TNO - Season 1: The Longest Day of the Year

Tuesday, June 21st 2005 2:00pm The heat of Summer had been bearing down on New Orleans for weeks. It was close to 90 on this, the longest day of the year. The city’s residents and few tourists walked and worked in the midst of the heat. The former, you could tell, were used to. The latter? They just needed to be thankful it wasn’t August or September. Father Charles, pastor of St. Louis Cathedral, and the waif Madeleine Villemont stepped out of the apartment entrance into Pirate’s Alley and moved towards Jackson Square. They might have seemed out of place, but this was the French Quarter afterall. The burst of fire and resounding boom from the center of the square, over the statue of Andrew Jackson on his horse, caught everyone’s attention, and Lanie instinctively reached for Father Charles. Everyone’s eyes began to adjust, but none could believe what they saw hovering over the statue. No one in the city would have believed it had not a crew from WDSU burst from their studio only two blocks away, across from the Royal Orleans hotel, and rushed to the scene to broadcast it live. He was dressed in a dark crimson suit, and his face was completely covered. He sported some tapered goggles over the hood, and there was an orange stripe that trailed down each shoulder to his arms and a matching set of orange stripes down each leg. A half-sun logo was emblazoned upon his chest and a cape fluttered in the light breeze but flapped when he moved. He surveyed the chaos that grew in the park beneath him, and he lifted his two hands out and pointed his fists at the ground. Flaming streaks shot from his hands and burst upon impact as the azalea’s the struck caught fire. * * * * * Evan Baker heard the first sound easily from café around the corner from the square. Maspero’s was not that far. He had already paid up so he grabbed his pack and rushed out the door towards the square. He had to work his way through the crowds that were trying to push him in the opposite direction and to safety. He rounded the corner and almost lost his footing when he caught site of the man flying over the square. Evan caught a glimpse of the man hanging unsupported in mid-air, fire flowering from his fists, and stepped back behind the cover of the building. As he peered around the corner, Evan's left hand brushed the waistband of his jeans, right where his sidearm would be...if he were still in uniform. Or even where it would be if he were at home. But given that he was visiting New Orleans, where he had no permit, he'd left it behind. And...he was woolgathering. Avoiding acknowledging that there was flying man in front of him. A flying man. Who could, apparently, generate blasts of flame from his bare hands. And who had decided to emulate a comic book supervillain, right down to the cape fluttering behind him. It was ridiculous. Absurd. Impossible. Just like teleportation. So maybe not as impossible as he'd once believed. * * * * * Nick Papadopolous sat in the chair next to Andy’s bed in Touro Hospital. The kid had leukemia and was in for another treatment. Nick had just finished showing Andy how to make a paper airplane when the story broke on the tv over Andy’s bed. Nick stared at the story as the events unfolded on the tube. “Every guy should know how to make a good paper airplane. I don’t mean one that does crazy tricks or anything, leave that for the nerds in the group. But if you can put together one that actually flies decent, that’s worth your time.” Nick was on the finish folds of a good stubby paper dart, not that damn long thing you see punk kids throw on every classroom-TV show ever. Those things never actually worked out. But this short SOB based on a DaVinci model, it always did the trick. “Now see here at the end you…” That was when Nick noticed he’d lost the kid’s attention. “What you got there Andy? We switch over to Sci-Fi or somethin’?” “Nah, the nurse had this left on a soap opera. This is local news! ” Andy managed to sound excited. No wonder. His bed was strewn with the comic books Nick had brought him, not those bargain ones either. These were all new, latest issues. The former patient looked from the current one to the television and shook his head. Months ago, he’d have figured that this was just some publicity stunt. Or maybe a movie being filmed. Or some kind of War of the Worlds level of a joke, you know, sort of Punked but on a bigger scale. He’d have never for a moment entertained the notion that this was the truth. “Come on Andy, we both know this isn’t the real deal. Someone is goofin’ on us.” Flames leapt from the hands of the guy on the screen, igniting plants, trees. “Looks pretty real to me.” The kid was glued, in that leaning forward mouth open kind of daze. “So what if it is?” Nick leaned back in the never-comfortable visitor’s chair. “Play a bit of a game with me here Andy. What if this guy really is doin’ all that? And what if you could do something about it?” He plucked one of the comic books up off the bed, spandex-dressed muscle-man on the cover. “What if you weren’t just a kid, but had this whole secret identity secret powers thing going. What would you do?” “You kidding? I’d go kick this guy’s ass.” Andy had the grace to look a little embarrassed at the minor swear word. “Solstice is obviously a Bad Guy.” Nick ran a hand through his hair. “You make it sound so easy. What about the cops? Hell, what about the fire department. They’re the ones who are paid, even trained to do this sort of stuff. What do you get out of it?” The kid gave Nick the kind of look that suggested Nick was dumbest person on the planet. “Don’t you read these?” He gestured at the comics. “Cops never have enough of what it takes to stop guys with powers. Not unless you count those super SWAT squads, but even then they still kinda suck. Besides, this guy look like he’s about to be afraid of cops? Bet he can melt bullets. But what do I get out of it? It’s the right thing to do, that’s what ya get out of it.” More flames were thrown, people screamed. Andy commented. “You know how we talk about what’s worse than what I’ve got? Being burned up, that sucks. Hear it hurts worse than the chemo.” “So you still sure you’d go kick the guy’s ass?” Nick asked with a tiny grin. “Or do you get the people out of the way?” “You’ve gotta start reading these things. You move the people out of the way so you can beat the guy up. Unless of course you’re him.” Andy pointed to one of the covers. “In which case you just blow the guy’s head off from a quarter mile away and let everyone fend for themselves afterwards. Cool but not as, you know, heroic.” Nick gave the screen one more look and stood up. “Looks like I’m going to have to cut out of here early Andy. Traffic is gonna be hell all around town because of this. Besides, I think you’re getting’ plenty of entertainment.” He gave the kid a fist bump. “Don’t give the nurses too much shit and watch that language young man.” They shared a laugh. I can’t believe I let him talk me into this. Still, good point about folks being turned into crispy critters. Hospital has enough to deal with. Maybe just move some people out of harm’s way, let the pros do their job. People want to poison themselves on bad food or bad drugs, that’s their business. But having this drop outta the sky on them? Maybe I can help a bit without it being a big deal. Damn kid. Nick had complained about the traffic, but truth was, he didn’t drive. He used public transportation in small doses. But getting to and from the hospital was pretty easy. They had a big garden and a bunch of other trees around just for decoration. Nick recognized the downtown area where hell was breaking loose. The trees should be able to get him close. Nick realized he could put himself right in the middle of the action because of some of the trees in and around Jackson Square. He watched the masked figure, realizing the guy was covered for a reason, and quickly thought through his options as he scanned the area for a destination tree that would hide his sudden appearance. Nick arrived in the park with a disorientation that was growing more and more familiar. Of all the odd things he’d learned he could do, this was his absolute favorite. Going on vacation? No problem. He