OPEN | Decisions and colourful confusion

[makeanentrance]

Who: Quentin Beck makeanentrance and open!
What: Pride Parade, Job and Guild decisions, Various prompts for the month
When: June
Where: Various places around Central City
Content Warnings: Will update and label threads if something comes up.


Lunchtime

It had been about a week since Quentin Beck had arrived in this universe. He had adjusted relatively quickly yet there were many questions he still had. This was evidenced by a disorderly pile of papers that were strewn across the table he was seated at.

He was in one of the fast food places within the shopping center, across the road from the hotel. It was lunchtime and many people were coming and going around him but he paid them little mind. He was halfway through his meal of burger and fries, distracted often by what he was writing on the papers. Some larger title words could be seen:

GUILDS PROS AND CONS

JOB OPPORTUNITIES

TELEPORTATION?!?!

Beck himself was not in costume on this day. Dressed plainly, he still somewhat stood out. That bowlcut hairdo was distinctive and he was a heavy-set bulky man with a craggy face who looked rather uncomfortable in his plain blue shirt and loose black pants. He liked being in a costume. It allowed him to be something more than himself - but it also allowed him to hide under that mask of a pseudonym or cloudy helmet. It was so much harder just being himself. But here was not the place or time for a costume - and besides, not easy to eat with a helmet on.

Pen in hand, he began scribbling more notes under the Job title: Film work. Psychiatry. Chemistry. Robotics.

He pauses, frowning at his words then picks up a fry, popping it in his mouth.


Pride Parade

Then one day the city became decked out in a world of colourful banners and flags.

Beck was a bit naïve on this. He'd always been caught up in his own little world, not really gotten involved in personal relationships and so while he was aware of Pride and what it meant in vague terms, it wasn't his first thought when he saw there was going to be a parade. If someone was going to give him a label, he could well be Ace, possibly Bi and female leaning if he actually cared to get involved with anybody - but for the most part he didn't and while he enjoyed attention, he often just liked to be left alone when he wasn't causing a villainous scene. And he always considered himself to be male, so that part wasn't even a question in his mind.

Seeing all the sparkle and colour around, though, made him feel like he could blend in and maybe enjoy the parade, regardless of what it was for. This was why he had decided to actually put on his Mysterio costume. It was certainly bright and colourful: a rather form-fitting green bodysuit with a purple cape over his shoulders; golden clasps that resembled eyes, thick golden gloves and boots. He debated on the helmet but eventually decided to wear it as well. It completed the costume and he could maybe go out and enjoy the show without people having to see his face. It could be useful for people to not see what he was feeling by visible expressions.

He headed out, striding toward the crowds and was soon caught up in them. He felt he was being pushed forward, even into the parade and it was all a bit confusing. He saw more colourful costumed people. Was this a superhero parade? There were cheers and bursts of glitter in the air and Beck became turned around, trying to find a good spot to watch but now he was stepping along with the parade instead.


Wildcard

[ooc: More prompts may be added during the month/events. If you want something else in particular, contact me at quentinbeck or PM or feel free to make your own starter anywhere around the city in the comments!]

Comments

lunch

[doctopoda]

[Since moving to Excelsior, Otto rarely passes through Central City. But there's something a little bit nostalgic to it when he does. Like everyone else, this is where he landed and got his feet under him when he first arrived here, not to mention the general similarities to New York. It's a decent place.

He's passing through on Guild business today, but that's finished now. Instead of teleporting directly home, he decides to grab some lunch here first. He did develop a fondness for a few of the places near the hotel while he was living there. It won't hurt anything to hang out for a little while, maybe do some shopping.

Of course, he's pretty distinctive as well as he enters the food court - tall and broad himself even without the actuators hovering idly behind him. But people in this world seem to be getting used to him. Even here, away from his usual haunts, he's not drawing anywhere near the old number of stares. He moves easily through the crowd, actuators held politely close to his body.

He doesn't seem to really notice Beck. After all, he's never seen the man's face. But one of the actuators does seem to be looking at him. It's nothing much, maybe just curiosity, but it's looking!]

