[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Alice Morrow + Mason Warner + music

The explosion had been entirely unexpected. Dominic had, at this point, been resigned to Alice not joining the rest of them with powers. After all, he, Mason, Claire and Persephone had all demonstrated some dramatic change in their lives. It had been days, and up until this point there had been no indication that Alice had any superhuman abilities, and yet here she was apparently throwing metal shelves across warehouses. They were tall, and heavy, and built to survive life in a busy warehouse. They probably weighed more than he did. They certainly weighed more than the skinny blue haired teenager who had just sent it soaring across the room. He grinned, impressed. He was always happy to be surprised, especially if it was something like this. Maybe his ideas really would come to fruition. He could help but laugh at the scene that developed. Alice was suddenly yanked off the floor and into the air, while Mason’s voice echoed through the cavernous space. It was a strange sight, Alice swaying back and forth in mid-air, apparently unaided. ”OK OK guys…” Still grinning, he walked towards the two as they were celebrating. ”That… was seriously cool Alice… and I thought my power was awesome.” It was hard not to get caught up in Alice and Mason’s excitement, not that he was trying to avoid it. ”Seriously though, we need to get you a better name than Prom Queen…”

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[Alice Morrow]

Paladin Am I more than you bargained for yet? + Mason Warner + Dominic Weaver + Superheroes

Alice yelped in surprise and delight as she felt arms encircle her waist and yank her off the ground. It could only be Mason, and her assumption was confirmed as he started chanting behind her. She laughed along with him until he set her down on the ground. She turned with a smile and threw her arms around his invisible form. It was a strange experience, to be hugging the air, so she shut her eyes. That made it seem far more natural. After all, he still felt normal, even if he didn’t quite look it. She turned around, breathless from laughing, to Dom, nodding in agreement. ”You’re right, I definitely want something more awe inspiring than Prom Queen. It’s not exactly going to inspire fear in criminals is it?” She resisted the urge to pat Mason’s shoulder, namely because she had now lost track of exactly where his shoulder was positioned. Her mind was racing even faster now than it had been when Claire had revealed her new power. She’d thought she was stuck outside the rest of the group, but now she wasn’t, she was part of it, and they really could make a superhero team. It was like she’d stepped into one of her comic books, she couldn’t really imagine anything more amazing happening to her right now. ”I can’t believe it.” She looked back at Dom, then around to where she thought Mason might be. ”Maybe we really can be superheroes…”

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[Mason Warner]

Training?

It seemed like Alice was one of those golden-hearted individuals who forgave you in a heartbeat which was refreshing. Once his arms had started to tire and his voice was feeling a little breathless from all his chanting, Mason gently lowered her back down to the ground. Instantly she’d spun around and pulled him into a hug, the happiness rolling off her in waves. All the animosity, that fiery anger that she’d displayed just a few moments ago, was gone to be replaced with complete jubilation.

Apparently “Prom Queen” wasn’t going to cut it. Which was fine, he supposed a little sulkily. “Hey, I remember our prom queen being pretty intimidating. I suppose you’re right though, you need something that packs a little more punch.”

He held back from suggesting “Punch-Packer”.

There was something both terrifying and exhilarating about Alice’s realisation. She was right. It was like they were straight out of this year’s superhero blockbuster – without the fancy costumes and alien invasions. The sense of responsibility that they’d been talking about at Claire’s apartment came floating back to him, filling his reserve of determination to a level he hadn’t realised was there.

Maybe it would be today, maybe it would be tomorrow, maybe it would take years of movie montage magic, but Mason was going to figure out his power. He needed to be useful and powerful – he knew that there was more to it than this permanent transparency. There had to be!

“Do you think it’s possible? Could we all get together, persuade everyone to work in a team… and do what, fight crime? Help old ladies cross the street kinda thing or save the world?”

He squared his shoulders and planted his hands on his hips.

“Whatever it is, count me in.”

