Amelia, Worm AU [Complete]

Amelia, Ch 48
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♦ Topic: Hero Team: Pantheon.
In: Boards ► Parahumans ► America ► New England ► Teams
Mumm Ra (Original Poster)
Posted on June 19th, 2011:

<Link> Photos of them, taken from my phone during their debut. Probs gonna be on the news, too. I'll archive links here as you bring them.

<Link> Actual news footage, Meet Gaea, Khepri, Minerva and Aceso

<Link> Interview with Khepri, Meet Respawn

<Link> Handing over Hookwolf, Meet Eki, confrontation between Minerva and Miss Militia

<Link> They take Purity down. HARD. Also. That's a lot of bugs.

<Link> Bombings

<Link> Someone pissed off the Khepri. Shouldn't have done that.

<Link> Holy shit, Valefor and Erigos get wrecked. Warning. NOT for the weak of stomach.

(Showing Page 2 of 107)

► Probably Stoned
Replied on June 19th, 2011:
I know it's been said before. But bug control. Fucking creepy. How did they kill Siberian with that?

► Mumm Ra
Replied on June 19th, 2011:
Dunno. She's invulnerable enough to trade punches with the Triumvirate and come out the winner. Maybe she had a different weakness? Maybe she was drowned?

► ThatDude
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
Drowned? You mean forcing insects down her throat util she asphyxiated? Great. I didn't want to sleep this week anyway. What's the term for "fear of Khepri"?

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
Sanity. Khepri's a badass, even if I like Aceso better.

► Human Decoy (Unverified Cape)
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
Dude. Pantheon? More like the Brockton Babes. Speak for yourself, TD, I am very much looking forward to my dreams tonight.

► ThatDude
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
Seriously? They're like fifteen at the most. Stop being creepy.

► Human Decoy (Unverified Cape)
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
Hey. I'm 15. I am allowed to perv out all I want.
In fact. I have a plan. First. I'm going to join their team. You guys just watch for the guy that's immune to death.
[REDACTED]

► ThatDude
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
Well. Alrighty then. Good luck with that. And enjoy your ban.

► Human Decoy (Unverified Cape)
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
First. They're the ones dressed up in bedsheets. Greek gods are down with the freaky.
Second. No Regrets!

► Judge (Moderator)
Replied on June 20th, 2011:
Good. Then I don't regret banning you.

Page 8 of 107
► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
Holy shit. Gaea's power is nuts. She just built like five city blocks worth of stuff in minutes. That's Triumvirate tier bullshit right there.

► DaWizard
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
I always knew Panacea's power was badly underutilized. But this... isn't this kinda Class-S territory? I know it's just plants but I can't help but look at this. Then at Blasto. Then back to this. Then over at Nilbog. Not saying she'd ever do anything like that. there's gotta be a lot of people in the Protectorate seeing this and thinking exactly that sorta thing.

► Mumm Ra
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
<Link> Khepri interview. She wasn't near as scary as I expected her to be, Even if Vickory was being nice to her and I thought he was done with that 'on location' stuff and had a cush office job.

Also. You'll never guess who shows up to crash the interlude at the end.

► ThatDude
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
Holy shit. Is that who I think it is? Thought he was lying about being a cape. That's a weird ass power, though. Fits the owner.

► Mumm Ra
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
I know, right? Did you see the part where Khepri was stunned when he disintegrated like that? I think he actually managed to make her nervous!

► ThatDude
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
Nah. She was probably coming up with exciting new ways to kill the unkillable. His power's not *that* good, and the owner's a moron. Grab him and throw him into a pit full of scorpions. Or man eating thorn bushes. The end of that fight.

► Judge (Moderator)
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
Alright. That's quite enough. Namecalling and speculating on ways to disable a specific parahuman is pressing your luck in a few areas.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
Aaand that's their fifth member, huh? We got long range nightmare, badass action girl, the smart one, the scariest white mage in history, and now the damage soaker. Need a flyer, then it's everything you could ever want in a super team.

► Mumm Ra
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
What do you think they'll do first? I'm betting they shove a tree up E88's collective asses. Minerva's jewish. As if you needed any excuses to go after those fucks.

► GuyWithAGun (BB PRT)
Replied on June 21st, 2011:
I can see that. Not just Minerva, for that matter. I've seen some of their victims. Panacea's healed some. Besides, they've been talking about combat operations. Who else would they go after? E88's the only gang in town that's still standing.

(Showing Page 19 of 107)

► Mumm Ra
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Thanks for the link, Math Geek. Ouch. Poor MM.

► Math Geek (banned)
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
She looked like she'd been punched. Do you think there's any validity to Minerva's claim?

► GuyWithAGun (BB PRT)
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Okay. Minerva was clearly deflecting attention. Did you see the way Gaea was reacting to Miss Militia's questions? She clearly was planning to keep the nazis around. Probably offer them spots on the team. She already has a history with Skitter/Khepri and Tattletale/Minerva. All respect I had for them is gone. Kudos to Miss Militia for seeing through their bullshit first.

► Math Geek (banned)
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Towing the company line, huh? Standard government protocol... fling mud anyone who makes them look bad. Yeah. I'll side with the real heroes. You guys let fuckers like E88 move in and own this town and do nothing to stop them. They come along and lays down the law, doing in two weeks what you couldn't do it two decades. Then you have to trash their reps because nooo, can't have anyone making you look bad.

Same shit happened to New Wave after they took down Marquis. Disgusting.

So why don't you pack up your shit and leave BB to the real heroes. While we're on the subject, I'd like my tax money back. Dunno what it costs to keep your magic tower up, bu I can think of better ways to spend my money.

► Celestial Orb
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Bloods in the water now, you can almost see the reporters circling.

► Judge (Moderator)
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Normally that would result in a warning, but investigation reveals Math Geek as a dummy account for another user. Banned. And the main account gets an infraction and a two day mute. This topic is about the team itself. If anyone wants to continue discussions of the relative competence of the Protectorate in a given area. It belongs <here>.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Well that's a thing. But you're all missing the most important part. They now have a flyer! With lightning powers! See how confident she was for the camera, compared to the others? I think she's a vet that came over from another team.

► GuyWithAGun (BB PRT)
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Edit: Sorry, mods. Removed the post. So, MG, I'd love to continue this conversation. Go ahead and PM me with your real account after you get back from vacation.

► Mumm Ra
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Yeah. She did seem like someone who's been around a while. Dunno of any capes that have lightning and look like her. Could be someone from out west. Canada, maybe?

This is Gaea we're talking about. Her powers? Eki could be a black dude in disguise. NOT Speculating! Just sayin we cant go by looks for a guess. Not for this team.

► Celestial Orb
Replied on June 22nd, 2011:
Black superhero with lightning powers? That's like a shitty cliche from Earth Aleph.

(Showing Page 36 of 107)

► Celestial Orb
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
Damn. That is scary. Eki is a powerhouse.

► Stone Faced
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
She is. Do you think it was really necessary for her to hit Purity so hard?

► Effing Tinkers
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
Nazis don't get any sympathy from me. Especially ones who incinerate people and blow up neighborhoods. I'd make a crass comparison to their historical actions, but I'm going to avoid the infraction.

► Stone Faced
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
She was trying to be a hero. Then her identity was revealed and her daughter taken from her. I won't say I agree with what she did. I don't. But I can't help but think that she was backed into a corner. I can understand her lashing out.

► Laserdream (Verified Cape)
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
Stone Faced: You're right. It was overkill. I'm sure it's been guessed at, but I'm also moonlighting as Eki. I'll get my cousin in here to vouch for me. The lightning was the armor I'm wearing. Biotech stuff. Super electric eel. It uses my lasers as a power source. For that and a few other tricks. Purity hit me. It caused a glitch in the armor's settings that activated the "anti brute" power levels for the attack. She was suppose to get something closer to a taser than a blast normally reserved for people like Hookwolf and Lung.

► Stone Faced
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
Really? I guess that makes sense.

► ThatDude
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
Awesome! Finally contact from one of the actual members! I was afraid we'd have to wait for Human Decoy to be unmuted.
Speaking of which. Do you know what he said on pg 2?

► Laserdream (Verified Cape)
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
... I do now...

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
Oh god! Laserdream! I love you!

► Stone Faced
Replied on June 23rd, 2011:
May I please PM you? It's kind of important.

==================

A/N- Can you spot the canon characters? And sort them from the decoys? I mean, not counting the ones that actually say who they are. Or Dragon.

 

Amelia, Ch 49

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♦ Topic: Hero Team: Pantheon.
In: Boards ► Parahumans ► America ► New England ► Teams
Mumm Ra (Original Poster)
Posted on June 19th, 2011:

<Link> Photos of them, taken from my phone during their debut. Probs gonna be on the news, too. I'll archive links here as you bring them.

<Link> Actual news footage, Meet Gaea, Khepri, Minerva and Aceso

<Link> Interview with Khepri, Meet Respawn

<Link> Handing over Hookwolf, Meet Eki, confrontation between Minerva and Miss Militia

<Link> They take Purity down. HARD. Also. That's a lot of bugs.

<Link> Bombings

<Link> Dude. That is a LOT of bugs.

<Link> Holy shit, Valefor and Erigos get wrecked. Warning. NOT for the weak of stomach.

(Showing Page 42 of 107)

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
I dunno. No more E88 or Merchants or ABB. And anyone who even looks at this town is gonna get stomped by Pantheon. No reason for the Protectorate at all.

► FungiRL (Unverified cape)
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Hey guys! It's Aceso! I just got an account here.

► Zero Sum
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
You do know impersonating a cape is a good way to get banned, right?

► FungiRL (Unverified cape)
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
It's true and I can prove it. I'll make Eki tell you.

► Laserdream (Verified Cape)
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Ugh. Yeah, guys, it's her.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Awesome! You're my favorite, Aceso. This city's been missing its badass ninja girl quota ever since Shadow Stalker left. Speaking of which, you would totally rock the crossbow look.

► FungiRL (Unverified cape)
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Told you. And thanks, RF, it's good to have fans. <3

Crossbow's too bulky. I'm thinking a dart launcher. Probably based upon mantis shrimp physiology, with a nanoweave pneumatic system to step up the pressure by an order of magnitude or two.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
No no no. You shouldn't give away information like that online. Gotta keep it mysterious to intimidate the bad guys. It's all about look and style. Hey, I got a few costume designs of my own. They were suppose to be for a different project, but you can look at them, you might like it

► FungiRL (Unverified cape)
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
That sounds like fun! I'm going on patrol now, be back around noonish.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Don't mention it. I'd be getting ready for school right now. But Leviathan. See you when you get back.

(Showing Page 55 of 107)

► Zero Sum
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
<Link> Video from Pantheon's base. It was also hit in the bombings. That cloud is NOT smoke. It's fucking bugs. Khepri's not letting ANYONE get close.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
They'll be okay. Khepri's clearly fine. Can't imagine Osiris dying. And the Yggdrasil would die without Gaea. Eki has forcefields and power armor. And Aceso's the badass action girl. She could probably survive being decapitated or something.

► Endless Night
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
<Link> Not how the Yggdrasil works. Sure, if Gaea's telling the truth, it'll 'die of illness' if she can't help keep it alive. That could take months to happen. The tree's no proof that Gaea survived. And Eki's a "low/mid" brute. If she were shot, I'd agree with you. But if that bomb was anything like the ones used in the camps... there wouldn't be enough left of her to identify.

Let's face it. Pantheon was overconfident and stupid. They paid the price.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
... You are a horrible person who hates happiness. And Aceso said she was going on patrol and would talk to me at noon. She wouldn't be back yet. So she wasn't even there when the bomb went off.

► FungiRL (Unverified cape)
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
We're okay. Khepri says it was the Fallen that initiated the attacks. Probably Valefor. We've contacted the PRT and are on master/stranger lockdown. We don't have our own official website yet, so expect updates here. I have to get back to work now. It might be a while before any of us have time to post anything.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
In your face, Emo!
Aceso. When you get that asshole, cut his eyes out with a rusty butter knife!

► Celestial Orb
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Oh god. I am so glad I don't live in BB. Lung. Bakuda. E88. Gang wars. Leviathan. More gang wars. The fucking S9. And now the Fallen? It's like Murphy decided to out-Simugh the Simurgh. How the blood soaked protestant hell is that town still standing?

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Because we are stronger than them. We're survivors. Knock us down, we get up. Push us and we fight. The harder you hit us, the harder we hit back. That's what defines our city. And that's why Pantheon is so great. They embody this city's spirit. The Fallen are going to learn that lesson. Painfully.

► Judge (Moderator)
Replied on June 25th, 2011:
Rebirth Flame. While I admire your passion. You have advocated the mutilation or worse of criminals in this thread several times. And I'm still not sure what to say about your suggestion to "turn all of E88 black." Your posting privileges have been revoked for a day. Please take this time to develop some discretion.

(Showing Page 81 of 107)

► Inquisitor
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
And nothing of value was lost.
Except my lunch.
I was looking forward to digesting it.

► CateatsDog
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
Well, that was unnecessarily brutal. Jesus christ.
I mean, the guy deserved it. Did you see how excited he was to hear about the pain he caused? That's fucked up. Speaking of which- that did NOT look like a 'he'. Are we sure Valefor isn't female? Some weird Silence of the Lambs type psychosis going on there?
Also. I am now a vegetarian.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
Aceso's power vs Valefor's. She does combat precognition, right? He ordered her to halt and then told her not to notice he was there. But her power is the subconscious knowledge of how to defend herself from harm and strike back. She blinded him and kept him from talking with a single move- protecting herself from any danger his power might have on her. All without even noticing he was there!
That is the definition of badass, right there
Then when Khepri came down on the other one like a biblical plague. not gay, but for them, I'd kinda like to be.

► FungiRL (Unverified cape)
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
Thanks. But my big sister says I'm too young to date. And she and Khepri are already destined for each other.
Rebirth Flame seems to be right. Valefor's powers didn't interact with mine in a way he expected. I'm glad my team told me to keep most of my traits secret. Figuring out how to fight without showing what you're really capable of is fun. And it means you have surprises if you need them!

► Shiny Ferret
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
... Well alrighty then. I'm now betting money that, with this revelation, people forget that these girls just ripped off a man's face and then fed another's skin to bugs. The shipping wars have begun.

► Khepri (unverified cape)
Replied on June 26th, 2011:

Okay. I would, as one of the leaders of Pantheon (verification pending- Aceso or Eki will probably confirm before they verify me) like to clear up a few things

1- I did not feed anyone's skin to bugs. What happened to Eligos were injuries of similar size and depth to paper cuts. A lot of them, granted, but still only paper cuts. My power doesn't offer a lot of options for nonlethal takedowns, and I didn't want to risk exposing him to any dangerous poisonous insects while Gaea was not available. It was a situation where I needed to choose between protecting an apparently disoriented Aceso, as well as potentially wounded civilians nearby, or the physical comfort of a mass murderer that was putting them in danger. I believe anyone, if placed in the same situation I was in, would make the same decision.

2- I am not involved with Aceso's sister. I am attracted to guys. Preferably muscular ones. Except Osiris. Who is responsible for this stupid running joke in the first place.

3- We have a new 'silent' member. Blasto, a biotinker from Boston, has agreed to join our team. He has skills that we believe will supplement our team's abilities greatly. Due to the nature of his powers, and his unresolved criminal status, he'll be kept on base and certainly not involved in field operations. His purpose is so that we can use tinker technology to improve our effectiveness. This brings us to the next announcement.

4- This is the important one. We have already informed the Protectorate and they're sending out announcements. At 4pm today, we will use the Yggdrasil to spread a fog throughout the city. Do not be alarmed. It is a harmless mixture of water vaper and inert genetic material that will cure anyone currently under the influence of Valefor's power. The first of what we hope will ultimately be a cure for all master/stranger related mind controls.

► Rebirth Flame
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
Sorry, Khepri. Love you like a sister, but if I were in your shoes, I'd have used bees. All the bees. Also, I'll be sure and scout the football team for you, 'kay?

► Uber (Verified Cape)
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
Yes! AHAHAHA!!! Feel our pain, Pantheon! Feel. Our. Pain.

► Laughing Mad
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
@ Shiny Ferret: good god, you're right. Bombings. Maimed supervillains. New recruit. Curing mind control (think Heartbreaker's next?)- this is all a huge freakin' deal- And I can't stop wondering about who the goddess of bees is dating.

► Judge (Moderator)
Replied on June 26th, 2011:
Let us nip any possible romantic speculation in the bud (pun not intended) right now. Most members of this team are underage. Aceso, apparently, younger than most. If this looks like it's drifting toward a repeat of the "Vista Incident", the bans will be swift and merciless. This is your only warning.

♦ Private message from FungiRL:
Rebirth Flame: Alright. Here's the first set of pics. <Link> <Link> <Link> Kinda a veil dancer thing. You have the body to make it look good, and the powers. Probably even get away with using ribbons in combat. Swear I saw a movie like that.
Rebirth Flame: <Link> See. And another with those circus girls and the bedsheets. Bet you can do that.
Rebirth Flame: Gotta do it in dark colors, though.
Rebirth Flame: Just saw the news! Are you okay!? Please, answer as soon as you can. I'm worried.
Rebirth Flame: Oh thank god! Saw your post! What happened, is there anything I can do?
FungiRL: Lots of us got hurt. Including my sister. I want to make them suffer, but I'm afraid.
Rebirth Flame: Of what? Nothing should scare you.
FungiRL: If I do too much to them and get caught, it could hurt the team. I can't do that.
Rebirth Flame: Oh. You are in luck, girl. Here's my number. Call me before you start planning *anything*.

=======

A/N- In case you're wondering, all the PHO post typos are left untouched. For "realism".

 

Amelia, Ch 50


I watched the Protectorate show up to take Valefor. Bizarrely enough, there were two woman with them that I didn't recognize. Power armor, the both of them. There was also Triumph, both Battery and Assault. I refuse to say their names in the reverse. And even the metal boy that I learned was called Weld. According to Taylor, he was nice.


We had come out in force as well. Khepri to my right. Eki and Osiris to the left. Minerva and Blasto off further to the right near the women in the power armors. I was in my Dryad armor. Mainly to hide my (lack of) injuries. I didn't know what conclusions they could come to. That was also part of why we didn't send any of our changelings to this.


"So, what's all this about?" Minerva asked. "One parahuman whose powers are disabled doesn't require half of Brockton Bay's parahuman forces. Or, for that matter, Haven's presence at all. Dragon? She makes sense, though seeing her in person is a little odd. What's the story?"


Dragon? Well, I had to assume the golden armor with the cross motif was the Haven member. Which left the one with the decidedly reptilian look to it to be Dragon. Well, makes sense.


"I'm here to see to it that Valefor doesn't influence anyone," the Haven woman stated. "I'm Rapture. I'm a tinker in anti-master/stranger techniques."


"Correction," Minerva stated. "Your specialty is actually in master/stranger effects. You may use it to counter others. But your tech is really meant to influence minds and perceptions. We're all adults here, no need to censor yourself for the public."


"... Fine. I'm a tinker who specializes in master/stranger technologies," she conceded. "We've determined Weld should be immune to almost any kind of mind control and illusion. Ideal for dealing with Valefor. Whom we were under the impression you would heal." Her voice was measuredly neutral. She seemed more annoyed than upset that we'd left Valefor more or less as he was when we captured him. A bit of Blasto's regeneration goo that would restore the skin, at least. But not much else.


"His body's both organic and inorganic, isn't it?" Lisa concluded. "Depending on whichever is more of a pain in the ass for powers to influence. He's basically immune to anything that has a Manton limit. Damn that's useful. Err, aside from all the other issues. Sorry Weld, don't mean to be insensitive."


"Hardly the worst I've had to deal with," Weld stated. "I'd trade it for being normal, but 'grass is always greener' and all that." He was strapping Valefor into something resembling a combination of a cage and an upright stretcher, and securing a special helmet to his face. "Protocol's done," he stated to the PRT soldiers.


Rapture moved over to the now fully restrained captive. "I doubt your power will work given your current injuries and restraints. But be aware that this helmet is designed to explode if it senses you trying to do anything with your power. You will not survive."


"So, the rest of your business?" I asked. "You have to be here for more than just him."


"Yes," Triumph stated. "We'd also prefer you to hand over Blasto. He's a dangerous and violent criminal."


"No," I stated. "You can have the psychopath. But we need Blasto."


"Need him?" Triumph asked. "What for? You're the most powerful biotinker on the continent."


"Am I?" I asked. I looked over at Minerva.


"They think you are," she replied. "In a way it's true. What they don't comprehend is that tinkers don't work like you work. Most tinkers come with a kind of internal mental library that lets them invent and comprehend. It's why tinkers can use each others' tech, at least to a limited degree. You don't have that. You just envision what you need and your power fills in the gaps. There's only what is and what will be, none of the myriad 'can be' stuff. You may be like a tinker, but you don't do what tinkers do. I'm sure Dragon and Rapture, at least, can back me on this."


Triumph looked toward the woman who was possibly the most powerful tinker on the planet. She nodded her agreement.


"We need Blasto," I took the opportunity to comment. "When we finished the Nine, I didn't turn over Bonesaw's equipment and research, as I'm sure you're all quite aware. We need him, so that we can use that tech."


Minerva started clapping. "Oh. I cannot believe you kept it from me THIS long. You don't have her along for Valefor. You have her here to make sure we didn't take control of Blasto!"


Triumph did not look terribly pleased at Minerva right now. But at least now I knew what the hell was going on.


"Oh," I said. "Well, what do you need to prove he's here of his own free will?"


"Give him a direct order," Rapture instructed. "An unusual one."


"Uh..." Okay, unusual? "Umm, Blasto, do a dance for us."


"I can't," he answered back. "Court order. Also, way to play up the whole Latino stereotype, boss."


Rapture waited a bit before responding. "Sleeping an average of five hours or less a day for weeks. Under the influence of caffeine,"


"I'm a tinker. What would your machine say if you pointed it at yourself?" Blasto interrupted.


Rapture continued on, ignoring Blasto. "As well as a significant amount of cannabis."


"It's for my glaucoma. Which Gaea cured."


"Which was consumed this morning," Rapture deadpanned.


"Well, I didn't want it to go to waste."


"My equipment includes a lie detector."


"Fuckin tinkers," Blasto muttered. "Well, in that case, I plead the fifth and want to see my lawyer to talk about unlawful searches."


"You're not under arrest," Rapture sighed. "We were here to make sure you weren't being mind controlled, and rescue you if we had to. Your use of illicit substances doesn't matter to us."


"Awesome," he responded. "Say, if you're not doing anything later, maybe we should get together and see if we can cross our specialties?"


"That is another part of why we're here," Dragon answered, choosing to ignore the innuendo. "We'd like to know how you achieved a cure for Valefor's power, and then managed to mass produce and distribute it. I admit we collected samples and ran every test we could. We're just not seeing it. A combination of human DNA and short lived prion-like chemicals. There are some who suspect you're lying, of course. So we are seeking confirmation, one way or the other. If it turns out it works and you can mass produce it, it might be useful in dealing with other masters. Perhaps even Simurgh encounters."


I shook my head. "Sorry. It'll work on at least some other masters." But not all. Myself, for example. "Definitely not the Simurgh. Unless there's something very strange which we don't know about her. Blasto can explain it better."


"Bonesaw," he started. "From what I've seen, her research focused very heavily on the nature of powers. I've only barely scratched the surface and I'm learning things I never even imagined before. How powers work, where they come from, how they don't work. Well, six hours of technobabble summed up in seconds: that cloud was Valefor's own genetic material. Breath it in, it soaks into your system, and suddenly you're part of the power's Manton Limit. Basically, we tricked Valefor's power into thinking everyone in the city was really him. Lasts only a few minutes, but that's enough to remove all existent master/stranger influences."


"That's... both less and more than we were hoping," Dragon acknowledged. "A drug that can protect against any master/stranger mind control. But only if we already have their genetic material.


"Live genetic material," I corrected. "Won't work with dead cells. We're hoping there's more we can do, in time. It's at least part of why we have no interest in giving up Blasto. The other part is that we promised his safety. If we were to entertain the idea of letting him go, it would require you provide him with full amnesty."


"That's sweet, boss," he said. "But contrary to the lovely lady's instruments. I really am under the influence. It's called 'I'm a tinker'. You have the best equipment and the best resources I've ever seen for my powers. If you want me to leave, you'll have to get Aceso to chase me out with a pitchfork."


"We are willing to purchase your equipment," Dragon offered. "If you feel you cannot trust a government offer, then the Guild is an independent hero organization that I work with. We operate only to seek and destroy Class S and Kill Order threats. If you won't trust them, either, then I am willing to buy the materials myself, from my own personal wealth. We can arrange a sharing of what data I extrapolate from her notes as part of the offer."


"Not interested," Khepri replied, voice hard. "I don't know you well enough to have an opinion. But the people you choose to associate with are not the kind of people I'm willing to trust with Bonesaw's technology."


I nodded my agreement of Khepri's statement. Even if I didn't fully agree with it. Dragon was always fair and treated me well during Endbringer scenarios, which were the only times we ever actually met. Still, there was no way we'd be giving up Riley's research. It was too valuable and too important. Not just as a bargaining chip, but because my final goal, now and always, was to counter the Passengers themselves. Khepri's response was our best reason to say 'no' that we could actually use.


"We're willing to give you the anti-master technology," I offered. It was true. "It's easily replicated and, honestly, we want it to be used. You'll have a harder time using it that we do. I use my power to bridge a lot of the gaps. Shortcuts you won't be able to take."


"In exchange?" Dragon asked.


"It would be nice to have an amnesty for some of our members," I replied. "Khepri, Minerva and Blasto have all had problems with the law. I'd feel more comfortable if those weren't hanging over their heads."


"That's not how this works," Triumph insisted. "You want to be be heroes, then they can turn themselves in and actually accept punishment for their crimes. This kind of backroom dealing is a perversion of justice."


"I'll see what I can do," Dragon replied. "I have no legal authority, but a lot of people are willing to at least listen to me when I make requests."


"What?" Triumph looked at Dragon. "You can't be entertaining this."


"Triumph, buddy," Assault interrupted, whispering to him. Our equipment meant we heard every word of it, and I'm pretty sure he knew we would. "You know this shit happens. Besides, you wanna tell me any of them are capable of getting a fair trial? After palling up with the Mayor, saving basically everyone in the city from death-by-Bonesaw? Any conviction they get is basically gonna be 'community service, keep doing what you're already doing'. Frankly, it's easier just to accept their very generous offer and walk away pretending we were the ones doing them a favor. It's what the Mayor is doing."


Triumph sighed. "Okay, I'll see if I can convince the Director to work something out," he agreed. "I do believe that's everything?" He phrased it as a question and looked toward the others.


Rapture nodded. "My part's done. I am under orders to stay with Valefor. Even if there's no real need for it at this point."


Dragon shook her head. "I want to talk to them a bit more," she stated. "You guys go on ahead, it's nothing official. I'll catch up with you later."


Triumph didn't look happy about that, either. But he still left with the others. Being Dragon had its perks, it seemed.


============

A/N- And back to chapters that make me happy inside again.

 

Amelia, Ch 51


The others left as Dragon watched us and we watched back.


"I'd prefer we had some privacy. Never know who might be watching," she said.


I nodded. A brief alteration transformed the feet of my Dryad into Yggdrasil. It sank a little into the ground, and made the connections I needed to control my entire network. My power had such a bizarrely arbitrary concept of what 'touch range' meant. Then again, Taylor's power was equally arbitrary about what counted as a 'bug'. We still hadn't figured out how to make a humanoid body that she could control automatically. But our 'zergling' experiments of six limbed dog monsters was far, far more successful. Damn Passenger bullshit.


I connected. The full access to my Yggdrasil network. It was heady, linking into an entire city like this, even if only from below. My construct below the boat graveyard was almost ready. Cost more energy to manage than I'd realized.


