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Description
The Aristotle Plaza
Earth-23
11:38 PM
March 2013
Monday

Doc Valiant sat in his penthouse suite, in a nice white cushiony chair, drinking some water as he stared out into the city (his city) of Angel Falls. It was a chilly March night outside, supposedly going to reach a temperature of 33 degrees by 1 AM. Still clad in his 'work clothes', (his now typical clothing that he wears) the Big Man was lost in his thoughts as he looked out onto the glittering metropolis beyond his window. "What are you thinking about, dearest husband?" chuckled a voice as the beautiful tan-color arms of a woman wrapped around his neck and shoulders.

It was Camilla, his wife. But the rest of the world recognized her as the tireless champion of justice and peace, Amazonia.

"Oh just the usual stuff I'm afraid." replied Doc as he leaned his head back against her shoulder. "Experiments that still need work, scheduled meetings with the Guardians, and of course the typical things. Equations, Chemical Combinations, Quantum Mechanics... you know... simple stuff." grinned the Herculean Superscientist as he kissed her arm.
"Well it seems to me like you're having trouble sleeping again Alexander." replied the Amazon, cuddling her husband more.

"Eh... that too." he answered, taking a drink as he talked. "Sleep seems to be a luxury for me anymore."
"Well, I can think of something to help solve your problem." giggled Camilla, nibbling on Doc's ear a bit. This sent a pleasant shudder through Valiant's body, almost causing him to drop his glass.

"Come now Camilla... we don't want to have a repeat of what happened last time. Besides, I don't know how much more that bed can ta-"

Suddenly, an alarm began to sound, cutting off the conversation. It was nothing too loud, or urgent (with the intensity of your average electronic alarm clock) but enough to demand attention from both veteran heroes. Without hesitation both of them were immediately on their feet, romance or sleep be damned.

"What is it?" asked Camilla as Doc turned on the security cameras.
"Motion Sensors picked up something." replied her beloved, as a wall compartment slid open. Underneath was a series of television screens, all hooked up to various (mostly hidden) cameras set up around the Plaza.
"What could it be at this hour? In the cold." replied the Gorgeous Amazon, immediately at her husband's side.

"Could be anything, dear. A cat, a homeless vagrant, would-be thieves or," grinned Doc, "shadowy ninja assassins." This got him a smirk from his wife as the camera closest to the motion sensor that had gone off flipped on. It was hard to tell what was going on in the shadows, but Doc's trained eyes soon spotted some movement.

"There." he stated, as he poked the television screen at the spot where he saw said movement, magnifying it full screen. From the shape of it, it was definately human. Said human didn't look dangerous, looked more like they were trying to get out from the cold. But Valiant knew appearances could be decieving. But if they WERE someone who was trying to get warm... he felt obligated to give them shelter.

"Looks like it's someone trying to get out warm. Should probably go ch-" announced the Big Man as he turned towards Amazonia, who was already gone. Sighing to himself, the Big Man simply followed. By the time he got downstairs, Doc found Camilla standing in front of the main entrance to the Plaza. He could tell she was angry from her body language.

"Stupid machines." she grumbled, clearly fuming to herself as she waited for her husband. His security systems had apparently locked her in for the night.
"Trouble with voice commands again?" he asked, grinning. Shooting her husband an annoyed glare, she tossed him a blanket for their soon-to-be guest. "Security Systems to Level 3. Track my vitals." the Herculean Superscientist ordered out loud. "Company expected." The tell-tale DING that came immediately afterwards was mainly put in there for the sake of his wife, meant to be a sign of confirmation.

Sighing in frustration, the Mighty Amazon stood next to the door as it opened. "Be careful." as she opted to stand vigil. Never hurts to be careful.

Now outside, it was clear that the weather predictions were probably more than a bit accurate. It was definitely going to get pretty cold out, probably soon than later. "Been in colder." reassured the Big Man to himself, shivering a bit still as he walked towards the location of the mysterious stranger on their property.

By the time he got there, Valiant was clearly feeling the chill. Withdrawling a small flashlight from a belt pouch and Doc shined it around, bringing illumination to the shadows around him. "Hello?" he asked out loud, eyes scouring the area. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted some movement, and quickly brought the light upon it.

It was a girl.

-----

Hope Alexander's ok.

Camilla hated it when she had to stand by and let others do a task she felt more than qualified for, but these damn voice-activated security systems were always so finicky. If she didn't know him better, she could swear Doc did that on purpose. Either way, this soon-to-be guest most likely needs help, probably food too. The Amazon had seen such situations more times than she could count over the years. It always bothered her, each and every-

The doors slid open, as Doc marched towards her, a young lady in his arms. The stranger had platinum blue-ish hair, and a bizarre type of suit on. "She's burning up!" he exclaimed, personally a bit shocked at how light she was. A bit taken back by this sudden turn of events, Amazonia sprung into action, pulling blankets out of the nearby supply closet.