ψ

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Mason Warner + Alice Morrow + music

Dominic nodded, ”I don’t see why not, think about it, think about what we can do.” He held out his hands, letting a brief shower of sparks fall from his palms as he did so. ”We’ve been handed an unbelievable opportunity, we can change this world forever. I know I’m a businessman, but this isn’t even about the money, this is about the opportunity we’d be throwing away. Living in secret for the rest of our lives? Afraid that people might find out what we can do?” He shook his head, ”I’ve never lived in fear of everything, I’ve never allowed myself to. Why should what people think dictate our lives. It doesn’t if we don’t let it.” Dominic was charismatic, and the others couldn’t help but be carried along with his energetic imagination. “Why can’t we fight crime? Who would really want to go up against that?” He threw a thumb over his shoulder to indicate the destroyed shelves and the faintly smoking boxes. ”We just need to begin.”

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[Alice Morrow]

Paladin Am I more than you bargained for yet? + Mason Warner + Dominic Weaver

Alice wasn’t the type to hold a grudge, she simply didn’t have it in her. Even if she did it wouldn’t have mattered. She could have forgiven anyone in the delirious rush of joy that had accompanied the manifestation of her power. That said, she wasn’t even entirely sure what her power was. She’d sent the shelves tumbling across the floor, but she hadn’t even flexed her arm, so super strength didn’t seem to be on the cards. Some sort of telekinesis? Although something told her that wasn’t it, she’d felt some sort of rush when it had happened. ”But what is it I can do?” She wracked her brains, trying to work out what it could be. It didn’t feel like Dom described, or like the fuzzy feeling of Mason’s power. It had felt like she was letting something out, something more than just anger. “I don’t think it’s anything like super strength, I don’t feel any stronger, or tougher. I fell down the stairs earlier today though and I hardly felt that at all. I mean like… all the way down the stairs. I’m not even scratched, it’s like I got another dose of whatever the doctor gave us…” She shrugged, looking to Dominic and the empty air, “any ideas?”

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[Mason Warner]

Training?

God Dominic was such a showman – and Mason loved it. The flickering of electricity, crackling softly as it tumbled from his palms, was completely unnecessary but at the same time worked excellently as part of his sales pitch as a teasing visual hint to the powers they all possessed now. Mason was beginning to realise that Dom’s entire life was one long sales pitch, and he greatly admired it.

“I agree,” Mason said affirmatively, a fierce nod of his head punctuating the sentence. “Until I can figure out my power, I’m forced to live with it 24/7. I don’t wanna do that in complete secrecy and fear for the rest of my life. I want to use my power and I want to, you know, live my life as much as possible.”

It was so exiting to hear Dominic in agreement, making the idea of fighting crime seem so much more tangible. Mason had never so strongly and so quickly latched onto an idea in his life. He wanted to be a superhero. He wanted to be a superhero. He wanted to be a superhero. They could be superheroes!

Alice’s question was startling. He hadn’t even processed fully what had happened, but she was right to be confused. How had she done this? And what was all this about falling down stairs?

Mason instinctively turned to Dom to answers, automatically deferring to the smartest one in the room for this kind of thing, but reconsidered. Surely throwing out an idea wouldn’t hurt… it could get the ball rolling towards the actual answer and put Alice a bit at ease as she worked out this new power. For all her joy, he was sure that there’d be a little uncertainty lingering.

“Um,” he began confidently.

He eyed up the wreckage. It looked a little like it had limbs pointing in all directions, similar to the end result of a really unfortunate fall down several flights of stairs. “Maybe you kind of… stocked those injuries up for later to use on something else? You could be like, transferring your injuries to other things.”

Mason finally looked towards Dom, certain that the actual answer would now be revealed. He could only hope that he’d been in the right ball park at least, or even just playing the same sport.

