Any Means Necessary (Selfish OC SI, Multiverse) [In Tower of God]
- Thread starter Eiri Fllyn
- Start date
- Crossover
- Location
- Earth
I liked the conversation between Armsmaster and Piggot, they were logical but even so their bias are showing, then again to be fair no one would expect a normal human to do and know what the SI has shown by now.
Agate really is a security nightmare, having this conversation recorded could be used to modify the narrative he is trying to present and make them either more paranoid or trustful and both of those have uses.
Agate really is a security nightmare, having this conversation recorded could be used to modify the narrative he is trying to present and make them either more paranoid or trustful and both of those have uses.
- Location
- Philippines
More please. I finally found an Worm SI that I can tolerate.
Also, is it just me or all the pieces he plans to take are women?
Also, is it just me or all the pieces he plans to take are women?
- Location
- Germany
Personally, I believe they have rather good reasons.
To them, this new guy never interacted with Panacea before, but after only meeting him once she attacked her own family, ran away and joined him as a vigilante.
Abandoning your family like that makes little sense from an outside perspective - since they are lacking essential information.
And yes, there are other possibilities that could have caused this, and while chasing shadows is something to be avoided, the risk of a possible Master like that is something a government organization would not leave alone without investigating it very thoroughly.
The possible damage caused by denying the possibility outright would be catastrophic.
On a related note, I liked how they didn't focus entirely on this option. As they said, if he was that powerful, they would probably be under his control already.
That aside, love the story and the Fate based powers.
Discretion 2.1
Discretion 2.1
"Wait, aren't you supposed to be part of New Wave?" asked Taylor.
Amelia's smirk fell and she looked down. "Not—not anymore. I quit." She let go of Taylor's hand.
"Oh."
"I'm sure we will have time to get to know each other more in the future," I said. "We should head back before the sun rises."
"R-right!" Taylor nodded forcefully.
We put our helmets and masks back on and departed.
Araliac and I didn't go back to our apartment right away. First we went to an abandoned warehouse where I knew a bunch of homeless squatters had been occupying.
I had found this place when I was originally scouting for a place to live, and had made contact with the squatters inside.
A few minutes later, two figures of approximately my and Araliac's height and build exited the warehouse with our costumes and made their way towards another series of locations. I had paid them to follow my instructions.
At one of these other locations, they would meet with a guy I found anonymously off the Internet to do odd jobs for me. That guy would then hand them some papers and glass vials with black rubber corks and a semi-transparent liquid inside.
Meanwhile, Amelia and I had switched out for new disguises I planted in the warehouse beforehand keeping only the things I actually needed like the recording devices, cash, and guns. We would look like completely different individuals when we appeared next.
But we didn't exit from the warehouse like that. No, we waited for half an hour first, secluded from the other squatters in a room upstairs. It used to be an office room, and still had an old work desk, foldable chairs, a cushy ergonomic chair, and empty shelves and cabinets gathering dust. After we wiped down the chairs quickly, Amelia sat on the ergonomic chair while I took one of the foldable ones, and we both had a couple of granola bars to eat.
I watched her eat with a tepid curiosity. I was impressed with our disguises, as she looked nothing like the old Amy Dallon. A long wig of curly brown hair covered her head, and her freckles were completely masked with makeup. Multiple layers of color-balancing concealer had been applied followed by contour and highlighter, which was able to shift her skin tone and curvature. I used similar techniques on myself to change both our looks until one could feel a very vague sense of resemblance looking at us, as if we might be siblings or cousins.
I wasn't an expert at face sculpting and disguising back on my Earth but I was familiar with the use of makeup in everyday life. As a man, some might have called me feminine for doing such, but I knew better. It was a fact that popular idols and actors all used makeup, whether male or female, and good looks could get you farther in life. There are things that makeup can add to beauty that natural features could never replicate, and in many cases the contrast between someone under expert makeup or not can be extreme. For myself, I had no lack of natural charm but my makeup and grooming skills allowed me to be like a chameleon, moving between "stunningly handsome" and "plain and average" as life demanded it. Once I'd arrived in Brockton Bay, I'd been practicing these skills and enhancing them further by researching on the web, adding more total disguise techniques to my repertoire and using them every time I went out on the streets to the casinos or shops for making purchases.
