Tag: spy

LORE24 ENTRY #57 – Supers Month #26 – Claire Tempest

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

Claire Tempest.

Claire.  Tempest.

WHO IN THE HELL IS CLAIRE TEMPEST?!?!?!!!

There’s another Tempest sister?!  When?!  HOW?!  Where is she?  Who is she?  How is it possible I’m just now learning of her existence?!

Seriously, full stop.  I don’t know how I missed this one, or how none of the Tempests or any of their underlings ever mentioned Claire Tempest before.  Nobody, and I mean nobody, not even the best government spooks can exist with this level anonymity.  I found nothing, absolutely NOTHING about Claire Tempest ANYWHERE.  Even my law enforcement sources swear I have to be mistaken, because they’ve never heard of a Claire Tempest either.  

So how did I find out about Claire Tempest at all?  It wasn’t easy, and maybe a little stupid, if not outright dangerous, but something stirred the family up a few weeks back.  It started with Misha Kyle of all people; apparently she’s got some kind of grudge against Sei-Sei’s friend Honey.  Whatever she had planned, Maria and Jennifer stepped in to intervene before Misha did something she’d regret; still trying to work out the details on that one.  I happened to be tailing Julia at the time, and happened to be masquerading as one of the waitresses at her favorite restaurants when she got a call from Grace.  I couldn’t overhear all the details, but I saw Julia of all people go pale.  She recovered quickly, but I heard her mention “our dear sister Claire” and making sure that the entire family would be there for her arrival.  She left almost immediately thereafter, so I hightailed it too, and followed her all the way to the Tempest estate.  I hung back in my favorite hiding spot in the woods outside the property, and sure enough, within a matter of hours, every one of the Tempest family had shown up.

I never saw Claire Tempest arrive, though (perhaps she was already there, waiting for Julia?), and as much as I wanted to, I wasn’t about to try to slip into the Tempest Estate.  I just had some seriously bad vibes about the place that night.  I can’t really explain it, but there was this overwhelming feeling that I didn’t want to be anywhere near the place, something…intangible in the air, like that static feeling you sometimes get when a thunderstorm is coming in.  

I’m digging with renewed vigor on this one; I will find out who Claire Tempest is, eventually.  Whatever she’s scheming, it’s got the rest of the family working extra hard on…something.  All of them seem to be redoubling their efforts at their various activities, almost like they’re trying to impress Claire, maybe, or more like they’re preparing for something big?  I may try to approach Honey and try to get what she knows about it; I overhead some of a conversation she had with Sei-Sei after the family meeting.  She’s been in a foul mood ever since, apparently, and had nothing good to say about any of the Tempests following that event, though Sei-Sei seemed to be entertained by whatever happened, teasing Honey about it before the two went off for their private escapades.  

This Tempest rabbit hole is going deeper than I ever could have imagined.  Though I will see it through to the end, I can only hope that I won’t be buried in it.

 

LORE24 ENTRY #56 – Supers Month #25 – Julia Tempest-Redhall

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

Julia Tempest-Redhall may well be the head of the Tempest crime family.  She doesn’t share the spotlight like some of the younger girls in the family, and by most accounts is a rather private individual, but her name is known throughout Sentinel City, and she is frequently spotted at every major public function, and most private ones, the city’s elite hold.  She’s the very image of a graceful, elite socialite, but I’ve yet to uncover what she’s actually done to become so famous amongst the wealthy elite.  Maybe it has something with her ties to old European royalty and her marriage into the Redhall family, maybe she inherited some significant wealth there; I’m still waiting on more details on that front, but information is surprisingly hard to find regarding the links here.

I’ve yet to find the exact dates here, but from what I can piece together, Julia has to be in her sixties, if not her seventies, but I daresay she barely looks forty, and the younger women of the family have reportedly taken to calling her ‘Granny’, a moniker that she despises, apparently.  I just can’t get over how well these women age.  Maybe the Fountain of Youth is just one of their many secrets?  

But what is it that Julia actually does in Sentinel City?  Besides being a socialite…I can’t really find anything else, officially.  She apparently doesn’t have any official income, even though she lives within the walls of the Tempest family mansion, and has perhaps the largest estate in the wealthy areas on the outskirts of the city.  I haven’t found any criminal records indicating tax evasion or other schemes one might expect to find, and I’ve barley found any public records of her at all, not even a drivers’ license.  I suppose that’s why she is always spotted with her driver, chauffer, butler, whatever, Sei-Sei (he may look all hot and plays sweet, but what little I’ve seen of him, his eyes scream career criminal, real mafioso-type muscle) in tow, though he’s also been known to work with the other members of the family.  I’ve followed him a couple times when Julia’s sent him out on errands, and have discovered that he sometimes hooks up with a prostitute, known as Honey, though I’ve not gone deeper than that; maybe she’s another angle I can investigate when I have the chance.

