Pyotr and Sooraya - Intro to Monitor Duty
Mar. 8th, 2022 01:08 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
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xp_logsPyotr gets his introduction to monitor duty - and a little self-reflection about his biases, motives, and philosophy.
Pyotr only ached a little from his morning workout as he stepped out of his new suite, waved his distracted suitemate goodbye, and headed over to the staircase into the Mansion proper. Today he was going to do something called comms duty and Sooraya was going to mentor him through it. He wasn't sure what to think about her - she was lovely and kind, but she came from a part of the world that was neither of those things. Then again, he thought with a shrug, deep Siberia didn't have the most savory reputation ever either. Books, covers, etc. His gut told him she was good people, he was just going to have to accept her for who she was and let things play out.
He managed to not get lost on his way to the Comms suite, and when he opened the door Sooraya was already waiting for him.
"Oh hey Pyotr. There you are. Ready to learn the ropes of comms duty?" Sooraya rose from her chair, quickly tucking her notebook away. "Have a seat and we'll get started. Though feel free to grab some coffee or tea first."
"Yes!" he said with a smile, then went over to the sideboard and poured himself a cup of - ugh - American tea. Horrid stuff. "Want a cup?" he asked pleasantly as he finished the one for himself.
"I just got some..." Sooraya lifted her own mug. "... but thank you. So what do you think about what you've been learning about the X-men so far?" She retook her own seat and gestured for Piotr to take the one next to her.
He sank carefully into the chair, which was not designed for someone of his size. It creaked alarmingly as he sat in it. "I think that this is a good place for me to be." he said, as he involuntarily grimaced at a sip of the so-called tea. "Much better than with the spies. They do necessary things but ... " he said, and then let his voice trail off. Having the FSB as a near-constant presence in your otherwise idyllic farm life did things to your worldview. "So, unless I am very wrong, we listen to radios in case someone has emergency. Then, if they do, we respond and deploy our people." he said. "Is that right?"
"There are a few paths most people tend to take around here... and it's good to hear you seem to be finding your way." Sooraya put her tea to the side for a moment. "And while you've one part of what we do here. Basically we keep an eye out here for all kinds of developing situations where we might be needed. That can be from news sources to webpages to calls from help from certain parties. From there, deployment is possible. Plus, we keep an eye on some of the security around here."
"So little more involved than listening to radio chatter. Good. Likely keeps from being too boring." he said with a smile. Time to break out the guaranteed conversation-starter. "If you don't mind me asking, what is your gift?" he asked and then sipped the horrid tea. "And you'll have to show me the security monitors."
"It can be a little boring, but you can bring a book or something else to do. Just try to avoid anything that will completely take your attention." Sooraya smiled. "I usually use the time to look over some notes for a project I am working on. And for my gift... I'm capable of transforming into silicon particles, basically a kind of sandform. I can move around the particles in pretty much any way I want to."
Pyotr blinked, pausing to imagine that. "That ... sounds impressive." he said. "I turn into a form of organic steel. Very strong, very tough." he said without a trace of boasting. "I can probably sketch on autopilot and configure things to make noise when something needs my attention, yes? Would be best."
"That's a powerset that always comes in handy. Especially if you're pretty much invulnerable as well." A small light blinked, accompanied by a beep, and Sooraya frowned as she reached over to check a screen. A moment later the frown disappeared and she turned back to explain. "Just an alert from one of the mutant watching websites, but it doesn't look to be anything. We'll keep an eye on it though. Pretty much everything is set up to alert you if it's needed already, but it's still smart not just to rely on the direct alerts."
"Makes sense." So it was looking more and more likely that he wasn't going to get a ton of art done while on comms duty. That was unfortunate but with something this important, it demanded his full attention. "I'm nut sure how duable I am. Been hit by cars, runaway tractors, bullets, once an mortar round. No effect." he said with a shrug. "I am also not sure exactly how strong I am - beyond a certain point, is very difficult to tell." he added with a shrug. "Imagine a sandstorm cares little for bullets." he said. "Or much of anything else physical. Must have come in handy depending on which 'stan you're from." he said, perhaps a trifle rudely.
He still didn't like Kazakhs.
"It'd have been if I was able to control it to a fraction of that level." Her voice was just a touch sharp. "It'd sure would've been nice to escape from those who'd held me captive in Afghanistan. But I didn't learn that control until I was rescued and came here."
