[OPEN]

[mathemagier]

WHO: Hermann, Newton, StarkTech employees, & OPEN to anyone that might want to stop by!
WHERE: StarkTech
WHEN: All of November
WHAT: Nerds and science!!
WARNINGS: Swearing and biology stuff?
NOTES: Feel free to respond with prose if that's your preferred tagging method! Also let us know if you'd rather tag with only one of them, as they'll likely both be responding to a given thread by default.



[The biotech lab is divided by a line of bright yellow tape.

Equipment is divvied up with most of the medical-looking equipment to one side, and most of the computers on the other, as if the division heads simply couldn't reconcile their differences.

Large, imposing chalkboards stand as a strange centerpiece to the technological side, complete with a sliding ladder and numerous boxes of chalk stacked on a desk nearby. Equations litter the surface, complex formula with strings of variables written in lowercase, notations entirely capitalized.

To the right is a ten foot robot, with panels missing and wires exposed, hooked into a small set of monitors running streams of code and projections nearby. The left side of the chalkboards is an engineer's work space, with half-completed bits of tech, spare parts, tools, wiring, screws, and 3D displays strewn about in an organized clutter. Even a small collection of books on what looks to be a neatly maintained personal desk.

The biological side of the lab stands in stark contrast to the professional work environment cultivated on the far side of the tape.

It looks a bit like a college student moved in, complete with cheesy posters, various dinosaur and Godzilla toys decorating the shelves, and humorous science puns and memes that were printed off the internet for display. There are jars everywhere, labelled a bit overzealously with differently colored sticky notes and warnings about the contents.

Paperwork litters most desk surfaces in a disorganized array, backdropped by a large fluctuating holograph depicting lines of chemical readouts. A radio and keyboard stand nearby for no discernible reason, but are nevertheless surrounded by scientific charts and various graphs.

Woe betide anyone that attempts to restore order to the biological division, or disrupts the structure of the technological side.]

Comments

Lab- Hard at work (or hardly working)

[mathemagier]

[Newton and Hermann are here daily, working separately and sniping across the line, and crossing it with some frequency. They might seem at odds to most, but they move with a strange synergy that contradicts the various insults that fly across the lab at all hours. The entrance to the lab is never closed, if only because they can't be bothered to listen for it, let alone answer a door all day.

As absorbed as they can get in their work (and yelling at each other), there may a need for anyone interested in their attention to announce themselves one way or another]

y'all gonna get the bossman have fun

[liverletdie]

[ Honestly, scientists normally fell into two categories with their rivals -- or people they just generally didn't get along with. Either they fought and it worked, or they fought and imploded. Most imploded, which was why he was found hovering around the labs on often random hours of the week -- or watching through the security cameras -- but no matter when he came, they were still working -- and the output? Was phenomenal.

But he could admit which side he'd rather hang out on, and it's with a "knock knock" spoken out-loud that he strode in, sticking close to the robotics side. It was comfortable, and normal, at least, and it made sense in a way that the chaos on the other side didn't

To each their own. ]

yay bossman

[mathemagier]

[Hermann's tinkering with a mid-sized metal sphere, manipulating nearby bits of metal into curved shapes with fittings for screws and attachments. The music must have drowned out Tony's announcement, because Hermann glances up and does something of a double-take. He sets his project down and grabs his cane as he moves to circle around the bench]

Newton! Turn that racket down! God knows how long Mr. Stark has been standing there.

yay!!

[driftsintobuffetline]

WHAT?!

[Newt pivoted his chair around, dialing down the music just a fraction of the way, about to reiterate his "What?" demand of Hermann--who should know better by now and just throw something Newt's way if he really wants attention--but there was something in the connection that made Newt look ...and then he stopped short.

OH. That was what. He hastily turned off the music.]

Heeeeey! Come to make sure he hasn't strangled me yet?

[mammal_robot]

StarkTech was apparently a pretty big name among the ImPorts as far as tech startups go, so naturally Robo wanted to go check it out. The whole office was buzzing about the robot that was wandering around, looking at things that people would let him look at. Whether or not Newton or Hermann picked up on this or were too lost in whatever project they were focused on at the moment to pick up on this was anyone's guess.

