11:30 PM
 
Together Mason and Phi made their way to the fringe of the dance floor, saying hello to their friends and acquaintances before politely moving on.  Thanks to a couple of drinks, she had loosened up quite a bit since the unveiling and was actually beginning to enjoy herself   As they made their way towards the back of the room, she caught sight of JACE coming back in from the gardens. 

"JACE."  She called to him as she and Mason approached.  To her date she said in a low pitched voice, "Brace yourself."

Mason smiled politely. "Really...how bad can he be?"

JACE turned from Celeste when he heard his name.  He smiled a charming smile at Ophilia as she approached.

"JACE, I'd like for you to meet a very good friend of mine and my date for the evening, Mason Willoughby."  Ophilia's voice was lighter than usual, as was the easy smile on her face.  

Mason offered his hand, "The pleasure is all mine, Dr. JACE.  Your reputation precedes you, naturally."

"Thank you, Mr. Willoughby.  It is a pleasure to meet any friend of the lovely Miss DiSantiago."  JACE shook Mason's hand firmly.  He then turned to Celeste, "Might I present Dr. Celeste Sanders, a dear friend and colleague of mine.  Celeste, Miss DiSantiago and Mr. Willoughby." 

Celeste offered her hand as well, smiling.  "Hello, it's a pleasure to meet both of you."  She was somewhat flustered at meeting one of the famous DiSantiagos.  Although comfortable around people, she lacked JACE's familarity with high society.

Once the introductions were done, JACE turned to Emily.  "And may I also present Miss Emily Eisele, also a dear friend and colleague of mine."

Emily swallowed her mouthful of pop and choked slightly as some went down wrong.  Flushing, she tried to imitate JACE's smooth style.  "Um, it's nice to meet you."  Belatedly she offered her hand to Mason, then flushed again and glanced at JACE.  At his slightly disapproving look, she quickly switched and offered her hand to Ophilia first, fumbling her drink and blushing even more.  "I mean, you."  Obviously mortified, she lapsed into silence, playing with her necklace and looking at the floor.

"It's a pleasure to meet you as well."  Ophilia gave the darling girl her full attention, while wondering why on earth she was here with JACE.  Her best guess was that it was a publicity stunt, but that wasn't the girl's fault.  "Your necklace is very pretty, Emily."

Emily flushed again.  She was trying to look at Miss DiSantiago, but she couldn't stop looking at the dreamy man beside her.  Normally she could remember anything she heard, but her ears seemed full of a strange roaring noise.  She really had to concentrate to understand what the beautiful woman was saying.  Knowing JACE was watching and would expect her to behave appropriately, Emily forced herself to stop staring at Mr. Willoughby's eyes, even if they were just perfect, and smile at Miss DiSantiago.  "Thank you, Ma'am.  It's my mother's.  She let me borrow if for tonight."

Mason shook hands with Celeste and leaned forward to take Emily's hand, and paused as her hand awkwardly changed targets and came back. He smiled reassuringly to her in an effort to allay her apparent nervousness.

Emily flushed completely red.  He had smiled at her.  The most wonderful man at the party, possibly the whole world, and he had smiled at her.  Any possibility of focus was completely gone.  She just stared at him, drinking him in.

Mason smiled his most charming smile, "Ladies..,"  He inclined his head in a slight bow. "I hope you are enjoying the party.  The DiSantiago's spared no expense, and Phi has really outdone herself...and coming on the heels of the Willoughby Christmas Party, I have to wonder if this is some kind of social warfare." He looked sideways at Phi with a sly smile.  "But I suppose it always is." The Willoughby Christmas Party was usually the social event of the year.  This year, they had clearly been outdone.  The Willoughby's and the DiSantiagos were tight as the Hudson City "elite" went, due to both families being denominationally Catholic and the others Protestant, making them natural allies.

"I think we may have to lobby for a larger budget next year."  He chuckled at the polite conversational banter.

Celeste shook hands with both of them, smiling charmingly.  She found herself admiring Mason more than was usual for her.  She wasn't usually drawn to physical looks, but he was a very handsome, sophisticated man.  For a moment she found her thoughts wandering inappropriately.  She blinked, forcing her mind back to the room.  "That must be an interesting competition, Mr. Willoughby.  I would imagine it would be hard to top announcing a new hero team, no matter what budget they give you."  She realized she was still holding his hand, and discretely released it.

Mason chuckled lightly, "Yes, well, that would be quite difficult to compete with.  Let's just hope they don't unveil another one next year."

