: Thanks, Vanguard! DR. JACKAL: We all just love saying that. VANGUARD: All right, all right. CHILL: lol DR. JACKAL: But on a more serious note. With
the exception of those of us who were able to get together for
Christmas, this is the first time we’ve all been together
since the funeral. I want to take this chance to say thank you
to everyone. First, for how you all conducted yourselves at the
funeral, which was, as you recall, a media madhouse. This is one
of those times I feel the need to apologize for being part of
the press. Many of us on this team, I’m sad to say, have
been though these before, but with the Twostep controversy, it
was a feeding frenzy out there. What should have been a quiet
time for mourning and remembrance for us got turned into something
else. We knew it was going to. But you all handled it fine. And
we went through it together. As a family. And we remembered what
we were really there for. To honor the memory of our friend and
say good-bye. And remember all that he meant to us. ELECTRO MAN: Amen CHILL: amen ARMATURE: Amen. ECLIPSE: Amen KNIGHTSABRE: Amen. PHANTASM: Amen DR. JACKAL: And second, for how you all handled
yourselves in the time since. Until recently, the press hasn’t
let up. And I know poor Wally was the one who had to deal with
all the media requests for interviews from everyone. Like we discussed
at the start, no one was obligated to make any kind of statement.
Those of you who did had wonderful things to say and did a great
job. Those of you who didn’t, I think it goes without saying
that we all understand and respect the choice. This was a very
personal thing to all of us. Those of us who worked with Nathaniel
during his stint with the team had an even harder time. Not wanting
to have those feelings spread across and sensationalized by the
tabloids is completely justifiable. And thank you from all of
us, Wally, for taking on that burden and being the team’s
voice the past three months. You did an amazing job. CINCOFLEX: Yes you did. Thank you Wally. MIST: Thank you, Wally. Really. NIGHTSHIFT: You did great, Wally. We love you. VANGUARD: We all appreciate what you did, Wally.
We always will. ELECTRO MAN: Thank you all. And it was my honor.
I was just worried you were all going to stop answering the phone
when I called to pass along yet another interview request. Ha
ha. PHANTASM: No but we’re pretty close to
that on those calls for museum appearances. CHILL: lol. don’t listen to him wally.
call us anytime. NIGHTSHIFT: Unless it’s before noon on
Sunday. I like to sleep late. ELECTRO MAN: I’ll remember that Harry.
Ha ha. MIST: And can we also take a moment to thank
Jack for his Dateline interview that took a lot of the pressure
off the rest of us? ECLIPSE: Yes. Thank you Jack. It was beautiful. ARMATURE: You spoke what we all felt, Jack. We’re
grateful. LIGHTSEDGE: Thanks, Jack. TOMARSSUK: THANK YOU WALLY AND DR. JACKAL PHANTASM: Thanks Jackguard! KNIGHTSABRE: Haha CHILL: lol SECUNDUS: Neither we nor the world will soon
forget it. DR. JACKAL: Thank you, Syd. Everyone. It was
tough, but the public needed to hear it. CINCOFLEX: You were perfect Jack. I think I cried
for three days after that. DR. JACKAL: We’ve had a very tough year
as a team. Between the trial and losing Nathaniel and all the
aftermath. And of course the fact that much of the evidence in
the trial was classified and not released to press or public.
I think we all know how pissed off both press and public get when
that happens. An information gap leads to rumor and speculation.
The Forte name has been dragged through the dirt a lot more than
we’re used to. And it’s left the world divided on
how to feel about us. PHANTASM: **** em DR. JACKAL: And unlike some people I obviously
don’t need to mention, I can understand their feelings.
I definitely don’t agree with all the choices Nathaniel
made. Or actions he took. I don’t have to agree with them,
but I can understand them. He did what he felt he had to. But
him having been a part of Forte brought all of us into it. As
it should be. We stand with our own. That’s what family
does. ANVIL: And of course my involvement in his actions
didn’t help much either. I know no one’s said that
out loud. I don’t think I’ve ever actually apologized
for that. So for my part I am sorry everyone. He was my best friend.
I did what I had to. MIST: Mark, you don’t need to. Ever. CHILL: no one blames you for anything mark. don’t
ever think that. ELECTRO MAN: We all understand why you did what
you did Mark. KNIGHTSABRE: You were there for him, Mark. When
he lost his way, you were the one who brought him back. You saved
him in the way that mattered most. Don’t ever forget that. VANGUARD: If he’d let us, I think all of
us would helped him. In our own ways. He trusted you. And you
did what you thought was best. You’re one of the big reasons
why all the Banes are behind bars. And that’s what Nathaniel
wanted most. NIGHTSHIFT: Don’t you dare beat yourself
up, Mark. Or ever think we think less of you. You did the right
thing. ARMATURE: And let’s not forget that I along
with Anvil let Twostep escape after the Moon Dragon killings and
kept that fact from all of you for so long. I’m not innocent
either. PHANTASM: Yes and that juicy secret led to me
trying to arrest him up in Canada later. Thanks boys. Luckily
we both got jumped and dragged off to Solomon Hilt’s island
to be hunted like a couple of two-legged Bambis. And hiding in
the jungle gave us enough quality time for him to tell me the
whole story. I let him go too. And I’m a SHIELD officer.
Plenty of blame to go around. For the record Mark if you’d
have called me I probably would have backed your ass. And it would
have been me up there on the stand too. We do what our guts tell
us to. That’s the best we can do. So I say again. **** em. CINCOFLEX: You suffered more than any of us Mark.
You don’t need absolution. Certainly not from us. TOMARSSUK: WE ALL KNOW YOU ARE A GOOD MAN MARK.
LIKE TWOSTEP. WE ARE YOUR FRIENDS AND DO NOT JUDGE YOU. DR. JACKAL: I think it’s obvious that we’re
all in agreement on this, Mark. I think Tommy summed it up right
there. So if you’ve been losing sleep over worrying about
that, stop. PHANTASM: Yeah lose over sleep the important
things. Like wondering what your daughter’s doing at frat
parties on Saturday nights. ECLIPSE: Somebody please sedate him CHILL: lol ANVIL: Thanks everyone. Except John. KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. DR. JACKAL: Anyway, with all that said, we are
here for a specific reason. ECLIPSE: We are? It’s been so long I forgot
what it is… Ha DR. JACKAL: As you’re all aware, we had
ourselves yet another big news day in Seattle last month. In case
you didn’t read the full briefing, I’ll sum up the
background. In pre-pre-Earth history, there were these magical
races of peoples, progenitors to the Homi Magi. One such race
was called the Cassians, and they lived under the waters that
are now the Washington coast. They had a big split. Part of their
people cast aside their beliefs about living underwater, broke
off and took over the land that we now know as Washington. They
became warlike conquerors. And they called themselves the Karrigon.
At some point a big magical world war happened, and the Cassians
and Karrigon were on opposite sides. The Karrigon actually tapped
into some forbidden big magics and were going to mystically nuke
a whole continent. Or part of a continent. I think Earth was all
one big continent back then. DR. JACKAL: Anyway, the Cassians stopped them,
and the good guys won the war, and a big post-war council decided
that magic had overrun the Earth and was threatening to destroy
it. The physical Earth was not meant to hold that much magic.
They decided it was time to leave Earth behind and let it evolve
on its own. The losing races were banished to other dimensions,
the winning ones left by choice, and a big mystical barrier was
created to keep either side from returning. But one race was chosen
to stay behind and stay hidden and watch over the Earth in case
any of the other races tried to return and exploit Earth’s
vast magic potential. That race was the Cassians. And they’ve
lived in this hidden tesseract city called Stronghold below the
Pacific ever since, watching history unfold around them. PHANTASM: Is he making this up? DR. JACKAL: Seems the Karrigon found a way to
return and wanted their old domain back (pretty much centered
in Seattle) and planned to stage an overthrow of Earth from there.
They put a plan in place and started it, but, while all of us
were going on about our lives cluelessly, it seems four new heroes
stumbled across it. CINCOFLEX: Yay new heroes! DR. JACKAL: These heroes, all Seattle natives,
are Seahawk, Max, Tinker and Rainier. Max you probably all heard
of, since he’s been making news for a little while as Seattle’s
new hero. Seahawk was starting to get known, too, but unlike Max
he operated mostly at night and stayed out of the spotlight. While
Rainier and Tinker weren’t even heroes when this all started.
Rainier had gotten his powers just back in November and kept them
hidden. Tinker didn’t even have any powers. She was just
an unemployed engineer turned airplane mechanic who was trying
to investigate the death of a friend of hers when she fell into
all this. But they all managed to somehow tumble into this big
thing and ended up working together. With an assist from Captain
Compass, I should add. ANVIL: The Sentinel of the Seas. The Wizard of
the Waterways. The Ayatollah of the Aquatic. DR. JACKAL: And the rest, of course, is recent
history, and I’m sure you got to see plenty of it on the
news. Four largely untested heroes who had never worked together
before managed to get all the 411 and piece it together and, while
they couldn’t stop the Karrigon invasion from happening,
they managed to have the intell, the connection with the Cassians,
and the guts and courage to end it. They were the x-factor. The
Karrigon had planned for heroes, thanks to their pre-invasion
intelligence gathering, and thanks to the help of some turncoat
villains who managed to capture those of us still in town—me,
Samantha, Wally, and Miranda. But they hadn’t counted on
these four. DR. JACKAL: Not only did the foursome rescue
us so-called veteran heroes, but they somehow convinced the Cassians—who
had actually decided some time ago that humanity sucked and wasn’t
worth saving—to step up and fight the Karrigon. And they
took out the Karrigon leader, a very scary guy named Lord Raze,
themselves. And if you watched CNN, you know they managed to pull
that off on live TV, too. While the rest of America’s heroes
were stuck outside the big magic force field the Karrigon placed
around Seattle, these guys, on their own, ended a war before it
had a chance to start. Saved us, saved the city, and probably
saved the world. Not bad for a bunch of rookies. ELECTRO MAN: Hear hear DR. JACKAL: So as you might guess, Seattle is
pretty jazzed about these four. And I’m with Seattle. They
did a remarkable job in the face of ridiculous odds. We all owe
them, big time. And I should point out that their success in this
is as much a shock to them as anyone else. Half this quartet had
never even been in combat before. And they never trained together.
