Video; Set before I've Got Your Name Written Here.

[prairietroubador]

[The man on the comms looks pretty resigned to being stuck here for now. When he speaks, it's with a western drawl.]

Howdy folks. Name's Greg Saunders. I'm a country singer by trade and, since it'll probably hurt more'n it helps to keep it under wraps, I'm also a member of the Justice League. Which means I'm a superhero, for those of you who don't who we are.

Folks call me Vigilante. No powers, but I'm good with a gun, same with a lasso, and I throw a decent punch.

Nice to meet y'all. I wish it could be under better circumstances, but if I'm honest that ain't exactly new for me.

[Encrypted]

What exactly is the lay of the land here, anyways? Besides Jorgmund havin' no regard for our lives or limbs?

Comments

Video

[just_rogue]

Well now, that voice is one that makes her smile. Not that she knew him but just hearing more southern accents made her feel at home.

"Welcome to the Rig." She offered a wave with a gloved hand.

"Got a few other's here who're heroes from back home, glad to have ya with us. Mostly we help the folks out 'round here. Best watch yer back though, we've had someone or something hurtin' some of our folks of late."

Re: Video

[prairietroubador]

Course we do. Why have one problem when you can have eight of 'em pilin' up on each other?

[He sighs. Complaining about it isn't going to get him anywhere, especially since Rogue's not at fault for any of this.]

Thanks for the word of warnin' ma'am. Any idea what this thing is?

[just_rogue]

"Ain't that the way it goes?" Never rains but what it pours, oddly comforting that it was a universal truth.

"'sides it puttin a few folks down for a bit, not so much. Few of us that are used to fighting have taken to patrolin the rig especially at night. Folks aren't supposed to be wanderin around alone at night either. Ah'm sure we'd welcome yer help once yer settled in."

And belatedly, after the ma'am sank in she thought to introduce herself. "An appreciate the kindness, but ya can just call me Rogue, everyone does."

[prairietroubador]

I'll keep that in mind. Both the name and the suggestion not to go wanderin'.

Anything else I'm missin'?

[walkingballpit]

[ Midwest version of Dazzler with a no-fooling codename namedropping the Justice League? Robbie’s totally here for space cowboys. ]

Hey, you got to let us know if you prefer Greg or Vigilante or what. I’ve definitely heard of the Justice League, but that’s a long story.

[ He’s fairly sure he’s even heard of Vigilante. He spent time in one of those universes, they had a storied superhero history. Robbie’s a man of narrow tastes; he read it like a dime novel. ]

You can call me Robbie. It feels kind of weird being anything else in their uniform.

[ Robbie scratches his head and then grins. ]

I can’t actually remember the last time I met someone under normal circumstances. Maybe sophomore year?

[ Encrypted text that comes in as a second response. ]

It sounds like you’ve already got the gist of it. They don’t hesitate with the shock implants, so be careful about what you say where, and don’t go anywhere alone right now. There’s something going around attacking us and it looks like they’ve been attacking Jorgmund employees for longer than that.

[prairietroubador]

Ain't like I got anything else goin' on if'n you wanna tell it.

And I reckon you're not wrong about that one.

[Greg still felt wrong about being stuck in a situation like this without even his hat. He liked that hat.]

Greg's fine for now. If I ever get my stuff back so's Vig. Vigilante's a bit of mouthful in a fight.

[Encrypted text]

I got most of those details already from Rogue. The fact that it's attacking Jorgmund too is a new one though. I assume they didn't think it was worth warning us about until it was already attacking us?

[walkingballpit]

Greg it is - and yeah, anybody who goes more than 2 syllables on a code name deserves to be nicknamed. So, anyway, we’re all from the same multiverse, just not this universe we’re currently in.

[ That’s the basics, and from what he knows of Brainy’s home universe, it’s not a new concept. But Brainy’s universe might not be Greg’s, just like Greg’s, so it doesn’t hurt to start there. ]

A year or so ago - kind of hard to say for certain, you’ll see - I got ‘ported from my universe to another one by in what’s becoming a real life motif.

[ Pun intended, naturally. ]

That time around, it was because of the Time Trapper, and I wound up a thousand years in the future, but joining the Legion was a lot more fun than getting hired on here. Both beat spending six months as kinetic energy in a pocket dimension, so kudos to Jorgmund, I guess.

[ There are at least other people here to talk to, and it feels less crazy. Slightly. ]

I’ve been jumping around between mine and that one.

[ He pulls up his sleeve, revealing what looks like a brand on his arm. ]

This can take me back to the Legion, but it stopped working when I got here.

Anyway - that universe used to have a Justice League, so there’s records and a ridiculously huge Flash Museum.

[ Locked text time follow. ]

They still haven’t warned us about it NOW. They know way more than we do, but they’re not sharing. I think they’re worried we’ll protect ourselves and they’ll go back to being the targets.

[prairietroubador]

Can't say I've heard of any Legion, but the Flash Museum does ring more'n a few bells. Central City really likes that kid.