He relaxed a bit at that. "Sorry. Old family history. My eldest brother was a cosmonaut. Died during a launch from Baikonor and the locals, well, they did not treat us gently or well." he said. "You're not them, you're not with them, it's something I can sincerely state that I'll work to get over." he said apologetically. "I apologize if I've given you offense. You seem a lovely person."
"I'm sorry for the loss of your brother. That must have been really tough." Sooraya's gaze turned inward for a moment. "I don't want to offend you... but if you'll let me share some of my experience... Out there there are a lot of people who hate us. Normal humans hate us for being mutants, other mutants might hate us for 'loving the flatscans', I'm sure some folks are delighted to label you a communist without caring what that means and I'm simply a muslim terrorist accoording to some... and while we all come to the mansion with our pasts, often with fairly full backpacks... I try not to add to what people outside already do enough off. You are Russian and there is a lot of bad history between our countries... but we don't have to carry that with us."
Piotr nodded, accepting the rebuke for what it was. "In my own defense, Rome wasn't built in a day, nor will it be torn down in a day." he said. "We couldn't conquer Afghanistan, the Americans couldn't do it, so they must be doing something right over there." he added with a chuckle. "Your point is taken. I can set my backpack down, if you'd do the same." he said. "And maybe we can see each other as individuals, with our own wants, needs, and experiences."
"Sounds fair to me and I know it takes a lot of work. But..." Sooraya's face gentled as she gestured to the room around them. "... for me it does help with what I hope to accomplish one day as an X-man and with the other work that I do for things like the Xavier Institute. And I'll also be honest and say that some of the others here will see things very differently from how I see them."
"Absolute least I can do." he said. "This place - it's meant to help people. Protect those that need it, present a check on power to the powerful." he mused. "Least we can is engage with our eyes open and love in our hearts."
Sooraya had to smile at that. "Not a bad start." She agreed. "We're no knights in shining armor though... well... black leather in our case. And the mansion isn't the senior staff of the Next Generation. You'll see there is plenty of conflict."
Pyotr smiled at that. "I can be a knight in shining armor if I wish it." he said. "But metaphorically I understand you. It's important to me that someone with my gifts be of service. Protect those that can't protect themselves." he said proudly. "I suspect you agree with me on principle, but we may disagree on implementation. Which is fine, you're more experienced than I am. I learn from you. From all of you."
"So protecting those who cannot protect themselves... That's why you chose the X-men? I can see why you didn't go for the spies, but XFI does good work with that as well." Sooraya asked curiously.
"I read their brochure." he said drily. "XFI also does good work, but for someone of my ... stature, my gift, I felt I could do better as X-Man." he said. "If XFI needs someone to take bullets or lift heavy thing, I would be proud to assist." he pointed out. "Nothing against them."
"I think you might be right about fitting in here with your gifts. And we do work with the other teams when needed." Sooraya nodded, satisfied she'd gotten her question answered. Her attention was drawn away though when a blue light flashed. "Look, these are a part of the security of the grounds. Looks like it might just be a deer or another small animal that triggered it."
Pyotr looked over at the monitors. "Any way to tell from here, or do we need to go inspect personally?" he asked. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it right. "Or call in someone else to go check personally while we stay here, on top of alarms?"
"Not at this point. It's winter, so it's fairly quiet, but in the warmer seasons we'd be out continuously. We'll just keep an eye on it for now." Sooraya explained, hitting a button to switch off the blue light. "If it's truly something to be worried about, it'll often set off multiple alarms or repeated alarms. Plus, we've some other protections in place as well."
"Does New York have winter?" joked the Siberian farm boy. "I haven't noticed." Then he let his expression sober. "This is ... more than I was anticipating." he confessed. "Still want to do it, still think it's good work, just ... more than I was anticipating."
"Give it some time." Sooraya smiled gently as she counseled. "I remember when I first came to the States and then to the mansion. It was all so big and overwhelming, but after a while you ease into it and it becomes familiar and normal. Maybe you felt the same when you first came... and this is much like that. Take the time to ease into it and it won't be so overwhelming."
"Good advice." he said, then paused to swallow down the dregs of his truly awful tea. "Also, who provides tea for this room?" he said, tossing his disposable cup into a trash can. "And do they in fact have taste buds?"
