It took several seconds for Evan to realize he was alone in the surf and even longer to spot Missy up on the beach. He stopped his strokes and changed direction toward the red-clad nova. When he finally waded up out of the waves he could clearly see others finally coming down to the water's edge to join then ... though farther up the beach.
Standing over Missy with a boyish grin on his face Evan asked,
"Are you okay?"

"I'm okay," Missy replied to Evan, beaming her I'm-having-a-great-time grin. "I just need more practice swimming in waves like these. I guess you win the race by default." It was very considerate of him to have stopped to check on her, she noted.

"Missy!" shouted Autumn Solstice from a little farther up the beach.

Missy turned toward the gathering and saw Autumn Solstice at the edge of the party hovering over the shallow water, looking around, perhaps searching. Autumn's swimsuit, Missy noted, was apparently made of two pieces of silver dental floss.

"I think she's worried about me," Missy explained to Evan. "Maybe she saw me try to inhale that wave. I ought to let her know I'm okay."

"Autumn!" Missy shouted, jumping up and down while waving. The shallow water splashed under her feet. "I'm over here!"

The crowd was breaking up and spinning off in different directions. Autumn was threatening at least two laws of nature and many more of Man as she stripped down into what passed for swimwear but was more like gossamer wrapping on any adolescant boy's Ultimate Christmas gift. Ravenshire pinched himself as a reminder he already had one too many sixteen year old problems in his life. He could barely turn his mind to parallel pursuits, and only then with effort.
Swimming is a good idea, he thought. Daniel turned and walked back to his Jeep to change. As he went, he noticed a red-scarfed stranger approaching and waved a greeting.
"Hello there. I'm Danile Ravenshire. Connor, our host, is by the grill."
He continued on with a final smile to the newcomer. At the Jeep, Daniel opened his travel bag, pulled out his swim trunks and began to strip down. The door provided partial cover, but her really didn't care as there were enough distractions on the beach.
Once finished, Ravenshire took some Polish sausages out of his cooler as well as two beers and some buns. He walked his way back toward Connor and the grill.
"Mind if I put some of these on?" he asked Connor. The host gave him a nod and the sausages began to sizzle. Daniel checked his watch and headed toward the water. He took in the scene and couldn't help be smiling a bit. The girl with the multi-colored locks seemed to have the attention of Kara and that guy whose name might be Harold. Autumn had been left standing alone ... which was a total crime. Connor had two ladies standing around him, though one clearly outshone the other. There were two people up the beach, though he couldn't make them out enough to know who they were ... and then there was the strange man whose head was wrapped up in a scarf. All this place really needed was some music.

The water beckoned and Ravenshire was starting to relax. He flexed slightly and rotated his upper body to warm up before taking a dip. For a moment, he closed his eyes and enjoyed his quantum-infused self. He felt good for the first time in a long time.

[[App. 5 + M.App 1 (First Impression) + Style 5]]

Evan momentarily contemplated jumping up and down with Missy to get Autumn's attention, but the more he looked at his fellow Utopian a single thought came to him.
Good God! Is she wearing any clothes?
"Umm ... ," Evan began with some trepidation. "Maybe we should head down the beach toward her."
Missy didn't need to respond. She just headed down the beach toward the stunning vision of sexual perfection before them. Evan kept up, but was filling his head with the worst possible images he could imagine to not embarrass himself in front of these two women ... well, girls really.
Yeah, it helped to remind himself that he was much older than either of these teenagers ... a little bit.

"Yes," Missy said distractedly, her mind busy absorbing every detail of Autumn's body. "That sounds like a good plan."

I'm sure Brittany will understand, Missy rationalized to herself.

Autumn streaked down the beach hovering vertically above the water. Her speed was enough that a small wake kicked beneath her as she flew to meet Missy and her friend.

When close enough she looked down upon the Iowan and Even (whom she hadn't met yet), like some goddess from upon high. Once she saw a rather winded Melissa asked. "How'd you get all the way over here?" She shot a scowl at Even like it must be his fault or something even though she had no idea she should be blaming him for.

Her flight canceled and she 'kerplunked' down into the water with a slight jiggle that, before this day, had only been seen by females in console video games. "So, what are you two up to?"

Kara had no idea what a gopura was, but she had at least the foundation of what Motley was working on to judge from. With a smile, she dug in, even as memories of her childhood crept back. Playing in the sandbox with her brother while her mother watched them from the porch; going to the beach with her family in a time when she was innocent and they were hopeful. The memories kept company with her and Motley, until the man sat down.

