Slow Is Smooth, Smooth Is Fast
“Super-Powers aren’t free. They come with problems, and over the decades we’ve had to find solutions. Super Strong people play golf to help learn control, sensory enhanced heroes tend to love their sound cancelling ear wear, and it's pretty universally accepted that technophiles will be carrying a notepad wherever they go.”
“Super speed is, almost universally, connected to ADHD, or at least something that functionally duplicates the effect. Speedsters are thus urged to get hobbies where they sit still and go slow for a while. That’s why seventy percent of speedsters play the guitar. Because speedsters tend to think something different from everyone else when the words ‘slow down’ are used.
Qianlima glanced over at Azure Rong, the two of them perched on a fire escape, watching shopping traffic passing underneath them. "Look, I know you are irritated..."
"You just admitted you told the pickpocket team you used to run with when to be 'scarce' cause we'd be around. Not that I really wanted to pick on some pick pockets but, really?"
"I'm more grey than you, deal with it."
They watched as a pretty asian woman had her purse strap cut by a thief who took off running leaving the bemused looking girl behind. "Yeah, oh look, an idiot." Azure dropped from the fire-escape, gripping a line he'd secured well before, slowing his drop to a comfortable speed as he hit the ground in front of the purse snatcher. "Hi there! Drop the bags and knife." He commanded, pointing a tonfa at the crook.
The thief blinked. “Eh! Fuck you. He turned to run down an alley and nearly fell on his ass, an asian chick with dumpling hair was standing there shopping bags over one arm. With her free hand she sent a disarming chop to his arm forcing him to drop the knife.
"Oh hey, um..." Qianlima blinked, having stepped into the alley from one of her portals, behind the other asian girl who just took the knife away from the guy. "That was... Punch!"
The thief threw a wild punch, which the smaller woman blocked with a graceful kung-fu style block, more guiding the hand away than gracefully lazily stepped out of the way of a clumsy stomp kick he threw. "Oh, hello. I didn't know there were two of you." She said, cheerfully, as if she wasn't fighting a man twice her size.
Azure Rong laughed. “Damn girl, your moves are slick. He could appreciate the skill it took to make a fight look effortless.
"Fucking capes." The guy tried to backtrack, and run past Azure Rong, only to get the stick to his stomach, sending him to the ground. AR knelt and checked his pockets. "Girly wallet, girly wallet, manly wallet... No, I don't think this is ours either. Cheap Velcro wallet?" he punched the man in the kidney when he tried to start struggling. "That's the one. Well John, if that is your real name since you have two fake IDs. Time to call the cops. Assuming the lady doesn't object, of course?"
"Not at all." she said in a soft melodic voice. "I am in no rush today, just finishing some Christmas shopping and getting some things picked up for my new job."
"New job? And I'm guessing it will be new to New York? Sorry about the Welcome Party here, but hey, you got the new resident mugging out of the way early, am I right?" Qianlima joked. "I remember mine... I kicked him in the groin."
"Yes, I just came in from upstate, but I've not been to the city alone before. She frowned, “He ruined my purse.” She shook her head. My Apologies. “I like your suits. The colors suit you well."
"Thanks, we have a good Tailor." Qianlima said, while Azure Rong finished calling the cops, and cuffing the idiot to a dumpster. "Let me see your purse. I got some chords to make a temporary strap for ya to carry it with."
"I'm Azure Rong, this is Qianlima. Glad we could get your purse back. Sorry we didn't spot him before he cut the strap."
"There is no fault, save his, this place is so packed I am surprised he was able to run, otherwise I would have chased him sooner. It took me a moment to find a safe path. She handed the simple dark red purse to the other girl. "You need to open your stride a bit more with the Tonfa’s it will give you better stability." she said to Azure. Then paused "Ah. My apologies, I am Mei Zhen Cai.
"Yeah, I was kind of going to ask about that. How did you get here, you moved really fast." Q asked. The girl was too chill, and every move she made was almost dancelike.
“I am a speedster, currently a class C” she said taking her purse back and looping it over her shoulder checking her watch for the time.