They had to get her warm and dry.

"Room 25." suggested Camilla, grabbing it's card key as she followed her husband. Carrying his young guest to the comfy bed, Doc took note of her tattered clothes... giving him a good look at the 'suit' she wore underneath. Valiant had an idea of what she was, (the 'nodes' were kind of a giveaway) but right now what mattered was getting her warm, and rested.

"How old do you think she is?" asked Amazonia as she brought out some fresh pillows.
"Hard to tell." replied Doc, as he removed the dirty garment shreds from her body as he gently positioned his guest on the bed.
"What do you mean?" asked his wife, confused. "She looks like she's in her late teens at least." as she carefully slipped the soft pillow under
the young lady's head. Doc pointed to the 'nodes' and other 'ports' at strategic points along her body.
"See these? They're for tubes and wires and other such devices. We might be dealing with an artificial, lab grown, being. But I won't know definitively until I've run some scans and other diagnostics." replied the Big Man as he wrapped the young stranger up in a blanket. Camilla could hardly believe it.

"First thing's first... getting her some food. Poor thing looks absolutely starved." she said, focusing on more important things as they finished up. Her motherly nature took over as she placed her hand on the young woman's forehead. "And some medication too." Doc nodded in agreement as he tucked their guest in.
"You're going to be alright my dear." he assured her.

-----

Alruna didn't remember being picked up, she didn't remember the concerned voices asking if she was okay and she certainly did not remember being placed in a warm bed.

With a start she woke up.

The room she was in, was dimly lit and she swayed a bit as she felt the fever was with her still, but not as fierce as it'd been when she was exposed to the elements. The white haired, young woman swayed again and nearly fell from her bed when a strong, yet gentle hand eased her back to a sitting position.

"Easy there, you're safe and out of the cold," Doc Valiant said in a fatherly tone, Alruna letting out a faint gasp of shock and cowering away, she tried to call forth her power but felt sick to her stomach as she did so.

"Who..who are you," she stammered after a bout of sneezing before she recognized who this savior was. He was called Doc Valiant, she remembered him from the news, and the one sided talks Dr. Williams would have when she....was a tool. Did he know? Or was he genuinely being kind? The young lady registered another presence in the room, but couldn't quite make it out.

"It's okay." said the other person in the room, female from the sound of it, with a soft caring voice. How long had they been there? How long had she been out?

"Doctor Alexander Valiant," the man replied as he slowly moved to a better, more visable space, hands up to show he meant no harm. "And this is my wife, Camilla Gomez Valiant." as he gestured towards the woman. "We found you out in that alleyway, and didn't want to see you freeze to death, besides... you looked pretty sick to begin with." he added, giving her a reassuring smile. Slowly, surely, he handed her a small bag of chips and a glass of water.

"What's your name sweetie?" asked Camilla, keeping her distance so as to not scare the young lady. Plus she seemed to respond well to her husband's presence. Camilla's heart ached, though, for their guest.

"Alruna," she replied politely, more than a little surprised at the kindness as she was slowly pulled into light conversation, her hosts never once pushing her for information or even asking about the small nodes on her body. Whether it was out of politeness or being used to the oddities of the city, she did not know and for the moment did not care.

She felt...relief maybe even comfort at this kindness.

"Interesting name." responded Doc, smiling as he sat down in a nearby chair. "What were you doing out there in the cold at such a late hour?" inquired Doc as he leaned back in his seat, wiping his face off with a wash rag. Alruna didn't know how to respond, or what she should say about her time out on the streets. Alone. She began to feel a bit nervous, something which Valiant seemed to pick up on.

"Eh.... we'll come back to that." he said, not wanting to press the subject. "All that matters right now, as far as I'm concerned, is that you're out of the cold." Alruna's head titled slightly to the side, his kindness being a welcome change from the outside world. The big man shook his head and chuckled, smiling at his companion before gesturing to the items in her hands.

Food. Water.

Shaking, Alruna quickly opened the bag of potato chips and began to chow down. Her stomach pain was quickly forgotten at the moment as she wolfed down the chips and gulped down the glass of water. Doc smirked and handed her another cup of water.

"Umm.... uh.... got anymore chips?" she asked, smiling weakly. Camilla giggled and chuckled.
"Coming right up." she replied.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A commissioned piece for featuring The Valiants of Earth 23, as well the introduction of Alruna into their lives.

