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The X-Men needed to work out some kind of salary structure. Monetary compensation primarily, but benefits would not hurt. Yes, Rebecca was, at her core, the kind of “hero” who was in the game because of strong world views and a sense of duty to her fellow mutants, but at some point, it was hard not to look at the world as a realist. That point was most consistently when she was done working a shift.

Just like with the X-Men, Rebecca had put in the time and toiled to reach the point where she was the owner of her bar, but some nights it was hard not to feel like she had barely climbed from her first position as a bartender. Specifically, the nights when one of her bartenders called out on short notice, with no one available to cover. As the last line of defense and the most to lose from subpar service, Rebecca had to be ready at a moment’s notice to toss on a tank top and spend the night forcing a smile while pouring drinks. Looking on the bright side, at least she could leave the night with her own tips lining the pockets of her cut-offs.

It was hard to complain when she knew mutant poverty and homelessness were pressing social issues, and Rebecca was grateful to have a roof over her head and a steady job. Things had grown tighter over the years, however, when the Grey household became reliant on a single paycheck. New York was not a cheap place to live, and while she was saving money on the grocery bill now that she was feeding two mouths rather than three, their rent was still standing constant. Her budget for reflective surfaces, meanwhile, had risen significantly over two years.

She was happy. Rebecca had a loving spouse and the sweetest daughter a woman could ask for. She was just tired and stressed. Leading the X-Men, being a mother, and working a late job were draining her energy, which was to say nothing of her more personal struggles.

Finally crossing into her apartment, Rebecca removed the elastic keeping her hair bound in a ponytail, releasing the waves of copper so they could fall over her shoulders. She looked around the cozy two-bedroom apartment, standing in the small living area that seamlessly became their smaller kitchen. Mirrors of different shapes and designs were positioned on the walls throughout the space, not for the sake of vanity or artistic vision, but practicality. The narrow hallway leading out of the living room had four doors: two bedrooms, one bathroom, and a closet.

The bathroom sounded like a wonderful idea to Rebecca, who could still smell the scents of gin and rum clinging to her top, but one thing was more important than her immediate cleanliness. ”Honey?” she called out, before her over-tired brain remembering what time it was. ”Oh!” she whisper-shouted at herself.

Adjusting the volume of her accented voice, she asked, in no direction in particular, ”Astrid didn’t stay up waiting for me to get home, did she?” Until she heard (one of) the familiar voice(s) of her spouse, it was always tough to figure out which reflective surface they would make their first appearance in.

It was interesting to talk about small things that could trigger memories, because lately those were the very struggles Rebecca had been working through. Hearing Agnes acknowledge these issues was comforting, because she wanted to believe it could not just be her plagued with old memories and nostalgic feelings. It was not necessarily that Rebecca wanted to know Agnes felt the same way and part of her missed their relationship as well, or if she did, it was not because she wanted to feel like there was still a chance for them. Their friendship would have felt less balanced if Rebecca knew she was the only one mentally dredging up the past, making it harder for them to move forward.

Of course, Rebecca turned out not to be the only one who could make a comment without thinking too hard on the consequences. The way Agnes brought up alcohol versus how she reacted after she mentioned the social lubricant made it clear their entanglement on Rebecca’s couch had momentarily slipped her mind. The poor thing had pushed herself into flustered territory, and with the social panic came the rambling in hopes of justifying what she said.

It was tough to watch and just as tough not to chuckle as Agnes backpedaled. Nessa had clearly covered her mouth with her hand to prevent herself from laughing, which her girlfriend appreciated. The brunette was still just a friend Rebecca was casually dating at the time, so she knew and held no ill-will toward the drunken kiss, but she had heard about the night from a drunken, ranty Rebecca, so the account of the evening might have had an inherent bias.

Becca bit her own lip in hopes of forcing herself to keep a straight face, but nothing was stopping the smirk forming on her lips as she flatly replied, ”Aye, Aggie. Aw th’ time.” She had the sneaking suspicion some of this portion of the video might have to be edited or cut as well. As long as they made it out of the video in one piece, that was all that mattered. She could put out a four minute video if need be.