"Oh, well, okay... that'd work too." The two looked at each other. Even Cassie, the calmest speedster who had met till now, tended to speak quickly when excited. This girl just got robbed, and is maintaining a mellow, even musical tone.
Qianlima looked up. "I hear the sirens. Cops should be here soon. Assuming that's not something else. You keep looking at your watch, something you need to get to?"
“Yes. I am meeting my new boss for lunch. I interviewed with her this morning, and she hired me and invited me to lunch. It would be a bit ironic for me to be late.”
"Yeah, fair point. But considering he tried to rob you the cops are going to want to get some info. Can you call them and let them know you're held up due to this? I'm sure they'd understand."
“You are right.” she reached into her purse pulling out her phone and dialing. “Eleanore, my apologies. I am going to be running a little behind, someone tried to steal my purse, I am waiting to talk to the police.”
“Oh dear. That’s not good. I take it you kept your bag since you are saying “tried.” Do you want me to come to you? We can call a car and get out of the crowd. I imagine that would take the shine off shopping. “
“I was mostly done; I was working my way towards the restaurant. I did get my bag back. A pair of nice heroes helped me stop him.
Said heroes were staring at her in shock, listening to her side of the conversation.
“Oh, which ones? There’s a few who operate in the city. It’s a busy time of year for them too.”
Azure Rong and Quillian. They are waiting with me for the cops.”
“So that’s where they were. Interesting. Where are you at?”
She looked around, “We are at forty-six and seventh.” Marcus said loud enough for Eleanore to hear. Should we Clark Kent and meet you here?”
“Might as well. She is on the know list or will be. “
“Cool see you in a few.” Marcus said.
“So, you are part of the company as well?” Mei asked her tone delighted.
“More or less. Go ahead and change Q.. “
As the other girl slipped away, the police showed up. They made a brief statement but as the officer recognized the thief it didn’t need a lot of work. By the time Elenore got there both had changed.
A short while later the other two heroes were in civilization clothing. And Elenore was pulling up in the Grand Marquis.
"Hey Elenore. Didn’t you know you were coming into the city today." Marcus said, leaning down. "Glad we took the train instead of driving."
“I had an interview with Miss Cia today. We met at her hotel; she is a graduate of the northeastern ESAS school. Code name Heron.” Eleanore said as if everyone got in the car. “She is going to be the on-staff stylist.”
"Why do I sense some of our closets being torn asunder? Well, less so than before the boss took us all to get suits and stuff." Z joked, "Did you fly in, or drive here from upstate?"
Mei laughed. “I have a nice Porsche 944, my uncle bought me when I turned sixteen, that I drove down. And I am no tailor, I do hair and makeup, though I can help with dressing if someone wants it. El, I was able to get the sapphire scissors and other enhanced beauty tools ordered.” She said with a smile.
"Good, those were the big things, to be honest." Elenore acknowledged.
They climbed into the car, Marcus taking over, being more used to driving in the city, and allowing El to talk to the new girl. "Nice thing with us, car maintenance is pretty much handled."
"Along with upgrades, improvements, bullet proofing..." Z said her tone amused as she thought of Banana.
“My pretty pony is well maintained, my uncle owns a used car shop. He makes sure we are all cared for, though it will be good not to drive several hours to get the work done. They live up north, closer to the school.”
“Huh. I might need to speak to him. The boys are talking about a four-way speed build battle and that’s going to leave us with four cars we don’t need.”
“I can give you his card.” Mei said. “When are you wanting me to start, Uncle wants to know so he can trailer my stuff down.”
"Well, we have the apartment we discussed already up and ready for you to move in, and you can do that when you like. Officially, I was thinking we'd have you start Monday though I’ll take you to meet the boss before that, Elizabeth tends to prefer to be informal.
“Easy to do. I don’t have much, I’ve been boarding at the school since I was really little. So, the move should be easy.”
"If you need furniture and such, let us know. We can order inexpensive basics for you and just move them to another apartment if and when you upgrade."
“I may take you up to that, I have my bedroom furniture but not much else. I suspect Auntie will set me up with some basic kitchen stuff but other than a tv I don't think I have anything for a living room.
