JUSTICE FOR ALL
You consider the Travelers. Over the past half-hour, they've assaulted what is effectively a police station, injured a good number of lawmen and superheroes, and broken a dangerous child-abusing supervillain out of custody. This is not even an unusual caper for them - their journey across America has put them at the service of many a black-hearted fiend. They've arguably done worse.
You do feel some sympathy for them. They look more to you like a bunch of kids in way over their heads than hardened criminals. But you also have sympathy for the other six billion people of Earth-Bet - six billion men, women and children who deserve to live in a world where superpowers aren't a license to hurt people and act as if you are above the law.
You can't just look aside and let villains get away the moment they have some a side. For the sake of everyone on Earth who wants to live in peace, there needs to be justice.
But that doesn't mean you have to be a jerk about it.
"Children," you say in an exasperated tone, "you are not thinking this through. You have just assaulted a PRT base, hurt many men and women who were just trying to protect the city from monsters like Coil. You have been on the run across the country for a while now, committing crime after crime every which way. If I let you go, what changes? How much more fighting and escaping, how many more good people hurt? Is that any sort of future you want - always on the run and crushing those who stand in your way?"
This seems to be getting to some of them, if not all. You go on: "Consider the situation right now. Just how far, exactly, are you willing to go, just to evade capture? Trickster, suppose your plan works - suppose you switch my position with Sundancer," you point at the girl standing next to Noelle, "then take advantage of my 'surprise' to shoulder-ram me into Noelle, generating clones of me…"
"How did you know…" he sounds rattled that you've figured out his oh-so-clever plan. In truth, it was fairly obvious given the tactical situation, and his cocky attitude, glances, and body language were easy enough to read.
You ignore his interruption: "Suppose that it works. Is that what you want? To unleash twisted copies of someone who can kill an Endbringer? What do you think that would do to the city? What do you think that would do to the world?"
Trickster is put off-balance by the way you guessed his plan. His teammates are put off-balance by the sheer horror of the scenario. Sundancer wears a horrified expression as she addresses him. "Krouse… you weren't going to… Were you?"
Ballistic's a bit more laconic. "Fuck."
And Genesis: "That… That's probably what she was planning all along…"
Hm. Definitely something to investigate. Though in truth, there was no danger of this nightmare scenario unfolding. It is extremely unlikely that Noelle's powers could have duplicated your abilities… and, thanks to your secondary power pool being spread between enhanced reflexes and an invisible force-field covering your body, you were never going to find out.
Still, that little speech's real purpose was to put them off-balance enough that they become receptive to what you say, instead of determined to double down on their positions. So you can go on now:
"You're outmatched. You can't escape. Even attempting to do so means playing fast and loose with the lives of others. What's more, I am the only person you know who can help Noelle. And yet, you're so terrified of capture, that you remain stuck in fight-or-flight mode." You give them a piercing stare. "Why? You're hiding secrets. I can sense your active corona gemma, boy," you look at the sixth Traveller, "Noelle keeps acting cagey even when she wants to open up. You are all looking for a way to cure her, yet you'd rather get help from second-rate scum like Coil than from the PRT, who might actually be able to assist.
"So, why? What is it that has you so terrified? Clearly, this has been your main drive for a while now." You survey the hesitant teens. "Now, me? I am not from this world. I am new to its rules, its status quo, its people. I can't even guess what has you so scared. What I can do, however, is make you a promise: I promise that I will be fair. Work with me, don't resist arrest, tell me what has you so scared, and collaborate with the hunt for your former patrons… and I will give you as much of a chance as you'll have earned. I will listen to your case, I will take your own plight and extenuating circumstances into account, I will treat you fairly, and I will throw my rather significant weight around to ensure that the PRT treats you fairly. Justice means that culprits must answer to victims, but it also means that mercy must be heard. That is my promise to you: Justice for all. Justice for those you've hurt, and justice for you, as well. And if I may say, if your fear is any indication… then I suspect this may be the best offer that you will receive."
That seems to have some effect on them, so you conclude: "Or, alternatively, you may abandon what hope I offer you, and choose instead to keep rampaging across the country like a horde of headless chickens."
That tension-breaker gets a few chuckles, but then they're back to serious contemplations. Genesis is the first to speak up: "Trickster… This whole setup… Using Noelle to clone the Avatar was probably her whole plan to begin with. If we want to go against that…"
Sundancer carefully takes a few steps so she no longer stands right between Noelle and Trickster. "I'm not fighting him. That's… crazy."
"I'm inclined to agree," Ballistic echoes.
Noelle takes a deep breath. "Guys… I think he's on the level. If there's any white hat we can tell… it's him. He killed Leviathan, for fuck's sake." Thankfully, the rapport you've built with the girl seems to be working in your favor. "If he says he'll be fair, then he'll be fair. This our best goddamn chance."
Trickster seems more reluctant. "Guys, you know what'll happen if-"
"No," Ballistic cuts him off, "we don't. Anything we do is a gamble."
The sixth guy just shrugs uneasily.
Trickster gazes at you, at this team, at Noelle, then back at you. "Just how much can we trust you, exactly? We keep our secrets for damn good reasons."
You impression of Trickster/Krouse is that he's the sort of person who is deeply loyal to a small group of loved ones, with little to no concern for everyone else. "You don't know me much better than I know you, Trickster, so I cannot appeal to my history of trustworthiness. All I can give you is a sincere promise to be fair. You know, however, that I am your best shot at helping Noelle."