"Hello," Kara greeted him with a smile, despite the fact that he hadn't said anything to her. It didn't matter if he were rude or not, but she wouldn't stoop to that level. After all, he may not have seen her. It was unlikely that he would have missed the beautiful porn star sitting there, but it was possible.

"Harold?" Motley repeated carefully as she squinted in his direction, though it sounded more like 'arold when she said it aloud. Something like a fish-shaped soap bubble circled her head in a lazy spiral, then suddenly popped in a tiny prismatic spray. Kara's eyes widened; now that she was paying attention, she noticed some of the odder effects going on around the woman.

"Vive le roi!" Motley exulted, apparently recognizing Harold. Turning back to Kara, she proclaimed, "Oh, and the sundae lady! Bonjour!"

"Bonjour," Kara said, laughing. "Yes, I guess you could call me the sundae lady." Part of her gopura caved to one side; with a patient sigh, she started again. "I don't remember you, though, Harold. What's your login name, if I can ask?"

"He... might... want... to... use... my... designs?" Karrie said the sentence with painful slowness as her eyes widened. "That'd be... incredible!" She laughed giddily, her eyes dancing with excitement. For a long moment, she is lost in a daze, gazing at nothing in particular, which allowed Connor to finish the grill without her shadowing him.

At the mention of food, she snapped out of her fugue and hurried over to the food table. With the other novas who came at the ringing of the dinner bell, she grabbed a plate and dug in, putting a hamburger on a bun and topping it with nearly everything. She even took a strip of jerkied meat from her backpack and put it on the sandwich. With a big smile, she dug in.

"How'd you get all the way over here?"
The question from Autumn made Evan suddenly feel guilty for no good reason he could think of ... but he did. While he was trying to come up with some response when Autumn gave him a question he could answer.

"We were racing to the pier down there," Evan said, motioning down the beach. "We never finished though and when we saw you it seemed like the only thing we could do was come down and see how you were doing."
He followed that up with an honest smile because it was the truth (sort of) after all.

He smiles at Akaisha, "It's simple... but it might tickle a bit."

Bell concentrates and extends his quantum signature around Akaisha. Once the signature fully envelopes Akaisha, both Bell and Akaisha fade out, only to re-appear on the sandy dunes of the Louisiana coast.

He smiles, "Here we are. Let's go meet the others." Bell walks with Akaisha over to Connor, "This is our cook and host Connor. He's gonna be a big star. Connor, this is Akaisha. " Bell just grins like a fool and looks over at Connor.

Akaisha shivers slightly as the strange sensation of teleportation washer over her. The quantum washes over her, tickling every inch of her. But just for n instant as they are in a new place as quickly as they left the last. Akaisha shakes her head, not in surprise since she knew what was about to happen, but to shake the disorientation of going from the shadows of skyscrapers to the brilliant glow of the beach.

She follows Joe closely as they head over to Conner, clutching the rose and looking around at the sights of all the novas already at the party. Seeing them out on the beach and in the water made her a little nervous. So many of them were just stunning. It seemed so superficial but no less true. Akaisha couldn’t help but feel a little self conscious in the presence of them.

She pulls her attention back when she hears Joe talking to her, “...and host Conner. He’s gonna be a big star. Conner, this is Akaisha.”

Akaisha smiles and shifts the rose to her left hand, reaching out to offer to shake Conner’s hand, “I’m very happy to finally be meeting you. Thank you for having us to your home!”

Connor notices them approaching and subtly changes to keep his promise to the young woman with Bellator. He overshoots a bit though but it isn't quite evident yet. The only evidence is the brown-furred tail coiled around his waist and a slight three inch increase in height. His overall physical attractiveness rose geometrically in those few seconds, though he himself remained unaware of how he'd changed beyond the tail.

Connor nods and extends his hand to Akaisha. "Welcome to the party Akaisha. It's a pleasure to meet you. Please help yourself to the barbeque, it's fresh off the grill, drinks are over in the coolers and there's plenty of chairs."

(Connor just got 4 sucesses on a shapeshift check (1 for the form, 1 for the tail, and 2 for Mega appearance 2))

Missy was delighted and flattered that Autumn had flown down the beach to check on her well-being, and she waved cheerfully to her as she landed.

"It's like Evan said, really," she agreed. "We were racing to that pier, and I tried to inhale a wave by accident. I think that means I lost."

