Day 37: Sun Room (4th Shift)

[secret_orchard]

There were still too many things on Armand's mind for him to truly relax. The morning with Alec had been a help. And seeing that TK was going to be well helped him know that it was time to work out something else, but what? He'd already, without success again, tried to reach one of the club leaders about his sole idea of something new and different

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[zeus_incarnate]

[ Unknowingly waiting for Kimberly]

While it was nice to be allowed to eat his lunch in peace, Marcus was somewhat disappointed no one had come to speak to him. The blue stars were quite visible, though they were looking a little faded. He'd have to go over them again with the blue marker he had his room.

He could have just gone to the arts and crafts room to do so, but he didn't feel like doing anything else in the art room, and he was more likely to be seen in the sun room.

Marcus took a seat on one of the couches and settled down to wait for dinner.

[morphenominal]

Today was not turning out to be a very good day. Kimberly couldn't imagine any day in this place being good, but that was beside the point. She wasn't any closer to figuring things out than she had been when she woke up this morning. And that was... well, concerning, actually.

With a sigh, the Ranger ran her fingers through her hair and looked around the room. She wasn't sure what she was looking for (although she was definitely keeping an eye out for Nurse Creepy) but she stopped when she saw someone with blue stars on his shirt. That was what the guy on the message board had said to look for, right?

"Uh, hey," Kimberly greeted as she approached him. "You're not waiting for anyone, are you? Cause if this is a bad time or something I can always, y'know, come back later."

[zeus_incarnate]

There was still no sign of Logan which was troubling, but Marcus gave up looking around for him and looked up as he was approached by a young woman. He'd have to check Wolverine's room before he went out to meet people tonight.

"No, this isn't a bad time. Have a seat," Marcus said, gesturing to the rest of the couch.

He suspected from the greeting that she was looking for him from the message board.

[morphenominal]

"Thanks." Kimberly took a seat and offered him a quick smile. What was she supposed to say now? She supposed an introduction was in order, but who did she introduce herself as? Zordon had said they weren't supposed to reveal their identities to anyone, and she assumed that meant other heroes as well, so... civilian identity would have to do.

"My name's Kimberly. We, ah... We spoke a bit over the message board earlier." She didn't think letting him know that much would be a problem. As long as she didn't mention being a Power Ranger, she wouldn't be betraying Zordon, right? "I was hoping to hear more about this group of heroes thing. What do they do? How do they operate? Things like that."

[zeus_incarnate]

"It's nice to meet you, Kimberly, I'm Marcus," So he was correct in his guess. Well, at least people were making an attempt to work together, even if they didn't want to reveal who they were when they wore a mask.

"Most of our efforts have been trying to find a way to safely get civilians out of here," It was a safe term to use for people that weren't heroes. The preferred term in Paragon was 'citizen', though that didn't apply here quite as well. "And when we see people that are in over their head at night we go rescue them."

[morphenominal]

Marcus, right. That's what he'd signed on the message board too. "It's nice to meet you too," Kimberly replied, before falling silent in order to listen to his explanation.

Huh... It really didn't sound all that different from what the Rangers did back in Angel Grove. The only difference was there would be no helmet or mask to conceal someone's identity. That wouldn't be too bad though, would it? It wouldn't be the first time she'd had to fight without being able to morph, so as long as she was careful she shouldn't have to worry about compromising her identity as the Pink Ranger. Besides, she was used to working as a team rather than alone.

Kimberly nodded and laughed slightly. "So it's just another day at the office, huh? That doesn't sound too bad." She paused, and then nodded once more. "Okay, yeah, I think I'd like to help out with this group. As long as you guys are willing to have me, that is."

[zeus_incarnate]

The comment about it being another day at the office actually made Marcus smile, just a little bit.

"I'm not going to turn away anyone who wants to help others," Though he had been known to get very unhappy with people that attempted to help when it wasn't needed and only made the situation worse.

"I do have to ask, though, have you done this sort of thing before?" He had the feeling that she had, either that or she was very good at accepting odd situations.

Marcus always found that the more effective teams were the ones where the members knew each other well, so he'd have to make more of an effort to get to know the arriving heroes.

That was a little complicated by the fact that a lot of them seemed to be very stubborn about hiding their identities.

[morphenominal]

And there was the question she'd been dreading. Kimberly assumed it would be coming up sooner or later, but she'd been hoping it would've been later. Much, much later... Hopefully she could give a decent answer without having to reveal too much.