Back to Julia, though.  I’m absolutely certain she’s got her hands on Sentinel City’s strings, controlling a good chunk of the politicians and influential wealthy elite in the city.  She’s just too common a sight not to wield some kind of incredible power.  I’ve seen it myself, have photos of how these people look at her, and they practically worship her, always fawning over her.  It’s that  damn Tempest force of personality at work again.  But what does she actually tell them to do?  I’ve only gotten close enough to overhear a few conversations, and haven’t managed to get clear long-range recordings, but the conversations seem innocent enough.  Yet, there are plenty of private meetings I’ve not managed to slip close enough to eavesdrop on yet, and those are where the big business gets done, I’m certain.  Julia and the rest of the family has a grand plan in the works, probably dozens of criminal operations that all seem unrelated, but no doubt tie together at the head of the family.  

I may be going out on a limb here, but I am convinced I’ll find proof of it sooner or later, but I daresay that the Tempest family runs the single largest criminal enterprise in the country, maybe the world!  These women simply have too much power and influence to be using it entirely for the benefit of the city.  I just need that one detail, the one scrap of information that’ll bust this case wide open, and I’m sure I’ll find it!  Once I’ve taken care of a few more things swirling around Julia, I’m going to ambush her after one of her clandestine meetings, and I’m going to wring the truth out of the woman!  Anything for a scoop!

 

LORE24 ENTRY #55 – Supers Month #24 – Grace Tempest-Redhall

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

Grace Tempest-Redhall, daughter of Julia Tempest-Redhall.  Why the additional name attached to this pair, though?  Well, that’s subject’s a bit murky, but it seems that Julia once married into another influential family from somewhere in Europe, though I can’t find information as to whether Grace was born from that family or simply adopted into it after the marriage.  I’ve reached out to some people who know how to trace these family lines better than I do, but they’ve not gotten back to me yet.  I’m not sure how long ago any of this took place, either; Julia is supposed to be the family elder from all accounts, the one in charge, but she barely looks forty, and Grace still looks like she’s in her twenties.  How blessed can one family be in the looks department, anyway?  Personal opinion here:  not fair, at all.

Anyway, as to Grace’s activities in Sentinel City, she’s only recently come to make a name for herself, joining in on the majority of the family’s attempts to enrichen and improve the city, and she’s taken a different (but somewhat parallel?) course as Maria has in her efforts.  She runs a special reform school for misguided, troublesome boys called the Littlewood Academy that just opened last year.  You’d think there would be more of an uproar over the facility being exclusive to only half of the population, but she’s promised that, when her methods prove successful, there will be a matching school for girls.  Still, I have my doubts that this is a legitimate business; there’s way too much public funding going into it (and who knows how much private funding; I intend to find out!), and the ‘boys’ that are shipped into the place are actually adults; all the records I’ve uncovered show the youngest allowed in are eighteen, with most trending older.

Thus far I’ve not managed to get a look at the facility itself, as it’s again under a strict no-fly zone for drones, and has high walls.  From what I have seen from outside, though, it’s just as fancy looking as Maria’s academy on the inside, and by every testimonial I’ve read, the first round of graduates have come out positively sparkling, their violent tendencies and lackluster personalities completely reversed, with many going on to take positions with well-respected, wealthy citizens as personal assistants and understudies in their businesses.  The re-education program here does tout a strong focus on giving the students real-life job skills.  Given the state of Sentinel City, and the world at large for that matter, I daresay that mind control of some kind is involved.  I’d expect this kind of thing from Jennifer at Edgewater, if I’m being honest.

Also, a curious note:  I did manage to get my hands on some of the expense reports from inside Littlewood.  On the surface, they looked completely normal, food purchases, staff payroll, promotional material, that kind of thing, but there was an oddly high amount spent on cosmetics and student uniforms.  I’m no mathematician, but compared to the size of the facilities, Grace has spent more on this particular area than what Maria has at her much larger school.  I smell a money laundering scheme!