There was the start of a fungal infection. That was getting increasingly frequent as the native flora was evolving to better deal with the alien intruder, however seemingly superior that intruder was to them. I spotted them daily, now. It was quickly subsumed into part of my organism. I also dedicated some of the "floating mass" of the Yggdrasil to the task of building walls around us, and even a ceiling. The inside was bioluminescent, and had a sort of tranquil beauty to it.


Dragon looked around. "Impressive control," she complimented.


"I've built it before," I replied. One of my personal projects. Every time I invent a new application, I stored the pattern as a seed. Sort of a genetic code database, letting the construct follow a template instead of needing my mind to contain everything. This particular room, which we already had a couple copies below ground, was meant as a sort of partial sensory deprivation lounge. Optimal comfort. Lisa had one as her own personal 'go away, migraine' room.


I also added a very minor tanning function to one, so I could work on the discoloration of having a good portion of myself surgically replaced.


"There are a number of things to talk about" Dragon informed us. "I'm not sure who knows what, or what you're comfortable letting the others know."


"They stay," Taylor responded. "There aren't any significant secrets between us."


I nodded in agreement. "After Valefor's stunt... well, nothing left for us to hide, really."


"Okay," she nodded. "First. I think you've probably already figured out that this body is just a machine."


Minerva spoke up. "Yeah. It's really good, but there's a few tells. I doubt anyone else would have figured it out. The way you're so willing to suicide attack Leviathan is also a pretty good hint that you like the remote body trick."


She nodded. "I'm under the influence of a master effect. I can't go into details, the best I can offer is a warning. I'm compelled to obey the legally recognized authority of whichever region I am currently operating in. These suits are an imperfect counter to this, giving me more options than I might otherwise have, but it's still a significant constraint."


"Meaning that if the order is given, you'll be fighting against us just as hard as anyone else," Minerva concluded.

Dragon nodded. Fuck.

"I am also under orders not to do anything to help you," she added.

Dammit.

"However, I don't have to prevent others from doing so," she added. That's helpful. "I have a friend who wants to offer an apology. That's the nature of this private meeting."


I felt Taylor tense up. "You fucking didn't," she said, her voice going cold.


"This suit's bandwidth capacities are limited. While you're talking, I won't be able to interact. Please. Just listen to him."


"Okay," I agreed, looking over at Skitter. "We can do that much."


A full three dimensional replica of a man appeared next to Dragon's suit. Holographic, I could tell because the lighting of his body didn't match the room, and it placed no pressure on the Yggdrasil. But it was incredibly detailed and fine tuned. I recognized him and immediately knew why Taylor went into 'Skitter mode'.


"Armsmaster," Skitter's voice was ice cold.


"I'm going with 'Defiant', now," the man answered. The usual terse man I'd come to know. He lifted his arm and pulled the sleeve up, revealing the bones of a metallic skeleton. "Legally, both Armsmaster and Colin Wallis are dead. Courtesy of Mannequin."


"My condolences," Skitter said slowly and dryly.


"I believe we're both pragmatic people," Armsmaster continued. "Rational. Above social drama. That a drawn out apology, however genuine, would just be an insult to both of us. I am sorry, and I do mean that. And I'd like to prove it by helping you."


"That would be an excellent start," Skitter responded back. I could feel the agitated behavior of Taylor's relays as they interacted with the Yggdrasil.


"First," he said. "I am aware of who Aceso is."


FUCKING DAMMIT!


"My analytic technologies are quite good," he stated. "It's unlikely anyone other than Dragon and myself could make the connections."


"Thank you for the warning," I managed to utter. My mouth was dry and my heart was pounding in my ears. This is more than I'd bargained for. And I'd bargained for being remembered as the next Nilbog and hunted down as a Class S threat.


"Assuming you're correct, of course," Skitter stayed calm. I could almost feel her telepathically trying to make me shut up after my unfortunate decision to speak. I kept making mistakes like that. Stupid, stupid, Amelia. You can do better.


"Yes," Armsmaster nodded. "Assuming. Still, that's not help so much as putting us on the same page. If you can forgive her, surely I'm not an impossibility?"


"Get back to me after you've saved my best friends' lives," Skitter responded.


"Fair enough," he said. "It's obvious to everyone, including the Protectorate, that you're intending a power play against them. They're anticipating it. Building a case against you and yours."


"We already know that," Skitter snapped.


"Did you know I have approximately twelve years worth of dirt on the PRT?" The man asked. "Not just Shadow Stalker and myself and Piggot. Although a lot of it is Piggot. The woman's had an... interesting... career. Dating back as far as Nilbog."


"Nilbog? That explains so fucking much," Minerva exclaimed. "And these idiots gave her promotions just to keep her silent, I'm sure."


"Records involving them outright lying to the public on multiple occasions," Armsmaster continued.


"And what of your loyalty to your former comrades?" Skitter asked. "This sounds an awful lot like betrayal."


"My loyalty is to my Country first, and the Protectorate second," Armsmaster snapped. Skitter got to him. "The PRT is a poison to both, and I owe them nothing."


"You're using us," Skitter spit back. "To fight a war you can't."


He nodded. "I'm giving you the weapons to win a war that you've already started and more. I do want to help more, and so does Dragon. What you know is nothing compared to what I know. And what I know is nothing compared to what she knows. You've already started down the right path. If you can hurt the local PRT enough... play your political cards right..."


"You want us acknowledged as legal authorities in the region," Minerva responded. "Then Dragon will be able to work with us."


"As long as you don't make an enemy of the President, yes, we'd then be free to offer our assistance in every possible matter," Armsmaster confirmed. "We are taking a risk. Putting a lot of faith in the idea that, at the very least, you won't use this to betray us. You could, of course, easily. A kill order would be the least of our worries."


"I understand," I responded. No, I really didn't think I did. This was huge. This was... "Mutually Assured Destruction."


He nodded again. "It is that, I suppose. An acceptable start for showing I'm serious about my 'second chance'?"


Using our own mission statements? Fair enough.


"I think so," I offered. I looked over at Skitter.


Taylor sighed. "I suppose it'll have to do."


"For what it's worth, you would have made an excellent Ward," Armsmaster offered.


"No, I really wouldn't have," my partner sighed.

 

Amelia, Ch 52


We watched Dragon leave. She was polite enough, of course, but as she had said, she couldn't help. Having Armsmaster- Defiant, now- do it instead? Sounded like the kind of loophole that should have been thought of.


Minerva spoke up. "He's sincere," she said. "After a fashion, at least. Socially inept, but well meaning enough."


Sounds like you just described more than half our team, I thought. Taylor. Respawn. Blasto. Myself.


We made our way inside.


Crystal spoke up. "So, is that it? No more psychotic assholes? No more crises? No more people randomly coming back from the dead to offer world altering information and advice? Can things go back to what passes for normal, at least for a while?"


"Uh... probably? Anyone else got any major problems that we can't put off?" I looked around, no one offered anything. "Okay, yeah. I think we have a chance to breathe now."


Suddenly, my head jerked to the side and my face stung. "THE FUCK IS WRONG WITH YOU!" Crystal screamed at me. I brought my hand up to my cheek. She slapped me! "Recruiting a couple supervillains? That I could handle. Planning to fuck over the Protectorate? Fine, whatever. You don't grow up in New Wave without seeing that their system just doesn't work. But that!" She pointed at Clarice, who of course didn't come out to greet the heroes. "That is mother fucking BONESAW! And you didn't even WARN ME!"


She looked around. "How many of you knew!?" She demanded of the others. I was the one who was just hit, and she was the one crying.


Minerva brought up a hand, followed by Khepri. Followed by Clarice.


"Suspected, didn't know," Blasto offered. "It's hard for tinkers to hide what they are, especially from other tinkers."


"Not a clue," Respawn admitted. "Found out not long after the explosion, same as you."


"Of course. All the fucking villains on the team," Crystal scoffed. "Christ, Amy, do you have any idea what you've done? She's one of the Slaughterhouse Nine. You can't trust her."


"She can so!" Clarice insisted. "I would never hurt my big sister. Besides, she's the leader of the Nine now!"


"What?" Crystal turned back toward me. Her voice quivered. "Did you do?"


"The best way to stop the Nine," I defended myself. "Bonesaw was a living biological weapons factory. She was planning a super plague. One that would evolve faster than I could stamp it out. I... I offered to join the team... so they wouldn't have to invent a weapon that could get around my power."


"That... is possibly the stupidest thing I've ever heard," Crystal responded.


"If it helps," Khepri added. "She followed it up by challenging Jack for leadership, covering him in acid, and then disbanding the group."


"So... you're saying that Gaea 'dissolved' the Slaughterhouse Nine?" Respawn offered.


Crystal moved her hand and pointed it at Respawn, then fired a burst of light. He was struck in the face, and had been replaced before the body hit the ground.


"Okay, I probably deserved that," he replied. "But seriously, this isn't the deal you make it out to be. Yeah. Bonesaw. Who renounced the name. Clarice has been nothing but helpful and friendly. She saved the lives of half of the people in this room. And that includes you, too, Crystal. That armor you're wearing is her design. The surgery you needed? Also her. So, really, she saved you twice."


"Conductive nanoweave latticework designed to work in concert with your forcefield and energy generation," a voice came. Riley's. She'd come up in person, still wearing the control suit for the construct. "87% energy transfer efficiency. Reinforced to absorb kinetic and energy attacks, distributing them across a wide area and improving forcefield effectiveness by between 212 and 263 percent depending upon attack type.


"Think about it," Respawn continued. "That explosion got through your shield when it was over three times its normal strength, and armor that's way better than bulletproof, and still had enough power to almost kill you. What would you look like without her equipment?"


"She saved my life, too," Lisa volunteered. "I went low and hid behind the table, and it still tore me apart. Hell, it took four people to save me."


"You actually died," Respawn added. "I had to reset you thirty two times before she could get Gaea stabilized enough to save you."


"I thought it was something like that," Lisa nodded. "Fuck, though, that's a lot."


"Once every three minutes at first," Respawn replied. "Losing several seconds every time I had to establish a new link. We were down to less than a minute before we got Gaea conscious. Five minutes more, and you wouldn't be here."


"And then there's me," I said. "She used her construct to shield me from the worst of the explosion. Then whatever it took to put me back together."


"Blasto was needed for that," Riley acknowledged. "I saved you, but his tech put you back together."


"That's all retrospect!" Crystal insisted. "Just because it worked doesn't mean it wasn't stupid! And you knew that, or you wouldn't have kept it a secret."


I looked down. "No. I needed her help, even from the beginning," I admitted. This drew a few looks. "There are... I know where powers come from. They're parasites. Extra dimensional parasites that are manipulating us. Doing everything in their power to make us violent and destructive. I don't know what they gain from this, or if they're aliens or demons or magic or whatever. All I know is that they're the enemy of every person on this planet. Bonesaw... Riley... knows more about these 'Passengers', as she calls them, than anyone else alive."


"That sounds truly, certifiably, insane," Crystal muttered.


"It makes sense," Minerva replied. Then she paused. "Wait, what were we talking about?"


"That's the problem!" I yelled. "Every time I try to explain this to you, you forget!"


"Forget what?" Taylor asked. "Are... are you okay?"


"She's okay," Minerva replied. "She's fine. It's the rest of us that have a problem."


"Bonesaw's influence?" Crystal asked. Of course her mind would slip back to that.


"No," Minerva answered. "None of us tripped Rapture's tech. We're clean. And it's effecting Blasto and Respawn, one hasn't given her an opportunity, and the other is functionally immune to everything she could attempt. This is beyond parahuman ability... it's..."


She almost had it. I felt my heart sink.


"I... right," she muttered. "As I was saying, Riley's no threat to us. She's loyal to Amelia on a number of levels. As long as you're no threat to her, you're... oh..."


"What, what is it?" I asked hopefully. Maybe her power DID get around it!


"Nothing," Minerva responded. She looked at Riley, who avoided both our gazes. "Thinker migraine coming in hard. Nothing you need to worry about. Riley isn't going to turn on us. If anything, she's the most loyal person in this group. As long as we don't trust her with any important judgment calls, at least."


Riley nodded and looked up, offering a smile. "I'll be sure to tell you about everything."


"Speaking of which..." Crystal replied. "Are there any other secrets? Swear to me there's nothing left that you're hiding from me."


"A few," I admitted. "We... we're basically holding a supervillain hostage. "He has an incredibly useful thinker power. Plus his civilian identity is wealthy and influential."


"And he's not going to betray us?" Crystal asked.


"Can't," I replied. "He consented to a form of mind control."


"You can't be serious," Crystal drug her fingers through her hair as she collapsed into a seat. "Christ, Amy. When I said that what you did to Victoria was an honest mistake? I meant it. But mistakes are things you're suppose to stop doing. There's a justice system for a reason. You're suppose to send criminals to prison. Or kill them if you have to. Not collect and enslave them."


"We would have had to kill him," Taylor responded. "His power is insane. He can create two realities, do different things in both, and the choose the one he likes better. He could attack us once per hour for the rest of our lives, and we'd never know about it until the one that succeeds."


"Fuck," Respawn muttered. "How did you beat that?"


"Skill, luck, planning, and liberal applications of Bonesaw brand high octane nightmare fuel," Minerva responded. "I still can't look at spaghetti."


"Is... please tell me that's all, Amy," Crystal pleaded.


"Just one more," I answered. "Before we handed over E88, I gave them a short lived, time released symbiont that'll allow them to recover from almost any poison in minutes. Plus let their skin release enzymes that digest containment foam."


Crystal started laughing. It wasn't a happy laugh. "Fucking hell. Amy. Why? You know what kinds of monsters they are."


"Would it help if I told you they weren't all selfish reasons?" I asked. "Part of it, yes, was to hurt the Protectorate. To hurt them for trying to hurt us. But I can't bring myself to hate the captives we had. Purity was trying to protect her family. Cricket and Stormtiger were in it for loyalty to their friends. Crusader... he's in love with Purity, believe it or not. And Night? We killed her husband in front of her, and thanks to all the shit from her childhood, she doesn't even have the ability to mourn."


She just stared. But she didn't speak up.


"They made mistakes. Bad ones. They did bad things. But look at us. Other than you and Respawn, we're all guilty of some really bad stuff ourselves. Arguably worse, depending on which of us we're talking about." I continued.


"Second chances," Crystal stated. "I get it. So what's their 'second chance'?"


"They break out, and go underground. Purity gets her daughter back. After that, we never see or hear from them again."


"Theo, her step son, he triggered," Crystal informed me. "He was talking to me online. I'll show you the messages. I'll also show you some other messages. Because your 'little sister' has been hanging out there, too."


Oh, this won't be pretty.

 

Amelia, Ch 53- Sarah Pelham


I sat across from my daughter. She was wearing a very different costume this evening than when she left this morning. "You know," I said dryly. "When you said you'd go back to talk some sense into your cousin, this was not exactly the result I was expecting."


She offered a sheepish smile. "Sorry, mom. She's not going to give this up. It's not a phase. It's not even about being a hero. She's turned this into a quest. A legacy."


I sighed. I knew those. I knew what they cost. I looked over at the empty chairs, the ones meant for Neil and Eric. I could almost see them still sitting there.


"Mom?" Crystal asked. "Are you okay?"


"Yeah, sweetie, I'm fine," I replied. "Just memories. My own quests and legacies. How they've changed over time."


"I have to stick by her, mom," Crystal continued. "She's... she's hurting. Badly. The guilt over Victoria is tearing her up inside. Driving her to do some things that... Well, you saw that Yggdrasil of hers. Her new 'friends'. She's not thinking straight right now, and no one else is going to help her."


"Her choice of names? Both in and out of costume," I said. Amelia. Amelia Lavere. That stung me. I could only imagine what my sister was going through, but she refused to talk about it. And Mark was... I wasn't sure what to think of him, now. Whatever Amy had done inside his head had made him... well, aggressive wasn't the right word. Assertive, perhaps. More than he'd ever been before, certainly. More outgoing, friendly, and confident. Too outgoing, honestly.


That, one might imagine, should be a good thing. But it was damaging my sister's marriage. Mark's dependence upon Carol was no longer there, and it had been the constant for over twenty years now. Coupled with the death of one daughter and the loss of another. I worried that their relationship wouldn't survive.


"That, too," Crystal agreed, pulling me from my thoughts.. "I'll need a name of my own to work with Pantheon."


"Something pretentious and divine, huh?" I asked. "Athena?" I was in no position to argue with her. She was an adult. She'd made up her mind. New Wave was already dead. If any of us kept being heroes, it wouldn't be together. Our team is gone, it's going to be hard enough simply to preserve our family. What remains of it, anyway.


"Don't think I can," Crystal replied. "Already have someone using the Roman version of the name. Plus, I'd rather something really obscure. Feels less weird that way."


"So, the new costume?"


"Yeah, it's kind of unbelievable. It's actually alive. Made out of something that merges with my forcefield to make it even better. Can turn nearly invisible. Uses my lasers as a power source to make lightning and EMP attacks. A battlestaff that channels my powers for close quarters combat. Strength increase using my forcefield for lifting..." she hesitated.


"Like Glory Girl's," I concluded. "Sounds like little Amy learned some impressive lessons in New Wave. You're basically running around with the best of all our powers and then some, aren't you?"


"Kinda," Crystal replied. "Are you upset?"


"A little jealous, I admit." That wasn't the part that was really eating me. Was what Amy said before true? Could she have built stuff like this years ago? Could all of us have been wearing stealth battle armor that made our powers stronger? With three years of practice, how much better could she have been? If we had encouraged her to really exercise the full extent of her powers, would my husband and son still be alive?


"Yeah," Crystal agreed. "I'm a little jealous, too. Amy's powers are insane. And the way it works alongside Skitter's... I don't know if there's anything those two couldn't accomplish if they wanted."


Except giving me back my family.


....


"... As part of our ongoing efforts to heal the wounds of our city, both fresh and old..." Khepri spoke to the audience at their first really major showing. And what a showing it was.


The stunt of making the Yggdrasil base was under reported. No surprise, all considered. A new group, in the immediate aftermath of the Slaughterhouse Nine? They barely got local attention. This time was quite different. No one was making the mistake of ignoring Pantheon again. Of being the station that had to use recycled footage from other sources. I spotted camera crews from Boston and even as far away as New York. Mayor Christner was here as well, of course, enjoying the local fame.


We were now here at the edge of the boat graveyard. Myself and a handful of others off to the side of the crowds, in a bit of a VIP section. People expected to offer quick speeches and short offerings of thanks and gratitude and praise, but not important enough to stand on stage the whole time. Or, in my case, to show support to my daughter and my niece. I had opted to come in costume. Sure, my name and face were publicly known, but the symbolism of showing in "uniform" is not to be underestimated.


"We intend to make Brockton Bay the city it once was. Not merely before Leviathan. But the revival of an era most of us on this stage are too young to remember as more than just stories. The city our parents and grandparents remember."


That got a series of applause. Locals, the older ones mostly. I didn't know who was writing their speeches, but they had this 'local heroes' approach down in a way that New Wave never quite accomplished. Whomever it was should have a career in politics. Or, at least, writing for politicians.


One of the men near the front was watching Khepri as she gave her speech with an unmistakable look on his face. He was not exactly attractive. Tall, thinning hair, clearly overworked and overstressed, but he cleaned up well enough for this event. I walked up to him. Theoretically cutting in whatever 'line' existed for speech giving. No one complained. Orders were scripted, and I wasn't meant to go on stage at all.


"You'll give it away," I said to him.


He looked over at me as if he hadn't realized I was at this event. "Oh! Sorry. I'm not sure what you mean."


"Don't have to be a thinker to spot that 'look'," I said. "I feel the same way, seeing mine up there."


"Look?" He asked. He knows, now, he's just playing dumb.


"One part pride, one part nostalgia, one part loneliness, and one part fear for all the things you can no longer protect her from," I offered.


"Oh," he nodded. "That look. Was I that obvious?"


"Only slightly less than whatever crazy thing they're going to do to show off for the cameras. I'm betting you already know."


He smiled. "Yeah. Actually, it was my idea."


"Want to share with the clueless outsider?" I requested.


"And ruin your opportunity to experience all the 'shock and awe'?" He asked back.


"That's for the kids to enjoy," I countered. "I'm too old for that sort of thing. Too much excitement's bad for the blood pressure."


"It'll be a long time before you are 'too old'," he chuckled. "But you've just given me a mental image that I should really feel bad about."


"You can share that at least, right?" I offered what I've been told is a charming smile.


"Well, have you ever wondered what that tub of lard we call a Mayor's arteries looked like?"


"That is awful," I laughed.


"Speaking of which, almost my turn to play my part in this show."


"Well, good luck, Mister..." I extended my hand with the implied question.


"Danny," he replied, shaking my hand. Strong grip. "Danny Hebert."


"Sarah Pelham," I replied back.


There were a few cheers as the Mayor took the mic back from Khepri. "Introducing the architect of the new ferry plan, Daniel Hebert."


He strode up the stairs to the stage- they had a real one this time- with the same confidence I'd seen exhibited by Legend. "Thank you, Mayor," he said with a voice that was all business. As he started his speech, it wasn't hard to realize who had helped his daughter with hers.



=============

A/N- This chapter makes me smile.

 

Amelia, Ch 54


Taylor's dad is actually really good at speeches, I realized. He had more stage presence than our Mayor, who tended to play the 'everyone's buddy' angle of political showmanship. He didn't quite match up to Taylor when it came to holding the crowd's attention, but the powers and the battle armor, even if she had one of the least effective armors of the current team, gave a certain intimidation factor that no normal human being could hope to achieve. At least, to the general public.


He finished smoothly enough, receiving more than polite, but not overwhelming, applause. Then handed the microphone back over to myself. "Thank you, Mister Hebert," I responded. And I felt silly, as I was already calling him 'Danny' on the occasions when we met. Now for the handful of questions.


"How do you feel about the escape of the E88 members you captured last week?" One of the reporters asked.


I frowned. It was our plan, so I felt pretty good about it in a pretty bad way. Still, not something I wanted to talk about. "Let's just say that if they return to this city we're ready. We dealt with them before, and we're stronger now than ever. But I'd prefer we focus on the current subject of this event."


"Why are you doing this now, then there's still so much damage left in the city proper? Wouldn't this time and energy be better spent on more pressing concerns?"


"As Mister Hebert explained better than I could, the ferry project brings better access to the north side of the city," I answered. "Which is the portion that, at the moment, needs help most desperately. In addition... frankly... the boat graveyard isn't much of an obstacle for us. Removing it also offers a bit of a selfish reward, in addition to the good it does for the city."


"Care to elaborate?"


"Absolutely," I replied. "My powers still obey the basic laws of physics. I cannot create things ex nihilo. Iron is one of the raw materials we need a great deal of, and we need a large reserve of it for future projects. The boat graveyard represents a lot of iron."


You guys came for the show, here's the show.


"And, as I said, it's not really much of an obstacle. Eki, mind taking your position?"


My cousin flew to her position near the center of the mess of busted ships. This part was honestly more about appearance, and implying to the Protectorate that we had far greater limits on our power than we actually did. Still, it would help having her there. Speeding the process, taking stress off of my power. Didn't want a repeat of what happened when I built our base.


The police had already cordoned off the beach, before this press show even began. A lot of people had come to watch this. We didn't want anyone too close to the fireworks. I, meanwhile, had walked over to a small Yggdrasil tendril and wound my grasp around it. Some cameras would still be focused on me. I closed my eyes. Not necessary, but again, showmanship.


At which point, the vines started coming up around the sides of one of the larger vessels in the graveyard. Eki aimed down at the vessel, and fired. A steady stream of electricity poured into the metal of the ship, bleeding out into the water. My Yggdrasil drank it up, converting to usable energy so it could truly 'flex' its muscle. The screams of the metal hull being peeled away like a wrapper reached us on the shore, and drowned out the surprised shouts of the gawkers. The ship vanished below the murky water.


Then another set of tendrils, and another ship, and more lightning. Then a third. All captured clearly on camera. All the footage the camera crews would need for at least the next week. Our sort of apology to Taylor and Danny, allowing his dream to be the more visible and exciting looking detail we covered today, because it wouldn't be the most significant.


"It'll take the better part of the day to completely clear the wreckage," I told the onlookers. "You are certainly welcome to stay to watch. However, we'd like to move on to our next announcement. Commissioner Micheals, if you will?"


The local head of police, an older gentleman who had had what was well and truly one of the worst jobs in the city for the last decade, stepped up onto the stage. Aceso brought him the control system for one of our changelings. Meanwhile, one of my Yggdrasil tendrils brought up our new 'M4' changeling models.


"This is the Model Four Police," I told the audience, gesturing at the construct. It was larger than most humans, at approximately six and a half feet, and bulkier as well. We didn't want to give anyone the impression that we could build superhuman soldiers the size of, say, a teenage girl. "Or M4P, if you prefer. It is, essentially, a scaled down variant of my Dryad armor. Not as powerful, but significantly lighter and easier to maintain."


Micheals was in the full equipment, which amounted to little more than long gloves, boots, and a helmet now. He lifted his arm up, and the changeling responded in kind.


"The M4 is operated by remote control, anywhere in the city. However, it does require specific stations for recharge and repair. Its operation time in the field is up to three days of normal exertion, or as low as seven hours at maximum ability. Capable of ignoring up to medium arms fire, and withstanding punishment that would lethal in a normal human being. Even if you do have a weapon or power capable of killing it... there is no harm to the pilot."


By now, Micheals was getting into things, testing its movement and fine dexterity.


"It's capable of any physical movement a human body is," I supplied. "Can lift up to a ton. Run at over thirty miles an hour. Scale vertical surfaces, as long as that surface can support their weight. Has an assortment of nonlethal takedown measures such as tranquilizer darts and gas, and a taser. And has several enhanced senses, such as echolocation and infrared vision. If we were using PRT guidelines, they're Mover 3, Brute 4 or 5, Thinker 3 to 5. Shaker and blaster 2. More than a match for even an army of ordinary gang members, and capable of holding their own against most parahumans. They are expendable, leaving the pilots free to make decisions without concern for the safety of themselves or other pilots."


That earned murmurs in the crowd, and a lot of smiles from the local police officers. They knew they would be the ones using these things.


"This equipment will be made available to every police station. A similar model, specialized for rescue emergencies, the M4R, will also be provided to fire departments and others for dangerous but nonviolent first responder purposes, such as bomb disposal. The M4s can be used for cross purposes, if needed. That way, our city no longer needs to force good men and women to risk their lives to protect our citizens."


I handed the mic off to the Commissioner. "Thank you, Gaea," he paused. The changeling had spoken alongside him in a deeply baritone voice. Aceso moved over and tapped the side of the helmet, then removed it.


"I can see these will take a little getting use to," he said with a chuckle. Some of the crowd joined in. "They have an excellent command voice."


I nodded. "We included loudspeaker and silent functions as well, for when they're needed."


"Well, yes, thank you again," he smiled. Genuinely. He turned back toward the crowd. "I do believe I speak for every officer on the force when I express my gratitude and appreciation for Pantheon's incredibly generous gift to the city. I have assigned a number of exemplary officers to work with Pantheon, learning the use of this equipment. When they are properly trained, they will train the rest of our city's police forces."


Another nod from me, even though it was unnecessary. "We will use this opportunity to take back the streets from the gangs and drug pushers, and make our city one of the cleanest and safest places to live in the world."


He waited for the cheers to subside. I was okay with that. The police in this town needed this kind of morale boost. Had needed it for as longer than I'd been alive. Had to be rough, living in a city where you go to bust a prostitute and Skidmark launches your squad car through the side of a building. Granted, these M4s wouldn't have helped much, before. Against trash like the Merchants? Certainly. But against powerhouses like Purity or Kaiser or Hookwolf or Lung? Less valuable.


He offered the mic back to me. "More than happy to," I replied. "Honestly, it'll be good to have more help on the street. We can do a lot, but we can't be everywhere." Except maybe Taylor, still working on that. "Knowing the police will still be out there and able to protect the city while we get a little bit of time off? Makes us all sleep a little bit easier."


More applause. And then time for more questions.


"Will you be making models for the PRT?"


