[center][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjgwLmRjZGE2Mi5WR2hsSUVScGNtVmpkRzl5LjE/raleway.regular.webp[/img][/center] [b]Date/Time:[/b] [i]November 11th, 2022. 5:45 PM.[/i] [b]Location(s):[/b] [i]Redline PRT Headquarters[/i] [hr][hr] Tick. Tock. Tick. Tock. Tick.... Ugh, it was like he could feel the clock boring his skull open. Truth be told, he had been dreading this day ever since it was dumped on him. All because he tried to be the smart guy in the room....Last time he made that mistake....Again. Fukuda could feel his eyebrows scrunching up in consternation; somehow, this was all going to blow up in their face. Maybe literally, given the fact they were bringing two Tinkers on board. Speaking of... To at least take his mind off his impending doom, Atsushi took to reading the files they had handed off to him yet again. The details on those who had been picked out by him, or in a few niche cases, those who came to them instead. The subtle clicking of the clock could still be heard, in spite of his best efforts. Fifteen minutes. He'd given the kids a deadline; 6 PM. Roughly thirty minutes after most of them would be out from school. Time to arrange for anything, maybe get some food, or just goof off before something this high-stress. He didn't know. He tried getting comfortable. The meeting area they'd set up for The Wards, lying just below the prison sector, had some pretty cushy seats, so there was that. Beyond that, though...Pretty sparse. A few terminals for them to use, keep track of things, watch out for teammates from the safety of HQ when/if necessary...Probably play video games if they were slacking off. That, and the still hidden-from-view foldaway monitor, for when important people (like himself, heh) had to make some big announcements to the team without being there, or fill them in on dire information that couldn't be passed onto their terminals. Alright, enough beating the damn bush. His personal datapad flipped open (thanks, Tech Wizard, for these complicated damn iPads), he began scanning through the files once more. [i]Hope (Andrew Bennet) [Hope Manipulation: Trump/Shaker (potential Master)][/i] [i]Overclock (Sean Evens) [Escalation: Mover/Brute 2-10 (minor Breaker ability)][/i] [i]Gray Man (Wilbur Levins) [Parahuman Deception: Master/Stranger 4 (potential Thinker ability)][/i] [i]Workshop (Beverly Hillshire) [Chaos Creations: Tinker 5 (tentative 2+ in other Classifications)][/i] [i]Schrödinger (Edwin Charles) [Preservative Teleportation: Mover 5/Thinker 2 (potential Trump ability)][/i] [i]Scraprig (Jane Rosner) [Heavy Machinery/Human Interfacing: Tinker 4 (potentially misjudged, will be reevaluated with newer designs)][/i] [i]V (Carmen Foster) [Object Cloning: Blaster 6/Shaker 6/Tinker 1][/i] That was all he could handle. The Director humbly closed the file and slid the pad away. These kids were gonna be a hassle...But it wasn't like he had much say in this. Roll with the punches...He took a breath, trying to push away the creeping sense of doubt about this, when the ping of the elevator rang out. Looks like the first arrival...[hr][hr] [center][img]https://txt.1001fonts.net/img/txt/dHRmLjgwLmVjN2IwOC5WMjl5YTNOb2IzQS4y/if.regular.webp[/img][/center] [b]Date/Time:[/b] [i]November 11th, 2022. 5:48 PM.[/i] [b]Location(s):[/b] [i]Redline PRT Headquarters[/i] [hr][hr] A fairly biting 33 degrees made worse by some moderate winds and the downfall of snow drifted by a young woman, huffing and puffing in motion. Her blue hoodie kept the worst of it off alongside the snow boots made for trudging through the fresh white coat paving the sidewalk, though she still found herself stumbling from the rush she was in. There might be twelve minutes left, but Beverly didn't care! There was [i]NO WAY[/i] she would be late for this! And she'd be prone to if she didn't treat it like a hurry, get caught up on something or other... And so she stormed forth, darting to and fro, barely avoiding other passing pedestrians on her way. [color=f26522]"'Scuse me! Pardon! Oh, m'bad, sorry!"