Can't say I blame 'em either. 'Specially not after that whole thing with Luthor and Brainiac.

How are thing a thousand years in the future, anyways?

[Text]

Fantastic. And with these shock-collars in us, tying one of them up and pressing them for information's a non-starter.

text

[turntex]

[A cowboy. A cowboy superhero.]

omg
i have never been happier than i am right now

Re: text

[prairietroubador]

Alright, that ain't exactly a phrase I expected to see here of all places.

You a fan or something?

[turntex]

conceptually
go back to video tho
the accent is amazing i wanna listen to that all day

Video

[prairietroubador]

Alright, I'lk humours ua. But you might wanna explain yourself a bit better'n that. Lot of folks might take that ways you didn't intend.

video;

[bothbarrels]

Hi, Greg. I'm North. Or, well, you can call me Andrew if you want, but North Dakota was my old codename.

So, I'm curious... Is Vigilante the name you picked for yourself, or was it assigned?

Re: video;

[prairietroubador]

Bit of both, to be honest. I hadn't come up with a name when I first started out, on account of the fact that I hadn't planned on stickin' it out this long, so the papers just called me a vigilante.

After I decided I was in it for the long haul, I figured I'd liked the sound of that.

That, and my father was a sheriff. Didn't feel right callin' myself anything but what I am.

What about you?

[bothbarrels]

Interesting. I guess to me that has some negative connotations as a codename.

[ He shrugs a little. He knows different words have different meanings to different people. And 'vigilante' is definitely a word that has a meaning assigned to it by the eye of the beholder. ]

For myself, I was a member of a paramilitary force that used the states of the United States as codenames. I believe that I ended up with North Dakota because I enlisted with my twin sister, who was assigned South Dakota. Those were definitely assigned, and not chosen.

[prairietroubador]

This wouldn't happen to be one of those paramilitary organizations where if anybody had any real clue what y'all were doin' you'd be lucky if you didn't end up in jail for the rest of your life, would it?

I ain't exactly had the best experience with those.

video;

[breq]

What, exactly, is the Justice League?

[ Never heard of it. And she's intensely skeptical of it based on the name already. ]

Re: video;

[prairietroubador]

I might not be the best person to explain it, but the basic idea that we're a team of superheroes that have pooled our time and resources to handle threats we couldn't handle by our lonesome.

Mostly crime waves, giant monsters, natural disasters, alien invasions, and the like.

[breq]

I'm not familiar with the term "superhero", I'm afraid.

Although all of those issues seem as though they ought to be handled by the local government. Not that I've ever encountered a giant monster, myself.

[prairietroubador]

Only so much the government can handle on it's own, ma'am. And we certainly cooperate with 'em when necessary.

Course, sometimes they can be the problem themselves. I once got beat up by a four-star general with a chip on his shoulder who thought it was a good idea to air out his problems with us by injecting himself with an experimental Nazi super-soldier serum and and attacking a crowded parade.

audio

[rootinest]

Well hey howdy hey, the name's Woody.

Good to know someone else here also knows how to handle a lasso. My power after getting exposed to the Stuff is summoning magical ones.

Re: audio

[prairietroubador]

Hang on a sec, pardner. You're tellin' me the Stuff can give people powers? That a thing that happens often around here?

[kingofneworleans]

[Like Rogue, Remy's drawn in by the familiar accent. Not quite the right kind of Southern, but only a state over from his original stomping grounds.]

[He's grabbed his shades again, but that's because this isn't his room. Remy's up top side, sitting in a sunny spot. Therefore, protecting his eyes. That's his story and he's sticking to it.]

Bonjour, Vigilante. Can't say as I've heard of de Justice League, but I'm gonna take a guess dat dey ain't dat different from de Avengers in my world.

[If there's a small twist of his mouth at the name of the team? Well, he's not telling people why.]

Can al'ays use more folk dat can t'row a punch 'round here. Or t'row t'ings when de merde hits de rotatin' blades. Gun'll be a help on de missions. When we get dem.

[He raises his hand in a wave.] De name's Gambit. Remy LeBeau to my friends.

[Encrypted text]

No, sounds like you have it about right. We're currently a means to an end for them, with the idea that we'll be helping them complete their goal of creating a barrier between the Stuff and the Settlements. On their terms, of course.

[prairietroubador]

Greg's fine. Ain't like I'm all suited up right now.

You a poker man? With a codename like that I'd be surprised if you weren't.

[Encrypted text]

Yeah, I think I got a pretty clear idea of what they're all about by now.

[kingofneworleans]

Greg, den. Can never tell wit' some folk how dey take to usin' deir first names. Best to go wit' de mos' impersonal first, I fin'.

[He laughs at that, offering Greg a grin.] Been known to play a hand or two in my time, oui. You play?

[Encrypted text]

I mean, the cost/benefit analysis on how much work to do to keep people alive was a dead give away, too. Luckily, the medical staff are a bit better than that.