Legacy Super-Zero Quest

The next morning, upon waking Corinne yawned and stretched from atop the folding bed/convertible couch she now had set up. She checked her phone for the time, only to see she'd overslept again- but wait, this time there was a text from Millennium.
Corinne gulped, a text from the Boss tending to leave one on edge, but on actually reading it she was relieved by its contents:

-Impressive work for one so new to Skyline Moderne. I'd say you've earned a day off in exchange for your service to our city, since I expect you'll be wanting to sleep in too, after a night like that-

Corinne breathed a sigh of relief. While she had the tendency to over-exert herself, such as in her studies, maybe this meant she could finally relax a little since, well, coming up to this city in the first place.
Having a few coat hangers up, she opened her rather cramped closet to pick something more casual for today:
(Optional vote, will roll 1d5 if not voted for)
[ ] A neat black buttoned dress beneath a white sunhat. Hair long as is.
[ ] A black puffy shirt and red beret, with a long, brown checkered skirt. Long hair curled towards the end.
[ ] White sweater, black skirt with white intersecting lines, and long black leggings. Hair in ponytail.
[ ] Blue jeans below a yellow-and-black tank top, and a black-banded straw hat. Ends of hair curled upwards.
[ ] Black trousers, green shirt with diagonal lines. Hair in side-tail.
[ ] Write-in.

She got dressed just on time too, as her phone starting buzzing rapidly, still with a ringtone she hadn't gotten around to changing yet. Answering the call, she was greeted with the holographic floating head of what appeared to be a guy in a dog mask, with light brown-gold fur atop a white undercoat, and pointy ears.

"Buongiorno -awoo-, this is the Shiba Inu calling from The Daily Theremin. Would this be Libraria I'm addressing?" the caller asked.

"What-? How did you get this number?!" Corinne raised her voice, her face whitened.

"Founder's recommendation no less. We received word you played a big part in taking down the Big Top Trio, so we wanted to throw you a bone by running one of our Super-Spotlight-Specials on you -arf arf-," Shiba Inu went on, the hologram briefly showing the Daily Theremin's logo of, er, a Theremin with some rings around it, "Always on the hunt for new talent!".

Wait, why does this guy have an Italian accent but a Japanese name? Corinne thought for a second, though decided to keep that to herself. "Oh yeah, I did say to Grande Fantasme that I'd appreciate some credit after all the work I'd put in. So, er, what did you want to know?".

"How and why you became a hero -woofwoof-. The basics, really" Shiba Inu replied.

Corinne almost froze for a second. Miss Education was a freaking embarrassment, the very reason I'd never considered being a hero seriously until now! I mean, what respectable hero has 'making education fun' their mission? But... I can't just ignore her or throw her under the bus, her recommendations are part of the reason I ever got hired at Arachne, and she gave me old her chalkboard pointer, which gave me the idea to go out and do all this in the first place...

"Well, it all started in school," Corinne finally said "My former teacher was a hero herself, by the name of 'Miss Education', er, yeah. I was her top student no less, so it was her who did give me the idea, especially after some supervillains attacked on of my friends. I'm not packing any powers, but-" G-d, I'm about to embarrass myself "-I paid a lot of attention in school! Made bombs from my Chemistry know-how, learned Fencing in sports, and Gymnastics trained me to be pretty maneuverable".

"Ah, a non-powered hero then?" Shiba Inu surmised with his eyes widening "Always good to help get a reluctant audience more interested in superheroes. I mean, I'm no powerhouse myself. Thank you -barkbark-, that should be enough info for a feature, Super-Spotlight-Special has quite the schedule prepared, but we should be able to slot you in soon, especially with a Founder's acknowledgement -arf-!" the journalist dog then hung up, his hologram blinking out, and Corinne being somewhat relieved that a reporter didn't ask her anything more probing.

Hmm, maybe a cat journalist would've, she thought off-handedly.

That sudden phone call though did remind her of that Council AU chatroom app her co-worker Ross had told her about the other day. Scrambling through the Internet to find it, she could see there was a free version... but with a bunch of premium subscriptions offering access to way more alternate universes to talk to. Corinne at least downloaded the free app for now, which only allowed three other alt-selves, since she figured she might use the advice later on.

Like what to say to the wife and daughter of someone you were responsible for killing, the thought rang chillingly in her head.

On a brighter note, there was a lot to do in Skyline Moderne on her free day... to the point where she was spoiled for choice, barely knowing where to go first.