could make it happen without all the expenses associated with transportation. Getting around town? That was the best, but usually he stepped out of trees that weren’t in this much view. Not usually trying to stop some guy who throws flames from his hands from turning people into bar-b-q either Nick looked around Jackson Square. People have more important things to notice than where I might have come from. Blazing boy there caused the problem and provided the distraction. Most people had the sense to run when the flames started up. But running didn’t always mean running in the right direction. A lady with a little girl who was still on a child leash despite being carried – basically ran away from one fire zone to the next. Which lead to the whole frozen in panic thing while the kid screamed. She couldn’t see her way into the clear, but from here, it looked like it shouldn’t be a big deal. Instead of running across the square to them, Nick treestepped, walked out the ‘back’ of it from the lady’s perspective so she wouldn’t freak out any more. The smoke wasn’t bad yet but wasn’t any fun. “Come on, this way!” He tucked the lady under his arm, let her hold onto the girl, and began moving them into the clear. She didn't know where he had come from, but it didn't seem to matter. She allowed herself to easily by led by this young man. The smoke swirled around them as wildly as the screams and shouts from the police and those still near enough to the action. She clung to the little girl, however, not allowing her grip upon the child to relax. The child's sobs of fear receded, some, but didn't vanish completely. The smoke, the noise, it was worse than any party he'd ever been to. The total lack of anything resembling order was the issue. Plenty of people in the scene for the first time would complain of the chaos. But just like those with the math brains would tell you, even in apparent chaos, there is frequently pattern. None of that was here though. You couldn't orient based on the sounds. You could barely see. It should have been a simple notion. Walk in, turn around, walk out. This was one of the many reasons why EMT folks had special training. * * * * * “Paul,” the voice came from over the cubicle next to Paul Lundi. “Paul, holy shit. Hit wwltv.com and check this out.” Paul Lundi’s cube-partner, Rick, continued to speak as Paul typed in the url, and he clicked the “Breaking News” link on the page. He watched the streaming feed direct from the French Quarter. Paul stared at the browser on his monitor, watching the events playing out elsewhere in New Orleans. There on the screen was a guy dressed in a stupid Halloween costume with flames all around him. The idiot even had a cape. For some reason, Paul felt annoyance at what he was seeing and that anger was slowly rising. He called over the cubicle wall to Rick. "What the fu... Is this thing for real?" he asked incredulously. "Seems so", the greasy-haired, twenty-year-old guy called back. "The cute reporter keeps going on about how it isn't a scam, joke or publicity stunt..." Paul did a few searches on Google. NOLA and Fox 8 were also reporting a disturbance in the French Quarter, although they hadn't quite got reporters there yet. Still, NOLA's webcam was up and showing a similar static scene as WWLTV's grainy, but live, shots. "But it has to be just some stunt, surely..." he called back, whilst listening to the strange figure's overblown monologue. The crazy figure - he called himself Solstice - then shot out a blast of fire. Paul hadn’t heard of any movie or TV show with someone called Solstice in. "Woah, shit!" Paul swore. The guy was hurling flames about – real flames - just like he'd done the day before. Of course, unlike this guy, he wasn't going round in some costume, calling himself some stupid goddamn name, and pretending to be a supervillain. But fire erupted from the guy's hands just like it had from Paul's. Was there a connection? "What the fuck is happening to the world?" Paul muttered and then turned to Rick. "I'm gonna see whether this thing’s for real. Gonna get closer". He grabbed his jacket from the back of his office chair and began heading out of the cubicle. "If Jeff wonders where I am, tell him I'm on a break and gone for a smoke". "Sure... Hey, what d’you mean...?!" Rick called out as Paul left the office. Paul didn't hear any more. Something deep inside him told him that he had to go and see this "Solstice" guy – either to get some answers or stop the idiot from burning down New Orleans. Outside the building, Paul realised that taking his car wasn't going to work. Hell, by the time he got in his car and started her up - assuming it actually started today - he could've jogged over to Jackson Square. He stopped for a moment and thought about what he was doing. Why the hell was he bothered about this? It was easier to not care about it all. But the guy on the TV, this "Solstice", was like him. He needed answers. More importantly, the freaking idiot was killing people out there. And the more he stood there on the sidewalk thinking about it, the more damage he was going to do. Sometimes, he figured, it was easier to care. Paul began to run. He headed down Poydras to Canal, then to Decatur and within a few minutes he was within spitting distance of Jackson Square. And as he got closer, the more chaotic things began. Some people were rushing away from the area, terrified and scared. But others were moving towards the sqaure, desperate to know what was going on, to goddamn nosey to care about themselves. I suppose, he thought, that makes me one of 'em. By now, he could see flames and smell smoke and that brought back the recent memory of the burning building, the tickling flames and the power that had burst out of him. He shuddered, paused again but then pushed on into the madness... * * * * * Terry Gardener sat in the wing-back rattan chair on the patio of the uptown house on Constance St. His Aunt Lynn had purchased a fairly nice house, he had to admit, and the atmosphere of “New Orleans” had started to grow a little on him. He idly flipped through the stations until he stopped as the news story broke in. Terry brought out his laptop, turning it on as he watched the events unfolding on the patio television. By the time the desktop was available and connected to the net, Solstice had given his speech and was continuing to display his power. Terry quickly found web pages that were showing live pictures of the attack and Mapquest quickly told him it would take an hour or more for him to get to the square, even without being hampered by the people fleeing the scene. With one eye on the televised footage and the other on the various windows opened on his computer screen, he began trying to understand what Solstice really wanted. Terry studied Solstice's movements and listened to the villain's voice echo from the microphones that had been placed nearby from the TV and radio stations. The man moved with confidence, as if he truly believed there was no one or nothing that could harm him. The New Orleans Police were starting to move in, but Solstice seemed to care not for their presence. The more the media arrived, the bolder he got. Terry shook his head, either this guy was delusional or there were going to a lot of cajun-fried public servants in the square fairly soon. * * * * * The masked figure blasted again at the flora of the square. All the tourists had moved either completely away or far enough out to be a safe distance. “Today,” a voice issued from behind the goggled mask of the flying man. “Today is the longest day of the year. Today will be the longest day in the history of this city. Of this country. I am Solstice, and you will come to know the meaning of the word fear.” Evan rolled his eyes briefly, then checked on the..supervillain again. He hadn't moved. Evan glanced around. All the bystanders--locals and tourists alike--had fled, or moved away to a presumably safe distance. Evan saw cameras and cell phones being produced. (Stupid,) Evan thought. Still, the guy clearly had issues. And enough of an ego that he might feel flattered rather than annoyed by being photographed. But on the off chance that he wasn't, or that he might decide to escalate before the cops showed up, Evan began