Given Julia’s tendency to ingratiate herself amongst the elite of Sentinel City, there’s got to be a link to Grace’s activities at this school that I’ve yet to uncover; some of the names where these reformed young men have started new careers are amongst the ones Julia frequently visits, after all, and in my profession, there are no coincidences.

I’m still working the angles on this one, but have managed to secure an interview with Grace, and may even manage a proper tour of the facility if I play my cards right.  I’ll get to the bottom of this, whatever it takes, and I’ll see to it that the Tempests’ criminal plans are busted wide open, or my name’s not Delia Emmerson!

 

 

LORE24 ENTRY #54 – Supers Month #23 – Amelia Tempest

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

By all accounts, Amelia Tempest is a business genius, having all the right degrees and training to see her to the top floor of that high rise, the head of Venus Financial Corp, making the right decisions, and yet she’s barely out of her twenties, though you wouldn’t guess that from how she looks.  I’d swear she’s barely twenty, but that must be those amazing Tempest genes at work; she’s every bit the stunning beauty as her sisters.  Believe it or not, apparently Gloria Tempest helped to raise her, remains somewhat of a motherly figure to her, even.  More of those good genes, I guess.

I’d like to say I believe that she’s accomplished all of her success above the table, but I can’t.  No, I’m convinced she’s just s crooked as the rest of the family.  A major financial company like hers is perfect for laundering funds and making openings for other illicit deals, and I have no doubt that’s exactly what Amelia does for the rest of the family.  Can I prove it?  Well…no, not in so many simple words.  Most of what I’ve found that could be called ‘questionable’ to the average observer would be considered normal in the cutthroat corporate world.  Venus Corp has even gone through great lengths to keep its taxes properly paid from what I can find.  

it’s all just too clean, though, too perfect.  My investigative instincts tell me that she’s dirty, and I’m convinced someone out there knows all about it, someone whose last name doesn’t start with Tempest.  Bobbi, the head of the IT department at Edgewater, visits Amelia’s office fairly often, likely has something to do with Venus Corp’s secret secure documents, if I had to make an educated guess.  Then there’s Julia Tempest’s driver, Sei-Sei; he’s visited a few times without Julia in tow, and I’ve gotten at least two confirmed visits from Misha Kyle.  These people know something, and I will find out sooner or later!

I had an interview with Amelia, haven’t published the results just yet, but she’s just as slippery as her sisters.  She’s pleasant to speak to, draws you in with her presence alone, fills the room with it, even.  Perfect for the head of a major international corporation, certainly.  She didn’t speak much about herself, more about her accomplishments, though, like Gloria, did reveal that she has a thing for collecting dolls on her off time.  Like I couldn’t tell that from the displays she had in her private office; the woman even has a few human-sized dolls on display in her office, dressed up like something you’d see out of a Victorian masquerade ball, safe behind thick, spotless glass.  I didn’t care for them though; they creeped me out, if I’m being quite honest, kept feeling like they were looking at me, could almost swear I saw one move…just a twitch, but still.  I’d say Amelia needs to talk with Dollface, but she’s still in a coma back at Edgewater, and if it’s one thing the Tempests don’t need, its mind-control masks.

The investigation into Amelia Tempest is ongoing, as it is with the rest of the family.  I’ll catch them making a mistake that’ll open the way to a major breakthrough sooner or later, I have no doubts about it.  Patience is a virtue, and I’m nothing if not patient, though I am starting to feel the frustration with this case building up.  I’ve had trouble sleeping since starting this operation, even had a dream where I was one of those dolls in Amelia’s office, stuck inside that display case, struggling to breath, unable to move, watching her go about her day as if I wasn’t there.  Just like I had a dream after talking with Rachel about being buried alive after getting mummified.  Or that dream I had about being a pet at Maria’s school.  Maybe I need to visit Jennifer for another therapy session, get my head straight…

Anyway, the Amelia Tempest interview will be a puff piece; the Tempest seem to like people praising their greatness, so maybe it’ll lead to bigger and better chances to learn about their illicit dealings.  Time will tell…

 

 

LORE24 ENTRY #53 – Supers Month #22 – Gloria Tempest

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

I would say that Gloria doesn’t really fit the Tempest template, but I’m not even sure I can pin down a template for them; each of them are unique, and each of them have secrets I intend to uncover.  For a while, she was perhaps the most famous of the Tempest family, soaking up the limelight as one of those ‘famous because they’re sexy and rich’ types, though she did have a successful career as a model during that phase.  The last few months, though, she’s stepped out of the spotlight and become a much more private individual, stepped away from most of the attention she’d been getting.  Could it be that she’s tired of it all?  Is it because of her new boyfriend?  Or something more sinister, perhaps?