They just went on instinct. I like their instincts. KNIGHTSABRE: I do, too. :) MIST: Four heroes in Seattle that had never met,
teaming up and defending the city. Sounds kind of familiar, doesn’t
it? ANVIL: Heroically ironic. DR. JACKAL: So now Seattle’s recovering
from the damage, and all they’re talking about are these
new four heroes. The city is completely in love with them and
behind them. And it looks like they plan to stick together as
a team. I’d say they have a pretty good foundation to start
on. TRIPWIRE: It’s not just Seattle. News of
them has been all over Europe as well. ARMATURE: And in Africa as well. ANVIL: And in Ohio… DR. JACKAL: Us punching bag hostages have met
with them all and gotten to know them some. Great people, all
of them. And as most of you know, we started talking about them,
and what their appearance means. And about how much Seattle needs
an active hero team again. This city’s identity is tied
to heroes. And ever since Forte finally closed up shop, there’s
been a vacuum. Luckily, there haven’t been any major threats
in the interim, at least not ones UNCLE or Miranda and I couldn’t
step in and handle if really needed. But Miranda and I are both
retired, and would like it to stay that way. Plus Miranda’s
only here half the year. This invasion is a reminder that Seattle
still needs its heroes. Their excitement about this foursome says
they’ve already decided who their new heroes are going to
be. DR. JACKAL: The papers, mine included, are already
calling them the new Forte. This got some of us to thinking. This
may seem like just ego, but I don’t think Seattle just needs
heroes. I think it needs Forte. The public reaction is backing
me on that. So what we talked about, and what we’re here
to discuss and vote on, is the idea of giving these guys the blessing
to take the Forte name. To continue the tradition for all of us
who’ve done our time and left it behind. To carry on the
mission, that reason we all started this thing up in the first
place. It’s a big choice, and one that we all need to have
a say in if we’re really going to consider it. Hence this
meeting. DR. JACKAL: Before we get into that, I’d
like to first talk a little about the four of them. And I’d
like to turn that over to Wally, who’s spent the most time
with them. Wally? ELECTRO MAN: Thank you Jack. Folks let me start
right off by agreeing with Jack’s feelings about them. These
are four amazing individuals. I like them all a great deal and
I have a lot of confidence in them. They’ve all been gracious
enough to trust us Seattle Forte people with their real names
and their backgrounds but I won’t be giving the former out
just yet without discussing it with them. ELECTRO MAN: First there’s Max. A wonderful
young man. He just graduated high school a few months ago and
started heroing around town over the summer. ECLIPSE: Wow that young? ELECTRO MAN: What he lacked in experience he
made up for in heart and courage. The city started falling in
love with him right away. As did many Seattle girls. Ha ha. I
went to meet him at a crime scene a few months ago and asked him
to come to the museum and meet some school kids. He’s also
a very shy young man but he agreed. And I’ve gotten to know
him since. He is the real deal. Brave and humble with the heart
of a hero. I see great things for him in the future. He’s
just starting out and I think he’ll end up being one of
the big names in the years to come. ELECTRO MAN: Seahawk actually started showing
up about a year before in the summer of ’98. But like Jack
said he did things differently. He was more secret about his work
and stuck mostly to dark alleys and rooftops and night. He started
as more of an urban legend before somebody actually got some snapshots.
Seahawk is the oldest of the four being in his mid-30s. He’s
also got years of law enforcement background. He’s a very
good man and very dedicated. And very skilled. I like his outlook
and his experience. I think both his experience and age have made
him their team’s de facto leader. He’ll be a good
one. I’ve enjoyed my talks with him a lot. Very personable
and likeable. ARMATURE: When you say law enforcement, do you
mean federal or police, Wally? ELECTRO MAN: Police. I don’t think he’d
mind me revealing that. ANVIL: Jinkies the cops. ELECTRO MAN: Rainier is an interesting situation.
He’s an anthropology graduate student who I guess found
some kind of ancient native American urn that inhabited him with
the spirit of a mystical being called Tac-o-bet. ECLIPSE: Ooh that just made me crave an Encherito! ELECTRO MAN: Tac-o-bet for those that don’t
know is what the indigenous peoples here called Mount Rainier
before the British Royal Navy came along and renamed it. He was
some kind of protector spirit of the local tribes. He inhabited
certain worthy souls to defend the people in times of need. Now
he appears to be in this young man. TOMARSSUK: RAINIER IS VERY LARGE. I SAW HIM ON
TELEVISION ELECTRO MAN: And I’m sure that’s
why he got named after a mountain Tommy. This young man didn’t
choose the powers but he’s already done some amazing things
with them as we all saw. He’s a brilliant man who’s
very knowledgeable in history and cultures. Particularly native
American. He’s still not quite sure about this whole super-hero
thing but he’s realized its happened and now knows he can
do a lot to help people with his powers. He’s very bright
and likeable. ELECTRO MAN: Tinker in short is a hoot. I like
her very much. She’s an engineering genius. You all probably
saw those nifty and funny gadgets she makes. All of them are purposely
non-lethal. She’s a big believer in thinking over violence.
I like that attitude. And even more than Rainier she has no idea
how she suddenly became a super-hero. It certainly wasn’t
planned. You can tell just by the fact that she’s a normal
gal running around with some doohickies that she’s very
brave. And just like with Rainier I like that she’s someone
who’s doing this out of a sense of responsibility instead
of some desire to be famous or some kind of power trip. She’s
a very good person and very funny. When you all get to meet her
you’ll see what I’m talking about. You’ll like
her right away. DR. JACKAL: Thanks, Wally. I’ve spent some
time with them, too, though not as much as Wally has. I’m
in agreement with him. I think they’re all great people,
and I think they more than proved that they’ve got what
it takes to be heroes. And that they work well as a team. They’ve
all decided amongst themselves to stick together and keep up what
they started, so one way or the other, Seattle’s got a new
quartet of heroes. The question is, do they have a new Forte? DR. JACKAL: I also want to point out one of my
other thoughts on this, and why I think it’s a good idea.
As we just talked about, the Forte name has seen better days.
I know we’ve all come to love those columnists and talk
radio folks who’ve had such a good time talking about us
ever since the Bane trials started. PHANTASM: ******** DR. JACKAL: Exactly. Lots and lots of internet
talk, too. We’re more than a little bit on the tainted side
right now, as you all know. So on a strictly practical level?
I think this could be just the shot in the arm the Forte name
needs right now. Four new heroes with their histories not attached
to us, four heroes that the public is just going gaga over. Having
them carry on Forte for us gives us a much-needed fresh start,
a chance to put all the other stuff behind the team. While that’s
not the real reason behind this, it would be an added benefit. DR. JACKAL: So what we want to do is see what
everyone here thinks about this idea. And if it turns out we all
agree, then I think a few of us would get together and have a
little sit-down with these guys and offer to let them use the
name. MIST: That’s assuming they haven’t
already come up with one of their own, of course. They may not
want the name. They may want to establish their own history. DR. JACKAL: Very true. We’d just have to
see what they thought about it, and let them know the offer’s
there, and leave it up to them. But the first step is…do
we want to do this? And I think the first step in that is seeing
if anyone has any questions. So…anyone? LIGHTSEDGE: I’m curious as to what turning
them into Forte entails. They’d have the name, yes. But
are we talking about moving them into the base, giving them computer
access, all that? DR. JACKAL: Good first question, Jeremy. Actually,
they’ve got their own base already. Remember that snazzy
jet they were flying around in? ANVIL: I sure do. Nice piece. CHILL: yeah where the heck did they get a jet
from? DR. JACKAL: I’ll reveal this part about
Seahawk. He’s connected to the Tether Corporation. That’s
where his armor comes from. That’s also where the jet comes
from. They were both part of some deep-sea project that apparently
never got finished. These guys needed some underwater transport
when they were looking for Stronghold. Seahawk called Warren Tether,
Tether loaned them the submersible jet. Which is called the Mariner,
in case you didn’t read that. The very secret jet is housed
in a secret base where it was developed and worked on. But since
that project went under, that base has been unoccupied. After
the invasion thing, I guess Tether told them they could have both
the jet and the base on indefinite loan if they planned to stick
together as a team. NIGHTSHIFT: Wow, they start right out with their
own base, their own jet, and their own Johnny Quest. DR. JACKAL: Sounds like they’d be using
that base, and that vehicle. As for access to our base, our computers,
etc? I think we’d all agree that there would have to be
some time built into that. Obviously we’d need to get to
know them a lot better. We’d wait and see how they worked
out, if our level of trust with them is there, and then eventually
see if we all want to properly bring them into the family. VANGUARD: A probation period, if you will. ARMATURE: That sounds logical. LIGHTSEDGE: I remember when I first showed up,
these guys wouldn’t even trust me with a radio watch. ANVIL: Yes I remember you explaining to me what
we could do with our watch. Very colorful. CHILL: lol ARMATURE: We were of course just being cautious,
Jeremy, having just met you. LIGHTSEDGE: Yes, as opposed to just meeting Telesis
and having her AND her baby move right into the secret base. Or
Chelsea. Or Harry. ANVIL: In our defense? They were all hot chicks
and you weren’t. Sorry. KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. LIGHTSEDGE: Okay, that makes sense, then. ARMATURE: That does bring up another point, however.
How well do we know them besides your meetings with them? Have
we investigated them? DR. JACKAL: We did more than that. We put Vanguard
on it. ANVIL: Ouch. I’m sure they’re all
still walking funny. VANGUARD: I was one of the ones who got the real
names. I did full background checks. NIGHTSHIFT: And with their permission, of COURSE… VANGUARD: Need I remind you your Forte team had
a light construct sleeper agent on it, one that was gathering
information on all of us but could have just as easily killed
you all in your sleep? NIGHTSHIFT: No, you don’t. *******. ANVIL: Hey **your** nemesis sent him dude… DR. JACKAL: Robert’s point is that we can’t
be too careful, so yes, we needed to be discrete about it. If
we do vote them in and one day they read this transcript, I’m
sure they’ll understand. CHILL: hi future forte heroes! CINCOFLEX: We apologize for Phantasm. In general. CHILL: lol!!! VANGUARD: Jack, I may go into a little more detail
than you’re comfortable with, but I think it’s all
relevant and necessary to help everyone make an informed decision.
No names, of course. DR. JACKAL: Use you best judgment, Robert. PHANTASM: I’m not touching that one. VANGUARD: Each of them checks out. No criminal
records, no unexplained information gaps, no major red flags.
