February Intro Log!

[rekindlemods]

Who: Everyone
Where: The Welcome Center
When: 12th February, early afternoon
Summary: The new arrivals, freshly pulled from their worlds or others, awaken in a strange place...
Warnings: Inbox death may occur. System overload at own risk. NPC responses may be slow.

It's a shuddering breath, a sensation of being pulled to elsewhere and finding oneself pressed against something on the soft and some place cozy. However, before one can fully stir, there is and odd, warm stirring sensation that lifts you up from wherever you've been dropped, when you begin to drift off once more.

'I'm sorry for this... but we need your help.'

Yet the feeling -and the voice - pass quickly, and when you awaken, you begin to realize your surroundings. It's a small room with what some might recognize as something akin to a Far Eastern theme when it comes to decor, from the walls to the sofa (or bed) you find yourself on. Illumination is provided by carefully crafted lamps, and even a red candle flickering on a nearby desk. The doors are made from paper and wood, with a thin frame; through them it's easy to hear other people stirring, talking, or coming to.

You are not alone...

On a small table beside you, there rests a note atop a manilla envelope (that oddly enough is enscribed with your name). Unfolding the note will reveal some answers in the form of a letter addressed to all arrivals.

Inside the manilla envelope , you will find: a ring with a key and apartment number on it, some kind of cash card, a map and informational guide to the city, and a second letter folded neatly on the top.

Odd... Neither were written in your own language, and yet you find it easily understandable. Soon enough, if you don't make an exit on your own, there's a gentle knocking on the door as someone comes from downstairs to usher you along.

"Welcome to Saeng Seong! I know you must be confused or upset as to what's going on, but we promise to explain further once you've had a chance to stretch your legs!"

Whether you go downstairs immediately or linger a little longer, eventually you must come on down to leave the small space, and sooner rather than later would probably be better. You'll find yourself in a well-lit lobby, filled with comfortable-looking couches and chairs. Along one wall are refreshment tables, loaded with all sorts of warm and filling food and drink, including some you probably aren't familiar with. It's just as well they're in good supply, as rain is pouring outside with no sign of relenting. During this time of the year, it's definitely something to leave a chill in the bones. Perhaps picking up a rain coat by the desks on the other side of the room might be a good idea. Who knows? You may just find something suspiciously in your size!

Speaking of those desks, two ladies seem eager to answer any questions you may have, names and positions conveniently written on signs on their desk.

Irene, General Assistance
Andi, Technological Assistance

Outside, and through the heavy rain and translucent glass you can see a banner hanging from the tiled roof of the building across the street. The deep autumnal colors on it match the welcoming (though rather damp) atmosphere as the letters proclaim:

WELCOME TO SAENG SEONG
(ENJOY YOUR STAY!)

Comments

[ironyman]

Well, that's an invitation to be bothered if Tony's ever seen one. And he's allowed, because he's a superhero.

"Hey, kid."

Tony plants himself on the nearest couch and immediately begins talking as though he has been invited. While speaking he occasionally glances around the room--he doesn't know why the science division head thinks it's a good idea to send him to greet the newcomers, but he still doesn't want to get ratted out by anyone who happens to see him slacking off. Tony Stark only gets caught being a lazy jackass when he wants to be caught!

"I'm kinda supposed to be part of the welcome party--insider's view. Whatever. Job stuff. But I'm not really feeling up to it, and you look new so. Gonna stay over here for a while. That sound good? Great, thanks, kid."

He crosses his legs, clearly intending to make himself comfortable.

[big_damn_hiro]

Hiro glanced up at the older man when he was addressed, quirking a brow. Before he could even respond with something other than a 'I...uh...', the man kept talking. Well, he certainly acted like he owned the place. Hiro didn't know whether to be annoyed or amused. He chose to be neither, simply blinking as the guy made himself comfortable. Welcome party??

"Hi..." He said finally after the man settled. "Uh...who are you?" He hadn't seen him before, and he wondered if he was from around here. This was his job??

[ironyman]

"Tony," he replied instantly, still peering around the room. Finally, he turned to the kid.

"Tony Stark." He looked Hiro over as though he hadn't bothered to do more than glance at first.

"Wow, you're a little sad sack, aren't you. Cheer up, kid, it's not so bad. I've been here, ahh, year and a half, give or take, and I've only almost died... two times. Two and a half. One was a misunderstanding, so. You know. Kind of a loose two and a half."

[big_damn_hiro]

Hiro sat back, eyeing Tony for a moment. "Hiro. Hiro Hamada." He introduced himself in a similar fashion. He had a feeling he was going to be quirking his brow a lot in this conversation.

"Hey, I'm guessing you were a bunch of happy sunshine when you first arrived here?" He asked...then the rest of what Tony said registered and his eyes widened. If he had've sipped his hot chocolate at that point it probably would have ended up down his front.

"Wait what?! You nearly died..twice??" He sputtered. That certainly wasn't in the letters! "How??"

[ironyman]

... Okay, maybe Tony should have known that might make the kid freak out. Tony waved his hand dismissively as if that might comfort Hiro.