Either way, Robo eventually wandered past their lab only to do a double take at the ten foot Gipsy Danger. He poked his head into the room.

"Hello. What's this?"

[driftsintobuffetline]

From his worktable, Newt's eyes followed the robot? man in mobile suit? Cyberman? as the metallic visitor wandered around and into their lab

"Hello!" Newt declared somewhat obnoxiously, tone conveying a hint of annoyance at someone entering their lab. Or maybe it was that EVERYONE seemed to be more interested in Hermann's side, Hermann's projects, than Newt's. What was the life science to engineer ratio among imPorts? Definitely wasn't in Newt's favor.

He glanced over at Hermann, as if making sure he had his audience, before continuing, taking the question literally. "What does it look like? It's a robot." His tone was unimpressed, as if this wasn't the first time he had to answer that question. He wheeled his chair to another station to start inputting some data. "Or it will be, once Her-- Dr. Gottlieb is done wiring and programming it."

[mammal_robot]

"Well it does kind of draw the eye." He commented, as Newt's bitterness rolled off of Robo like water off a duck. He had every intention of checking out the biology side of the room. Eventually.

poke him with sticks

[helpline]

[ Yeah, that 'let's have the Doctor visit so Newt and Hermann can run biological scans and the Doctor can ask about kaiju' has turned into 'Newt and Hermann will eventually have to stop the Doctor from ruining what they're working on.' As soon as he arrived, the Doctor made a beeline for the chalkboard to be Captain Judgey with regards to the equations on there. And hoo boy is he being Captain Judgey. He's commandeered one of the large chalkboards and is scratching out equations with a piece of red sidewalk chalk straight from his pocket. ]

Wrong...slow...well that's good for the time, but you lot learn a faster way eventually, let me just erase this part here...

[ He is going to unintentionally drive poor Hermann to drink. ]

oh man priceless <3

[mathemagier]

[Hermann's out getting a cup of coffee from the lounge, only to return and find someone touching his chalkboard, and erasing his equations. His coffee is set down on the nearest available surface in favor of tapping a quick rhythm against the floor as he heads straight for the interloper]

Excuse me, but that is my work, and I will have you thrown out of here if you don't step back from there immediately.

c:

[helpline]

I can't help it if you work's wrong, [ said in a 'well duh' sort of tone of voice as...the Doctor keeps trying to correct some of Hermann's equations. ]

[hypnotherapy]

[ He watches for a while, simply amused by how they manage to get things done while still yelling at each other non-stop. It's almost nostalgic, in a way.

Eventually he knocks on the doorframe and waves politely. His voice isn't loud, exactly, but it carries somehow. ]

Dr Gottlieb? I think you sent me a message by accident at one point. And you must be the errant maker of reports, Dr Geiszler. [ His voice betrays gentle amusement. ] You work well together, I have to say.

[ There's a little rustling noise as something that is as tall as Magicman's hip - which is a significant amount of height, considering the man is at least six foot - pokes its head around his knees, mostly hiding itself behind the sweeping blue coat its apparent master is wearing. He doesn't seem to notice. ]

[mathemagier]

[Still muttering under his breath about his colleague's lack of care for various standard procedures, Hermann scribbles furiously over his chalkboard, possibly calculating his labmate's probability of accidental death via negligence.

But he's drawn away from that by the man at the door, and his.. dog? He blinks mild confusion, because he does recall that conversation, but for the life of him cannot pinpoint a name]

Ah yes, you are.. Hiro's friend, if I remember correctly? [And an AI he doesn't say, because unlike Newton, he does have some sense of tact] I do apologize for that. A strange day for everyone.

[driftsintobuffetline]

Hiro's friend, huh? 'Hiro's friend' have a name?

[Newt hops off his stool to come get a closer look at the creature accompanying the tall man. Name that Pokemon! Newt's money would be on Electric or Psychic type, he thinks, by appearance alone.]

And who is this? Or more importantly, what is it? [He moves in closer than is probably advisable when dealing with an unfamiliar animal.]

[matadorable]

Thrilled as he was to have been invited to De Chima to meet Gipsy Danger, Manolo was actually pretty relieved when Joaquin agreed to come along.