Ophilia seemed distracted again, as she looked over her shoulder to where they'd left Soldier Boy, and then down at Emily.  She leaned down low and asked her something quietly in her ear. 

The girl furrowed her forhead in thought and looked around before shaking her head in reply.  "No Miss DiSantiago, the only music I can here is that band up there.  ...but you might have better ears than me."

Phi gave her a wink and put a slender finger to her lips.  "Our little secret.  We don't want people to think I'm hearing things."

He looked back at Dr. JACE, his expression becoming incrementally more serious, "To tell you truth Dr. JACE, I asked Phi to introduce us.  I have a small project that I'm working on that could benefit somewhat from your input. I was hoping that sometime in the near future, as time allows, we might get together to discuss it. Perhaps I could convince you to take an interest." He offered his business card.

It read, "LeMastre's Park Initiative, Founder and CEO, Mason Willoughby."  There was contact info, a logo of a tree, and a kanji version on the reverse side.

JACE took the card with a slightly forced smile.  Celeste was acting quite odd.  He made a mental note to investigate Mr. Willoughby further.  He had heard of the man, but didn't know many details.  For now, however, on to business.  'Of course, Mr. Willoughby.  I'd be happy to discuss any projects you might need assistance with.  I have a ready made contract written up for my consultant work.  I'd be happy to send you a copy."

Mason smiled, "Please do.  My secretary will forward it to the legal team.  We'll run it through the gauntlet and talk details when you hear the pitch.  Frankly, you may consider the work beneath a man of your talent.  I just thought that you might provide a unique perspective and hoped you might find some kind of fulfillment from its execution."

He looked around, "Well, I don't want to monopolize your time.  It was a pleasure and I look forward to meeting you again.  Perhaps we could invite you and your lovely companions to a smaller, more intimate get together sometime."

Time.

Time for the big entrance.  Time for introductions.  Time to talk.  Time for a drink.  Time to diffuse tempers and play mediator.  Time to take the stage, the big surprise, and an impromptu speech.  Time to meet the press.  Time to answer questions.  More talking.  More questions.  Time for handshaking and smiling and flashbulbs and more questions.

Time, time, time.

As the evening wore on, it was surprising how fast time was actually moving.  For Nemesis, however, the soda water and lime was catching up to him.

Now it was time to pee.

A caterer carrying an empty tray and speaking with a Soviet accent shrugged confusedly when he asked about the restrooms.  Instead he grunted and indicated the lobby.

Nemesis scowled at the departing server and had to quickly smile to cover it up as more guests walked by. He satisfied himself by rolling his eyes heavenward before making his way back to the lobby. He walked with an easy grace, his posture perfect, his head never moving while beneath his goggles his eyes darted from corner to corner, from face to face. Those who saw couldn't help but be impressed.

It was all he could do not to do the damn pee-pee dance. Where was that damn bathroom?

He did finally find it, and not a moment too soon.  As he struggled with his uniform in one of the stalls, he made a hasty mental note to himself about the need for a zipper in a strategic location.

The relief sent a tingle up his spine which worked its way into a sigh.  The facility's only other occupant slurred something under his breath before stumbling out.  Nemesis heard  the door open, followed by a muffled but brief exchange, and then close.  There were new footsteps on the pristine tile which sounded peculiar: slow and precise and without any hint of urgency.  Behind him, someone stopped at his stall door.  Polished leather oxford shoes -- size ten, he guessed.  They looked expensive.  Whoever it was stood there only for a second, then turned, and walked out.

Nemesis finished up and zipped up, glanced at the sink, then at his gloved hands, and chuckled. He glanced i the mirror out of habit--

He noticed something out of the corner of his eye just then.  Something small and almost insignificant.  A small white shape was attached to the back of his stall door.  Upon approach he discovered a business card.  In blue letters, It read simply Syndicate.

Behind the indigo goggles Nemesis' eyes narrowed. He studied the card on door for a moment before withdrawing a small plastic bag from a belt pouch. Gingerly taking the card by one corner he looked at it again, flipped it over, turned it back, then put it into the baggie, which in turn was replaced into his utility belt. With careful attention to detail he scanned the restroom again, ensuring no other mysterious messages or clues had been left. Satisfied he hadn't missed anything else he left.

He opened the door with his left hand, his right hand hovering by his utility belt. He paused to glance both ways before exiting, then moved back toward the party with casual deliberateness. He was pretty sure no one was noticing that he was checking everyone's shoes. Goggles had their uses, after all.

