Log:Protesting at the UE

2009/05/04 	 Imaginary Girl Riot Jackie 1

Jackie is seated at a table outside the Flying Saucer Burger Bar listening to the latest news on her PDA.

Jeremiah isn't here! No, no he isn't. Rather, he's outside the United Earth building in New York. With a sign, none the less! The fellow briefly crosses in front of the media capture, just one face in a few hundred more, protesting alien interferance. It's a PROTEST!

There seems to be a few people holding placards in the alien district today. But without the Starguard Organization to act as a focal point whatever they are protesting about lacks any structure. And most of the people passing by in their normal lives either ignore the protestors or laugh at them. A couple of bored looking uniformed police offciers stand by but the chance of any trouble seems remote.

Imaginary Girl flies along over the street, doing her usual 'patrol' thing, at about second-story height. Every now and then, when someone calls out her name, she turns and, smiling brightly, waves down to them, but keeps on going -- nothing untoward is happening at the moment, that she's seen or heard. Her patrol-path, of course, happens to take her past where Jackie's at the burger-joint.

Jackie waves and calls up, "Hi, Imaginary Girl. How are you doing?"

This person waving up at her /does/ get Imaginary Girl's attention enough for her to stop and float down to street-level. "Heya, Dragonfly!", she happily chirps to the girl by way of reply. "What's up?" The flying heroine doesn't quite land, just coming down to a hover with her feet just a few inches off the ground.

Back on the PDA, things are -thinking- about getting nasty. There's always a couple in the crowd. Someone throws a rock towards the UE building, and getts a face full of protest sign for their trouble. Jeremiah muttering angrily as he drags his now broken sign away, just another face in the crowd. But now the police are getting angsty..

Jackie says, "I'm watching the protests at UE. They're being shown on the news. Apparently there's some Guild VIP giving a talk at the UE building today and some poeple have turned out to protest, and a lot more have turned out to cheer for the Guild VIP." She frowns for a moment, "I wouldn't mind a chance to talk to him, her, or it. Something odd happened to me out in space."

"Huh. I don't really know anything about this 'guild' stuff", Imaginary Girl admits, putting her hands on her hips as she hovers. "It's aliens, right?"

Jackie nods, "Yes. From what I remember from history lessons in school, the Guild, that's the aliens, turned up after Earth developed a faster than light drive for a starship. And they set up the UE, I think, and Earth is trying to join but we don't qualify. Something like that.

"Oh. So... some people think it's a good idea and others think it's a bad idea, huh?", Imaginary Girl says. Then she shrugs. "Just like everything else, right?"

Jackie laughs, "Yeap. There's always a few people who think anything new is a bad idea. Anyway there's a protest at the UE building today. Look." She turns the PDA so Imaginary Girl can see the scene as well. Just as the camera pans across the protestors and Jermiah's face appears on screen.

Jeremiah isn't happy. He even flips off the camera as it passes by, having just finished keeping the protest nonviolent. With very, very small amounts of violence. But the kettle is boiling, thanks to the small number of protestors and the large number of hecklers..

"Oh, hey! That guy hit the other guy with his sign!", Imaginary Girl says, frowning, as she leans forward, bending at the waist a little to get a better look at the PDA's screen. "I hope things don't get ugly, there", she comments, then straightens up a bit. "I oughta go over there, just so people can see me. It might keep things from getting worse than they look like they already are", she adds. "You wanna come with?"

Jackie makes up her mind. "I'm going to go there. See if I can talk to the Guild VIP. Maybe he can tell me why the aliens I met out there," a waved gesture upwards towards space, "erased my memories. Hey, you want to come along too?"

Imaginary Girl blinks, then laughs, as she and Jackie both decide to go over, if for different reasons, and invite each other along all at the same time. She reaches over, quickly, to pinch at the girl's arm, then poke at it. "You owe me a Coke!", she chirps.

Jackie laughs as they speak together. "Yeah, lets go. Imaginary Girl, if I fly too it's going to turn into a race." she grins, "Can you give me a lift instead?"