My money’s on something more sinister, no question about it.  

Gloria still frequently visits with other family members, most often Amelia Tempest, who is the youngest of the family, and perhaps the most successful in terms of business, given her position as the head of a major global financial management firm.  Gloria has been to countless parties and functions in Sentinel City, rubbing elbows with the wealthy and influential of all layers.  She could have anyone wrapped around her finger in moments by all accounts, and has a devoted following of admirers across the country and the world.  She apparently likes dolls, too, and has one of the largest collections in the city, some extremely rare, life-size, even.  I suppose everyone needs a hobby.

(As a side note…what is it with these Tempest women’s genes?  They’re all stunningly beautiful; I find myself getting lost in admiring even photos of them from time to time, and of those I’ve met, their personalities are absolutely overwhelming to be around, in the most exhilarating way.  Even Julia, the family elder, doesn’t look a day over thirty, at the most.  Must be some old-world Italian royalty in their blood, perhaps.  It should be a crime to be that damn hot…No, I’m not envious!  Why would I be?!)

But what evidence do I have of her shady nature?  Admittedly, not a lot.  I think she’s more of a go-between, maybe a messenger between various parties, delivering orders from the Tempest family, weaving their web of crime.  No paper trails here, just words whispered in an ear here and there in a public setting, masked by the buzz of the crowd.  I’d bet money that she learned it from Julia, and may have even taken over the role from her now that Julia has moved up the ladder in the family hierarchy.

There’s got to be an angle with her boyfriend, too.  Kyou Usunagi, one of the top-tier photographers in Sentinel City, known worldwide for his work, especially in the fetish community.  He’s done shoots with Gloria many times before they started dating, and before she went low-visibility.  What wrongdoing can I prove with Kyou?  Maybe a parking ticket, if that.  But, there’s a link there that I can’t deny that just screams suspicious.  Apparently one of Kyou’s clients, one Misha Kyle, was introduced to Gloria after he’d done a few fetish photo shoots for her company, Latex Leopard Limited.  Guess who has as special contract with the Edgewater Institute and one Jennifer Tempest, to provide uniforms and consulting services?  Misha Kyle.  Kyou knows something about what goes on in that family, I’m sure of it.  He’s recently taken on a new partner in his business, an out-of-towner named Kinzie O’Connor, fresh out of college, just learning the biz.  Gloria has been spotted several times with the two of them fawning over her, so maybe I can get something out of him even if Kyou’s too sharp to say anything about his girlfriend; based on his online presence, Kinzie is a bit of a ditz.

Again, frustration is the order of the day here.  There’s so much that could be chalked up to coincidence when it comes to Gloria Tempest, a lot of potential for criminal activity that I just can’t dismiss it.  I’ve tried to get an interview with her, but so far I’ve been ignored; I may have to be a little more bold, try to catch her somewhere in public, or at her home, try to get her off balance in those sexy heels she’s always wearing.

There has to be evidence out there, somewhere.  I will find it, and I will expose the Tempest family for what they are!

 

 

LORE24 ENTRY #52 – Supers Month #21 – Rachel Tempest

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

Rachel Tempest knows where the bodies are!  I’m absolutely certain of it!  

My frustration continues to mount in this investigation, but I have a solid lead here, I just know it.  

Okay, okay, backup just a minute.  Who is Rachel Tempest?  As of a few weeks ago, she’s the newest curator of the Sentinel City Museum system.  A rather convenient development, I’d say.  Suspiciously so, in fact.  She swooped in practically out of nowhere after the previous curator lost some valuable artifacts during that operation that finally captured Pink Pussy; I’d personally call that operation a failure since the supposed heroines let those artifacts be stolen, but that’s for another article.  Rachel wasn’t on anyone’s radar as far as I could determine, and until some honeyed words got put in several influential ears around town, likely thanks to Julia Tempest-Redhall, nobody was looking to oust the previous curator, either.  Rachel wasn’t even in the country at the time; I’ve traced her to an archeological dig in Egypt before she was suddenly back in SC, giving that acceptance speech, still with desert dust fresh on her clothes from the dig site.