"As things currently stand? No." I answered. "The function of the PRT is to support the Protectorate in dealing with parahuman opponents. In this city, that is rather meaningless, so long as Pantheon exists. It is better to dedicate the resources to the police, who deal with all crimes, and will use the equipment on a daily basis. Instead of giving it to a paramilitary force that will leave it in a garage for weeks between emergencies. If the PRT needs help from our M4s, they are certainly welcome to contact the police and request the assistance."


There. That message was sent. The civilians, or at least civilian law enforcement, would have an advantage over the PRT.


"What of Endbringer fights? Do you intend to use the M4s for those?"


"For search and rescue purposes? Absolutely." I answered, then continued explaining. "M4s are not strong enough to be valid against Endbringers. We will be dedicating much of our time and resources in the future to building weapons that can legitimately participate in Endbringer conflicts. The M4s help us move in that direction by allowing us to focus our attention away from street level concerns."


"Will you be offering similar equipment to other cities?"


Absolutely. "Possibly," I replied. "Our M4s require maintenance, and that requires either myself or the Yggdrasil. Any city that would like our M4s would, of course, need to also concede to having a Yggdrasil tree planted within their city, and then they would need to feed it regularly."


"Doesn't Yggdrasil mostly consume sewage and garbage?"


"Yes it does," I say with a smile. "I recommend landfills as an excellent place to start. It's not just good for removing garbage and providing emergency personnel with better equipment. The more raw materials we have access to, the better equipped we'll be for fighting Endbringers and similar grade threats."


The rest of the questions were much of the same. And a few gossip rag questions like our respective dating lives. They were, of course, ignored. I honestly had a hard time getting my head around why anyone cared. Revitalize city by restoring trade and travel routes? Give police officers parahuman grade capabilities? Implied offers to expand to other major cities? Promise of anti-Endbringer weaponry? Whether or not Khepri and I are dating? One of these things is not like the others.


I was glad when I could finally hand the show back over to the Mayor, and he was glad to have it back. Introducing other city initiatives, planning for a new hospital in the north end of the city (using money that'd otherwise be used on the sewer system). Hiring additional police officers. And improving the school system. That last one was demanded by Taylor, no room for negotiation.


All of this would, of course, be mentioned by the media, one way or another. Those who benefit from it would appreciate it greatly. But what would be remembered in the minds of the people is my Yggdrasil ripping apart thousands of tons of metal like it's nothing, and us promising weapons that could fight Endbringers. That's what would capture the attention and imagination of the world.


Now? Now all we have to do is deliver on those promises.

 

Amelia, Ch 55- Vista


It is nice to be exercising, at least. Chariot was taking a lot of interest in me, lately. Probably has a crush or something. Of course, I wasn't interested. First, my heart belonged to Gallant and that wasn't changing. Second, he was a spy from Coil. The fact that Coil completely fell off the map when Pantheon moved in may have left him without a job, but he still came here to betray us. I wasn't about to forget that.


Still, it was nice to have some attention. At least he didn't treat me like I was six. And he was reliable enough on the field. Not a spaz like Kid Win or a pain in the ass like Clockblocker. Flechette was nice, but always wanted to head north and spend time with that Parian girl during patrols. Then it was like when my sister had her friends or boyfriend over while she was suppose to be babysitting me. Always trying to find ways to ditch me for a while.


"Got something strange on my sensors," Chariot stated. "It's... umm... a flying horse? Plus rider. Plus accompanying flier. Profiles aren't matching anything I have on record. Just turned and is heading toward us."


"I'll call it in," I replied. No sense in being ambushed. I hit the communicator. "Vista reporting. Unknown... uh... vehicle. Possibly tinker tech. Rider and additional parahuman."


"Understood," Crucible answered back. "Miss Militia's only a couple miles away. She can be in sniper position in less than a minute."


"They're heading our way," Chariot replied. We got our look at the duo.


One really was on a flying horse. An honest to goodness Pegasus. Solid black, except for the nose and muzzle, which were white. It would have been a magnificent animal, even without the raven wings, easily spanning fifty feet from tip to tip. Although 'flying' was being generous. It was taking running jumps and gliding for roughly a hundred feet or so before landing, rooftop to rooftop. My powers let me be pretty good at estimating distance, even from far away.


The girl riding on its back was dressed up like a hybrid of a ninja and belly dancer. Full body coverage, except a veil that left her eyes visible. But the material was light and thin like silk. Loose ribbons fluttered in the wind, joining the mane and tail of her mount. The whole costume shared the same shimmering black colors as the horse itself.


Her companion was a woman with wings made of bone and a cloud of smoke following her. Not smoke. Alive. My power was telling me the cloud was alive, made of tiny living things. Insects.


I hit the com again. "Don't worry," I said. "One of them's Khepri, she got the world's most intimidating costume upgrade." Which is saying a lot considering she was scary beyond all reason in the first place. "Now she can fly."


"Okay," Crucible replied. "I'll make a note. Flight capable. Probably tinker tech."


Khepri moved in to land on a roof and stumbled, running to keep her balance and colliding with a wall. I snickered. "It's new, she doesn't know how to use it properly."


The horse was having a better time of it, angling its wings forward to slow its movement, and then spreading them out to fall gently to the roof, a couple blocks away from us.


"Should we go talk with them?" Chariot asked me. Good, at least he knows I'm the senior ward here. That gets forgotten far too often for my tastes.


I was still too busy looking at that horse. I want one. I want one so bad that it hurt. "Y-yes," I replied. "Ask them about the upgrades. Try to keep it subtle, but get whatever intel you can get. Anything they're willing to tell us, we memorize." There. Let's see the Director complain about that logic. I deserve a promotion for gathering more information on the ever-so-mysterious Pantheon.


I bridged the gap with my power. Chariot stepped through, followed by myself. I had to admit, the spy had some really good ideas. Altering space across my range by total of less than a centimeter, and sensing the 'empty' spots that don't shift gave me near a near perfect ability to detect every person in my range. And I had a lot of range. There didn't seem to be an upper limit, simply how far I could reach before the amount of interference in the area eroded my power to nothing.


Chariot built a sensor system into his armor that could allow him to see my distortions, meaning that he could react to my alterations intuitively and "piggyback" on my senses. Giving us two people who could track everyone within miles. Kid Win also had a copy, as did Triumph, Battery, and Miss Militia. More coming soon.


They said it would make me important for search and rescue during the next Endbringer battle. I told them to fuck off. In slightly more ladylike terms.


We approached the pair. Khepri had managed to take a more dignified position than faceplanted in a wall. "New recruit?" I asked the girl. It was easy to forget that this was a girl. Maybe a couple years older than me. Powers for less than six months. Her height was impressive even without this new suit she was wearing, and the eight foot long claws that formed her wings added the illusion of even greater size.


"No," Khepri replied. "We're testing out some new equipment and ideas. Aceso's trying an entirely new look."


"Interesting," I replied. "The Pegasus thing?"


"Part of it," she replied. "You'll have to talk to Aceso about the whole setup. Her theme and all."


"So... antigrav wings?" Chariot asked Khepri.


"Yeah," she said, sounding distinctly less than happy about it.


"Magnetic field maintained between the wings for stability and improved speed?"


"And to keep me from falling over backward," she muttered.


"You should put an extra set of stabilizers in the armor plating of your calves. It'll keep you from stumbling so much. In fact..."


Tinkers, I thought. I approached Aceso.


"Can... can I touch him?" I asked. The animal had folded its wings, covering Aceso's legs


"Sure," she replied. I reached out and gently brushed a wing. The animal didn't seem concerned, so I pressed a bit harder and started to pet the wing. "Her name is Bella."


"It's a pretty name," I said.


"I wanted to name her Atropa," Aceso complained. "But my big sister wouldn't let me. Said it would send the wrong message to people."


Atropa? Right, they do the whole 'divinity' thing. Maybe. Was all greek to me.


"Would you like a ride?" She asked.


"YES!" I shouted. Then caught my composure. "Uh. I mean. Can she support two people? She was having trouble flying with just you."


"Yeah," Aceso responded. "Antigravity's funny like that. It can move any amount of mass, it's just a matter of the volume of the area being influenced. We're still working on that, but this equipment's second hand. We'd need a real antigrav tinker to make her fly for real. Right now, we're just playing around with a combination of weight reduction and gliding."


I looked over at Chariot, who was currently poking at a Khepri that was far more patient about it than I would have been. He had knelt next to leg and was actually caressing her lower leg and foot while talking. Boys. Or Tinkers. I wasn't sure which rule was in effect there. Either way, he'd be distracted for a while.


"I bet I can get her the rest of the way," I said. "How do I get up?" The animal was big, its back was a bit over five foot high. Sure, there were bigger horses, but it wasn't something I could just climb.


"Here, grab on," Aceso lay back on the animal and brought her arm down. It bent almost ninety degrees backward. Right, flexibility is probably part of her powers.


I clasped her arm with my hands, and she simply lifted me off the ground. Stronger than Aegis, uses actual muscle strength like he did, not some kind of forcefield like Glory Girl. My mood darkened as I thought of those we'd lost. I was dragged across Aceso's torso, essentially laying sideways atop her. She moved me in front, sat up, and moved up against me from behind.


"He's really really well behaved," she told me. "But it's safer for you to ride in front, just in case something goes wrong."


"Okay," I said, letting the girl move her arms around me to grab the reigns. "I've been horseback riding before." Granted, not on an animal that could fly, but this seating was nothing new to me. Bella was actually far more comfortable to sit on than a horse had any right to be.


"So, you were saying you could make her fly for real?" Aceso reminded me.


"Yeah, absolutely," I replied even as I started bending space around us. "Just get her in the air, and I can keep her there."


Aceso snapped the reigns and the horse rushed forward, spreading its wings as it jumped into the abyss. Its own muscles, plus the near weightlessness we were experiencing, took us nearly fifty feet up. The descent was slow, easy to control by warping space, turning "down" into "mostly sideways". Aceso screamed in delight, and I couldn't help but join her, as we started covering miles of distance in moments.


The city looked amazing at this height. Power was finally running for most of the city. The Boat Graveyard was no longer a scar on the landscape. The pretty blue-green of Pantheon's base from above. The monolith of the Protectorate tower base. I hadn't had this much fun in a long time.


By the time we had come back down, Aceso had handed the reigns over to me and was simply a passenger, explaining how to get her to turn, or halt and descend for our landing. Which, it turned out, was to the waiting and rather annoyed looking forms of Miss Militia and Khepri. Then again, Khepri could be napping in a bed full of puppies and still look like she was half a second from murdering everyone in sight.


"So, did you girls have fun?" Miss Militia asked. I forced the smile from my face.


"Sorry, ma'am," I replied. "Aceso offered me a chance to test her new equipment. I felt it would be an excellent opportunity to further positive relations between our teams."


"Uh huh," she responded dryly. "Come on, your patrol's been over for the last twenty minutes. Piggot will be expecting an extra detailed report by tomorrow morning."


"Yes, ma'am," I replied. My report would knock Piggot's socks off.


I turned back toward the other heroes. "Goodbye, Aceso. Goodbye, Bella!"


The horse whinnied at me. "Bye, Vista!" Aceso waved, smiling broadly. I smiled and waved back.


===============

A/N- Yes. You did, indeed, just witness Vista and Bonesaw ride on a flying horse together.

http://elsouille.deviantart.com/art/Black-Pegasus-51158950

Also- this chapter was a really fun reread, with all the character development that happens later putting an entirely new spin on this one.

 

Amelia, Ch 56


My changeling knocked on the door to the house. Hard rap, then two quick ones after. It's what Crystal said I should use. The kid was a new parahuman and wanted to talk to me, specifically. Crystal wasn't entirely sure how he'd react, but he did have Aster, who was part of our deal with Purity. It'd be better to do this peacefully, but that might not be an option.


The door opened without anyone being nearby. Telekinetics?


"Come in, please," a boy's voice said. Trying to feign confidence. Or, at least, that's what the HUD was telling me. It was easier for me to be confident. After all, I wasn't actually there, I wasn't in any real danger.


"Hello," I replied. "I'm Gaea. You wanted to talk to me?"


"Yes, ma'am," he answered. Polite. "I wanted to know why you attacked Kayden. Why you had to nearly kill her."


Ouch.


"I gave her a chance to leave," I replied. "Hurting her as badly as we did, that was an accident. But she's the one who chose to fight."


"Of course she did!" He exclaimed. I couldn't really call it 'yelling' so much as 'talking loudly and trying not to cry'. "You came to her home. Our home. And told her that she'd either have to fight you or leave that home. How is that fair?"


"It..." I paused. It wasn't that I didn't have good reasons, it's that most of my good reasons were summed up as 'she's a fucking Nazi', and I doubted the boy would care. "She's a multiple murderer, did you realize that?"


"She's my mom," he countered. "And Aster's. She's never done anything to hurt us." The boy stepped out of the shadows. He was younger than me. Looked younger than Taylor. His eyes were bloodshot and there were dark rings beneath them. It made him look more like a tired, overweight old man than a moderately pudgy teen. I chose to ignore the signs that he'd been crying.


"Except live a life of violence and crime," I pointed out. I didn't hide the bitterness from my voice. "My own father made the same choice. He could have walked away. Taken the wealth he already had and retired to raise a family. Chose me. He didn't. He preferred to keep the power, instead. Take the risks, knowing that one day he might be taken from me. Either by the heroes, or by getting himself killed."


I stopped and calmed myself. "Maybe. Maybe I'm projecting. Maybe Purity... Kayden... was different. But I gave her the choice, to her face. Stay and fight, and almost certainly lose. Or leave and give up this shit. She chose to fight. Decided that was more valuable to her than peace. Than family."


"You knew she couldn't," he argued. "Even as you made the offer, you knew it would be impossible for her to accept it. She was accustomed to being strong enough to win almost any fight she was forced to fight. If she'd known what you were, she might have chosen differently."


"You can't blame us for that," I replied. "I told her she really didn't stand a chance. It was true. She just didn't believe me."


"So, beat them, THEN give them the chance to leave!" He sobbed.


"Funny you should mention that," I offered a half smile.


...


Theo was beside me as we moved toward the small farmhouse. It was pretty nice, for a place that clearly hadn't been used as a farm for decades. The land had gone from 'fallow' to 'overgrown' to 'young forest' in that time. Still, the home itself was in excellent repair, and the lawn was well kept.


"My grandma's childhood home," Theo informed me. "I've been here a couple times, when I was younger. One of the few things my father was ever nostalgic about. Kept the house in her name, even."


Well, that relieved me of some of my apprehension. I had been worried the Nazis simply came to a home in the middle of nowhere and killed or imprisoned the owners so we could do this exchange. I was already pushing an awful lot of my comfort zones just being here. I didn't need innocents on my conscience as well.


If Purity decided it was worth hurting herself to hurt us... things could get ugly. Fast. The part I hated most about this whole arrangement is that those Nazis could claim we helped them escape. It was true, after all. It wasn't really provable, although if they actually were held with containment foam, it might be. Most of them had powers that the foam wouldn't mean much to, regardless. Likely they'd just be kept drugged. Proving that Night didn't wake up just barely enough to transform and nullify said drugs would be impossible.


I let Theo lead the way, although there was no chance in hell that they wouldn't know we were here. Coil's man drove us here and waited. We walked the distance to get close. I also let Theo carry Aster. It seemed better that way.


Purity opened the door, even as several of Crusader's ghosts started to manifest.


"Can we do this inside?" I asked.


"I'd rather not," Purity replied with a hard voice, taking Aster from Theo's arms and handing her to someone inside.


"It's my property," Theo responded. "Gaea is welcome inside." He watched the Nazis that were, functionally, the only family he had. They let us in.


"You have your daughter," I said as we got in. "A chance to make something meaningful of your lives. I implore you to take it."


"And what's to stop us from simply killing you?" Stormtiger asked.


I sighed. Of course. "It helps that I'm not actually here. I'm sure you saw our Changelings on the news. This is just a puppet."


"You're in the car, then," he responded. "You have a range limit, nowhere else you can be."


"I... if you try to hurt her, I. I will stop you. S... sir," Theo responded, stepping between us.


"No offense, kid," Stormtiger scoffed. "But you're not your father. I assume you triggered. Probably even something scary, if you got a power like your father. Maybe your real mom's. Can't rule that out. So maybe you do have the ability to kill me. But you don't have the balls to take a life. Especially not someone you know by name, Theo."


I stepped back as the air around Theo started to ripple. His power was actually pretty impressive, and I wanted them to see it. Liquid metal manifested around him. It would stay fluid, allowing him complete movement. It absorbed energy directed against it, and he could use that directed energy as a touch ranged attack. We hadn't really tried to find an 'upper limit' to his armor... but our Respawn-assisted testing capped at 'everything Crystal could throw at him'.


He could see through the material, and it didn't seem to hinder his breathing. His fully established armor was mirror reflective, which made for some uncomfortable visuals. Spend too long looking at him while he moved, and it would give you a headache. Riley insisted this was not a power, simply the same kind of natural process that causes motion sickness.


"Well, that is impressive," Stormtiger admitted.


"More like your grandfather than your father, then," Crusader said with a smile. "Maybe a bit like your aunt. She could summon out of mid air the way you did. They'd be proud of you."


"Still, if we wanted to kill the dyke, you couldn't stop us." Stormtiger. What was with that guy? One more man who liked to talk shit when he knew he couldn't back it up, as Crystal succinctly put it before.


"He probably couldn't," I admitted. "But she can."


And then the air around us started to growl. Except it wasn't a growl. It was buzzing, so dense that it was impossible to separate one sound from the next. A whirlpool of noise and anger. And it could speak. "DoyOu know hOW manY bEEs arein sIx MILesof fARm? IdO." I cringed. Even being back in the second vehicle, safely four miles away, that is disturbing.


"Okay, you've made your point!" Purity exclaimed. "Now, everyone calm down. I am not going to fight you again. I'm going to take my family and move to the other side of the fucking country. Or I was. Skitter's new 'trick' makes me think Antarctica has lovely weather this time of year."


"Sorry, Kayden. Ma'am," Theo said, his metal sloughing off to the ground. It didn't vanish when he was done with it. He could even leave it in a "solid" state, although it wasn't nearly as strong as when his power was controlling it. Barely any better than the pure iron it seemed to be made of. "I'm not going with you."


"What?" Purity asked. "Why would you want to stay?"


"To make things right," he answered. "I can be a hero. A real hero. I won't give that up, not even for you."


Kayden smiled, even as she started to cry. "I understand. We'll keep in touch. Probably won't be safe for you to write us, but I'll write to you. And make sure Aster knows her big brother's one of the good guys." Then she pulled him into a hug.


"Thank you, ma'am," Theo said. He hugged back, though looked decidedly awkward doing so.


"Stay safe," she whispered. I just watched until they broke the hold. The other Nazis had the good taste to stay out of it as well. Whether out of respect for the moment, or respect for their boss, I didn't know. Probably depended upon which one you asked.


After they seemed to be done, I spoke up. "Treat your daughter right, Kayden. Don't go play supervillain anymore. Forget the warnings I gave you about hunting you down. Look at her and remember that treating her right means leaving this life behind. She's the one that will pay the real price if you can't do that. Do not do to her what Kaiser did to Theo. What Marquis did to me."


I left. Maybe my words would make a difference.


================


A/N- I so love what this chapter establishes for the future.

 

Amelia, Ch 57


"Taylor," I sighed as I held the girl's hand. "You're in here for me to heal you almost every day. There's such a thing as too much training."


"Just an accident," she rebuked. "Theo's new to his power and needs someone to give him practice."


"Let Zach handle it," I countered. "Or use your damn changeling. It's what they're made for."


"Respawn doesn't know how to fight, either," she hissed as I forced her shoulder back into place. "Have to make him train more seriously. Changelings are useful for real danger, but we have to keep our real bodies in good shape. Can't..." She paused again as my power forced her collar bone to mend itself. "Can't rely on them. Won't always be available."


I couldn't argue with that part of her logic. The things were nice, but they weren't perfect.


"You should start training, too," Taylor insisted for, possibly, the thousandth time.


"No," I said. Again. "I can heal you. I can't heal myself."


"We have Respawn for that. Riley, even, if you'd prefer. Anything she would have done to you has been done already. Lisa's pretty much certain that, other than a few details that are understandable given the circumstances, she didn't alter you.


It was true enough. The freckles were gone. Old scars, as well. Body hair was not only gone, but what came back was thinner and slower. Like I was a child again. This didn't fill me with confidence about other possible issues. But I was, hilariously enough, in better shape than I'd ever been before. Tuned on the assumption of myself, as an athlete. I had abs now. They were really nice. Sometimes I even posed for myself in the mirror.


"Whatever," I muttered, taking my mind off that thought. "Maybe I do need to start training. But stop deflecting. You're training too much. I'm being forced to use material off the Yggdrasil just to restore body fat. You know, the stuff you're suppose to have? To keep you alive. That you don't because you keep destroying tissue faster than it replenishes."


She looked almost angry at me. Usually that might even make me back down, but not this time.


"Fine. I'll stop the physical training for a while, except my jogs," she yielded. She yielded? Wait. What?


"Physical training?" I asked. "What exactly are you planning?"


"I need you to make me blind. Maybe deaf as well. And shut down the beacon network, at least for the time being."


"I... what would that accomplish?"


"I've been discussing my power with Lisa," she answered. Oh, wonderful. "I am able to do more with my insect senses than I realized. But my human senses are getting in the way. If you take them away, temporarily of course, then I could be that much stronger. The beacons... might be making it harder for me to reach that breakthrough on my own. So they have to go, at least until I'm practiced enough to handle them."


"Why are you doing all this?"


"Because we need it," she replied. "All of us need to be at the top of our game. Sure, we smacked down some two bit thugs who thought they were the top of the food chain. And we did it easily. But that's actually a problem. If we don't keep pushing, we'll get soft. We'll make mistakes. Something will happen that we weren't prepared for, and we won't be able to adapt and respond to the emergency."


"Valefor," I said. "That's what this is about, isn't it?"


"That fucker nearly killed you!" Taylor exclaimed. "And Lisa! It was nothing but luck that saved you, and the fact that Riley was expected to hide from the team. If not for her and I not actually being at that meeting, we would all be dead!"


"That was a mistake," I said. "And we learned from it. It won't happen again."


"It shouldn't-" her voice caught. "It shouldn't have happened at all. I could have stopped it."


"This isn't about us, is it?" My voice softened. Trying to convince Skitter to take care of herself required the 'command voice'. I didn't need that here.


"That fucker used my friends to get to me," her voice quivered. "Used my children as fucking bombs... not because it was smart, but because he wanted to twist the fucking knife. Fucking. Used. Them. All."


Oh god.


There were tears in her eyes, now. I pulled her into a hug. She clung back. Hard enough that it was actually a little painful. "I'm sorry," I said gently. "It's not your fault. There's no way you could have known Valefor was even in the city. Lisa didn't. You're not responsible for some psychopath with a demon complex deciding to target us."


"Yes, I am," she sobbed. "We all are. We knew this would happen. That our name, our actions, would be seen as a challenge by fuckers like the Fallen. We did it anyway, turned us and our friends into targets. We knew the risks. I just... I thought they'd be risks to us, not our families. I... I should have..." She broke down.


I held her head as she cried. "You've been bottling that up this whole time? Taylor. You have to stop blaming yourself for everything. We're not really gods. Naming conventions and powers aside, we're still human. We're allowed to make mistakes. You should have talked about this sooner."


"Would it have made a difference?" she muttered bitterly. "Talking about it doesn't make the pain go away. Knowing the bastards suffer for it permanently. And making certain it never happens again. Those are the only things that matter."


Suffer permanently? "Did you have Riley do something 'special' to them?" My voice hardened again. This was not something I wanted and she knew it.

"She wouldn't have agreed even if I'd asked," Taylor muttered.


That was a relief.


"I asked Blasto to do it," she added.


Less relieved now. Except not as much as I would have thought I'd be. Skitter was too careful to make any mistakes that would come back to us. Fucking Valefor. Using children as suicide bombers.


I sighed, still holding my general in my arms. "From now on, you talk to me. No decisions behind my back. We're partners. If it happens to you, it happens to me, too. Remember that from now on."


"Thanks," she muttered. Then she spoke up. "Oh, I know you heard that. It didn't happen and if you say otherwise, I will find a way to make you stay dead."


"Understood!" Respawn yelled from the hall. "Hey, Lisa, I am now under orders to say I don't owe you fifty bucks!"


==============

A/N- Ah, me and my mood whiplash. Spoiler: I still pull shit like that.

 

Amelia, Ch 58


Toybox wouldn't deal with us directly, for some reason. Lisa's guess was that they were afraid to be associated with heroes. Not that they normally had a problem with that, but we were currently national news. Arguably international, if Canada counted. I personally had a hard time of thinking of Canada as another country, since I could drive to Montreal for a weekend.


One of Coil's drivers drove us to the meeting place. Well, Lisa's drivers. Either way, I wasn't terribly happy with using what was unquestionably illegally obtained wealth for all our basic luxuries. Or, in this case, minor essentials. We really needed to find something that we could reasonably charge for without looking like we were just in it for profit. Sure, the Yggdrasil sewer arrangement was excellent for all parties, and we were getting more out of it than the millions of dollars it'd be worth as a paid service could purchase.


The fact was that, one way or another, Coil and Lisa and Taylor currently owned more land in Brockton Bay right now than I wanted to think about, including almost everything in the docks and over half of the land within a mile of our base. They were going to profit massively simply for Pantheon's base of operations being where it was... didn't like that, either. But at least that was legitimate, though definitely not 'honest'. I rather hoped the system we'd worked out with Parian went well. That was something I could feel good about.


In any case, Khepri and I had taken a trip out into the middle of nowhere, to meet a man known as 'Marketing'. He had a thinker power that let him calculate fair value to, well, almost anything. He was a well respected neutral party, and would serve as an intermediary between us and Toybox.


The place we were at was actually very nice. I hadn't realized a restaurant whose only apparent source of customers was semi drivers could be this nice. The prices were surprisingly good, too. Sadly lacking on the vegetarian options, however, so I settled for the salad. This 'can't look at meat anymore' thing made going out to eat a real pain in the ass. Had to be worse for people who couldn't magic up a meal simply by putting a hand on the table. Taylor went with an omelet.


Marketing wasn't a particularly noteworthy man. Black hair that was just showing shades of graying. It was fake. Or, at least, the gray was. I was amazed our changeling senses could pick that out, but yes. He had gone out of his way to make himself appear a bit older. He wore durable, but perfectly normal clothing like one would see from the dockworkers and construction crews.


"First, may I ask what you are willing to offer Toybox?" He started. "I presume your refusal to part with Bonesaw's equipment and technology has not changed?"


So he knew about that. Who revealed that secret?


"We can't," I answered. "Far too great a risk that it'll be used."


"We do have Blasto trying to find a package of acceptable details for us to offer others," Khepi offered. "It's just that most of her designs are too horrible to consider handing over to anyone. She made a zombie virus."


"A zombie virus?" His eyebrow raised.


"Not hyperbole," I confirmed. "It's basically an airborn and even more aggressive variant of rabies that makes people enraged and cannibalistic. Includes some kind of pheromone system so they won't attack other infected. Near as we can tell, it's deliberately designed so approximately one tenth of a percent of the population will randomly be immune. I don't want that in the hands of anyone who'd be willing to purchase it."


"It's not even in the top ten most deadly list," Khepri added. "It seems like she made it for 'fun', not as a serious plan for ending the word."


He cleared his throat. "I see. Normally I take pride in my neutrality, as such I would have accepted your refusal at face value. On a personal level, however, I admit I'm glad for your decision. Shall we move on to the Yggdrasil?"


"Yes. I believe the costs to them in maintaining their pocket dimension is fairly significant," I replied. Marketing didn't offer an opinion. "Yggdrasil is an ideal bioenclosure organism, consuming almost any waste product, including waste heat energy from machinery they might be using, and converting it to safe, even edible, biomass and oxygen. It is a cooling system for a power plant, waste disposal, and life support all in one."


"I see," he said. "Radioactive materials?"


"Heavy metals and other elements not used for life are filtered out into a nearly pure state and stored in pods," I stated, pulling a ball of yellow metal out of my pack. "Solid gold. Only a few pounds of it, but pure."