"My friends and I were a team back home, so yeah. I've done this before. It's been about three years since we started too, so I'm pretty sure I can handle whatever this place throws at me." As long as the people behind this place didn't have a habit of making their monsters grow to giant size, anyway. Defeating something like that without a Zord might be a little difficult.

[zeus_incarnate]

Three years... that wasn't too bad, hardly a veteran, but at least she'd been doing this before. "I wouldn't underestimate the sort of things you can run into here. The areas where you'll run into brainwashed patients or stronger enemies are usually the outside areas and the sun room, don't go there alone unless you absolutely have to," Marcus warned.

"If you prefer to use a weapon, I should be able to get one for you," Marcus offered. He casually looked around the room as he spoke, still no sign of Manticore, or Logan. Even Recluse was missing, though Marcus had seen him at lunch.

[morphenominal]

Ah... more talk about the enemies that lurked around this place. Kimberly made a mental note about avoiding the sun room and outside areas when she was by herself. It was probably a good thing that she hadn't gotten very far last night then, considering she'd been looking for a way outside.

When he mentioned a weapon, the Ranger blinked a few times. Wow. She hadn't even thought about looking for a weapon before. She doubted this place had any Blade Blasters lying around, but hey.

"I didn't think place would have any weapons available. If there's any way I could get a set of bow and arrows, that would be awesome," she replied. Having a weapon would definitely make things easier.

"So, is there anything special I have to do? Or is the general idea to simply go out, make sure people are safe, and stay alive?"

[zeus_incarnate]

"You're an archer too, then? I think that's a bit more complicated than the weapons my friend usually makes," Well, it was much less complicated than the weapons Recluse normally made, but it was still something Marcus didn't want to vouch for without actually asking Stefan. Manticore would be making himself a bow, though, so perhaps he could be talked into making an extra bow. It was also extremely odd to be calling Stefan his friend, but it was better than trying to explain the extremely complicated relationship they seemed to have

[tartaros_avatar]

Recluse walked into the Sun Room just in time to hear a familiar voice. It was still nearly enough to make him cringe, but having enhanced senses still superior to those of a human made for some interesting listening in. So, he was Marcus' friend now, as far as others were concerned? What an interesting development.

Not wanting to immediately wreck any gains he might have made, he did his best to completely mask his usual malevolence. "So, you want my help with something?" How precious. The Hero depending on the Villain.

[morphenominal]

As far as Kimberly was concerned, nothing about this place seemed too out there right yet. She and the other Rangers had been sent to different dimensions (and occasionally different time periods) multiple times since they received The Power, and they faced various monsters on a fairly regular basis. Of course, this place was weird even by Ranger standards, but at least there was a group of other heroes to work with.

She was a little disappointed to hear that a bow might be too complicated, although... "Your friend makes the weapons?" Well, that made more sense than them having weapons just lying around, but how exactly did someone make a weapon

[zeus_incarnate]

Stefan always did have excellent timing, but Marcus couldn't say he was too happy to have him hovering over them right now. Between his size and his occasionally glowing red eyes, he wasn't exactly the least intimidating person.

"I was going to ask Manticore if he would mind making a second bow, or showing Kimberly how to make one herself. But if you're volunteering, Stefan, be my guest" Marcus said. He was curious to see if Stefan would agree to do it or not, or if he even knew how.

[tartaros_avatar]

Recluse nodded to the new hero, successfully keeping his expression free of contempt. "Stefan Richter." He wasn't going to even try to look really friendly--that would probably just make Marcus think he was up to something.

"I can do it, but I need to get the proper kind of wood for it." No villain was ever really prepared without knowing how to make weapons. Either for their own benefit or to know what to never allow a captured hero to get their hands on. "That means a trip outside the complex, which I'd rather not do alone."

[morphenominal]

Kimberly relaxed a bit once the new guy--Stefan, apparently--introduced himself. He was the one who was going to make a weapon for her? She couldn't claim to know how something like a bow was made (the weapons had simply come with The Power), but awesome!

...or, no, not awesome. Not if he needed wood from outside in order to make it. Marcus had already said it was dangerous to go outside alone, so she could understand why Stefan wouldn't be so keen on that idea.

"I can go with you," Kimberly volunteered after a moment. "Really, if you're going to be making the bow, it's the least I could do." It was only fair that she put in some work herself, after all. And besides, it'd give her a chance to see what was so bad about being outside. It wasn't that she doubted Marcus' warning, but she was curious.