considering his options. Evan watched and looked around. He saw the photographer out of the corner of his eye as she began to inch closer to Solstice. She had moved up the steps near the entrance to the square by the fence along Decatur street. "Don't be stupid," Evan said almost silently. "Don't be stupid, don't be stupid--" he chanted. It was something of a mantra for him, and it appalled him how often people did just that. Case in point: the photographer continued creeping closer to Solstice. He hadn't noticed her yet, but it was only a matter of time. Evan gauged the distance from his position to the photographer--and to Solstice, then glanced around for something to use as a weapon. Evan began to sift through the cart used by the street artist that had suddenly bolted in fear and abandoned his tools of the trade. Evan saw the various tubes of paint, brushes, towels and trowels that man used. He also studied the cart itself, which consisted of the box cart on wheels, the umbrella over it, and the pair of stools the artist would use for himself and his caricature subjects. The photographer continued to inch closer. She moved, snakelike, across the ground around and between the shrubs. The rapid clicks from her camera's autowind added a surreal staccato punch to the crackling of brush fires. She's also cute, Evan noted as he continued to quickly examine the cart. Evan shuffled through materials, looking in vain for an Exacto knife or a box cutter. There was none to be found. Barring that, something he could use as a good sturdy club. Again--nothing. The stools were too unwieldy, the umbrella too large. Evan picked up a couple of the smaller paint brushes. A couple had paint on them, had obviously been in use when the artist fled, but most were clean. The artist took good care of his tools. The shafts were thin, fairly soft wood--but they came to reasonably sharp points. They wouldn't survive more than a couple of blows, probably not even one. But as makeshift weapons they seemed his best bet. Taking one in each hand, Evan turned his attention toward Solstice and the photographer again. Evan watched as the photographer, fearlessly, shifted her weight and position to get some more pictures. Solstice hadn't noticed her, yet, but it was probably just a matter of time before he saw her huddled behind the bushes. What would he think, questioned Evan? Would he think her part of the police? Would he think she held a weapon? How would he react if he felt threatened by her? Evan didn't have any more time wonder. Solstice, having heard the clicks from her camera, whirled around in the air to face her. * * * * * After shrieking in fright and cowering behind Father Charles, Lanie took his hand and began tugging him back toward the door from which they'd emerged. She'd had enough shocks in the past 24 hours; whatever this was, she wanted none of it. "Come on, Pere Charles, we be safer in de church, huh?" Father Charles glanced down at the young girl for a moment and studied her face for a sign of anything other than true fear. Was this just a coincidence, he thought, that that flying, flaming thing would show up the same time this poor girl did. This poor girl who started to transform into some animal before my very eyes. Out of your league Chuck. You can take care of the girl, but the rest of this is beyond you. "Come my child, we can see this safely from inside the church. And the police shall be here soon." Father Charles led Lanie to the safety of the St Louis Cathedral. From there, they were able to safely see the action that played out in front of them. The sounds of the sirens from the police and fire departments grew as their vehicles swerved into the area. * * * * * I wonder if the authorities have considered their basic chemistry. After all, this flying fireball should still require oxygen to both talk and breath. I bet a water hose would ruin his day. Terrance Gardener thought. Using his cell phone he called the office of the nearby fire department. Lets just see if we can cool down this Solstice. First we start with the Fire Department and then the Chief of Police if they're too busy. Terry continued to watch as the trucks and cars came into view. He put his phone down, before dialing, and watched as the the emergency response team began to assess the situation and form their centers of command and tactical. Well maybe I should just let the officials do their job. They're on the scene and if they can't figure out the same things I have well then maybe I'll call. Okay so where is are the good guys who are going to oppose this self-styled villain. I know we're not the only ones with special abilities. And look at that lousy costume, I could do better in my sleep. Well if nothing else I probably could make a mint off of designing and making costumes... I guess I'll need something like that too, if I decide to get off my ass and help stop the next one. Terry thought. As if they had heard some of Terry's thoughts, a fire hose erupted with water at the flying figure. The think column of water shot forward and sizzled into steam as it struck what could only be described as a globe of fire that erupted and surrounded Solstice who laughed. Something caught his attention, however, Solstice spun around and faced a photographer that had crept too close. * * * * * Evan dropped the paint brushes and flung himself at the photographer. At this range there was essentially no difference in their angular momentum, making it a quick and easy fling. Attacking Solstice was no guarantee that she wouldn't be hurt. Getting her out of his line of sight was a better idea. All at once and nothing first, Evan was there, crouched behind her. He snaked an arm around her waist and covered her mouth with his right hand. He didn't want her to give away their position when-- pop! --they were back in his hiding place at the corner, by the artist's cart. But he expected her to be surprised, shocked, probably frightened--and very likely angry at his presumption--when she found herself abruptly elsewhere. So he braced himself to hold her still when she reacted. "Keep quiet, please," he said softly. "I'd rather the lunatic not know where we are." The series of expressions that criss-crossed on the woman's face was exactly what Evan expected. He saw her features shift anew as one expresssion segued to the next. Her eyes widened in surprise, narrowed in anger, then danced back and forth amongst the plethora of feelings as she tried to get a handle on what had just happened. She had, a mere second ago, been close to snapping a prize-winning photo from behind the azaleas in one spot. She was now behind some artist's cart in the arms of a stranger who held her protectively yet with his hand over her mouth. "Wffn thhh ffckk," she mumbled and Evan felt her hot breath upon his hand even as he felt the slightest of trembles in her body. The air wasn't so still that the smoke failed to move. They hit a gap in it and Nick gave the mom a shove in the right direction. If there was one person who needed help, there'd be more. He couldn't just babysit these two, right? He looked around and just happened to notice some moron with a camera who apparently didn't equate fire and danger. I so didn't come here to do this There were trees everywhere around the park. For a scintilla of time, Nick felt guilty. Trees versus fire. Not exactly fair to the trees. People came first though. He'd agonize over the decision later. For the moment, Nick reached for a connection that was growing easier and easier to make. Nick saw the young man vanish from behind a cart, reappearing to tackle the photographer. He then saw them suddenly and magically disappear only seconds before Solstice engulfed the bushes in a jet of flame. The heat and sudden burst of light from the fire was seen and felt by Evan and the reporter he had just saved. The woman's eyes darted to the spot where she had been, then back to Evan's face. The azaleas and oaks began to move at Nick's wordless commands. The world watched as the plants came to life and reached forth to try and snag the flying fiend in the air above the square. Solstice thrust out his arms and began to hurl small globes of fire at the plants. He flitted and darted in the air as he tried to dodge