Planning

[time_dancer]

Val's room is something like a mix between a New York warehouse studio and a high tech lab. Instruments glow and beep along one wall and the windows (or are the flat screen monitors?) show the New York skyline in the early evening of Autumn. Over the center wall is a large portrait of the Fantastic Four family; Reed, Susan, Johnny, Ben, Alicia, Val, Franklin, and Jennifer figure prominately. On an opposite wall another family portrait shows a happy Susan with a seemingly equally happy Victor von Doom (in armor), an older Franklin (teen aged) and Val. Over by the lab area there is a dry erase board with the words "Save Johnny" written very large.

There is a round table in the center of the room with enough chairs for everyone. Food and drink (digital variations are present) are on a side table next to plates and cups. Floating above the table is a 3D holo-map showing a flat asteroid about the size of a couple football stadiums with several smaller asteroids floating about it. There is a red light blinking just off the center of the large rock island.

"So here's the landscape. Aunt Jen, you've had more experience with the Negative Zone. Would you mind explaining its nature for us?" Val asks once everyone is settled. All traces of her usual cheery self are gone, today Val is all business. At the head of the table there are also a few floating screens showing several different species of the insectoids and some stills of the character of N-Zone space.

Comments

[time_dancer]

"Explosive tips," Val replies counting off with her fingers, " anti-gravity (they'll make whatever you hit fall up), adhesive (which bursts to make a man-sized blog of goo that's pretty hard to get out of), light burst, nets, and I am sure I'm forgetting some...oh sleep gas, acid, freezing."

[will_scarlett]

"Brilliant, then I'll be just fine,"

Hopefully he won't have to use all of them but options are nice.

[itwasjustified]

Raylan glances around the room.

He's country miles out of his depth, here, but he'd be lying if he said he wasn't looking forward to this.

"Would Kevlar or armor do us any good in this environment?"

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"I don't know what that first word means," Ellen says, "but, um- I have a set or two of pre-War combat armor at home. I think police and infantry soldiers used to use it. One of them ought to fit you, as long as we're getting you one of the guns."

It's beginning to dawn on Ellen that people who aren't intimately familiar with her world might be getting a bad impression. She's not really sure how to counteract it at this point, though.

[a1enzo]

"I've got built-in," Enzo notes, patting his uniform.

[itwasjustified]

"Bullet-proof material," Raylan says, by way of explanation. "Us law-enforcement types wear vests out in the field, when we need to, but I'll bet what you've got is a little more durable."

Glancing over, he tips his head toward Enzo, and takes in the uniform.

Dry: "Wish I could say the same."

[will_scarlett]

"Aye, I'd be glad o'somethin' like that 'specially if its na too 'eavy,"

Will's seen kevlar and the like in Milliways and he'll use whatever he can to stay alive while helping his friends.

[slayer_fray]

Mel, in her loose pants and tiny midriff-exposing halterneck and, looks around at them thoughtfully.

"My sister's Law," she says after a while. "It ain't armor like Ellen'll pull up, but I bet I can grab some vests for folk. Lightweight."

[time_dancer]

Val looks between Ellen and Mel before saying, "You guys are lifesavers. I was worried I was going to have make some armor and guns. The forge is good but making high tech stuff is still kind of tricky."

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"I only have the one power suit," Ellen warns, "and that's sized to fit me. Power armor has to be a very close fit or it'll break your arms at the joints. But the suit of armor I got from Reilly's Rangers will fit an adult man, and I think I still have a suit from Talon Company, although it's not as sturdy as the Ranger armor. I'm a little short on helmets, too. There's not many of them to go around back home." Ruefully, she indicates her facial scars and the nicks in one ear. "Which is why I have these. Fair warning."

[itwasjustified]

With a nod, Raylan glances from Ellen to Will.

"I'm happy to take a chance on Ellen's extra suit fitting me, but if you want first dibs, then by all means."

[will_scarlett]

"Nay, I'd feel odd in it. If ye can get one o'yer vests that'd suit me fine. Most armor I'm used to wearin' is some leather. Wouldna know 'ow to draw me bow in somethin' like plate."

[time_dancer]

"Actually," Val says thinking out loud, "with the gravity being what it is, power armor is probably a bad idea. Unless you were used to it I should say."

[itwasjustified]

"Between the two of us," Raylan says to Will, with a tip of his head in Mel's direction, "I'll bet we can work out Kevlar for you."

His attention slides to Val, and he chuckles, low and wry.

"Probably a good idea if I steer clear of anything souped-up, then."

To Ellen: "Can I trouble you with a request for something conventional that might fit?"

[aaaaaaaagh_sky]

"Oh sure," Ellen says. "Green okay? The stuff that Reilly's Rangers gave me's more likely to fit you. It used to belong to their quartermaster, and he was about your size."

[itwasjustified]

"Honestly, I wouldn't mind if it was tie-dye, as long as it gets the job done."

If the armor fits and offers a measure of protection in the field, Raylan figures he's won the lottery.

[biggerstingers]

"And I think I'll stick with my regular outfit, unless there's something as light that will take my wings handy," says Janet, "Mobility and shooting more for me I think."

[gammagammahey.livejournal.com]

"Jan, I think you can serve as a distraction if your stingers can't penetrate and kill the bugs. You can harry and distract them from focusing on us. That would help tremendously.

"Ben mentioned gravity. That was going to be my next point - it'll take a few minutes to figure out how to move in the Negative Zone for those that haven't been there. Be careful - a small movement goes a long way. And as far as armor goes for our handsome lawman, if nothing else works, I can go back home and get something from Hank. He built a power containment suit for Jack of Hearts; I'm sure he can rustle up the reverse in no time at all and he's got plenty of experience with where we're headed."

She smiles a Raylan.

"The most important thing to remember is that some threats will be obvious and slow moving as they make their way towards us, and other beasts will spring up faster than light. We have to be careful. There is, mind you, a human-built prison in the Negative Zone that was used to imprison people during a Civil War on my world. So I think there's still an established human presence, but the farther we stay away from them the better.

"Next: one very, very important point. Val, are we coming out anywhere near the gravitational vortex?"

[will_scarlett]

"Aye, so we'll need a moment to understand 'ow to move an aye, 'eard o'that prison. Were goin' to take Kate there one time, I fought in one o'those battles, 'orrible war,"

The people of this universe are some of the ones he respects a lot but when things get bad there, they get horrible.

[time_dancer]

"I'm planning on bringing us in here," Val says pointing to an outcropping of rocks that could almost be called hills if they weren't on an asteroid. "This way we'll have some cover and can do a site recon."

She turns to Jen with a slight shudder. "Oh no, we'll be far away from the vortex."

[a1enzo]

"The vortex?"

[gammagammahey.livejournal.com]

"The vortex is the center of the place we're going to. Once you enter it, you experience intense gravity - enough to rip weaker life forms apart - and you can get catapulted onto one of the other planets in the Negative Zone. Or anywhere else in the Negative Zone dimension. Reed Richards has maps, but as long as we steer clear, we'll be okay."

She hopes. Besides, she's not on speaking terms quite yet with Reed.

[a1enzo]

"But gravity's weaker everywhere else? The vortex sucks it all up?"

[gammagammahey.livejournal.com]

"Yes. Nothing you know about physics applies in the Negative Zone. Gravity works one place, and doesn't in another. The vortex also doubles as a multidimensional train to other planets, asteroids, etc. within the Zone itself. It's been fairly well mapped. The important thing is to stay away from it, but Val sounds like she has that covered, thank god."

[a1enzo]

"Would jetpacks help? The kind we use in jetball?"