I’ll begrudgingly admit that Rachel Tempest is qualified for the position, however.  Her academic credentials are solid as far as I’ve been able to determine, having completed multiple programs in ancient history with a specialty in ancient Egyptian history, and has spent years completing field work at dozens of dig sites around the world, under the watchful eyes of the best archeologists of the day.  A real modern-day tomb raider.  She’s always been rather distant from the other Tempests (though perhaps not as distant as the mysterious Claire Tempest), so I find it highly suspicious that she suddenly came back for a cushy museum job.  

Turns out there was plenty more to dig up when it comes to Rachel Tempest.  According to my FBI sources, who have been working with several international organizations given Rachel’s globetrotting, there’s plenty of indicators that she’s just as crooked as the rest of the family.  She’s been linked to multiple groups dealing in black market relics (albeit very tangentially), and there are many disturbing rumors regarding her true purpose within the family.  I can’t prove it just yet, but there have been multiple instances of rather wealthy or influential people having gone missing over the years that have coincided with her returns to Sentinel City.  I could find no prior links to any of these people to Rachel personally, but I can confirm they’ve had dealings with other members of the family.

Yeah, that could just be coincidence, but my instincts, and a healthy understanding of mafia methods, say otherwise.  You see, the previous museum curator?  He’s gone missing too, right after Rachel Tempest showed back up in Sentinel City to take his position.  What would Rachel Tempest have to say about that?  Well, when I asked her about it during the course of an official interview, she first made a joke about it, saying that he was still in the museum, wrapped up in one of the sarcophagi inside the Egypt exhibit.  Then she said he was on vacation somewhere, and that she didn’t have time to worry about what they were doing with their time since she had a series of new exhibits to plan.  She’s…very passionate about history, given that our interview lasted over an hour after that.

BUT…there’s much more.  That joke…I don’t think it was a joke.  She was dead serious about it, I know it!  I tried slipping inside the museum after hours, just to see what I could find in that exhibit, but since she’s taken over, security has been increased to ridiculous levels (thanks to an anonymous donation, of course); it’s got to be as secure as Edgewater now.  So, I went digging elsewhere, doing some off the record interviews with a few of the other museum staff, some of the lesser Tempest “minions” that dealt with the rest of the family here and there, drivers, errand boys, that kind of thing.  A couple of them had a very interesting story to say the least.  Can you say…body farm?!  Not the kind they do forensics research at, but a place where all the Tempest family’s enemies are buried?!  Is that too good to be true?

Well, this reporter has an address and plenty of gas in the tank.  It’s outside Sentinel City, an old farm to the south.  There are lots of farms down there, but there are red flags about this one.  One, online satellite maps have it blurred out, and two, it’s a drone no-fly zone, when nothing else around it shares that same honor.  Coincidence?  Nah, I don’t think so!  What dirty secrets does Rachel Tempest keep buried there?  I intend to find out.  This could be the biggest scoop of my career!

Further updates are pending.

 

 

LORE24 ENTRY #51 – Supers Month #20 – Maria Tempest

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

Is it possible for a place to be more shady than the Edgewater Institute?  I’m not sure, but I’d wager that the Tempest Grand Academy is a strong contender for it.

And what about Maria Tempest, the owner and administrator of the TGA?  She’s just as beautiful as her sister Jennifer, and has just as forceful a personality, perhaps even more so.  She is not as icy as Jennifer in terms of temperament as I’ve determined, but she can be just as strict and unaccepting of nonsense.  I can absolutely attest to the fact that I get the same sense of awe that I felt with Jennifer during our official interview and tour of the TGA facilities.  That’s the second puff piece I’ve written about the Tempests this year…I’d better be careful, or someone’s going to accuse me of going soft on them.

I suppose I’ll start with Maria herself.  Publicly, she is a reputable businesswoman, well regarded in Sentinel City and beyond, who prefers a quieter and less intense occupation than, say, Jennifer or another of the sisters, Amelia.  She seems more playful than Jennifer, more willing to joke or openly tease, but has a no-nonsense attitude underlying it all.  I get the impression that she can be an absolutely strict disciplinarian when the situation calls for it, and that she’s no stranger to such matters.  She attends many of the same meetings as Jennifer regarding the Edgewater Institute’s business, and is listed as being on its board, though she tends not to be involved overmuch.  There does seem to be some amount of overlap regarding the clients of Edgewater and the TGA, so there is much more to the story that I’ve yet to uncover.  I feel like there may be a deeper bond between these two than the rest of their sisters, I just haven’t been able to confirm the nature of this bond.  Twins, perhaps, though available records aren’t conclusive.