? - AGM (no need to pause the game move, but can you let Dave know if he sees any boots that match what he saw in the bathroom, or anything untoward as he's making his way through the ballroom?)

Soldier Boy made his way through the crowd. and tapped Phase on the shoulder. "Your training starts now. I got a mission for you."

Celeste raised an eyebrow at the old hero, "A mission, do tell."  A mischevious grin played on the beauty's lips, she had grown disenchanted with the evening and was hopeful that Soldier Boy would be able liven the party back up for her.  Nothing with him seemed dull.

"Stone is in the garden. I want you to grab his sunglasses and bring them back to me." Soldier Boy leaned toward Phase. "And don't you even think about asking him for them. Just take the damned things.

Celeste's sly grin broadend into an all out smile at the suggestion, unfortunately she wouldn't have to get her hands on the handsome hero to accomplish the task.  "Well I haven't had luck getting the men around here to take off much of anything tonight, but I may have something up my sleeve."  She winked at the old hero and headed for the garden, bumping shoulder with a leather clad brute behind her.  She shot him a nasty glance before going on her merry way.

"I'm not sure I'd do that if I were I were you," came a deep voice with a casual air from behind the star-spangled hero.  Slammin' Jack Maxwell, the blood-stained shoulders of his leather jacket marking him as one of the Forbidden, stepped up to Soldier Boy with an easy smile and offered his hand.

"Jack Maxwell," he introduced himself.

Soldier Boy shared a handshake with the biker. "I'll tell you a secret, Jack. The best way to get me to do something is to tell me I shouldn't. Now, is there some reason why I shouldn't, or are you just making conversation?"
 
Jack shrugged and talked while he watched Celeste walk away.  "Just that Stone ain't got no sense of humor, least none when it comes to something like this.  He's a real cool breeze up to a point, but you push him past that and he's liable to get... cranky."

Turning back to Soldier Boy, he said, "Now I served and some of my boys, too, and we've got the world of respect for you.  And while I'd enjoy watching this cesspool of Hudson City's eee-leet burn to the ground, I'd just hate to see you get hurt or worse - humiliated - in front of all these people."

Soldier Boy smiled. "Well, thanks for the concern, Jack. That's sweet, but I just need to find out who our newest teammate is, and this seemed like a good way to do that. As for being humiliated, I've been married and divorced a bunch of times. Stone's best can't come close to what I've been through."

Jack Maxwell guffawed loudly at that and clapped Soldier Boy on the shoulder.  "Heh, heh... I just knew I was going to like you."

He reached into his jacket and came up with a couple of cigars.  He offered one of them to the hero. 

With a big grin on his face, Soldier Boy took the cigar.

"I don't suppose you mind if I stick around and watch?" Jack asked as he lit his cigar with a large wodden match.

Soldier Boy shrugged. "If half of what you say is true I wouldn't stand too close." Soldier Boy reached for the belt pouch that held a small cutting torch, but then he remembered that was a lifetime ago, back when the government kept him supplied. Shit. He figured he could have Heatwave light up his smoke, but that would probably throw her into another moral quandary.

"Mind if I bum a light?" he asked Slammin' Jack.

"Oh, not at all," was the biker's reply as he leaned over with his still-lit match to light his new friend's cigar.  Inside, Jack was very pleased with himself.  He'd hoped to push the right buttons and provoke some shit tonight, and he just might get his wish.
 

"Popular girl tonight?" someone said over her shoulder.  Celeste turned and Raphael was there, hands in his pockets and a smirk on his face.  He chuckled, "Soldier Boy, Stone... my Uncle.  You should choose better company."

"And are you better?" Celeste quipped as she glanced to the garden door, slighty agitated to be distracted from her mission.

Raphael squinted briefly and shook off the unexpected curt reply.  "Could I be any worse?"  He chuckled lightly.  She seemed distracted, but he tried again.  "Looking for someone specific?"

"Well," Celeste turned her full attention to Raphael, "Soldier Boy sent me on this little training mission, to steal Stone's glasses, and I just want to be able to see his face when his glasses disappear."

"He did?" Raphael looked bewildered, then instantly concerned.  He rubbed the back of his neck.  "I'm not sure that's such a great idea..."

"Oh c'mon Raph, I didn't take you for such a bore.  They're just glasses, besides, this party needs a little more life.  I wouldn't want the team trainer to think I'm nothing more than a pretty face."  With that, Phase turned and closed the remaining distance to the garden door.

Raphael allowed a sly smile.  "In that case," he said, catching up to her, "Mind if I tag along?  I'm going to love to see this."