”That's probably one ay th' guid boondaries tae consider,” she started, looking to segue and pull Agnes out of the hole she dug for herself. ”Be sure nae tae pit yoorselves in situations ye micht nae be ready fur. Thaur micht be things ye used tae dae together 'at micht nae be easy tae handle. Dornt be afraid tae say 'at. There's naethin' wrang wi' needin' time.” Rebecca had been mulling that idea over since the day Agnes found Lilith. In retrospect, she might have still needed some time before movie night sleepovers would be something she could handle.

”If ye need space frae certain things, ur if ye need momentary space frae yer friend, be clear abit 'at. An' if yer friend is th' one 'at needs space, know thes is fur them tae handle things at their ain speed, tay.” As hard as it was for Rebecca to be away from Agnes after the concert night, it felt like that time made it easier for them to return to establishing their friendship. ”Communication is nae jist a part of romantic relationships; it’s part ay friendships.” Rebecca still had some work to do on that front, but she felt committed. When she got the chance, she would let Agnes know she might need some space to sort away old feelings, and she would tell Nessa what had been on her mind lately so it did not feel like she was hiding these thoughts from her girlfriend.

For now, the host just smiled at her co-host, waiting to see if she had anything to add, feeling like they could start working toward a wrap-up for the video soon.

It was hard to deny that the nudge of nature occasionally filled Rebecca with envy toward those who had children to light up their lives. Watching Masochist losing his mind on Elke, this was definitely not one of those times.

Rebecca was not about to be an advocate for Elke’s decision to tag along with their mission because it was reckless and truthfully, the teen was a pain in the butt. Still, the foreign exchange student had only been a few years older than the native American young woman when she joined the team, albeit through more official channels. It was hard not to think her chastisement was on the extreme side, and Lodestone was not the only lady X to have that feeling. Ghost ripped into Masochist with such cold efficiency, Lodestone could have sworn a chill was cast through the cabin of the jet.

So she would roll her eyes at the dismissal of her accent, but answer Moose, (which she supposed was the girl’s codename,) with a smirk, shifting into the American accent she usually saved for voice acting gigs. ”Long story short, I called you a giant pain. But really, stay close to the team and don’t actually get killed.” Lodestone was not superstitious, but she was not a fan of tossing around jokes about getting killed right before a mission.

Moose was the least of their concerns, as it quickly became apparent she was the only one on the jet not hearing the telepathic call of Atlantis, with Masochist and Ghost more notably susceptible to the summons, the latter even unintentionally becoming a voice-piece. A shiver ran up Rebecca’s spine at how unsettling it was to see one of her teammates lose herself, if just for a moment.) She still questioned why she was the only one not hearing the call, but now she was seeing this immunity as a benefit more than a detriment.

They were approaching the island when Mirror volunteered for a recon mission in his Mirror World. With how little they information they had going in to this situation, Lodestone was thankful for a teammate who could operate so stealthily. Rebecca started equipping and fastening her gauntlets, boots, and chestpiece, because she was decidedly not part of their stealth team.

The jet touched down on the strip of beach outside of the cities walls, and a screen almost immediately alerted them to a one-woman welcome party arriving on the sand to wait for them. The woman with the long white hair had appeared from a wisp of smoke that had floated onto the scene, making it clear she was a fellow mutant. (If she was not, Rebecca had greater questions about what they were walking into, as magic and ghosts both sounded unappealing to the Scot.)

The woman was standing patiently, and expectantly watching the jet. If they were calling, it only made sense that they knew to be ready for guests. ”Weel, thes is a diplomacy mission ideally, reit?” She sighed, getting up from her seat. ”We hae tae make first contact. Ah’m gonnae greit uir greeter.”

On paper, this mission could go off without a hitch, but Lodestone still had a looming feeling that trouble was imminent. Looking to their team leader, she asked, ”Then again, gonnae aloyn micht be a bad idea if thes is an islain ay cannibals. Ghost, safety in numbers?” The leader agreed to come along, as well as anyone else on the team who had intentions of making a good first impression. She trusted Ghost… normally. Knowing how quickly Atlantis worked its way into her head though… she was cautious.