Probably best to get more of a grasp on Noxville first, she thought, being where I live and all. I tried checking it out in the dark, but maybe walking around during the daytime will reveal some things that were shrouded to me before.


To Corinne's disappointment but to her expectations, Noxville was only slightly brighter during the day, the heavy clouds passing through town dulling the brightness the sun would otherwise have this high up, covering everything in an early morning haze well into the day. Corinne was now thinking that Noxville must've been built on the lower end, or possibly formerly underwater end, of the original Celesta Island, since having to walk through clouds was rarely an issue elsewhere in the City.

Just a casual walk showed that Noxville was not the part of town you'd be wanting to put on a postcard, and a lot of the stand-out attractions she'd seen in Sciencity and Goldenguise had few equals here. Most of the buildings she saw were for facilities still technically legal but clearly approaching a grey area (Malicetown housing more of the just plain illegal stuff), places like casinos, grindhouse theatres, boxing gyms, flea markets, she'd thought she even spied a street-fighting tournament ad. The district even had its own skyport, albeit a more rough-and-tumble one than what Goldenguise had, and it seemed mostly for cargo shipping.

Being home to Mod City's Chinatown, Corinne also passed a few temples, like an elaborate golden Buddhist temple in contrast to a more modest, green-roofed Taoist site. She could also smell traces of wok-fried duck in the air, at least that's what she impulsively guessed it was. If not for my Geography classes, the most my ignorant self would've learned about China would be Mulan and mahjong from my Mum, she sighed, before that then led her to think, Oh wait, Mum and Dad! If that report gets big, they could find out about me being Libraria!

She could've facepalmed, but steadied herself through breathing deeply, Okay, a hero's parents should have the right to know about their identity, it would save more hassle than a bunch of lies and excuses ever could. It's just... I have no idea what my own Mum and Dad are going to think. Will they be proud, will they faint from shock, will they disapprove, sheesh I was raised by them yet I still don't know!

She slumped down on a bench, soon deciding, Know what? I could really use a morning coffee about now.

Indeed, one of Noxville's perks was that it had no shortage of cafes, but after a long night yesterday she decided to play it safe by checking out Arabica Nights, that placed she'd rushed in and out of on her way to work back when.

Passing through the square and past the Hot Tin roof, that bar where she'd fought those gangsters a couple of nights ago, she opened the door to the café only to find someone else was now in a rush.
"Hey, watch it- Oh, think my Dad described someone like you once" a young woman coming out the door muttered, her being of Arab complexion like the cafe's owner, having a jagged black bob with a white streak, a single fang poking out of her mouth, and wearing a spiky jacket and jeans.

"Huh, we have a new customer?" a voice called from further back in the coffeeshop "Ah, Dany, yes this is Corinne, she stopped by just yesterday. I know you have college to get to, Dany, but why not introduce yourself while you can?" came the booming but warm voice of Amjad.

"Actually, I think I heard your dad mention you too the other day" Corinne spoke up, also adding with a whisper "Said you thought his old super-name 'Boiling Bean' was totally lame".

"Ugh yeah, you don't have to remind me," this Dany groaned, before she perked up with "'Kay, name's Dany al-Hijazi, but people 'round town know me as Perspicere, or Danielle to my friends" she gave a thumbs up.

"Oh, you'd just give out your identity so easily?" a wide-eyed Corinne asked, stifling a gasp.

"Eh, I ain't fussed. Dad's got powers too, hell most of my friends got 'em, so it's not like some low-life can just come up and attack the folks closest to me," Dany gave a sharp grin "So, Cory right? Got college to get to, but think I've got time to give ya a brief demonstration of just what I can do".

Dany set her line of sight on an antique teapot at the other end of the café. Her eyes glowing green, the teapot not only floated towards her, but grew in size as it did so. With a flick of her wrist, she then sent it back, the teapot shrinking as she did so.

"Well, catch ya later" she said, waving as she headed off.

"Ah, they grow up so fast, do they not?" Amjad sighed as his daughter went off into the distance "Do wish she wouldn't do that with store items, had those in our family for quite some time, it'd break my heart if they broke too.
Oh, but I'm rambling. Now, young Miss Cohn, what can I get you this fine morning?" he smiled at his customer.