the oustretched oaken arms that grasped at him. It made sense. If he wasn't the only one who could do strange things, if the fire flinging I-made-my-costume-in-my-basement guy could do strange things, then it just made sense there'd be someone else who could do things too. And he wouldn't be the only guy who'd show up to help. Damn kid Nick thought about him with a bit of affection even in the middle of all this. Did the guy who'd make Criss Angel green with envy have someone who convinced him to show or did he actually come down on his own? No time to ponder it now. The plants did their thing. He wanted them to keep doing their thing so he couldn't just duck and run. Keeping Solstice busy meant more people could listen to their brains telling their feet to get the hell outta the way. Still, no reason to just stand around in the open either. Nick looked for some cover and moved towards it. Evan pulled his hand away from the woman's mouth and released his hold on her. "Sorry for being so familiar," he said quietly. "But it looked like you could use the help." He spoke to her but the focus of his attention was Solstice. Well--Solstice and the trees which had began to snatch at him. The young woman seemed to gather her senses and relaxed in his arms. Her expression softened, a bit, and Evan felt comfortable removing his hand from her mouth. "What," she began with a whisper. "What happened? How did we get here?" She asked him again, but Evan didn't have time for that right now. "Christ," Evan breathed aloud. The trees were animated. They were moving in a very un-plantlike fashion, reaching out with their limbs and clawing or snatching at Solstice. This was a day for firsts. If Evan had had any notion that he was unique in the world, the last few minutes had destroyed it. In addition to himself and the costumed idiot with the flame powers, there was at least one other person with weird abilities nearby. Evan looked around, wondering who was responsible for this. Was there anyone watching intently? Maybe concentrating on the plants? Evan scanned the crowd until he finally spied someone that stood out from the rest. No one but Evan seemed to notice the man in street clothes that seemed to be gesturing in the direction of the writhing plants. He was of average build, and about Evan's age. The young man seemed to flick his wrists and move his hands as if he was conducting or something. And his attention was on Solstice as well. "Huh," Evan muttered. Another...whatever they all were. Mutant? Freak? Special? Whoever and whatever he was, the man didn't seem to be having much luck subduing Solstice. Flinging himself at Solstice and grappling him--even just long enough to fling away with him to someplace remote--didn't seem like a good idea. His flames were igniting living plants and human flesh burned more easily than live wood. Evan looked at the photographer. "I don't suppose you have a gun?" he asked. But he didn't wait for a reply, guessing that the answer was almost certainly no. But the thought of bullets tickled at the back of Evan's mind. There was something there.... Paul watched as small fires burnt around him and the flying, flaming guy ("He really was flying", he thought, "unless he's really good at hiding a crane") added even more flames to a helpless bush. He'd seen the fire department's finest try to douse this Solstice moments before but it seemed their hoses had no effect. Paul's anger flared. The guy was just hanging there, laughing, whilst firing blasts of flames at everything. What the hell did that achieve? What the fuck did he think he was doing? But then Paul noticed something strange - all the bushes and trees were moving... Bullets. Fast-moving projectiles. What did those have to do with flinging? There was something.... Evan studied on the idea, feeling the time pressure as Solstice continued his campaign of terror. Then he had it. Angular momentum. When Evan flung across long distances he had to compensate for angular momentum. The earth was a spinning sphere; points closer to the equator were moving faster than points nearer the poles. Points on opposite sides of the earth were moving in opposite directions. Evan could manage those vectors, though it took concentration. Bullets had a lot of angular momentum too. Evan looked around and picked up the nearest pebble. Holding it on his open palm, Evan felt around for that sense of whirling chaos from which he drew--or into which he dumped--extra energy when he flung himself around. He eyed Solstice, gauging his distance and direction. And then he gave the pebble a push, dumping a few meters per second of velocity into it. Lanie and Father Charles watched events unfold from an upper window of the cathedral, the young girl clutching his hand unconsciously for comfort. Everything was burning in hellfire, the plants moving as if they were possessed. Her stomach was roiling in near-panic, wondering if the gentle priest next to her had been all wrong, that she really was cursed, that by coming here she'd led Satan to unleash his own on the poor citizens of New Orleans. Solstice... he look human. But den, I look human, don't I... mos' of de time... Her other hand reached once again for her crucifix and she began reciting the Lord's Prayer and the 23rd Psalm over and over, whispering the words even as tears formed in her bi-colored eyes. Father Charles felt the girls trembling heard her begin to whisper the prayers. He softly squeezed her shoulder and held her tighter to him reassuringly. "There, there, my child," his deep voice spoke the words of comfort. "This cannot be coincidence, I know. But you are safe. God is with you, and so am I." Nick was beginning to feel the fibers of the trees as if they had become an extension of his own sinews and bones. He thrust out with his left hand to feint and the oak on his left followed. Then, he flicked his right hand and the still oak on his right sprang to life and clipped Solstice on the back of the thighs. Nick's blow caused the flying villain to spin in the air as if he had been suspended by wires, but Nick could see that he had only gained a moment's respite from the fiery onslaught. Evan released the rock as he opened the conduits of space before it. He felt a rush of excitement as he realized he was able to hurl the rock through space as he had hurled himself. Time slowed for him as he watched the rock speed towards Solstice. He waited for the impact when he saw the oak strike Solstice and spin him about. Evan's rock struck the villain in the shoulder. Evan and the girl reporter both heard the thunk and the yell of pain that followed and issued from Solstice. Do you like to fight? It was the kind of question Nick got asked. Usually by party girls groping for something ‘different’ to ask. Folks figured that anyone doing his job for a living must like to smack people around. It wasn’t so much that he liked fighting. When you’re getting treated for big C, having folks call you a fighter is a compliment. Says something about your character. But if you like to hang at parties and don’t mind busting heads, folks figure you take some joy in beating on or getting beaten on. It wasn’t all that simple. And he sucked at explaining it. Your right to have a good time at a party ended when your good time screwed up someone else’s good time. It isn’t that hard to understand, right? But some folks don’t understand The Code, or lose track of it because they’re having too much fun. So you remind them about The Code. If all it takes is a friendly reminder, excellent. If it takes a bit more, that’s fine too. Sure, the gig had changed, new opportunities came up. But it all started off as Code Enforcement. You can’t go telling people all of that. Unless exceptionally hot, most girls were simply told No, I don’t. and sent on their merry way. Which didn’t explain how Nick was stuck fighting against this guy when he’d only come down to get people out of the way. Or maybe it did, sort of an extension of The Code. He took a look around. There were other folks doin’ the same kind of thing he was, either helping with evac of taking their shots at Solstice. The trees weren’t the only thing knocking the guy around. But it wasn’t like the cops were shooting him yet, or the fire department