"Ah, crazy Russian, Not Russian assassin. Weird guy. Cool arm. Seems to like kids, just not me, so you should be safe. Wouldn't worry about it."

That was enough to sooth any fears of death by Winter Soldier, right? Tony seemed to think so, as he moved right along to a different subject, screwing his face up in a disbelieving frown.

"Wait, your name is seriously Hero? Parents had high hopes for you, didn't they."

[big_damn_hiro]

"Right..." Hiro said drily. "Crazy Russian, not assassin. Got it." Well it certainly sounded like Tony had an enemy here. One who liked kids apparently. Hiro wasn't sure if he was supposed to be comforted by that or not. He sipped at his hot chocolate to warm up the chill that had settled in his insides.

Hiro gave Tony a wry look at the mention of his name. Was the guy serious? "It's with an I not an E." He corrected. "It's Japanese." Well, since Tony had been here as long as Diarmuid it seemed...

"Since you've been here a while, what do you know about this place? Other than what they put in the letters..." Might as well dig for some more information while he was sitting here.

[ironyman]

Tony shrugged off the correction and moved on. Whatever.

"What don't I know, kid," he asked snidely, turning a condescendingly amused look toward Hiro.

"I know they're probably going to screw with you--I've seen guys turn into younger versions of themselves, into dogs, I've had creepy shadows give me nightmare fuel hallucinations. Loads of fun. Happy Halloween. Ahh, I know the head of the science division has a male secretary who's a dick, and I mean that in the least friendly way possible."

For the last thing, he pointed loosely at Hiro, as though he hadn't just listed two dismal things.

"And I know a weird robot was talking about a guy called Hiro last month. So, you know, somebody out there's got the same name as you, Hiro with an I not an E. That's cool, right? Oh, and it's Russian, not Russian. He speaks Russian. When he's mad. But he's American. Like I said, weird guy."

[big_damn_hiro]

Hiro stared as Tony painted a not so nice picture of his stay here in this strange place. He didn't really know what to say to that.

"How did all of that happen?" There had to be a logical explanation right? "This head of science division. This is Cyntia right? Is she easy to get a hold of?" He shook his head, trying for another angle. "What's the tech level of this place? If I can get to some decent enough equipment I might be able to think of something to help with this energy crisis."

He was hesitant at the mention of the robot looking for him, but he nodded. "Yeah. I heard about that. I'm keeping an eye out for him." It was still hard to believe that Baymax was possibly here. As for this Russian not Russian who was actually American that spoke Russian when mad...Hiro's mind was almost ready to go in circles about that. Wow.

[ironyman]

Okay, he may have gone a little overboard with the doom and gloom. The kid seemed kinda freaked, as evidenced by the resulting veritable flood of questions. Speaking of--what the hell? How did Hiro know about Cyntia? And tech questions? Wait, and he didn't seem surprised about the robot? The robot looking for someone familiar with advanced robotics.

Tony furrowed his brown in mild surprise. Huh. Uhhh, okay, where to start? Well, most important, obviously. Tech.

"Yeah, yeah, yeah, forget about the energy crisis," Tony said quickly, making a circular hurry up gesture with one hand.

"That's my area, and I'm working on it. Now. Tech level. Depends on who you're talking to. If you're talking to--well, ah, anybody else. Or if you're talking to me."

[big_damn_hiro]

"You're working on the energy crisis?" Hiro quirked a brow at Tony. He crossed his arms, leaning back in his seat as he eyed the other man.

"Well, at first glance this place doesn't seem as technologically advanced as where I come from, but looks can be deceiving right?" He tilted his head slightly. "I haven't had a chance to talk to anyone here about tech but if you have access to some equipment, I wanna get my hands on it." As he spoke he seemed to relax as he settled into a topic he was comfortable with.

"I'm sure I can come up with something that can help these people."

[ironyman]

Tony pursed his lips in consideration and scratched his chin a few times, eyebrows raised as Hiro got comfortable in a way that was very familiar. Then, mind apparently made up, he leaned forward enough to dig around in his back pocket and retrieved a thin glass rectangle.

"Yeah, ah, mm, not. So much working on it as working on the people working on it," he said, rapping the phone idly against the knuckles of his other hand. "Politics. Grown-up stuff. Let's just say there wouldn't be an energy crisis if they actually let me work on it."

Probably. Maybe. Tony flipped the phone in his hand a few times, shrugged, and tossed it at Hiro. Time to see if the kid really did know his shit.

"Alright, kid, let's see what you can do. And hey, I'll even be nice and give you a hint. Just ask." Apparently the kid had a Michelin man robot, but did he have a kickass Artificial Intelligence butler?

[big_damn_hiro]

When Tony pulled out a small glass object from his pocket, Hiro didn't pay it any mind at first, focused as he was on what the other man was saying.

"That's weird. In a crisis you would think that they would welcome the help." He spread his hands. "You know...make the think tank bigger. Outside perspectives thinking out of the box and all." He frowned. Yeah that was pretty strange. Tony sure did seem confident...though part of Hiro recognized that quality in himself. Especially when he was on an idea.

