Sage Zentaro

[Sage Zentaro]

I thought it would be pretty awesome at first to take the train all the way across the country, and I had to get to Rhode Island anyway, where I'd be living for who knows how long. It was nice and pretty, speeding through all those towns, all quiet. I think I liked the quiet of it most. It wasn't rushed. It wasn't like flying on an airplane, where you fight to get to the gate and with a roar you're where you think you want to be. I thought all that time to get across the country would help me get things sorted out in my head after everything that happened: the arrest, the trial, seeing dad off to jail. And in the songs nobody ever talks about flying anywhere. They always took a train or a bus. Really, though, going on the train just sucked. I watched out the windows forever, noticing the terrain change. I tried to find songs to fit the trip on my iPod, but all they did was make me feel shitty. I tried reading, but it made motion sick. And I couldn't sit and figure anything out because there was always somebody coming or going, talking on a cell phone, pushing a snack cart through, whatever. Half-starved, exhausted, I felt raw like rugburn when I made it out of the train in Paragon, and later out of the taxi at Saint Joe's--only the rug stretched from coast to coast. At least Harm and London were there waiting for me. They took me around and introduced me to some of their friends, and the rest of the band I'd willingly been drafted into. I needed that more than they probably knew.

They got my academic records and, seeing how spotty everything was, did a few days of diagnostics. I didn't really try all that hard, and got low-level classes. Whatever. It was fine. I kept my doofy happy kid face on as much to convince them as myself that everything was alright.

Before I really knew what I was doing I was in my first-year algebra class. The teacher was older, and not a nun. I was glad about that. She told me to stand up and introduce myself.

"Er, hey? I'm Sage," I grinned big and stood up, half-waving at the class. I added "Zentaro" like an afterthought.

"Oh!" A girl by the door perked up. "Harmony and London's cousin, right?"

I nodded. "Yeah, my dad's brother to their dads."

"Ooooooh." She giggled knowingly. I guess she'd seen the VH-1 special they reran every now and then.

I paused, a little awkwardly, trying to regain my footing. "Right. So, I'm from Seattle, aaaand I'm here because I do this freaky thing with positive and negative energy, I guess. It's hard to explain. Plants respond to it best. I make them grow. It kind of works on people, but, like, I don't make them grow? I just kind of make people feel good. I don't know how it works." A couple of giggles burst out at the mention of growing plants--dad's trial had been on the news off and on, and I guess people had been drawing connections.

The teacher smiled, but it felt kind of oily to me. "Do you like it here so far, Sage?"

I shrugged and nodded, feeling a little put upon. "I guess so, yeah. It's okay."

"Good!" she said. "I'm sure you'll fit in in no time. Perhaps you can take a look at my cactus sometime. The poor thing nearly died last winter." She indicated an off-brown bundle of spines on her desk. I gave her a nod, which she followed with a smile, and started teaching.

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OOC stuff:

Here's Sage's CW thread: Concept: Mind-Altered Musican

As is outlined (in much more detail) in his CW thread, Sage's father was arrested and jailed for possession of marijuana, which Sage helped his father to grow with his unusual abilities. Though he doesn't call attention to the fact in the presence of adults, he doesn't hide it from his peers either.

Sage's powers, much like London and Harmony's, come from a homebrew drug consumed by their respective parents during their time with the glam band Zen Tarot they starred in. Because Sage's father Andy consumed an number of other psychotropic drugs in addition to the strange homebrew drug, the effects were slightly different on Sage. Instead of controlling temperature, he manipulates a nebulous sort of "life energy." Plants respond to it best. He can make them grow at a whim. He can also use his powers to encourage healing and a general feeling of vitality in his friends, and lethargy in his enemies.

There's really a lot more detail in the CW thread. You should check it out.

[Billi Ivey]

Howdy Sage! Nice ta meetcha, boyo. See you in class, or more likely in detention. *tips her hat, saunters off*

[D. Planet]

Hey Sage. I'm Mal, and I'm the bassist in Harmony and London's band. Or is that London and Harmony's band? Anyway, welcome to the school. I'm sure your family must be really happy to have all these supers in the family.

[London Zentaro]

London and Harmony. ... I'm just saying.

Oh cousin, my cousin! Free Andy!


We practice every day, music room six. It sucks how everything went down, but me and Harm are glad you're here. Text if you need anything.

[Mikael Geniusovich]

Hey Sage. It was nice meeting you. And no I'm not stalking you I swear *laughs*

[Sage Zentaro]

((Issue 15 update!))

Sage still regards Paragon City and Saint Joseph's as new phenomena, but he's starting to grow acclimated to the weirdness of each.

He's made fast friends with most of the members of Out of the Blue, and feels very comfortable playing with and interacting with each of them. He's expressed little interest in his schoolwork. Though he could likely do better if he cared to, he exerts enough effort to keep a low C average.

By this point most of the school would likely be familiar with how he came to be at Saint Joe's, and with the notion that he might very well not be staying around forever. When his father's prison sentence ends, his ability to have custody of Sage will come back into question.

I should add a note of clarification, too. Sage often talks a bit about "good vibes." These are the enhancing and regenerative aspects of his Radiation Emission powerset. The general idea I had in mind--and could have probably communicated more clearly--is that when he channels positive energy toward a person, as when he's using Radiant Aura or Enhance Metabolism, or if he's just emoting it, that the target would start to feel physically invigorated and alert, with their mood somewhat lifted. Of course, each student might respond to it differently, or perhaps not at all.