ψ

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Mason Warner + Alice Morrow

Dominic wracked his brains, but nothing came to him except maybe that she had turned into Superman. He shrugged, “don’t look at me, my knowledge of super heroes stops at kryptonite and radioactive spiders. I never really had the time to read comic books. Love the movies though.” He shrugged and looked pointedly at Alice, “I think if anyone knows anything about super powers it’s Alice, I’m great at PR, I can brand super heroes. Working out what powers they have? Nah, I leave that to the professionals,” He gestured to Alice, “I guess that’s you.” He nodded in agreement with Mason however, “storing stuff up sounds kinda right, I mean it’s what I do. I tried, I’ve not got that much juice, that’s what this is for.” He kicked the duffel bag, “car battery, gives me a burst if I need it. I don’t know about storing up injuries though, flying across the room tends not to be symptomatic of any injury I heard of, except that little girl in the exorcist.” He raised a concerned eyebrow, “you aren’t possessed are you? No desire to defile the Lord? Your head doesn’t spin 360 degrees does it?” He grinned, clearly joking, what happened to them might have been a miracle, but he wasn’t ready to start believing in angels and demons yet. “Maybe we should see what else you can do? You fell down stairs right? Can you take a punch?”

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[Alice Morrow]

Paladin Am I more than you bargained for yet? + Mason Warner + Dominic Weaver

Well that was sudden pressure; Alice could feel their eyes on her, even Mason’s that she couldn’t see. She probably was the best equipped on the team to talk about super powers. It was perhaps a little worrying, and flattering at the same time. Here she was, a disappointing high school student stuck in a dead end diner job, with no qualifications or future to think of and two successful full grown men were looking to her for leadership. “I think the only professional is going to be that doctor.” OK, maybe not leadership, but suggestions at least. It was a pity she couldn’t really come up with an answer. Mason’s idea had sounded pretty good at first, but she’d come to the same conclusion as Dominic that it didn’t quite fit. It was almost like there’d been a shield around her when she’d fallen down those stairs, she remembered that impacts that should have hurt, really hurt, hadn’t felt like anything at all. “Nope, pretty sure we don’t need an old priest and a young priest. Although they might understand what I can do.” She laughed at Dom’s suggestion, as if he was about to throw a punch at her. Then she paused, “you know… That might be an idea…”

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[Mason Warner]

Training?

Perhaps Mason should not have been quite so astonished when Dom failed to come out with the precise, definitive answer he had been hoping for. After all, this was hardly a subject that was broached on an intellectual level (except maybe amongst dedicated comic book geeks, he supposed) – just like Mason, Dom’s experience of superpowers seemed limited to film and TV. Reading was not something Mason really did, even if the majority of the material was in fact pictures, so he’d never gone through a comic book stage.

So apparently Alice was the authority on this now, and even she didn’t have anything to offer just yet. He was pleased to have made a somewhat useful suggestion himself, though, and beamed smugly as Dominic declared his idea as sounding “kinda right”.

He then proceeded to dismiss the idea with long words like “symptomatic” and Mason dropped his smugness.

“I don’t know…” He peered closely at Alice’s face. “Those eyes look kinda red. Either you didn’t get enough sleep or there really is a demon lurking in there.” Mason made a crucifix with his fingers and backed away.

It was taking a while to get used to the fact that his slapstick comedy would be lost on everybody. Yet another reason for him to figure out his power as quickly as possible, he guessed.

“Woah, woah, woah, why do we have to keep risking doing damage to young girls to figure out powers?” he protested. “At least try and see if you can handle jumping from a relatively safe height first or… or something.”

Mason was still feeling quite guilty about attempting to stab Claire with keys, even if it hadn’t actually harmed her. Dom was going to have to be the one throwing punches around here if Alice really wanted to pursue that idea because Mason had had quite enough of all this woman-beating. He was especially hesitant to risk anything with Alice because he hadn’t actually witnessed first-hand any of this miraculous stair-diving. Seeing was believing, after all.

“Or you could take a punch… that could work too,” he admitted quietly, not wanting to seem a) like a spoilsport and b) like he didn't trust Alice. He wanted her to feel confident about this new ability (whatever it was) after all.