For one thing, it means less paperwork. For another, there's safety in numbers if they lose their way or run into some other roadblock. But more importantly, Manolo feels glad to have a familiar face with him. Having spent most of his life around the people of San Angel, he simply isn't as good at mingling with random strangers as Joaquin. (There's a reason Manolo tends to favor text while Joaquin seems to relish showing off that mustache every chance he gets.) The fact his friend is already familiar with the two gentlemen at StarkTech certainly doesn't hurt, either.

They do make quite an odd pair, though. Standing at about 5'3", Manolo's small stature is only exaggerated by Joaquin's impressive build. While they are both broad-shouldered, with strong arms that look capable of beating back bandits, Manolo has the lithe body of a dancer. And in place of swords, an asymmetrical guitar hangs from his back.

When they reach the biotech lab, Manolo's face immediately melts into a look of wonder, large eyes soaking in every detail. Chalkboards, tools, that robot, scattered papers, toys, and jars. So much of it is foreign to him, it almost overwhelms his senses, but not in a bad way. Despite the stark contrast of each side of the lab, Manolo can immediately tell both occupants are deeply passionate about their work.

"Wow," he breathes, mouth hanging open.

[medalsome]

Joaquin was deeply interested in seeing all the sciencey stuff Newt and Hermann were fond of telling him about anytime he asked. He knew he'd hardly understand how they managed to make it all happen but the results he could understand. Probably.

Manolo had recently been invited over and that made as good an excuse as any to visit. The StarkTech building itself was impressive, but there was a kind secretary that pointed them in the right direction. Then they just had to follow the sound of distant squabbling to find their way to the biotech areas.

Joaquin wasn't sure what he was expecting but a huge robot in the center of the room wasn't it. He started, taking a step back as Manolo wandered ahead. But his friend's expression of awe snapped him out of his momentary lapse in courtesy.

"Don't get ahead of yourself, Manny," he said, stepping closer and touching his friend's shoulder. "At least let me introduce you first."

Then he called out to the men huddled around one corner of their lab. Smiling, he gave a wave. "Doctor! Newt! Come meet my friend, Manolo!"

[mathemagier]

"The wings will attach here and detect vibrations-"

Hermann turned from his workbench, where he had been showing Newton his latest model for their project, surprised to see two men standing in the middle of their lab- one of which he recognized, and the other he knew at least by name if not face.

"Mr. Mondragon," he greeted, stepping away to approach their guests. It was good to see Joaquin without a mask, although the eye patch hinted that the eye may not have been part of his costume. He shook hands with both, and turned his attention to Manolo, who was much shorter than he'd imagined. Even Newton was a good few inches taller.

"I'm Dr. Hermann Gottlieb, and this is my friend and colleague, Dr. Newton Geiszler. I'm glad you could find the time to visit us."

[resipiscent]

[It's a while before Riku remembers his offer to Hermann to demonstrate his powers, and he considers the idea for a little before he decides that yes, he's going to go over. When he arrives, he stands in the doorway, just watching the display for a moment. It smells equally like a garage and like unpleasant bodily matter, and he looks up at the robot, eyebrows raising as he takes it in. Honestly, the whole place looks like if you took Hermann and Newt and transformed them into room decor. But the two themselves are there in the middle of it, and he steps inside a little, still curiously scanning the place.]

Huh...

[mathemagier]

[He's fantasizing about filling out complaint forms to file with HR that would never be taken seriously while he's jotting down notes at his desk. It's too bad they'd be taken seriously here, although it's possible he could still fill them out and never submit them..

Movement by the doorway snatches his attention, and Hermann squints across the room, grateful for his glasses as they bring the visitor into decent focus]

Mr. Riku?

Anywhere- Off the clock

[mathemagier]

[Lunch or after hours is a good time to mingle and share ideas with colleagues and/or hang out conduct experiments with visitors. Feel free to snag them in their lab or anywhere else in or around the facility!]

Re: Anywhere- Off the clock

[knifecollecting]

[Jo checked in with Newt every once in a while, and after their last conversation she made sure to seek him out during a lunch one day. Sure, she wasn't off the clock, but this totally counted as work.

Right?]

Hey, Newt.