"Worthless," Marketing dismissed the rock. "With the existence of matter creators and transmuters, the precious metals market no longer exists."


"Yes," I agreed. "However, it's the purity that matters. It can, essentially, refine uranium if you need it to. Any tinkers that need to work with pure materials for their more delicate projects might see value in a reliable, cheap and fast alternative to centrifuges." I wasn't so happy with the 'uranium' thing. But frankly, tinkers could make better bombs than nuclear already. And 'dirty bombs' were a far more deadly use of uranium than actual nukes, in the modern world.


"That is true," he agreed. "But seems to be the crux of the issue. You have something a lot of people would have at least some use for, but no one has a true need for. It makes the value more useful to the community as a whole than to individual members, and that complicates the market values significantly."


"I understand," I replied. "Maybe we should wait until Toybox gives up on trying to cultivate their own Yggdrasil plant. I know they've taken samples to grow. It won't work."


"I know no more about the inner workings of the Toybox than I do about Pantheon," Marketing responded.


"I understand. But when you speak with them, let them know that it's completely dependent upon myself for survival. And optimized for Brockton Bay. It won't thrive in a different environment. I'll have to create an entirely different species of the stuff for their needs."


"I will relay the message," he responded with the same neutrality as I was coming to get used to. "How about we discuss what you wish to purchase."


"Cranial's technology," I responded. "It's the highest priority. A device that is fully capable of upload and download."


"She probably won't want to part with the full equipment," Marketing responded.


"Probably not, but we need it for one of our long term projects," I insisted. "You can maintain confidentiality, of course."


I got a nod.


"We are developing life extension techniques," I told him. It was our card to play, and this was the best scenario to use it. We were going to have to use it. "Ten years added to her natural lifespan, alongside the usual touchups that I provided to patients as Panacea. No negotiations. No questions. And if we believe for a second anyone else knows we have this ability, then the offer is rescinded and shall never be made available again."


He blinked. "Very well. I shall see that message delivered personally. Are there any other requests, while we're here? No sense in repeating this any more often than we need to. It's better for you to list all possible interests."


"Yes," Khepri replied. "We're in the market for some antigravity technology. Our team is sorely lacking on mover powers. I know, we don't need Toybox for such relatively common tinker tech. But it's on the list of things we need to get from somewhere. If their price is reasonable, we are interested."


"And energy manipulation technology," I added. "We are planning for direct combat against the Endbringers, as we said already. If any of Toybox is willing to help, we've got the means to meet the monsters head on and hold the line. The biggest limiting factor is concentrating enough power into a small enough area to actually hurt them. In the worst case scenario, our constructs die, instead of the parahumans who need to fight them. Even that would be one of the greatest victories ever achieved against these monsters. In the best, we send them back to whatever hell they crawled out of."


"Interesting," he responded. "I shall see what I can accomplish."


We paid for our portion of the meal, and the waitress was surprisingly okay with heroes in costume. Very polite, didn't pester us or anything. She probably figured we were pretty much obligated to leave a generous tip if she did well. If so, well, she was correct.


"Teleportation," Taylor muttered after we were outside.


"Excuse me?"


"Nothing. Marketing must have some kind of teleportation tech. I heard him say 'door me', and then he was gone."


"Oh," I said. "Makes sense. There's only how many tinkers working for Toybox? Probably bought something like that. We probably should look into it as well."


"Makes sense," she replied. "Still, we might want to set up anti-teleport plans for our base. Eventually someone's going to use methods like that to come after us."


"Yeah," I agreed. "I'll talk to Riley about it."


===============


A/N- This was one of those "pays off in the future" chapters. And boy did it pay off.

 

Canon Omake from the author: Bread and Circuses


Lisa looked at us. "You two have to start dating."


"I don't think I know anyone to date..." I started.


"No. Each other. You have to date each other."


What? "What?" Taylor and I asked simultaneously.


"It's a matter of image," Minerva explained. "You need to be more approachable to the public. Let them see you as having human needs. And romance is a fundamental need for most people. It's a bread and circuses type thing. We're providing for enough of their physical needs, sure. But we need to give them something that captures their imaginations and emotions."


"What, anti-Endbringer weapons aren't enough?" Taylor asked.


"Well, yes. And no." Minerva responded. "If they don't work as well as we hope, then no, not enough. If they do work, but work too well and maybe even kill the fuckers, then we need the 'softer side' even more desperately to maintain public support. The only thing scarier than being an Endbringer is being able to kill an Endbringer. And we don't have the 'benefit' of Scion's mental handicaps to make us seem harmless despite our power. So yes, you have to date."


"Why does it have to be us?" I asked. "Why not have you and Respawn date or something?"


"First. I named myself after a virgin goddess for a reason," Lisa answered. "I should probably go public with the whole 'asexual' thing, anyway. There's a nicely sized minority of asexuals out there, many of whom are young and in emotional turmoil over their sexuality, or lack thereof. I'm sure they would appreciate having a high profile hero as 'one of them'. Plus all the other parahumans whose powers make intimacy difficult, one way or another. I could do what Legend did for the gay community."


I couldn't think of a thing to say right to that. Every part of that was callous as all hell, yet completely true. It's not like she'd be lying. As opposed to the whole 'Jewish' thing.


"Second. There needs to be plausibility here," she continued. "The pair of you could be married to different men and have six kids each and both be pregnant with another, and it would still be more believable that you're in committed relationships with each other than the idea that Respawn has managed to have a second date with anyone."


"You know, I am in the room," Respawn muttered. "Sticks and stones don't mean much to me, but words like that cut to the bone."


"Can't Taylor just date Crystal?" I asked.


"Why do I have to?" Taylor asked. "I'm not even into girls!"


"Neither am I!" Crystal added.


"Then why'd you ask her out?" I asked my cousin.


"To make you jealous so you would!"


I just collapsed face first into the table. "Hate you. Hate you all."


"Wouldn't work anyway," Lisa replied. "You two are the leaders and partners of the group. As the centerpoints, you need to have some kind of obvious relationship bond with each other. And friendship just won't cut it. We might be able to play off with Amelia's adoption that you two are half siblings. Even your powersets are similar enough in their own ways to sell the idea..."


"Not an option," I said coldly. Taylor gave a hard nod in agreement.


"No," Lisa agreed. "Too easy to disprove, regardless. There is one other option."


Fuck you, Lisa. "Okay, let's hear your other idea. But I'm leaning toward 'ignore these jackasses and go on living our lives as normal', myself."


"Funny you should mention that," Lisa grinned that special grin that made me want to melt her face. "Because that's the exact plan."


What? "What?" Taylor and I again asked simultaneously.


"What we do is, we make sure the two of you are close to each other during all public events. You're always seen together, supporting each other's decisions and otherwise working as a tag team whenever possible. Casual contact, such as handing microphones to each other, whenever possible. Then you can deny a relationship all you like, but everyone will see you together and believe that you're obviously together together and just don't want your personal lives out in the public view. It's perfect!"


"But... isn't that what we were already doing?" I asked. Lisa nodded.


"Fuck you, Lisa," Taylor muttered.


===========

Another Canon Omake, this time from a SBer, Mercsenary

Title: Inventory
"That's not the zombie virus."
Heads turn to stare at Riley. Taylor and I had been relaying what our meeting with Marketing had entailed.
"What?"
"Thaaaat's the rage virus."
"Then... Whats the zombie virus?"
"Oh thats the rage virus combined with a modified version of necrotizing fasciitis. I made it airborne."
Silence greeted her.
"See, I thought instead of having 10% of people being immune why not make it 100% lethal. Get infected and now your flesh is rotting and you have an insatiable hunger for human flesh. Whats not to like?"
Crystal was starting to turn green and out of the corner of my eye I saw that Taylor had frowned. Uh oh.
Unfortunately Riley took it as a cue to continue.
"But don't worry! I made everyone immune to it the first day they got here. The vaccine's in the air."
That, that wasnt quite what I was going to ask but okay, "What about other people?"
She pouted. Pouted! "What about other people?"

Our heads turn to Blasto, who shrugs nervously.
"Well... that's the one vial I found under 'Too much Fun'. Everything else was accounted for."
I sighed and resisted the urge to put my head in my hands. Taylor wasn't under such restraint.
"There wasn't anything else?" she asked.
"Nope."
"So what you're saying is that we may or may not be missing a vial containing an ACTUAL zombie virus."
"Um... yeah."
---
This time I didn't resist the urge to massage my forehead. Now we had a loose vial of zombie, cant believe I would ever say that. After that little bombshell everyone else had filed out of the room in a daze. Couldn't blame them for that. Only Taylor, Riley and I were left in the room and Riley was... whistling.
Wait a minute.
I looked over at Taylor. She had stopped and frowning and seemed to be squinting at Riley, who in turn, seemed to get louder at whistling.
I mentally tilted my head and something unbidden rose to mind. "You dont notice that? Bone-Riley whistles when she's trying to hide something."
... Fucking Thinkers.

I got up and walked around to Riley and held out my hand.
She looked at it and then looked up at me.
"How'd you know?"
You whistle when you're nervous or trying to hide something.
Instead I just raised an eyebrow.
She giggled and put a vial in my hand.
"Big Sis knows me too well."
She got up and skipped over to the door before turning back to us.
"Huh, Lisa was right. Big Sis and Taylor do look cute together."
A muffled bang sounded and a quick glance over my shoulder revealed that Taylor had let her head hit the table in front of her.
"They're never going to let that go, are they?" came the muffled question.
I sighed. "I think it's going to be our lot in life."

 

Amelia, Ch 59


"So, check out the headline this week," Taylor said, smiling as she walked in. Already in costume. How the hell is she such a morning person? At least she brought some food. Apparently Tattletale convinced a nice doughnut and coffee shop to move in at the closest possible street corner to our base. Best. Day. Ever. Maybe we could get a pizza place, next.


Theo followed after her, looking distinctly worn out. I'd given him a few touch ups to improve his metabolism and muscle growth, but he still needed to work for it. Anything completely artificial would be destructive to him in the long run. Some on levels I could fix, like bone and joint damage. Others I couldn't, like coordination and a loose equivalent to 'phantom limb syndrome'. Better simply to come into it 'naturally'.


"Caffeine first," I muttered as I took my cup and grabbed a fresh chocolate doughnut. As I was enjoying my breakfast, Lisa walked in, lured by the smells. I didn't pay too much attention to what she picked.


"So, what's the news?" I finally asked.


"Well, the headline just called our new project 'scrap soldiers'," she said, showing me the paper. Sure enough, that was someone's idea of clever.


"Could be worse," Lisa muttered. "Last week that one called it 'poo police'."


"Still eating breakfast," I reminded her.


"Yeah, seriously Lisa, I'm already stuck with a few trillion scavengers linked up to my brain, I have a hard enough time ignoring that without you reminding me."


"Look at it this way," she said. "We just gave the police force equipment that could be used to conquer a small country. When the other alternatives read along the lines of 'teenage girls with a god complex build private army of super soldiers', I'm okay with the stupid sounding headlines."


"Oh, good, you bums are finally up!" Zach said from the doorway, sounding far too chipper. Bullshit 'don't need sleep' powers. So unfair. "We have an announcement to make."


"Please tell me you didn't violate too many laws of nature," Lisa moaned. "My head still hurts."


"Just about a dozen or so," he beamed. "Presenting to you, the Cuddle Bug!"


He reached over and pulled out a six limbed blue and white pastel colored stuffed animal. It had mothlike antennae and big, solid black eyes on a round face. The feet were large pads on short limbs. He scratched its neck and its eyes closed and it started to purr, loudly enough for me to hear it from about fifteen feet away.


"What. The hell. Is that?" I muttered.


The things antennae pointed straight at me. "Ah. Ish. Zerg!" it squeaked loudly, as it extended out all its limbs, grasping toward me.


"It's our newest line of living toys," Respawn replied. "They're lightweight, have the ability to learn phrases and training. And are basically indestructible. Watch!"


He held the thing out at arms length and drew back his leg.


"Ahh! No! Don kick da Zerg!" The creature shouted. Although said shouts were barely louder than normal human speaking volume. It was then dropped and punted across the room, screaming "Wheeeee!" the whole time. Or at least for a couple seconds before it collided with the far wall. And stuck there with its padded feet. "Ahm okay!" It announced.


Theo reached over and gently removed it from the wall. It wrapped around his arm and started nuzzling his hand with its face. Had to admit, the thing was cute for an abomination against nature that would surely earn us the ire of basically every bioethical group on the planet. Also possibly PETA.


"Did... did you waste the talents of two biotinkers all night just to create that?" Taylor muttered.


"No. Yes. Maybe kinda? Not just that!" He answered, looking a little dejected that we didn't find this monster, no matter how adorably fluffy it was, nearly as amusing as he did. "Hey, Blasto, we're losing the audience. Wanna help me out, here?"


Ray came out. "Uh, yeah," he said. "It's basically just one of my plant hybrids, coupled with the tech we just got from Cranial and some of Riley's efforts to hybridize the two into something better with her own talents."


"We are supposed to be using that equipment to cure Noelle and maybe save the people frozen by Bakuda's damn crystal bomb," I informed him angrily. "It is NOT a toy. And you shouldn't be using it to make toys."


"Prototype testing," Blasto defended. "We're working our way up the chain, testing various 'learning algorithm' programs. They're already smarter than my constructs ever were, but still functionally somewhere between an incredibly stupid cat, and a legitimately brain damaged parrot that keeps its ability to mimic human words. We're already building up to installing true, functioning instincts into the zerglings so that Khepri can control them more effectively."


"How much more effectively?" Taylor asked.


"If it works how Riley's convinced it will... no upper limit," He informed her. "The thing about your power is that it, essentially, relies on the insects to do their own thinking. Or something like that, I'm still years behind her in understanding this body-brain-power interaction stuff. Since the artificial lifeforms don't have instincts of their own, you're forced to do all the mental lifting for them instead of letting them do their own thing with only a light touch from your mind. The more things we can program into them while still keeping them registered as 'bugs' to your power, the easier it'll be. If we can 'build' the proper instincts into a genetic format, we can even give them nonstandard senses like infra-vision and echolocation. That you'll be able to use. And we could theoretically produce hundreds of the things with our existent resources. Especially now that Theo's on our team."


Taylor just sat there, mouth agape. Why does Skitter frighten me more when she's excited than when she's angry?


"Well, you sold my partner that this is worth the effort, clearly," I stated. "So that's a start."


"Aww... I didn't get to use Fluffy," I heard Riley complain.


"Who and what is 'Fluffy'?" I asked.


Riley came out, still in her apron, carrying a giant white spider. "This is Fluffy!" She announced. "He's my Cuddle Bug! He doesn't talk, but he's got an extra pair of arms for extra hugging power. And he turns colors. Pink."


Surely enough, the white spider's fur fluffed out and turned pink. "Blue, yellow, white," she instructed, and the colors rippled through the giant spider.


"Please tell me that's all the monster pets you've made," I said.


"Well... I need to make one more..." Riley said. "We're working up the chain of lifeforms. Fluffy's the arthropod level. Zerg's the bird level. Higher mammals are next. I'm thinking of a bird horse that I could use as part of my cape persona!"


"Bird horse?" I asked. "You mean you want to create a pegasus."


"Yeah!" she agreed excitedly. "We need to test artificial instincts in advanced lifeforms. Horses are about as smart as it gets without going dolphin or great ape. Apes don't have a lot of hardwired instincts, due to how fragile their infants are, they rely more upon accelerated ability to learn outside the womb than genetically programmed ability. The exact opposite of what I need. And dolphins would be a pain to work with."


"I suppose horses are otherwise the perfect animal?"


"Well," she said. "Zebras might be a little better. But horses are easier to get DNA samples from. And I could make her into a beautiful black pony with raven wings and call her Atropa and..."


"Nope!" Lisa interjected. "No naming any of us or our things after death itself. Zach gets away with it because no one really thinks of 'death' when they think of 'Osiris'. Plus he and his powers are as nonthreatening as it gets, really."


"Aww," Riley whined. "Well, can I at least make my flying pony?"


"You'll be able to make it fly?" I asked.


"I'll be using some of the antigrav equipment. We have more than enough for the Queen of Blades armor. And we'll need to test the cybernetic enhancement tech and support frames if we ever want to make those flying troop carriers and stuff," she insisted.


"But you're really doing it so you can have a black pegasus named 'death'," Minerva stated. "May as well let her have the thing. She's picked up our M.O. of 'I do this because it's helpful, but it's really for me'. We can reward her for being a quick student. Also: I have an idea that'll make it work for us as well. So agree because it's nice, but it's really for us."


Riley looked at me with a smiling, hopeful face. Her arms clutched tight around the giant spider.


"Okay," I said. "You can build your pegasus. But only the one. And then we're moving on to the real reasons we picked up this technology."


"Keep the notes around for making a second," Lisa instructed.


"Okay!" Riley shouted. "Thank you! Thank you! Thank you!" She turned and bolted toward her lab. Only to trip on her spider's legs and fall right on top of the thing. She got up and ran off, chased quickly by the oversized arachnid.


"Two questions," Taylor said. "First: Lisa, what are you plotting this time? Second: when do I get a giant spider?"


===============


A/N- Both the plushy Zerg and spider existed before I started writing this story. Took me over a month to get to them.

 

Amelia, Ch 60- Riley


I went back to the lab with the samples I'd collected of Noelle's tissues, from the timeline that Coil wasn't forced to collapse. Amelia failed to fix her, and I even felt guilty about that.


"Knock, knock," came a less than pleased voice from the doorway. Minerva. Dangit! "Mind a little company, oh unholy terror?"


I hated it every time she did that. Reminded me, reminded my Sister, that I wasn't a good girl. The lurch of fear in my gut that Amelia would see that and abandon me. It hurt to think about, losing her. I can't let that happen. My hand wrapped around one of my surgical tools.


"Won't work," Minerva replied. "Kill me? Maybe. Though I doubt it. Do it without her finding out? Impossible. You've played your cards, Bonesaw. One mistake. Only one. And she'll never forgive you. She'll have to kill you herself because she can't risk anyone else trying it. She's not like us. She'll actually feel remorse over it. It'll hurt her. Is that what you're going to do? Hurt your sister?"


"Jack liked the mind tricks, too, you know," I muttered, my cheerful facade faltering for a moment.


"No doubt," she replied, unflinching. "The question is: do you consider that an insult or a compliment?"


Do I what? I almost asked, but then didn't. I expected her to feel insulted, of course. But what did I think about it? I squeezed the knife. If this was the S9 with Jack in charge, she'd already be dead and I'd simply be chided and sent to bed. Instead... she was right. One mistake, one act of disobedience, and my punishment would be fatal. And I didn't know how I felt about it.


"That's a question you can think about for later. Right now, I'm far more interested in why you sabotaged Amelia's attempts to heal Noelle," she spoke up after I couldn't give her an answer. "You knew the risks, and did it anyway. Why?"


I froze. I was caught either way. This was my mostly unmodified human body, with only the barest minimum alterations from the neck down. I didn't want to sully the gift She had given to me. Lisa would be stronger, simply based on size. An eleven year old's body against a seventeen year old? If I were using Clarice, that would be different. But I was ordinary Riley right now.


"Your only way out of this is to tell me your plan," she offered. "All of it, and you know I'll know if you're lying. You're risking your life and your new found pseudo sibling's... whatever you have going on there... over this. It must be important."


"You can't read her anymore, can you?" I asked. Interesting.


"No," she admitted. "Not the important stuff, at least. Not why she wants to keep you alive. You, however, I can still figure out. But I'm about six minutes from a migraine. So you tell me what you're planning, or I tell her what I know. Remember, I'm here for Taylor, not Amelia."


I gritted my teeth. "Fine," I sobbed. "You win!"


"Good, but don't waste your time on the tears," she replied. "You might fool others. You might even fool yourself. You won't fool me."


....


"A mind transfer device," I informed them.


"A... can that even be done?" Taylor asked.


"There's some limitations," I acknowledged. "You'd need a blank brain to transfer into. Using an already existent mind would either kill both participants, or result in a condition much like Butcher."


"That's fine," Minerva added. Part of her plan. "We're already looking at Blasto for mass production capabilities. He could construct human clone bodies, complete with blank brains, right?"


"I don't know," I responded. "But coupled with my own equipment, I'm fairly certain we can. We would need Cranial's technology as well."


"Would it be able to work on others? Like the ones killed when fighting Crawler?" Big Sister asked. My improved senses picked up the waver of hope in her voice, and I suppressed my pain. She was asking me if I could give Her Glory Girl back. The sister she actually wanted.


"Maybe," I answered, and the words felt like ice inside my chest. "If Bakuda's weapon was as instantaneous as it appears, then it should have captured every synapse in perfect position. The only question is if the crystal itself has fine enough articulation to represent it, and if the material itself isn't disruptive to the scanning technology. I might have to cross interface some technologies."


"I understand..." Amelia said. I wanted to run over to her and comfort her. I couldn't. She didn't want me.


I would keep being a good girl until she changed her mind.


....


"Does he suspect?" Lisa asked, after we watched Blasto leave.


"No," I answered. "He doesn't understand the technology past the most fundamental of levels. He's second tier, as far as tinkers go. Good at what he's good at, but no real talent for cross-specialties. Mannequin was the exact same way."


"Good," she replied. "We hide the next 'breakthrough' for the Endbringers, understood?"


"It should be sooner," I complained.


"Too dangerous," Lisa answered. "We are already far too powerful. They can't be allowed to know until we're a fixture. Until we cannot be removed. Before then, the risks are simply too great."


....


"Mind transfer?" Trickster asked, looking at my Clarice body.


"That's the idea," Blasto responded. "We'll transfer Noelle's mind into a cloned body. Her old body can be disposed of easily. There are some side effects," he added to clarify. "But nothing I
believe you'll consider problematic."


"Such as?" Noelle's voice came from the speaker phone we were talking with.


"Well," he said. "We can't use your actual genetic material. Normally, there's a pretty good chance that you'd keep your powers if we used your tissue. Since your powers are the source of the problem... we'll want to avoid that."


"So I won't have my old body back," she recognized. "Fine. I didn't like it much to start with. As long as I'm free from this abomination."


"You'll also experience some short term memory loss," he added. "Nothing significant. Minor gaps. Confusion about your really early childhood and anything in the past month or so. It may also take a day or two for you to regain fine motor skills."


"Worth it," Noelle said. "Even if it might kill me, it's worth it."


"No worries, it can't kill," Blasto replied. Interrupting Trickster who was about to speak up. "You fall asleep and wake up in the new body a few hours later. I recommend you pick out something you'd like to look like using the CGI modeling program Coil has. It's better we have a completed body before the transfer begins. And we'll need some time to properly set up." The program was more for forensics and facial recognition than this sort of thing, but it wasn't hard to use to play design-a-body.


"There's no reason to limit yourself," I added. "Anything you like. Anything that will make you happy. There's one potential danger that we cannot control."


"What?" Trickster asked, eyes hard.


"A natural trigger," I replied. This man reminded me a lot of Mannequin in a weird way. Would he snap the same way, if his loved one was taken? Yes, I decided, he would. "There is no way of predicting natural triggers. Or what yours would look like if you had one. It might mean a relapse, and if so, we can fix you again at some point in the future."


Our work was tedium, for the most part. I entered Noelle's chamber and scaled my way up her side. Strange bodies formed near me, formed of flowers and nasty, acidic fungi. They didn't kill one another, strangely, nor did they attack Noelle. But they were quite hostile toward me. Coil told us this was commonplace in our failed attempts. They slowly spread until they formed a small garden around the monster girl. Meanwhile, I spent my time wrapping numerous electrodes on her scalp and neck, recording her entire physiology on a half dozen different machines.


"Alright," I informed her. "We'll just need you to stay calm for another hour. If you can do that, everything will be prepared and you'll wake up in time to enjoy the fireworks tomorrow."


She smiled. "Yeah," she said. "That sounds nice."


"Okay, gotta go get the rest of this set up," I replied, then I leapt off the side of the girl, landing several feet away from the plant and doing a roll further away. "Sorry, mutant plants! No dinner for you today!"


They hissed and spit at me in response, but I had already retreated from the room.


"Okay, Sundancer," I instructed. "Remember, after we give you the go ahead, you incinerate everything in that room."


"I... are you sure?"


"Listen," Minerva replied. "Once we do this, the only thing that'll be left in there is the monster. The proto-Endbringer. Your friend will be safe, in here."


She patted Noelle's clone body of choice. She'd taken our offer and ran with it. The body could have a career as a model or actress, easily. Slim and athletic. Almost as tall as Trickster, with a face that could be described as 'cherubic'. And luxurious black hair- natural, of course, it would never lose the coloration until old age set in.


"Okay," Sundancer said. "If... if you're wrong about this." The threat was in her voice, even if she said nothing. She lacked the confidence to make me believe she'd act on the threat.


"If they're wrong about it, you'll have to wait in line after me," Trickster replied. Him I believed. He really would hurt us. Hurt Her. I started running through ways to quietly remove him as an issue, without troubling the rest of the Travelers. There were a few- my thoughts were interrupted by a hand on my shoulder. Minerva. I changed my focus back to the task at hand. The recording was over eighty percent done. A series of command pulses, and Noelle fell asleep, as planned.


"It'll be a few minutes before the transfers are complete," Minerva lied. "We'll have to leave the tinkers to their work. You know how they get about their toys."


The Travelers clearly did not, not really, but Trickster couldn't admit that without looking ignorant. So instead he chose to actually be ignorant.


The copying itself was actually the easy part. Studying the information, I concluded that any attempts to replicate parahumans would be a dozen time more difficult, if not moreso. It could take years to produce viable clones and would require constant monitoring that whole time. But a full human mind? An hour or less. Noelle's nonhuman aspect? That was taking more time, but her power was incredible, and we had weeks of data from the sensors I had installed in her room.


That hour went by in what felt like seconds. Blasto attempted to pretend he understood the data on the screen, the streaming numbers and charts and data. If I'd given him hours, he might even have figured out the truth, but with only seconds to spare between screens as I switched through, acting as if I was monitoring the copying process that was being handled automatically while really studying the power's data.


I now knew more about Noelle's power than anyone alive. She was truly incredible. I still didn't know how she induced new triggers in her monster-clones. We hadn't let her clone any parahumans. An insane and omnicidal version of my Sister would be a true terror to behold, possibly unstoppable, and I wasn't fond of the idea of testing any of the rest of us, either. Maybe someone nice and safe. Like Uber and Leet.


I hit the button. "She's been transfered," I told the others. Instruments flared up with nonsensical data as Sundancer started the sphere of nuclear fire within Noelle's chamber. The equipment was designed to measure lifesigns, not miniature suns. I would acquire nothing of value watching it. But that didn't matter. We now had a full copy of Noelle's memories, and a stored, living, sample of her genetic structure that had already been cultured and sustained. A copy on demand, if ever we needed her power. After all, we only needed was her power, not for her to be a functional or sane being.



Trickster was in the room in moments. "She'll need time to recover while her new brain adjusts to the alterations," I instructed him. "Waking her early could be as damaging as shooting her in the head."


"I..." he moved back a little, uncertain. "I'll make sure she's not disturbed."


"She's sedated for now. Don't give her any drugs. Her body has temporary organs that will supply nutrients and water. See to it that she sticks to the very specific diet and exercise regimens we've given you. Any deviation might cause irreparable damage," I handed him the sheets of paper I had with me. My glance at the equipment confirmed the lack of a Pollentia or Gemma, and none of the mutagenic N-cells I had identified.


Minerva backed me. "You've waited this long," she said. "Just a few more days and this nightmare is behind you forever."


He nodded. He was loyal to Noelle. I sympathized. At least she reciprocated his feelings.


I would continue to be a good girl. And make new friends, like I was asked. Hopefully, Rebirth Flame was right and Vista would love to see Bella.


========

A/N- Riley is fun in a creepy and slightly pathetic way.

Lisa's a manipulative bitch, as always, but at least she's channeling it into something constructive.