Jack Maxwell watched in appreciation as Celeste worked her way through the room.  She was a fine specimen, indeed.  There was no hesitation about her as she went about her task, but how she planned to do it was a mystery to him.  Even a dame as fine as she was, wasn't going to get the sunglasses off of Stone.

It all happened very quickly, one moment she paused at the door to the gardens and the other she snapped her finger.  Then out of nowhere, a pair of sunglasses that he assumed were Stone's dropped from the air above Soldier Boy.  Not in a million years would he have expected the distracted and half drunk hero to catch them, but with a startled 'Ah', he dipped down just in time to snatch them as the tumbled past his face.

"Thanks, Phase," Soldier Boy yelled across the ballroom with a smile and a wave. "I take back all those nasty things I said about you earlier."

Soldier Boy knew he only had a second or two to get into position. He hurried to a spot where Stone could see him as soon as he came into the ballroom. He leaned his back against a column, put on his new sunglasses, and effected a look of James Dean cool. He had a hard time keeping from laughing, but he managed.

Stone made his way through the crowd towards Phase, trying to talk himself down off the violent ledge as he did so.  He had little patience for being fucked with, but this was particularly irritating, coming as it did in this place and time.  His eyes darted around behind the lenses of his backup pair of sunglasses looking for Ophilia or Nemesis but neither of them were around.  Phase watched anxiously as Stone approached, eager for his reaction, but poised to split if he overreacted.

Then he noticed Soldier Boy and stopped in his tracks.  The biker sighed and murmurred, "I should have known."

Stone changed his trajectory and brought himself over to stand before Soldier Boy.  He resisted the strong impulse to put the old man through the pillar behind him.  Phase let out the breath she hadn't realized she was holding, relieved that Stone would be directing his attentions elsewhere.  She glanced up at Rapheal with a raised eyebrow, "this should be good."

"Having a good time?" he asked the team's trainer without a hint of amusement.

"Hell yeah," Soldier Boy said, flashing his 'I fucking dare you' grin. "I'm having a blast."

"Yeah, well, you're drunk, so that makes sense," Stone casually replied as he stepped up right into the man's face.

"So do I get my glasses back, Pops, or what?" Stone asked in as non-threatening a manner as he could muster at that monent.

Soldier Boy made a mental note. Stone stands his ground, but doesn't fly off the handle. Not bad, but he was kind of looking forward to finding out how hard the boy could hit. He removed the glasses, folded them and handed them back to Stone.

"Congratulations, you just passed your interview. Welcome to the Conquistadors, Easy Rider."

Stone looked down at the glasses in his hand for a moment or two.  While the timing sucked, he figured he had to expect the old man to try something like this at some point.  Fair enough.

"Okay," he said semi-begrudgingly before looking up at Sodier Boy and giving him a simple nod.  Then he turned away and started walking back to the gardens, tucking the glasses into the inside of his jacket as he went.

"Slammin'" Jack Maxwell walked up from a nearby shady spot with a look of consternation.   He stood next to Soldier Boy for a moment as the two of them watched Stone move off.

"Damn," Jack said to the hero around his cigar, his eyes on Stone's back.  "He sure don't rile easy, do he?"

?

Soldier Boy walked over to Phase. His arms were spread in a magnanimous gesture. "That was beautiful. Seriously, I take back all the bad things I've been saying about you."

Phase smiled back at the old man, "Bad things?  I don't think I want to know," but he could tell her curiousity was peaked.  Celeste wasn't sure how she felt about Soldier Boy, but it was nice to know he wasn't oblivious to her talents.  She didn't much like the thought of being thought of as public relations accessory.

Soldier Boy smiled easily. He was getting a good vibe about this one. "On second thought I said no such thing. Anyone who says different is a liar."

11:45 PM

Nemesis strolled in from the lobby, trying not to let his agitation show. His mind was already turning over his options, both at the party and later. Whoever had left him the message had done so with a purpose in mind. Was it to warn him? If so, was he supposed to be afraid of this Syndicate or to simply be aware that they existed? Either way, the who and why of it would need to be sorted out.

Already distracted, he needed to get away from the crowd for a minute, take a breather. His eyes scanned the room, considering his options. A break in the crowd revealed the door to the lounge across the main ball room and he smiled to himself. Perfect. With deliberate casualness he made his way around the peripheral of the gathering, smiling and nodding amiably to those he encountered.