ψ

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Mason Warner + Alice Morrow

Punching Alice hadn’t exactly been the plan when they’d arranged this and Dominic could admit that he wasn’t exactly comfortable with the idea. That said, it seemed to him like a safer plan than throwing her down a flight of stairs, and falling from a height still offered the potential for injury, no matter how low the starting height. At least if he punched her in the arm she’d just have a light bruise for a couple of days. It wasn’t an ideal solution, but then neither was practising in a damp, dark, decrepit warehouse. He held up his hands in surrender. “I don’t want to hit her any more than you man, but I’d rather take the risk of giving her a dead arm than her cracking her skull on the floor.” He eyed said concrete surface with some concern. “Who knows what she might catch?” The warehouse was dirty, and they would definitely have to be careful about the collapsed shelving. It looked like any sort of injury in here would require a tetanus shot at the very least. He looked to Alice, and tightened his fist, he looked reluctant, though clearly still prepared to go through with it if she agreed. “I can’t think of anything else, but only if you’re up for it Alice…”

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[Alice Morrow]

Paladin Am I more than you bargained for yet? + Mason Warner + Dominic Weaver

Despite Mason’s reservations, Alice had already decided. This was happening. She struck a pose that she had probably picked up as a result of too much socialising with Dominic Weaver. Arms flung out, chest puffed forwards, she looked ready for anything as she proudly proclaimed “Hit me!” She was ready for whatever they had to throw at her, riding too high on a wave of adrenaline and elation to worry about what might happen. In truth she might not feel whatever they did anyway, she was too excited about the possibilities. It took a moment for her to realise that Dominic wasn’t going to just go in with a gut punch. Both he and Mason were clearly uncomfortable with the idea of hitting her. “Come on guys I’m 18, I’m not a kid anymore.” She relented, instead turning side on, this way it would be easier for Dom to punch her in the arm. She concentrated, focusing on… something… Not getting hurt? That seemed like it was too vague. Maybe she had to specifically think about Dom not hurting her? Even so, that didn’t quite seem to fit, she hadn’t been thinking about individual stairs hurting her, it didn’t seem to have anything to do with the source. She was still ruminating when she heard Dominic take a step, then the whoosh of his fist. She flinched instinctively, expecting the impact to hurt, but instead felt something very different. She had no idea how to describe it. It wasn’t how Dominic had described it, like a current, this felt… bouncier, like it had vibrations all of its own. She felt like she took on a little of those qualities herself, she felt more energetic, more cheerful. It wasn’t dissimilar to how she had felt after the Doctor had saved her life. Whatever was happening, it meant that Dominic’s attempt to hurt her had failed. “Ummm… well it didn’t hurt, and I did feel something… but I don’t know what…”

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[Mason Warner]

Training?

It was apparent that Mason hadn’t thought his “jump off a high shelf” alternative through as Dom quickly dismissed it with a swift image of Humpty Dumpty Alice. He felt guilty – he’d actually made a worse suggestion through his reluctance to be potentially responsible for what could only have ever been mild damage to her anyway. For all his inner monologue of feeling a new responsibility with the development of their powers, he clearly had more to learn.

Then he laughed, despite himself, at Alice’s loud and proud call for somebody to punch her. Her dramatic stance and fiery, wild expression was something else – a little glimpse into what could be her future. But for now, it looked a little ridiculous in context.

With a sharp inhale, Mason managed to keep himself from laughing at her next words. “I’m not a kid anymore.” Hoo boy. He wondered if he’d said the exact same sentence at her age. Having left school at 16, Mason had certainly felt like he knew everything there was to know by 18. He’d been wrong, obviously, but he could remember that strange age where you desperately wanted to be a fully-grown, serious adult – until it happened, of course. Like Mason, Alice seemed to have some underlying maturity. She had a job and lived by herself after all. But there was some emotional and personal growth that could only be acquired through time and experience. In several ways, Alice was definitely still a “kid”.

When Dominic hit his mark, Mason couldn’t help but wince.

He watched Alice’s face intently. She’d flinched… but that was all. Suddenly it seemed like her eyes had lit up, a subtle variation in her expression, and Mason found himself beaming.

“Your power rocks!”

He chuckled to himself.

“Feeling something is a good start. Hmm… Does it feel like aluminum foil, maybe? Saran-Man needs a sidekick –” Mason gasped suddenly, struck by inspiration. “We could be the Wrappers!” He added a quiet, “Yo,” for emphasis.