In her personal life, Maria has recently started dating Misha Kyle, the owner and chief designer at Latex Leopard Limited, whom she met during a meeting at Edgewater.  The two seem happy, spending a lot of time together outside of work, though much of it is behind the closed doors and high fences at the administrator’s residence on the grounds of the TGA facility outside of Sentinel City proper.  Prior to her involvement with the Tempest family, Kyle’s record looks clean and innocent enough, though there was one blip a few weeks before she met the Tempest sisters involving a very poorly documented account of an assault, maybe even a kidnapping?  There were no legal records beyond this, and whoever the detectives were who handled the situation completely botched it…or were intentionally hiding something?  Perhaps a lead for another time.

Misha just happens to supply the uniforms for the Edgewater staff as well as some of the more intense restraints for the superpowered patients.  Is there more to this relationship than it seems?  I have no doubts in my mind about it.  Following the contract with Edgewater, 3L’s sales skyrocketed, and they immediately purchased and implemented expanded production facilities.  I would not be surprised if the Tempests were using 3L as a way to launder some of their secret funds; no proof yet, but that’s one of the many angles I’m looking at.  

But what of the TGA?  What exactly goes on there?  Officially, the Tempest Grand Academy is a private education facility catering to the wealthy, like a fancy finishing school from the old days, teaching people how to be proper lords and ladies and the like.  It would seem to be a bit of an anachronism in that regard, but as its public earnings reports indicate, in the five years since the facility opened, its profits have steadily risen.  As I suspected, that simply wasn’t the whole story.  Who would believe that many people would be interested in learning proper social graces these days, after all?

Speaking to known staff members led to little in the way of useful information; they had nothing negative to say about anything that went on there, and seemed well schooled in keeping secrets.  I discovered that the facility’s chief physician had previously came from Edgewater, but little else on that front.  I attempted my own information gathering at the facility, but the nature of the grounds make it very private.  Though it’s in the hills outside of Sentinel City, the woods have been cleared away a good distance from the high walls and even higher foliage inside them, and the whole area has been designated a no-fly zone for drones, so I couldn’t manage to get an aerial view.  I managed to get some long-range photos of some of the students, but couldn’t find anything substantial about them or their relations with the Tempest family.

Compelled to find the truth of the mater, I reached out to Maria Tempest directly.  I was honestly a little surprised that she accepted my request for an interview and a tour of the facility so readily; she even picked me up herself so that we could get to know one another on the drive to the school.  Again, like with Jennifer, Maria’s very presence is incredible to experience.  I could not help but be enthralled by the passion she showed for the school, of her dedication to the students to make them the best they could be.  But what was she making them into?  In spite of what I reported in my official piece, I’m not entirely sure myself.  The whole weekend I spent there went by in a blur, only my interview is really clear in my memory, as was the tour of the main school building.  I know there are other buildings there, dormitories, a riding stable, even kennels for keeping pets, some quite exotic, but the details are vague (though Maria’s cat, Sheba, stands out as most well-behaved and beautiful pet in my mind).  Of the students I encountered there, all seemed to be very well mannered and confident in themselves, each displaying at least the demeanor of a dominant, and in some cases, aggressive, business executive.  

So is the TGA just an elite business school then, training the next generation of elite, corporate executives?  Perhaps…and perhaps not.  It’s frustrating me to no end that I can’t seem to recall a lot of the details during my visit there, but every time I try to think over what happened, I get a sense of fond longing, almost a pleasant, peaceful nostalgia, like a dog curling up by a fireplace at the feet of its master, that kind of cozy feeling.  The more time I spend in the presence of the Tempests the more overwhelmed I seem to be by them.  It’s dangerous business; I should probably just stop trying to dig into their affairs, and yet, I’m compelled by my own need to find the truth, whatever the cost.  Anything for a scoop, after all!  

 

 

 

LORE24 ENTRY #50 – Supers Month #19 – Jennifer Tempest

 

From the personal journal of Delia Emmerson, Star Reporter of Channel 9 News…

 

The investigation into the Edgewater Institute has taken a turn I could not have expected, and, for a moment there, I was certain I was finished as a reporter.  That’s not something I’d admit to anyone, of course, but when I got caught inside the high security wing and had to undergo an “evaluation”, I had my moments of doubt.  It was during my several interviews with Jennifer Tempest during my time inside that I grew suspicious of her motives.  The family name was enough, really, but having seen her methods firsthand, I can say with certainty that there is much more going on behind the scenes than anyone outside the Tempest family itself knows…and my sources within the SCPD and FBI can corroborate this statement.