"Not a problem. Worst case we hit a used furniture store. This can go under the 'moving costs' tab." Elenore chuckled.
"If you want to move in immediately, one of us can ride with you to give directions. The best time to meet the Boss Boss would be to come to breakfast or dinner when you have a chance. She loves seeing folks flowing in and out." Marcus offered
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“No reason to delay. I can celebrate with my family when they bring my things down. Then I can get started learning the lay of the land.”
"Sounds good. I'll come down on the train. Where are you staying." Z offered.
“The Edison hotel in Times Square, it’s loud but it’s very central.” Mei said. I am looking forward to this. My aunt wanted me to start my own shop, but I like the idea of doing more on-site and freelance work.
"And there's the advantage of not having the whole thing hanging around your neck if something goes wrong."
“Yes. As a speedster I dislike being too tied down, she said with a grin. Do we have any big events coming up?
"Well, we're going to be going to Japan, and yes you're included since we don't know what all might come up there. One thing that will be going is a bit of a job fair for the Asian and European academies, so Ms. Summers, Ms. Ward, my secretaries and I will need to be primped for the proper projection. That’s at the first of the year. Ms. Summer's is already being invited to various events for Fashion Week, which doesn't cross with Chinese New Year, I checked that when we talked earlier, so those are the most immediate I know of."
"However, there's other events, parties and such things that some of us have been invited to, so while we're not considering them major events, we are going to want you to do the hair and makeup for them, as they're a bit of a show in many ways."
“It will be good to work. Do I have a workspace at the house for on-call work or where will I be working out of? We can work it either way, it lets me know how to set up my kit.”
"We weren't sure what you might want, so nothing is set up yet. You'll assuredly want a mobile kit. If you have a specific preference for a chair to work with, we can have something made that can be transported easily as well. We can also look into setting up a workspace either at the house or at one of the other buildings. Possibly both, to be honest."
“I can get a mobile kit set up. It only gets problematic if I need a sink to do bleach or dye. I need someplace with a sink shower, but it doesn’t matter where as long as people don't mind coming to that spot.”
"We'll look into options, just in case, but that's good to know. We'll get you something set up as a static location, probably at the house. I'm sure there's some bathroom everyone forgets is there to convert." Elenore was only partially joking. Solaris's house was a weirdly put together place.
“We could challenge the toymakers” Zoya said. Or see if whoever made Cassidy’s mobile sewing station can make one for hair stuff.”
"I think Cassidy made her sewing station." El said, thinking. "I'll reach out to her. Cassidy is a public Tailor and fashion designer, and a tech. Her husband is one too, a tech not a tailor.” she clarified. “They have a neat mobile sewing manufacturing plant thing."
“Well, if nothing she may have input for making something for Mei.” Marcus said, and we will earn some cred with her for introducing her to a new stylist.”
"Okay, she's planning a line for fashion week, meaning a runway show. You might have an offer for some of that freelance work you were hoping for. Ha, I just realized, she's a speedster too. Also class C if I recall."
“Oh nice. We can keep pace with each other, that could be a lot of fun!” She perked up. I’ve never worked with another speedster before!”
"Yes, and she's a fairly calm one, as you are yourself. I'm sure you've met less laid-back members of your particular set." Elenore chuckled.
“Actually, I’ve only met one other speedster, true speedsters have been kind of rare since the speedster war.” Mei said.
“Seems like it, though I think the number is on the rise. Still, glad to have you here either way. So, let’s have lunch and I can walk you through the paperwork and schedule your appointment with our Tailor.” El said
Mei smiled at Nahoa as she pulled her red car to the gate. “Hello, I am Mei Shen Cai. I should be expected?”
"Yeah, they let me know you were coming. Just park in the front, that'll keep you out of the way of anything leaving the garages."
She nodded, pulling up to the house, taking a moment to admire the huge fir tree draped all over with garland lights and ornaments sitting next to it with a big red bow on it was a rose gold tank. She giggled, parking the car and heading for the front door.