Amelia's new facial features and makeup couldn't hide her depressed mood. Her mood had been slowly declining as we separated from Skitter, and her eyes carried with them a faraway look, her mouth forming slightly into a frown in between chews and gulps.
As she finished her granola bars, she looked towards me and saw me staring.
"What? Got something to say?" she asked me.
I smiled lightly and tilted my head. "You look beautiful."
She crossed her arms and gave me a flat look. "Admiring your handiwork?"
"How did you know? I could have just been flirting with you."
"You're a narcissist."
"What are you talking about? I'm not a narcissist."
"Don't think I haven't noticed you looking at yourself in the bathroom mirror after your 'practice speeches'." She put up air quotes. "You even record your own voice so you can listen to it."
"That's not narcissism! That's serious analysis for improving the speeches."
"Sure. You also haven't looked at anybody with the barest hint of attraction. Vicky is the most beautiful girl in Brockton Bay. But you barely looked at her, even when her aura was on," she said.
"Her aura was on? You mean when we walked by her at the PRT building?" I asked.
"Yes. You didn't even notice, too busy grandstanding."
'Did you block the Master aura? Is that what happened?' I asked Agate.
'No, I didn't need to. The aura did affect you, but it only gave you the urge to bring everyone's attention to yourself, then you did your speech.'
An interesting development. I did not expect to be able to resist the aura by having a superiority complex. But that put a new light on my reasoning and actions. Was it a mistake to speak up at that time?
'It's okay, Kaleidus, I think you would have done the speech anyway, or I would have blocked the aura. It wasn't a mistake,' said Agate.
"It seems that you are right, Amelia. I have learned something about myself today, thank you." I said.
"Is that sarcasm?" She looked at me a bit incredulously.
"No, I'm very serious. I reflected on what happened, and you are right. Somehow, my narcissism caused me to not notice Glory Girl's aura. It would be dangerous not to recognize how my psychology could be affecting my logic and reasoning if my narcissism is that pervasive. But never mind that, I wasn't actually just admiring my work on your disguise, there's something bothering you, isn't there? You're wondering why the Dallons were at the PRT HQ," I said.
She frowned again. "…Yes. Do you know?"
"I projected my senses into Piggot's office while we were in the lobby and caught the tail end of their meeting. It seems that Glory Girl got in some kind of trouble, and Piggot gave her an ultimatum. Agree to join the Wards within three days or face charges and court. If I had to guess, knowing Glory Girl, she probably went too far with beating up a perp."
Her frown deepened. "Yeah, that does sound like her. She's done that too many times to count, only this time, I wasn't there to patch up the damage…" she trailed off with a guilty expression.
"You can't blame yourself for that. She had to learn to hold back at some point. What if someone died? You couldn't heal that and she would be in much worse trouble."
"Yeah, you're right." She sighed. "But it seems like New Wave is breaking part because of me. Three days before she has to join the Wards…"
"Again, that isn't your fault. They don't think it's your fault either, you know? They think I've Mastered you."
"That's not reassuring at all!"
I shrugged. "Hey, it's better than them hating you, right? In any case, look on the bright side, this experience will let all of you grow and become better for it. Look at what we're accomplished already tonight, where decades of New Wave and PRT efforts have failed. Staying with the Dallons was hurting you and them, it was like a cancer that had to be cut off before healing can be done, and now you're on the road to a better future."
"I don't know if I'm okay with you calling my family ties a cancer."
"You know it's the truth."
She said no more in response.
O O O
Soon the rest of the squatters also made their way out in different directions. Finally, I called for another guy I found online to come pick us up.
We got in his van right outside the warehouse, and he drove us to a private condo parking lot underground with a guard stationed to check for people coming in actually being tenants. If anyone was still following us after all that, they'd be stuck here.
Unfortunately…we were now more than two hours away from the apartment by foot and it was 7AM in the morning. It ended up being an all-nighter.
Luckily, Amelia had also made some booster drugs for us to keep awake.