Starting with the one I’m most familiar with, Jennifer Tempest is far more than just the administrator of the Edgewater Institute.  Oh, don’t get me wrong, her accomplishments as a medical professional are all there on paper, just as pretty as you please, with all the extra honors and accolades one could imagine.  By all accounts, she’s a genius, completely dedicated to healing fractured minds and rooting out the cause of antisocial, criminal behavior.  That’s the new thing these days, right?  Crime as a mental disorder?  Blame the system, not the criminal?  Read the piece I wrote about Jennifer and Edgewater, I’ll tell you all about it.

I’m not pleased to admit it, but yes, that was not my finest work, even though it was perhaps my finest infiltration.  Jennifer had me over a barrel, and it was either extol her virtues to the world, or disappear as a mental case under so much red tape, locked inside Edgewater for the rest of my life.  Oh, she didn’t come right out and say that, of course, but I can read between the lines just fine.  It is this reporter’s personal opinion that Jennifer Tempest is perhaps the most dangerous of the entire Tempest criminal organization.  She has a way about her that makes me shiver…just an intensity of personality that, while common amongst the rest of her family, is so much more…I don’t know what the exact words are to describe it.  Even knowing what I know, I can’t help but feel…awed in her presence, almost like I’m bowing to some queen or…maybe even a goddess.  it sounds silly when I say it like that, but I’ve had…thoughts about her that I can’t exactly explain since meeting her, vaguely remembered dreams of things best described as highly pornographic.  I don’t know why.  I’m rather ashamed of admitting it, even here, but I also want to state quite clearly, should someone have to dig into my records should I go missing, that I DO NOT have any sort of perverse intentions with Jennifer Tempest or any of her sisters.  I am not planning to off myself, either.

I will also admit that, perhaps, I have developed an obsession with not only with Jennifer Tempest, but the rest of her family, now that I’ve seen behind the public face of Edgewater.  As soon as I had the opportunity I began researching the lot of them, reached out to every contact I had within law enforcement.  Like any long-lived criminal family, the Tempests hail from Italy, though would seem to have a much longer lineage than I’ve been able to trace thus far.  Each would seem to have their own public image that they tout in Sentinel City, the rich, powerful, and highly influential kind, but there is much more going on behind that public façade.  

It’s a well known secret that there is more to the Edgewater Institute than the general public is aware of, two very different faces.  While they are undeniably a medical facility with a focus on mental health issues, there are absolutely other activities going on within its walls; there are too many whispers of clandestine kinky, sexual antics involving the rich and influential members of Sentinel City society to ignore.  I…must admit that I have little proof of this, but I am certain that I can find the proof of it given more time.  I would go so far as to call their methods of patient restraint extreme and perverse, having experienced the “maximum security” variety myself, but how exactly can I speak negatively of them when they are designed to contain some of the most dangerous criminals in the city?  The kind who can move faster than you can imagine or that can break through reinforced concrete with ease?  

But what about Jennifer Tempest herself, and her criminal nature?  She is nothing if not dedicated to her work, perhaps to the point of obsession.  She has acquired multiple top talents to her staff, and has secured funding for the facility through multiple public and private sources.   It is the private sources that I must uncover if I want to discover her dark secrets.  From what my FBI contact has divulged, those donations they have managed to trace come from wealthy, if shady, financial firms or wealthy individuals who honestly believe in the work she does.  That leaves a massive amount of funding off the books, though; I’ve seen the technology they have in there first hand, and that kind of hardware is not cheap; I’ve been inside a secret government facility or two that had less stringent security.  

Her personal life is rather…plain?  She spends an unusual amount of her time at the Edgewater facility, but when she isn’t there, she has a home in one of the gated communities in the nicer parts of town; most of the neighbors are rich business types or other doctors.  She sometimes drives herself, sometimes has one of her staff drive her around in a company vehicle.  She is romantically involved with one of her staff, though, the head of the IT department, Bobbi, and he is a common sight at her home.  I may be able to find an angle there, but information on him is just as difficult to track down as any of the Tempests; I can only assume that he’s deeply involved in their criminal operations, may even run the technology side of them; he has been confirmed doing work for some of Jennifer’s sisters outside of Edgewater, after all.  Definitely a person of interest.