Imaginary Girl nods, still smiling. "Sure. Piggy-back, or are you gonna do your shrinky-dink thing?", she asks.

Jackie says, "Piggy back. And not too fast please. These are just normal clothes. If you go too fast I'll be wearing ashes from air heating."

Jackie adds, "... or you can borrow my car."

"Okie-dokie!", is Imaginary Girl's reply... already turning around when the car is offered. "You want me to carry your car there?", she then wonders, looking a little puzzled.

Jackie nods. "Yes. It's how I move people fast. The car protects them from air damage and I can fly lots faster."

Jackie says, "The front of the car is red hot when I get where I'm going but it's only a few seconds so the people inside are safe and cool."

Imaginary Girl cocks her head to one side for a moment. "Huh... I never thought of that, before", she says, smiling. "Well, get in your car and I'll get us there in a jiffy!", she says, then looks confused again. "Why take your car, though, if you can just fly there?"

Jackie laughs, "If we flew together could you stop yourself treating it like a race before long? We're both proud of our flying. And if I flew fast I'd have to be in costume. Even if I carried my clothes they'd burn up.

Jeremiah wouldn't mind that! Especially if both wimmens had their clothes burnt up. But not knowing the plans of the fliers, Jeremiah moves towards the edge of the protest, tossing his broken sign out and muttering. This was turning into a riot.

A pause.

And Jeremiah starts laughing.

"I can take my time. It don't hafta be a race", Imaginary Girl says, though she's smiling at the thought. "Flying fast /is/ really fun, though... and why don't you just change clothes, then?" Her tone of voice, and the gesture she makes with one hand, a general sweeping motion up and down Jackie's body, as if it's something Jackie can do in an instant.

Jackie says, "If I'm in my costume I'll be recognized as Wasp, Imaginary Girl. It's embarrassing. Wasp was a great heroine from everything I've read, but I'm not. I'm starting again without any of her experience. When I'm wearing normal clothing I'm just Jackie DelQuist, and I'm not expected to know leaders of state and generals and everyone. People I just don't remember."

"Oh... okay. Well, uhm... get in your car, then?", Imaginary Girl says.

Jackie nods and directs Imaginary Girl to a car park nearby, where among all the nice new cars, and some older models this close to the Student Quarters, there's a old French car with the front burnt and showing signs of having near melted a few times. "This is it."

In New York the police standing duty at the UE building are being reinforced by additional uniformed men wearing UEMS protective vests.

"Wow", Imaginary Girl says, seeing the car's front end. "You... do this pretty often, huh?" Waiting for Jackie to get into the vehicle, Imaginary Girl hefts it up and over her head, then starts up into the sky - to the ooh's and ah's of onlookers at the feat of strength so casually performed. Once up high enough in the air, she simply accelerates to super-sonic speeds, following the coastline towards the New York area. Once over the Big Apple, she slows to sub-sonic speeds... and hovers in place over the city. "Hey, Jackie!", she calls up from under the car. "Which building is it?"

Jeremiah, having newly disgarded his sign, moves back towards the front of the circling protestors. And starts his own chant. Just to be contrary. "A-yo, E.T.! Get yo ass -home-." And making rude gestures towards the hecklers. mAnd the UEMS. Usually by grabbing his groin in some fashion or other. "Ha ha, what they payin' you fo', baby?"

Jackie points from within the car at what used to be the UN building but is now the UE building. From the aerial view Imaginary Girl and Jackie can see the crowds around the building, held back from it by barricades, mostly supporters but there's a sectioned off group of yelling protesters with increased uniformed presence around them.

Jeremiah is right in the middle of the yelling protestors. The spine of it all. Where fear begins to grow, he'll hop right out and start doing his thing. Groin grabs, shouting, flipping. But never violence! Oh no. He's the anti-authority, flapping his stuff in the face of the UEMS and the uniforms. And as long as they stay non-violent, he knows he can legally get away with it.