[ ] "Eh, 'nother black" (boost to speed)
[ ] "I'll take a cappuccino" (boost to stamina)
[ ] "Maybe I'll try a flat white" (boost to wisdom)
[ ] "Give me an Espresso shot" (boost to courage)
[ ] "You serve tea then?" (boost to skill)
[ ] "What'd you recommend?" (random boost)
[ ] Write-in.

"Hey, Corey!" an all-too-familiar voice said, as Corinne turned around to Jamie having shown up, followed closely by Hector "We were lookin' for ya at your place, couldn't find you so guess we came here".

"Hmm," Hector took care to breathe in deep through his nose, taking in the assorted aromas "I haven't been to this place before, but from the atmosphere alone I must say Corinne, you certainly have an eye for taste. Er, or should that be nose, tongue?" he nodded at her.

"Hope they serve shakes here" Jamie said randomly.

"Oh hey, you guys," Corinne said "I'd prefer you call beforehand next time, but good timing honestly, since... there's something I need to tell you, and I owe Jamie an explanation after some stuff that happened to us".
She ushered them to a secluded corner of the café, where she outright said "So, I'm basically a costumed hero now, came up with Libraria for my name" she admitted, looking downcast "Miss Acorn, she taught Jamie and I, I suppose saw some potential in me, giving me her baton and a bunch of lecture notes. At first I'll admit, I only tried being a hero just to see what it was like, but now, well, new bad guys keep popping up, so it looks like I might be Libraria a while longer".

"Hah, called it!" Jamie beamed "Hey, whatcha all blushing for? I'd say being chosen by Teach's a huge honour, I mean man if anyone I'm glad it was you Corey, I wouldn't have known what to do. So, got any powers?!"

This time Corinne did facepalm. This would... require further explanation.

"I'll admit I'm somewhat out of the loop, Jamie has mentioned a Miss Acorn a couple of times, but obviously we went to completely different schools," Hector gave out a light chuckle, before clearing his throat and saying "Still, superheroes were something I could never really fathom before moving here, but now I've met several. Still, didn't take you for being that passionate the first we met, but that'll show me for judging by early impressions, plus you were quite jet-lagged at the time".

It was then over the radio, a curved Bakelite object of older design, that another Super-Spotlight-Special came on. Not for Libraria, though Corinne had been told hers would take some time.
"Super-Spotlight-Special! Hey there fact and fighting fans, today we've got a whole super-team lined up for ya! You may remember us talking about the grief-giver Divine Tragedy a little while ago, but now for a follow-up report on the spectrum of emotions she hangs out with. Cadet Valkyrie, the cold and crushing pilot of a powerful armour! Numero Nada, the samurai moth that dwells in darkness! Solid Core, the bright-blasting double-timer of magic and machine! Together, these four are-
(Optional Vote #2)
[ ] -The Velociteers!"
[ ] -High Velocity!"
[ ] -Questacon!"
[ ] Write-in

-Bzzt!-

The report suddenly got caught off, before another, more serious voice stepped in to say "Breaking News! It comes to us as a shock and great loss, to announce the murder of the mighty hero Bruiser Buck".

Corinne's eyes bulged, that was the name of the hero La Grande Fantasme said they couldn't find the other night.

"Known for his power to counter seemingly anything, he was taken from us with a single shot, by an unknown killer," the radio was somehow able to produce a hologram, showing the slain bruiser Buck with his head missing, with a pair of antlers of all things painted with his blood, "A card was found nearby, detailing a number of stars ranking Wisdom, Strength, Stamina, Power, Courage and Speed. Given this, it bears repeating that Skyline Moderne does not officially endorse superhero rankings, believing all heroes are equals in the fight against injustice. A funeral has been scheduled the day after tomorrow. Godspeed".

Now there was a multitude of things on Corinne's mind right now. She'd thought of maybe eventually looking into that Hepcat Gang that'd been terrorising the Midway family, but now a murder like this had come up, of an ally of the Founder who'd said they'd vouch for her.

Heroes just can't take a break, can't they?

[ ] Focus on the Hepcat Gang, you can't risk other people being hounded like Mr. Midway, and a killer like Buck's would be way too powerful for you to face.
[ ] Focus on Bruiser Buck's murder, mobsters are no laughing matter, but a high-level superhero killer is way too urgent a threat to ignore.
[ ] Focus on finding Mr. Midway's family and apologising, it's the least you can do to mend wounds.
[ ] Write-in.