was making with the hose work. Eventually the guy was bound to put together the rock-paper-scissors equation and figure out that Fire beats Wood. Or hell, maybe it didn’t. Whatever it was that let him get the trees moving might make ‘em tougher too. No way to know. For now though, until Solstice stopped with the fire fun, he’d keep the guy on the ropes. Nick gestured, palm up, and balled his hand up in a fist. Maybe the trees could catch Solstice. Solstice righted himself from the spinout that he was after the last tree struck him and Evan's rock nabbed him in the shoulder. He saw a branch curl up it's ends in a clubbed fashion and whip towards him. Paul watched as Solstice was hit by branches and then took what looked like a rock to the shoulder. As the man spun in the air, Paul turned around trying to see what was happening and who had thrown the rock. All the time, his mind was rebelling at what he was seeing. Paul couldn't be sure, but there was someone behind an artist's cart that seemed to be crouching and watching the action intensly. The young man seemed to be studying things just has he was, and did not appear to be looking for a quick escape. "What the hell is going on?" he muttered, catching sight of Nick gesturing wildly towards Solstice. Whatever the guy was doing, it was keeping the hothead busy. Still, there was plenty of flames burning around them. That worked pretty well, Evan thought. Solstice wasn't seriously hurt by the rock, but that had been more in the way of a test than anything else. Just a few meters per second. Hardly more than jogging speed. (Let's see how he likes it when I ramp up the velocity,) Evan thought. He scrounged around quickly, collected a few more small stones. He gathered all but one in his cupped left hand. The last he held up at eye level between forefinger and thumb. He lined it up with Solstice. Dipping into the whirling chaos of the Energy Dimension, Evan launched this one with a velocity of about 40 meters per second, or about the speed of a major league fastball. Let's see how you like that, Evan thought at Solstice. Evan released his rock and it sped towards Solstice. It struck him hard in the chest and even pushed the villain backwards some from the impact. Solstice shook his head but decided upon a new course of action as he watched the balled up limb come speeding towards him. Up. He flew straight up and quickly pushed into the clouds until he was totally obscured. Father Charles had been observing the action below. He saw the movements that Nick was making and made a mental note. "Lanie, dear," he told the young girl. "I do not believe you to be cursed at all. Wait right here he told her." The priest had no idea for certain if the girl had seen Nick or made any connections, but he wasn't going to let on just yet. Father Charles went to the kitchen and spoke briefly with the handyman of the cathedral before the priest returned to Lanie's side. Well that's interesting,Terry mused. I guess he didn't expect that if there was one special person, there would be others. I am glad that no one was hurt by Solstice's cowardly display. Now all the special people know that they are not alone and that they will be opposed should they try something as public as this again. The problem will be those with powers who might work secretly, quietly to achieve similar goals. I think I may have to be quiet and secret if I am to stop those others and actually help people. On the other hand if someone hasn't done it yet. He begun typing furiously on his laptop with a determined look on his face. Lets create a place online for those who might want to unite against Solstice and others like him. I'll call it Citizens Against Supervillian Terror. At least until I can think of something better. Terry continued typing on his keyboard, sending a message across the internet seeking people of good intent and special ability who would oppose those like Solstice. And to let them know that they were not alone. Terry finished the site publication and leaned back in his chair when the IM window opened.

Empire: You are right. We are not alone.

Terry bolted up in his seat and leaned in to the screen. He looked and looked. He didn't even have any IM clients running right now.

I take it your name is Empire? Are you looking to be a CAST member? Empire: It is the name I choose for now. I would be more careful in where you take your first steps. These are new days. New times. One must be certain where they put their trust. And such a humble name it is. Excuse my poor attempt a humor. I suppose we will be calling you by another name when you try to take over. I appreciate the warning but I want everyone to know that there are good people who will oppose beings such as Solstice. No matter how many individuals with special powers there are with ill intent, there will always be others with similar power to oppose them. Furthermore, both those groups are still outnumbered by normal people who will fight back. Empire: I believe you have the mistaken perception that I am cut from the same cloth as the one that calls himself Solstice. I am not here to warn you as a challenger, but as a potential and supportive ally. I say potential because, once again, one must be certain where they put their trust. And their assets. Director: Good call. Glad to know you're on the side of the common man. Forgive my misunderstanding. As you are being cagey, all I have had to go by has been your screen name. And I have to be honest, few empires have ever benefited regular folks. You can all me Director, not as in the guy in charge but as in the guy gathering the actors. I'm not doing this for entertainment, profit or glory, I'm doing this because those like Solstice are a threat to everyday people, their friends, their families and mine. Empire: There were others at the square today. If you are truly doing this because you believe it right, then you must find the others. Before today we were unknowns. Now, because of Solstice, things will not be easy. Those like us will be measured against what we can do, and not who we are. We must be ready for the backlash against anyone with powers. Finding the others will be a start. Director: Thus why I have put out the CASTing call. I know that I will get mostly people without special powers but I have already made contact with you. I suspect that the person controlling the plants against Solstice will hear my call. Do you propose a method or resources that will allow me a more direct way to contact these others? Empire: I am betting that you will get a lot of hits at your site. It will be hard, however, for you to decipher fact from fiction. Very hard. Actually, I made contact with you, but that is irrelevant. Go to the Greyhound station tomorrow at three pm. Find locker two-one-one-two. The combination is zero-six-two-one-zero-five. Inside you will find a package. There will be instructions along with the contents. It can't help you locate the others, but will become useful once you do. Director: Thank you for your generosity. However I am prompted to ask a question or two as you yourself advised that "one must be certain where they put their trust". You seem to know my location, how much more about me do you know? Empire: I know a good deal, but don't let that worry you. I was able to trace your IP to your ISP. I then travelled back to your connection and secured a link by hitching a ride on your packets. Our conversation is very secure and currently untraceable. Think of it as a dynamic VPN between us. You will probably discover that we have similar agendas. Director: Well since we are such a secure channel, would you mind sharing a bit more about yourself so that we can perhaps operate on more of an even footing? Although I am inclined to trust you due to my wide-eyed and innocent nature, having a bit more information to base that trust upon would be helpful. I suppose that your ability to create such an access, is part of your special talent? Empire: All in due time. For now, however, you will have to trust. I will know once you complete the instructions I gave you. If you don't, then I will have to believe you have decided this is not something you wish to become part of, and I will never contact you again. Until then...