Pyotr only ached a little from his morning workout as he stepped out of his new suite, waved his distracted suitemate goodbye, and headed over to the staircase into the Mansion proper. Today he was going to do something called comms duty and Sooraya was going to mentor him through it. He wasn't sure what to think about her - she was lovely and kind, but she came from a part of the world that was neither of those things. Then again, he thought with a shrug, deep Siberia didn't have the most savory reputation ever either. Books, covers, etc. His gut told him she was good people, he was just going to have to accept her for who she was and let things play out.
He managed to not get lost on his way to the Comms suite, and when he opened the door Sooraya was already waiting for him.
"Oh hey Pyotr. There you are. Ready to learn the ropes of comms duty?" Sooraya rose from her chair, quickly tucking her notebook away. "Have a seat and we'll get started. Though feel free to grab some coffee or tea first."
"Yes!" he said with a smile, then went over to the sideboard and poured himself a cup of - ugh - American tea. Horrid stuff. "Want a cup?" he asked pleasantly as he finished the one for himself.
"I just got some..." Sooraya lifted her own mug. "... but thank you. So what do you think about what you've been learning about the X-men so far?" She retook her own seat and gestured for Piotr to take the one next to her.
He sank carefully into the chair, which was not designed for someone of his size. It creaked alarmingly as he sat in it. "I think that this is a good place for me to be." he said, as he involuntarily grimaced at a sip of the so-called tea. "Much better than with the spies. They do necessary things but ... " he said, and then let his voice trail off. Having the FSB as a near-constant presence in your otherwise idyllic farm life did things to your worldview. "So, unless I am very wrong, we listen to radios in case someone has emergency. Then, if they do, we respond and deploy our people." he said. "Is that right?"
"There are a few paths most people tend to take around here... and it's good to hear you seem to be finding your way." Sooraya put her tea to the side for a moment. "And while you've one part of what we do here. Basically we keep an eye out here for all kinds of developing situations where we might be needed. That can be from news sources to webpages to calls from help from certain parties. From there, deployment is possible. Plus, we keep an eye on some of the security around here."
"So little more involved than listening to radio chatter. Good. Likely keeps from being too boring." he said with a smile. Time to break out the guaranteed conversation-starter. "If you don't mind me asking, what is your gift?" he asked and then sipped the horrid tea. "And you'll have to show me the security monitors."
"It can be a little boring, but you can bring a book or something else to do. Just try to avoid anything that will completely take your attention." Sooraya smiled. "I usually use the time to look over some notes for a project I am working on. And for my gift... I'm capable of transforming into silicon particles, basically a kind of sandform. I can move around the particles in pretty much any way I want to."
Pyotr blinked, pausing to imagine that. "That ... sounds impressive." he said. "I turn into a form of organic steel. Very strong, very tough." he said without a trace of boasting. "I can probably sketch on autopilot and configure things to make noise when something needs my attention, yes? Would be best."
"That's a powerset that always comes in handy. Especially if you're pretty much invulnerable as well." A small light blinked, accompanied by a beep, and Sooraya frowned as she reached over to check a screen. A moment later the frown disappeared and she turned back to explain. "Just an alert from one of the mutant watching websites, but it doesn't look to be anything. We'll keep an eye on it though. Pretty much everything is set up to alert you if it's needed already, but it's still smart not just to rely on the direct alerts."
"Makes sense." So it was looking more and more likely that he wasn't going to get a ton of art done while on comms duty. That was unfortunate but with something this important, it demanded his full attention. "I'm nut sure how duable I am. Been hit by cars, runaway tractors, bullets, once an mortar round. No effect." he said with a shrug. "I am also not sure exactly how strong I am - beyond a certain point, is very difficult to tell." he added with a shrug. "Imagine a sandstorm cares little for bullets." he said. "Or much of anything else physical. Must have come in handy depending on which 'stan you're from." he said, perhaps a trifle rudely.
He still didn't like Kazakhs.
"It'd have been if I was able to control it to a fraction of that level." Her voice was just a touch sharp. "It'd sure would've been nice to escape from those who'd held me captive in Afghanistan. But I didn't learn that control until I was rescued and came here."