Amelia thought all this was highly unnecessary…but she didn't know. If I provided the opportunity for us to be tailed or attacked, then we would be tailed and attacked. Even if nothing seemed to be happening, Coil could be kidnapping and torturing us in another timeline. I had to preempt that.
It wasn't paranoia if somebody really was out to get you. Especially not with somebody that could get you in simulated realities. Absolutely no opening could be given.
If all this failed in a simulated reality, the backup plan was to adamantly resist torture and send Agate off to find Coil in his base or office as fast as possible and kill him as soon as he gives any kind of order to kill me, forcing him to collapse that reality.
Once people started really leaving the building and going off to work, we made our way out with the crowds.
During our stays in the warehouse and in the condo, I had reviewed the recording Agate made of Piggot's discussion with Armsmaster after we left. They figured out more than I expected, but nothing that would particularly hurt me yet. They wanted more proof about my claims…which they weren't going to get if Contessa did her job.
I had given a bit more information than I'd intended with those lies they detected. I was under a bit more suspicion as a potential powerful Master or Thinker than I would have liked, given the responses associated with ratings of 9, but it also misdirected them about my actual plans.
There were tempting targets I might want to bring to my side, but their thinking was way off.
Someone like Bakuda or Squealer wouldn't work for me because I had no actual Master powers. If I had Canary, it might be better…but I doubted that I could convince her to Master people into working for me. At least, not without a lot of effort.
The biggest failure in their analysis of me was that they didn't realize that a villain like Coil could exist. Even if they figured out that I had kept information from them about infiltrators, they didn't understand the scope of Coil's operations and the fundamental rule that all war is based on deception. A well-funded and organized operation could be a major threat even without capes.
Coil was definitely biggest threat in Brockton Bay other than the PRT themselves. If I remembered correctly, he had over fifty mercenaries equipped with mass-produced tinkertech armor that was substantially superior to Kevlar, and lasers that could easily smash through steel in an instant.
That was on top of the Undersiders, four capes, plus Circus and Chariot whom he was holding in reserve. Finally, with his money he could buy the services of Faultline's Crew at any time. Lucky for me that he didn't have Dinah's precognition or the services of the Travelers yet. If he did…that would be the biggest group of capes in Brockton Bay, yet hardly anyone thought he was a threat.
That was the one thing the PRT failed to understand. They were used to fighting clear cut cape vs. cape battles, and even big name Masters like Heartbreaker or Valefor made obvious waves when they acted. Both Coil and I were playing a different game, and the PRT's unfortunate response played right into my hands.
On the surface it looked like she was taking all the right steps for beefing up security. But she made a classic mistake. A unified, trained, and disciplined army with absolute trust in its generalship is completely different from an army formed of a loose collection of different elements. The PRT was not the former. It consisted of troopers, consultants, Protectorate heroes, and even barely trained kids.
Suddenly cracking down with these groups and classifying the reason for the crackdown?
Perfect way to start a panic.
Even worse was her choice to put herself under Master/Stranger protocols. One might consider it admirable for not seeing herself above doubt…but she just made the situation easier for me to exploit.
It was 7:30AM when we got back to the apartment with a taxi ride.
Amelia and I made a quick sandwich snack before she went off to catch a few hours of sleep.
"Wait, aren't you supposed to be part of New Wave?" asked Taylor.
Amelia's smirk fell and she looked down. "Not—not anymore. I quit." She let go of Taylor's hand.
"Oh."
"I'm sure we will have time to get to know each other more in the future," I said. "We should head back before the sun rises."
"R-right!" Taylor nodded forcefully.
We put our helmets and masks back on and departed.
Araliac and I didn't go back to our apartment right away. First we went to an abandoned warehouse where I knew a bunch of homeless squatters had been occupying.
I had found this place when I was originally scouting for a place to live, and had made contact with the squatters inside.
A few minutes later, two figures of approximately my and Araliac's height and build exited the warehouse with our costumes and made their way towards another series of locations. I had paid them to follow my instructions.
At one of these other locations, they would meet with a guy I found anonymously off the Internet to do odd jobs for me. That guy would then hand them some papers and glass vials with black rubber corks and a semi-transparent liquid inside.
Meanwhile, Amelia and I had switched out for new disguises I planted in the warehouse beforehand keeping only the things I actually needed like the recording devices, cash, and guns. We would look like completely different individuals when we appeared next.