Terry watched as the chat box closed on his screen. Evan watched the clouds for a minute, scanning the sky for any sign that Solstice was coming back for another go. When he didn't reappear, Evan stood up and began making his way toward the young man he'd seen earlier, the one who'd appeared to be directing the moving plants. Firefighters had begun moving in to extinguish the fires Solstice had started now that the costumed lunatic had departed. Bystanders were coming out of hiding and babbling to one another--or into phones. Evan moved quickly, before the crowd could grow thick enough to conceal his target or impede his movement. "Hi," Evan said when he reached the young man. "I'd like to talk to you, if you have a minute." Evan glanced around. "In private." Paul was beating out some flames with his jacket (weirdly, the fire seemed to lessen slightly whenever he got near), when he saw the figure get up from behind the cart. Whoever he was, he made his way over to the man who had been guiding the trees and plants. With the Solstice guy apparently gone before he had the chance to tackle him, Paul now felt like an idiot standing around. He wasn't going to help much against the remaining flames - the fire department would be better at that - so it was damned well time to find out more from these guys. Just like that, it was over. The guy flew away. Nick was so shocked by the change that it took him a long moment to let the trees go back to normal. A hand gesture, the universal stop sign motion, and the plants went back to behaving the way everyone knew plants were supposed to behave. There wasn't much time for ponderful brainwork. The place turned into the middle of a beehive pretty damn fast. Emergency folk could do their gig without the added risk of getting extra crispy. Gawkers and tourists could whip out their cameras and phones to snap up pics of the action. Nick had no desire to end up with any extra attention out of this. Damn kid. Comic book heroes get to run away when the bad guy runs away, right? . He was looking for an exit, something easier for him to find than most, when one of the other dudes who'd shown up to do something about Mr. Pants On Fire walked up. Nick nearly bailed on him right off. But it was like back in the day. Docs were right. Talkin' with someone who was going through your same stuff actually helped. "Hey." Nick gave the guy a quick head-nod. "Yeah, we should do that. But how about meetin' me someplace in a couple of hours?" Nick quickly checked the time, one of those black rubber cased watches on his wrist. "I'm thinkin' we both oughta get gone. Meet me at _________." Nick names a diner off the beaten path the tourists hit, place he's been to a couple of times. "Getting gone sounds like an excellent idea," Evan said with a grin. "I think I can handle that...." He focused his attention on himself the stranger. At the same time Evan pictured the Oregon desert at the base of the cliff he'd been climbing when he first discovered his ability. Superimposing the former on the latter, Evan felt--knew--how to bring the two together. He sensed the difference in angular momentum between the two sites. Evan flung them both-- Pop! Father Charles almost jumped out of his skin. He had been watching the young man when Evan approached and then the two of them suddenly disappeared. No one else had seemed to notice amidst the chaos, but Father Charles had been paying close attention. The priest wondered if Lanie had seen the vanishing act. Paul slowly wandered over to the two men who were huddled and talking together. "Hey. Were you the guy..." Paul began as he closed upon them. Then, abruptly, they vanished. Paul felt the air rush past him as it filled the vacuum left behind by the two men. "What the hell...?" spat Paul, as he looked around, left then right and then - vainly - upwards. "Where...?" "Excuse me," a female voice sounded from behind Paul a moment later. He turned and looked at the woman that Evan had been with just a short while ago. She looked slightly disheveled from the earlier encounter, but was composed enough, and her camera was at her side. "Do you know the man...men that were just here a moment ago", she asked Paul. "And do you know where they went?" Paul couldn't be sure whether she had seen what he just had, or how much she knew. Paul looked at the woman, his gaze lingering on her camera, as thoughts ran through his head. Shit. The other one. Was he a teleporter? Were they invisible? Or was it the plant guy? He then looked around, checking to see whether anyone else had seen the disappearance but it just looked like it was him and this woman. What did she know? Paul scanned the area and noticed a man and a very young woman, probably in her mid-teens, looking down at them from the window of St. Louis Cathredal. "The men?" Paul said, aware that he'd taken a long moment to respond. "No. I don't know either of them. Weren't you with one of them a minute ago?", he asked pointing towards the cart. He decided not to answer the woman's other question about where the men had gone. To be honest, he wasn't sure how to answer. "Do you know who they were or where that Solstice guy had come from?" he asked further, wanting answers himself. "No," she replied. "All I know is that at least one of them was able to do things, and that there is no such thing as coincidence. One of them was responsible for, somehow, yanking me away from one spot and making us appear in another." She paused for a moment to consider Paul's words. "If you don't know them," she asked, "then why did you single them out of the crowd to approach?" >i>Good point thought Paul. Ah well... "This is going to sound stupid", started Paul, "but one of them was controlling the plants and trees around that Solstice fu... guy. Just by waving at them. The damned plants, I mean". Paul shrugged, and scratched the back of his head. "I'm guessing one of 'em could move plants and the other could, erm, teleport". Paul paused for a moment, peering at his hands, then continued. "I just wanted to find out if they actually had... weird abilities or whether I was, y'know, hallucinating or something". He looked back up at the woman, whilst stuffing his hands into his pockets. He had been desperate to know whether he was going mad or having a breakdown or something. Absorbing energy and firing it out of his hands wasn't normal, that he was sure about. But now that he'd seen others with strange abilities...? Well, either he was going completely and utterly insane or he wasn't alone. "My name's Paul, by the way", he said, forcing a smile. "And, I've probably got to get back to work... unless you know who the teleporting guy was or anything about superpowers?" "Abbigail Oliver," she replied. "Most people just call me Abby. And yes, I would agree with you about what happened. I wouldn't beleive it had I not seen it with my own eyes. You didn't, however, answer my questiom about why you approached them." She had one eyebrow raised, and Paul could tell she was used to asking questions. Lots of questions as he finally noticed the Times-Picayune badge attached to her belt. Anger bubbled inside Paul and echoed in his voice as he replied. 