I’ve got independently verifiable sources and cross-references
with federal and state databanks. ANVIL: You never heard of Google? NIGHTSHIFT: snicker VANGUARD: Max is an orphan. He lost his parents
in an auto accident when he was five, and was adopted. ECLIPSE: Awwww VANGUARD: From all indications, he was raised
in a loving and supportive home, and the character he exhibits
now matches with that. Passable grades, heavy sports involvement
throughout school. He excelled in just about every sport. But
no scholarships were forthcoming. I looked into why. Colleges
do drug testing. Max’s blood work always came back with
some kind of 10% unknown factor. As colleges don’t share
this information between them due to confidentiality, no one also
seemed to notice that his blood type tended to change from test
to test. VANGUARD: The unknown factor wasn’t anything
illegal, but seemed to be enough to keep him out of consideration
for most college athletic programs. I studied a number of his
blood test results, and I’m convinced this factor is a result
of his powers. HAMMER: You studied his blood tests?! Good God,
Vanguard. LIGHTSEDGE: Which hopefully convinced you he’s
not a light construct. VANGUARD: At least that THAT Max wasn’t
a light construct. Regardless, he seems to have discovered his
powers, finally, in high school. Research and surveillance leads
me to believe that, based on his ongoing close relationship with
his high school coach after graduation, this coach was in on the
secret as well. Perhaps he even helped in his training with his
powers. ANVIL: Did he just say “surveillance?” VANGUARD: He’s a college student now. He
works and lives on his own. And he makes time for heroing. This,
coupled with personality tests he took throughout middle and high
school and college, indicates a strong work ethic. UNCLE reports
on his actions in crimefighting point to good decisions and restraint.
And the fact that he saw his lifelong dream of a sports career
taken from him by what might be considered by many to be an unfair
circumstance, and yet continued on with college for scholastic
reasons only and embarked on a hero career, says a lot about his
character. I approve of Max. DR. JACKAL: Well, as long as you’re using
your best judgment… ANVIL: Jesus Christ Vanguard. You’ve been
spying on these people? CHILL: was that when you were gone for that week?
I thought you were in europe! CINCOFLEX: You were in Seattle and didn’t
tell us? We could have had you over for dinner! VANGUARD: Two words: light construct. PHANTASM: I like how he makes me seem less paranoid. MIST: This is something we had to be sure of,
people. And this is what he does. Let’s keep going, Robert. VANGUARD: Tinker, too, is an orphan. She lost
her parents and her brother when she was ten. They died in a fire
at Yosemite. Both parents were brilliant in their own fields.
Her father taught higher mathematics, her mother was a soloist
in the Seattle Symphony. Tinker was raised thereafter by her uncle
and his life partner, and like Max, was able to overcome her loss
by finishing her developing years in a loving and supportive home.
She inherited the family brilliance, but her area was science
and engineering. She was at National Science Camp for the summer,
in fact, when her family was lost. She graduated early and went
to Cal Tech and got a doctorate, and returned to Seattle after
being snatched up by Boeing. HAMMER: Is anyone else uncomfortable with this? SECUNDUS: I am, Matt, but I have to agree that
it’s necessary. VANGUARD: Tinker was also fired from Boeing on
charges of corporate sabotage some time later. Some deep checking
sheds some interesting light on that. Tinker, along with some
other engineers, were voicing concerns over certain designs and
systems. Their concerns were routinely ignored by management for
financial reasons. VANGUARD: But Tinker took a stand on something
called the Q hinge. This is a hinge that attaches seats in small
planes and helicopters. Tinker saw that it was unsafe, saw the
flaw that allowed it to rub against the locking bolt and could
result in seats detaching from the floor during flight. She felt
so strongly about it that she gave them an ultimatum: stop production
or she’d go to the press. It was after this that charges
were raised against her and she was fired. Though not long after,
this Q hinge caused all the seats in the Boeing corporate jet
to detach during turbulence over Las Vegas. No injuries, thankfully,
but the news got out and Boeing stock took a dive for a time. HAMMER: I remember that story. In the financial
news. Wow, she tried to be a whistle-blower on that? And she didn’t
make it into the press? DR. JACKAL: We covered that story heavily here,
Matt. Local angle and all. I suspect she was planning to but the
Vegas incident happened very soon after they fired her. The Q
hinge was gone forever after that. I think that’s all that
was important to her. ARMATURE: And does that connection suggest that
she did in fact sabotage their jet as some kind of revenge? VANGUARD: My first thought too, Akim. No, I studied
all the tests done. Wear and tear over time, just as Tinker had
warned them. ECLIPSE: Does he ever sleep? VANGUARD: Apparently disenchanted with the corporate
world, she opened an aircraft engine repair shop here in Seattle,
with financial help from her uncle, and is now her own boss. I
do hope she gives industry another chance one day. She’s
a brilliant and innovative thinker and could do a lot for the
world. VANGUARD: Emotionally, she appears strong. She
went through several years of therapy after her family’s
death, but that’s to be expected. She’s mostly overcome
her arsonphobia. CINCOFLEX: Her what? CHILL: fear of fire CINCOFLEX: That’s really what they call
it? It sounds made up. VANGUARD: It’s not. A number of other Boeing
engineers resigned after Tinker’s firing, which shows that
she engenders loyalty in her teammates. One of those engineers
disappeared just before the Karrigon invasion. He was working
for Ares Global Enterprises at the time. It was his disappearance—and
death, as his body was found soon after—that Tinker was
trying to investigate on her own when she fell in with the other
heroes. It turns out he was killed by Sanction, the same armored
assassin that later tried to kill Tinker and that attacked and
kidnapped Wally. How he fits in with the Karrigon is something
I’m still working out, but I have a file already working
on A.G.E. I suspect complicity. The new heroes do as well. I’ll
keep on that. ANVIL: Anything else on Tinker? Favorite music
perhaps? VANGUARD: She’s a fan of seventies rock,
actually. ANVIL: I had to go and ask didn’t I? VANGUARD: But more importantly, everything about
her suggests a woman who has overcome great tragedy, lives by
her principles, and has exceptional courage. Some of us here became
super-heroes overnight, but all who did had the benefit of powers.
All she had was “doohickies”, as Wally pointed out,
and a desire to help a friend. And the guts to keep on that trail
when it clearly got her in over her head. Couple that with her
stand at Boeing and giving up a career that she’d worked
so long for just to do the right thing, and you’ve got someone
you want on your hero team. MIST: Meg, please tell me you took care of your
situation already. ECLIPSE: I did and came back. And thank you for
making me announce that to everyone. Ha. MIST: It was only out of concern, Meggy. I remember
pregnant bladder. ECLIPSE: Thank you Syd. I love you too. Hee hee. VANGUARD: Rainier actually comes from an extremely
wealthy family. CHILL: really? now i want to hear this. NIGHTSHIFT: I’m suddenly all ears myself. VANGUARD: I’m sure most of you would know
his family’s name if I mentioned it. Very well known in
Seattle. But he had little interest in the family business or
in money. Knowledge seems to have been his obsession his whole
life. Knowledge and history. While I’m sure there was some
underlying paternal disappointment, his family supported him in
his endeavors. VANGUARD: His great interest in Native American
history led him to several friendships within that community locally.
His only problem has been that some of his theories have been
branded too wild and speculative, if not foolish. He’s always
put a lot more stock in indigenous folklore than other scholars.
I’ve read his papers. One of them involved his search for
Tac-o-bet. Legend has it that the Creator carved the defender
spirit from the mountain (Mount Rainier) itself to fight for the
local peoples that are now part of the Yakima Nation. It was during
European expansionism that one captain came and tried to overthrow
the locals, and Tac-o-bet came forth and fought them off. But
the captain later returned with three witches and imprisoned the
spirit in a coal urn and buried the urn deep in the mountain,
where it apparently stayed…? Anyone…? TRIPWIRE: Until this graduate student found it. VANGUARD: Thank you. So obviously his theory
was right. Which of course he now can’t reveal without giving
up his secret. CHILL: that sucks VANGUARD: I should also point out another wild
theory of his about a civilization predating human history that
lived in Seattle. It appears he’s the one that discovered
the Cassians. LIGHTSEDGE: Wow. VANGUARD: Another vindication that will never
come to light, as I understand he can’t reveal what he found
as part of a deal with the Cassians to keep their whereabouts
unknown. The public has been told they came from another dimension
to help defend Seattle. You can understand why they wouldn’t
want the public knowing they actually live off the Washington
coast. Sort of. ANVIL: Man this guy can’t catch a break! DR. JACKAL: If I can also add (though I’m
sure Vanguard was about to)…from what I hear from Seahawk,
Rainier’s speech to the Cassian high council is the main
reason they had their last-minute change of heart and showed up
to fight the Karrigon. More than any of them, Rainier’s
the one that really stopped the invasion. TOMARSSUK: HE IS BOTH WISE AND LARGE VANGUARD: It appears so (and yes, I was about
to). He’s very passionate about his work and about other
cultures, and he appears to be a very able ambassador. His body
of work shows that he thinks outside the box and is open to the
kind of possibilities we all know exist. Every team needs a researcher
and historian. It sounds like he would be a natural at this. He’s
wielding an immense amount of power, but if you studied the news
footage as I did, you can clearly see his use of restraint and
his reluctance to fight. You can see him trying to reason with
Bruise at every step of the combat. He’s a thinker first,
a brawler second. ANVIL: And he does that cool lava thing. Which
is…cool. VANGUARD: I’m very impressed with him.
He strikes me as the cool head on a team, the one who can keep
things in perspective and guide them to thought before action.
Sort of an anti-Phantasm. PHANTASM: Your mother shaves her back. CHILL: lol NIGHTSHIFT: So he’s not big and rocky like
that all the time, then, Vanguard? VANGUARD: No. He transforms. Like Mark or Jack. NIGHTSHIFT: Is he single? CHILL: :P VANGUARD: It appears so. I know your next question,
and I’m not going to opine on his looks. TOMARSSUK: I TRANSFORM AS WELL. VANGUARD: Or Tommy. My apologies. ANVIL: Or Erin if she hasn’t had her morning
coffee. Erin smash!!! SECUNDUS: You mentioned the spirit that inhabits
him. Does it overtake him when he’s using his powers? Does
it have a personality? VANGUARD: It appears dormant. The spirit manifests
in the physical form it gives him. But I understand through Jack’s
discussions with the team that it does give him occasional cryptic
visions. Which could be helpful. I’d very much like Stephen
to spend some time with him and learn more about its nature. MIST: I’m sure he’d be happy to.