Also: wow, I forgot how impactful this chapter was, but its theme carries forward well into the story.

 

Amelia, Ch 61- Lisa Interlude


I stumbled into what passed for our kitchen. We still didn't have enough electricity to keep both our labs and our utilities all active at once. So no fridge. Bottled water, because I couldn't stand the taste of Yggdrasil sap. It was just wrong and unnatural and squicked me out.


I could probably ignore its slightly-sweet taste if I didn't know where it came from. However, I did know, and my power wouldn't let me forget it. I suppose for a normal person, it would be like seeing an apple tree growing in a cesspool and then eating one of the fruit.


Riley came skipping in as I sipped on the rather lukewarm, but at least very strong, coffee. She was as chipper as usual. I hated that, her fake smile and fake happiness and fake everything. I didn't direct my power at her, I couldn't afford to. I didn't need to, my reinforcement methods had become the routine between us. Pavlovian, almost. Reminding her of the guilt she knows she should feel. Reminding her that she didn't.


"So cheery, today," I spoke quietly, but her modified ears would have no problem picking it up. "Did someone start a little-miss-genocide pageant?"


And then the bounce was gone. "You can stop that, you know."


"There's a big difference between 'can' and 'should'," I replied. "Ask Amelia about it, she understands better than most."


Without my power backing me, I didn't know how well that line would work. Jack had broken her and rebuilt her into his perfect little marionette. Fixing that would require breaking her again. Hitting her with every emotion she normally programmed away. Her relationship with Amelia was the one way I had on her, the chink in the otherwise impenetrable armor around her psyche.


It would help if I could understand Amelia's feelings toward Riley. Something happened, I was certain of it. But whenever I tried to figure out what... I was beginning to think she second triggered with some kind of anti-thinker power. I had learned trying was unproductive. I wonder how happy Amelia would be to learn the suffering I went through before realizing just how futile trying to understand her has become.


Riley had stood there while I went through those thoughts. "I'll have you know," she said. "We're almost done with programming a full set of combat instincts for the zerglings. Taylor's been running a dozen of them through the exercises, and my Sister has been constructing the genetic programming."


Ugh. I can actually hear her capitalizing 'sister'. At least her new Amelia-led interest in botany was good. Keeping her focus on plants meant meant keeping her away from working with meat, and Jack's 'art'. And thanks to the equipment we had, Amelia's art was provably superior.


Part of her reprogramming would require making certain she knew that her psychotic 'father figure' was flatly inferior to her neurotic 'sister figure'. And watching her cover him in acid and then have him buried alive in bugs had only started the process.


Maybe it would have been enough f not for that fucking bomb that proved Amelia was actually mortal. Being arms deep in Gaea's mutilated body during those hours of surgery had made things worse, not better. And I still don't know how Amelia's mind responded to the mess because my power falters when dealing with her.


"Good to know," I muttered. And then I dipped into my power. Insecure in position. Afraid only value is her power. Needs purpose outside work. Needs Amelia to... And then the pain lanced through my head. Too damn early. Fucking power couldn't wait until telling me what Amelia was suppose to do? Okay. Nonpowered plan... Riley being Riley instead of Plant Bonesaw... or is that just 'Saw', now? Focus, brain! "Sorry. Migraines. I have an idea to help your sister if you'd like to help."


She paused. "I'm listening," she responded.


"Well," I said, buying some time. Riley needs a vacation... "We need to get her out of the building for a little while," I said. "A chance to rest and recover. You have to see how tired she is, how much she ignores all of us except for work."


"Yeah," she agreed. She's lying, of course. She only noticed how much Amelia was ignoring her.


"She's not the only one," I continued. "We're all suffering, some worse than others. Amelia and Taylor the worst of all. So, we're going to throw a party."


"What do you need me for?"


"A few things. You're planning to meet up with Vista later, right?"


"Yeah, Missy wants to hang out and play with Bella," Riley said, suddenly cheerful again. Dammit, right back to the powers thing. We need her to make friends that don't care about the things she had or could make.


"Let her know we have something else planned, and that she should invite all the Wards and Protectorate members who want to be there. Bella will have to wait for later. And I need you to do something special."


"Okay," she agreed. She didn't sound happy.

....

"I can do that," Blasto agreed. "I'll have everything ready in a couple hours or so."


"And I'm on secret hauling duty," Respawn stated. "There's nothing better you can have me doing?"


"Honestly? No," I answered. "I wouldn't even be able to pull this off without your help. There aren't a lot of teleporters that don't need line of sight to work with, and we have to do this without alerting the two people who can potentially have absolute situational awareness over the entire region."


"Fine, I guess that makes sense," he said. "But I want my fifty back."


"I can live with that," I agreed.

....

"So, you guys know your parts?" I asked Crystal and Theo. My eyes were closed the whole time.


"Yes, ma'am," Theo agreed. "Fighting Khepri's changeling to a standstill for at least an hour." He at least, was always cooperative. Two days in and he has already made my pick for best employee. Nowhere near top of the powers list, but he had all of Riley's eagerness to please and an actual moral compass. Too moral, really. We're just lucky he didn't recognize who Riley was when she came in holding the giant f-ing spider.


"Running distraction and espionage," Crystal confirmed her part. I could hear the mischievous anticipation in her voice. "Possibly a little larceny. This'll be fun!"

....

And I got to work on the final production. Food needed to be ordered. Seating needed to be arranged. There wasn't any time for fireworks, but in a place that had been through the month this town had been through? That blessing wasn't well disguised. Besides, I had something better planned. It would not soon be forgotten.


Hopefully, it also meant I could defuse this powder keg for a little while and maybe buy us some breathing room.

 

Amelia, Ch 62- Taylor


Theo was panting heavily by the time we were done. His power, for all it made him invulnerable on a level we were beginning to suspect rivaled Alexandria, didn't come with any actual combat enhancement past the indestructible armor. It didn't even make him that much heavier, so he could be picked up and thrown out of the fight by a suitably powerful cape.


One of those powers that looks far more impressive on paper than in the field. The polar opposite of my ability. At least he seemed to have self contained life support in there. We've tried it, he can function just fine underwater. Or encased in a literal tons of cockroaches. He'd picked up tricks like creating shifting barbed spikes on the outside of his costume in order to fight his way out of that, achieving a look not entirely different than Hookwolf. It worked, although I could have packed on the insects faster than he could have tunneled through them.


The Yggdrasil had already cleaned the floor, and was busy cleaning and then digesting the discarded armor he let fall off of him.



My changeling's going to need to be replaced as well, I decided. The barbed spikes were a surprise tactic that I hadn't known he could do. I tried taking him into a submission hold, only to have my left arm mangled so thoroughly that it was nonfunctional. Were it my human body, even with my silk armor, I would probably be dead right now. As it stood, I was glad I used one of the 'generic' armor systems instead of my own custom model.


"Okay," I said. "That was a lot of improvement in a short period of time. Where'd you pick up the spike idea?"


"Thank you, ma'am," he gasped. "That was Lisa's idea. Said that since. My power makes my armor unbreakable. I could get away with very thin edges."


"And you didn't try it before, because?" I asked.


"Don't want to hurt anyone, ma'am," he replied. "Too hard to hold back with the spikes."


"Good," I replied. The kid understands how to hold back. That is important. "We should work on grappling next time. If you can grab someone and fuse your armor around them, you can neutralize most opponents."


"Thanks, ma'am," he replied.


"Uh... please stop calling me ma'am..." I requested. "We're, like, the same age. My name's Taylor. Or Khepri, in costume. And I'm only fift... err, sixteen. I'm not a 'ma'am', okay?" I stopped. Holy crap, I forgot my birthday. Almost a month ago.


"Okay... Taylor," he hesitated, but at least he used my name. That's better.


I didn't look over when Amelia entered the room. I had gotten around my need to 'see', for the most part. My ability to hear through the bugs was still mostly limited to useless static. "I finished those dragonflies," she said.


"The whats?"


"Crystal said you wanted me to build a bunch of-" she paused.


Theo was, meanwhile, edging his way slowly toward the exit. "Okay, Theo, what exactly is going on here?"


He froze. "Sorry, ma'ams, it was all Lisa's idea."


Of course it was.


"What was Lisa's idea?"


"She said to have you ask her when you figured it out," he said.


"Alright," Amelia muttered. "Let's go figure out what your errant girlfriend is up to this time."


I smiled a little. "So, which one is the errant one? You or Crystal?"


"Lisa's your girlfriend," Amelia responded. "Crystal's your stalker."


"Well, what does that make you?" I asked.


"I'm 'the one that got away', clearly," Amelia replied. "It's all here in this chart that Respawn made."


"He made a chart?" I took it. And felt the tingle as Amelia's power reactivated my natural vision. Sure enough, that was on it. "Uh... Amelia... this lists Blasto and Defiant as brothers, and has Dragon dating the M4s. All the M4s. You do realize this, right?"


"Yeah," she confirmed. "But just look at the craftmanship of it."


She was right, this is nicely done. Colored lines, easy to read, poster quality printing. Pictures of each of us near our names. He even had it laminated. "I can't help but imagine the progress we'd make if he put this kind of dedication into his job."

....

"You arranged a surprise party for us. Invited half the city. In three hours. And somehow managed to do it without either of us knowing." I was entirely flabbergasted. "How!?"


"Truly, the second greatest achievement of my career," Lisa replied. "Now give me a second."


She walked alongside me and grabbed Amelia by the arm. "Hey!"


"Come on, gotta have a private chat between love rivals," Lisa said smiling. She's seen the chart, apparently. I turned to watch them. Was I the only one who didn't know about this?


Amelia sealed the doors to one of the side rooms. I listened in anyway, as best I could with my insects.


"It's not like that!" Loud voice, probably not Lisa.


Another, unintelligible, voice. That one was probably Lisa.


"No, she's-"


They spent several minutes, and I'm pretty sure I heard the phrase 'father in front of her' in there.


Lisa was smiling when the wall finally opened. Amelia looked like she'd just seen god. And he asked her to pull his finger. Where did I even hear that phrase from? Oh, right. Thank you, Kurt.


"Are you okay?" I asked, as my partner just stared blankly forward.


"Uh... yeah... no..." she responded. "Lisa just made me realize that I had become Carol."


Still in a daze, she turned and walked toward the stairs that led to our labs.


I looked toward Lisa. "If she turns you into some kind of livestock over this, I'm not going to help you."


Lisa smiled. "I'm okay with that. Woulda been worse if I did nothing."


Below, my insects sensed Amelia approaching Riley. The girl squeaked as Amelia wrapped her arms around her from behind and squeezed. "a wonderful sister."


=============


Bonus line that's totally canon, but I can't find a good place for it in the current narrative:

"What's 'Phyrexia' and why's Riley the queen of it?"


==============

A/N- This chapter makes me smile so hard. Also: A chapter that's only 1k words long... jeez, I almost never go below 1500 these days.

 

Amelia, Ch 63- Taylor


"Okay, guests are arriving!" Lisa announced. "Everyone in costume and out amongst the locals!"


I didn't bother getting up.


"When I said 'in costume and outside', I meant you, not the meat puppets. Except Riley. She stays indoors. The rest of us go out there."


"What about security risks?" I asked.


"What risks?" Lisa asked. "They watched us get blown up and then rip the face off the guy that did it. The lead competing theories are that we're all using really convincing versions of the M4s, that we're all clones, and that Amelia transformed us into decentralized lifeforms that no longer have organ systems and can rebuild ourselves from gelatinous slime. That attack actually made people believe we are more invulnerable, not less."


The scary part is that all of those are plausible. And one is actually true, sometimes.


"So we may as well enjoy the food and company with everyone else. Besides, we have an awesome lightshow prepared and you're not going to want to see this through a filter."


"Fiiine," I groaned. I wouldn't say that this sounded fun. Honestly, I didn't really like parties. "I'll go get Amelia. She's taken a suddenly weird liking to Riley." Dear god. I stopped, and a chill went through me as I realized the implications. Lisa has the power to talk people into enjoying being around Bonesaw.


They were in the lab, of course. Working on some... something... fucking tinkers.


"Okay, I'll be using the conductive latticework-" Riley looked over at me.


"Sorry to take you away from productive work that's actually useful to us," I said. "But mom says we have to go outside and have fun, now."


Both of them looked genuinely disappointed. "Sorry, sis," Amelia said. "I promise to sneak you ice cream and something with more sugar in it than if they'd actually made it out of pure sugar." She ruffled Riley's hair. Is Amelia actually getting into this whole 'big sister' thing?


"It's okay," she said. "Clarice is upgraded. I can taste anything she does."


"Wait..." I paused. "How is that... why would you want that?"


"Don't have time for the how," she said. "But taste and smell are incredibly versatile and accurate chemical analysis systems. Of course I'd want the ability to be able to track by scent or smell a gas leak or identify the specific details of biological weapons by licking them."


"Okay," I agreed. "Those are actually really good reasons. Come on, Amelia, before Respawn accuses us of building a secret love nest in the walls. Again."


She sighed. "Yeah. Did you see the part of the chart where I installed the ghost of Elvis into a monkey to sing me to sleep?"


"Yes. I read the whole idiotic thing," I muttered as we walked out of the lab.


"Yeah, seriously," she laughed. "It's actually Sinatra."

....

Suiting up was easy enough, as I opted to use my standard Khepri armor. As fun as 'Queen of Blades' was, it would probably make children cry. So I had to take my armor off the changeling, which looked surprisingly like me except for a thankful lack of anatomical correctness. We were the last ones to the party, of course. And I cringed at the thought of how that would be interpreted by the handful of people with cameras.


"Hate this as much as I do, huh?" Gaea muttered.


"Probably," I replied. "Not really a social butterfly, in case you hadn't noticed."


"Me, neither. Victoria was always the outgoing one," she replied, studiously examining her feet.


"Sorry. Didn't mean to bring up bad memories." Fucking stupid, Taylor.


"Don't be," she said. "We've been through so much shit in the last few weeks that it actually feels... I dunno, has all of this really been less than a month? Feels like a lifetime. Or yesterday. Both."


I had nothing to say to that. "Yeah," I agreed.


She managed to pull together a half hearted smile. "So, you wanna try being a literal social butterfly instead?" She was looking over at the children who were doing their best to entertain themselves away from the adults. They were mostly on the dirty side, with few toys. Playing tag.


"What do you have in mind?" I asked.


"The new toys our supposed friends tricked me into making," she explained. "I turned our Yggdrasil Dependent butterfly and dragonfly stocks into color changers."


Part of our projects, a way around the ecological damage we were causing was to build our own masses of bugs that fed on Yggdrasil only. Now that I had miles of range, I really could break an ecosystem, so I avoided using natural insects wherever possible. I reached out to the butterflies, even as Amelia started shifting the ground, forming a fence around a select area.


"What did they say that was for?"


People murmured and turned to pay attention. Some to us, others to the fence itself. Maybe we should stop showing off every time we come out in public. I'll have to ask Lisa's thoughts on us being so casual about high level power demonstrations. The area secure, she then created the tunnel, exposing one pocket of butterflies to the fading sunlight.


"Supposedly signaling and instruction. Emergency alert lights. Anything a flashing light can be used for, I guess."


That does sound useful. Why hadn't we thought of it sooner? "Well, then, time to test your work." The insect started flickering as I toyed with their pigmentation features.


She looked at me and smirked. "My equipment is flawless, you just have to learn to use it correctly."


"I am so glad I'm recording this," came a voice behind us. I jumped. And then blushed as I realized how what we just said could be interpreted. Then, finally, I realized it was Clarice. I didn't notice her and I don't know why. I was too stunned trying to figure out what happened to respond.


"N-not what it sounded like," Amelia stuttered out. "We were just discussing the modified butterflies, and how they are harder to use than normal bugs."


"I know!" Clarice exclaimed. "And I'm reading all the signals in real time. I can cross reference this from the data we're pulling from the butterflies later and find out all kinds of fun things about how your powers work."


My mind darkened, and with it the butterflies dimmed to dark browns and blacks. Bonesaw, cheerful as always, trying to cut through my skull. Planning to take me apart. Literally. To learn how I ticked. And that was nothing to what she did with Brian.


I felt a hand on my shoulder. "Khepri." Amelia's voice. "You're scaring people."


"Right... Right. Sorry," I muttered. The butterflies rippled as they when from black to bright red, then color after color as I tested what their instincts would let me do. Apparently, Cephalopods weren't in my control range, so it was harder for me to use the colors properly. I gave myself to the swarm, letting it be my body, leaving behind the tiny human girl that was trying not to think about the little girl behind her that once tried to vivisect her. It was calming.


I toyed with creating pictures, and decided that the problem was more my lack of artistic skill than the insects' abilities. Back at my actual body, Clarice had run off, leaving a lunchbox sized machine in Gaea's hands. I recognized why a second later, as ripples formed around my insects. Too small for a human body to recognize, but insects had greater sensitivity to their environment.


Vista's power, applied in microscopic waves. I wasn't sure why. It didn't seem to be an attack, so I resolved to mention it later. Meanwhile, the cloud of butterflies, which had attracted the crowd's attention, flowed over to the awed children, flitting about and landing on them, to a chorus of awe and giggles and laughter. I segmented the butterflies into 'squads' and assigned each of them a different color of the rainbow. As well as throwing in white and black and a few of the more popular shades. Each child had a different color.


As a fun little game, as well as a test of control, I had their colors switch whenever two of the kids touched. Soon they had started 'trading' colors as part of their other games.


Just innocent children and innocent games.


==============

Oh, man, so much achieved in this chapter.

 

Amelia, Ch 64- Amelia, then Dennis


Taylor and I opted to stay out of the festivities. Big surprise, right? I was aware of how conspicuous we were. Being a wallflower was much less complicated when I wasn't one half of a partnership rivaled only by Dragon for sheer potential. Of course, this turned the wall we were flowering into the single most important part of the party. As impromptu as the party was, it did mean a lack of political guests. The Mayor didn't get to make a showing, the news didn't have a chance to show in large numbers, although they'd probably be showing cellphone footage on the news by this time tomorrow.


"Wards, incoming," Taylor informed me, nodding toward the northeast end. I recognized Vista and Clockblocker's costumes. As well as a darker toned girl with an oversized crossbow. Miss Militia was there in costume. I was still a bit annoyed with her over last time we met. I got why she did what she did, trying her level best to humiliate me on television. But that didn't mean I had to like her.


Aceso bolted toward the group, using what I was pretty sure was her maximum effective movement speed, complete with doing a dive-roll under a table, to the shouts of surprise from the people who were just trying to get some punch. Glad we hinted she was so young, I thought. People tend to forgive children for stuff like that.


Osiris also turned in that direction. He was being followed by an attractive redhead. How the hell did Respawn get...? Know what? Fuck it, don't really care. He wasn't going to give away any important secrets or anything. Either way, Vista was already in the process of being dragged off by Clarice.


My attention was taken away from them when I heard Taylor whisper a name. "Dinah."


....


I watched Aceso pull Vista away. "C'mon, c'mon, c'mon, I have to show you the butterflies!"


"Okay, okay," my teammate agreed, stumbling to keep up with the girl who was a little taller than her, but obviously younger. Both in terms of personality and actual age.


"And then there were two," I muttered to my other teammate. Flechette was looking around for something.


"So, did you get her the ring, yet?"


"What are you talking about?"


"It's the tradition," I said. "You date for a while. Then someone proposes. Then you exchange rings. I know New York thinks it's a different country..."


"Okay, smartass," she muttered. "I got the joke. I just have no idea what gives you that idea.'


"Oh, I dunno, maybe-"


"HEY, Clockblocker!" Came a shout, interrupting me. "Oh god, I'm your biggest fan and you're the coolest ward and I just have to shake your hand!"


I recognized the guy, of course. Osiris. "Uh... yeah," I smiled. This would be great. I held out my hand to shake his. And, of course, I froze him. Only to realize my mistake. He'd grasped my wrist during the handshake. I wasn't able to pull myself free. Next to me, Flechette started laughing hysterically. I looked over at Miss Militia, who just watched impassively. I'd swear she was smiling, but her mouth was covered so I couldn't know.


"Dude," came a voice. I looked back and there was a second Osiris standing there. He was looking at his own frozen copy.


"That is such bullshit," we both said.


"Hey, Flechette, looks like I'll be collecting my twenty early," he said.


"You paid him to trap me?" I whimpered, putting on my best pout. "Whywoudyoudothattome?"


"Remember when I first joined the team?" She asked. Oh fuck. "And you froze me and then drew cat whiskers on my face. That's why."


"That was harmless and funny!" I protested.


"I spent two fucking hours wondering why everyone was smirking at me before someone told me!" Flechette exclaimed.


"I said I was sorry!" I replied. "Also, I got shit duty for a week because of that."


"Speaking of which," Miss Milita cut in. "Flechette, you know pranking other Wards is a violation of the rules. Getting someone else to do it for you doesn't change your culpability in the matter. You'll be on punitive duties for at least the next couple days. I will mention this to the Director and see if she feels more is warranted."


"Sorry, ma'am," Flechette replied. She doesn't sound sorry.


Meanwhile, Osiris was laughing with his girlfriend. Who is a total freakin' babe, I had to admit. Obviously pampered red hair. Tight shirt and shorts, showing off her figure without looking trashy. "See, told you," he said. "My power works on anything and everything. Now we gotta hurry up before it wears off."


He moved over to me and put an arm over my shoulder. And another arm over... his?... shoulder. "Smile for the camera," he said, pointing at the girl, who had produced a camera from her purse.


I chuckled. "Okay, you guys definitely got me with this," I agreed. It is pretty funny, and I know how to lose gracefully. She snapped several photographs of me, and the twin copies of Respawn. I waved for the camera as Respawn gave bunny ears to his copy.


After a few dozen pictures, the girl went over to Flechette. "Here's my email, if you want a copy of the photos," she offered. Flechette smiled, giving me a devilish look.


"You'll hear from me tonight."


"Well, gotta get back to the party," Osiris said as the girls exchanged information. "Catch up to me later, I have some ideas on how to make our powers work together. I'd stick around, but, y'know, I already am."


He went around me and his clone to hug the girl from behind. "C'mon, I still have to introduce you to the others," he said. She kissed his cheek. "You'll never guess who Blasto is dating!"


"Oh," he said as he stopped and looked back at Fletchette, "You'll find Parian over by where the kids are playing."


"Okay, thanks, see you kids later," Flechette replied as she headed over to the glittering butterfly display.


Even Miss Milita had left, choosing to mingle rather than wait around. This sucks, I thought. And then, finally, the grip on my arm slackened.


"Dude, that is such bullshit," came Osiris' voice, before the copy vanished into dust. I had to agree.


===========

A/N- Oh, come on, this was foreshadowed waaaay back in the PHO arc.

 

Amelia, Ch 65- Blasto and Amelia


"That sounds like a zombie virus," my date gasped in horror.


"It is," I agreed. "And it's not even the worst thing in there. It's twisted. I imagine this is how scientists felt when they acquired all the research journals from the psychos doing experiments in the concentration camps. It's repulsive in a way that defies words, but I can't help but marvel at the sheer wealth of knowledge."


Fucking Bonesaw. If I'd known she and Aceso were the same, I'd have killed myself and set off a self destruct chain through my lab. Seeing how powerful 'Clarice' was, I wouldn't expect that to actually kill her, but it would have been enough to destroy my technology and ensure my body never got into her hands.


Every time I work with Riley, I was caught between reminding myself that the sweet little girl is one of the world's worst monsters, and trying not to think about how unbelievably easy it would be for her to end life as we knew it. Not that she was the only one on the team with that capacity. Gaea's power was also nightmare fuel, even more frightening to behold than Riley's. But Gaea was Amelia. Panacea. And Riley was f-ing Bonesaw.


I felt a hand on my arm. "Are you okay?" Ruth asked, with a worried look. She was in costume, of course, but it wasn't her battle armor.


I put my hand over hers. "Yeah, I'm fine," I said. "Just lost in thought."


"Maybe we should focus on something a little happier," she offered with a concerned but hopeful smile. She had the most expressive face, even half hidden behind her mask. She glanced off to behind me. "I think we've got company."


I turned, and there was Respawn approaching, with a couple girls. One I recognized as Flechette, who seemed more interested in something else. She went toward the area that had somehow become the impromptu kids' area. The other girl seemed to be hanging off of Zach. Good, the kid deserves it. And not just because he saved me from being blown to bits. Or undid the side effects, at least.


"Ah, the infatuations of youth," I heard Ruth's smile in her voice.


"Spying with your tech? Isn't there a rule against that?"


"Just woman's intuition," she answered. "Maybe a bit of my power at work. Emotions Tinker, remember? I can turn off the machines, I can't turn off the knowledge that let me build them in the first place."


I couldn't argue with that logic. I was dating a woman who I literally could not hide my feelings from, if and when I developed any serious ones. I hadn't known her that long. As much as I enjoyed her company, and the pleasure of being able to talk with another tinker that's not Bonesaw, I was too old to fall that fast. That was game for teenagers. On the plus side, the fact that she understands this kinda stuff automatically meant she probably wouldn't expect me to talk about it much. Right?


"Hey, Zach," I said. He was one of the few of us with a public identity, alongside Crystal and Amelia.


"How's it going," he responded. "This is Emma."


"Good day, miss," I said to her. "I should introduce my date." I gestured.


"Rapture," Ruth said with the same winning smile she took everywhere. "How long have you two been dating?"


"Not long," Emma volunteered. "Only a few dates, since he's always busy with that whole 'hero' thing. But we talk whenever we can."


Zach pulled me aside and whispered. "Dude, how on earth did you talk her into a date?"


I smiled. "Catholic girls love the bad boys. Helps that I'm Catholic, too."


"You? Really?" He said with a smirk.


"Mi abuela. She would trigger from beyond the grave and hunt me down if I wasn't. I get by on not being very good at it."


....


I followed Taylor's hesitant approach toward Dinah. She saw us before we got close. The girl was in a well made business suit. Clearly custom fit and probably very expensive. Her straight brown hair was cut short. Not quite boyishly so, but nothing below her jaw.


I fell back. She looked healthy and I was glad to see she was okay, but Dinah was always Taylor's quest. The girl she was willing to kill to rescue. I may be oblivious, but even I knew this was not my place. Dinah's father was with her, but he seemed to hold the same thoughts that I did, and merely watched.


"H... hi, Dinah," Taylor said with a voice that I'd never heard her use in costume. "Are you okay?"


"You didn't kill Coil," was the first words spoken by the little girl to us.


Taylor froze. "No, I didn't," she said. It sounded more like an admission of guilt, like she was apologizing for failing something important. "He's no danger to you any longer, but no, he's not dead."


"Eighty seven percent chance I meet Coil again," she said. Then she paused. "Zero point one seven three percent chance he presents a danger to me at any point in the future."


Her father opted to speak up. "What did you do to him?"


Taylor flinched. She never flinched. Times like this were why, sometimes, I felt like I'd happily trade my power with Tattletale's.


"We can't answer that question," I replied. "He's dealt with, that will have to be enough."


"Dinah," Taylor said. "One question. Are the numbers better if we keep Coil as he currently is, rather than killing him?"


"Coil's power disrupts my numbers," Dinah replied. "But, yes, an average of six percent. An average of a hundred million more survivors, if things go bad. It doesn't change the likely timeframe, however."


"Is that enough of an answer?" I asked the pair. Dinah nodded. Her father seemed willing to go along with her on this one. I had to wonder what his life was like. Dinah was possibly the most powerful precog this side of the Simurgh.


"I will not join Pantheon," Dinah said before any of us asked the question. I hadn't intended to, not then at least, but eventually one of us probably would have. "I won't work for anyone else, either. Never again."


"I... I understand," Taylor replied. "I'd feel the same way. Will you at least let us help you?"


"Help?" Her father asked. He sounded skeptical.


"We are protecting and sheltering rogues and other independent capes. Parian, for example, who has no interest in being a member of the team. Anyone who comes after them will have to go through us."


"Sounds an awful lot like what the Protectorate offered," he countered.