He remains silent for a moment, then sighs. "Fuck. Damn it, all right. Here's the skinny…"
And so, the Travelers tells you their tale.
The tale of a group of teenage gamers from Madison, Wisconsin, USA, Earth-Aleph. Teenagers who were displaced against their will into the Madison of Earth-Bet by the Simurgh when she attacked the city.
They tell you how they found a case of vials, with instructions specifying that they could grant parahuman abilities. How they each drank a vial and became parahumans, save for Oliver (the sixth member) and Noelle, who shared one between the two of them - him turning into some more perfect-looking version of himself devoid of any actual powers, while she gradually turned into the mess she is today.
They tell you how they escaped Madison, then spent all the ensuing time trekking across America, looking for both a cure for Noelle and a way home. How they sustained themselves through mercenary work for local villains. How they always lived in fear of being pawns in the Simurgh's precognitive plot, just as much as they feared that, should their secret be found out, the Protectorate would execute them to nip any such Simurgh plot in the bud.
How Coil offered some limited protection from the Simurgh's schemes via Dinah's precognition messing with hers. How he claimed to have contacts who might be able to cure Noelle and open a portal to Earth Aleph. How it all led to this.
At which point, unamused, you tell them that you can tell they're still not telling you everything. So they admit that there was a seventh member, named Cody/Perdition, with the power to jump a few seconds back in time. His rivalry with Trickster and Simurgh-driven madness finally led him to deliberately unleash several Noelle-made clones of himself on Boston. The ensuing murderous rampage prompted the rest of the group to leave him in the hands of Accord, Boston's premier villain, rather than face Accord's homicidal retaliation.
"...and that's the short of it," says Trickster. "Do you understand why we're a little cagey about this? Putting aside how paranoid Earth-Bet is about transdimensional stuff, the Protectorate executes its own heroes if they stay in the range of the Simurgh's psychic scream for too long. What do you think they'll do to us if they discover we're one giant Simurgh plot? She's a living nightmare. Every time we make a decision, we keep wondering if that just brings us a step closer to whatever she brought us here for. She always succeeds in the end, and to make things worse-"
"She didn't see me coming." You speak in a neutral tone, simple and direct.
"...What?"
"Precognitives can see me now, but none of them were able to see my arrival." You might be inclined to consider the winged Endbringer a possible exception to that rule, except… well, you were sent by Madman with the deliberate intention of turning Earth-Bet's status quo on its ear. No way in hell he would allow the Simurgh to peek on his notes like this. "This means that any plan she put in motion before I arrived and killed Leviathan - including whatever she did in Madison - was a plan that did not account for my presence. She didn't account for me arresting Coil, or healing Noelle, or having this conversation with you, much less arresting you." You give that information a few seconds to sink in, clearly shaking them. "Welcome to the derail."
Director Piggot massages her temples. "So all six of them, in addition to being displaced from Earth-Aleph, are one giant Simurgh plot."
"A Simurgh plot whose odds of success are extremely low," you point out. "If Glenn Chambers can't manufacture a major PR victory out of this - possibly a PR victory across Bet and Aleph - then I'll eat my cape. Besides… before Coil, they have worked for Accord, Imperator, Alpha Girl, Quark… They're entirely willing to reveal what they know about all of them."
"I'll take what I can get, but we still need to figure out how Coil - if it was Coil - was able to subvert our communication lines. Mind you, I'd rather you caught him."
"Likewise, director. However, my search doesn't show him anywhere near city limits."
"He could have simply removed his mask."
"Negative, director." You pause. "I did not make that information publicly available, but I did use my powers to see through Coil's mask, along with every villain I have encountered since my second day here." Seeing the surprise on her face, you add: "On Earth-Gimel, criminals do not get special considerations for superpowers; very few of them benefit from secret identities. Out of respect for how things are done on Earth-Bet, I have kept such information to myself, but I haven't deliberately kept myself from learning their secrets, either. In short, I have been looking for his face as much as his mask, and neither are in Brockton Bay."
"I see," she says, steepling her fingers. "A sketch of his face will be required of you, then. Other than that…" she checks your written report, "I see you have also located a weapon stash, a meth lab, a consumer of underage prnography, and a case of domestic abuse. The first three will be shared with the relevant law enforcement agencies, but I see you intervened personally with the fourth."
"The abuse was in-progress at the time," you explain. "As a matter of fact, with your permission, I would like to check the women's shelter to see if the victim is seeking the help she requires."
"Make it snappy," she says, "there will be several PRT Thinkers here to ask pointed questions soon."
For some reason, her face darkens when you hand her a sketch you've created with your powers of Coil's face. You guess whoever he is, she recognizes the man.
As night falls on Brockton Bay, you reflect that, despite setbacks, this has not been in the least a wasted day. There is one less villain group in the streets, and yet, the Travellers' prospects are probably as good as they've ever been since Madison (except for Perdition's. You're not operating in Boston at the moment, but someone ought to ask that Accord character some questions). No less importantly, you have cause to believe a fairly major Simurgh plot has been derailed.
While the experts are working on figuring out your security breach, you are required to stay in the base. This will take, to the very least, the entire night…
[ ] You spend that time getting to know the local heroes. You're going to be working with these people for a while, after all.
[ ] You spend that time absorbing information about Earth-Bet. Its heroes, its villains, its S-class threats, its political concerns…
[ ] You spend that time working on healing Noelle. The sooner it is done, the better.
[ ] Write-in.
Note that dividing your time between two of the above options is a viable write-in.