If Rainier agreed to it. ANVIL: Oh we’re caring if they agree now? VANGUARD: And finally, Seahawk. As Wally said,
he’s former law enforcement. Seattle PD. He’s from
a long family line of police officers, actually, going back to
England. It seems to be the family business. I studied his whole
career. He showed a lot of promise. Actually, here’s an
interesting bit of trivia for John, Jack and Sydney. There was
a night back in 1988 when you all and Phantashia needed to interrogate
some Kuklos members that were in police custody. The officers
there took a “snack break” to give you some time alone
with the suspects, as I recall you putting it. It turns out a
rookie cop in that group was Seahawk. PHANTASM: No kidding? I remember that. Small
world. CHILL: lol. that’s funny. 1988?! i was
17 years old! MIST: Keep your age to yourself, girlie! Grrrr… KNIGHTSABRE: :D DR. JACKAL: Yeah, actually, he told me that,
Robert. Funny how life swings back around at you. ANVIL: By the way Erin just got home and says
hi to everybody. KNIGHTSABRE: Hi, Erin! MIST: Hi, Erin TRIPWIRE: Hello, Erin! ARMATURE: Good evening, Erin CHILL: hi erin! ECLIPSE: Erin smash! Hee hee ANVIL: She says she promises not to peek over
my shoulder and learn any important Forte secrets. PHANTASM: She probably already knows that Vanguard’s
mother shaves her back. It’s common knowledge ECLIPSE: Ha! MIST: God. VANGUARD: Back on topic… He progressed
quickly and made detective early. He ended up in vice, mainly
in undercover work. Performance reviews and psych evaluations
suggest this work started to have an impact on him. This often
happens in undercover work. He started to become disenchanted.
He felt constrained by the law. He began having anger management
issues. He also started to become obsessed with his main assignment,
the Ribisi family. MIST: Oh, my God. I just made the connection
and I already see where this is going. VANGUARD: This obsession grew to its peak after
his former partner from his uniform days was apparently killed
by the Ribisis. No evidence was found and no charges filed. I
also surmise that his undercover partner was a balance for him,
as things grew worse for him when his partner left and joined
the FBI soon after. Seahawk was undercover on a Ribisi operation
one night when he was faced with a choice between blowing his
cover and saving the life of a street girl that Ribisi dealers
were about to test a drug on. He chose to save the girl and reveal
himself. He ended up shot and a months-long operation was destroyed.
One that involved the feds as well. VANGUARD: His actions turned his medical leave
into a suspension pending further investigation. And the Ribisis
came out of it without so much as a parking ticket. No one seemed
to care why he had done what he’d done. All they could see
were the man hours and dollars wasted because of it. Seahawk resigned
in disgust. His marriage had already started going bad. Quickly
after this, his wife left him and took their son. HAMMER: I really don’t think we need to
know all this, Vanguard. CINCOFLEX: I don’t see how his marriage
has anything to do with us. Please Robert. DR. JACKAL: Let’s just get to Tether, Robert. VANGUARD: Months later, he was approached by
billionaire Warren Tether. It appears Tether had heard about his
story. He offered Seahawk a position of head of corporate security
at the Tether Corporation headquarters in Seattle. Seahawk took
it. We assume there was some period of time there for Mr. Tether
to observe him and size him up, but at some point, he revealed
the real reason he’d hired him and introduced him to the
Seahawk project. It seems the armor had started out as a prototype
deep sea exploration suit, but apparently Tether decided he wanted
to make it into a combat suit and create his own super-hero instead.
Somewhere around four months after he was hired, Seahawk began
being spotted in the Seattle skies. VANGUARD: For those of you who followed the story,
the Ribisi family began having a lot of problems after that. Seahawk
was waging a quiet and private war against them. Being a former
cop, he surely knew all the legal ins and outs that exist between
supers and the law. He used them all perfectly. By April of last
year, charges were brought against all the heads of the family,
and the empire fell. Evidence that police and the D.A. couldn’t
get their hands on were carefully provided by Seahawk, and they
made full use of the wonderful super-hero loophole. MIST: I followed all that. And it all happened
because he was a cop and they killed his partner. Wow. ANVIL: Justice for all. HAMMER: By the way? It was around last spring
that Riptide was in Seattle and met and teamed up with Seahawk.
The two have kept in touch and have worked together a couple of
times. Riptide vouches for him. ELECTRO MAN: Thank you Matt. An outside opinion
is very helpful. ANVIL: And we actually trust Armor Security now.
My how times do change. CHILL: lol VANGUARD: He’s continued his heroing since
and has become more public. I mean before he became very public
a couple of weeks ago. He’s known on the streets. And he
patrols the coast and has done more than his share of rescues
in addition to stopping off-shore crime. ELECTRO MAN: Outside opinion number two? Captain
Compass has worked with him many times and has nothing but praise
for him as well. ANVIL: The King of the Kelp! The Don of the Dolphins!
The Champion of the Chum! TOMARSSUK: I TRUST CAPTAIN COMPASS. HE IS A GOOD
FRIEND. VANGUARD: And with all that being said? I do
have a couple of issues. LIGHTSEDGE: Uh oh KNIGHTSABRE: I knew this was going too smoothly. VANGUARD: I just feel they need to be addressed.
First, the anger management problems. This is something that came
up a lot in his later time on the force. There were incidents
of excessive force and verbal confrontations with fellow officers
and superiors. He was given mandatory counseling for it. It didn’t
seem to do a lot of good. Later counseling after his divorce did
seem to help, though we have no police evaluations to quantify
that as he was already off SPD by then. ECLIPSE: Any incidents spring up during his time
as Seahawk? Like a bunch of hospitalized thugs or something? VANGUARD: Nothing beyond the norm. Of course,
he’s always done most of his work in the shadows and at
night, so not all of it may have led to arrests. KNIGHTSABRE: Yes, because we’ve never had
anyone with anger management issues on THIS team before. PHANTASM: What? Do I have schmutz on my face? ANVIL: Ah…ah…ah…AH-CHELSEA!
Sniff LIGHTSEDGE: Gesundheit. ANVIL: Thank you. NIGHTSHIFT: Guys… CHILL: they do have a point. it’s not like
we ever had a personality test to join this team before. are we
going to judge new people by a different standard now? VANGUARD: Maybe we should. ELECTRO MAN: I don’t know. I see what Vanguard
is saying but I don’t see any evidence that Seahawk would
be a concern. He seems to have worked out his problems. Maybe
getting out of the undercover work did the trick. And his later
counseling wasn’t mandatory. He chose to confront his problem
on his own. I think that shows a willingness to change. MIST: And if I might also point out? Here was
a guy who was now outside the law and could do what he wanted,
and had a badass power suit to back him up. He had every reason
to want every Ribisi dead for what they did to his partner. But
you didn’t see a string of bodies floating in the Sound.
He used the law. And his freedom from it, of course. But he put
them all behind bars, not in pine boxes. That says something to
me. KNIGHTSABRE: I agree. VANGUARD: And to my next point. His connection
to Warren Tether and the Tether Corporation. And by association,
this whole foursome’s connection. ANVIL: Listen to my words. Every billionaire
out there is not Maxwell Ravenscroft! VANGUARD: That’s not what I’m saying.
Completely. I’m saying there’s an inherent danger
in any hero team being beholden to a corporation. We’ve
all seen that in the early days of Armor. Apologies, Matt. HAMMER: No, I was around for that, too, remember?
I know what you’re saying. There’s a big difference
now that Armor IS the corporation. VANGUARD: These new heroes have now been gifted
with both a base and a jet by Tether. And Seahawk with the armor.
This puts them in Tether’s debt. I’m not saying this
is necessarily anything insidious. I’m just suggesting that
it puts them in a position to compromise in Tether’s favor
if such a situation were to come up. DR. JACKAL: Yes, and we’re all Johnny Quest’s
puppets, Robert. I just had to pick up his dry cleaning this morning...
We’ve seen it happen both ways. Assistance from well-meaning
people that have a lot more money than your average hero is fairly
common in our business. VANGUARD: Though we were a team for some time,
on our own terms, before we started taking more than scientific
insight from him. He became our friend before he became our sometime
benefactor. He didn’t sponsor us, which is, is many ways,
what Tether has done with this new group. I’m just saying
that it’s something to be careful of and to consider. If
we carried this idea of inclusion through to its end, with the
new heroes being part of Forte, would Tether then have access
to our database through his own base’s computer? Would we
know he’s not listening in to our radio broadcasts and accessing
our email? Or getting video feeds right from the Seahawk armor? CHILL: i have a feeling you’d know vanguard VANGUARD: True, but you see my point. Our Forte
is autonomous. Would their group feel free to investigate the
Tether Corporation if they suspected something questionable was
happening behind its doors? LIGHTSEDGE: I like to think that they would.
None of them strike me as the type to be on a leash from everything
we’ve heard. Why wouldn’t they, if they had reason
to suspect something? SECUNDUS: Do you have reason to suspect something,
Robert? VANGUARD: I do. ANVIL: Here we go. VANGUARD: I’ve done extensive research
into the Tether Corporation since this all began. There are things
there that trouble me. ANVIL: He is not Ravenscroft!! Obsess much? By
the way that might be the most rhetorical question I’ve
ever spoken in my life. VANGUARD: Warren Tether is one of the richest
men in the world, and his corporation is, of course, enormous.
There’s a lot of money going a lot of different places.
Tracking all that money is a near impossible task, but there are
ways, and there are patterns to be found. It’s not unusual
for monies to change hands several times and move through several
different subsidiaries or accounts. But there are some trails
here that don’t end where they’re supposed to, or
don’t seem to end at all. Large amounts of monies have a
habit of ending up in an information void with Tether. LIGHTSEDGE: Which isn’t unusual, Vanguard,
especially with a worldwide and highly diverse corporation like
his. There are a million different expenditures you’d never
think of that go on, and a lot of times, in an organization that
size, one hand doesn’t know what the other one is doing. KNIGHTSABRE: He’s also one of the world’s
best-known philanthropists. His money goes a lot of places besides
business. VANGUARD: I’m just troubled by what I see
as creative and misleading accounting. And the fact that his company
does so many things in secret. ANVIL: Coming to theaters this summer. “The
Black Kettle”. Starring Vanguard as The Pot. VANGUARD: The special projects division for one
thing. The deep sea project that the Mariner and the Seahawk armor
were part of. Hidden labs, unknown technologies, clandestine operations.
Most of his security force is former law enforcement, including
CIA and UNCLE in some cases. It seems a bit much for corporate
concerns. LIGHTSEDGE: Again, not as unusual as you’d
think in the business world. There’s a lot of money involved
and a lot to protect. There’s a lot of corporate espionage
going on. I know, I’ve dealt with it on occasion. And he
does do some military contracting. VANGUARD: There’s more. I don’t like
a couple of the occasions where some of the questionable transactions
I mentioned happened. Does anyone remember the situation with
the Dutch nationals being “detained” in Iran back
in 1994? PHANTASM: Of course. ARMATURE: I remember the story well. VANGUARD: Then you’ll also remember that
diplomatic concerns had all but frozen any chance at western intervention.