Stepping off the jet as a cabin door opened, Rebecca approached the lovely “Atlantean,” feeling like she was crossing over into another time or another world. The white-haired woman was dressed in a chiton and gauze, adorned with coral as a reminder of the submarine nature of her home days earlier. ”Hello,” she greeted nervously, keeping some initial distance between herself and the woman. ”We come tae ye as friends. We… heard yer call.” It occurred to Lodestone that it might behoove her to keep her telepathic immunity close to the chest for the time being.

The Atlantean only smiled warmly and held her arms out. “We have been expecting you… welcome to Atlantis.”

Rebecca was going to be more careful. Yes, her advice was truthful, solid guidance toward those who might find themselves in a similar situation to Agnes and Becca. This did not change the fact that, without Agnes know it was going to come up, the reminder that she might have done wrong by River was going to shake her. There was no intent to make the (formerly?) engaged woman feel guilty, and in the moment, the cluster that led to the harpist’s departure was nowhere on her mind. None of that made what Rebecca did any less insensitive.

If they looked genuinely awkward on camera for a moment, Rebecca hoped some clever editing might be able to skirt around or cut out the seconds of struggle before Agnes picked things back up.

To her credit, Agnes did jump back into the conversation. The camera might not notice, but it was clear to Rebecca that her friend was hurting when she admitted that lies of omission could spiral into complex issues for a relationship. She caught the sad smile as Agnes found her eyes for a moment, and her heart was pained. She put the ViewTube novice in this position, and now she was baring her honest truth to the world: with an ex in the picture, there might come a time when someone is forced to choose between a lover and a friend. Rebecca was unsure if this was a choice Agnes already had to make or if it was one that was weighing on her, but she could see the thought was not something easy for her to accept.

Agnes was doing great because there was so much emotional honesty in what she was saying. Rebecca might have made a snafu, but she wanted her friend to know she was there to be support. Their chairs were positioned closely together, allowing Becca to reach over and place her hand on Agnes’s shoulder, giving it a light, reassuring squeeze to go with a comforting smile.

Returning her focus to the camera and the audience, she picked up where Agnes lef off. ”Sometimes that's a choice ye hae tae make, but hopefully it can be avoided.” Rebecca would hope she would not have to make a choice between Nessa and Agnes, and for her ex-girlfriend’s sake, she hoped there was a way herself and River could exist in Agnes’s life peacefully.

Of course, the focus of the video was not going to be balancing a new girlfriend with an old, (even if that was quickly becoming the focus of her life,) so Rebecca moved them in a different direction. ”E'en if ye dornt hae a new lad ur lass in yer life, thaur ur still struggles an' steps tae redefinin' yoorselves as friends. Th' longer ye waur together, th' mair memories ur connected tae yer auld relationship. Movies ye used tae watch. Wee habits ye hud. Th' way she smells loch lavender sometimes.” Perhaps that last one was too specific to her current situation, but to Rebecca’s credit, she did not mention the honey scent as well, even if it was still fresh in her mind from Agnes’s borrowed pajamas. ”Ah’m sure those small things cross baith uir minds occasionally, reit Aggie?”

Smiling and giving a reassuring nod to the audience, she clarified, ”Thes is normal—maybe e’en unavoidable. Ye hae tae make peace wi' whit these memories are: a part ay yer pest, nae th' justification fur somethin' new. It’s nae easy tae remin’ yerself, which is wa boondaries can be sae important,” she explained, hoping to pass the conversation back over to Agnes.

It was not that Rebecca was nervous about Agnes’s first appearance on her show, or if she was, it was not for a selfish reason. She wanted Agnes to feel comfortable and find her footing so the product that went online was one the violinist would not regret. If the video went well, maybe Rebecca could even convince her to return on occasion.

Well, not all of her reasons were selfish, at least.