The three stood away from the holo-radio as the news of such a super's murder set in. "Man like, guess this is obvious since I live in Malicetown and stuff, but sheesh, some guys out there seriously hate superheroes".

"Wait, didn't that report say that killer left a card?" Hector spoke up "Listing Super Stats or something too. Like, were they trying to brag to whoever about killing that guy?"

"Hey, heaps of people are into statting superhumans, least outside Mod City. Don't some countries make ranks like official?" Jamie asked, scratching his head.

"I believe they do, places where hierarchy's more part of society, Japan for instance, I think do," Corinne said after having to think a second "India too, with how the caste system's been applied to superhumans. Of course, people in the US talk about super-stats so much that they might as well have official rankings".

"Ah, guess the point I was trying to make is that, whoever our killer is, he's no hero-hater like that Big Top Trio Corinne fought" Hector tried to explain, "'Cause I don't see that sort caring about super-stat rankings. Well, maybe if he was trying to make some point about 'the harder they fall' or whatever".

"Wait, aren'tcha a hero now, Corey? Like, you gonna go after this guy?" Jamie wondered aloud.

"...I doubt it," Corinne said otherwise, folding her arms and shaking her head "I struggled enough against that Trio, how am I supposed to handle a guy who took out a major-league hero? Plus, because that Bruiser Buck was that major, that means all the other big-names will be hunting down whoever killed him soon enough. I don't even have powers, so I should probably just lie low till he's gone" she finished.

"Oh, er, okay" Jamie muttered, eyes drooping down.

"Listen, it's okay, I'm not quitting on people or anything I've just got, er... other things I want to deal with now" Corinne tried to make clear, Like how I'm supposed to break it to a young girl that I helped kill her father.

"It's okay, Corinne. Guess you've got a point, all this super-killer stuff's may be a little beyond our abilities," Hector said.

Eventually both Jamie and Hector had to be going, but Corinne, struggling for thoughts on just how to break the news to Midway's family, slumped down in a nearby chair and just stared into her drained coffee cup.
Wait, maybe that AU Chat app I downloaded earlier could help, Corinne then remembered, pulling out her phone, Granted, maybe any of, sheesh, my other selves didn't kill Midway in the first place, or haven't finished off the Trio, or haven't even met them- Urgh, look, it's worth a shot.

Booting up Council and hurriedly filling in the registration process, Corinne had to sit in silence a little while longer, but soon enough was contacted by two of her otherworld selves... one all wrapped in bandages and another wearing the same dog mask that reporter from this morning had.

-Hello, um, other selves- this world's Corinne tried typing, -Er, kinda needed advice with something-.

-Wait,- Shiba Corinne was first to type back -Shouldn't we make our super-selves clear first, help distinguish us?-.

-That might be unwise,- mummified Corinne responded -We've only just met, what if one of us turns out to be a villain in their world-.

-Hey look,- Shiba Corinne swerved back -I can't imagine me as a villain just using my knowledge to hunt down or screw over my other selves.-

-You may be surprised- mummy Corinne went on -We could be dealing with any variation of timelines here.-

-...When there's only three of us?- Shiba Corinne came back with.

-Look, fine then, I'll say what my hero name is first, just to break the ice- the first Corinne typed in rapid-fire, -I'm Libraria, I took over the mantle of hero from my teacher, Miss Education. Insisted on changing the name though.-

-Weird, don't remember any 'Miss Education'. Eh, parallel worlds for you, I suppose- Shiba Corinne wrote -I took on the mantle of the Shiba Inu from, um, my friend.-

-Strange we all seemed to inherit our roles- mummified Corinne observed -I go by Lady Pharaoh, they tell me I'm the reincarnation of Queen Neferastet.-

-Wait?- the first Corinne had to type -So er, are you still Jewish then? Sorry, I just think it's a little weird to call myself Pharaoh in that case.-

-Aah, I see your point. Yes I'm still Jewish in this reality, Sephardi to be precise, I suppose fate will have its jokes- Pharaoh Corinne answered.

-Er, still regular Ashkenazim here- Shiba Corinne typed.

-Same- Corinne replied, before getting to the point -Ah look, have either of you met a 'Mister Midway' in your reality? Just that I- she paused there, uncertain what to type next -Listen, I was responsible for his death, and I'm desperately trying to think of a way to break that to his family.-

Both of the other Corinnes took a while to reply, Shiba eventually typing back -Midway right? Isn't that the name of a guy who gives out wacky gadgets to other superheroes?-.