Her feet crunched frost hardened grass, the front door opening as she approached it, and an older Vietnamese woman waiting for her. "Are you Mei? You are a lovely little thing, aren't you? Come in, out of this cold."
“Thank you.” She gave a small bow to the elder and stepped in. “Thank you, Ma’am. You must be Ms. Ruan. Elenore spoke fondly of you.”
"Yes, I run the household, more or less. Less officially I make sure you all are getting settled. I understand you are needing some inexpensive living room furniture, but your bedroom is okay. You got something from home for that?"
“Yes, even though I mostly lived at the school. Uncle kept a bedroom for me at the family home, he is bringing my stuff down tomorrow, he wants to get it done before holiday travel starts.”
"A good choice. If you need, I can take you shopping. I'll bring Nahoa, he can lift anything we need him too." she said with a smile.
“Thank you, I am sure I am going to need a few things. I also have a package being delivered here. As expensive as sapphire scissors are, I didn't want to risk them getting porch pirated.”
“A very wise choice. Fortunately, one of the young men is always here for packages. “
Mei followed Ms. Ruan to the dining room where a table was loaded down with all manner of tastiness, the Chinese girl blushed as her stomach rumbled.
“Find a seat, and don’t be shy. You aren’t alone in having a healthy appetite. Are we missing Levi and Erica tonight?”
“Date night. “
“Ahh, good for them.” Granny quickly introduced all the other employees. Mei gave them a smile, “I am Mei; it’s a pleasure to meet you all.” She winked at Anzy. “Especially you if this is a sample of your skills.”
“You will have to let me know after you try. “One of her said as another brought in the last player of food.
Mei sat down and joined in on loading her plate. Smiling as she began plowing through more food than it looked like the small woman could hold, “This is wonderful. If you ever need help let me know, my Auntie taught me how to cook. “
“It could come up. Oh, and I make lunch over at the shop in my food truck. “
“Good to know. I’ll have to bring you some bao when I get my own kitchen set up.”
“Oh, that sounds lovely. I might have to join in on that, if I wouldn’t slow you down.”
“You are welcome to come. Or I can bring ingredients over here. I tend to make enough to freeze and cook later,”
"Well, my kitchen has pretty much everything we'd want in it, so we could prepare a lot of stuff if you were feeling energetic on any given day." She didn't bother mentioning the three reaches in freezers she had with one filled with meat, and another good frozen vegetable. The last she had earmarked as for things that could be prepped in advance but mostly had things like fries in it now.
“Sounds wonderful. Once I am done moving in, how about we pick a night, and I will cook all my Aunties food with you.”
Three Anzy's cheered at once, clapping and almost doing a little happy dance. "Well, you're her new best friend." Elenore chuckled, Mercedes just rolled her eyes at her multiplied friends’ enthusiasm.
Mei laughed. “I enjoy cooking, even if when I’m home alone none of it makes it to a plate.”
“Now, she sounds like a speedster.” Zoya teased.
"Yeah, but we're talking about her vs. Anzy here. The girl sometimes literally eats for five."
"Hey now! Well okay, maybe I have been eating a bit more than usual, but it's not like you can tell! See, nice and trim." she said, wiggling. Marcus pointedly looked at the roof.
“So, Mei is a speedster?” Grayson said. “I thought speedsters were all spazzes.”
"Not universally." Penny said. "But that is something of a reputation. It's not helped by the fact that they universally suffer from ADHD, because of their power. I mean, consider this, to speedsters who haven't really learned to clock themselves it sounds like we're speaking at half speed, and highway traffic looks like a school zone."
“I’ve been taking martial arts, dance, and violin, since I was four, because my family knew I would express myself as enhanced. So, I’ve had much more training in control than most speedsters.
"Cassie is also a speedster and you can hardly call her spastic. Of course, she's a well-practiced seamstress and knitter, also talents that require focus." El said
“Wait, Wait, your family knew You’d be enhanced? How? Marcus asked, his eyes wide.