Things were off to a good start, with Rebecca doing her best to quell any blushing from hearing herself called beautiful in Agnes’s voice. (Thank the Lord for makeup.) Despite referring to Agnes as her ex a few times in the introduction, there was something sour about hearing the word come from Agnes’s lips in regards to her. Obviously the topic was going to come up, and it would be hypocritical if she could not take the words she gave, but it was a reminder that the two rarely referred to each other as such if it could be avoided.

Their eyes did meet when Agnes mentioned their breakup in vague terms, which was fine. This was not a video about their breakup; it was a video about their friendship. To prove that point, Agnes mentioned Lilith, which was a great memory to ease them both in to the video.

Except, of course, for Agnes’s clearly unintentional joke about who she was “keeping.” Agnes seemed a little stunned at herself, and Nessa was rolling her eyes behind the camera. Becca kept herself grinning and chuckling because the camera was on, she was Pixelbecky, and dammit, she was a professional.

”Of course,” she picked back up, still smiling, ”As aw mah most leal lads an' lasses micht awreddy know, Ah’m 'kept' these days by Nessa frae Th' Paw Block Party, while Aggie haur has tois ladies in 'er life: 'at rambunctioos kitten, Lilith, an' 'er wonderful fiancée, River.” River and Agnes might not have been on the best of terms, but as far as anyone knew (including Agnes herself,) they were still engaged. Rebecca would have felt awkward mentioning Nessa without mentioning that Agnes had moved on to another woman as well.

”Honestly, 'at probably leids tae a first piece ay advice fur stayin' friends: make sure yer ex knows abit th' new lassie in yer life, an' yer significant other knows yoo're still friends wi' yer ex.” It seemed like a reasonable bit of advice to start off with, though she was not initially thinking about why the thought was so fresh on her mind. ”Yoo're yer ain person, an' dornt lit someain teel ye fa ye can ur cannae be friends wi', but be transparent. Th' truth a’ays comes it.” It certainly did when Agnes…

#$@%!

Looking at Agnes, who Rebecca had absentmindedly thrown on the bus, she tried to backpedal as hard as she could, with her voice lightly cracking. ”Nae 'at it's aye easy tae brin' up. It can be a toochy subject, an' we're aw human. Friendship loch thes has its challenges, richt?”

AV!Rebecca Grey

Individual



Character's full name: Rebecca Michaela Grey
Alias/ Nickname/ Code name: Becca (to the very few she allows to call her that,) Impact
Gender: Female
Age: 29
Date of Birth: 01/02/1988
Nationality/ Ethnicity: A United Kingdom Coalition; 25% Scot, 25% Welsh, 25% Irish and 25% Brit
Birthplace/ Home/ Place of origin: London, United Kingdom



Appearance

Hair color and style: Copper Red hair, straight and going down between her shoulder blades

Eyes: Due to her heterochromia iridium, her right eye is a light blue and her left is a pale green.

Height: 5’5”

Build: Rebecca is toned and muscular from years of training and (relatively) good diet, with wide-hips and an ample chest that, while a complication in combat, suits her needs very well outside of missions.

Visible mutation: (if applicable) Besides heterochromia, none

Scars/ Tattoos/ Piercings: Rebecca has a bellybutton piercing, but no ear or facial piercings, feeling they could be a detriment in a fight. She does, however, have individual tattoos on her chest, shoulders, and arms, imagining one day they will join together to create sleeves

Other features: Rebecca has a mess of freckles on her face, shoulders, arms and legs


Everyday clothing style: Rebecca will often wear jeans and tanktops while working at the bar, but outside of work will rotate through t-shirts, buttoned shirts, and even dresses. She is not afraid to flaunt what she’s got, especially if it will benefit her.

Uniform: A carbon-kevlar weave light blue bodysuit with a pale green X emblazoned across the chest, along with matching green gloves, boots, and a domino masked fixed to her face with spirit gum. In costume, Becca will use a quick setting temporary brown dye in her hair to offset how recognizable her red hair is.