Imaginary Girl flies over towards the building and finally does see the crowd, indeed. She comes floating down out of the sky, carrying the car over her head to the most-clear area that everyone in the place can see - of course, this means she's coming down to land behind the police line, right in front of the building's main entrance.

There's a hush spreading over the crowd as they recognize Imaginary Girl. Both Guild supporters and the smaller numbers of protesters stop what they are doing to gawp up at the descending heroine.

"It'a Imaginary Girl!" someone shouts, and cheering breaks out.

Imaginary Girl sets the car down, hovering with her hands on her hips. "Sorry about the car, officers", she says to the policemen in the line. "My friend wanted a ride here, but there's no other place to put it", she explains. Then she turns and looks out over the crowd, rising to over the heads of the cops. Smiling, she waves a hand and calls out, "Hi, New York!"

Jeremiah glances up in the sky as a shadow passes by, followed by Iggy comming down with a car in tow. "Look, up in the sky! It's a damn thigh. No, it's a damn plane. Hell, it's Imaginary Girl." Still in his Secret ID of Rabble Rouser, Jeremiah steps -forth-. Hands on hips. And shouts.

"YO, LOOKIT HERE. They sendin' the dogs in! We gonna stop steppin' jes' cause they got a cape on scene? Hell, we got a -piece- to say." Calm won't get the message out. Violence won't either. But loud sign waving might.

Jackie steps out of the car, looking all normal and thanks to her new youth, not immediately recognised. She smiles but is even so a little surprised when one of the police officers instructs her to leave the area and pass outside the barricades to the crowd area.

The cheering gets louder as more of the crowd joins in when the news of Imaginary Girl's arrival gets to them on the other sides of the building.

"Hey, buddy", Imaginary Girl says, to the rabble-rouser. "My friend wanted a ride here, so I brought her and her car. If you and your friends'll make some room, I can put it next to the curb where it belongs, too?", she adds, looking up at the people in the immediate area, making it a request of the crowd itself.

"Uh, Imaginary Girl," one of the police officers near the car says, "It won't hurt you of course but the front of that car is darn hot. I can feel the heat from here."

"Whatta I look like, the damn Meter Maid?" Shouts Jeremiah back, before he tchs and gestures. "Lookit that. Police -already- pushin' that lady around. A-yo, Baby!" Jeremiah shouts, towards Jackie. "C'mon, honey! We're savin' the goddamn WORLD over here. Get off them Po-Po's and join the walk." He then starts gesturing around him again, pointidly taking up his own broken sign. "You think this a sit down? You think this a gawp up? You want Earth Rules on Earth, or you want some damn squid-faced sucker tellin' us what to do? GET YO SIGNS UP!" And up goes the dented, broken sign. Still telling 'Aliens' to do something starting with H.

Jackie filters through the police lines going out to join the crowd area, and by sheer chance goes into the sectioned off area where the protesters are gathered.

"I know, officer", is Imaginary Girl's reply. "That's cause I flew really fast with it.... oh! The crowd", she says, having momentarily forgotten, 'cause she's so used to being unaffected by temperatures, that normal folks can't take the heat. "Where can I put Jackie's car, then, where it can cool off safely? Oh, and Jackie was hoping she might get to go in and talk with one of the alien diplomat-guys. Can you, maybe, ask someone in charge if she can, please?", she says to the officer, pointedly /ignoring/ Jeremiah's rabble-rousing, now. "Hey, Jackie... do you know anyone we might talk to...?", she asks, turning ... to see that Jackie's not where she last saw her. "Oh... uhm... wow. Jackie?!", she says, calling out her friend's name, cupping her hands around her mouth.

Jeremiah is right there as Jackie gets pushed into the Protest edge, clapping her -gently- on the back. And laughing. "Damn straight! Think you can walk in a cirlce, baby?"

Jackie waves back from among the protesters, but it's likely that in the midst of a group of sign waving and yelling protesters she'll not be spotted.

Jackie asks Jeremiah, "But why are you protesting?"