Further up the beach, she could see that the number of people at the party continued to increase, and it looked as if the barbecue was ready.

"Let's head back that way?" she suggested to Autumn and Evan.

"Don't you know you’re not supposed to go swimming for an hour after teleporting Melissa?" Autumn grinned, picking on her. "Here or there is fine with me, too beautiful of a day to not enjoy it."

Autumn waded through the water with Evan and Pew Pew Pew on their way back to the hub of the party. Oblivious of whether or not Evan was paying attention Autumn spoke rather suddenly. "So, you and Bellator, are you two dating or something?" She asked Missy. “Not that could blame you, he’s cute.”

"Vive le roi," Motley had said to me in French. Long live the king, basically. Only one response would be appropriate:

"Vive le reine," I replied. Long live the queen.

"I see Caramel Bath the porn queen of Miami has latched onto Motley as well," The Gnostic muttered to me as he stood nearby, squinting at the horizon. "That party in Miami was at her club. She's the one who got savaged by Cyn."

"Thought so," I said quietly.

"No offense intended, Miss Bath," I said to her with perfect politeness, acknowledging her with extra formality to smooth over any ruffles I may have made in my haste to talk to Motley.

Motley continued to work on her sand castle with the kind of intense concentration that only a child or a madman can muster. Which was the case here, I had no way yet to know. How badly had Yaldaboath's infusion of holy knowledge damaged her psyche? Or did her behavior only appear broken to me because I am still poisoned by the insane creator-god? I've got to find the answer.

"You probably know me better by my online handle of King Felix," I said as casually as I could.

Troy arrived on the beach, feeling late for the party. He didn't much care for the idea of a japanese television show about giant mecha's, but loved the idea of Nova parties. The Blackburn was was a fun night for himself, but that was Troy before his 'freedom'. Troy remembered the confrontation from a few nights before, and how dangerous it seemed for everyone else. While thinking about it he wondered if Ravenshire would be around to hear the tale. He began to think if Lina, Cat, or Dark Spiral would be around for that matter. In truth, he'd met all of them before, but he didn't really know any of them at all.

Dispite his relationship with Catalyst, he really knew almost nothing at all about her. They rarely talked anymore. Troy wanted to be with her, but just couldn't bring himself to do so. Am I unmotivated? He asked himself over and over. Will she be here today?

Troy wondered if anyone would recognize himself. He looked so baseline compared to some of the others. Surely some of them may know who I am. He told himself this while looking over the tiny crowds. It hit him at once that he wasn't sure how to act in this situation. Other parts of his life were so easy in comparison. Around baselines he could be whatever he wanted. He was a Nova, and they loved him. But amongst other Novas, what made him so special? I'll stay for a few minutes and see what happens. He was wearing a pair of lightly colored shorts and a decently tight teeshirt which showed off his incredibly thin figure. His hair was a stylish mess as per usual, and the black dye was beginning to fade out.

He floated into the closest group and found himself amongst the host and several others. "Hello." He said to Connor, attempting not to interupt anyone. "And Hey Bellator, its good to see you again."

Am I dating Bellator? Missy boggled, and her breath caught in her throat. She began coughing all over again, but the cough quickly turned into laughter.

"No, no," she said after the laugh had subsided to giggles. "We're definitely not an item."

Is this the right time and place to be out? she wondered. Oh, what the hell. Taking a step closer to Autumn, Missy smiled and narrowed her eyes in what she hoped was an alluring manner.

"I'm not actually into men, if you know what I mean," she said.

Divine never needed a reason to party, and she was more than willing to share that with Hero.

"Do people need a reason to have a good time." She said to Hero with a mischevious grin. "Speaking of a good time, would you excuse me for a moment. I am going to raid the plane's entertainment selection for a movie."

After selecting a recent popular Bollywood romance movie, Divine had the waitress bring some popcorn and some drinks. Then Divien practically sat on Hero's lap to watch the movie. She wanted to snuggle during the movie. She was not going to kiss him. He needed to remove his mask first.

Three hours later, the plane landed and they were in a cab to the beach. An hour after that, they arrive. Fashionably late of course. Divine matvelled at the other assembed nova, and instantly changed her eufiber to that of a black g-string bikini which showed off her sexy features. With Hero in tow, whe selected a spot in the sand and sat down.

The flight had been intoxicating and left Hero with little doubt that she truly was divine in person as well as name. He was terrified she would want to see his face, but she kindly never asked him that one, forbidden thing. Instead, she was warm (very) and compassionate, and nearly took his heart away when she had her dress shrink down into a nearly-nothing bathing suit.

