audience: Rita

[becomemod]

Comments

[becomemod]

Sure. At first we didn't really have any idea of what to do, all we were told was to 'become heroes and fight crime'. So we did that for a while, but while we were doing that we were trying to look for clues as to why we were brought here and how to get home. It was kind of messy back then, we struggled to work well as a group. Even Marigold Monkey was-

[They pause there, and when they speak again, it's a little quieter.]

...well. Long story short, it took a lot of time for us to really learn to work as a team. That might be why we haven't found much yet.

[rizomata]

... Marigold Monkey?

[A questioning look.]

Come to think of it, the newspaper said there were twelve original heroes...

[becomemod]

...yeah.

[They sigh.]

There were twelve of us, originally. But...you know, fighting villains can be dangerous. So now there's only eight of us.

Monkey was the oldest, so they were kind of like our team leader. They were pretty good at it too, it gave a lot of us the direction we needed to stay focused. Tiger was...well, not close, they're not close to anyone really, but they did better with someone else calling the shots. So we're all feeling their loss, I think.

[rizomata]

Hm...

[she just processes that quietly for a few seconds. rita doesn't really know how to comfort someone, nor is she really inclined to, so it just results in a bit of an awkward silence.]

How long ago was all of this?

[becomemod]

About a month ago. We fought a strong villain, and ultimately we won, but...

[Yeah.]

That's when the city got all destroyed too.

[rizomata]

That's some battle. What kind of villain was it?

[becomemod]

A very strong one. But they're gone now at least, we took care of them.

[rizomata]

Hmph.

[She's visibly unimpressed at the lack of details.]

Fine, next question. What's with the masks and the fake names?

[becomemod]

They're our superhero identities! Pretty cool, huh? I mean, we go out sometimes without our costumes on, but we're very careful not to let anyone connect our superhero identities and our real ones.

[rizomata]

Did you want a serious answer to that, or...?

Never mind. What I mean is, we're supposed to be allies, right? And it's not like just anyone can even get into these dorms.

[becomemod]

You can bring people into here if you want.

But the other reason I wear this so much is that the glasses on this thing are polarized.

[rizomata]

I guess.

[rita here just incapable of imagining a future where she has friends she'd bring over to visit.]

What, you're worried about your eyes?

[becomemod]

Yeah. Have you seen the glare in this city on a sunny day?

[rizomata]

I haven't even been here for a full day. Unless you count being cooped up in and around that hotel.

[becomemod]

Ah, yeah, fair. Basically, my eyes are really sensitive to light, so I usually wear my team glasses even without the rest of the outfit. It keeps me from getting headaches.

[rizomata]

Hmm. Sounds inconvenient.

I've got tinted goggles myself, but that's just for safety while working with certain materials.

[and for looking like a digimon protagonist the rest of the time.]

[becomemod]

[Let Rita live her best Digimon life.]

It can be a little inconvenient, but it's better than not being able to see at all.

[The curry is just about done, so they start to get the plates ready now.]

[rizomata]

[she studies them a little, seemingly thinking about that...

hm. well, anyway. she'll get out of the way so they can dish out that curry.]

You cook much normally?

[becomemod]

Usually every day. Even back when we all lived together I liked to cook, and I've been by myself for about a month now. Either I cook or I have to get takeout.

[Order up! Here's a plate of curry and a spoon for Rita!]

[rizomata]

Who's "we"?

[The twelve heroes? Or before that?

... She takes the plate, finds a spot to sit, and goes ahead and takes a bite of it.]

[becomemod]

The original 12 heroes.

[It is honestly really good. Cobalt Ox is an excellent cook.]

[rizomata]

[oh no, it's good.]

So, what, you all lived together in one big dorm, like this one? Why'd that change?

[becomemod]

Our old building got destroyed, back when most of the city did. We ended up getting our own places instead of crowding into the capsule hotel.

[rizomata]

[makes sense. rita figured that incident had to do with it, and they just went ahead and answered the follow-up question. (why not use the capsule hotel?)

she hms in acknowledgment while her mouth is full. it takes a moment before she continues.]

So how'd you go from that to being a "team leader"? Did somebody set you up with this role?

[becomemod]

[They are also eating their plate of curry while answering.]

Mmm, a little of that, and a little bit of personal choice. We've been here for a while now, and we've gone through the same confusion the rest of you are right now. So why not help the newcomers get a lay of the land?

Plus, whenever weird stuff like "people coming from other worlds" happens, it's usually a villain causing it. It's better to try and get ahead of whatever plan they have. My power's not really that useful in a fight, so I have to gather information more.