[driftsintobuffetline]

[He pushed the bag of Doritos in her direction in offering and he almost finished his bite of sandwich before talking.]

Jo! Hey! ...I'm not in trouble with security, am I? Because if it was about that debacle with the delivery, I swear, it was TOTALLY on the delivery guys, not me. I told them they'd have to take the live samples to the loading dock.

Lunchtime - for Hermann (sometime during the Newt regeneration experiments)

[medalsome]

He said he would stop by sometime to take Hermann out to lunch and so he did. Joaquin hoped making it a surprise wasn't going to be that big of a deal, but he had second thoughts as he made his way through the StarkTech building. Maybe he should have sent a text message sooner to make sure Hermann didn't have any other appointments...

Oh well. Even if he did, Joaquin was sure he could still find something fun to do in De Chima. He shot off a message then, informing Hermann he was in the building and coming to see him. He walked with an easy gait and a smile on his face, not going to let himself be perturbed by anything.

[mathemagier]

He's been distracted all day.

It was unacceptable really, this preoccupation with Newton's hand, where an entire finger is missing. Although he could admit that the regrowth rate so far was impressive, the sharp bites of pain and phantom sensations were unwelcome. Clearly Newton hadn't anticipated that accelerated cellular regrowth would be painful.

But Hermann couldn't bring himself to lecture him for the oversight. The man had gamely made it through nearly three months of sporadic pains and spells of sudden immobility. So instead all he could do was cast brief looks at the hand in question, and repeatedly exercise his corresponding finger to remind himself that yes, it's still there. At least it looked like it may well be completely healed within the next 24 hours, if not sooner.

The thought of future experiments makes him vaguely nauseous to even consider.

He was in the middle of deciding whether or not to skip lunch when his phone chimed a text message. With a brief glance over to Newton (busy working for once), Hermann pulled on his glasses to read it. Well it seemed he's taking that lunch after all, and it was just the sort of pick-me-up he needed.

After a short word with Newton, and a determined effort not to look at his hand again, Hermann met his unexpected guest in the hall.

"Mr. Mondragon. This is a pleasant surprise."

Nov 25, for Newton

[medalsome]

Joaquin didn't really think when he headed out of the house that afternoon. He hadn't planned on leaving Heropa, but he found himself taking the porter out anyway, moving in a mindless haze as if looking for someplace or something that kept eluding him. He didn't remember if he stopped by any other places first, but eventually he wound up in De Chima again. He didn't know much about the place at all, but the one building he was familiar with was StarkTech, so he headed that way.

It was getting late, most people were probably already leaving work but if anyone was still working it was probably the scientists Gottlieb and Geiszler. Maybe that's why he had come, to find a distraction in talking with Hermann or in joking with Newton. He didn't know, he just didn't know anymore.

But when he got to the building he didn't go inside. Why would he be stopping by to talk to them so late? What did he really have to say? Damn, his mind was spinning with all kinds of crazy, disastrous thoughts and it was driving him up the wall with nerves. Shakily, Joaquin pulled out his package of cigarettes, already nearly gone despite having just bought the package a few days ago, and put one to his lips to light it.

He pace in front of the building, glancing up occasionally but otherwise preoccupied with the rapid spiraling of his thoughts. He was down two other cigarettes in less than ten minutes.

[driftsintobuffetline]

Hermann of course insisted that he would stay late to finish up some equation or another, though Newt was pretty certain that as soon as he left the room, Hermann was just toying with Mako's model. But whatever, man. Someone had to go home and figure out how to cook a small turkey for tomorrow, and fuck it, Newt was a genius. He could certainly handle a bird, some basting, a bit of stuffing, and an oven.

In theory.

It was weird to not leave with Hermann, though--they left together just about EVERY DAY--and Newt felt surprisingly lonely on the elevator ride down to the lobby. He said bye to Jo on his way out and, heading to the street to catch a cab, he was surprised to find Joaquin outside. With an uncomfortable bit of jealously he had to wonder if that was why Newt was being sent home early. Date tonight, huh, Herms?

"Hey, Hot Stuff, do I need to get you some pamphlets on the 'Dangers of Smoking?' Hate to repeat the lecture, but I told you: Herms isn't going to like it much if his date smells like an ashtray."