metalogs | OPEN | Decisions and colourful confusion

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✗ quentin beck | marvel comics

OPEN | Decisions and colourful confusion

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!]

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

[Slightly cautiously as well:]

...yes, it did. I can do this now. [He holds up a hand. It appears to vanish!] It's fairly common for people to end up with some sort of power from the Confluence.

[Beck looks at the disappearing hand then frowns back at his paper again. At least that answers part of his silent question.]

Can you control it?

I can now.

[He puts it back!]

It took a lot of practice. From what I understand, it always does.

Guess that makes sense.

I... I think something happened to me too. I'm still trying to figure it out.

Really? What's been happening?

[He takes a deep breath before he begins, clearly a little rattled by what had happened.]

Earlier, when I was in my hotel room I... I just wanted to go grab the remote, you know? Watch a bit of TV. But it was on the other side of the room and... I don't know... I was feeling a bit tired and lazy.

But suddenly I was on the other side of the room, and I hadn't... moved. I mean, I hadn't walked there. I was just there.

[He grimaces.]

It made me feel a bit nauseous.

Teleportation. I can see that being disorienting.

[Also handy, Otto imagines, but only if one can control it. And, presumably, the side-effects aren't too nasty.]

That's how mine started too, at first - triggering unintentionally.

So can you make your entire body disappear?

Yes, I've gotten much better at doing it intentionally. It's actually camouflage - see?

[He does it again, holding his hand out over the table and moving it side-to-side to make it easier to see. It's a very good effect, but if there's a trick to maintaining it in motion, Otto's not discovered it yet; once the background changes even a little, you can tell where his hand is pretty easily.]

It's just a matter of practice. You might also be able to find someone else with teleportation powers to talk to. There's people who can do practically anything, around here.

That'd be really convenient. Hiding in plain sight.

Yeah, I'll have to figure it out. Could get me out of a jam, quick.

[He's faked teleportation - and other - powers before but it's very different to actually have them.]

Yes, it could be very useful. I've tried to...retire from that sort of thing, here, but that's easier said that done. There's always something happening.

[He's not from a world where superheroes and villains were really a common thing; he's very much still adjusting to this sort of comic-book life.]

Retiring isn't always such a simple thing to do.

[By his tone it's clear he's had experience trying.]

It seems like here they expect us all to be heroes.

[Otto snorts.]

They make it very hard for people like us to live normally. It's practically illegal.

[Even if you join the Society, you're just on the hook for villain-type things. Only unaligned people seem to be allowed to just...be regular people, and all they've got standing between them and the law is Ms. Sterling.]

Yeah, all these rules and regulations and sometimes you ... just want to be left alone. To live your life.

Nothing to do with crime or superheroes.

I do miss that. I'm too old for all this nonsense.

[Otto looks rueful. There's no going back, of course - his old life is gone, dead. But for what's left, he'd still very much prefer to be free of both crime and superheroes. He'd be willing to help Peter out now and then, maybe even pitch in some recovery efforts, like the Alliance does do sometimes. But he was never a fighter, not in his right mind. It isn't something he wants.]

Yeah, me too.

Maybe we should form our own group. Old villains wanting to retire. Formerly Retired Villains?

[He chuckles.]

[Otto chuckles as well.]

Great. We'll sit around, play bingo, and complain about the youth.

Get that young superhero off my lawn! Shaking my cane.

[He grins, amused.]

[Otto laughs.]

Just give them some hard candies and send them home.

Problem is convincing the kids they're not poisoned...

[He sobers again.]

I know a lot of people who know me or know of me that they just don't trust me. I'm not sure how to overcome that. Have you had that trouble here?

Oh, yes, all the time. [His smile goes rueful.] There's no one here from my world, but it seems my alternate's garnered quite the reputation.

[A far worse one than Otto's own must be, even. Otto doesn't consider that due to any particular merit on his part. It was mere luck that his path crossed the young Peter's like it did - and before that, luck that he died with only a few months of villainy behind him rather than years.

Beck's in a different situation, in any case. For Otto, at the end of the day, the person everyone has a problem with isn't exactly him. Maybe they don't trust him based on that reputation - which he considers fair enough - but at least they all understand that he is a separate individual. Beck's not. Maybe some people here knew a different one, but it sounds like most people are experienced with this version.]

I'm not sure there's much you can do right away. You'll have to prove your good intentions over time. But even if they never trust you, that doesn't mean you can't better yourself anyway. The kind of person you are is up to you, not anyone else.

I'll try.

I want to try.

As for the version of Doc Ock that I know... Yeah, he's trouble. Even I've had to help Spider-Man and the other heroes to stop you. So sometimes... they have trusted me more than you.

Well, there you go - you've got an edge.

[There's humor to it, but Otto still grimaces a little. Stop him from doing what? Otto himself never really had any designs beyond rebuilding his machine - which certainly would have been a catastrophic disaster, he doesn't mean to downplay that. But it was also short-sighted and ultimately self-destructive. He wouldn't have survived it, so it's hard to imagine what other madness he might have been driven to past that.]

It's very strange, hearing people talk about him. [He looks away for a moment, frowning. He isn't sure he wants to know, but...well, this is the first person he's talked to who knew the guy personally.] Do you - happen to know if he was ever married?

Married? Not that I'm aware of.

Although you - I mean... he - he was, I believe, briefly engaged to May Parker.

What?

[That is, plainly, not at all the information he was looking for!]

Why would - no, don't answer that. [If Beck's bringing May up like that at all, he suspects he must know Peter's identity, but he doesn't really want to talk about it. Or whatever plot that must have been a part of, because honestly that's a little bit disturbing to contemplate!] I was just wondering if there was a version of my wife there. I'm...I'm glad she's not associated with him, if there is.

[A world where Rosie's still out there somewhere, where she never met him and is alive and happy for it. It's a bittersweet notion.]

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