ψ

[Dominic Weaver]

Surge The best part of “believe” is the “lie”. + Mason Warner + Alice Morrow

Dominic shook his hand, though not from any need to remove pain, more because of how strange the sensation had been. As soon as his fist had touched Alice’s arm it had stopped dead. He’d barely felt the impact, it had simply been the lightest of touches, like he’d reached out to tap her on the shoulder. He’d certainly swung his arm though, maybe not hard enough to do serious damage, but enough that she should have felt something. “That was definitely weird…” He looked from his unharmed hand to Alice’s unscathed shoulder. The crease of her hoody had shifted a little, but that was the only change he could see, and only because he was inspecting it. His fist had just stopped dead, in the way it should have done if he’d tried to punch a wall. Alice had felt something though, even if it wasn’t the pain of being punched in the arm. At least his had immediately made sense, hers was just weird, he wished he’d paid a little more attention in school. How real life super powers worked wasn’t exactly something they could google, and he felt that some actual scientific knowledge might have been helpful here. “Still drawing a blank on how it works though…” However, once Mason spoke up again, both he and Alice turned to the source of his voice, speaking in unison. “No!”

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[Alice Morrow]

Paladin Am I more than you bargained for yet? + Mason Warner + Dominic Weaver

“No!” Alice looked momentarily guilty, but then remembered what Mason had suggested. She quickly forgot about her guilt after that. She turned to Dom, “remind me to never ask him for name ideas.” She shrugged after that, “You’re right though, I still have no idea how it works, I mean, it didn’t hurt you right?” Dom shook his head and she grimaced, “maybe it is absorbing injuries? And like… how they would have happened? I mean… I did go flying down the stairs this morning, maybe I put that into the shelves?” She had to admit, it sounded a little too weird, even for the impossibilities they were living through. She held out a hand to Dom, “Can I… y’know, see if I can send it back?” With Dom’s clear agreement she stepped forward, hesitantly placing her hand on his arm. She closed her eyes, searching inside herself for whatever it was that she had taken and stored within her form. She found the power, the strange energy that had flown from his fist and into her. It took her a moment to find it, a moment that felt like a lifetime, and left her almost panicking that she might never find it at all. Then, with that sudden fear in her mind, she found it. It seared along her arm with a jolt she was surprised wasn’t reflected physically. It was almost as if it had hijacked her nervous system. That energy, that bounce flung itself from the palm of her hand. Dominic rocked back onto his heels. Then whistled appreciatively. Alice was delighted, “This. Is. So. Cool.”

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[Mason Warner]

Training?

Mason actually gasped, hand on his heart. “You wound me, PQ!”

They could’ve been the perfect team, with matching uniforms and everything. Every time they confronted an enemy, Mason could imagine them bursting out into a synchronised introductory rap before freestyling their way to victory. It could’ve been beautiful but… no.

In all seriousness he could understand the lack of support for Saran-Man and friends. He’d have to think of something amazing – maybe go back to Will’s place and watch a few movies, see if he could be inspired by and/or steal anything. He’d been looking for a reason to catch up on all that live-action TV series stuff anyway.

He was somewhat mollified by Alice’s reconsideration of his suggestion, even if he had already lost faith in it himself. He found himself holding his breath as Alice conducted her little experiment, half expecting Dom to end up like the pile of shelves against the wall, half expecting nothing at all to happen, and half not knowing what to expect. And half really bad at maths.

It happened. It wasn’t much, but Alice definitely moved Dominic by more than her actions alone would have suggested possible. Dom whistled and Mason joined in, unintentionally harmonising for a moment.

“It’s definitely not injuries, it’s like…” He fumbled for the word that had taken up firm residence on the tip of his tongue and was not taking any financial compensation as an incentive to move.

“When you go and um… keep going…”

He moved around, trying to jog his memory.

“It’s like…” He shifted into a quick sprint, instantly stuttering to a halt. “Oh! Momentum!”

“Whatever it is, it is most certainly cool,” he said happily, making his way to Alice’s side. “Think of the possibilities if we did assemble a team of us. You could store a bunch up and – WHOOOSH!” Mason made sound effects and leapt into the air to illustrate his point. “Bye bye bad guy!”

ψ