"Probably," I answered. "The difference is, we mean it. Dinah would be a great help for the team, but we're powerful enough that we don't absolutely need it." I turned my head toward Dinah. "You'll be using your power to help us stop the apocalypse, either way, right?"


"Yes," Dinah agreed. "Sixteen percent chance the end is halted. If that occurs, fifty seven percent chance it will be Pantheon that prevents it. Otherwise, there will be five forces at the end. You'll be in one, Khepri in another. It's the best I can offer."


"Thank you for the information," Taylor replied. I thought on her words. Five factions. Only five? Another, either now or in the future, that was almost as capable of halting the apocalypse as we were? Taylor and I weren't going to be together in the end?


"I'll help you whenever it comes to my questions dedicated to halting the apocalypse," Dinah agreed. "Our partnership adds an extra three percent advantage. But that's all it is, a partnership. Any questions you have on other subjects will result in the standard fees. If you're willing to provide security or thinker assistance, I'll pay with one additional question per week, each."


"That's better than I deserve," Taylor responded. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry."


"It's okay," Dinah answered. "If this hadn't happened, we wouldn't be aware of the apocalypse at all. Everything else? I'll cope."


==============

A/N- Dinah. One of the scenes I'd been anticipating for a while. Hopefully I did it justice.

A/N/N- In retrospect, I still like how this one panned out.

 

Amelia, Ch 66- Amelia and Theo


"Are you okay?" I asked Taylor once Dinah had left. I could feel Taylor's power rippling through the area, thanks to my contact with the Yggdrasil. It wasn't anything so obvious as telepathy or special empathy. Taylor was better at hiding emotions in her body than anyone I've ever met before, but only in her body.


There were several thousand pounds of modified insect life that were directly connected to her, and indirectly connected to me. I could feel their agitation, and response to it. The zerglings had awakened in their den, and most others were drinking deep of the nectar feeds dedicated to them, collecting calories in anticipation of action. I couldn't figure out why her power was so agitated. Sure, it hadn't been the most cheerful of reunions, but it didn't go badly, either.


"I think so," Taylor replied. "It's just odd. I spent so much time dedicated to Dinah, and I didn't know anything about her. I still don't, not really. This right now, and that time when we took her home, that's it."


Oh.


"I don't know what I was expecting," she continued. "To be thanked for saving her was too much to hope for. I was prepared for her to be angry at me for helping imprison her in the first place. I should have known she'd know we didn't kill Coil."


"It's easy to forget she's one of the most powerful precogs I've ever heard of," I offered. I had no idea how to approach this situation. The bugs, at least, had started to calm.


"Is it?" Taylor offered a sad laugh. "Her power was all I could think of. She was so... is there even a child left in there? She acted more like Coil than a little girl. I could picture her, snake costume and all, running an empire with a calculating ruthlessness on par with any of the most dedicated supervillains."


I thought about it. "Might be her Passenger at work," I offered. "We've seen it at work before. Accord, Lisa, Coil," us, I added silently.


"Mind powers altering the mind?" she finished for me. "It makes sense, of course. I just... she's so young."


"Makes even more sense, then. The brain's more elastic and pliable that way," look at Riley. "Dinah has one of the most powerful mental abilities I've even heard of, it's no surprise it would impact her."


"She's scared," Minerva stated. I jumped. I'd been so focused on the signals I was getting from Taylor that I hadn't noticed her. "I'd say sorry for eavesdropping, but we all know better. You're both a little bit right, of course. It's part power, it's part Coil, but it's mostly a little girl trying to fake confidence in front of someone she's in awe of. And trying to meet her hero as an equal, instead of as a supplicant. Doesn't help that she has a deep seated resentment of being controlled by anyone, even if that control is out of gratitude."


"So... she wants to help, but doesn't want to admit it's for anything more than pragmatism?" I asked.


"What? You didn't think it was your cheerful personalities and incredible people skills that convinced her to work with us, did you?"


Taylor actually chuckled, "No, I guess not. It's... good to know Dinah's not turned into another Coil."


"Nope," Lisa said. "No chance of that. Anyway, I came by to let Gaea know the area's getting a bit dark. Mind brightening it up a bit?"


I looked, and yes, it was getting dark. Some lights had been set up by people, but the city was on limited power to begin with, and we were a fair ways away from streetlights. I focused my power into the Yggdrasil, copying bioluminscent cells and spreading them across the area. Slowly, the ground began to glow. It wasn't bright, not enough to compare to a lightbulb, even, but it was omnipresent. Enough dim light adds up to quite a glow when it's coming from every part of the ground.


It was an alien sort of beauty, but it was beautiful.


"Very nice," Lisa praised. "Mind sending the butterflies back to refuel? They'll need the energy for the big show."


Taylor didn't respond, but the swarm of butterflies lifted off from the children, who were less disappointed than I'd have expected.


----


"Hey, umm, you? Have you figured out your name yet?" Clarice asked. I was currently maintaining a slide for the kids to play on, while Parian was providing a "bounce pad" for them to play with. The couple dozen odd children were having a blast.


"Maybe," I said with a smile, hopefully it translated over the metal 'mask' I was wearing. "I could go with 'Horus', perhaps?" He was a god of protection, after all. The fact that he was was from a religion of people my father would hate, just made it that much better.


"This is my friend Vista, who has to try the slide," Clarice insisted.


"No, I am not going on the slide," Vista insisted. "That's for children."


"Aww, but you haaaave to," Clarice pouted. How does one create a doll out of plants that can pout, anyway?


"It's just a little slide for little kids," Vista retorted.


"I can make it bigger if you like, miss," I offered.


Vista jumped, as if I'd startled her somehow. Then she relaxed. "Oh... uh..."


"Ooh, yeah, give her a really really big one!" Clarice encouraged.


A couple of the smaller kids picked up on Clarice's enthusiasm and started cheering and encouraging the girl. "Okay, fine," she agreed. "I'll try it just to make you guys happy. But don't you dare go easy on me."


"Wouldn't dream of it, ma'am," I replied, as I started pouring my power into the slide. It shimmered and warped as I added mass, until I'd reached the limit of what I could hold together. About a hundred feet tall. Vista looked up at it, biting her lip nervously. Then her face hardened with determination.


"I suppose that'll do," she replied. "Hey, Aceso, wanna give me a boost up?"


"Sure!" Aceso agreed, crouching down and cupping her hands at the ground for Vista to step on. Clarice thrust the girl up, and she traveled the full distance in a couple seconds, catching herself at the top of the ladder.


She hesitated, looking down the steep ramp. Then she looked at everyone watching her. I could almost hear her telling herself that there was no backing out now. She pushed herself and shot down the slide, gripping at the sides to slow herself down. Oops, we forgot to mention that my power was frictionless, at least while I was in active control. Anything left behind would return to the default nature of the material used.


We heard her shriek long before she got close to the ground. I was already collapsing the slide behind her. Something she must have felt, because she looked back and started screaming even louder. She hit the bottom going at speeds that must have been around terminal velocity, and promptly shot up the ramp I had built in front. It took her close to a minute to start sliding down again. Same ride, only backward this time.


She passed us again, still screaming. The children had started laughing with delight, and the spectacle had attracted others nearby to watch as well. Including Parian and Flechette, who I noted were holding hands. Good for them.


It took Vista a few minutes before she'd slowed to a hault. She lay there gasping for air. I offered my hand. "Are you okay?"


"Y... yeah," she gasped. She took my hand and let me pull her to her feet. I kept giving her support as her legs wobbled.


"You did make me promise not to go easy, ma'am," I said.


"I know," she replied, then she looked at the rapt faces of the kids. "Best. Ride. Ever." she declared to them.


=============

A/N- Missy, Theo and Riley. This is the birth of one of my favorite character interaction sources in this story.

 

Amelia, Ch 67- Assault and Amelia


"Hey, Ashley," I said with a smile as I danced with my wife in my arms. The music wasn't my first pick, too soft. But, hey, free food. I could sit through Shatner's Spoken Word album for that. I had before. Plus, the atmosphere was amazing. The ground was actually glowing, and this weird tree smelled wonderful. "Check out Fletchette's date."


I did a half step that put us at an angle where she could look. "Of course that's what you'd notice," she said with a disapproving voice. "She's too young for you, anyway."


"Yeah, but Ash, she's just about right for y-oof," I gasped as she punched me in the gut.


"I keep telling you I'm not into girls!" She glared at me, but there was still a smile on her face. "And your stupid ass just ruined a romantic evening that would have led to a fun night."


"Nah," I laughed. "The slave driver has me on duty."


"And you're here, instead?" she hissed. "Ugh. Know what? Nevermind. You didn't tell me anything. How the hell did I let an idiot like you talk me into marrying him?"


"Because I'm an amazing Bob," I replied.


"What's a Bob," she asked. Too easy.


"Battery Operated Boyf-oof!" I doubled over, gasping. Made all the worse because I was laughing at the same time. "Halp! I'm a victim of domestic battery!"


"My life is hell," she muttered. "Hey, wait, is that Vista?"


I looked over. "Or a really convincing cosplayer," I replied. Vista was currently dancing with a boy in a bluish steel armor. "Know who the boy is?"


"No," Battery replied. She didn't sound too happy about it. I wasn't happy about it, either. "Probably one of Pantheon's new recruits."


"First the pony ride, now this," I said, switching into 'serious' mode. "Think they're making a play to convert Vista?"


"I don't know," she replied. "Certainly looks that way. I'll talk to her about it tomorrow, at least warn her that this boy might not be on the level. Right now, we'll just keep watch on things."


-----


"So, Theo and Vista, huh?" I smiled at Taylor. "Good, both of them could use more friends." Vista was a good kid. Too serious, sometimes, but could you blame her? Her crush on Dean was worn on her sleeve, even he figured it out. How an empath could be so damn oblivious, I couldn't even pretend to know. I always found myself hoping she'd succeed, and not just because of my own issues. Vista was just adorable, despite, and in part because of, her attempts to not be.


"Yeah," Taylor confirmed. "I'm trying not to eavesdrop, but definitely. Parian and Flechette, too."


"Oh, them I already knew about," I confided.


"Really? How did you figure that out?"


"Woman's intuition," I smirked.


"Lisa."


"That's what I said." The song switched as we were talking. "Huh, that's like the fourth song from my playlist that's come up."


"Counted five from mine," Taylor replied.


"That's not suspicious or anything," I frowned.


"Fucking Lisa," Taylor muttered.


"Is it too late to ditch her, go buy a desert, and turn it into a tropical paradise? I liked tha..." I stopped mid word as I felt her. Taylor's power poured across her swarm in a way I hadn't seen when she was in heated combat. That was a cold, calculated force of will. This. This was more like impotent rage. The zerglings had dug their claws into the flesh of the base, readying themselves to attack.


Riley's in there, I realized. I formed walls, sealing her off from portions of her own lab and pushing her out. She got the message and retreated.


I noticed Respawn headed over. Did he know what was going on? No, he just seemed to be enjoying himself with that redhead.


"Emma, these are the boss ladies," he said with a smile. "Who need no introductions. Boss ladies who need no introductions, this is my lovely date for the evening, Emma."


"Hi!" she said excitedly, offering a perfect smile. "It's such a pleasure to finally meet you! Khepri, you're amazing and you pull off the 'mysterious antihero' look flawless..." her speaking came to a halt. Khepri's body language was rigid. She looked ready to physically attack the girl.


Even Respawn caught on. "Umm, guys, is there something wrong?"


Aceso managed to get to us next, alongside Eki. "What's the emergency?" Crystal asked, hovering above us, the shimmer of her shield ready to protect us from any attack. Crystal's power wasn't nearly as good when used for distance shielding like this, but it was better than nothing.


They all were glancing around, trying to spot a problem. I already knew that this 'Emma' girl was the problem, but I didn't know why.


It was, of course, Lisa who came to the rescue. "Oh, hello there, Emma," her voice was saccharine. Emma jumped, turning to look at blond. "What a surprise to see you again!"


"H-hi," she attempted a smile, her eyes darting to all of us. "I don't think I know you."


"No, you really wouldn't," Tattletale replied. "You were always too busy running around with Sophia. And... what's her name... the one that chased you two around like a lost puppy?"


"M-Madison," Emma offered.


"Yeah, that's right!" Tattletale said happily. "Madison. But she's not important. What's important is your quest to torture and attempt to murder an innocent girl. That is what really matters."


She withered under our glares. Sparing a pleading look at Respawn, who stood there. I couldn't read the look on his face, but it was pretty clear Emma wasn't getting help from that corner. She sure as hell wouldn't get any from the rest of us.


"I didn't..."


"Oh, but you did," I cringed, remembering when I was under the gaze of this power. And now I was watching it happen. I should do something. Instead I kept watching. "Maybe your rich lawyer daddy would be able to save you, maybe not. But you stuffed a girl into a locker full of gallons of human waste and left her there while you went to class."


"Fucking christ," Crystal muttered. None of the rest of us said anything. Tattletale knew too much, and I doubted it was from school. And then I felt the pressure of the insects surge when the locker was mentioned. Oh. Oh no. "What did the school do?"


"Nothing," Tattletale never took her eyes off Emma, who looked very much like she was trying to will herself out of the universe. "The popular girls versus one loner? One of those girls, they know is a Ward. They chose to cover it all up, to keep the funding from having a Ward in their school."


"No wonder you have such a beef with the PRT," Crystal muttered.


"One of many reasons," Tattletale agreed. She watched Emma like a wolf ready to pounce on a deer. "Right now, I want to know why you did it. You betrayed your best friend for years, and for what? What pathetic twisted part of your mind justified that?"


I had moved over to Taylor, grabbing her hand. It was shaking.


"Oh, so that's why," Tattletale grinned sadistically. "You're one of those people. You know you're so pathetic, so weak, that you desperately cling to anyone that can validate your insecurities. You came here for the sole purpose of trying to befriend us. So we could replace that Shadow Stalker shaped hole in your shattered worldview. Well, guess what? Sophia was every bit as pathetic as you are."


"I..." she couldn't look at Tattletale, she instead looked at Respawn. "Please, Zach, I do care a-"


"Emma," Respawn spoke up. It was the first time I'd ever heard him sound upset, or angry. It was cold, almost unreadable. "That part doesn't bother me."


"Really?" There was actual hope in her voice. Desperate hope, but hope nonetheless.


"Yeah," he offered a smile, it didn't reach his eyes. "You're not the first cape groupie I've ever met."


She froze. "But I..."


"Sure. You telegraphed it from, like, a mile away. But you were attractive and fun to be around, amazing arm candy. So I figured 'sure'. You used me, but that's okay because I used you back. No one was going to get hurt. But what you did to that girl? I never imagined you could torment someone like that."


"That... that's not..." Emma sobbed.


"Oh, Emma," Tattletale interrupted. "Just so we're clear. You deserved this and worse. Everyone here, including you, knows it. If you try to make an issue of this for any of us, I will come after you with all your secrets, big and small. And I'll have evidence. I'm not afraid to unmask myself and testify in court. Who do you think public opinion is going to support once the truth comes out? The only reason I don't do it right now is because you're not important enough to waste the time. Don't make me change my mind."


She nodded, the tears falling freely from her face.


"I'd strongly suggest you leave now," Respawn said. "And find a way to lose my phone and email. I don't associate with bullies."


Emma bolted, covering her face as she made her way through the crowd. I watched her leave, and I couldn't help but notice the eyes on us. Most importantly, Miss Militia.


Zach faced toward us, away from the crowd, so none of them would notice that he was crying. His body language didn't reflect it, but he didn't bother trying to hide it from us. "I'm sorry," he said, his voice hard. "I didn't know."


"Not your fault," Skitter responded. Her voice equally cold, even as I could feel the swarm screaming. "Are you going to be okay?"


"Yeah, give me a sec," he responded. And then disintegrated. "There, that's better." He smiled. The tears were gone. "Minerva, mind if I ask you to pre screen my guests, from now?"


===============

A/N- Damn. This chapter gives me goosebumps.

 

Amelia, Ch 68- Amelia and Taylor


Taylor broke from the group right after Emma retreated. I hesitated and looked back at the others. Lisa just offered a nod and I ran after her, into the base. She wasn't hard to track. I found her sitting in one of the prefab bedrooms. Really, as much time as we spend here, I probably should just build permanent sleeping quarters. Maybe an actual kitchen so I could eat 'not takeout' at some point. This 'sleeping in the office' shit was getting old.


She was laying on the bed, staring at the ceiling. She didn't look at me, didn't need to look at me. "She's so small."


"Okay?" I asked.


"Emma," Taylor clarified. "She's meaningless in the scheme of things. On the level we're worried about, she's nothing. We're locked in conspiracies with Dragon, spoken of in the same breath as the Triumvirate, building an army to slay Endbringers. We conquered a city in a week. Everyone knows it, most people thank us for it, and no one can prove it. Compared to that, what does some highschool girl who's best hope for fame was 'date Respawn' amount to?"


"Everyone matters," I answered. Fuck, I wasn't cut out for this. Why wasn't Lisa here?


She managed a sad smile. "They got away with it because I didn't matter."


I sat down next to her, placing my hand on her arm.


"I thought she didn't matter to me," she continued. "I was standing there watching her gush over me. Me. It should have felt like a victory. All I could think about how happy she was to see me. How happy I was when we were still friends. And how many ways I could have killed her right then and there. What I'd done to Eligos. What I'd done to Siberian's maker. With the things you've created, I could make her vanish in the night and no one would ever know. And I hated myself for thinking it, for wanting that. The fuck is wrong with me?"


I flopped down, laying next to her. "You're talking to the girl who spent most of the last three years lusting after her own sister," I said with a short, self deprecating scoff. "We can't help what we feel. All we can control is what we do with those feelings."


"And then I watched Tattletale tear her down," Taylor continued. "She was brought to tears in front of me, humiliated, reduced to nothing. She spent five minutes experiencing what I spent two and a half years going through. You'd think that would make me happy."


"If anything, it upset you more," I responded.


"I wanted to save her from Lisa," she offered a pained laugh. "I actually wanted to rescue Emma, the traitor that was once by best friend, the cause of my fucking Trigger Event, from the person who saved my life and showed me that it was still possible for me to have friends and happiness."


"You're a good person," I replied. "You don't want to see people suffer."


"Except Valefor. Eligos. Manton. I didn't even hesitate for any of them," she answered.


"No," I replied. "Hesitation is something you don't do. But you still hated every second of it."


She looked at me for the first time. "How could you possibly know that?"


"The Yggdrasil," I explained. "Your power telegraphs your feelings through the bugs. The relays, especially. I don't know if they're just extra sensitive because they're linked into your power in a more direct fashion, or I'm extra sensitive to them because my power is linked into them as well."


"You feel that, too?" She asked. "I thought I was imagining it. Your tree responds to your power, as well. Maybe not the same way mine does, but I can tell when you're in contact, whether you're actually using your power or not. It's not an especially clear link, but it at least hints at your emotions, and the stronger ones come in clearer. Like I'm feeling your 'pulse', or something."


"Shit," I muttered. "You know what this means, don't you?" This time, I reached for the link, spread my power through the Yggdrasil and at the relays. Improving on them, more completely melding them into the Yggdrasil, until they were functionally one organism. Taylor gasped.


"No," she cupped her face with her hands. "No, no, no, god damn it no." Even as she protested, she used her power, flexing back through the relay points, interacting her power with mine on a literal level. ApprehensionFearNoPrivacyJudgmentVulnerableTrapped.


"I'm afraid so," I confirmed, as I sank my hand into the living bed. "We can feel each others' emotions from anywhere in the city."


"The others must never, ever find out," she said. "If they do, we'll never hear the end of it."


"We must kill Tattletale," I agreed. Meanwhile, I was assembling some biomass around my right arm. She felt it when I added one of the relays to the neural system of the organism.


"What did you just do?"


I pulled my arm out of the bed, holding it up so she could see without either of us having to sit up. I was wearing a green wristband now, stretching the full length of my forearm. "A more comprehensive version," I answered. "It's not fair how one sided the connection is. My side borders on telepathy. Your side is little more than an EKG. I can break connection whenever I like, you have to leave the city. This changes that. A direct link that's intended for it."


I felt her emotions well up as I attempted to send my own feelings through the link. I couldn't know for sure how well they were received, only her responding emotional mix.


FearComfortReliefSafetyGratitude. She rolled over- half on top of me, and held me in a hug, sobbing. "Oh god thank you! I can't believe you'd let me... I was terrified you could..."


I had to fight back the emotional interplay. "May- maybe I should turn down the settings a bit," I said. "Until we get used to this."


"Y-yeah," she said. "This is intense."


"I could turn it all off, if you want. Alter the relays so they can't transf-" NoCan'tLose, I froze. "Okay, guess that's a 'no'."


She smiled sheepishly. "Yeah," she said. "It... it's scary... but it's nice. Knowing there's someone I can trust like this."


"There's a lot of people you can trust," I offered. "Hell, even Respawn has your back when you need it."


AgreementDismissal. "I know, but nothing like this."


"We'll never be able to hide this, you know," I said.


AnnoyanceDetermination. "Then we don't bother. We managed to find a way to telepathically interact our Passengers." She halted. ConcernApology "No! Sorry, I don't mean to make it sound so... fuck, I screwed up."


"No," I said. She had reacted to my feelings. This really is completely two way. "I get it. This is major on so many levels. I..." ReliefGratitude "This is going to take a lot of getting use to."


AmusementComfort "Yeah," she smiled.


Riley chose that moment to walk in. "I was told to tell you two to stop making out, we're about to do the big finale and you have to be there."


AnnoyedEmbarrassedHappy "Okay," Taylor agreed, moving off me. "Guess we still have jobs to do."


----


People gave us a few 'knowing' looks when we got outside. If they only really knew, I thought.


AmusedSecrets. I glanced over at Amelia. She must have picked up on the looks. Or my reaction to them. I was still not sure about this bond. Everything I felt, she'd know. In some weird artificial way, she'd feel as well. Just as I picked up all her emotions. What concerned me more was how much it didn't bother me. Fuck, I already trusted her with my life, my safety, even my memories considering what she could do. This... really, this was her offering me a similar level of trust. Or as close to it as could be achieved.


ComfortConfidence. "Yeah, I know," I told her. Not that I really needed to.


Clarice came up to us. "Okay, this is the important part. I made a machine that replicates your bug signals, and I have a program for them to follow," she said. "I need Gaea to open up the ports to let them all out."


Wait, what? ConfusionConcern.


"Are you sure this is safe?" Amelia asked.


"Absolutely. It's just a competing signal. As long as Khepri doesn't try to override it, there won't be any problems. And if she does it'll just override the machine. Plus it can only control these flash bugs, I haven't taught it anything else."


ConcernReluctance. "It's fine," I offered. "If something starts to go wrong, you can just break the machine."


GratitudeRelief. "Thanks for doing this," she said. That's when I realized a lot of the emotion had been for Riley's sake as well. She is afraid I'll hurt the girl's feelings. And not just for the obvious 'pissing off Bonesaw is just not smart' reasons.


"Okay, everyone," Crystal announced via loudspeaker. "Time for the highlight and closing of the evening. Our own special brand of fireworks. You'll find the ground clean and comfortable, just lay back and enjoy the show."


Gaea put her hand on a wall, and stairs formed. "What?" She asked, looking at the others. "I want the best seats in the house."


I climbed up first, followed by Aceso. She was dragging along Vista, who was followed by Theo. Miss Militia followed next, looking slightly on the annoyed side, and not caring at all about whether she was welcome in our little gathering. Minerva and Gaea took up the rear. We spread out, somewhat. Although Vista was currently basically surrounded. My bugs found the others, of course. Osiris, inside. Crystal dropped down over next to some civilians. Parian was...


I blushed. AmusedCurious RealizationEmbarrassed. Okay, Parian was indisposed at the moment.


The bugs poured out of the ground, taking shades and as they lit up the sky with millions of dancing lights. Specifically four million, five hundred and sixty three thousand and twelve of them. Following the dance that the machine set out for them.


They whirled amongst each other and took to ever changing configurations, seeming to vanish from thought, only to reform again. They separated, forming a double helix of color and light, pieces flitting between one another. Colliding and shattering and rebuilding. And then I... then they were there again. I could tell by the other bugs that people had jumped out of place. Many of my insects were twenty or thirty feet from where they had been. What just happened? Another jump.


"It's them," I heard Miss Militia gasp.


===============


A/N- Ah, yes, this chapter. THIS was a VERY important chapter for many reasons.

 

Amelia, Ch 69- Crystal


"Yeah, give me a sec," Respawn said. Then he disintegrated, replaced as usual, but without the tears or signs of stress. "There, all better." He smiled. "Minerva, I'll have you pre screen my guests, from now."


Holy shit. I just watched him commit suicide casually. As the only member of the team who knew what that felt like... oh my god I killed him, too.


Khepri turned and went inside, and was quickly followed by Amy. Those two followed each other around like they were joined at the hip. Amy using the villain to replace her sister made more and more sense, the more I learned of all the weirdness she had in that regard. Loved her? Was that really happening? Sure, we joked about the two of them being 'involved' often enough, but... for one thing, Khepri wasn't gay. Unless Amy. But that tinker, Rapture, cleared all of us.


There was a time I thought New Wave's family dynamic was fucked up.


"So, are any of you going to tell me what that was about?" Miss Militia asked, her voice stern. I hadn't even noticed her approach.


"I just found out my date's a b-" Respawn stumbled. "Bad person."


"Uh huh," the current leader of the Protectorate didn't sound impressed. "And that's why she ran away crying?"


"My fault," Minerva explained. "Cape groupies, you know how they can be. Especially when you call them out on it. I probably went a little overboard, but you know how protective I get when it comes to my friends and team mates. Feel free to talk to her, maybe you'll even find something to use against us. Depends on just how badly I pissed her off, really. Just don't be surprised if it turns out to be that we were in the right."


"I might, at that," Miss Militia stated.


"Just be sure and be thorough when questioning her," Minerva smiled. "You might find she knows more of your dirty laundry than ours."


I dropped down next to Osiris. "Hey, take a walk with me?"


"Oh, sure," he smiled that fake smile of his. "Lost one date, are you going to be my upgrade?"


"Do you really have to be like that?" I asked.


"Probably," he answered. "It's not like it's that big a deal."


"You killed yourself to stop crying," I countered.


"I needed something for a mood balancing. It's nice to be able to reset your emotional reactions," he explained. "Riley built me a kill switch. Set up to respond to a specific set of sub-vocalizations. Instant dose of sedative, enough to trip my power's auto correct. In case I ever needed a quick way out of a trap or something. Doesn't actually kill me. Any more than going to sleep does."


"I've been through it, Zach," I reminded him "Twice. It fucking hurts like hell and we both know it."


"I've gotten used to it," he replied. "Once a day at the very least, if only because you can only stay awake so many hours without getting tired. At least with Riley's switch, I have a chance to brace myself for it better."


"You've made an artform of avoiding the actual subject of the conversation," I sighed. "I know this was a bigger deal to you than you're pretending. So start talking."


"I..." he sighed. "Fine, you got me. I knew this girl for only two weeks. Even if we spent hours talking every day. She was smart, funny, charming, sweet, insanely beautiful. And it was stupid, but I thought I could have had something that would last. Would be real. Then to find out she's a fucking bully?"


"Were..." I hesitated, but I needed to ask. "Did you have problems with bullies?"


He looked away, gazing off into nowhere. "You could say that. Nothing like what you're probably thinking. Doesn't matter now, anyway."


"Will you be okay?"


"I always am," he replied, working back to his more cheerful persona.


....


"Hey mom, hey Mister Hebert," I said.


"You're allowed to use my first name, you know," Danny responded.


"It's a cape thing," mom explained. "In costume, we're always our cape name, and everyone else is always 'miss' or 'mister'. Better that way for everyone involved. No hinting at who we may or may not know in our personal lives."


"I see," he said.


"A bit different for New Wave," she added. "Since our identities are already public. But it's a good habit to maintain. Wouldn't want to accidentally unmask a friend or relative."


He nodded. "Makes sense. I should thank your team for the ferry. I know I've said it before, but the Mayor rejected the idea for years."