He relaxed a bit at that. "Sorry. Old family history. My eldest brother was a cosmonaut. Died during a launch from Baikonor and the locals, well, they did not treat us gently or well." he said. "You're not them, you're not with them, it's something I can sincerely state that I'll work to get over." he said apologetically. "I apologize if I've given you offense. You seem a lovely person."
"I'm sorry for the loss of your brother. That must have been really tough." Sooraya's gaze turned inward for a moment. "I don't want to offend you... but if you'll let me share some of my experience... Out there there are a lot of people who hate us. Normal humans hate us for being mutants, other mutants might hate us for 'loving the flatscans', I'm sure some folks are delighted to label you a communist without caring what that means and I'm simply a muslim terrorist accoording to some... and while we all come to the mansion with our pasts, often with fairly full backpacks... I try not to add to what people outside already do enough off. You are Russian and there is a lot of bad history between our countries... but we don't have to carry that with us."
Piotr nodded, accepting the rebuke for what it was. "In my own defense, Rome wasn't built in a day, nor will it be torn down in a day." he said. "We couldn't conquer Afghanistan, the Americans couldn't do it, so they must be doing something right over there." he added with a chuckle. "Your point is taken. I can set my backpack down, if you'd do the same." he said. "And maybe we can see each other as individuals, with our own wants, needs, and experiences."
"Sounds fair to me and I know it takes a lot of work. But..." Sooraya's face gentled as she gestured to the room around them. "... for me it does help with what I hope to accomplish one day as an X-man and with the other work that I do for things like the Xavier Institute. And I'll also be honest and say that some of the others here will see things very differently from how I see them."
"Absolute least I can do." he said. "This place - it's meant to help people. Protect those that need it, present a check on power to the powerful." he mused. "Least we can is engage with our eyes open and love in our hearts."
Sooraya had to smile at that. "Not a bad start." She agreed. "We're no knights in shining armor though... well... black leather in our case. And the mansion isn't the senior staff of the Next Generation. You'll see there is plenty of conflict."
Pyotr smiled at that. "I can be a knight in shining armor if I wish it." he said. "But metaphorically I understand you. It's important to me that someone with my gifts be of service. Protect those that can't protect themselves." he said proudly. "I suspect you agree with me on principle, but we may disagree on implementation. Which is fine, you're more experienced than I am. I learn from you. From all of you."
"So protecting those who cannot protect themselves... That's why you chose the X-men? I can see why you didn't go for the spies, but XFI does good work with that as well." Sooraya asked curiously.
"I read their brochure." he said drily. "XFI also does good work, but for someone of my ... stature, my gift, I felt I could do better as X-Man." he said. "If XFI needs someone to take bullets or lift heavy thing, I would be proud to assist." he pointed out. "Nothing against them."
"I think you might be right about fitting in here with your gifts. And we do work with the other teams when needed." Sooraya nodded, satisfied she'd gotten her question answered. Her attention was drawn away though when a blue light flashed. "Look, these are a part of the security of the grounds. Looks like it might just be a deer or another small animal that triggered it."
Pyotr looked over at the monitors. "Any way to tell from here, or do we need to go inspect personally?" he asked. If he was going to do this, he was going to do it right. "Or call in someone else to go check personally while we stay here, on top of alarms?"
"Not at this point. It's winter, so it's fairly quiet, but in the warmer seasons we'd be out continuously. We'll just keep an eye on it for now." Sooraya explained, hitting a button to switch off the blue light. "If it's truly something to be worried about, it'll often set off multiple alarms or repeated alarms. Plus, we've some other protections in place as well."
"Does New York have winter?" joked the Siberian farm boy. "I haven't noticed." Then he let his expression sober. "This is ... more than I was anticipating." he confessed. "Still want to do it, still think it's good work, just ... more than I was anticipating."
"Give it some time." Sooraya smiled gently as she counseled. "I remember when I first came to the States and then to the mansion. It was all so big and overwhelming, but after a while you ease into it and it becomes familiar and normal. Maybe you felt the same when you first came... and this is much like that. Take the time to ease into it and it won't be so overwhelming."
"Good advice." he said, then paused to swallow down the dregs of his truly awful tea. "Also, who provides tea for this room?" he said, tossing his disposable cup into a trash can. "And do they in fact have taste buds?"