But we didn't exit from the warehouse like that. No, we waited for half an hour first, secluded from the other squatters in a room upstairs. It used to be an office room, and still had an old work desk, foldable chairs, a cushy ergonomic chair, and empty shelves and cabinets gathering dust. After we wiped down the chairs quickly, Amelia sat on the ergonomic chair while I took one of the foldable ones, and we both had a couple of granola bars to eat.
I watched her eat with a tepid curiosity. I was impressed with our disguises, as she looked nothing like the old Amy Dallon. A long wig of curly brown hair covered her head, and her freckles were completely masked with makeup. Multiple layers of color-balancing concealer had been applied followed by contour and highlighter, which was able to shift her skin tone and curvature. I used similar techniques on myself to change both our looks until one could feel a very vague sense of resemblance looking at us, as if we might be siblings or cousins.
I wasn't an expert at face sculpting and disguising back on my Earth but I was familiar with the use of makeup in everyday life. As a man, some might have called me feminine for doing such, but I knew better. It was a fact that popular idols and actors all used makeup, whether male or female, and good looks could get you farther in life. There are things that makeup can add to beauty that natural features could never replicate, and in many cases the contrast between someone under expert makeup or not can be extreme. For myself, I had no lack of natural charm but my makeup and grooming skills allowed me to be like a chameleon, moving between "stunningly handsome" and "plain and average" as life demanded it. Once I'd arrived in Brockton Bay, I'd been practicing these skills and enhancing them further by researching on the web, adding more total disguise techniques to my repertoire and using them every time I went out on the streets to the casinos or shops for making purchases.
Amelia's new facial features and makeup couldn't hide her depressed mood. Her mood had been slowly declining as we separated from Skitter, and her eyes carried with them a faraway look, her mouth forming slightly into a frown in between chews and gulps.
As she finished her granola bars, she looked towards me and saw me staring.
"What? Got something to say?" she asked me.
I smiled lightly and tilted my head. "You look beautiful."
She crossed her arms and gave me a flat look. "Admiring your handiwork?"
"How did you know? I could have just been flirting with you."
"You're a narcissist."
"What are you talking about? I'm not a narcissist."
"Don't think I haven't noticed you looking at yourself in the bathroom mirror after your 'practice speeches'." She put up air quotes. "You even record your own voice so you can listen to it."
"That's not narcissism! That's serious analysis for improving the speeches."
"Sure. You also haven't looked at anybody with the barest hint of attraction. Vicky is the most beautiful girl in Brockton Bay. But you barely looked at her, even when her aura was on," she said.
"Her aura was on? You mean when we walked by her at the PRT building?" I asked.
"Yes. You didn't even notice, too busy grandstanding."
'Did you block the Master aura? Is that what happened?' I asked Agate.
'No, I didn't need to. The aura did affect you, but it only gave you the urge to bring everyone's attention to yourself, then you did your speech.'
An interesting development. I did not expect to be able to resist the aura by having a superiority complex. But that put a new light on my reasoning and actions. Was it a mistake to speak up at that time?
'It's okay, Kaleidus, I think you would have done the speech anyway, or I would have blocked the aura. It wasn't a mistake,' said Agate.
"It seems that you are right, Amelia. I have learned something about myself today, thank you." I said.
"Is that sarcasm?" She looked at me a bit incredulously.
"No, I'm very serious. I reflected on what happened, and you are right. Somehow, my narcissism caused me to not notice Glory Girl's aura. It would be dangerous not to recognize how my psychology could be affecting my logic and reasoning if my narcissism is that pervasive. But never mind that, I wasn't actually just admiring my work on your disguise, there's something bothering you, isn't there? You're wondering why the Dallons were at the PRT HQ," I said.
She frowned again. "…Yes. Do you know?"
"I projected my senses into Piggot's office while we were in the lobby and caught the tail end of their meeting. It seems that Glory Girl got in some kind of trouble, and Piggot gave her an ultimatum. Agree to join the Wards within three days or face charges and court. If I had to guess, knowing Glory Girl, she probably went too far with beating up a perp."
