<div class="floatleft">(https://elliquiy.com/elluiki/images/7/75/Trevor_Talbot.jpg)</div><br/><strong><span class="bbc_size" style="font-size: 14pt;">The Beholder</span></strong><br/><strong>Tagging:</strong>Everyone<br/><strong>Doing:</strong>Talking to the nice plant lady<br/><br/><br/>Trevor wasn't sure why he'd volunteered for the the Z-League.  It just seemed so far outside what he would normally do.  Perhaps it had been the bottle of absinthe, sent as a gift from a grateful associate in France.  He'd consumed far more of the mildly hallucinogenic liquor than he'd intended and he vaguely remembered applying.  Now he was stuck in the middle of a crowd thanks to the efforts of the motivational speaker who  seemed to be running the show.<br/><br/>They weren't likely to make much of a positive impression.  He was the poster child for social anxiety and he looked like a<div class="spoiler_container"><div class="spoiler_header" onclick="hideSecond (this);" role="button">cartoon character</div><div class="spoiler_body">(http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_N1npI6e3LGQ/SKs8k0wEz5I/AAAAAAAAAmg/btZqQ9rRT5g/s1600/Nite-Owl-Watchmen.gif)</div></div>, the kind the real heroes beat up.  Kali looked and sounded like a wannabe Darth Vader and, if anything, her social skills were worse than his.  This day was going to be a disaster.<br/><br/>Surrounded by strangers, many of whom were looking at him as if he was about to spontaneously combust or at the very least attempt to abduct a small child, Trevor did what he usually did when he was forced to interact with people; he sought out those who where in some way connected with flowers.<br/><br/>There were several people selling flowers, mostly roses and carnations but there was one booth that stood out.  While the others were selling cut flowers, this one was selling potted plants.  He scanned the stock with an expert eye.  He didn't need any of his vision powers to realize that these plants were loved.  They also happened to be, without exception, carnivorous.  Normally he would never have had the courage to approach the attractive brunette but he saw the plants more than he saw her.<br/><br/>"Selling your children?" he asked, taking in the array of plants with a wave of his hand and completely oblivious to the other connotations of the comment.  "You grow them yourself, rather than getting them from a greenhouse.  Given the prices you're charging, you aren't here to make money.  You're trying to spread the word about using plants rather than chemicals as pest control.  Safer for the environment and a self perpetuating system, if there is enough food for them.  Am I right?"<br/><br/>"Call it a hobby," the woman answered, nodding.  "I'm part of a collective.  When we're not working to support ourselves, we indulge our passions.  You know something about plants?"<br/><br/>"Some," Trevor replied, not wanting to come off as pretentious.  "I'm more into exotic ornamentals but I've got a decent grounding.  That's how I knew your plants are potted in their native soil, not mass produced potting soil."<br/><br/>The woman nodded.  "You have a good eye.  Are you a cosplayer or are you one of the Z-League?"<br/><br/>"Z-League," Trevor replied, lowering his eyes for a moment.  It made him miss the expression that flashed across her face.  "I'm the Beholder."<br/><br/>"As in 'beauty is in the eye of'?" she asked.<br/><br/>"It's a stupid name," he replied.  "All my powers are vision based."<br/><br/>"There are worse," she answered, smiling.  "It's not like you name yourself The Vision or The Looker or The All Seeing Eye.  Beholder at least has a little mystery to it."<br/><br/>"You think so?"<br/><br/>"I do indeed.  Can I interest you in a plant?  You're right, I'm not making any money on them and for a fellow botanical aficionado, I might forget to charge you."<br/><br/>