[makeanentrance]

[Meanwhile, Beck sighs heavily and places his pen down, chewing on another fry before he idly glances around him - and of course Otto immediately catches his eye. He doesn't look exactly like the Doc Ock he knows but they're similar enough, especially with that actuator peering at him. He has to speak up.]

Doc...? Hello? Is that really you?

[doctopoda]

[The claw opens wider, Otto himself turning only a second later. His brows furrow behind his glasses. He doesn't recognize this guy, which could mean either that they've only spoken online, or that this is yet another alternates situation. Or, combining the two - could be that Mysterio fellow. Who seemed to think himself in an astronaut helmet was a helpful profile picture.

Well, if it's a secret identity thing, he'll let the person who has one lead.]

Yes? I'm sorry, who are you?

[makeanentrance]

Oh, I'm... Quentin. Quentin Beck.

[He pauses, realizes that probably isn't helpful to an alternate Otto who had no idea who Mysterio was aside from their text conversation. It was no secret that he was Mysterio, at least it hadn't been a secret very long in his world. Most people knew who Mysterio was - at least the original one. In his universe, a couple of other people had used that moniker after he had... died. At least temporarily. It was complicated and not something he wanted to think about right now. Not at lunch.

He offers a crooked smile and clarifies.]

We spoke earlier. I'm Mysterio.

Care you join me for a moment?

[doctopoda]

Ah, yes. Good to meet you in person.

[He'll smile and offer him a hand. It's...interesting, to be sure, but more to the point: if the man's trying to reform himself, Otto figures he ought to reach out as well as he can. They're in the same boat, even if their exact circumstances probably differ.

(also do all villains from that universe have bowl cuts. is that what's going on over there.)

Anyway, he's not really busy or anything, so:]

Sure, why not? [An actuator pulls out a chair, and he sits in it sideways. Because all chairs with backs are his real personal nemeses.] What are you working on?

[makeanentrance]

[The bowlcut certainly did get around. Maybe the villains shared a hairdresser.]

Just uh...

[Beck looks down at his papers.]

Just figuring some things out. You know? Trying to find a legitimate job. Working out which Guild would be the most suitable. That sort of thing.

It's not so easy being dropped into another universe without warning but... at least it seems...

[He struggles a moment to find the right words.]

... not like an eternal torment.

[doctopoda]

Well, I'm glad it's meeting that standard.

[Otto smiles, leaning sideways against the back of his chair. This man's a little odd, huh? Well, stands to reason. Actuators curve along each of his sides, verifying that no one is too close, before he adds:]

Technically, both guilds are operated by the same organization. You can't trust either one of them. But, I understand why you'd want to join one. I did the same thing - makes life easier. [He plainly doesn't love that, but it was a practical decision.] What do you do for a living?

[makeanentrance]

[He'd always been a little odd, even as a child, trying to get lost in the fantasy worlds of film. Partly to escape a bad childhood but it was also innate within him. He'd been through a lot in his life, mostly for the worse - much of that consequences of his own making - and that had shaped his peculiarities further.]

Back home... I'd had various jobs. First in the film industry but later... well, criminal enterprises.

So, uh, I have a lot of skills but I'm not sure where to put them to good use here.

[He's also thinking it would be convenient to have so many things taken care of if he joined a Guild, so he's definitely leaning toward joining.]

[doctopoda]

The film industry? Really?

[Otto can't say he knows much about the entertainment industry around here, but that's definitely interesting! Not to mention, great to encourage non-criminal activities!]

[makeanentrance]

[Beck nods, his smile turning fond with memories.]

As a kid I loved watching movies with special effects. You know? Big monsters and scary creatures.

The original King Kong is still my favourite. The effects were so innovative.

Anyway, I did become a special effects artist. Also a stuntman. Later on, more recently actually, just before I arrived here, I was directing, writing and starring in a film.

[doctopoda]

Oh, that's wonderful!

[It's entirely earnest; Otto's always admired the arts. He was in love with an artist, after all.]