Her frown deepened. "Yeah, that does sound like her. She's done that too many times to count, only this time, I wasn't there to patch up the damage…" she trailed off with a guilty expression.
"You can't blame yourself for that. She had to learn to hold back at some point. What if someone died? You couldn't heal that and she would be in much worse trouble."
"Yeah, you're right." She sighed. "But it seems like New Wave is breaking part because of me. Three days before she has to join the Wards…"
"Again, that isn't your fault. They don't think it's your fault either, you know? They think I've Mastered you."
"That's not reassuring at all!"
I shrugged. "Hey, it's better than them hating you, right? In any case, look on the bright side, this experience will let all of you grow and become better for it. Look at what we're accomplished already tonight, where decades of New Wave and PRT efforts have failed. Staying with the Dallons was hurting you and them, it was like a cancer that had to be cut off before healing can be done, and now you're on the road to a better future."
"I don't know if I'm okay with you calling my family ties a cancer."
"You know it's the truth."
She said no more in response.
O O O
Soon the rest of the squatters also made their way out in different directions. Finally, I called for another guy I found online to come pick us up.
We got in his van right outside the warehouse, and he drove us to a private condo parking lot underground with a guard stationed to check for people coming in actually being tenants. If anyone was still following us after all that, they'd be stuck here.
Unfortunately…we were now more than two hours away from the apartment by foot and it was 7AM in the morning. It ended up being an all-nighter.
Luckily, Amelia had also made some booster drugs for us to keep awake.
Amelia thought all this was highly unnecessary…but she didn't know. If I provided the opportunity for us to be tailed or attacked, then we would be tailed and attacked. Even if nothing seemed to be happening, Coil could be kidnapping and torturing us in another timeline. I had to preempt that.
It wasn't paranoia if somebody really was out to get you. Especially not with somebody that could get you in simulated realities. Absolutely no opening could be given.
If all this failed in a simulated reality, the backup plan was to adamantly resist torture and send Agate off to find Coil in his base or office as fast as possible and kill him as soon as he gives any kind of order to kill me, forcing him to collapse that reality.
Once people started really leaving the building and going off to work, we made our way out with the crowds.
During our stays in the warehouse and in the condo, I had reviewed the recording Agate made of Piggot's discussion with Armsmaster after we left. They figured out more than I expected, but nothing that would particularly hurt me yet. They wanted more proof about my claims…which they weren't going to get if Contessa did her job.
I had given a bit more information than I'd intended with those lies they detected. I was under a bit more suspicion as a potential powerful Master or Thinker than I would have liked, given the responses associated with ratings of 9, but it also misdirected them about my actual plans.
There were tempting targets I might want to bring to my side, but their thinking was way off.
Someone like Bakuda or Squealer wouldn't work for me because I had no actual Master powers. If I had Canary, it might be better…but I doubted that I could convince her to Master people into working for me. At least, not without a lot of effort.
The biggest failure in their analysis of me was that they didn't realize that a villain like Coil could exist. Even if they figured out that I had kept information from them about infiltrators, they didn't understand the scope of Coil's operations and the fundamental rule that all war is based on deception. A well-funded and organized operation could be a major threat even without capes.
Coil was definitely biggest threat in Brockton Bay other than the PRT themselves. If I remembered correctly, he had over fifty mercenaries equipped with mass-produced tinkertech armor that was substantially superior to Kevlar, and lasers that could easily smash through steel in an instant.
That was on top of the Undersiders, four capes, plus Circus and Chariot whom he was holding in reserve. Finally, with his money he could buy the services of Faultline's Crew at any time. Lucky for me that he didn't have Dinah's precognition or the services of the Travelers yet. If he did…that would be the biggest group of capes in Brockton Bay, yet hardly anyone thought he was a threat.
That was the one thing the PRT failed to understand. They were used to fighting clear cut cape vs. cape battles, and even big name Masters like Heartbreaker or Valefor made obvious waves when they acted. Both Coil and I were playing a different game, and the PRT's unfortunate response played right into my hands.
On the surface it looked like she was taking all the right steps for beefing up security. But she made a classic mistake. A unified, trained, and disciplined army with absolute trust in its generalship is completely different from an army formed of a loose collection of different elements. The PRT was not the former. It consisted of troopers, consultants, Protectorate heroes, and even barely trained kids.