I almost rolled my eyes. The man was more than competent at the things he was good at, but so painfully clueless in other ways. At least my mom was kind enough to take pity on him. He'd have been so out of place without her here.


....

"What cell phone?" I watched Lisa ask on the screen while she held the phone in question. We were all there in the video. I didn't even remember the conversation, and here I was watching it.​

​

​

"The one in your hand," Amy insisted. "Here." She took the phone away, closed it, and thrust it back into Lisa's hand.​

​

​

"Hey, why did you have my phone?"​

Amy's videotaped double sighed.​

"What kind of prank is this?" Respawn asked, also watching the video of us failing to watch a video. "Because it's really fucking amazing. Did you, like, build clones of all of us?"


"Quiet, all of you," Lisa said with a quiet, frightened whisper. "This is too fucking important."


"Turn it on and load the video from last night," Amy's recording instructed Lisa, who obeyed.

"Now, what do you think of the video on the cell phone?"​

​

​

"I don't know, I don't have my cell with me,"​

​

​

The rest of us were all looking at Amy like she was insane.​

​

​

"Ugh. Alright. Let us pretend there was a crazy stranger power."​

​

​

"Alright," Lisa agreed.​

​

​

"Now, it takes something and makes you forget it exists. Makes you forget it ever existed."​

​

​

"Sounds an awful lot like Imp's power," Taylor offered.​

​

​

"Yes! That's a great start!" that Amy exclaimed. "Now, how do you beat Imp's power?"​

​

​

"Video," Lisa offered. "Or remote viewing. Imp's invisibility was a hard counter to almost every sense within her range. Didn't work on things outside her range limit. It's how we realized we left her behind at the meeting in the ship graveyard. Her range seemed to be around three to four miles. Kinda hard to test exactly."​

​

​

"She stabbed me and slit my throat and I didn't realize she was there for another hour," Riley volunteered.​

​

​

I cringed. Even in the cape community, this is not normal.


"Okay," the real Amy turned off the recording of her showing us the cell phone recording.


"Now," Amy started. "First, do you still remember seeing that video?"


"Yeah," Taylor stated. Then her eyes fluttered for a second. What was that?


"Sorry," Amy apologized. "It's just, that is basically what the last three weeks of my life have been like. Trying to explain this to you, and you all forgetting."


"Like the phone," Lisa said, still staring at the now blank screen. "This is beyond what powers are normally capable of, since it's beating Rapture's technology, Riley's modifications, and my powers. And for it to have such a close link to a power we've seen before."


Amy stared with desperate hope at Lisa. Taylor did the same thing. The rest of us were mostly just confused.


"Oh. Oh fuck." Lisa's horrified voice came out. "Oh fuck us all."


================

A/N- A lot of big events in this chapter, too.

 

Amelia ch 70- Crystal


"Alien space whale parasite gods?" I said incredulously.


"That's about the sum of it," Lisa replied.


"Okay, how the fuck is it everyone kept forgetting when I tried to say that, and you explained it in five minutes?" Amy complained.


"Because I bypassed the blocks. For example, if I-"


"See," she continued. "They already forgot. It's-"


I shook my head. So did a couple of others.


"Note that they function normally during the blackout period," Lisa told Amy. "It's retroactively induced amnesia. They can still interact, they even retain other memories created in the same timeframe, they just can't remember the taboo subject. Makes it really hard to weaponize. Or even know when you've mentioned something."


"Fuck," Zach muttered. "So is there a way for us around this?"


Lisa sighed. "No, not really, not anything that you want to happen. My power eventually found a way to build around it. You would require a psychological break that could be loosely referred to as a 'third Trigger' to get through the way Amelia did."


"I see," Riley stated. "Makes sense. A Trigger Event is the Pollentia activating and establishing restrictions in response to environmental stressors. Including the memory blocks. A Second Trigger releases more blocks, giving access to greater powers. A third trigger... can't give more power, so it removes the only restrictions remaining."


"Imperfect analogy," Lisa corrected. "But if I explain it in any greater detail, we'd be repeating this conversation, for the third time in five minutes."


Riley frowned. "No, that would be bad," she agreed.


"So, until we figure out another method," Lisa replied. "It's just Amelia and I who know the whole story."


"Not necessarily," Riley offered. "We now have a full list of subjects that will cause the memory lapse, and three of the top five biomanipulators on the planet." I'd call her arrogant, but she was right. "We could set up all kinds of brain tests-"


Amy tensed so hard I was afraid she would hurt herself. Oh. Of course she'd have hangups about that.


"We'll discuss that later," Taylor interrupted. "It has been an incredibly tiring day for all of us. We need to sleep. Recover. I sent my dad home an hour ago, so I'll be crashing here tonight."


I agreed. I was dead tired, and mom had already left. "Got room for another?"


"You only wanna stay the night because Taylor is," Amy teased.


....


Morning came early, unexpected, and unpleasant. With Riley's face inches from mine. I barely had time to register that I was awake when she yelled "I need an adult!"


I screamed in surprise and stumbled back, falling out of bed and landing hard on the floor. Or, not as hard as I'd expected, actually. The floor here was amazingly pliant when it needed to be. I've slept in less comfortable beds. I thought in my half-sleep daze as I sprung up. "What's the emergency?!"


"There's a weird woman outside and she needs to talk to you," Riley replied.


Oh, this can't be good. "I'll be there in a second."


"I'll get the others," Riley said as she rushed out the door.


Putting on the Eki armor was really quite simple. Just hover above it and lower myself down into it. It would seal itself around me. Total of thirty seconds or less. I was out the door in a minute. Respawn was already there, alongside Clarice. And a rather unhappy looking middle aged woman in a suit whose black hair was fading gray.


I landed. "What's the problem?" I asked, trying to project confidence.


"Are you a legal adult associated with 'Pantheon'?" she asked.


"Yes," I replied. "Eki. Crystal Pelham. My identity's on public record as Laserdream of New Wave." I held out my hand. She ignored it.


"I am Janice Reed, from Child Protective Services," she replied.


My face paled. "May I ask what you're here about?"


"There have been concerns expressed that you may have minors living on premises with improper facilities," she informed me. "This is a surprise inspection to investigate this possibility."


"Why weren't we warned ahead of time," I replied back. I didn't bother hiding my suspicions. My aunt's a lawyer, and I'm pretty sure it doesn't work like this.


"It wouldn't be much of a surprise if we gave you a warning, miss Pelham," she said with a dry, humorless tone.


Clarice spoke up. "She's telling the truth, according to my senses," she informed me.


By this time, Amy and Minerva had gotten out the door. I looked at them. "Apparently, someone thinks we might not be taking proper care of our underaged members, sent an inspector." I informed them.


"Oh, really?" Lisa said with a smile, stepping forward. "So, who was it? The PRT looking for a way to sneak attack us?"


The woman regarded Lisa passively. "Regulation double blind process," she informed us. "Neither I, nor my immediate supervisor, are aware of the identity or identities of any reporters. Necessary, given the nature of many thinker abilities."


Message loud and clear, I thought.


"Alright, come this way, we have nothing to hide," Lisa smiled.


"Our records indicate you are a minor," miss Reed stated. "You are not legally able to give me permission." She looked at me sternly. "If you're worried about security, that is fine. I only need to see the parts of the facility that pertain to living conditions for minors. You could also refuse access to your facility, that is within your legal rights, however it may reflect poorly upon you in the future."


Amy nodded. "It's fine, Crystal."


"Okay, right this way," I said.


"We don't really live here," Amy informed. "I have a few sort of guest bedrooms and can create more. Khepri lives with her father. Lisa and I have our own places. Aceso stays with me."


"What of her parents?" The inspector asked.


"She was orphaned by the Slaughterhouse Nine," Lisa informed.


"It's okay," Clarice stated happily. "I have my big sister now!" She proceeded to hug Amy.


"Big sister?" the agent's face seemed to somehow be even more skeptical than before.


"Not literally," Lisa replied. "After Gaea killed Jack Slash, Aceso picked her, and to a lesser extent the rest of Pantheon, as a surrogate family. It's even there in her name. The goddess Aceso is sister to the goddess Panacea."


"Interesting," the woman replied.


We showed her around the facility. Or at least the first basement layer which we mostly lived in. "You all opted to stay here last night? Several teenage girls and a single teenaged boy?"


"Trust me," Respawn replied. "Exponentially less fun than what you're implying."


"We had to clean up after the party," Lisa again explained. "By the time everything was dealt with, it was easier and probably safer just to stay the night."


She just nodded as we showed her around, writing notes on occasion.


By the time we led her out, we had been there for almost three hours. It was past one.


"The nonstandard nature of this facility makes judgment calls difficult," she was kind enough to inform us. It was the most she'd said at one time all day. "Given the conditions of the city as a whole, this is of less concern than it might otherwise be. I highly suggest you get in contact with the Youth Guard for approved civilian oversight. The major negative mark is that you've shown me nothing to indicate efforts to insure your underage members are getting a proper education. We will contact you to schedule a follow up meeting within three business days. See to it you've corrected this by then."


This definitely can't be good.


....


"Very well," Miss Howell, the new Principal of Arcadia said, looking at our paperwork. Just Amy, Riley through her Clarice doll, and myself sat there. For the rest of the team, their registration as students was remarkably simple. 'Clarice' was the exception. Forging paperwork and records was a bit tricky, helped along by the fact that a lot of people no longer had complete records thanks to the efforts of Leviathan and Shatterbird. Convincing the school to allow her to register as a highschool freshman was a bit more difficult. And that's after we lied and said she was thirteen.


It took some time, of course, but the claim that her powers gave her enhanced learning and memory abilities was absolutely true, and that helped. Eventually we agreed that she could be bumped back if she couldn't keep up with the classwork. With much the same special consideration that the wards got, and for that matter I got when I was attending here.


Riley was simply overjoyed to be in the same grade as her new best friend. The rest of the team were mostly juniors, or would be once 'real' classes started again for the year. This emergency summer school class schedule was hardly the standard. Lisa got to opt out for having her GED, and of course Blasto and I had already graduated.


Amy jerked up all of a sudden. "Fuck!" The principal didn't look happy with the outburst. "Sorry! Taylor's in trouble. Outside, not in costume, can't-"


I was already out the door. You don't spend as many years as a hero without learning to trust the judgment and powers of your team. Especially on a team with the sheer number of extrasensory powers as this one.


The new students reacted with shock as I flew above their heads. One of the many nice things about Arcadia is that it has a lot more emergency exit doors, and they didn't sound alarms if you used them. I was outside in a minute. Looking for the problem.


I spotted that redheaded girl from last night, rushing into the building. Taylor was sitting on one of the stone posts near the entrance.


I dropped down near her, alert for anything. Just because I didn't see it, didn't mean there wasn't a problem. Khepri's power meant that she didn't need to be anywhere nearby for a fight.


She was visibly upset, shaken and withdrawn. "Are you okay?" I asked. "I was told there was a disruption."


She jumped and looked up. She hadn't noticed me. That bore repeating in my mind. She, the girl of near omnipresence, was so distracted that she didn't notice as I made a freakin' scene in front of at least fifty people on my way to find her.


"Y-yeah," she said, nervous and embarrassed at the attention directed toward us. "It... it's nothing. Sorry to distract you from what I'm sure is a busy day." She offered a weak smile.


And that's when I realized. I'd never seen her out of costume before. Sure, I'd seen her without the full face mask plenty of times, but never actually as a civilian. That body language was learned over time. It wasn't something one could just 'act' without a lot of practice. The language of someone who was timid and afraid and just wanted the world to leave her alone. The body language of a victim. This whole time, I'd been thinking about this all wrong. She's not Victoria. She's Amy.


===============

A/N- Actually, I have no notes for this one. Except that over at SB, a lot of stupid people threw the most amusing hissy fits at the mention of the Youth Guard.

 

Amelia, Ch 71


It took us time to get the full team together. Especially Ray, who had spent the night, and the rest of the day apparently, with his date.


"Dude," Respawn said. "You were on, like, one date and she brought you home?"


"Not what you're thinking, kid," Blasto replied, smiling happily. "Rapture and I stayed up tinkering until dawn. One of those things I think only Tinkers can really appreciate, working with an equal for long periods of time on things that no one else has even imagined. It's hard to find that. Err, no offense, Clarice."


"I understand," the girl replied. "I'm so far out of your league that whenever we work together it's more like I'm telling an assistant what to do."


"Ouch..." Blasto mumbled. "That's just. Ouch."


IrritationAmusement "Okay," Taylor said. "Now that all of us who are officially part of the team are here. We just got a visit from CPS today. We're deciding what to do with it."


Blasto spoke up. "More PRT bullshit?"


Lisa shook her head, "No, I really doubt it. Maybe a five percent, at best. They're not that stupid. For one, they know it'll fail entirely, especially as it's a complaint lacking any actual evidence and involving teenagers who are theoretically able to speak for themselves. A minor annoyance to us at worst. Like throwing spitballs during a knife fight. The best you can hope for is to piss someone off. Piggot's a psychotic bitch, but she's not that stupid."


"Makes sense," Khepri agreed. "We'll just assume it's not the PRT, then."


"Second most likely scene is one of our slowly growing list of enemies that mysteriously still have a pulse has decided to take a shot in the dark," Lisa continued.


"Who?" I asked. "We didn't really have that many, if we ignored the PRT."


"Purity, most likely," Lisa offered.


"Miss," Theo said. "I don't believe Kayden would do that."


"Me neither, really," she answered back. "But I could think of a lot of reasons why she would. A 'fuck you' to us. Using the same tactic that Coil used on her, more or less. A tactic she probably believes Khepri and I were partly responsible for when with the Undersiders. Or, maybe it's legitimate concern. Maybe she's worried about your wellbeing, Theo, and this was a way to make sure you are treated well."


Theo shrugged and looked down.


"More likely than all that combined," Lisa continued. "A real and honest 'concerned citizen'. Bunch of kids living in a magic treehouse with no adult supervision? We neighbor several city blocks. We only need one of those neighbors to be nosy and judgmental. The fact that someone only showed up to ask to be shown around, with no police presence or actual accusations, who admitted she'd leave if we didn't allow her in, indicates that it was an only barely credible case in their eyes. A formality."


None of us had anything to say to that. It was possible, if doubtful.


"The last possibility? The youth guard, themselves," Lisa offered.


ConfusedAnnoyed. Yeah, me too. "I was under the impression that their jurisdiction goes nowhere near us," I said.


"It doesn't," Lisa agreed. "But on paper, it looks like it could. If you take a couple shots of vodka, bash your face through a window, tilt your head and squint really hard. If only because no one else is even close to having authority on this."


"That doesn't fill me with concern," Blasto smirked.


"It should," Lisa responded. "That same kind of tricky bullshit is the only reason we're standing here talking instead of trying to find a nice third world country to move to. We're sitting on a house of cards made entirely of half truths and technicalities. We know it, and everyone watching us knows it. Either we cooperate, or we have no choice but to functionally declare war upon the United States. A war we'd win, given the circumstances, but not a war we want."


"No, I can safely say I don't want that," Eki replied. "If it comes down to that, I'm walking."


"Me, too," Theo replied. "I'm sorry, but that sounds like something my father would do."


"No, we're not doing that unless they physically attack first," Minerva kept smiling. "That would hurt our image and kill our false legitimacy. The Youth Guard has, essentially, positioned itself to do to us what we did to the PRT."


"When you put it that way," I muttered. I didn't bother to elaborate. Everyone here could complete the sentence.


"It's a matter of image and power. For them and us. By doing this, the Youth Guard hopes to make themselves look more significant than they really are. They're well enough liked amongst the soccer moms and other touchy-feely political demographics. It gives them some level of lobbying power. They're hoping to flex it, without actually looking like that's what they're doing. Either we contact them and start capitulating to their requests. Which will, no doubt, be entirely reasonable. Or we refuse and they can hurt our image publicly while improving their own. We're not in a position where we can afford that, even if it's a cheap shot."


I sighed. "Any way we can avoid both problems?"


"Not completely," she replied. "We'll have to comply with CPS requests. Aceso is on record as having no family outside us, meaning we're under legal obligations to see to her care and wellbeing. Failure to prove we're doing so, well, they can't force us, but they can make life uncomfortable if we don't," Lisa concluded. "Most importantly, they can make us look bad if we don't at least see to it that she and Zach are in school. The rest of us don't really have to worry about it, but..."


"But," I said dryly, "If none of the rest of us are there, that means we leave Clarice and Respawn in school alone."


"Basically," Lisa agreed. "Not such an issue given Respawn's powers, and Clarice isn't actually real. But yes, we'd be leaving those two alone in school. Hiring private teachers isn't outside the realm of possibility, but again, that comes with risks. Worse risks, really. Besides, honestly, this is kind of the perfect excuse. We know the Wards will be attending Arcadia. It works in our favor to identify and befriend them."


ResignationAnnoyance. "I'll go," Taylor volunteered. "My grades in Winslow were shit to begin with. Even with a GED that'll look bad. I'm smart, and my multitasking abilities have to be charted in exponents. I can study every subject the whole time we're in class, keep an eye on everyone in the building, and still do almost everything I'd be doing while in the base. Frankly, all I do these days is sit around and make mutant bugs jump around. It'll be good just for the variety. Fresh school, fresh start." SadnessFear.


"It... okay," I agreed. "I'm in. I still know most of the Wards' identities, even if they were always more Victoria's friends than mine. As often as they've said they owe me, we'll see if I can collect." GratitudeWorry.


"I'll go, too, ma'am," Theo offered. "I should be in school anyway, and Immaculata won't have me due to my father. The image thing."


"I'll see what Coil's managed to pull up as far as creating a legal civilian identity for Clarice," Minerva said. "Started that project weeks ago, we'll need it soon. We might need to 'accidentally' let Aceso's identity as Clarice slip. Amelia, if you don't mind, we could exploit a few... details... about your personal life."


My blood chilled. ComfortWorry, Taylor broadcast to me. "What are you planning to do?"


"Fake Clarice being your actual sibling," Tattletale replied. "Her supposed powerset is reasonably similar to yours and Marquis. It would be entirely believable that she caries a power inherited from the same source. No one would be surprised to learn she's Marquis' offspring. We will, of course, hide it well enough that they'd have to dig to find it. But if they did, they'd also discover your own relationship. That would make you her closest relative. Trying to take her away then would prove close to impossible."


Fuck me. I sighed, even as I resigned myself to it. ComfortSupport. Thank you. "May as well," I sighed. "Jack figured it out in a couple days. Anyone who wants to look, already knows. At least this way I can get some kind of benefit from it."


"This is the best day ever!" Clarice declared. "I get to go to a real school with my sister and my friends and it's going to be like all the TV shows!"


"Then it's settled," Tattletale smiled. "I'll discretely make sure Clarice is set up to be in Vista's grade even though she's -supposedly- a year younger. The rest of you will be in pretty much perfect positions to make friends with Clockblocker, Kid Win, Weld and Flechette at the very least."


"You can skip Fletchette," Taylor stated. "I'm not saying to ignore her, but she's..." DiscomfortApprehension.


"Oh!" Tattletale smiled. "Good for Parian. Also, shame on you for eavesdropping."


Taylor buried her face in her hands. "I really didn't mean to." EmbarrassmentApologetic.


"Now we need Clarice to be upgraded so she appears to have minor changer powers, perhaps some regeneration," Lisa added.


"Can do," Clarice replied.


"While we're on the subject," Blasto volunteered. "See if you can keep as far from Kid Win and Chariot as possible. Tinkers give off lots of hints that other tinkers will notice. Not a risk we're taking if we can avoid it."


"That sounds like everything for you folk," Minerva said cheerfully. "Now I'm going to go make contact with the Youth Guard and make them feel like they won a victory right here, while milking every last drop of perceived legitimacy this offers us."

 

Amelia, Ch 72- Amelia, Riley and Zach


SafeNoThreat. I sighed in relief. "Everything's fine," I informed Principal Howell.


"Good," she said. "I will, of course, maintain the same considerations for you and your team as I do for the Wards that also go to this school. Are there any other concerns to address?"


I sighed. "There may need to be some extra watching when it comes to Clarice. She should be fine, but there's almost no possibility of keeping her powers secret for very long. We're not expecting you to. She's rather hyperactive sometimes, overly eager to please, and is excited about school. Just tell the teachers to remind her that her sister wants her to behave in class, and have them keep an eye out in case the wrong kinds of students take an interest. For the first couple weeks, at least, I'll probably be stopping by between classes to ask about her."


Howell nodded. "I'll pass along the message. We've dealt with similar cases in the past."


"Thanks," I smiled. "I should get to class, myself."


"Glad to have you back," she smiled.


I was given a level of attention through the halls that would have made Victoria jealous. Pity I didn't want any of it. I managed to spare a glance at Taylor. She was currently at her locker, looking at her class schedule. For myself, I basically had the same one as before. AssuranceCaution. Oh. Apparently my eyes lingered just a little too long. Now I had to wonder if anyone noticed. I spotted Clarice near the entrance to Mrs. Coulter's class. She smiled- then again, she never stopped smiling- and waved to me. I smiled back.


Good thing we really weren't trying to hide Clarice's "identity", I had a feeling it wasn't going to survive the day.


----


I waved at my Big Sister when she was done 'checking out' her girlfriend. She smiled nervously, then went on her route to class. I was sad that I couldn't be in her classes, but if I was then I wouldn't be able to go to class with Missy. I could play with Sis during lunch or on our way home.


So I stayed near the door and watched as all the students came into our English class. They were all older than me, of course. About the same age as my doll looked. I kept watch until I saw Missy. She smiled, then stopped, looking around. Oh, right, this whole 'secret identity' thing. Stupid school. Oh well.


I went in and found a place to sit, near the door. Amelia told me that's where the Wards usually stay, so I wasn't surprised at all when Missy took the seat next to mine. I smiled. My Big Sister was so smart.


The first class was English. My first impression of our teacher, Miss Coulter, was that she should be in Christmas movies as Mrs. Claus. Sadly, Santa wasn't real, and Jack never let me build one. Maybe my Sister would like the idea better?


She made us all say our names and say hello to the class, and gave us these really thick books with all kinds of little poems and short stories.


"Clarice?" The teacher asked. "Are you paying attention?"


A couple students chuckled. I replayed the last minute. We were suppose to turn to page twelve. "Oh, I read that already," I answered.


"You've only had the book for five minutes," the teacher replied. I could tell she didn't believe me.


"I know, I'm only up to page forty," I replied.


"Then you wouldn't mind telling the class what's on page twelve," she smiled.


I smiled back and started reciting. "Mending Wall by Robert Frost. Something there is that..." and so I went for the whole poem. One of the earliest upgrades I made to myself was a nearly photographic memory, after all.


Using Clarice's perfectly modulated voice, I read smoothly and beautifully. Her voice was based upon Canary's vocal patterns, after all. I couldn't imitate her mind influence, but if you have to invent your own voice, it's just good sense to use one designed by the Passengers to be as close to perfect as possible.


"That is very impressive, Clarice," the teacher praised. None of the other students were laughing, now. "Now do you want to tell us what he meant?"


What? "What?"


"Poems have secret meanings in them," Mrs Coulter said with a smile. "About using one thing to mean another, and trusting the readers to find the secrets like a puzzle. When you read poems, you should always look for the meanings." She looked at the rest of the class. "As Clarice was kind enough to read the poem aloud for us, let's move right into learning what Frost meant by it."


School is the best thing ever.


----


School sucks. My first period class was math, which at least I was good at. I was late to my second period because my locker was frozen shut by Clockblocker's power. Along with a post-it that read 'now we're even'. That bastard. And I didn't even have those pictures. Fuck.


At least the second class was gym, which I could probably have claimed I was exempt from entirely, being a parahuman, but it was more fun than any of the other classes options. If only to see the gir-. Oh fuck me sideways. Emma. Christ, I'd almost managed to forget how beautiful she was. Even, maybe especially, in gym clothes. I tore my eyes away from her and pushed down the emotions. Fuck. Couldn't be easy, could it? I resolved to look into changing to another class. Get one of those 'power exemption' forms.


No, that felt too much like before I got my powers. I'd just have to tough it out. Besides, my powers were too reliant on my physical abilities, so I needed the workout time. There were plenty of other girls out in class I could find to ogle instead. None of them looked like her, though.


The teacher was an older man. Like, way older. I couldn't figure out how he wasn't in a wheelchair. Or a grave. "You're late!" He shouted. As if I didn't already know.


"Sorry," I yelled back. Mostly because we were too far away for him to hear me otherwise. "Business distraction, you know how it is." After all, you remember going off to the war and invading Boston.


I jogged up to him. Seems everyone was jogging, anyway. He looked up at me. I wasn't that tall, really, I just had him beat. "Get running, I wanna see how lazy you got in the off season," he said. Did he realize who he was talking to? Not in a 'I'm a hero, why don't you know that' sense. But in a 'maybe he thinks I'm Billy, his quarterback great grandson' sense.


"Sure," I replied. I pulled a couple sets of weights out of my back. Total of thirty extra pounds for me to strap to my wrists and ankles, and I took off at a dead sprint.


That's the thing about my power, I have unlimited stamina. Every time I'm regenerated, it's at peak health. The problem is, that gets in the way of good exercise. So I had to do what others would consider a brutal form of workout just to get what others got out of a bit of moderate exercise. Of course, it also means I can watch my improvement in real time. Especially now, with this watch Riley gave me. The important part was in my bag, sending and receiving signals from the watch I wore that was, for all intents, just a display device.


She was also working on something that Blasto and I had taken to calling the "'roid ray"- a deep penetrating energy field that would just trick the muscles into believing they've been through a stressful workout so that they grew. The problem was inventing a version that didn't cause cancer or make your crotch burst into flames or something. I was bad enough at normal technobabble, let alone Tinker bullshit.


I disintegrated and kept moving, to the shock of those students who did not yet know who I was. Well, now they did. I looked at the clock. Hundred meters in 13.97 seconds, and I lasted 22.44 seconds before dusting. I faltered for a second as the sensation of being reborn washed over me. It didn't hurt as much as Crystal made it sound. Maybe a little worse than a hard slap. Granted, it felt that way over the whole body, but it didn't hurt more in areas that were normally extra sensitive.


Pain was breaking your own foot by jumping too hard. Pain was drugs and needles and being warned not to go outside. That was pain. Losing her, that was agony. This just stung a little. Dust again. 13.66 for the hundred meter. 22.8 seconds. The first jump in performance was always the best, as it didn't have the efforts of the day to get in the way.


Then I just kept pushing. And pushing. And pushing. Eventually people had just stopped to watch, to see how long I could make this work, but I simply did not get tired. Bored, maybe, but not really. This isn't pain. This is freedom. This is making death itself into my bitch. Eventually the bell rang and I stopped after my next dust. 13.65, 22.8. Well, that was a little something at least.


=================


A/N- Ah, one of the chapters I did with three different character perspectives. In retrospect, these were a mistake. But at the same time, there was no way I was going to pad enough material to make each of these perspectives take up a whole chapter on their own.


Plus a good early peak into Zach's mind. I'm proud of this chapter for that. Don't get me wrong, the Riley section was great, they always are. But I think I really did Zach a great deal of justice with this one.

 

Amelia, Ch 73- Theo


Arcadia was different than Immaculata. But then, I suspected Arcadia was different than Arcadia before Leviathan. I found myself being threatened on a couple occasions, due to some slight I didn't pretend to understand. In my old school, no one picked on me despite my being heavier set and fairly quiet.


No one dared pick on anyone there, really.


Wealth, power and privilege created its own breed of bullies, ones that didn't sink to violence or even teasing. No, we played politics where every friendship was a calculation, and every party was potentially a snub to someone. That was how the rich bullied.


This was a different world.


By the time I'd arrived at the lunch room, most of the students had already found their seats. The first thing I noticed, and it was an easy thing to notice, were the kids who stayed behind. Most of them were thin, with hard faces and harder eyes, tanned and alert. They all sat near the walls, formed into clusters that made it plainly clear they weren't interested in letting others join their groups.


In the front, were the popular kids. Or the newly evolving popular clique, at least. I could almost see the games they were playing. Most of them were the kids that had left in the aftermath of Leviathan.