‘My parents paid a fortune teller to read for me when I was a baby. When they heard about my enhancement and potential strength, they started planning on how to get me out of China. They bribed someone to use their daughter for my first official inspection at my 100-day celebration. Then my family fled to South Korea. My parents didn’t make it, my uncle’s family did, from there we immigrated to the United States.”
"Okay, wow. But how would fortune tellers know?" Grayson asked
"It's unusual, but powers express differently, depending on your cultural backgrounds. Some cultures are prone to producing clairvoyants in higher numbers." Penny shrugged. "No one's ever been sure why, other than the theory that Enhancements have both physical and mental aspects and develop in line with a person’s base personality, at least if it's anything related to 'natural.'"
“In China, ALL enhanced are supposed to work for the government. All children are inspected at three months, five years, Thirteen years and Eighteen years old. If your gifts are not desirable, or are too strong, you and possibly your whole family might disappear.” Mei shuttered thinking how terrified her family must have been.
"And speedsters tend to be problems for governments who like to keep their population under control. Especially when they hit the 'run on water' level, which C is at."
Mei nodded. “Uncle said Father was afraid as strong as I was supposed to be that our family and my uncles would be targeted, and my uncle had a baby only a year older than me.”
"And so, they fled with you, as parents should." Mrs. Ruan nodded. "It is unfortunate your parents were lost. From what I understand, you lived at the school, but maintained a good relationship with your uncle’s family?"
“Yes, I spent the holidays and most weekends with them. My cousins are like my sisters and brother. They just wanted me to be raised to respect my powers, my body has been slowly building speed since I was little, I was lucky I didn’t have a burst awakening like most do. Which really helped me develop my ability to be slow. On a happier note I do have my scissors with me if anyone wants a trim.”
“I could use a bit of a polish. “Riley said, her hair a bit shaggy after weeks of working on the apartments. “I am your neighbor. “
“Ahh, hopefully we will get along well. She gave the group a cheeky smile and moved, blurring as she grabbed her scissors. her Hands moved quicker than a hummingbird’s wings as she gave the brunette handyman a quick clean up before returning to her chair.
“That was both satisfying and terrifying.” The freshly preened girl whispered.
“Sorry I could not resist showing off a bit.” Mei said with a giggle.
"There's the speedster whimsy." Penny chuckled. "Though it's very nicely done. Just don't do that to Erica. Between your speed and her weird vision, she'll see alternate universes or something."
“I prefer to take my time. It's more soothing for the client, and nothing says self-care like getting your hair and nails done.”
"That is very true." Elenore agreed. "We'll have to have girls glow up day so you can do your magic for all of us. Though we might need to investigate more equipment for that. I'll explore our options."
Mei nodded. “The tools I ordered should be here in about five days. I gave you the receipts yesterday.”
"Well, need, and want are two different things." Elenore chuckled. "I have a completely kitted out auto shop capable of doing just about everything. I've gotten used to thinking in those terms when equipping my professionals."
“I am glad you’re getting settled into your job.” Solaris said with a laugh as she came into the dining room. “Sorry I was finalizing hiring our new trainer. Sir Hercules will be starting after the new year. So, is this our new stylist? A pleasure to meet you.”
Mei’s eyes went wide as she gave a polite nod. “The pleasure is mine; I will work hard to make sure you shine like the sun.”
"She already does that. And look at what she did for Riley. Show off did it in like, seconds." Penny winked. "Though she prefers to be slower for the pampering aspects of the job."
“Well, I look forward to getting pampered. I assume you have a passport. We will be heading to Japan to visit friends and do a bit of this and that.”
“Yes, I do. I can be ready to go to Japan with you, no problem.”
"I've actually asked all applicants if they have one, since mobility is a plus for us." Elenore admitted.
"She does have a big honking yacht, so that makes sense."
“Yes, I still need to take you all out on her. We can take a short rest after Christmas.”
“After Christmas before we head to Japan? What do you all think?”
"That sounds good. Will let us all catch our breath for those few days between the holiday and traveling across the planet."
"I'll start getting her prepped, so we can sail out after your 'boxing day' plans." Penny said, figuring that'd give them a couple of days out on the water.
Solaris nodded. “We could all use the break.”