Doc Valiant is the property of
Camilla Valinat/Amazonia, and Alruna are the property of

These events take place on Earth 23 in a place called

Description
The Aristotle Plaza
Earth-23
11:38 PM
March 2013
Monday

Doc Valiant sat in his penthouse suite, in a nice white cushiony chair, drinking some water as he stared out into the city (his city) of Angel Falls. It was a chilly March night outside, supposedly going to reach a temperature of 33 degrees by 1 AM. Still clad in his 'work clothes', (his now typical clothing that he wears) the Big Man was lost in his thoughts as he looked out onto the glittering metropolis beyond his window. "What are you thinking about, dearest husband?" chuckled a voice as the beautiful tan-color arms of a woman wrapped around his neck and shoulders.

It was Camilla, his wife. But the rest of the world recognized her as the tireless champion of justice and peace, Amazonia.

"Oh just the usual stuff I'm afraid." replied Doc as he leaned his head back against her shoulder. "Experiments that still need work, scheduled meetings with the Guardians, and of course the typical things. Equations, Chemical Combinations, Quantum Mechanics... you know... simple stuff." grinned the Herculean Superscientist as he kissed her arm.
"Well it seems to me like you're having trouble sleeping again Alexander." replied the Amazon, cuddling her husband more.

"Eh... that too." he answered, taking a drink as he talked. "Sleep seems to be a luxury for me anymore."
"Well, I can think of something to help solve your problem." giggled Camilla, nibbling on Doc's ear a bit. This sent a pleasant shudder through Valiant's body, almost causing him to drop his glass.

"Come now Camilla... we don't want to have a repeat of what happened last time. Besides, I don't know how much more that bed can ta-"

Suddenly, an alarm began to sound, cutting off the conversation. It was nothing too loud, or urgent (with the intensity of your average electronic alarm clock) but enough to demand attention from both veteran heroes. Without hesitation both of them were immediately on their feet, romance or sleep be damned.

"What is it?" asked Camilla as Doc turned on the security cameras.
"Motion Sensors picked up something." replied her beloved, as a wall compartment slid open. Underneath was a series of television screens, all hooked up to various (mostly hidden) cameras set up around the Plaza.
"What could it be at this hour? In the cold." replied the Gorgeous Amazon, immediately at her husband's side.

"Could be anything, dear. A cat, a homeless vagrant, would-be thieves or," grinned Doc, "shadowy ninja assassins." This got him a smirk from his wife as the camera closest to the motion sensor that had gone off flipped on. It was hard to tell what was going on in the shadows, but Doc's trained eyes soon spotted some movement.

"There." he stated, as he poked the television screen at the spot where he saw said movement, magnifying it full screen. From the shape of it, it was definately human. Said human didn't look dangerous, looked more like they were trying to get out from the cold. But Valiant knew appearances could be decieving. But if they WERE someone who was trying to get warm... he felt obligated to give them shelter.

"Looks like it's someone trying to get out warm. Should probably go ch-" announced the Big Man as he turned towards Amazonia, who was already gone. Sighing to himself, the Big Man simply followed. By the time he got downstairs, Doc found Camilla standing in front of the main entrance to the Plaza. He could tell she was angry from her body language.

"Stupid machines." she grumbled, clearly fuming to herself as she waited for her husband. His security systems had apparently locked her in for the night.
"Trouble with voice commands again?" he asked, grinning. Shooting her husband an annoyed glare, she tossed him a blanket for their soon-to-be guest. "Security Systems to Level 3. Track my vitals." the Herculean Superscientist ordered out loud. "Company expected." The tell-tale DING that came immediately afterwards was mainly put in there for the sake of his wife, meant to be a sign of confirmation.

Sighing in frustration, the Mighty Amazon stood next to the door as it opened. "Be careful." as she opted to stand vigil. Never hurts to be careful.

Now outside, it was clear that the weather predictions were probably more than a bit accurate. It was definitely going to get pretty cold out, probably soon than later. "Been in colder." reassured the Big Man to himself, shivering a bit still as he walked towards the location of the mysterious stranger on their property.

By the time he got there, Valiant was clearly feeling the chill. Withdrawling a small flashlight from a belt pouch and Doc shined it around, bringing illumination to the shadows around him. "Hello?" he asked out loud, eyes scouring the area. Out of the corner of his eye, he spotted some movement, and quickly brought the light upon it.

It was a girl.

-----

Hope Alexander's ok.

Camilla hated it when she had to stand by and let others do a task she felt more than qualified for, but these damn voice-activated security systems were always so finicky. If she didn't know him better, she could swear Doc did that on purpose. Either way, this soon-to-be guest most likely needs help, probably food too. The Amazon had seen such situations more times than she could count over the years. It always bothered her, each and every-

The doors slid open, as Doc marched towards her, a young lady in his arms. The stranger had platinum blue-ish hair, and a bizarre type of suit on. "She's burning up!" he exclaimed, personally a bit shocked at how light she was. A bit taken back by this sudden turn of events, Amazonia sprung into action, pulling blankets out of the nearby supply closet.

