[Icelander]

Assigning radio tags for an operation, three Deputy US Marshals guarding a witness need codenames. The PCs decided to retain the superhero theme from last operation and name DUSM Frank Coleman, formerly USMC, 'Punisher', DUSM Shanna Rodgers 'Storm' (she's an African-American with short, spiky hair) and are then wondering what to name DUSM Eddie Martinez, their surveillance tech expert, a short, chubby geeky-looking guy.

GM: "The first person to suggest 'Speedy Gonzalez' is going right to sensitivity training."
Lucien Lcoste (OOC): "We'll call him 'Flash' for PC-purposes, but we'll all know what it really means."

Security contractors responsible for setting up perimeter security system also need codenames. These include several former SOF personnel from the rural south, inc. Alabama, Mississippi, Tennessee and Texas. Two can keep their codenames, 'Angel' and 'Warmachine', but several are new.

Dane Winding: "I don't really recall any Southern superheroes."
GM (OOC): "Googling reveals several ridiculous ethnic stereotypes that no one has heard about, like the 'Texas Twister'. Enoch Young actually was a rodeo rider way back when."
Lacoste: "It's okay, I can't be racist, I'm ethnically ambigious."
Dane: "Can we call him Zorro?"
GM: "After much discussion among the team members, several of whom appear to have relevant Games, Hobby or Literature skills, you agree that while Zorro is clearly a big part of the origin of masked superheroes, your theme should be more tightly confined to Marvel or DC heroes only. Also, Young refuses to have an aristocratic code name. Says it's un-American."
Lacoste: "Rangy [fornicator] can be Mr. Fantastic, then."

GM: "Still leaves Wyatt Jackson, deep-fried Alabama Good Ole Boy, lives on a houseboat outside Mobile, former 7th SFG, current 20th SFG National Guard."
Lacoste: "There's plenty of Australian superheroes. Australia is in the South."
Dane: "What, like Crockodile Dundee?"
GM (OOC): "He's not from Florida."
Lacoste: "No, like that guy in 'Suicide Squad'."
GM (OOC): "Ah, yes. Ridiculous ethnic stereotype to the point of parody. I realize that in the context of superheroes, doesn't really narrow it down."
Lacoste: "We gave codenames to like five black people without a single reference to Wakanda."
Dane: "That should be a Social Justice Warrior merit badge."
Lacoste: "I feel like we earned this."
Dane: "Right. Wyatt Jackson is 'Captain Boomerang'."

--

Dane Winding spends a long time setting up a watch schedule, security protocols, cameras, sensors and the like. In real life, the player is a police officer in the Incident Response Team of the Metropolitan Police here and a Tactical Training Officer.

Dane (OOC): "Why does roleplaying feel so much like work?"

---

Lucien Lacoste hears from Houston PD detectives that a guy picked up with an ounce of cocaine had wanted to make a deal, saying he knew about someone offering $100,000 for the murder of the cop, Lucien Lacoste.

Immediately, Lacoste decided to have Felipo Mendez, the strung-out tattoo-sporting gentleman in question, take him directly to whoever was talking about wanting him dead. Alone. Without backup.

Lacoste (OOC): "I want to see how much of a trap it is."

Outside the illegal gambling den where Tran, the Northside Chink Posse gangster who had been talking, hung out, Lacoste asked his ghost partner, LaDarius 'Dee' Fournette, to go in, scout, count those present, note any arms and so forth.

Dee: "Luce, I want to note, for the record, that this is a bad idea."
Lacoste: "Let the record so reflect.

Dee goes in. While he waits, Lacoste drops into a corner store (in Chinatown), his shifty informant in tow.

Lacoste: "I am going to need all of your illegal fireworks. Don't worry, I'm a cop."

After dropping off copious amounts of fireworks (for which he overpaid, not having the Merchant skill to haggle or even know what they were worth) at his car, Lacoste went into the gambling den, where Dee had told him fifteen people were eating, drinking and gambling, with two men definitely carrying and a third, half-comatose, possibly doing so.

Lacoste: "All right, you mooks. I heard someone wanted Lucien Lacoste dead. My name is Lucien Lacoste."
[Grabs pistol from one of eight guys sitting at the gang-affiliated guys table, crushes it and slams it down on the table]
"Anyone feel like earning $100,000?"

---

Lacoste (OOC): "Do I have like a company credit card from one of Kessler's front companies."
GM: "Indeed. For gas and incidental expenses."
Lacoste (OOC): "What happens if I put $5,000 worth of booze on it?"
GM: "Well, you haven't tried that yet."
Lacoste (OOC): "Then I haven't really lived, have I?"

---

New character, Julian 'Dane' Winding, meeting Lucien Lacoste, for the first time (Dane had been around in the background as an NPC, but not had a real conversation with Lacoste). Before the conversation starts, Lacoste's player looks at casting photo of Dane Winding. Asks if he has the long hair and everything, which is confirmed.

Lacoste (drunk, holding champagne bottle and lighting illegal fireworks): "You're a very handsome man."

[Beat]

Lacoste: "It's a new world. I can say stuff like that. It's not weird."

Lacoste told his new friend all about that time he met Odin. Dane Winding is immediately very interested, but becomes less so when he hears how Lacoste allied with Sky Pirates, fought Antarctic Space Nazis, ghouls, dragons... well, Lovecraftian monsters that were dragon-adjacent, and how he rode the Yeti.

Dane (OOC): "Awww, [faeces], I'm losing all respect for the drunk delusional guy, aren't I?"
Lacoste: "This all really happened. But not in reality. In a dream. That wasn't a dream, but real. We went to the Dreamlands. H.P. Lovecraft style. Yog-Sothoth was a penguin."
Dane: "Of course he was."

---

Lacoste (OOC): "Why do these things always happen to me?!"
GM: "You have Weirdness Magnet."
Lacoste: "Oh. Right. Well, that makes sense."

Dane (COVID-infected player, who is also a cop who was once framed for a felony, went to trial, was on all front pages of the news, trended on social media and required years of work to clear his name; OCC): "I feel like I might have that Disadvantage, on, like, my personal character sheet."
GM (OOC): "Well, I don't know anyone else who has lost control of his bowels quite so often."