They hadn't learned the new rules of the city, the ones where they might be stabbed for insulting someone. The ones where the... there needed to be a term for the rest of us... Survivors, that would have to do. The survivors would only hate them and they wouldn't be afraid to do something about it.


Then the table with all the younger kids, who hadn't made any friends outside their classes and had all huddled together thanks to unfamiliarity. That would change. Seems Missy and Clarice aren't in this lunch period. I ignored my disappointment.


Near the back, as usual, the geeks and loners. I spotted Taylor there. That would, of course, also be my table. I mostly preferred it that way. She was having a conversation with a smaller kid with brown hair that I'd met during our shared computer class. I simply sat down next to her.


"Hi, Chris," I said, smiling.


"Hey," he said back, then looked back to Taylor, who'd spared me a glance as well.


"We can finish this up later, if you like," she offered the boy.


"Nah, it's cool if you don't mind," he said.


"Yeah, it's pretty nice, even if I need to get my dad to drive me all the time. And then he asks every possible question. Who I met, what they were like, if he's ever going to meet any of them, if they actually exist and I'm not just making them up," she continued.


"I wish my mother was more like that. She's never really been supportive of me at all. I mean, I know she loves me, but, she doesn't really know how to relate, y'know."


Did I ever. I simply nodded.


"Mine doesn't, either," Taylor admitted. "He tries to pretend he does, though, so that's pretty nice." She looked toward me. "So, Theo, what are your parents like?"


Taylor knew that answer better than most, so she was only asking for Chris' benefit. "I don't really remember my mom," I said. It was true, I had vague memories that might have simply been made up in my head, but that was about it. "And my father... well, promise not to spread it around too much?"


Chris nodded. Taylor did as well, but I wasn't concerned about that. "My father was Max Anders. Better known as Kaiser."


Chris didn't seem to know what kind of reaction to have. He was probably wondering if I was another Nazi. I wasn't sure how to just proceed, either.


"That's kind of fucked up," Taylor offered.


"Yeah," I agreed. "I know, he wasn't exactly a good person. Or a good father. Always treated me like something between a minor burden, and a disappointment. Definitely a worse person, however."


"Shit," Chris muttered. "I mean, it's not like I'm surprised he doesn't have any redeeming features that make him seem like he might be able to pretend he's a human being. But you'd think he'd have at least one thing about him that wasn't awful. Law of averages or something. Are you sure there's nothing about him that was human?"


I spent a few seconds in silence. "He... umm... seemed to be fond of his mother? I think?"


Chris chuckled. "Fuck. That's sad. Better than if he wasn't, I suppose, but still pretty sad. At least he showed up to fight Leviathan. Maybe that should count for something. Not many people have what it takes to go out there and actually fight those monsters."


"That was more about rep, y'know. He wouldn't be able to exist as a supervillain in this city if he just hid away like a coward."


Taylor's head shot up. "Umm, I forgot something, I should take care of that before class. Don't worry, nothing big."


She got up and rushed out of the lunch room.


"So," Chris said, as I was taking a bite of the fruit that I'd been working on. "You're the one who's trying to seduce Vista, right?"


I choked, coughing and sputtering as I covered my mouth. He did that on purpose.


"I... I don't..."


"Please," Chris replied, ranting as I struggled to get my breath back. "I'm not stupid. None of the rest of us are, either. You guys are about as subtle as that giant tree house in the middle of the city. Amy comes back to school. Taylor makes friends with me during computer class. She's good at hiding her personality behind that timid-girl act. But she has that creepy thousand yard stare that comes from being the kind of thinker that doesn't need to use their eyes to see. My money's on her being Khepri, what with the whole 'leggy brunette' thing. But with Amy on your team, for all I know, you're Khepri."


"She's not an act," I managed to speak, eyes still watering. "Taylor. That's who she really is. And I'm not trying to 'seduce' anyone."


"So... giving rides to Vista wasn't some ploy to turn her over to your side? Or that dance? Complete with romantic mood music? Pure coincidence?"

"Most of that's Aceso's thing," I admitted. No reason to deny it. "She's lonely. Just her and her sister. You can't blame her for wanting friends her own age."


"You mean Amy," he said dryly. "They're not really sisters, right?"


"Doubt it," I said. "But they seem to have adopted each other. You can see it if you just watch them together. It's how I am with my little sister, although not quite the same since she's an infant. But they care about each other. They're family. Anyone who says otherwise is wrong."


"So, the music?"


"Coincidence, kinda," I said. "At least, nothing to do with me. They stole Amy's playlist for all the songs anyway."


"Okay, I can see that. Amy does seem like that type," he admitted. "And your feelings?"


"They're good people," I said. "I'm sorta the new guy, not as close to them as they are to each other.


"Good to know," he said. "But I mean your feelings for my team mate, not yours."


"Oh," I looked down. "She seemed sad. You know her better than I do, of course. But I've gotten pretty good at reading moods. You don't live around my father and his people without learning how to pay attention to stuff like that. When was the last time you heard her laugh without it sounding forced? When was the last time she smiled for no reason at all? I bet it was a while ago, right?"


He didn't answer, and that was answer enough.


"I wanted to make her feel better," I continued. "I want to be a hero. Heroes help people. Right?"


Chris chuckled. "No wonder..."


=============


A/N- All the foreshadowing. All of it.

Also. Theo continues to be one of the characters I'm most glad to have in the story.

 

Amelia, Ch 74


Social Sciences was the one class I shared with Taylor. We couldn't do it often without it becoming suspicious and risking her identity. Of course, Lisa was already certain that the PRT had all our identities on record, so it's not like we really had to worry that much. Damage done long ago, before Pantheon was founded, and the PRT wasn't about to out us due the political shitstorm. Making us look like innocent victims of an unfair system was not high on their 'to do' list. The real risk was more along the lines of civilians putting things together.


"So," I muttered, while we were supposed to be studying a chapter on parahuman law as it applied to secret identities and court cases. We, of course, had hidden in the back. A practice both of us did in most of our classes, shared by the other students who'd stayed through the lawless period in the city. "What happened this morning?"


"Only after you tell me what happened in the hall," she said. "That was some weird emotions."


Of course she'd want that story. "Some girl decided to get in my face and ask really personal questions about my sex life. Apparently I'm intimate with every female member of the group."


"Uh... eww..."


"Yeah. That was bad enough," I agreed. "The part where she offered to let me feel her boobs to 'give them a tune up' just took it to an entirely new level of weird."


ShockDiscomfort. "Well, that tops my story," Taylor muttered.


"That you still have to dish."


"Emma," Taylor replied. That bitch. "She... I'm not sure. She came up and tried to say something. And now seems to be studiously avoiding even looking at me. Which is fine by me, at least."


"Huh," I said. "Tattletale strikes again." I pushed an offer of comfort into the link. Taylor smiled.


"Apparently," Taylor agreed. "Like this whole 'school' scheme."


Right. "Why did you agree to this? I know why the others went. But you, all I've been getting off you is dread and determination."


She looked down. "To make my mother proud. She was a teacher, she believed in education. Dropping out wouldn't be fair to me or her. Especially considering what my grades looked like after the bullshit in Winslow. And you know how much I like running away from my problems. I won't let them control the choices I make for the rest of my life. And if I didn't come back, that's exactly what I'd be doing."


"I can't see you losing or giving up at anything," I admitted.


"That, and I'm fucking bored," she added. "Making bugs jump has been the sum of my activities the last week. I need more to do. Worst case, if things get too busy, I can always drop out again. I'm old enough to qualify for a GED."


"Speaking of boredom, we should probably get back to the books. I've gotta be flawless. Could you imagine the scandal if Gaea couldn't pass a highschool class?"


AmusementAgreement.


....


Taylor and I split up before going to lunch. It was part of the plan. We'd need to wait until there was a really good reason for us to be friends as civilians, before we were seen together often. Thanks to her changeling, she could appear in other locations. Wouldn't fool the PRT for a heartbeat, but at the very least it was another layer of plausible deniability. And they already knew I'd upgraded Khepri's power to city range, so that wasn't a reveal, either.


Honestly, the fact was she didn't need the changelings. They were nothing but a cover for what she could really do. One of our biggest secrets was that she could hear through her bugs. Or use basically every other sense but vision. If they thought she was limited to my humanoid constructs to have humanoid senses, so much the better for us all.


Topographical city map in real time was scary enough, but nothing that Vista didn't already have. Admitting to borderline omniscience? It would be a great way to chase the PRT out, as they'd be unable to discuss anything important within the city. But it would scare the shit out of everyone.


Besides, we all had our missions. Taylor had already made contact with Chris. They'd get along well. Maybe they could even start dating and then those assholes that called themselves my friends would shut up about us getting together. I was going to talk to Dennis. Aaand no, I was not.


He was already at a table, talking to Emma. Lovely. Still couldn't talk to Taylor, and Theo had went over to sit at that group anyway. Chubby kid at the 'geek table', surely that was a shocking turn of events. I looked around, spotting the cluster of 'popular girls'. Some of whom were friends of Crystal when she went here, more were friends of Victoria as well. I felt my mood sour at the memory that my sister was no longer here. ComfortCalm. I sighed. Thank you.


Was our link really that sensitive, or was I broadcasting that loudly? Either way, it made me feel better. I am not alone. I can not be alone. I approached the girls with my head held high. Strange, I was never this confident before. Then again, I wasn't a goddess, before. I didn't have real friends, before.


It was Ana that spotted me first. "Amy!" she exclaimed excitedly. "I heard about Victoria. I'm so sorry." At least she had the good taste to not start the conversation about Pantheon like I was expecting. Not that her other choice was that much better.


I offered a smile. "Yeah," I replied. "It's hard, but she wouldn't have wanted me spending my time hiding and moping. So, well, here I am." That sounded so lame.


"She spent enough time trying to break you of that," Ana agreed. "She'd be happy to see you now." She was right, I realized.


The conversation then drifted over to Victoria. Her antics, and habits, and epic shopping sprees, and how nice she was to everyone. All the things that were true, only exaggerated and cleaned. Skipping over the brashness and poor judgment and obliviousness to the feelings of those around her. Many of the girls in this group had never stepped foot in Arcadia before today. They'd never known my sister, but now they'd remember her as a legend.


I couldn't help but smile. She'd have loved every second of this.


ConcernAlert. I was snapped instantly out of my daydream. Three flies landed on my hand and formed an arrow, pointing at the exit. Taylor was leaving. I ducked off as well.


The flies led me into a nearby bathroom. I heard buzzing in the next stall. Oh god, I hate this part. RegretCalm.


"Faultline," the voice managed to sort-of-whisper. "Wounded. Emergency. Ride. You go."


"Got it," I replied. Then bolted. The vehicle was already waiting by the time I got out of the door. The security didn't try to stop me, and I wondered just what the PRT would think about all this. My cell phone rang as soon as we were out of the school's parking lot. It was Tattletale.


"Sorry. Turns out, they have a jammer of some sort around the school. Hopefully we didn't give anything important away to the PRT by using Khepri, but this is huge. She'll wrangle the rest of the cat herd. I'll fill you in on the way."


=================


A/N- Hehe. Taylor and Chris were obviously meant to be together.

 

Amelia, Ch 75- ???


"This was easier than last time," I said to the gentleman in the suit.


"Your request was easier, this time," he replied. I guess I have to take that as an answer.


"You're not asking for an upfront payment?" I asked.


"No need," he responded. "We have your information, and you have been an upstanding customer in the past."


The first part was the unspoken threat. Not terribly different than the last time, really. They could find me, and they could ruin me. Maybe ask someone else who owes them their powers to smack me around a bit. My abilities were useful, awesome even, but I wasn't exactly a top tier parahuman.


When the roof started to drop on us, I lunged forward. At the man, and far more importantly, at the suitcase. I needed to save it. I used my momentum as I picked him up, blasting a hole for us before we went flying out the window. I landed in a roll and came up on my feet, but the man himself was injured. Hopefully not too badly. At least I still have the case. That's what mattered. That, and getting away from whomever just attacked us.


Then I realized I could not. The property, an abandoned orange orchard, was miles from anywhere. And now completely surrounded by foreboding iron gates, topped with spikes that looked more like clawed fingers than realistically designed security measures. It didn't matter, I couldn't climb it and I couldn't squeeze through the bars, which menaced with nasty looking dark spikes.


I bolted, seeking to find somewhere that wasn't enclosed. I heard the attack before it reached me, and rolled to the side. A burst of fire traveled past me. Another juke, another attack. Water this time. Some kind of 'elemental' cape? I didn't bother to stop and look.


A strange reptilian leapt out at me. Superhuman speed and probably other abilities. "Fall," I commanded, and the reptile stumbled. I shoved the shard of glass I had taken into his shoulder. It shattered. Armor? It took me a moment to realize it, but he was indeed covered in some kind of thin carapace. Whether part of his monster-cape powers, or actual equipment, I couldn't guess.


I swore. "Shit!"


The reptile's eyes widened. And I tried not to feel bad for him as I punched him hard in the face. He stumbled back and went down. I dived for cover through some bushes. More bursts of fire. It was good to know they cared enough about each other to worry about friendly fire. Still, they were skilled. That last trick would have worked easily, if I didn't have enhanced senses.


The area was getting worse for me by the second, as the ground was replaced by something resembling cobblestone. It bled from the walls toward the collapsed barn. I dived back into the building, reaching down and grabbing a shovel that had been abandoned with the property. It wasn't much, but it was better than being bare handed. I dropped the case into a large rain barrel. Good, it was heavy enough to sink. Hopefully the heavy wood and the water would protect the case, and most importantly the miracle inside it.


I flipped back as a series of projectiles came out of nowhere, embedding themselves in the wooden wall, as well as more streams of flame. The lizard man was up again. He didn't look happy with me. I also got a good look at the pyrokinetic. She wasn't half bad looking, honestly, but I was more concerned about keeping her from stopping me. I waited for her to get ready to fire again, and yelled. "Look left!"


They did, just in time for her to spit the flame onto the back of the lizard's head. She yelled in surprise and went to tend to her team mate. Good. If nothing else, I could keep this up. They would have to decide I wasn't worth the fight eventually. I rolled along the ground as another stream of fluid- this time far more viscous- shot above me. It stuck hard to the support beam. Some kind of adhesive, I'd bet.


They want me alive, I realized. Things just got a lot easier for me.


I got a look at the source of the liquid. Another monster cape- this one large and misshapen. He was generating the fluid out of some growth in his hand. I'd bet he could generate almost any liquid that way.


"Turn right!" I shouted, and his goo coated half the inside of the barn, catching both the lizard and the pyrokinetic. I didn't know what that gunk was, but you probably couldn't breathe it. The big cape moved toward his friends as I bolted toward another possible exit.


I got out without any further hassle, and was almost ready to hope I'd gotten them all, when a string of light hit me. I was shocked. Normally, my power sensed even energy fast enough to at least warn me that it was coming. Which made no sense as my power relied on sonics, but I was okay with that. This time, there was no warning at all. Luckily, there was none of the whole searing pain and possibly death that occurs when lasers smack you in the face. I was okay with that, as well.


Then my shirt came open and my pants started to fall. Dammit. I tripped.


"Surrender," the woman instructed. "I really don't want to have to hurt you."


I held my pants. Too damaged to be any good. I pulled my feet out of my shoes. "For what it's worth, I'm sorry." I said. Then I followed it up with the one working word that I hated most. "Suffer."


She fell screaming. I got up and rushed over to her. Followed by bringing my foot down on her leg, breaking it. One down for real, unless they also have a healer.


It gave me the time I needed. Now nude from the waist down, I went back to running. My shovel had been cut, giving me a very sharp, if short, wooden spear.


As it turns out, pants are useful. Not just for the whole 'modesty' thing, but because grass is incredibly uncomfortable when it comes up high enough to hit you in the dangly parts. I'd have to call that my penance for what I did to laser-girl. They weren't trying to kill me, so I'd rather not kill them. But that case was more important to me than that. If I had to, I'd kill them to protect it. My grip tightened on my makeshift weapon.


All around me, the terrain got more and more foreign and unfriendly. Grass replaced by stone, the walls growing higher and more foreboding. I felt lizard man come at me again. Moving down the stone wall I had taken to hiding behind as I tried to figure out a strategy. I caught him in the face with the spear, and moved back. The water cannon shot out as well, again ignoring the walls.


Were they illusions? It would make sense, but I felt them, my power felt them. They were real to me at least. Such bullshit. They were herding me toward a corner, I could see that now. But by now I didn't have much choice. The construct had become a prison, encasing me on all sides with no hope of escape. There has to be a power at work. Maybe more than one.


If someone was doing all this terrain changing, he'd probably need to be in the middle of the terrain. And by 'probably' I mean 'fuck I hope so, because the alternative is searching this whole place, and he might not even be inside'.


I bolted for what seemed to be the center of this bizarre cathedral like design. I didn't bother hiding, if these people could move through, then they could probably see through it as well. I wove through statues of gargoyles and monsters, posed to strike. It was objectively both beautiful and terrible, this gothic world that was building around us. Under other circumstances, I might have liked to just look around the place. This was not 'other circumstances'.


I ducked under an archway only a few feet high, adding even more to my impression that this place was designed out of a fantasy, not some weird transposition of another area. Or, possibly just as likely, that the farm itself was teleported, us along with it.


I found a child sitting next to a fountain of blood. No, not blood, it was too light, and it flowed like water. So just colored water, then. Probably. "Are you the cause of this?" I demanded.


The girl didn't respond, didn't look at me.


"Listen," I said sternly. "I want you to turn this off." I kept moving closer. She still didn't respond. She just kept staring into the red water.


"Get the fuck away from her!" A woman shouted. I didn't need to look, the pyrokinetic. She didn't fire, which told me all I needed to know. The child was basically helpless, here. They cared about her. She had to be the source of this matter transmutation. The question was, would it vanish if she were no longer powering it?


"I just want to go home," I insisted, pointing the sharp tip of the spear at the girl's unnoticing eye. "Tell her to stop doing... whatever this place is... and I'll have no reason to harm her." I was conspicuously aware that I was half naked, right now. And it was the 'business half' of nudity.


The large misshapen man appeared from a different path out of this courtyard. He was carrying laser-girl, who had the suitcase. My blood froze. "Surrender, or we destroy the vial," she insisted.


"Looks like I lost it already," I shouted. "You've figured out I have boosted senses by now. If any of you make a move, I will skewer her. I don't want to hurt anyone, but I cannot let you take me. There's always another chance to get a vial. But only if I'm free and clear."


I stared down laser girl, who I was fairly convinced was the ringleader of the operation. The others? I had already beaten the reptile, and none of the rest were really much of a match for my power. I looked at the girl who didn't even seem to know I was there. None of them had a chance to react before I drew back the spear and spun it, smacking her across the head and rendering her unconscious.


The ground around us erupted, replacing cobblestone with obsidian black and adding ugly looking spines across the area.


"Elle!" The pyrokinetic shouted, and a stream of fire poured toward me. I ducked and rolled. Over a spike strip that wasn't there when I started my movement. One bad call is all it takes. I gave in to the darkness.


==============


A/N- Man, I tortured Newter for this one, didn't I?

 

Amelia, Ch 76


The driver stopped outside the south of the city, in the edge of a state park. Not one of the ones where campers and hikers went. One of the 'conservation' parks where they just wanted the trees. I got out amidst Faultline's crew. I had to wonder why they never came up with a name for themselves, but that was't really the point. Newter looked to be in the worst shape, with an eye missing. Faultline herself was in a makeshift cast around her right leg. And Labyrinth had a nasty looking bruise on her forehead. What did this?


"Us later," Faultline said when I moved toward her. I had of course intended to heal her first, since I couldn't touch Newter. "You need to worry about the fucker in the van. Do something to make sure he doesn't wake up if you remove Newter's poison. He's a pain in the ass to fight."


One guy did all this?


I moved to the van to look at my patient. He was wrapped in bandages that were covered in drying blood. I made contact with his foot. Multiple punctures along left side and arm. Lung punctured, stomach punctured, damage to upper intestine. Other minor injuries.


This is gonna take work. I pulled out one of Riley's syringes. It contained a variant fungal organism that could consume almost any waste product in the body. Also, the body itself if you weren't careful. A simple injection into the bloodstream and it went on its way, constantly monitored by my power. It went into his lung, consuming all the blood and fluid. I began remaking it into lung tissue and repairing that. It got into the intestine and left me with that to mend. It even spread out of the wound and began eating the bandages.


I'd need to talk to Riley about making it slightly less voracious. This stuff could be a nightmare if it got into the wild. That, and I couldn't help but shake the feeling that this stuff had been used before. Not a pleasant thought. ComfortWorryCuriosity. Oh, right. I'm fine. She'll understand, in some form.


Newter approached. "Hey, umm, how much would it cost to get you to leave a little 'extra' for him? I'm thinking 'incontinence'."


Really? I just looked at him.


"Fine, sorry. Forget I asked," he backed away.


"He'll recover," I told them. "Be weak until his body replenished the lost raw materials, but nothing lasting."


"Good," Faultine stated. "We need to get back to your base, anyway, for this. Elle and I will ride back with you so you can patch us up. The others will take our vehicle and keep an eye on Sleeping Asshole, there."


"Okay," I agreed. The driver didn't voice any opinions. Say what you will about Coil, he knows how to hire real professionals.


....


"Ladies and Gentlemen," Lisa said after we'd all assembled. And I do mean 'all'. Almost every cape we had as immediate and obvious allies were here. We had brought in the Travelers. Coil was listening in, and we'd probably send a recording to Dragon and Defiant. Faultline and crew, of course. Taylor and one Clarice doll were currently being driven by her father, but another Clarice and Taylor's QoB changeling were here.


Damn. That armor looks really, really good. Especially in those heels. ShockConfusionEmbarrassment. Oh god, what did I just transmit?!


"I present to you, Word," she gestured at the unconscious man in our holding pod. He wasn't bad looking. In excellent physical shape, a kind of 'surfer' look, blond hair. "No, really, that's what he chose to call himself." Minerva added dryly.


"He's a Protectorate cape from Florida. Either the world's weakest Master, or a moderately annoying blaster, depending on how you look at it. He can give one or two word commands that fit a really narrow spread of options. All of which are summed up as 'automatic behaviors that a human being can fake'. Like, say, yawning or sneezing or tripping. Nothing complex. He can tell you to jump. He can't tell you to dance, or even walk for that matter, unless he narrates every step individually. We can wake him up just fine, he can't say 'release me'. Well, he can, but it won't work."


She gestured to the pod next to Word. "This is some guy in a suit," she supplied. "He works for Cauldron. Aka, the assholes who sell powers in a bottle and make Case 53s."


"Gaea, if you would kindly do the honors of waking these nice gentlemen from their slumber?"


Fucking Lisa. AmusedAgreement. I put my hand on the wall and corrected their altered biochemistry. I had purged Newter's poison when I healed them the first time.


Word started waking up first. "Uhh... wha..." he snapped to attention and was about to say something when Minerva put her hand over his mouth.


"The Surgeon General requires that I warn you. The girl next to you is Aceso. Side effects of attempting to Master Aceso will almost certainly include immediate regret of recent life decisions. The last time anyone attempted it, she ripped his face off. Quite literally. There's videos of it online."


"Okay," he coughed. "I get it."


"We have questions to ask you and the Cauldron guy," Minerva smiled. "And you will answer them, one way or another. Let's start with a bit of a story. Like, say, why you expect us to believe such an obvious bait and switch."


"Excuse me?" the Cauldron guy said. "I'm afraid you're mistaken."


"Actually, you are more afraid that I'm telling the truth," she said with a smile. "We have a vial here, and I read through all the details and compared it to what we know about them. I'm not buying it. More to the point, I'm wondering why someone else would buy such a shitty vial. Untested, no known power results, likely to only rank at most a two on the PRT's rankings."


"It's for my niece," Word admitted. "She's sick. ALS. Something healers can't really fix. The vials have healing properties. I don't care what powers she gets, or if she gets any at all. I just want her well."


"True," Aceso said. I nodded, my own lie detection agreed.


"Fits with what we ran into," Noelle spoke up. Since her restoration, she'd taken leadership of the Travelers. And they all seemed the happier for it. Even Krouse, who I had thought would chafe being under someone else's command. "The paperwork on the vials we found suggested as much."


"And Cauldron is where you got your powers from," Tattletale spoke to the captive hero. "What did they expect from you?"


"A pretty heavy price tag," he answered. "Almost a quarter mil. And I had to do them a few favors. But I wanted one of the more fun sounding power types. Sonic control and related powers was mentioned as the most likely results. I didn't quite get what I was hoping for, but that's the luck of the draw."


"Is that true, mister Cauldron guy?" Tattletale asked.


"I... I don't know," he admitted. "I would have to know which vial he took, and even then I haven't exactly memorized them. I can confirm that there is a high degree of seeming randomness in the results of a formula. We are still perfecting the process, and with it the expected results."


Aceso and I just watched. Lisa would know that we didn't find any lies. The subtle combination of drugs in their system were supposed to make them compliant, eager to speak. It couldn't force them to be honest, not without making it obvious we were using drugs on them, but they would keep talking forever like this.


"What about the Case 53s?" Faultline asked. "Did you create them?"


"Not on purpose," the man answered. "All the vials carry a risk of mutations. Some minor, others... incredibly major. We've improved the process, so it's very rare to have new Case 53s. You can probably find ways to confirm this yourselves. There's been no major mutations in over a year, now. And we do more business now than ever before."


"Improved," Faultline said the word like she was tasting it. "You mean human experimentation."


"No!" the man exclaimed.


"Lie," Aceso responded.


"Okay, fine," he said. "It's true. We gave these drugs to people to test them. They work by inducing trigger events, so only human testing can function. But it was always volunteers. We went to hospitals to find the sick and dying. Warzones to pick up the wounded. We always asked before we gave a vial. It may not be strictly legal, but we have our ethical standard. No one has ever been forced to take a vial."


"The memory loss?" Newter asked.


"A side effect, sometimes," the man answered. "Happens to the Case 53s. Sometimes happens to other, otherwise normal seeming serums."


"So you're saying we volunteered for this," Newter responded angrily.


"Yes," he replied. "We always got permission. Let our patients know what was coming, that there were risks and it might even kill them trying. Whether you were a cancer patient, or a wounded soldier, or a paying customer... I wouldn't be able to know. But all of you knew the risks before you took the serum."


"By 'risks' and 'choice' you mean you found people too desperate to say 'no', of course," Faultline replied. The man didn't have an answer to that.


The conversation took a couple hours. We learned that they had found what they believed to be a collection of dead passengers- or, as they called them, Agents. And they were for all intents "mining" the things. That the Travelers got a batch of some of the most powerful serums they'd ever developed. But, of course, the Simurgh got involved and that changes all the rules. Our captive didn't know anything about the inner workings of the organization except that they had a pocket dimension of their own, similar to Toybox. Apparently they were trying to add to the number of heroes out there, while avoiding the pitfalls of being controlled by any particular government.


I was also beginning to believe we needed to get a pocket dimension simply to keep up with all the other shadowy powerhouse organizations out there that already had one.


"We do have to release them," Tattletale admitted, after we'd interrogated them thoroughly. "What proof we have isn't even illegal. If only because there are no laws on the subject."


"We're not done with Cauldron," Faultline insisted.


"No, we're not," Minerva agreed. "But these two have nothing more of value for us, and one of them actually is a hero."


Aceso smiled. "Think Word would trade this vial of his for us fixing up his niece? She doesn't have anything that's actually hard for us to fix, and I really want to see how they put this together."


I had to admit I did, too.


"Also," she said. "I bet I can fix the memory loss. Or at least a good portion of it. The source is from power mutations, right? That should be repairable."


"I can agree to that," Faultline replied. "Neither of them is important. Cauldron's leadership is what I want."


AgreementDeterminationEager. Seems Taylor wanted in on this as well.


"Yes," I agreed. "We'll need to talk to them. Or someone more closely associated with them, at least."


But for right now, this lead had provided everything we could get from it.


=============

A/N- So. Much. Foreshadowing!