After sitting a few moments and being similarly awed by all the different novas assembled here Hero remembered himself.
"Divine, how about I get us something to snack on and some drinks?"
Trying not to look at his temporary companion too hard (and drool), he added,
"I don't think they have any wine, so will beers do?"
With a faint, regal nod from Divine, Hero scrambled off to the grill and the cooler. Once there, he addressed the assembled novas.
"Hey there. I'm Hero and that," he said pointing back toward the barely black-clad beauty, "is Divine."
Looking at Alessa, "Wow - Ms. Neri, its a pleasure to see you."
Looking at The Coyote, "I'm afraid I don't recognize you, but greetings."
And finally back to Connor, "Can I grab some of that BBQ and some beers for ... well ... I guess my date?"

They stopped in the water and Autumn thought she had said something wrong when Missy began laughing. She even looked at Evan and shrugged her arms slightly assuming Missy had finally just lost it completely.

Then there was a hint of uncertainty in how she went about saying "I'm not actually into men." But when she added "if you know what I mean," Autumn had to hold back a chuckle. She knew that sometimes saying what Missy just said wasn't always the easiest thing to do. On the other side of that coin however, Autumn and Summer had met novas who were not only 'not into' their own sex but dated, made out, and even had relations with novas who could be classified as completely alien.

"I know exactly what you mean." she said, keeping her voice in the same tone Missy had used, unsure whether she wanted Evan to be in on this part of the conversation. "As a nova it's not like we have to worry about being judged. We're not human so why tie ourselves to human mores and stigmas? You know?"

“BEACHBUM” is what the slab said on the back of the sleek black Lamborghini Gallardo as its custom modified engine purred before the brakes engaged suddenly halting the car in a parking space just a block or so away from the beach.

The door slid up and as it disengaged from the lock it sounded like something from a sci-fi movie as servos hummed smoothly. The driver stepped from the car, slid the door closed and walked to the beach.

His smile was bright enough to tan by as he saw the party starting to get underway. It had been quite some time since he had any fun and today promised to be a hoot. His black sandals sifted through the sand as he made his approach. Several baselines (mostly women) had begun to gather at the ‘boundaries’ of the party area towards the parking lot just to catch a glimpse of the newest arrival.

A carefully tousled mop of hair laced liberally with blonde had been swept back from his impossibly flawless features, highlighting perfectly the sparkling blue eyes that seemed to promise a thousand endless delights. Smooth, bronzed skin fairly glowed with health and vitality, as if the sunlight itself had been unable to resist the temptation of caressing the body that, in another age, would have been forever immortalized in marble and gold. He was the very picture of… well… gorgeousness, and in his unbuttoned “casual” white linen shirt and black board shorts hanging low about his well-defined waist, he might have stepped straight from the pages of an upper-class vacation publication. All he lacked was a martini glass in hand.

The Law had arrived.

Casually he made his made his entrance and approached Connor who seemed to have his hands full with several novas already. He drew no unwanted attention to himself; instead he just waited there in the crowd like he had been a part of the conversation the whole time. He adjusted his sunglasses, brushed something from his swim trunks that were littered with green “$” symbols and politely waited for his turn to greet the host.

Missy responded too quickly, taking her cue from Autumn's seductive tone of voice instead of the meaning of her words. It was only after she'd begun to reply that her mind caught up with what Autumn had actually said:

"Oh that's a relief," Missy said. "I mean we're--wait, what? Not human? What did you say?"

Missy glanced to Evan, then back to Autumn. The conversation had taken an unexcpected turn, and she was on unfamiliar territory.

But the Zurich Accord. . . she thought. Her sister's with Project Utopia. This makes no sense.

"I said we're not human." Autmn replied. "They didn't tell you that? Novas are completely different on a genetic level than humans."

The apparent shock of her statement seemed to startle Missy. "Relax Melissa. Just because we aren't human doesn't mean we can't live like them. Think of it like... Star Trek. Spock wasn't human genetically he was Vulcan, right? Certainly he was what we could consider human... does that make sense?"

She really wasn't good at explaining the ins and outs of novadom and knew she was probably striking out. "That's why I tend to date only novas. The male/female way of defining humans tends not to apply to us when we look like we do or can become what we please. Take Connor for example: if you were dating him would you still call him a him when he's a giant Trans Go-Bot?"