The U.N. and the U.S. were busy protesting and trying to start
talks, and able to do little else, while there was talk of these
scientists being tried as spies and executed. Until that mystery
strike team infiltrated, broke them out, delivered them across
the border and disappeared. DR. JACKAL: Which everyone, including Iran, assumed
was either a CIA or SHIELD black ops operation. PHANTASM: It wasn’t. MIST: It wasn’t. TRIPWIRE: What does that have to do with Tether? VANGUARD: Maybe nothing, but there were some
mysterious transactions happening near that time that resulted
in cash outlays in various parts of the world. Which could be
interpreted as the hiring and financing of a mercenary strike
team for the purposes of enacting a rescue that was legally and
diplomatically impossible at the time for any government to create. HAMMER: That’s a bigger stretch than…
I’m working on a Miranda joke but the punchline’s
not quite there. I’ll try to get back to you on that. PHANTASM: Anything definite Vanguard? Airline
tickets booked out of those regions by known mercs? Payments that
can be traced through channels to known arms brokers? VANGUARD: Nothing yet. The trail is nicely covered.
A little too nicely. KNIGHTSABRE: Which presupposes that there is
a trail. No offense, Robert, but that’s kind of a self-fulfilling
argument. The fact that there is no evidence proves that the evidence
must have been hidden? VANGUARD: I admit, it’s speculation. But
again, I look for patterns. Angola, 1992. The cease-fire of 1991
fell apart with the election scandal a year later, and the civil
war was back on. Aside from the collateral deaths, hundreds of
thousands were left homeless and displaced. And human rights organizations
started blowing the whistle on the MPLA using their vast offshore
oil revenues to benefit the elite instead of channeling the funds
to social services and aid as they were claiming. Soon after an
international watch group publicized their evidence, a series
of coordinated bombings all but crippled oil production, while
at the same time, homes of various party ministers and the home
of President dos Santos himself were bombed. As were incidentals
like a very large pleasure boat owned by dos Santos. VANGUARD: This was attributed to the opposition
force, UNITA, and while UNITA’s leader, Jonas Savimbi, didn’t
officially take credit for the bombings, he didn’t fully
deny the idea either. Frankly, this operation was well above UNITA’s
capabilities and ambition. But the world assumed it was true,
UNITA got bragging rights, and the MPLA’s revenue was severely
crippled. All this and the accusations of misuse of the revenue
opened the door wide to outside relief organizations, with the
MPLA needing to save face. And a large percentage of the overall
aid came from three main organizations, all of whom count the
Tether Corporation as their major backer. Aid flooded in, and
countless thousands of the needy had food, shelter, medical aid
and education. The civil war still goes on today, but that act
set the stage for the relief foundation that has been in place
ever since. ARMATURE: I was in Angola last month. Wonderful
things are being done for the children in the midst of that conflict.
R.I.S.E. is certainly the biggest relief organization currently
bringing aid. Is that one of Tether’s sponsored groups? VANGUARD: It is. DR. JACKAL: He sponsors a lot of groups. We all
know that. If I were your editor, Robert, I’d need a lot
more meat on the bone before any of that ever saw print. PHANTASM: Though I never thought Savimbi had
the sack or the wherewithal for that bombing run either. ARMATURE: Nor did I, truth be told. And it also
made no sense for his forces to blow up the homes of the president
and key ministers at times when neither them nor their families
were home. MIST: So your supposition is that Tether masterminded
the bombings to punish the government and its leaders for not
taking care of their people, and in turn forced them to allow
him and others to come in and take care of the people? VANGUARD: It would match with his world-view.
And his politics. LIGHTSEDGE: Hate to say it, but if that is the
case, he’s starting to sound like my kind of guy. ELECTRO MAN: And it’s still circumstantial
Robert. Still a stretch. Like Matt said. VANGUARD: Patterns, Wally. And a gut instinct.
I like to think that my gut instincts are usually pretty on the
money. CHILL: :X VANGUARD: Yes, Kyra. That did end up being just
an orphanage after all. I said usually. NIGHTSHIFT: That was my favorite Angel Flight
New York Post front page ever. “Freeze, Oliver!” VANGUARD: And if you want speculation, this is
pure speculation. We all know that Tether is a holocaust survivor.
That he lost his parents during it. Remember the 1978 trial at
the Hague of Henrich Kiel? How a purported war criminal somehow
beat the trial and walked, and retired in Argentina? And disappeared
soon after, never to be seen again? Kiel was allegedly in charge
of the very camp where Tether and his parents were held. HAMMER: Are we getting to the part where he shot
Kennedy yet? MIST: I’m sorry, Robert, but you’re
losing me, too. VANGUARD: I understand. I’m just presenting
what I’ve found and what I’ve intuited to make sure
we have all sides of the issue. No, I can’t prove anything.
Yet. But it’s something I’m keeping an eye on and
looking into. And as it pertains to the question of these new
heroes, my point is that they have a relationship with and obligations
to a man with a great deal of secrets, who may—may—be
using his vast resources to circumvent the law and bring justice
to those he feels have been robbed of it. So much so that he’s
apparently decided to create his own super-hero now. A super-hero
that we’re considering bringing into the fold whose loyalties
may be divided. DR. JACKAL: And we did want to hear all sides
of this, Robert, so we appreciate the work and the opinions. ANVIL: Even the crazy ones. VANGUARD: And a last thought. Just something
to consider. All four of these heroes seem to be exactly what
we would approve of. Locals, backgrounds of tragedy in most cases
with characters strong enough to overcome them, evidence of courage
and heroism viewed by the whole world via television, and likeable
as individuals. One might think they’re almost too perfect.
As if they were designed for us to like and accept. ANVIL: So let me just ask you this question then
Vanguard to address that point. Do you think it’s likely
that a crazy rich guy with some kind of agenda somehow convinced
an extra-dimensional ancient race to come back and attack Seattle
just so he could get his puppet heroes (possible light constructs)
with their perfectly faked backgrounds to repel the invasion and
win our confidence on the chance that we’d come up with
the idea to let them use our name just so he could use them to
infiltrate and manipulate a hero team that’s been defunct
for five years? VANGUARD: Possible, but not likely. ANVIL: Okay then we’re on the same page.
Good. We can meet at “not likely”. CINCOFLEX: My head hurts now. ECLIPSE: And I have to pee again. SECUNDUS: For the record, I understand Vanguard’s
point. At its base. A hero, or a team, answering to an outside
body could possibly make decisions differently than those without
such a circumstance. LIGHTSEDGE: Though I’m still not convinced
they would be answering in any way. I’ve given a lot of
money over the years to cancer centers. Never once have I tried
to tell them which patients to treat. VANGUARD: But if your son or daughter had cancer,
and one of these centers had what they needed, wouldn’t
you be inclined to use your influence to move your loved one to
the head of the line? Would you not think you were due this consideration
based on your vast past contributions? LIGHTSEDGE: Interesting point. DR. JACKAL: Food for thought. Thank you, Robert.
Any other thoughts or concerns or questions? MIST: I suppose the topic of experience should
be brought up. I mean, they’re definitely off to a great
start. But they are still very new. Two of them very VERY new.
Would there be concern for anyone about maybe waiting until they
got more experience, or maybe even looking into training them
ourselves? ANVIL: You mean should those of us who were sitting
on our asses watching Seinfeld reruns while Seattle was being
invaded tell the heroes that saved it that we want to teach them
how to do their jobs? MIST: That’s another way to put it… CHILL: that kind of puts me back at that different
standard thing again sydney. we never had a formal training program
on the old team. at any point did we? VANGUARD: Which puts me back to maybe we should. MIST: No, but we did kind of have on-the-job
mentoring. After the first four of us, I mean. There was always
at least one experienced member on the team when anyone new showed
up, someone who could kind of show them the ropes. These four
are starting off with just themselves. ELECTRO MAN: I would submit that Seahawk has
quite a bit of experience. And age aside Max isn't a complete
rookie either. I’m sure they’d fulfill that role for
Rainier and Tinker. VANGUARD: But collectively we do have a great
deal more experience. Which we could pass on to them. I think
it would benefit them a great deal. KNIGHTSABRE: People. All respect, Sydney. And
Robert. Are you listening to what we’re sounding like here?
I’m thinking about when Jack said “maybe this is just
ego” earlier. Guys, we’re not recruiting. And this
isn’t some group of teenagers with powers looking for guidance.
They are adults. They are heroes. And they have walked right through
one big-ass crucible and come out shining on the other side. They’ve
been tested and passed. But more to the point, they ARE a team
already. They don’t need our approval. They’re doing
it anyway. They don’t need our interference. God knows based
on our own track record from time to time they may be better off
WITHOUT our “mentoring”. ANVIL: If you’re talking about me and Erin’s
monkey I had valid reasons to think he was a super-villain. And
the monkey and I have made our peace since. CINCOFLEX: Monkeys and sea lions. No animal is
safe from this team. Why has PETA never bombed our base? KNIGHTSABRE: We’ve made a lot of mistakes.
Thank you for the sea lion reminder, Miranda. That, as we all
know, was mine. They’re going to make theirs, too. They
have a right to. Does anyone else feel silly sitting here all
high and mighty talking about their future when more than half
of us aren’t even in the game anymore? ANVIL: I do. CHILL: i’m still in it and i do. KNIGHTSABRE: Look at these guys and what they’ve
done. We all got to see them in action. And they had to rescue
four of us in the process. Were any of us as good as they’ve
proven to be when we first started? ANVIL: Anyone remember me as “Aaron the
Super-Hero”? NIGHTSHIFT: Remember my first villain fight when
I tried to grab an UNCLE agent’s gun because I got so nervous
I forgot I had super-powers? CHILL: lol SECUNDUS: I joined an illegal martial tournament
and found out in the middle of it that it was to the death and
had to escape. ARMATURE: I thought Ravenscroft was a good man. DR. JACKAL: I made that album… CINCOFLEX: We could have a whole separate chat
just on Jack. LIGHTSEDGE: The very first thing I did with Forte
was get beaten, captured, and thrown back through time. ANVIL: Since Chelsea’s not here let’s
pretend that was her fault. TOMARSSUK: IT WAS NOT HER FAULT. WE WERE ALL
DEFEATED. ANVIL: Work with me Tommy! MIST: Shall I bring up S.M.A.S.H. before John
does? PHANTASM: Damnit. I didn’t type fast enough. KNIGHTSABRE: None of us knew what we were doing.