Imaginary Girl puts her hands on her hips, pouting a little. "Wow... she's gotta be /somewhere/ out there... anyway... where can I put her car, officer?", she asks, turning back to the officer to request that information.

Jeremiah pssh. "Cause this is -Earth-." He states, easing away from the main circling so as to not break the concentration of others. "You wanna come to the Earth? Fine. I ain't got a problem with that. You wanna come to the Earth and tell us what to do? What to say? What we gotta be? HELL. NO. Gimme that damn thing!" He's already reaching for a cardboard cone. And someplace to stand.

The police officer says, "Just leave it there for now, Imaginary Girl. Someone will ask for it to be moved if they want. It shouldn't do any harm where it is."

Imaginary Girl nods. "Thanks, officer", she says to him, smiling brightly, then floats back up into the air a little ways, waving both hands in the air as people cheer again as she becomes more visible.

Jackie says, "But they haven't, have they? I mean they said if you want to join you have to meet our requirements. But they aren't forcing us to."

Imaginary Girl starts floating along, smilingly offering greetings to everyone in the crowd as she does. She even stops to sign autographs along the way, too.

As Imaginary Girl works the crowd more of the onlookers who were hanging back push forwards trying to get closer to her.

Jeremiah takes a moment to look at Jackie. His eyebrows slowly come together as the pieces click in his 'study' of capes, and he hehs. "Yeah? Then what they got hidin' with the memory erasin', baby?" He then gets hold of a paper microphone, and steps up onto a nearby car-hood to try and get momentum back from Iggy's appearance. "A-YO. Check this.." He begins..

Jackie looks at Jeremiah quizzically, "How did you know about that?" she asks in a wondering tone.

Imaginary Girl happily continues signing autographs and returning greetings, still floating along the edges of the crowd. She can't help but notice Jeremiah getting up onto the car, but doesn't move to stop him from getting up on his soap-box.

"This is -EARTH-." Begins Jeremiah, holding the megaphone at an angle as he addresses the protestors. "Our home. Our planet. Our goddamn ball of rock. You wanna come down and visit? Hell yeah, come on down. You wanna set up shop? Sho'nuff. YOU WANNA TELL US WHAT THE HELL TO DO?!" He turns his attention to the UEN, and grabs his crotch. "WELL F&$# YOU! I SEE YO COPS! I SEE YO ARMOR! AND I AIN'T AFRAID, MOTHER F&$#'ER!" He lifts a fist up "F&$# yo secrets! F&$# yo lies! F&#$ yo! We doin' just fine without!" and begins a chant. "Ain't no fear in here! Ain't no fear in here!"

Imaginary Girl frowns a little at Jeremiah's choice of words... but, once again, doesn't do anything to keep him from saying his piece. She does sign another autograph, though, from someone who asks for it before going back to re-join the protesting.

Jackie would be thinking of jumping up on the car hood beside Jeremiah to counter his crowd rousing comment if she wasn't thinking about the circumstances of her memory erasing and wondering... whether there might be something in his argument.

Jeremiah tosses the megaphone aside to someone else to rant, as he hops down again. And grins at Jackie's expression. "Yeah. Thats right. I ain't native Yorker, baby girl. What you doin' with Imaginary Girl anyway?" He asks, before glancing over the heads of the crowd to see IG signing autographs. And places two fingers in his mouth before wolf whistling. Protesting is exciting!

Imaginary Girl can't help but hear the whistle, but there's enough over noise in the area that she takes it as just another part of the protesting in progress. She keeps on floating along and about the edges of the crowd, smiling and greeting, and signing autographs. She does seem, however, to be staying near enough that her presence is seen and known - in case things /do/ start getting really ugly.

Imaginary Girl and Jeremiah notice the UEMS people are pulling down their helmet visors and putting on gloves. There's no sign of any change in attitude from the NYPD officers though. Jackie, being short and in the crowd rather than having an elevated viewpoint, doesn't notice.

