Gonna leave the vote open for a while longer. In the meanwhile...
(INTERLUDE) PERSPECTIVES: THE ILLUMINATI
"...all confirm it. Leviathan's dead," said Alexandria in a meeting dimensions away from Earth-Bet.
"That's a load off my mind," said Legend. "So, what are we going to do with its remains? We collected more Endbringer parts than in all other battles combined, not to mention much deeper ones."
"For now, they're going to be analyzed by multiple teams of scientists, Thinkers, and Tinkers. Hopefully Dragon can make something useful by studying them. After that, we may be able to find applications - to name just one, it's likely that Chevalier would be able to engage Behemoth directly without risk if he incorporates some of the Endbringer's core into his armor." She paused. "We also want to recover the wall Avatar created to hold back the tidal wave. Between what he's told us and what Thinkers have told us, it seems comparable to some of the sturdiest materials Tinkers have made, probably even stronger."
Eidolon nodded. "I have two questions, then. Firstly, how is PR handling the battle? I mean, beyond the obvious. It's a great victory for mankind, but I take it Avatar gets most of the credit?"
"To an extent," said Alexandria. "Thankfully, he seems downright eager to share it, so I see no reason to minimize his role. You effectively held Leviathan in place for him to blast, which we're playing up. We're also giving some focus to Armsmaster and Bastion's roles in the battle, as it lets us save their careers."
"I see. My second question: To what extent have the Endbringers been sandbagging?" Even with his mask hiding his eyes, the intensity of his gaze was somehow felt. "You all saw it. We dug deeper into its flesh than ever before, and all we accomplished was discovering it had been ablative armor - no, cosmetic all along. Nothing Legend, Dragon or I did could hurt the actual core. Every time we fought them and they fled, they were just… letting us think we'd beaten them. Letting us think we had a chance. Like some cruel joke." His head inclined down for a moment. "Turning liquid water into ice to give its attacks an edge, taking down capes and civilians all over the city to distract us, using the aquifer to drill from beneath our feet, that tidal blast… Hell, I've read the seismic readings; its underwater attacks on Avatar were something unheard of. It means that every time we fought the Endbringers, they were using a fraction of their ability - and what's worse, no-one except Scion and Avatar can truly hurt them!"
"Not quite true," said Alexandria. "There's at least one more person who can hurt them." As eyes in the room turned toward her, she explained: "During the fight, one of the Blasters shooting at Leviathan while you held him was Flechette, a New York Ward. Her attacks perforated even the core without slowing down. I believe we are about to take a much closer interest in her and her power - and whether it is possible to replicate it," she cast Eidolon a meaningful look.
"She's not the only one who performed surprisingly well," Legend pointed out. "One of Brockton Bay's villains, Tattletale, provided a lot of accurate intel on the go. Her Thinker power apparently works on Endbringers just fine. Perhaps we should hire her to work on Leviathan's autopsy, maybe even help Cauldron make vials?"
Doctor Mother sighed. "I've been evaluating that possibility. While Tattletale could be potentially useful, bringing her in would start an unending uphill battle to keep her from learning too much. Either that, or working to ensure her loyalty… and even then, Tattletale is driven to lord her knowledge over others." She paused. "I'm considering it, but it's not a decision to be made lightly."
Alexandria nodded. "Then, back to Avatar. Legend, you've spoken to him more than most. What's your opinion?"
"As far as I can tell, he's genuine. I believe he is as noble as he seems, and he seems intent on working with others to help the word," he said. "He seems like a smart, reasonable man, for all that his description of his world sounds… fantastic."
"And yet, some things don't fit," said Doctor Mother. "We've tried to locate his home universe by searching for every single one of the people he mentioned. Nothing. It's like the universe he describes doesn't exist. Like he made it all up."
"Given the breadth and consistency of his story, that seems unlikely," said Alexandria. "Maybe he deliberately changed some parts just enough to throw us off? Or maybe something is hiding his Earth from our sight?"
"Hopefully it's something like that," said Doctor mother. "I'd hate to imagine someone that powerful having a sinister agenda."