But we had the chance to learn and grow. I’m sorry, Sydney,
I’m not trying to invalidate your point, hon. I just feel
strongly about this. You went from the SMASH hit list to a commander
in UNCLE. Mark went from “Aaron the Super-Hero” to
team leader. Harry finally realized she had super-powers. Haha.
I think the new guys look like they’re far ahead of most
of us when we started out. I don’t think they need us looking
over their shoulder. Those streets out there are theirs already.
Not ours anymore. They’re already doing the job and doing
it well, and Seattle has already accepted them with open arms.
We’re just talking about giving them the name here. DR. JACKAL: I have to agree. ANVIL: Of course he has to agree. It’s
his wife. Either that or it’s a good couple of months of
“No time for love Dr. Jackal”. ECLIPSE: Ha! MIST: No offense taken, Brina. I definitely get
your point. I’m just thinking like an UNCLE commander here. ELECTRO MAN: Me I think we’d be most useful
to them as a resource for guidance and information. When they
needed it. And when they asked for it. Our experience would be
very valuable to them. But I don’t think we have to impose
it on them. ARMATURE: Your experience would of course be
more valuable to them than any of ours, Wally. ECLIPSE: Yeah let’s not forget how silly
we must sound to Wally going on about all our vast “experience”.
Ha. ELECTRO MAN: Not at all Megan. Though I have
seen many a hero’s career start and grow in my years. And
from my experience all the greats just jump in and start doing
it and learn as they go. That includes all of you. There’s
no greater teacher than making your own mistakes and growing from
them. TRIPWIRE: I agree. It’s the same in circus
work. No one can tell you how to time your grab when the trapeze
swings your way. You have to learn. And hopefully have a net beneath
you as you learn! VANGUARD: Yes, but the problem is, we don’t
always have a net out there. ANVIL: Yeah but most of us bounce pretty good.
Except Jack. He just makes a big hole. PHANTASM: Jack IS a big hole. DR. JACKAL: On that note…any other questions
or major areas of concern, or should we move toward seeing where
a vote stands? DR. JACKAL: Guess that’s a no on questions.
Okay. Thank you, everyone, for all the thoughts on this. So the
question before us is whether or not these four new Seattle heroes
should be offered the Forte name to carry on the legacy. Which
would, in turn, make them a part of Forte, which would necessitate
us getting to know them a lot better. We would just see how and
where it goes. Oh, and we would also need to realize that they
may not even WANT the name. So this is just a vote to make the
offer. DR. JACKAL: So, I think we’re ready to
vote. I figured we’d just do this alphabetically, by hero
name, to keep it simple. PHANTASM: Damn. I knew I should have named myself
The Aardvark. DR. JACKAL: Which would start us off with Anvil. ANVIL: Or “Aaron the Super-Hero”
which would make me first either way. CHILL: lol MIST: Funny guy. ANVIL: Umm… I guess it’s kind of
obvious from my comments which way I’m going. I like these
guys. They remind me of pretty much all of us when we started.
They’ve started off really strong and I think they have
what it takes. And I agree with Jack that Seattle needs a Forte.
I vote yes. DR. JACKAL: Armature? ARMATURE: Forte welcomed me and gave me a chance
when I was unproven. And my life was enriched and changed forever
because of it. And I made friends as close as family that will
be with me for the rest of my days. I believe these four deserve
the same chance to be a part of Forte. My vote is yes. DR. JACKAL: Chill? CHILL: i feel weird voting when i’m on
another team now. lol. MIST: You’re always on this team, Kyra.
Don’t you ever forget it. DR. JACKAL: And besides. This team has a cooler
base… CHILL: i say yes. i know that all of us will
always have forte but seattle needs a forte out there. not just
in chat rooms. i like these heroes. And it's time for some new
people anyway! I say yes. DR. JACKAL: Cincoflex? CINCOFLEX: So formal Jack! You know how I feel.
They saved our butts! They’re wonderful people and great
heroes. I would be proud to call them Forte. Yes. DR. JACKAL: Oh, I guess that makes me next on
this list, doesn’t it? MIST: He can spell! His first book had me wondering… ANVIL: Your vote? Dr. Jackal? DR. JACKAL: Yes. I’ve seen them in action,
they saved me and my daughter and a couple of my best friends,
and they saved a city that I’m pretty darned fond of. They’ve
impressed the Hell out of me. And I think you’re all going
to like them just as much as I do once you get to meet them. And
I think Seattle’s already made the decision anyway. On the
street, they’re already calling these guys “Forte
2000”. ANVIL: Sounds like something you buy off an infomercial
that gets out stains on tile and countertops… DR. JACKAL: I think we need the boost in our
public image, guys. And I want the Forte tradition to carry on.
Since none of us are probably planning to either come out of retirement
and/or move back to Seattle anytime soon, I think this is the
best way to do it. Plus they’re all from Seattle, too, so
they already love the city. Well, now the city loves them back.
Let’s make it official and call them Forte. DR. JACKAL: Eclipse? ECLIPSE: I think it’s a great idea. They
seem great. And I want a Forte on the streets too! Let’s
give some new guys a chance. We were all once new guys too. Yes
for me. DR. JACKAL: Electro Man? ELECTRO MAN: Well now I know I wasn’t on
Forte for very long and I came in at kind of the end. So most
of you have more say about it than I do. But my chairmanship of
the Forte Foundation gives me control over your money so I guess
you’d better listen to what I say or it's no Forte check
on the first of the month. Ha ha. CHILL: lol ANVIL: Extree extree! Former Protector stoops
to financial blackmail! Read all about it! TOMARSSUK: YOU ARE AS MUCH A PART OF FORTE AS
ANY OF US WALLY. MIST: Speaking as someone who was in Forte from
(almost) the beginning? Many of us consider you the heart and
soul of Forte, Wally. So let’s have no such talk again,
mister! ELECTRO MAN: Okay okay. Thank you folks. I think
I already made my opinion clear. These are good people. I’m
proud of all of them and I’m happy to call them friends
already. I think it would honor us of they took the name Forte
and came into the fold. Let’s offer it to them and let them
show us what a wise choice we made. My vote is yes. DR. JACKAL: Hammer? HAMMER: Got to say yes. Which might just be out
of guilt for learning more about them than they probably ever
wanted us to know. No, seriously, I think they sound perfect for
a new Forte lineup. And we’re long overdue for one. A big
yes. ANVIL: Besides. Do we really want Armor ending
up as the premier west coast hero team? Come on! HAMMER: “America’s Heroes. Your Heroes.
Armor Security” ™. Read the billboards and weep, pal. DR. JACKAL: Knightsabre? KNIGHTSABRE: Why, thank you, Dr. Jackal. Yes.
I won’t repeat all the stuff I already said, so I’ll
just leave it at yes. DR. JACKAL: She’s so decisive. That’s
such a huge turn-on for me… ECLIPSE: Hey save that for private chat you two.
Hee hee DR. JACKAL: Lightsedge? LIGHTSEDGE: Obviously, with where my life has
gone, I’m a big believer in training. But I always teach
my students that we don’t train to do, we do to train. These
four sound like they have their act together. Let’s give
them a boost with the Forte name and show the world we’re
behind them. And let them create a legend all their own. Yes.
And for God’s sake, give them some damn radios. ANVIL: Dude. Let it go. LIGHTSEDGE: Let me add that I appreciate Vanguard
keeping an eye on the big picture for us and giving us the whole
spectrum of facts. We needed to hear all sides. DR. JACKAL: Mist? MIST: I can’t help but think of myself,
Jack, John and Tasha, obviously. We started this thing together.
And it got bigger than all of us. Forte isn’t a team, it’s
an ideal. It’s one that deserves to live on. I’m glad
that this opportunity has come up. I like how much they remind
me of us at the start. I’m almost envious of what’s
ahead of them. Let’s do what we can to help them along.
I think we’re going to be happy that we did. Yes. DR. JACKAL: Nightshift? NIGHTSHIFT: Um, I was going to kind of start
out like Wally did, but I don’t want Sydney smacking me
down for it, so I’ll skip the self-esteem issues and accept
my Fortehood. Yeah, the more the merrier. I don’t see any
reason not to. They sound great. Let’s give ‘em decoder
rings and teach them the secret handshake and see what they can
do. TOMARSSUK: WE HAVE A SECRET HANDSHAKE? ANVIL: It doesn’t work well with paws so
we never thought to teach you Tommy. I’ll hook you up with
it next time you’re in town. ECLIPSE: No we don’t have one Tommy. She
was kidding. And Mark was being dumb. ANVIL: That wasn’t me. That was Aaron the
Super-hero. He’s such a wiseass. NIGHTSHIFT: Oh, I’m sorry. And Moondancer
votes yes as well. She said they seem pretty cool and if everyone
else is okay with it, then she is too. DR. JACKAL: Phantasm? PHANTASM: Let me say that Vanguard is a delusional
paranoid. I don’t mean about this. I mean in general. They
seem all right. I like their style. And their guts. And I’m
not putting the damn costume back on again so somebody has to
do it. **** it. Let’s try some new blood. But let’s
let Vanguard check out Tether anyway. Couldn’t hurt. DR. JACKAL: That sounds like a yes. Secundus? SECUNDUS: I vote yes. My time with Forte meant
a great deal to me. I wish them the same good fortune. And the
same friendships. Let there be a new Forte. DR. JACKAL: Tomarssuk? TOMARSSUK: YES. THEY SEEM VERY HEROIC AND KIND.
I LOOK FORWARD TO MEETING THEM AND MAKING FRIENDS WITH THEM ALL.
THEY SHOULD BE IN FORTE. DR. JACKAL: Tripwire? TRIPWIRE: I agree with Harry. The more the merrier!