They had to get her warm and dry.

"Room 25." suggested Camilla, grabbing it's card key as she followed her husband. Carrying his young guest to the comfy bed, Doc took note of her tattered clothes... giving him a good look at the 'suit' she wore underneath. Valiant had an idea of what she was, (the 'nodes' were kind of a giveaway) but right now what mattered was getting her warm, and rested.

"How old do you think she is?" asked Amazonia as she brought out some fresh pillows.
"Hard to tell." replied Doc, as he removed the dirty garment shreds from her body as he gently positioned his guest on the bed.
"What do you mean?" asked his wife, confused. "She looks like she's in her late teens at least." as she carefully slipped the soft pillow under
the young lady's head. Doc pointed to the 'nodes' and other 'ports' at strategic points along her body.
"See these? They're for tubes and wires and other such devices. We might be dealing with an artificial, lab grown, being. But I won't know definitively until I've run some scans and other diagnostics." replied the Big Man as he wrapped the young stranger up in a blanket. Camilla could hardly believe it.

"First thing's first... getting her some food. Poor thing looks absolutely starved." she said, focusing on more important things as they finished up. Her motherly nature took over as she placed her hand on the young woman's forehead. "And some medication too." Doc nodded in agreement as he tucked their guest in.
"You're going to be alright my dear." he assured her.

-----

Alruna didn't remember being picked up, she didn't remember the concerned voices asking if she was okay and she certainly did not remember being placed in a warm bed.

With a start she woke up.

The room she was in, was dimly lit and she swayed a bit as she felt the fever was with her still, but not as fierce as it'd been when she was exposed to the elements. The white haired, young woman swayed again and nearly fell from her bed when a strong, yet gentle hand eased her back to a sitting position.

"Easy there, you're safe and out of the cold," Doc Valiant said in a fatherly tone, Alruna letting out a faint gasp of shock and cowering away, she tried to call forth her power but felt sick to her stomach as she did so.

"Who..who are you," she stammered after a bout of sneezing before she recognized who this savior was. He was called Doc Valiant, she remembered him from the news, and the one sided talks Dr. Williams would have when she....was a tool. Did he know? Or was he genuinely being kind? The young lady registered another presence in the room, but couldn't quite make it out.

"It's okay." said the other person in the room, female from the sound of it, with a soft caring voice. How long had they been there? How long had she been out?

"Doctor Alexander Valiant," the man replied as he slowly moved to a better, more visable space, hands up to show he meant no harm. "And this is my wife, Camilla Gomez Valiant." as he gestured towards the woman. "We found you out in that alleyway, and didn't want to see you freeze to death, besides... you looked pretty sick to begin with." he added, giving her a reassuring smile. Slowly, surely, he handed her a small bag of chips and a glass of water.

"What's your name sweetie?" asked Camilla, keeping her distance so as to not scare the young lady. Plus she seemed to respond well to her husband's presence. Camilla's heart ached, though, for their guest.

"Alruna," she replied politely, more than a little surprised at the kindness as she was slowly pulled into light conversation, her hosts never once pushing her for information or even asking about the small nodes on her body. Whether it was out of politeness or being used to the oddities of the city, she did not know and for the moment did not care.

She felt...relief maybe even comfort at this kindness.

"Interesting name." responded Doc, smiling as he sat down in a nearby chair. "What were you doing out there in the cold at such a late hour?" inquired Doc as he leaned back in his seat, wiping his face off with a wash rag. Alruna didn't know how to respond, or what she should say about her time out on the streets. Alone. She began to feel a bit nervous, something which Valiant seemed to pick up on.

"Eh.... we'll come back to that." he said, not wanting to press the subject. "All that matters right now, as far as I'm concerned, is that you're out of the cold." Alruna's head titled slightly to the side, his kindness being a welcome change from the outside world. The big man shook his head and chuckled, smiling at his companion before gesturing to the items in her hands.

Food. Water.

Shaking, Alruna quickly opened the bag of potato chips and began to chow down. Her stomach pain was quickly forgotten at the moment as she wolfed down the chips and gulped down the glass of water. Doc smirked and handed her another cup of water.

"Umm.... uh.... got anymore chips?" she asked, smiling weakly. Camilla giggled and chuckled.
"Coming right up." she replied.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

A commissioned piece for featuring The Valiants of Earth 23, as well the introduction of Alruna into their lives.

Doc Valiant is the property of
Camilla Valinat/Amazonia, and Alruna are the property of

These events take place on Earth 23 in a place called