"I suppose he could be the world's greatest liar, but I don't see what objective that would serve," said Legend. "And his speech seems to have had quite an impact. Tsunami has gone to the Brockton Bay PRT, asking to join the Protectorate. So have seven other villains in the US and Canada alone so far, including Master of Disaster. We also have a rogue in New York who has asked to join - Steelhammer, a Toybox-affiliated Tinker."
It was now Number Man who spoke up. "According to Thinker estimates, between Leviathan's defeat and the Avatar's speech, the villain-to-hero ratio among new triggers should go from 310% to 280% over the coming year in Protectorate territory, and from 330% to 310% in the world at large. This is assuming that Endbringer battles continue as before Brockton Bay and the Avatar doesn't engage in further game-changing behavior, neither of which are safe assumptions."
"So if nothing else, he's bought us some breathing room," said Alexandria. "Legend, whether or not we trust him, we need him in the Protectorate. Not just because he can give us an edge against A- and S-class threats, but because his presence could bolster recruitment. He might be exactly what we need to keep society from collapsing before the end of the world is even there." She took a moment to gather her thoughts. "Frankly, if he proves himself trustworthy, we may want to consider adding him to the Triumvirate."
"You're serious," Eidolon said with a tone of surprise.
"Completely. Someone who can fight an Endbringer and win is someone we want on this team."
"I've told him the Protectorate would love to have him," said Legend. "He promised he'd consider it, but he also expressed some reluctance to join a government-run team. He may do better with the Guild - I know Dragon and Narwhal have mentioned the possibility of bringing him in." His expression grew concerned. "Dragon also said the Simurgh remains unseen. That's never happened before, which suggests she doesn't want Avatar to be able to find her… well, to the extent that anything the Simurgh does can suggest anything about her actual goals."
The meeting lasted a while longer. Eventually, Legend excused himself to get back to his husband - their family was just as eager as anyone else to celebrate the "Miracle of Brockton Bay". Once he left, though, the tone in the room changed somewhat.
"This Avatar. Could he be like Scion? In some respects, he doesn't come across as human," said Alexandria. "The similarities are obvious enough."
"Indeed," said Doctor Mother. "However, unlike Scion - or the Endbringers, for that matter - he seems visible to precogs."
Alexandria turned to face Contessa. "Can you see a path to killing him?"
"Yes," the Mediterranean woman answered. "It would not be easy, but I could do it."
Alexandria nodded. "A path to bringing him into the Protectorate?"
"I can see that path."
"A path to making him go villain?"
Contessa blinked. "...I don't see a path for that," she admitted, visibly surprised.
"Hm." Alexandria took a thoughtful air. "Path to brainwashing him?"
"I don't see that either."
"So he should probably be safe from the Simurgh's scream. Path to reaching his world?"
"Unknown."
"Path to making him tell us the truth about his world?"
"...Just ask him. My path says he's been truthful so far."
That gave Alexandria pause. "There's definitely something odd going on here." She looked around. "No precog saw him coming. Every precog in the PRT's employ has reported a big change in the future after Brockton Bay."
"I noticed several of my paths changing," Contessa admitted, "but I had assumed it was due to Leviathan's actions. My path always needs to adapt to the actions inside its blind spots."
"The conclusion of most PRT Thinkers - and I'm inclined to share it," said Number Man, "is that the Avatar entering Earth Bet was an event unlikely enough, that it didn't enter into any precog's view up to that point. Once it did happen, though, it changed the likelihood of all subsequent events, simply because the Avatar has both the power and the charisma to change the world - an ability he has demonstrated well enough so far. Or," he shrugged, "maybe what brought him to Earth-Bet was in itself a precog blind spot."
Alexandria nodded. "One way or another, he is to be watched closely. For better or worse, Avatar is changing the world."
)... then unsealing it could well be a terrible idea. It's bad enough having the Scion-apocalypse looming on the horizon, you don't want to throw in some potentially less-than-friendly gods coming into the mix who haven't crippled themselves by taking an avatar form.