Jeremiah glances up and aside as he sees the UEMS start getting ready. Then reaches for Jackie. "Yo, shortie. Get lost. Looks like the Man gettin' ready to stomp on us.."

Imaginary Girl frowns again and flits over to between the crowd and the UEMS men. "Hold on a second!", she calls out, hands on her hips as she faces the UEMS troopers. "What's going on here?"

Imaginary Girl turns, suddenly, and snatches a molotov cocktail out of the air before it has time to land and smash, creating a puddle of flames. "Oh, /this/ is smart!", she calls out, looking over the crowd, her tone clearly sarcastic. "Who threw this at me?!", she then demands, one hand on one hip, the flaming bomb-to-be in the other.

Jeremiah glances up as the molotov cocktail goes sailing overhead - and is neatly caught by Assie. His own personal fantasy toy. Wait, that came out wrong. OR DID IT? ".. Huh." He says, before tilting his head at Jackie. "C'mon, shug. This damn thing just got weird."

With Jeremiah and Imaginary girl facing the UEMS officers neither of them see where the lobbed Molotov Cocktail comes from as it sails overhead. But with amazing reactions Imaginary Girl snatches it out of the air before it can land. The protesters seems as confused as anyone. They are looking at each other wondering where the bottle came from. But in the moment after the bottle flew into the air, as if that was a signal, the Marshal's Service officers storm forwards in their riot gear and start swinging with shock sticks and bashing shields into faces.

"EVERYBODY STOP!", Imaginary Girl calls out as loudly as she can... then she flits over to drop the molotov into the water-basic of the nearest fountain, to let the water douse the flames.

The protesters halt for an instant on Imaginary Girl's call. But the UEMS officers continue to advance striking at the protesters at the front of the gathering. Several protesters go down either to shock stick jangled nerves or physical trauma from brutally wielded shields bashed into faces.

Jeremiah turns his head as someone takes a swing at Jackie, and 'Heys'! "DAMN. This ain't what's supposed to happen!" With a growl, Jeremiah touches his jacket - the secured pocket where his 'War Face' is stored. But it's too crowded, and he won't be able to 'flex' without giving himself away. "C'mon. This was a goddamn setup!"

Jeremiah is clunked by the edge of a shield - but it doesn't seem to do much more than annoy him. Though it was hard enough to crack a normal person in two. Jeremiah's getting -pissed-. But, unfortunatly, still can't find a place to slip off and Riot Up. "Yo, Man!"

Jackie quickly moves forward to the front of the group of protesters and blocks off three of the UEMS officers from reaching the now fleeing people behind her. "Stop this." she commands the officers close to her. Imaginary Girl flits back over and sees people getting hurt. "No, no, no!", she says... then calls out, as she flits over to land behind the UEMS troops, "I. Said. *STOP!!!*", and slams her hands down onto the sidewalk, smashing a miniature crater into its surface from the force of the blow!

There's a noticable shock transmitted through the ground but it's not sufficient to knock anyone off their feet. The pavement is cratered badly though. More energy went down into it then around.

Imaginary Girl looks down at where she just slammed her hands into the sidewalk... and looks momentarily confused. "Hey... how come that didn't work?", she wonders aloud, though mostly to herself, as she looks at her hands and then at the ground.

Jeremiah glances up as he watches Iggy jump and pound the ground. And rolls his eyes, before lifting a leg and STOMPING hard. The ground cracks. The pavement rolls. Car alarms go off blaring, and people for some ways around hit the earth while it trembles... Hey, it was good cover. And that means Iggy gets blamed for all the broken glass.

It seems the first minor shock from Imaginary girl's punch into the sidewalk was a preliminary to the main shockwave reflecting back upwards, because a moment later the ground for dozens of yards around shakes and wobbles like a jelly on a plate. With only very few exceptions the entire gathering is tossed off their feet and sents tumbling down on butts.

While she's wondering why it didn't work, suddenly the ground under her feet heaves and dumps Imaginary Girl onto her bottom. Her eyes widen in surprise and she even eeeps, too, as she falls over.