Let the Forte family grow! I see only good things coming from
this. My vote is yes. DR. JACKAL: And, finally, Vanguard. VANGUARD: I have my concerns about Tether, but
we covered that. And if this happens, as it appears it will, I’d
like to be able to get a look at Seahawk’s armor and make
sure there’s no involuntary surveillance going on. I still
feel they could benefit from some training. But if we feel, as
a whole, that this would be insulting or patronizing to them,
I suppose it’s not an absolute necessity. I would of course
like to offer them advice, and any assistance they might need
in getting started. And I think they’d need to be closely
monitored at the start, for obvious security reasons. And there
would need to be several levels of earned trust before we consider
giving them full or even partial access to our systems and databases. KNIGHTSABRE: Is there a vote buried in there
somewhere? VANGUARD: Conditionally, then, I would agree
that they seem good candidates to be included in Forte. Above
concerns aside, they all seem very capable and competent, and
well-suited for the work. Certainly more so than Aaron the Super-Hero,
but we let him in, after all. CHILL: lol ANVIL: Isn’t it your mother’s birthday
soon? I was thinking of getting her that new Mach III Turbo razor
with the three blades and the swivel head. Think she’d like
that? DR. JACKAL: Wow. I think it’s actually
unanimous. Sounds like we might have some new Forte people, folks. CINCOFLEX: Yahoo! CHILL: yay! :D ELECTRO MAN: I think we just experienced a historic
moment people. This is very exciting. KNIGHTSABRE: Was the historic moment letting
new heroes in or us all agreeing on something, Wally? Haha. ELECTRO MAN: Ha ha. I think a measure of each
Sabrina ARMATURE: So what would the next step be? DR. JACKAL: Well, I was thinking we’d invite
them for an official sit-down to, first of all, thank them for
everything they did for us. We’d probably have that at the
museum after-hours, if that’s good with you, Wally. I agree
with Vanguard in that it’s probably a bit early to draw
them a map to the secret base. ELECTRO MAN: That sounds like a good plan Jack.
I’ll even have my girl Stacy get some refreshments put together. DR. JACKAL: And then I figure we can make the
offer to them and see how they feel about it. Now, as for who
would be at this meeting, I figured those of us in town, of course.
Me, Miranda and Wally. Would love to have the lovely and wise
Sabrina there, but we’d probably better hold off on throwing
out secret identities for a bit as well. KNIGHTSABRE: I personally hope it’s not
for very long. I’m looking forward to meeting them all myself.
And thank you for the appropriate marital ass-kissing, Jack. Good
boy. I trained you well. ECLIPSE: Ha DR. JACKAL: But we’d of course like to
include anyone else who wants to be a part of that. I was thinking
I’d have Wally contact them and see if Friday night works
for them. How about any of you? I’d like to get some representation
from different Forte eras. Can anyone make it to Seattle Friday
night? VANGUARD: As we already discussed in advance,
I plan to be there. ANVIL: I’m all out of smart-ass. No comment.
And actually, I think I’d like to meet these guys myself.
I think I could work it out for Friday night. Mind if I bring
the missus along and make it a weekend trip? KNIGHTSABRE: That would be great! Love to see
her. CINCOFLEX: Fantastic! Dinner for all at our house!
Robert can you bring Bethany? VANGUARD: That was my plan. DR. JACKAL: And tell Erin to leave her monkey
at home. KNIGHTSABRE: No, she can bring her monkey. Just
have her leave Nick at home. CHILL: lol ANVIL: And a rim shot for Sabrina. KNIGHTSABRE: Thank you. Take my husband. Please. ANVIL: Are you guys staying at the safehouse
Vanguard? VANGUARD: Yes. ANVIL: Okay we’re at the base then. Anyone
else coming? MIST: I’ll make it, guys. But I’ll
have to head back the next day. Too much work going on. Sorry. CINCOFLEX: Aw. No Stephen then? MIST: No, not this time. We’ll be back
for a visit soon, though. Want to join me, Kyle? SECUNDUS: I have long stakeout already planned
in Chinatown. But thank you for the offer, Sydney. DR. JACKAL: Great, Syd. And understood, Kyle.
Anyone else? HAMMER: I’m in the same ain’t-got-no-powers-so-can’t-fit-into-the-costume-anymore
place as Sabrina. But I’m sure you guys will do fine. CHILL: i’ve got a fundraiser this weekend
in Manhattan or i’d be there. ECLIPSE: Chris and I have plans. Unless he has
to run off to another galaxy at the last minute. Ha. ARMATURE: My duties here have me too busy, but
it sounds like the group you have together already will do a fine
job speaking for us all. LIGHTSEDGE: Ditto for me. We vote for you guys.
I’ll be back up in the mountains by then. TOMARSSUK: I WILL BE IN CANADA VISITING WITH
VECTOR. WE HAVE TICKETS FOR A HOCKEY GAME. BUT I WILL VISIT AND
MEET THE NEW HEROES SOON. PHANTASM: Yeah sorry I’m a little busy
running a ******* SHIELD division. Otherwise I’d just pop
right in. You guys do it. Just let me know if they turn it down
and I’ll have a good long laugh that we wasted all this
time talking about it. Anywhere close to here on that hockey game
Tommy? TOMARSSUK: NO WE WILL BE IN VICTORIA COLONEL
CLAYTON. PHANTASM: Well next time you’re on this
side give us a call all right? TOMARSSUK: I WILL. THANK YOU. TRIPWIRE: The circus waits for no man. And the
show must go on. Best of luck with it, my friends! Post the end
result on the message board if you would, Jack. DR. JACKAL: Good idea. Thanks, Gregor. Sounds
like we have a delegation. So once we get that done, we’ll
talk about where things go from there. HAMMER: Well, since we’re all decided,
I’m afraid I’m going to have to go, folks. Got a wife
at home slaving over a hot restaurant delivery menu waiting for
me. DR. JACKAL: Yeah, so much for keeping it short.
Sorry, we tried. Heh. Thanks for being here, Matt. HAMMER: My pleasure. And great chatting with
everyone. CINCOFLEX: Bye Matt! ECLIPSE: Great chatting with you too Matt! Get
me a Leo autograph!!! ARMATURE: Tell Lisa I said hello, Matt, and it
was a pleasure talking with you. KNIGHTSABRE: San Juan Islands, Matt! Make it
happen! HAMMER: I’ll work on it, Sabrina. Promise. TRIPWIRE: Happy Armoring, Matt! TOMARSSUK: TELL MY ARMOR FRIENDS THAT I SAID
HELLO MATT AND GOOD NIGHT. PHANTASM: Get back to your hos Matt. Don’t
leave the office without ordering that new case of hairspray for
em. MIST: Nighty night, babe. Call me. ELECTRO MAN: Thank you Matt. And a good night
to you. LIGHTSEDGE: Until next time, Matt. NIGHTSHIFT: Later, ya big Ham. VANGUARD: I’ll see you when I’m out
there next month, Matt. ANVIL: Night Matt. Oh and tell Clark and Tracker
their Paragon buddies told me to tell them hi. HAMMER: I’ll see what I can do, Meg. Good
night, all.
**** HAMMER has left chat room **** ECLIPSE: Well it’s late here guys so I’d
better go too. I have to get up early and be nauseous tomorrow.
Ha. This was fun! Let’s do it again soon! MIST: Throw down with those saltines, Meggy.
We’ll see you in a couple of weeks! SECUNDUS: Yes, I’m looking forward to it.
I’ll coordinate with Sydney on our schedule for your visit.
Good night. DR. JACKAL: Thanks for staying up, Meg. We’ll
see you soon. KNIGHTSABRE: Bye, Meg. CINCOFLEX: Good night Meggy! CHILL: i’ll call you tomorrow meg. tell
chris good night. TOMARSSUK: GOOD NIGHT MEGAN PHANTASM: See ya kid TRIPWIRE: Congratulations again, Meg! ARMATURE: I look forward to seeing you soon,
Megan. VANGUARD: I’ll come look at that washing
machine about 10:00, Meg. ELECTRO MAN: Sweet dreams Megan ANVIL: Stop Vanguard if he wants to add a turbo
cycle to it Meg. Good night. NIGHTSHIFT: Later Megs! LIGHTSEDGE: Be good, Meg. ECLIPSE: Night all!!!
**** ECLIPSE has left chat room **** CHILL: i’d better go too. and i promised
bethany i’d make vanguard leave when i did. lol. this was
fun guys! and i’m very excited to find out what happens!
we made a good choice. :D VANGUARD: I suppose that’s my cue as well,
then. I assume we’re done, Jack? DR. JACKAL: Yeah, I think so. I’ll call
you about Friday, Robert. We’ll get it all planned out.
Thanks again. And thank you, too, for staying up late with us,
Kyra. Get home and get some sleep! CINCOFLEX: Good night Kyra and Robert! I’ll
see you Friday Robert. TOMARSSUK: GOOD NIGHT VANGUARD AND KYRA. SAY
HELLO TO ALL THE ANGELS FOR ME KNIGHTSABRE: Night, guys. Thanks. See you Friday,
Robert. MIST: See one of you Friday, and hope to see
the other one soon! Bye, bye, New Yorkers. TRIPWIRE: Good night, my friends. Best of everything. ARMATURE: Good night, Robert and Kyra. I miss
you both. ELECTRO MAN: Until Friday Robert. And don’t
be a stranger Kyra! Hurry back west! NIGHTSHIFT: Bye bye youse guys. LIGHTSEDGE: Be safe, you two. Watch out for muggers.
And Yankees. PHANTASM: Take care Kyra. Vanguard tell your
mother to think about that wax treatment. Everybody’s doing
it. And it saves time and those annoying nicks and cuts. VANGUARD: I will. Thank you, John. Good luck
with that forthcoming hip replacement surgery. And the dentures.
And your shuffleboard tournament. ANVIL: Can’t believe you got through all
that without a Viagra joke. See you this weekend Robert. Stay
cool Kyra! SECUNDUS: A pleasant rest of the week to you
both. CHILL: love you all! come visit us soon! good
night! :* VANGUARD: Good night, everyone.
**** CHILL has left chat room ****
**** VANGUARD has left chat room **** MIST: Well, I’d better get back to my boys,
and get one of my boys started cooking dinner. Which means you,
Kyle, had better sign off and get your butt over here! SECUNDUS: Consider me on my way. Shall I bring
bread? MIST: We’ve got it covered, Kyle. Thanks.
Just bring you. SECUNDUS: Fair enough. Good night, everyone.
Come visit San Francisco soon. MIST: See some of you Friday. Everyone else,
listen to what Kyle said! The welcome mat’s always out.
Night! KNIGHTSABRE: Night, guys. Call when you’re
ready for a teleport Friday, Syd. DR. JACKAL: See you Friday, Syd. Later, Kyle. NIGHTSHIFT: Be careful out there, Kyle. See you,
Miss Mist. ELECTRO MAN: Good night to you both. TRIPWIRE: And if I come, I will be sure to wear
flowers in my hair! Good night! PHANTASM: What the ****? KNIGHTSABRE: The song, John. PHANTASM: Oh yeah. He had me worried there for
a minute. CINCOFLEX: Good night San Franciscans! Peace
and love! ARMATURE: Good night, Kyle. Good night, Sydney. TOMARSSUK: GOOD NIGHT KYLE AND SYDNEY PHANTASM: See ya Kyle. Syd tell Ellen I said
hello next time you see her. LIGHTSEDGE: See you both soon, I hope. ANVIL: You still owe us a visit Kyle! See you
Friday Syd.
