What Would Your Character Do #33

[Pteryx]

Concerning #27: My, but you people are literal.

 

The Pope and a member of a supers team that guards the Vatican were publically speaking one day about the souls of metahumans... when suddenly a supervillain team popped out of nowhere, claimed that metahumanity is beyond such crutches and superstitions, and attacked. They were staved off, but the damage is done: now the question of whether metahumans are truly human at all in the way that matters most has been stirred to the forefront of public debate. Dozens of fanatics are arguing against it, even claiming that the more spiritual sorts of supers are all frauds incapable of true faith and religious understanding and salvation and the like.

 

What would your character do? What would they think about all this? -- Pteryx

[AnotherSkip]

Since The Rook is currently "on asssignment" to the midwest trying to get a grassroots christian coalition going for Metahuman Rights he would be most likely to adress the summation personally and decry the attackers. After all he has good reason to believe all Metahumans (except those witout souls as part of their Char Gen/SFX) have souls since he knows darn well that he can't bring the dead back to life for _some_ reason.

 

Currently th Rook has no particular reason to dislike the Church, this isn't an opportunity to attack that particular insitution.

[farik]

Husky is famous as an orphaned alien not as a meta"human" (even though that's a lie) and would simply think someone was stupid for not realizing the difference and ignore them unless they started a fight in which case the brawling is on. Now Kenneth Clarke who is a super intelligent genius teenager who turns into Husky using a serum would be deeply troubled by the arguement and probably take more Husky serum to escape having to think about the seriousness of the event.

[Blue]

Anthem would be particularly insulted by this, being religious. She would take the rare opportunity to speak publicly (she is loath to accept praise or adulation)

 

"That I have powers does not exclude me from the judgment of God, and I fear for those who think they are exempt."

 

Then she would kick their butts and protect the pope.

 

(How about that.... I type better when I've had a few to drink!)

[Brandi]

Actually, this could become a real soul-searching matter for Irving.

 

Literally.

 

I mean, he's an animated statue, so he's definitely not at all human and he's been pondering his metaphysical nature on and off since his awakening.

[BcAugust]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Interesting one.

 

Cyrande is an atheist. She'd view it as an interesting human superstition, and follow it avidly, but avoid commenting on it.

 

Nox did die to become superhuman, and is currently host for an evil ghost who's trying to kill her soul and take over her body. Nox's viewpoint is pretty much "Of course we do."

 

Estianna is a metahuman, created when a group of sorcerors tried to turn her infant self into a perfect host for a devil. "Of course I have a soul. It was tattered, but it exists."

[GoldenAge]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Bastion is a pure scientist (not a meta). He'd probably just change the TV over to the NASA channel.

 

Later, after a bit of contemplation, he'd bend his considerable mental and physical might towards righting any wrongs committed by the misguided metahumans who attacked the Vatican.

 

It's entirely possible that Bastion would be quite worried about the socio-political backlash of such theoretical segregation. A philosophical schism between two groups, such as the anti-meta proponents are creating, could lead to quite a bit of long-term trouble.

[Kirby]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Aside from rolling their eyes at the statement, none of my characters would put my weight behind the words of anyone who attacked the Vatican.

 

The two former Navy SEALS (Calibur and Checkmate) would see this as a bad attempt at public disinformation.

 

Alloy is destitute and doesn't have a TV, but if he saw this at the base, he'd be angry at those that attack a charitable group.

 

Cobalt (Guy Gardner homage) would not want to admit he's siding with the Vatican (too proud/arrogant) and just want to help thrash the doomsayers.

 

Swashbuckler is Golden Age and French, (though fighting in America) so he's probably trying to make out with some woman.

 

Orion is part of the Olympians and doesn't care about mere mortals politics, he just likes to fight, especially those who side with Ares.

[archermoo]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Well, since Kate regularly deals with souls and the afterlife, she wouldn't be too impressed. She'd also be a bit pissed that they attacked the Pope. Granted she generally just goes to mass on holidays, but she is still catholic. She would track down the ones that escaped...

 

She's the only one I'm currently playing, but for other older characters...

 

Yumi would simply shake his head at their ignorance.

 

While Blackfire does hope that mankind will soon pass beyond the need for mystical explainations for the natural world, he would certainly deplore the actions of the villians.

[sinanju]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Hell's Angel (superhumanly gorgeous and charismatic female with feathery white angel wings...and fiery powers) would probably roll her eyes at the whole argument. If pressed, she'd say that if there is a God, she doesn't doubt that he considers everyone his children, metahumans included.