'Damn stupid reporters poking their cute noses into decent folk's business' he thought to himself. "I thought I did answer your question, Abby", he said, a little abruptly, his right hand balling into a fist down at his side. "One of 'em looked like he was commanding the trees. I wanted to ask him whether what I saw was real and whether he knew anything about that flaming guy that caused all this". He'd absorbed a tiny amount of the heat and fire in the square and now Paul could feel that power rising inside him, pumping through his veins, flowing to his fist. His hand began to glow a little. Paul closed his eyes for a moment, trying to calm his rage, and - taking a deep breath - continued. "I may not be a reporter like you, but some of us still have a curious nature. I just wanted to uncover a little bit of truth about all this... about people with powers". Paul began to back away, back towards the way he had come. "I've gotta go", he grumbled, heading away. Abby watched him hastily depart, then pulled out a littel voice recorder and made some notes. --bleeding off their excess velocity, matching vectors and bringing them to a rock solid halt at the base of the cliff. Their shadows shrank abruptly. It was only just noon here in Oregon. The temperature didn't change much but the abrupt change from the humidity of the Gulf Coast to the dry heat of the desert was unmistakable. "I think we can talk quietly here," Evan said. Imagine being an all-seeing eye observing the first interaction between people with more than the usual assortment of gifts. Imagine seeing two of them arrive through similar means, crossing large intervals of space by blithely ignoring the rules of standard science. They both violate the same principle, so one would easily conclude that if Party A was moved by Party B, once again in violation of the same principle, that it would cause no undue level of discomfort. Which just goes to show what all-seeing eyes know. Nick had that unpleasant feeling simulators generated. Normal rides at the amusement park could turn him inside out and never make him ill. But simulators? Something about them didn't fit right and always made him sick. Not as sick as chemo mind you, but sick enough that it reminded him of chemo. The olive-skinned young man turned a bit more green and looked like he could lose it as he sucked in air. "Damn it all to hell." Treetravel never felt like this. "Impulse control issues much? You must be a fun first date." A couple of more breaths and he got it together. "Sorry dude, but damn, some warning next time. Don't worry, I get it, wanted to rabbit, but seriously, coulda just walked out." He finally had a chance to take a look at where they were, including a long look up. "So how about introductions? I'm Nick." Hand got stuck out in the usual gesture. "Looks like neither of us made costumes like our new bestest friend in the whole wide world" Now that they were here, he wasn't really sure what to say. "So, you live around here?" "Evan Baker," Evan said, shaking Nick's hand briefly. "Pleased to meet you. Yes, I live a few miles from here. And sorry about the abrupt exit but it seemed like the best approach. It got us out of there and avoided the necessity of dancing around the issue of strange abilities." He could have waited and met Nick later as he'd suggested, and asked him if he were truly manipulating the plants as it had appeared he was doing. But that assumed Nick would actually show up. And that he'd confess to having a weird power to a complete stranger. He might, Evan had supposed, once they'd slowly worked up to admitting something of the kind to one another. Now Nick was in no doubt that Evan too had an unusual ability, which ought to make him more willing to 'fess up to his own. "You were manipulating the plants, weren't you?" Evan said. "I'd never met anyone else who could do these sorts of strange things until today--and then I run into two. That costumed lunatic calling himself Solstice, and you." There wasn't any point in denying it. They were here on their own. May as well shoot straight and hope for the best "So does that make me a non-costumed lunatic?" Nick smiled to show he was just kiddin'. "Yeah, the bit with the plants was me. And I'd say you can teleport." If nothing else, comics let you know some of the lingo. . "I'm with you, never seen anyone do somethin' outside the usual besides myself. Although hey, could have met one a day for the past couple of years and would never know until they do something, right? Not that I've been doing this for years, more like months." "I didn't show up in the Square to fight the guy. I mean, you gotta be some special kinda crazy to pick a fight with a guy who has embraced his inner flamethrower. Just figured people might need a hand getting outta the way. But once you're there, well, you know how that changed. So what do you think Solstice wanted? I mean, really. He didn't try to rob folks or nothin'. And obviously, guy put some thought into this, costume an' all, right? So what, he has the costume all made up and decides yep, today's the day I'm going to go downtown and start torchin' things?" "I don't think he expected any resistance," Evan said. "I think he expected to terrorize everyone and make a huge splash. Probably some kind of ego trip for him." Evan thought for a moment. "I suspect he only recently discovered he had that ability, the same as you--and me. Only he has mommy issues or something and decided that being able to throw fire around meant he was special. That the rules didn't apply to him any longer. "But I think we screwed up his plan. Oh, he'll still get plenty of press--but it won't be the terrifying introduction he had planned. He fled--and that'll be on the news too. I can't imagine that's going to make him happy." Evan frowned. "In fact, it might drive him to try again, or do something more spectacular to try to regain his face." And maybe he--they?--ought to do something about that. But what? Evan had no more idea who Solstice was than Solstice would about him. Solstice was probably still in New Orleans, unlike Evan and Nick, but where? Nick laughed, a bark of a thing when Evan suggested that Solstice was a momma's boy with issues. "So you're sayin' he might have just been a harmless bit of loser until he ended up with all this. Great, so we potentially have harmless bit of loser who could be aiming to make an even bigger splash next time." Nick shrugged. This was all just plain makin' things up. "On the flip side, if we get lucky, dude ends up deciding that his great plan wasn't worth it and he hangs up the cape and goes back to askin' people if they want fries with that." There was a four hundred pound gorilla sitting in the corner though. Nick wasn't good at ignoring gorillas. "So what do we do?" He laughed at himself. "That gets to be the thing right? I mean, I'm not going home finding the nearest costume company. I have a life. I'm guessin' you do too. It, well, it doesn't suck to know someone else in the same boat. But somethin' like this guy comes up again, seems like as not that we'd do the same stuff again." "Yeah," Evan said slowly. "That's the thing, alright. I'm not about to run out and buy a spandex outfit either." He laughed at the mental image that gave him. Then he