Suddenly cracking down with these groups and classifying the reason for the crackdown?
Perfect way to start a panic.
Even worse was her choice to put herself under Master/Stranger protocols. One might consider it admirable for not seeing herself above doubt…but she just made the situation easier for me to exploit.
It was 7:30AM when we got back to the apartment with a taxi ride.
Amelia and I made a quick sandwich snack before she went off to catch a few hours of sleep.
- Location
- Canada
Kaleidus is being reasonably clever in most respects, but that is very dubious timing. Wouldn't it make more sense to kill Coil as soon as possible, given that he just captured you? I really can't see any tactical advantage from sitting around getting tortured while waiting for Coil to give the order, only to strike in the moment between when the order is given and when it is executed. If Agate is capable of locating and killing Coil, it seems like it'd make more sense to do so either 'whenever Coil acts against your interests, so he stops doing that', or 'pre-emptively and as soon as possible, ideally as part of a two-pronged assault that has Agate kill Coil in his base while you and your team get him at home, in his sleep'. Either option would seem to offer a lot of advantage over 'after being tortured for some time, and the moment before he has you killed'.
- Location
- Philippines
You don't really need to kill coil. Just go outside his area operational area.
- Location
- Nowhere
That's why I fully believe that when the robots rise up and enslave us all, it won't be to make us calculate pi all day; it will to be make us continue producing new stories and snarky comments to feed their insatiable appetites.
I'm not entirely sure I understood the question, but if you are asking why, in the event of a Coil attack, Kaleidus would choose to send off Agate to find Coil, but continue to allow himself to be tortured when Agate finds him until Coil gives the order to kill (and/or something really awful/permanent maiming, presumably), then the answer is that there is actually an advantage: timing and information. The sooner Coil realizes Kaleidus is capable of killing him, the sooner he can react and test how Kaleidus will use that ability. In Kaleidus' mind, Coil's strategy should always have 1 test and 1 control timeline, but Kaleidus would not know in the control timeline that he's been attacked in the test timeline. This means that Coil can potentially continuously attack Kaleidus to figure out when the assassination happens and how to avoid it, until he does find a way and Kaleidus is truly screwed. Thus, it is to his benefit to drag on each test timeline as long as possible while the control timeline progresses and Kaleidus' own attack plans can come into effect or something else occupies Coil's attention. There's also the fact the Kaleidus is actually conceited enough to think that he can resist torture despite having no training in it. Of course, if he's not as good as he thinks he is, he can always telepathically order the deed anyway.
If your question was why doesn't Kaleidus simply attack Coil right now instead of waiting to be attacked to respond? Well he doesn't know where Calvert lives yet, for one, and Calvert wasn't in PRT offices last night so he couldn't be tailed. And Agate can only be in one place at a time. It's not clear how long it would take to actually find his base, and Agate can't be used for anything else while she's doing that.
- Location
- Canada
The phrasing of the plan suggests that Kaleidus believes that Agate would succeed in such a search, and be successful enough to dictate the timing exactly, as though he's in total control of the situation and can act at will. This implies a greater amount of knowledge than he apparently has. It wouldn't be totally implausible for someone with outside knowledge and magical scrying to perform feats of divination such as "looking Thomas Calvert up in the phone book", but even starting with the right Coil would still result in a certain degree of time spent on searching, and Kaleidus hasn't been around long, and does have other priorities...
Since he doesn't have the info he'd need for an immediate kill, though, overconfidence is a fine answer. Plausibly still a mistake, but a very believable one for someone with the SI's personality.
It's a backup plan though, using it at all means something has gone wrong and he's at the end of the rope.
If I recall correctly, the proper way to deal with Coil is as follows: Precommit to killing him simultaneously in both timelines in ~2 days time. Coil in canon doesn't keep his timeline open for more than a day usually, so the action he took that caused you to precommit is now no longer something he can avoid. The problem is that whatever sends you over the edge (in terms of saying, ok now I actually need to kill him) needs to be something you can face tank for 2 days.