 

More importantly, being a superheroine with both an angelic and demonic schtick, she'd probably be embarrassed to find herself appointed the poster child for the fanatics. Gorgeous and superficially angelic with fiery powers and a libertine philosophy, she'd be just the thing for leading the righteous astray. Clearly, she's untrustworthy!

[Kyle A.]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Hell Walker would get very angry and insist that metahumans have souls. She should know hers was held by a major demon for a long time.

 

Blood Maiden knows that while she doesn;t have a soul her teammates do and so do most other metahumans.

 

Preacher would track down the villians and kill them while they slept, you can't attack the Pope!

[mikesama]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Lets see of the Heroes I've played recently.

 

Snap Dragon: Being as her Grandfather is a Chinese River Dragon she's pretty sure she's got a soul and figures that wheter or not she's human she has a soul and thats good enough.

 

Quantum: A scientist at heart he can't really tell one way or the other. THen again this whole soul thing is something he's not quite sure about.

[Onyxclaw]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Zekari is well, an alien. But for a long time people thought she was just an animal (she looks like a steriotypical dragon, only mostly bipedal). She thinks she has a soul, she also thinks that all living things have a life force, and that's her deffinition of soul. So...she'd probubly think that everyone was crazy for not thinking that living things have souls. But then she thinks the church is silly for thinking animals don't too.

 

She already thinks that human religion is silly. But like I said, she's an alien. And she has no belief in an incorporeal metaphysical God. For her "God" Is very much real and physical. Her name is Shakuras Aniclav Rashkae, and she's existed since the dawn of time...or as long as any of the ketera can remember. And the oldest confirmed of them is around 5 million years old. Shaka says she has a soul. And she believes her.

 

EDIT:

oh, and she probubly wouldn't save the pope just for being the pope. As far as she's concerned he's just another figure head. She would nto be pleased with the villans for wasting a perfectly good piece of meat though. How wasteful. They should eat what they kill

[Lethosos]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Queen of Spades would roll her eyes at this--she's a battlesuiter, with no powers beyond her suit, and she's no Catholic, having never brought into the whole religious schtick. But she won't let it pass. There's a fine line between attacking someone and cheesing off a major religion who so far has behaved themselves, and they've crossed it. She'll stand by her teammates, pointing out that if they have no soul, then by logic everyone else doesn't, including herself. End of debate, the Queen has spoken.

[Chuckg]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Starguard (quietly defiant) -- "If we don't have souls, then what am I looking at right now?"

 

(Young ladies who are the human hosts of semi-amnesiac archangels don't bother to think about this kind of stuff -- they already know. And even her mortal self, pre-powers, had a religious commitment you could bounce demon princes off of.)

 

Dr. Pain -- "You know, terrorists who blow up churches in the name of not-religion are as scummy as terrorists who blow up stuff in the name of religion. You guys have your little philosophy class, OK? I'm gonna go get some friends, find these guys, and spend a couple hours dropping the Pain Injection on their [groin]."

 

(The good Doctor isn't very introspective, to put it mildly. OTOH, the part of 'super-powered terrorist attack' would entirely rivet his attention, to the point that he'd almost entirely ignore the motives of the terrorists in the first place.

 

Oh, and the 'Pain Injection'? He's a former pro wrestler who developed superstrength. It's his signature move... basically, it's just a really overacted falling elbow drop. Think 'The People's Elbow' and you're pretty much there.

 

Besides, Leon is a mostly-lapsed Catholic... he usually skips church nowadays, but he's still Catholic enough that attacking the Pope makes him see red. Especially if it were the late John Paul II... Leon's born in America, but ethnically Polish.)

 

Baron von Darien (in a cold, dry voice dripping enough irony to supply an entire film critics' convention) -- "In my mortal life, religious fanatics murdered atheists. Nowadays, atheist fanatics murder the religious. Behold, the march of progress."

 

(Then he goes and murders the terrorists in various horrible ways. As a man who grew up in the Dark Ages, he has a perspective on this kind of behavior. As an elder vampire, he also has a certainty in the belief of souls... after all, he's already lost his.)

[Roy_The_Ruthles]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Roy: who belives he is a god, would obviosly ignore the pope (actually in his sorta diffrent lowfantasy universe, the pope has branded him a heritic and is sending catholic supers after him to kill him.