-I have not heard the name, unfortunately- Pharaoh Corinne replied, -But I would suggest, if this Midway was married and/or had living parents, perhaps telling them first would be easier? Although adults usually have more power to retaliate... Ah, does your world have necromancers?- she asked -Perhaps one of them could help in consoling his family. Helps if in your world, reincarnation's cycle still exists.-

-I'm, er, probably not gonna recommend Necromancers, sheesh- Corinne Shiba replied -But look, I can't imagine what killing a guy is like, but you meant no ill will by it, right, things got outta hand? That's what you've gotta stress, I'm feeling.-

-I, I certainly don't think I intended to kill him- our Corinne wrote -I just was all angry at the time and, didn't stop to think what I was doing. And hey, this is still a world of supers, so I don't think reincarnation's that hard to swallow.-

-Right. Oh, maybe give his widow a gift, everyone likes gifts right?- Shiba Corinne advised, though the other two did not reply to that.

-Guess that's all I wanted to ask, for now. Well, I'll try contacting you later, tell how it went- our Corinne decided to bid farewell.

-Ah cool, you seem pretty okay, er sorry, but run-ins with my other selves don't always go this smoothly- Shiba Corrine also wrapped up -Sounds like you're going through a lot, so hope things gets better.-

-Goodbye, though please, feel free to contact me again- Pharaoh Corinne finished -I've got all eternity, after all.-

Corinne breathed a sigh of relief, talking with yourselves could get hard for anyone to wrap their head around, plus this first session particularly had given her a lot to think over. Least I was able to get some advice out of my selves, she tried to see a positive, though she still gritted her teeth over just what to tell Midway's widow.

"Well, aren't you a sight?" came the chirpy sound yet smirking face of a girl steeping out the shadows. Corinne jumped back, having no idea when this girl had entered into the café, and also acutely aware that this stranger was peering at her neck "Sitting all by yourself, fretting over what must be something".
This girl had jet black hair tied in long drills, pale white skin, and deep red lips and eyes, the room even felt slightly colder with her in it. She wore a surprisingly ornate dress, coloured much like her hair and skin.

"I'm fine, thank you" Corinne said back largely out of reflex.

This new girl wasn't the only one approaching Corinne, for she was joined by another whose face was largely hidden by her dark red hood and shrouding brownish-pink fringe, her hair also in long tails but framing her face.

"Hmm, maybe we should introduce ourselves first, perhaps you'd hear us out?" the black-haired girl spoke again "I go by Totenblut, Deadblood being the translation I usually use. This right here is my dear friend, probably my only friend really, Rouge-Garou. Normally we pass all our time by doing... odd jobs, shall we say. We saw you looking distraught, so we thought the friendly thing to do would be to help out," she giggled "We won't even cost you money, depending on the job shall we say, we'll end up with our own reward either way".

Corinne felt the chill in the room getting worse. "So, er, you sound like mercenaries" she gulped.

"Are we?" muttered Rouge-Garou "I do suppose we meet that definition, Toten".

"It's an ignoble word, but then again nobility is overrated, wouldn't you say?" Totenblut filled in, chortling to herself "If it helps you to think of us like that, perhaps we could be".

"Ugh, look! I don't want anyone killed or anything," Corinne spat out "...Quite the opposite actually. I was trying to tell a family how their father died".

"I see," Rouge-Garou whispered "Death is not something the people left behind can just overcome"

"Although, what if you didn't have to tell them anything?" Totenblut smiled "This father, what if we could bring him right back for you? True, it's not the smoothest process, but it happens more often than you'd think".

[ ] Listen to what these two girls have to offer.
- [ ] Or instead, ask them to go after the Hepcat Gang.
[ ] Just find his widow and tell her flat out.
[ ] Track down a necromancer, to help Midway's family meet him one last time... provided necromancers aren't all busy contacting Bruiser Buck.
[ ] Maybe get Midway's widow a gift to break the ice, though what would she even like?
- [ ] Er, everyone likes chocolates, right?
- [ ] Give them something from Arachne.
- [ ] Search the lair for any of Midway's last inventions.
- [ ] Give them the bounty money from finding Bruiser Buck's killer.
- [ ] Maybe the only gift she'd accept was if the Hepcat Gang was finished for good?
- [ ] Write-in.
[ ] Write-in.