The meeting with JACE had gone better than Phi had hoped.  She was impressed that he was able to lay his ego aside and enjoy the evening.  On one hand it was disturbing, to see how well he could manipulate himself when he wanted to, but on the other, she was genuinely glad that he had the ability to play nice.

She knew that Mason wanted to meet Nemesis, and even though she wasn't looking forward to the prospect of that, she planned on doing so.  As her eyes scanned the crowd, she saw Luke returning from the lobby area, he seemed focused as he walked through the crowd.  "There's Nemesis now."  She said to her date.  "...but he looks a bit distracted."

Mason's eyes followed Ophilia's to the costumed superhero. He did appear to be walking with a purpose. With a shrug, he replied, "There's no rush.  I'd rather meet him when he's not distracted anyhow."

As they watched him he disappeared into a side lounge and Mason could sense Phi's distraction.  "You know what.  I'll introduce you after the ball drop.  I haven't had a chance to talk to him since the incident back stage, and I want to make sure that he's okay."  She didn't ask permission, but he could tell that she was struggling a bit with leaving him now, so close to the ball drop.  "I'll be back, in just a couple of minutes."

Mason smiled and made a show of looking at his watch.  "You'd better.  Else I'll may get accosted by Celeste and I'll have to come find you."  He laughed at the thought.  "And when you make it back, you can tell me about what backstage incident you are referring to."

After a casual salute to Phase, Soldier Boy made his way over to the garden doors. He made grim eye contact with Heatwave and beckoned her to follow him. He took a seat at an empty table in a relatively quiet corner of the ballroom and waited.

Back inside Heatwave looked around until she spotted Soldier sitting in the corner. From his expression she guessed he was not happy with her failed attempt at getting Stone's sunglasses and she tried to think of something she might say to smooth things over. She walked over and stopped across the table from him, "You wanted to talk to me, sir?"

He gestured for Heatwave to sit down, and then stared at her for an uncomfortable moment. "Explain."

Even though she had nothing to feel guilty about Heatwave felt like a child who knew she had done something wrong called up in front of her parents. As she took the chair opposite Soldier Boy various stories ran through her head. Finally she settled on the truth, "I didn't think it was right to just take something from a teammate without asking. That, and I don't know what Stone can do. I may be a bit green at this hero stuff but I don't get myself into a fight with the unknown if there may be a way around it."

Soldier Boy nodded as he listened. "Logical, very well though out. That's the problem, though. I didn't tell you to think about nothing. I told you to take action, to just do something, and you blew it. I know you're sitting there thinking 'what's with this guy and Stone's glasses', but it's not about the damned glasses. It's about you second guessing a fellow Conquistador. It's about you showing a complete lack of faith in a teammate. Right now I'm imagining the Conquistadors out in the field, Nemesis gives you an order and you tell him you'll get back with him after you've thought it over. It doesn't work that way, Hot Stuff, a crisis is measured in seconds. You won't have time to think. You have to trust your first instinct. You have to trust your teammates. You have to act, act, act!"

He punctuated each of the last three words by slapping the table. The tastefully designed centerpiece bounced over on it's side and rolled onto the floor.

"I didn't have to think about it. What you told me to do was wrong, in more ways than one. Besides, you didn't tell me how to get the glass and my way might have worked." Heatwave could not believe she had to sit here and defend her actions.

"What? It might have... What?" Soldier Boy rubbed his eyes. "Listen, you're used to working alone. Being on a team is a whole different thing. You have to know your role and do what has to be done when it has to be done. Tell me this, what if Nemesis came over here and told you to take Stone's glasses? Would you  do it?"

"I would tell him the same thing I'm telling you." Heatwave answered.

Not the answer Soldier Boy wanted. He let out a slow, heavy sigh. "You're off active duty until further notice. If the team goes out on a call you have to stay at the Cathedral and answer the phones."

Heatwave's jaw dropped and she stared at Soldier Boy dumbfounded. "You can't be serious?" Even as she said it she knew he was.

"Listen, I know that you've had some shit handed to you, and I know you're a woman on a mission. I told you I'd help you with that and I mean it, but I can't let the other Conquistadors serve next to someone who second guesses every damn thing. I'm sorry. That's just how it is."

"I wouldn't be second guessing things if I wasn't being set up for failure." Heatwave said with barely contained anger. If Soldier Boy wanted to take her off active duty, fine, she could not stop him. It did not mean she had to give up her search. If Soldier Boy would not let her go out with the team she would just go out on her own.

"If that's all I think it was time I headed home." Heatwave looked around hoping to spot Nemesis or Ophillia, thinking it best to let one, or both, of them know she was leaving.