 

Baby Joe: A sci fi super, grown in a vat to be a messiah (he has it as a professional skill), would most likely ignore that, because he was made by his cult, thus proving supers have souls as they are the pathway to eternal salvation.

[Iuz the Evil]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Adamant would certainly be concerned about the socio-political implications of such a stance. He's a devout Christian as well, but since he's pretty vehemently Protestant, the specific stance of the Pope isn't all that relevant to his own views on the subject... after all, he's more concerned with the five Solas than the statements of any one religious leader. Also, he's spent over 150 years considering this subject given his abiding focus on theology and philosophy - so is unlikely to agree given his own beliefs on the subject.

 

Vindicator wouldn't give a flying turd on the subject.

 

Chemo as a Catholic would be extremely concerned regarding this issue, something along the lines of "I don't have a soul?! Gah! When did that happen?" Heh.

[ghost-angel]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Silence - being a psychopomp Silence knows who has a soul, who doesn't and where it goes in the end. She would she shake her head, help the unpowered clean up and possibly help track down the perpetrators of the violence. Knowing beyond all doubt that eventually they will know how wrong they are.

 

[For those who don't know: A psychopomp is a being that guides souls from the land of the living to the land of the dead]

[Ken Solo]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Prof. Genisis would, when he has time, write a tretise on why all human-stock derived super powered people are the same as non powered humans in the eyes of God. He will clain to not fully understand theology, and supernatural entities not withstanding, but he can prove scientificly that exactly what sets super powered people apart from non-powered people. And despite his near total understanding of science, he still belives God created some mysteries to be left undiscovered. The butt-kicking of the terrorists will have to be left to someone else.

(Prof. Genisis is just an 88 yr old guy w/ 50 INT, 200 pts of skills, and because he spent 30 years on PBS with his "Prof. Genisis's World" show he is well known as a science guru around the world. He was an original researcher as Haysville Project, so he knows his supers!)

[Zed-F]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Soulbarb is *quite* certain metahumans have souls. She's in a constant battle for her own with the demon that posesses her. Moreover, she can see the souls of others.

 

Mind you, she'd have some trouble getting to Italy to do anything about the situation, and she's not about to go public to make commentary on the situation. Looking like a creature out of nightmare will do that...

[Lord Mhoram]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Blackcat would just ignore it, and just do what she does. If asked she would repsond. She is more a follower of Eastern Philosophies anyway, so has no personal interest in what religion believes. She's also been dead and came back - so she knows all about souls .... and on a related note - she would likely be in trouble with fundamentists of any stripe; she had died and come back, can heal people and "preaches" tolerance and understanding - we even started a subplot where she was being worshiped as divinity.

 

Terminal Velocity is a teen. He doesn't pay attention to that but he does believe all living things have souls.

 

Ballistic is an excop supermage - he would comment on this, and drive home the point that all humans have souls, and that having special powers doesn't invalidate the concept of being alive and having a sould any more than being born with lower than normal capacities.

 

Meeb is a big alien amoeba who's personal and racial memories stretche back to before the earth was created. He doesn't care.

[Zeropoint]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Special Agent Trent:

 

"If I had a soul before Viper messed up my brain, I still have one."

 

As an FBI agent, Trent is not really concerned with souls on a practical level, unless someone manages to commit a soul-related crime that falls under Federal jurisdiction. If pressed on the subject, he'd get irritated and suggest that you come back when you have a reliable test for the presence of a soul.

 

Zeropoint

[Metaphysician]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Microman II: "While it is an issue of which I have thought on occasion. . . how is the question of whether a metahuman has a soul related at all to whether a robot has one, or an alien?? How exactly would beyond human capabilities inherently indicate a lack or removal of soul, regardless of their mechanism or source??"

 

Oh, and he'd also beat up the terrorists.

 

Diomedes: "Feh. I have no powers, merely skills. Does that mean every extraordinary person is soulless??" Plus, when you have a goddess whispering in your ear, you tend not to be especially materialist. . .

[Cancer]

Re: What Would Your Character Do #33

 

Mr. Terrific's powers come when he takes one of his power pills, and the effects of each pill lasts two minutes (tops). The rest of the time he is a skilled normal.

 

Therefore his situation is, at worst, the same as, say, someone who's gone violent while on PCP or some other illegal drug.

 

I suspect there is a wealth of ecclesiastical scholarship that argues that the soul does not take flight from the body when the body is controlled by a drug, so in the formal sense, the charge is refuted.