Jeremiah has the sense of mind to lean against the nearby car, even though what he really wants to do is laugh out loud. Strikingly blue eyes gaze out at a world where everyone - for the most part - seems to have wanted to have a sitdown. Very, very badly. "Huh." He grins.

Jackie keeps her feet as all around her topple over. Then she's moving towards those who have been hit by shields. Her skins is glowing a soft golden hue as she starts touching each injured person in turn.

Imaginary Girl gets to her feet and flits up into the air and then hovers between Jackie, who's now easy to spot, and the UEMS troopers nearest to her. Hands on her hips, she says, "I said to /stop/. And if you guys even /try/ to hit her or anyone else, again, you hit /me/ first, you got it? I stopped the stupid bottle... all you guys had to do was stand there and let me find out whe threw it. You dummies didn't hafta go and start hurting people!", she says to the men in a scolding tone of voice.

Jeremiah pushes himself back to his feet, watching as his fellow protestors bug out. Then cups hands around his mouth to shout up to Imaginary Girl: "A-YO. It was a damn SETUP, baby! You seen them? Puttin' on they armor -before the damn bottle was even tossed-."

As they get back to their feet the NYPD officers are moving into positions between the departing protesters and the regrouping URMS officers. The police presence seems more focused on their 'fellow' law enforcement officers than the protesters though.

Imaginary Girl's eyes narrow a bit, and she flits over to the fountain and recovers the molotov bottle, now that the flames are gone. Offering it over to one of the NYCPD officers, she asks, "Think you can try and get fingerprints off this? You guys can get my prints if you need 'em, to tell 'em apart from anyone else's who might be on it."

The officer looks a little doubtful as the dripping bottle is handed to him. "I don't know, Imaginary Girl, after it's been in the water. But I'll give it to the lab."

Jeremiah pssh, and rolls his shoulders before raising a fist at the UEMs. Even though he's very slowly becomming all by himself. "YAY, THATS RIGHT. Punkass bitches! Yo on -earth-, baby. You can't jes push people 'round no more. Psh. Bitch." He then rolls his shoulders again, and moves towards where Jackie is all glowing. "Hey. You see what I'm talkin' 'bout now?" And then glances towards Imaginary Girl "YO. Got anything -short-er-?"

The UEMS officers are returning to the UE building.

As Jackie touches the injured, the golden glow on her skin pulses for an instant and seems to color the area of the other person where she touched them.

Jeremiah continues watching Iggy float around for a few moments - hoping for a cheap panty shot - before turning his attention down to Jackie. And takes a knee, frowning quietly. And with a sudden somberness. "They gonna be alright?" He asks.

Jackie nods while continuing her treatment, "Yes. But that was a vicous attack by the Marshal's Service. If I hadn't been here a number of these people would be going to hospital. And it's only luck there weren't any fatalities."

Jeremiah growls softly, and glances up at the UEM. "That what I was talkin' bout. Damn space bugs. Hell, I ain't mindin' the normal ones.. they just commin' fo jobs and better places. They in the tower, though, needs t' have they heads rattled."

Jackie nods rather against her will. She can't think of anything that could really justify what happened her today. Although when she was living rough in London she'd heard tales of heavy handed police often enough.

Jeremiah straightens back up, adjusts his jacket, and grunts. "Damn setup." He glances off, and then repeats precisely what he said before. "Damn -setup-. They had they armor goin' on 'fore that punkass tossed his bottle. They -knew- it commin'. Huh." The somber mood is gone as soon as it appears, Jeremiah's mercutial nature comming to play. "I'm hitting the transmat, baby. Catch you back in the Cee Bee, dig?"

Jackie nods again, "You're from Colonial Bay? Give me a call some time. I'll like to talk to you about this and your views."

Jeremiah grins. "Hell, you know my views. F&$k the Man, whatever he shape may be." A laugh, a broad Riotious laugh, and Jeremiah begins strolling off.