Sleepwear: None

Miscellaneous clothing:



Character


Personality: Rebecca cares for the state of the world, but she is past the point of looking at life through the shades of naivety. If there is something Rebecca wants or a goal she wants to achieve, she will plan meticulously and follow-through, more concerned with efficiency and effectiveness over pure morality. If her enemies are willing to go low, she is not going to handicap herself if sinking to their level is what it takes to win.

Being a planner can also manifest in being manipulative, and Rebecca is confident enough and charming enough to fit the bill. If Rebecca truly wants something, she will put herself in the position to take it.

The only thing that keeps Rebecca from letting herself go too far is her adopted daughter, Astrid. Some of her edges have softened over the years as she has to balance her own needs with the need to give Astrid a better example with the need to make her mutant daughter’s world a safe one. Morally, Rebecca can find herself in an internal war trying to make peace between herself as a mother, herself as a leader of mutants, and herself as a somewhat selfish woman.


Hobbies/ Interests: Rebecca sometimes tries her hand at writing in a notebook she tells no one about.

Job or part time job and description: Rebecca owns a dive bar in Hell’s Kitchen called “The Rock Bottom Pub”

Fears/ phobias/ concerns: Rebecca does not drive, and she gets anxious being in a car. Planes, trains, boats are all fine, as are ground vehicles in non-civilian settings. After her childhood, she has an unmovable fear of car crashes, since they can happen without reason and no amount of training can save you from one if it is going to happen.

Special talents: Combat, Drink Mixing, and she's actually not a terrible writer


Morality


Good/ bad/ neutral/ other: Rebecca’s goals are often good, but she is willing to work within questionable means to achieve the ends she desires


Mutations


Mutation description: Optic Concussive Blasts processed through Metabolized Radiation

Rebecca’s body metabolizes the trace radiation found in the world’s atmosphere since the first nuclear weapons were detonated, as well as other cosmic or electromagnetic radiation. This energy is released through Rebecca’s eyes as a Non-Newtonian concussive energy carrying no heat, but the force and impact of a physical mass. She has a mentally controlled ability to control the flow of energy through her eyes, going as narrow as the width of her irises (twelve millimeters in two parallel lines) or in a cone as wide as one hundred and forty degrees. A sixty degree cone is going to be the highest impact caused by Becca’s blasts, with the force being distributed more evenly across the cone with any wider blasts. The blasts can travel up to a hundred yards uninterrupted before dissipating, with twenty-five yards being the maximum distance it can travel without losing strength. Beyond twenty-five yards, the blast begins to dissipate in force the further it travels. Every time the blast ricochets, it loses a percent of its remaining strength and distance relative to the angle (a small ricochet would lose a small amount, with a greater change in direction losing more,) shortening the effective range each time it ricochetes.

The beam from her right eye is light blue and from the left is pale green, mimicking the irises of the eyes they pass through. When the beams are wide enough to merge together, they create a gradient of blues and teals and greens.

Strengths: The full-on impact of Rebecca’s concussive blasts at full power is enough to punch a hole through an inch of steel. At an angle, the physical impact of the blast will lessen, but the blast will ricochet, allowing Rebecca to plan for “bank shots” to use the geometry of the area around her. Rebecca can control her blasts not only in width, but in the overall force exerted, so she can use her ability without worrying about accidentally punching a hole through a wall, (unless that’s the goal.)

Rebecca’s ability requires her to process forms of radiation that are often dangerous to most humans, but her ability to metabolize these energies leaves her immune to their negative effects, unless of course she absorbs an excess amount, making her unable to process additional radiation.

Since Rebecca’s own blasts originate from the kind of radiation she absorbs, (though they do not carry any negative radiation themselves,) she is still able to absorb them. If a blast ricocheted back to Rebecca, it would hit her body and be processed back within her harmlessly.

Weaknesses: Rebecca’s bank of energy is not limitless, which becomes a problem in two different ways. Rebecca can use her power with relative consistency, but if she is using high-powered blasts or excessive blasts in quick succession, she can quickly find herself draining her reserves.