It was surprising...but also kind of amusing.

Hiro reached out to catch the glass item as Tony suddenly tossed it over - giving it his full attention as he eyed it and brushed it with his fingers. "Hmm...high density polymer...holographic capable...woah...." He turned it in his hands, muttering the whole time. "This is pretty sick. It reminds me of the holo design work station screen that I have at home except more compact." His previous awkwardness had disappeared, revealing a very young, but highly intelligent teenager that clearly had a love for this sort of thing. His eyes practically lit up. "I'd love to see the cpu that powers this sort of thing.."

Just ask huh? Hiro frowned at it, then it came to him. Voice activation! Addressing it directly, he decided it to try it out and hope it worked.

"Computer..." He wasn't sure what to call it anyway..."What is your system specifications?"

[ironyman]

Instantly the phone came to life in front of Hiro, and a dry British-accented voice came out, tone speaking to only the greatest of weary long-suffering.

"I believe my current specifications are 'whatever will show off most', sir."

"You're the greatest, J," Tony quipped cheerily, flashing Hiro a conspiratorial smirk.

"Well, kid, looks like your dumb robot might've been right about you being good with advanced robotics. Not too shabby, kiddo, not shabby at all."

He leaned back, crossing his arms and looking impossibly pleased.

"So. Talk to me, how old were you when you built that 'work station' of yours?"

At least, Tony assumed Hiro built it. If the kid was as much like Tony as he seemed.

[big_damn_hiro]

Hiro's eyes widened and his expression shifted into a wide triumphant grin as the device activated. "Hey...that doesn't sound like a regular programmed response..." He said, clearly impressed. "It's an AI..." He looked at Tony. "A pretty advanced one at my guess. The code on this thing must be insane." He waggled a finger. "Hey Baymax isn't dumb. My brother built and programmed him. He's also my friend." He was too wired to be truly insulted though, he was just stating a correction.

He was sitting on the edge of his seat now with interest. Oh man what he'd give to take something like this apart and see how it worked (before putting it back together of course and designing his own). He flushed slightly when he realized he had been sitting there almost gushing with excitement and fidgeted, readjusting the cap on his head.

At the question, Hiro thought for a moment. "Well, I was building my own computers when I was at least 5." He said finally. "I have multiple ones in the garage that I put together, including the holo design table." He shrugged a little. "I've pretty much been upgrading them and tweaking them over the years."

Hell, even before he actually built his first computer - he was always taking things apart around the house to see how they worked. It used to drive his Aunt nuts when he did it too.

[ironyman]

Tony watched Hiro inspect the phone, eyebrows raised and clearly amused. Smart kid. Really smart kid. Without a doubt smarter than most of the people Tony had spoken to here, and he couldn't lie that he missed speaking something other than Idiot.

He was willing to bet the little brat was itching to take it apart, too. Perfect.

"Tell you what. Keep it." He gestured at the phone with a nod of his head.

"As a, ah, house warming gift. And because you'd go crazy using the terminals until you get money for a computer. Trust me. Fair warning, though, JARVIS doesn't like it when you look at his code, he gets bashful."

[big_damn_hiro]

Hiro was so shocked, he nearly dropped the phone as he stared at Tony.

"What?? But...I...it's..." Tony barely knew him and he was giving him this? He didn't know what to say! He was excited but he also wasn't sure if he should accept such an offering despite the fact he would have loved to take a look at how it was made.

"I mean uh...I do have a phone...and a laptop with me..." He said, a bit flustered. "I just have to link them." JARVIS...he looked down at the device. So that was the name of the AI.

"I'm not going to lie and say I wouldn't want to have something like this but...why give this to me?" Not that he didn't think Tony would be able to build another one for himself...it was just a surprise since they just met.

[ironyman]

Okay, that face was pretty priceless. See, that was how Tony wished people would react whenever he gave them shit--way more entertaining than polite-yet-surprised acceptance or suspicion. There should be way more stuttering and shocked faces in the future, Tony decided.

He shrugged at the question.

"If you want it, then what's the problem?" he asked casually.

"And I'm not going to ask you any weird favors, if that's what you're wondering. I'm a superhero, that makes me a. Responsible adult." He made a face and rolled his eyes like even he knew that was a stretch.

"More or less. One condition--you better call me if something happens. You got it, squirt?"

He pointed at Hiro sharply.

LMAO this thread is diamonds <3

[big_damn_hiro]

"I just....wow. Thanks." Hiro stammered slightly with a small grin. In a way he was starting to understand through the surprise. It appeared that Tony was relieved as he was, to find someone that was into advanced robotics and technology. Despite having never met before - there was all ready that undercurrent of understanding. Even Hiro was more noticeably relaxed and at ease than when Tony first came over.

And Tony was a superhero??

"I'm just surprised...It's not everyday I meet someone that just hands over an advanced computer and phone that's run by an AI." His grin widened. "Besides - I happen to be part of a superhero team myself!" He pointed back at Tony. "And yes, I will call." Technerds gotta stick together right?