Of the other Tempest sisters, Jennifer appears to be closest to Maria, who frequents her home and has even attended some of the meetings inside Edgewater for whatever reason, the meeting with one Misha Kyle that led to a special contract with her company for some special uniforms for the Edgewater staff, for example.  I suppose I can safely confirm a latex fetish for Jennifer Tempest, if the choice of standard uniform inside the facility is any indication.  Sure, she gave me some lines about the special composition of the material being more hygienic and easier to maintain, and resistant to certain villainous superpowers, but I have no doubts that it goes much deeper than that.  Granted, she looks absolutely stunning in skin-tight rubber, but I digress.

I feel like I’m failing to perform due diligence on this investigation so far.  I just have so little to show for the hours of surveillance, research, and off-the-record interviews with law enforcement I’ve done.  Normally I’d have much more to show for it, but like the latex uniforms she wears, Jennifer Tempest is, for all intents and purposes, squeaky clean.  Ugh, why did I write that?  Why can’t I get the image of her in that uniform out of my head right now?  Stress, it has to be; I need to get some sleep.  Maybe a look at one of the other sisters will prove more fruitful…

 

 

LORE24 ENTRY #49 – Supers Month #18 – Momo-Chan

 

From the Personal Journal of Jennifer Tempest…

 

I don’t believe that in my entire history as a medical doctor have I felt so absolutely vexed as I have than with the woman known only as Momo-Chan.  She is a most unique case, with a most unique and troublesome ability given the nature of my facility.  She is a mystery as well, no background information to speak of; even Bobbi has been unable to locate any of her records within government databases after days spent diving into cyberspace.  She may as well not exist at all as far as a digital presence outside of the records held within Edgewater’s secure servers. 

During her stay at Edgewater, I personally handled her therapy sessions and she managed to avoid giving me any details about her past, and worryingly, resisted my natural charms, even when I impressed them so strongly upon her that I was certain she would notice my supernatural influence upon her.  Perhaps she did and simply said nothing about it?  A troubling thought in its own right.  All I managed to glean from her is that she once worked for the United States government as something of a spy and assassin, and was subjected to one of their many super-soldier programs, though in her case, it failed quite dramatically.  Following the procedure, though she came out of it possessing an amazing accelerated healing ability and resistance to both poisons and diseases, she was left completely dead to any sensation of pain not unlike a CIPA patient, though without the other medical issues most commonly associated with the condition.  Several very thorough procedures by Dr. Bayne and Dr. del Vecchio tested this condition in depth, and in some cases most gruesomely, though Momo-chan consented to all of it without apparent worry.

Perhaps this condition would have been beneficial for a spy to resist torture, but the procedure also left her with a crippling mental condition, namely a psychological need to feel latex upon her body.  Momo-chan cannot function without a full-body latex catsuit and a gas-mask to cover her face (though she is fine with having some area around her neck as well as her hair exposed, as long as the mask is in place).  Tests within Edgewater, when the latex was removed, provoked a response as though her very skin had been peeled off; removing the mask, she cries out for her face to be returned.  Given more than a few minutes in such a state, she becomes nearly catatonic until she is able to recover her ‘skin’ and her ‘face’.

Her mental state would be an absolutely fascinating study, and I have no doubt, that with enough time, I could have a breakthrough with her, but Momo-chan’s most troublesome ability is too much of a security risk for her to remain on an indefinite stay here.  Momo-chan, despite all attempts to the contrary, cannot be contained.  None of the restraints, secure cells, air-tight isolation rooms we have devised thus far have been able to keep her in place.  We’ve had multiple cameras trained on her, and I have sat within a few feet of her and watched her escape the most stringent restraints, and neither myself nor any of my staff, even Specialist Leopard or Bobbi, can figure out exactly how she does it.  She simple wiggles a bit, then the gear falls off, or if she’s in a secure cell, walks up to the door and slips through it, somehow.  It’s maddening!  How can she possibly do it?!  She doesn’t take an attitude about it, and hasn’t done anything to threaten the security of the facility or patients, only to “stretch her legs” or to get something to eat from the cafeteria before she returns to her cell, but the threat remains. 

I promised the girl that I would continue to treat her if she felt the need, and I stand by that, though she has, for now, vanished into the streets of Sentinel City.  I simply must discover a way to counter her ability to escape, and that will require many more trials, as I must delve into her psyche and find what it is that has led to her debilitating need for the feel of latex.  I have no qualms against latex attire in and of itself, of course; it is the main component of the standard uniform in Edgewater after all, but if I can simply give relief to her debilitation upon its removal, then I will have done my job to my satisfaction.