[/color] Passing apologies left and right to folks she nearly barreled over in her single-minded charge. The southern tinge of her voice stood out amongst the northerners of Redline, but most paid her little mind; beyond being in a rush, she was a polite young lady, at least. [color=f26522]"Let's see....Right from Circadia High, left on Queen Street, and then..."[/color] She glanced to the side and immediately recognized it; the PRT HQ, in all its menacingly dull glory! Beyond the fancy shield-based insignia denoting the building as such, she'd probably quicker assume it was some kind of prison, with the barred windows and tough-looking gray exterior. Still, in spite of the natural gloom of the locale, she was brimming with excitement. Oooh, this was gonna be great! She even had another example piece in case the Director fella asked her again! Though, she [i]did[/i] wonder what had happened with the shortcake dispenser she'd made the last time around.... Regardless, steeling herself (or in this case, puffing her cheeks out and taking as close to a stern look as she could manage), the girl strutted her way right into the lobby!...And promptly shook all the snow off of her to the carpet below like a dog, pushing the hood away to reveal her mess of poofy brown hair, spilling all the way to the waist. Almost instantly, she found herself caught by the eyes of the receptionist, barely raising a brow. "May I ask what you're doing here, young lady?" At first, Bev froze like a deer in the headlights. What [i]was[/i] she doing here again? Her brain worked through that conundrum...Slower than she liked, because it kept going back to her unfinished project. Ugh, what was it....Right! Passcode thingy, to prove we're The Wards 'n all that. [color=f26522]"Ahem...'Scuse me! I've been a victim o' crime. Here to complain my pet hedgehog got sent to the future by, uh...The local chapter of Hell's Angels!"[/color] Complete random nonsense. Perfect for proving you are who you are. With a curt nod, the receptionist buzzed an Officer into the room, who escorted her to the elevator...To the prison level? At first, Bev was pretty confused, but the fella guiding her along gave her a look that said 'shush', so she kept quiet. Eventually, near the back of the prison level, they approached a wall. It...Well, it was a wall. Just as she was about to question it, however, the man got closer to it, raising an eye to a small section of it. She couldn't repress herself seeing a neat scanner pop into existence, gleaning the gentleman's retina. [color=f26522]"Ooh, retinal scanner...Like the movies! Neat..."[/color] She probably would've kept going, but surprisingly, she found herself staying restrained thanks to what happened next. The wall unfolded itself, unveiling another elevator, going even further down. [i]Subterranean base?![/i] Oh, this is [i]so cool![/i] Seemed this was where her guide was leaving her though, merely gesturing the young lady to head on in. She did so with glee, quickly booping the button as her descent began...And the elevator opened. Fukuda, for his part in this, just groaned. Workshop. Of course she was first... Catching his glance, she gave a cute wave before hastily trotting over, her energy evident in each move she made. [color=f26522]"Hiya, Mr. Fukuda! Or...Do I call ya Mr. Director now? Or just Director? Oh! Or is it like what Fashionista said, Director-san?"[/color] She stood at attention, like a puppy waiting to be pet. Atsushi was already regretting all his life decisions prior to this moment. [color=fff79a]"....Director's fine. Go ahead and get comfy, we're still waiting on the others."[/color] For her part, miss Hillshire gave a curt nod and plopped in a seat nearby, pulling out...Some weird metal sphere? Fukuda nearly had a heart attack just by her whipping it out so abruptly, but stopped when he recognized what she was doing. Tinkering with it idly. Either an unfinished project, or just something to keep her damn hands busy. Either way, not something that was [i]immediately[/i] going to blow up in their face. Small victories, and all that. With a grim determination, he watched the elevator expectantly for the other youths. This was about to be a long, [i]long[/i] day....