You should pick it up again! Either one of the Guilds would help you get started - they're very much about PR.

[makeanentrance]

[Soon after this he runs into one of the Lokis - the one who owns a theatre - and so he's at least getting a part time job working behind the scenes there.]

Do you think one Guild is more helpful over the other?

[doctopoda]

[Otto considers this, an actuator coiling idly around the legs of the table.]

The Society will give you funds, but they're much more serious about keeping their heads down. For obvious reasons. The Alliance is the one producing celebrities - I think they'd give anyone their own marketing team.

[Which he sounds a little annoyed by, but whatever.]

They've both got their own sets of rules, of course. I'm sure you can read through those.

[makeanentrance]

I did, yeah.

[Beck muses for a moment, then shrugs.]

Guess I've got a bit of time to decide.

So what about you? What do you get up to around here?

[doctopoda]

[Otto shrugs.]

I joined the Alliance. To be honest, I wouldn't have joined either one, but it isn't exactly easy for me to lie low.

[He doesn't bother to justify his choice of the Alliance specifically. The Society had never been a consideration in Otto's mind. It wouldn't have been before everything happened, and it sure as hell isn't now that he's trying to come back from that.]

I'm just here handling some business with them. I actually live in Excelsior, on the west coast, now. Got a job designing high-end prosthetics.

[An actuator clicks idly. Look, he's got a built-in resume for that shit!]

[makeanentrance]

[It takes Beck a moment for it to click from his mind automatically going from special effects prosthetics to the ones that are medical or about replacing limbs.]

Ah! I gotcha.

So you're creating mechanical marvels to help people.

[Whereas his version of prosthetics is more for entertainment.]

[doctopoda]

Yes. It was something I'd wanted to do back home, one day. This technology could do a lot of good...

[Gesturing at an actuator. Otto would never share that exact technology, certainly not after how badly it went, but he's perfectly capable of adapting it. Not including amoral AI. You know.

Thinking of those vague future plans, though, brings another question to mind.]

Tell me, did Curt Connors exist in your world?

[makeanentrance]

We're acquainted.

Is he here?

[doctopoda]

No, no, I'm only curious. He was a good friend of mine back home.

[Also, the Lizard Curt he briefly met has gotten him a little concerned.]

He was a physics professor at NYU there. No dangerous projects that I knew about, the worst thing he ever had to deal with was college kids. But I met another version of him once, who did...worry me.

[makeanentrance]

Was he a giant Lizard Man?

[Bluntly to the point.]

[doctopoda]

[Otto snorts.]

Yes, he was a giant lizard man. The Curt I know was fond of them - kept on sneaking the things into his dorm room when we were all at school. But it was a hobby, he wasn't working with them.

[As far as he knows? But they were pretty close, they talked often. Otto's sure he'd have heard about it.]

[makeanentrance]

I don't know him that well. Only really in passing and he has been part of the Sinister Six but usually when I wasn't part of the group.

He does stand out though.

[Being from the entertainment field and not the sciences, Beck hadn't been involved in any terrible science accident unlike a lot of the other villains. He didn't have any special powers before coming here. It was all special effects, manipulation and trickery. He himself hadn't gone through any transformations - at least not when he'd been alive. And death and Hell had only been temporary, even if he had been horribly tormented later by a demonic entity. He just hoped that that didn't happen here.]

[doctopoda]

Ridiculous name.

[The Sinister Six. What had that Otto been thinking? But Otto waves a hand; it's irrelevant now.]

Do you think you'll stay here in the city?

[makeanentrance]

Better than the Savage Six.

[Beck says offhandedly but with a twinge of disdain before the conversation moves on.]

Here? It's pretty convenient, yes? Or do you recommend somewhere else is the place to be?

[doctopoda]

[Otto grimaces in silent agreement. It is better than the Savage Six!]

It all depends. I went to Excelsior for the jobs - there's a big scientific community there. But I'm afraid I couldn't tell you what the local Hollywood is.

[He's been way too caught up in his own shit to pay any attention to the local pop culture stuff, honestly!]