sobered again. "It's good to know that I'm not the only one with a strange new ability--or a delusion. It seemed unlikely, but knowing for sure is helpful." "As for Solstice and his ilk--comic book precedent notwithstanding, if I wanted to be a costumed crime fighter I'd join the police department. But if I stumble across Solstice again, or someone else like him, I'm not going to look the other way." Evan hesitated for a moment. The temptation to suggest exchanging phone numbers or addresses was there, in case either of them came across another lunatic like Solstice. But he didn't really know Nick--nor did Nick really know him. And it would feel a little too much like the Justice Friends, or a website joke. He teleports! He manipulates plants! They fight crime! Maybe not. "So, listen," Evan said after a moment of silence, "I yanked you out of there without any warning. You want to go back? I can drop us somewhere out of the way fairly close to the square." He wasn't going to return to the square; even if no one had noticed their abrupt disappearance it would be crawling with spectators, the media and the authorities by now. No way they could reappear there unnoticed. "I'm with you. If I wanted to be in law enforcement, I'd already be there, right. But just lettin' this Solstice guy do his thing woulda been a mistake. Could be some fallout for us though." All this cause I have some side effects from treatment I didn't tell the docs about. And the kid of course. Wonder how much he saw on TV. Or how much anyone saw "Thanks, appreciate the offer. But how about this - where are we? Here's what I'm thinking. Get to where we're not too close to where this mess all went down. Grab a couple of drinks. Watch a bit of TV. See how much attention all this got. If it isn't getting, you know, national attention, that is of the good." "As for gettin' home, get me close enough to some big trees and I can handle the rest of the ride." "We're in the desert in Central Oregon. About an hour's drive from Prineville, if that means anything to you." "I think you're engaged in wishful thinking," Evan continued. "In the age of cell phone cameras, I'm sure this will be huge. A costumed lunatic throwing flames around and causing chaos and panic? The networks will be all over it. I'm just hoping they didn't notice us. But checking out the situation does seem like a good idea. "You know the Cafe Maspero?" (Assuming that's yes...) "I'll meet you there in a few minutes, then. Big trees, eh? Hmmm." Evan thought for a moment and then grinned. "Okay. I know just the spot. Hold on to your hat." Pop! Nick vanished from in front of Evan only to reappear an instant later in the middle of the heavy forest alongside the highway at the foot of Mt. Hood. Once he was sure Nick was safely arrived--and somehow Evan did know that though he couldn't have said how he knew--Evan concentrated for a moment and flung himself to a little trafficked alcove in a building not far from the Cafe Maspero. "Yeah, I know where it is but that's not what I..." Anything else that Nick had been ready to add got cut off by the sudden change in location. This ride wasn't as bad as the last one. Which didn't leave Nick any happier. "Son of a bitch." Nick growled at no one. The fledgling idea had been to go someplace far away from home and find out how much attention the story was getting nationally. When he'd said not close to the action, he'd meant not close at all. Nick knew some places where you could go, grab a drink and a bit of something to eat. They weren't the same places he partied. They weren't even the kind of places he worked. Your standard bar just wasn't his thing for either work or fun. But as a place to get a bite, they were fine. Blondies, right within walking distance of Central Park. It'd do the trick. Stop in just long enough to have them make a sandwich to go, watch TV while they did it. Shame to waste the money, Bein' out in the sun like they were, he wasn't hungry. Finding a tree that was the right size wasn't hard. He put a hand on the side of it, thought about where he wanted to go. It'd take a couple of steps but the trees seemed to know how to daisy chain things together for him. *** Back at Jackson square, Paul Lundi's shock at seeing others with strange abilities suddenly disappear in front of him began to fade. He started to notice that a number of gawkers and press were beginning to stream into the square, and that wasn't his thing. First he'd found he could absorb fire, then a fucking flaming guy in a costume showed up. And now there was also a guy who could move trees and maybe another who could disappear. Paul gave one more glance up towards the clouds where Solstice had escaped and then turned and headed out back towards Eco-Tech. Life, it seemed, was getting more and more weird by the day. The action over, Lanie watched the first responders for a few moments, her eyes following Pere Charles as he moved to speak with a few of the onlookers. She could hardly believe her eyes when two of them simply... disappeared... before the kindly priest could say a word. Reporters were beginning to swarm over the scene even as NOPD did their best to clear the area and restore order. Still uncertain she'd actually seen what she thought she saw, she turned away from the window and headed back to the kitchen, hoping to catch the priest when he returned. Lanie watched the priest return. He had been speaking to one of Cathedral's employees, and the man had went out and into the street. Father Charles could see the girl looking at him, and he was certain there was something on her mind. "What is it, my dear," he asked her. "Ah dunno. Ah gots a bad feeling 'bout dis, Pere," she mumbled, clutching her dirty, torn jacket tightly around herself -- though it was not cold. "Did dose two mens really... disappear? Where do you think dey went?" Father Charles softly squeezed her shoulders. "I don't know, my child, I don't know. But there is definitely more to this than can be mere providence. You are safe here. Don't forget that. There are things in motion, now, that weren't in motion before." He and Lanie saw the man who approached the two in the street that disappeared. He looked around and finally caught their eyes as they looked down into the square. Father Charles pulled her back from the window and he knelt down to face her. "We will find out soon enough. I would hazard a guess, Lanie, that your powers are not the devil's curse you thought them to be. Too many unexplainable events have transpired this day for total and complete disconnection. Would you not agree?" A bicolored gaze slid from his, as if unwilling to risk the inadvertent rise of evil before this good, honest man. "Is been a day, fo' sho," Lanie agreed, fingering her silver crucifix. "But Pere, do you really t'ink dose mens... dat dey is like me somehow?" Father Charles smiled reassuringly as he took a deep breath. "Lanie, my dear," he began. "I believe THAT way more than I believe you are cursed or tainted with evil. Now. How about we see to that clothes shopping we talked about earlier? And dinner later tonight. What would you like?" GM OOC: I am closing this move here and will open a new one shortly. Thank you all for your patience.