Karrie was enjoying her modified hamburger, enjoying the comforting sensation of her hungers being met, when she saw God. Or at least his little brother.

Oh, god... oh, god... he's... absolutely gorgeous, she thought, setting her hamburger down and pretending she wasn't really eating. Eating would make her look fat, something she didn't need help with. Karrie glanced down at her ripped, greasy clothes, wishing she'd actually bothered to wear her Eufiber. She normally only had it on when she was expecting trouble; using it for fashion hadn't really occured to her.

I could strip to my bathing suit, she mused, but I just stand up and strip? In the middle of eating? That'd look weird, right?

He was only about ten feet away from her as he waited for Connor's attention. Silently, she sat at the picnic table, food abandoned, eyes downcast, trying to not be noticed by the blonde adonis.

Missy continued to glance at Evan, hoping that he'd pipe up with his expertise as a doctor, preferably on her side.

"One little gene doesn't make me not human," Missy said as non-confrontationally as she could. She really didn't want to be in this argument. She hadn't come to argue at all. However, that's where she now found herself.

Oh, what the hell, she thought.

On an impulse, Missy allowed her nova ability to come to the fore, and she shuddered with pleasure as the energy washed over her like a wave. Abruptly the sand and water around her glowed with an intense coruscating red light. Missy's body glowed all over with a shimmering ruby-red light, as if she were illuminated from the inside by countless red lasers. Her eyes glowed particularly brightly, so much so that it was difficult to look directly at them without feeling discomfort.

When Missy spoke, her voice echoed with an eerie and alien reverberation, as if she was amplified by a faulty PA system with a short circuit in it, or maybe a bad feedback hum.

"Even now, I still feel human," she said. "Seriously."

However, she could not deny that no baseline would ever feel what she felt in that moment. Missy tried to push that thought back into its box. That was a dangerous path to her, she thought, one best not followed.

Evan took Missy's words with a silent Thank God! because it removed any possible sexual tension between himself and the young nova. He waited on Autumn's response and was a little taken aback by Autumn's words.
"Wait a second," Caduceus forced himself to counter Autumn's stance, "we are human. There is no indications that novas can't breed with baselines, provide organ transplants, blood transfusions and the like. What separates us is our nodes and what we do with the power we are given. A node means we are humans who can manipulate quantum energy. With that, we can take up a greater responsibility if we so chose, but that doesn't make us non-human - it means we care."
It was clear from both his tone and his words Evan was passionate about this subject. That passion helped him deal with the somewhat startling transformations Missy suddenly went through.
Oh. She was dormed down earlier. I see how her appearance and voice might be off-setting to some people.
"Missy, we are both still human. More so now than ever."

Connor nodded to the newcomer who approached and pointed back to the table. "Sure thing Hero, help yourself, I've got plenty more where that came from." He shook his head with regard to beer.

"No beer in my coolers I'm affraid, plenty of water and soda though. It's generally frowned on for someone my age to buy alcohol around here." It was a polite understatment. Most cops in the area would bust an underage drinker in a tenth of a heartbeat, they practically waited in some places where minors managed to buy alcohol.

He noticeed the other newcomer and was taken aback. Connor knew some men were more handsome than others, but the gentleman who just arrived put allprevious notions to shame. Holy damn, I wish I looked half that good.

He extended his hand to the newcomer and smiled. "Welcome to the party. I'm Mech, or Connor if you prefer. There's plenty of fresh barbeque on the table and drinks in the coolers. Make yourself at home my friend."

Her form was beautiful. Autumn stood awestruck for a moment and could do nothing but marvel at how many rungs up the 'cool ladder' Missy had just shot. "Awesome." She said silently, just barely loud enough for Missy and Evan to hear.

"Of course we're human in the sense that we are free thinking, logical individuals Caduceus. But genetically, we are not human. Even I know that. I've seen my lab results, nothing close to human let me tell you." She shrugged; she didn't want to argue either. She didn't know her stating the obvious would become such a big deal. "But, by all means Cad, attempt a blood transfusion while Melissa is in this form, or me while I'm ice, I'd love to see what the baseline gets from her. Certainly not blood Cad, certainly not human blood."

"I don't think I can donate blood in this form anyway," Missy explained. She tried to do her best to sound reasonable, but her voice still came out louder than she would have liked. "I mean, I don't think there's a needle made that will pierce my skin right now. It's pretty tough."

How did we get here? she wondered. And how can we get back to just having fun at the beach?