**** MIST has left chat room ****
**** SECUNDUS has left chat room **** PHANTASM: Guess I’d better hit that exit
sign too. Terrorists and spies and all that in the morning. Let
me know what happens on Friday. Later gang. NIGHTSHIFT: I’ve gotta run, too. It was
great rapping with you guys. I’ll check the message board
Friday. Night, John. Night everybody. LIGHTSEDGE: And I’d better check on the
students and make sure none of them strayed from the path and
ended up with any nasty hangovers. This was great, guys. Thanks.
Let me know what happens with the rookies. We’re out of
here tomorrow morning, but I’ll be available by radio. Have
a great week. KNIGHTSABRE: Thank you all for making it. Good
night, John and Harry, and good morning, Jeremy! ELECTRO MAN: A pleasure. All of you. Don’t
be strangers. DR. JACKAL: Stay warm, Jeremy. You, too, Harry.
I’ve been in Chicago in February! Call me about that separatist
thing, John. We’ll talk. And give the kids a hug for us.
And Jeanette, whenever she’s back in-country. TRIPWIRE: Always wonderful talking with you all.
Be well! CINCOFLEX: Bye guys! Love you! ANVIL: Drop by soon Harry. Come home soon Jeremy.
Lay off the back bacon John. ARMATURE: May we all be together again soon.
**** NIGHTSHIFT has left chat room ****
**** PHANTASM has left chat room ****
**** LIGHTSEDGE has left chat room **** ARMATURE: And myself, I have two meetings, three
schools to visit, and a television interview ahead. I should prepare
for my day. But it was a treat meeting with everyone. I’m
very excited about the future of Forte and look forward to see
where it goes. Please have a wonderful week, one and all. ELECTRO MAN: And you do the same Akim. Can’t
wait to see you at the museum in the spring. Thank you again for
that. And for being here tonight. Or this morning. Haha. ANVIL: Technically that’s **tomorrow**
morning Wally. Great having you here Akim. Even this way. We’ll
do a video chat when I’m back from Seattle. Erin’s
looking forward to talking to you. DR. JACKAL: Thanks, Akim. I know you’re
busy, so you being here means a lot. Keep in touch! KNIGHTSABRE: Have a great day, Akim. And thank
you. TRIPWIRE: Continued good luck with your endeavors
there, Akim. You’re doing wonderful things. Let’s
meet up soon! CINCOFLEX: Don’t work too hard Akim! Work
in some play time! Good luck with all of it! ARMATURE: Until next time, my friends.
**** ARMATURE has left chat room **** TRIPWIRE: And the streets of Vienna call to me.
I have a press promotion for the circus later this morning and
several public appearances. And I have plans to do some patrolling
of the city for crime later tonight so I want to get an overview
of my route and make plans. So I must say good-bye. But I thank
you again for including me in this historic discussion, and for
the chance to speak with my old friends again. ANVIL: Inclusion was never a question Gregor.
How many people do we have to remind on this team that they’re
actually a part of this team? KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. Too true. ELECTRO MAN: It was a pleasure Gregor and good
luck with the circus and with your heroing. We’re very proud
of what you’re doing for the Forte name in Europe. DR. JACKAL: Agreed. Thanks, Gregor, I hope we’re
going to see you in the States again soon. Hopefully for a happy
reason for a change. CINCOFLEX: Enjoy Vienna Gregor! I’ve had
many wonderful times there! Come visit us soon! ANVIL: Stay out of trouble Gregor. And watch
where you’re stepping. You know how inconsiderate those
elephants can be. KNIGHTSABRE: Bye, Gregor. Love you. TRIPWIRE: Until next time!
**** TRIPWIRE has left chat room **** ANVIL: Guess I’d better be the next escapee.
I’ve been holding dinner for Erin so I’d better get
to warming it up. But we’ll be there Friday guys. Looking
forward to seeing everybody for a couple of days. And to doing
this whole new Forte thing. CINCOFLEX: I must run as well. I have a movie
date with my son planned in our home theater and he keeps coming
in to remind me! He may only be seven but he already has his father’s
charms so I’m powerless to resist. KNIGHTSABRE: Haha. Sounds like a fun date, Miranda.
What’s the movie? CINCOFLEX: The Three Caballeros of course! The
boy refuses to watch much else! ANVIL: So any idea what time on Friday for the
meeting? Wally? ELECTRO MAN: I need to confirm with the hopefully
new Forte but I was thinking about 7:30 at the museum. Is that
okay with everyone? CINCOFLEX: It works for me as long as everyone
comes to my house for dinner after. DR. JACKAL: Perfect for us. Though I don’t
think we’ll be expecting the newbies for dinner. Secret
identities aside, I think they have plans to…you know…fight
crime on Friday night. ANVIL: What a quaint idea. KNIGHTSABRE: We’ll set you up for a teleport
from Sam, Mark. What time should she pop in? ANVIL: Let me talk to Erin and get back to you.
I’ll drop you a call or an email tomorrow and let you know
for sure. Nice not having to buy plane tickets all the time isn’t
it? That’s a handy daughter you guys have got there. CINCOFLEX: Ack! My arm is being pulled on by
my own Caballero! I must go. Good night everyone! Will see you
Friday! ELECTRO MAN: Good night Miranda. Tell Tomas I
said hello. And tell him I like his choice in Disney movies. That’s
a classic. DR. JACKAL: Good night, Miranda. Say hey to Bruce.
And remind him about the golf thing. Johnny’s ready to go
on that. KNIGHTSABRE: Good night, Miranda. ANVIL: See ya Friday Cinky.
**** CINCOFLEX has left chat room **** ANVIL: All right guys. Friday it is. I’ll
give you a call. KNIGHTSABRE: Night, Mark. Tell Erin hi. DR. JACKAL: See you Friday, buddy. ELECTRO MAN: Have a good evening Mark.
**** ANVIL has left chat room **** ELECTRO MAN: Well. I think that went very well
don’t you folks? KNIGHTSABRE: I do. I was very happy with that. DR. JACKAL: Guess we got ourselves some new recruits.
I hope. That would be kind of embarrassing if they turned us down,
wouldn’t it? John would never let me live it down. ELECTRO MAN: You did an excellent job making
your point Sabrina. Very well spoken. You said right what was
on my mind. KNIGHTSABRE: Thank you, Mr. Wally. :) I don’t
think they’ll turn us down, Jack. I’m sure they know
it’s coming by now with all the media talk about it. Funny
thing is it’s not really even our idea. The city came up
with it. We’re just following orders. Haha. DR. JACKAL: Seattle’s the boss. Like Tony
Danza. Or like Judith Light. I can never figure out which one… KNIGHTSABRE: So when do the calls happen, Wally? ELECTRO MAN: Soon as I sign off here Sabrina.
I’ll see if I can catch them all and invite them to a meeting.
And if we’re a go then I’ll let everyone know. And
we’ll have ourselves a big talk Friday night. DR. JACKAL: I’m pretty psyched about it.
This is the right choice. And Matt’s right. It’s long
overdue. ELECTRO MAN: Well then I will go take care of
those calls right now. Then I have a stack of paperwork to go
through here on my desk. And then I have a movie date myself.
With a young lady named Holly. She wants to take me to that new
Hamlet movie. But it looks like it’s a modern Hamlet. Set
in present day and in New York City? Not how I’m used to
seeing my Shakespeare but I’m willing to give it a chance. DR. JACKAL: Don’t expect Branagh’s
Hamlet, Wally. This one’s done very differently from what
I can see. More for the young folks. Should be interesting for
you, though. Did you know Bill Murray’s in it? He plays
Polonius. ELECTRO MAN: Bill Murray? No kidding? Is it a
comedy? KNIGHTSABRE: No, not a comedy. He’s stretching
his acting wings a bit. He’s doing more serious stuff now. ELECTRO MAN: That Caddyshack always cracks me
up. DR. JACKAL: Never gets old. ELECTRO MAN: Well if it gets kids interested
in Shakespeare I guess it’s a good thing. I’ll keep
an open mind. Well listen I’ll let you two go. Want me to
call you after the phone calls? DR. JACKAL: That’s okay, thanks. Just drop
an email. Actually, why don’t you hit the message board
and start a thread so everyone can know? ELECTRO MAN: Sounds good. Okay Parkers. Have
yourselves a good night. KNIGHTSABRE: You, too, Wally. Thanks for everything.
And enjoy the movie! Say hi to Holly. DR. JACKAL: Night, Wally. Thanks. ELECTRO MAN: Good night.
**** ELECTRO MAN has left chat room **** KNIGHTSABRE: Alone at last. DR. JACKAL: I knew that was going to take longer
than we thought. KNIGHTSABRE: It was good, though. Don’t
you think? DR. JACKAL: Definitely. I think we’re all
on the same page. And it was a good time. KNIGHTSABRE: It was. :) KNIGHTSABRE: Do you think Harry’s getting
more comfortable with me? DR. JACKAL: I think so. I haven’t noticed
anything to make me think otherwise. KNIGHTSABRE: I can never tell. I don’t
want to push it or anything. Obviously there’s no reason
why she should be talking to me at all. DR. JACKAL: It’s okay, hon. She’s
fine. It’s been a long time and she knows the score. She
knows it wasn’t you. KNIGHTSABRE: Technically it WAS me. DR. JACKAL: Sabrina. Don’t start going
there again. Come on, we’re all over this. It’s history.
She knows it. If she didn’t she wouldn’t be coming
around for these things. I think her making the effort shows where
her head’s at. She wants to move forward with you as you.
I think you’ve both done an amazing job under the circumstances. KNIGHTSABRE: I just wonder if I’ll ever
get to a place where I’m comfortable with it. Maybe I shouldn’t. DR. JACKAL: You should. And you will. You’re
already there, honey. You just need to get that final acceptance
going, you know? KNIGHTSABRE: I know. Time, time, time. DR. JACKAL: That’s the key. KNIGHTSABRE: So. Wanna cyber? ]:) DR. JACKAL: I was thinking of taking the more
low-tech approach… KNIGHTSABRE: ;) KNIGHTSABRE: Want to see if we can get our old
room up above 74 degrees? DR. JACKAL: That sounds like just what the Dr.
ordered. KNIGHTSABRE: And yet you’re still typing. DR. JACKAL: D’oh!!
**** DR. JACKAL has left chat room ****
**** KNIGHTSABRE has left chat room ****
**** END OF CHAT SESSION ****