Likewise, there is an upper cap on how much energy her body can metabolize. If Rebecca goes a few days without using her ability, she will start to feel effects on her body similar to illness: fatigue, achiness, migraines, and even fever. She will start to lose some control over her blasts, with small burst involuntarily being released from her eyes as though energy was trying to leak out of her. Unless she responds to this need to expend energy, eventually, her body will eventually force her to release an uncontrolled blast of energy that will not cease until her reserves are empty. The trauma of this event will leave her unconscious for days, with her body temporarily unable to metabolize radiation until she regains consciousness.

Being “force fed” radiation will speed along this process, so if she was left in a room filled with Gamma Radiation, it would only take minutes before Rebecca reached the point of being “full” and needing to expend energy, lest she overload and be left unconscious and unable to process the radiation around her.


Secondary mutation description: Increased Spatial Awareness

Rebecca has an innate understanding of the geometry of the space around her. She is no mathematical genius and could not explain the process of what she understands, but her mind allows her a “sense” of the space and surfaces around her.

Strengths: This sense allows her to more accurately predict the angles her blasts will take off any given surface.

Weaknesses: This sense is does not allow her to “feel” past objects she would not be able to see behind, so if there was a wall with a door in front of her, she would not be able to predict where the blast would go once it went through the doorway.



Fighting Style



Explanation: Rebecca has trained in Aikido and Boxing for over a decade of her life.

Pros for fighting style: Rebecca’s skills in hand-to-hand combat combined with her mutation give her strong all-around coverage from close and long range.

Cons for fighting style: A skilled fighter, Rebecca still has a relatively light build, and could be matched well by a well-trained fighter or someone with heightened levels of strength


History Of Your Character

Rebecca’s life began in London, born as a UK mutt to her Welsh/Brit father Garrison Grey and her Irish/Scot mother Mackenzie McIntosh. Mackenzie’s parents disapproved at how young she was having a child and made it clear they were not going to welcome her back with open arms in Scotland, leaving the young couple to raise their daughter in the city. The young couple did their best, but struggled to make ends meet.

Life took a dark turn early for young Rebecca when she was twelve. Driving through the city in the back seat of her parents’ car one day when they were involved in a multi-car accident in a busy intersection. The impact and the sense of panic triggered an awakening in Rebecca, and a large, bright flash of blue and green tore through several cars including the one she was in.

No one figured out what the flash was, but it was seen by many on the scene. When Rebecca woke up in the hospital days later, she could feel a stinging in her eyes. Panicking and confused about what happened, she made the impulsive decision to sneak out of the hospital. In the alley behind the building, she tried to calm herself down and focus on the pain in her eyes, which lead to her first intentional blast, putting a dent in the nearby brick wall.

Knowing public sentiment toward mutants was mixed, Rebecca tried to keep a low profile living on the streets in London for the next two years. She developed her wits and her distrust of others during this period, knowing she had to prioritize looking out for herself over anything else. Any wrong choice could be her last, and she was keen on surviving. It was her good fortune that, at fourteen, she was discovered by the X-Men on an overseas mission and taken in as a trainee.

Her time with the X-Men filled her with a drive and a sense of purpose. Her goal was still survival, but she opened the scope from self-survival to survival of her kind, since both desires went hand in hand. Committed to the cause, Rebecca became one of the Leaders of the X-Team at the age of twenty-one.

Two years later, Rebecca was leading a mission in France, trying to quell anti-mutant riots. Two orphanage kids were taking advantage of the chaos to bully a young girl with beautiful wings, and once Rebecca put a stop to this and the X-Men deescalated the riot, she was reminded of herself as a young teen. Astrid was still filled with the hope and optimism of a child, and Rebecca wanted to give her the same chance she was given years earlier. Though young, she became Astrid’s legal guardian, going through the necessary channels to bring her to America.

Now, with the world becoming more dangerous for mutantkind as the SUPERs grow in power, Rebecca is vocal with her team and fellow X-Leaders that now might be the time where they cannot afford to be hesitant or be “the better people.”

Awesome new character, Caf! Can't wait to see more of him!