The thing that I think would actually result in easy mode for this SI, is that the timelines are alternate realities, which agate can probably study. So chill at home for a week and help Amy tinker with plants or some shit, while agate researches how to fuck with both timelines at once.
Also agate can plug usbs into computers, so if our SI's leet sup3r h@x0r skills are up to it (which they seem to be because he has a grab bag of incredibly convenient life skills) he can probably do things like release Noel's cage to sew confusion, self destruct the base, steal Coil's money. Reveal coil to the PRT poorly hacking the PRT network. etc.
The thing that I think would actually result in easy mode for this SI, is that the timelines are alternate realities, which agate can probably study. So chill at home for a week and help Amy tinker with plants or some shit, while agate researches how to fuck with both timelines at once.
Also agate can plug usbs into computers, so if our SI's leet sup3r h@x0r skills are up to it (which they seem to be because he has a grab bag of incredibly convenient life skills) he can probably do things like release Noel's cage to sew confusion, self destruct the base, steal Coil's money. Reveal coil to the PRT poorly hacking the PRT network. etc.
Askasknot
The wandering artist
- Location
- Norway
Yes! seriously the stories I have read on this website that don't just stop before it is finished, I can count on one hand.
....
Excellent chapter as always and I'm really looking forward to more.
When it comes to this story I just hope it don't turn into something like Limitless Eternity that story just made me sad.
Discretion 2.2
Discretion 2.2
I had more to do this morning. But before I could take any immediate action, I waited for Agate to finish her analysis. How I would proceed would change if the portal function could be used for transportation. Shortly before 8AM, she informed me of the results.
'I've acquired Parallel Dimension Manipulation Protocol, with two modules: Permanent Parallel Dimension Portal and Temporary Parallel Dimension Portal,' she reported.
'So you can make portals that close after a while?'
'Yes, but I don't know how long it would last exactly. It might be anywhere from 30 seconds to several hours. We have to open one and wait to see what happens before I can try to make adjustments.'
'Can the portal be targeted? Can we open a portal to somewhere else on the same dimension?'
'We can target to any place I set a Waypoint, and I can set a Waypoint at any fixed point in space that I go to physically. A fixed point in space is in reference to a major gravity well at least on the scale of a planetoid. But in order to target the same dimension, I would have to open two portals, one into another dimension, then another one back. Right now, the only place in another dimension that I can target specifically is the same place that the Madison portal goes to. On Earth-Bet, I can't target anything yet because I just finished the updated Waypoint system. Otherwise, we can go to random parallel dimensions nearby.'
That was pretty good, all things considered. Even if a portal lasted for several hours, it was still a potentially good tactical tool. The worst case was if every portal would be permanent; that would make the ability far less powerful. With experimentation, we should able to adjust the parameters and reduce the time the portal stayed active as well.
'Also, I can't make portals more than once per minute with my current energy levels,' Agate warned.
'Have you discovered any way to increase Prana recovery?'
'I think the Entities and shards can use mana. Whenever a cape uses a power, I can detect a tiny fluctuation in mana but it disappears almost immediately. If we could get to a shard physically, I might be able to do something. Other than that, I've got nothing. Earth-Bet, and the world the Madison portal leads to are both devoid of mana, and no humans we've met produce any Od, and I don't know how to harvest life force directly.'
Perhaps I should put acquiring a Cauldron vial on higher priority then. Those were technically pieces of Eden's dead body, right?
I wasted no time opening a temporary portal. It was best to start this test as soon as possible. It went to the world that the Madison portal went to, one of Cauldron's worlds that formerly contained a part of their experimental facilities that spanned multiple worlds connected by portals. They had abandoned it after the Simurgh attacked the facility, and the rest of the world was largely uninhabited as well, as far as I could remember. The portal opened directly on the floor underneath the couch, but with a smaller surface area, effectively hiding it. It opened up to the atmosphere above looking down on empty flat grasslands.
That done, I left the apartment and went to a nearby abandoned warehouse, while sending off Agate to finding Sophia Hess.
School had just started and students were filing into their homerooms. The police had already arrived and were parked outside. They were staying in their vehicles and hadn't moved out yet. Students were whispering to each about the police vehicles they saw on their way in.
We found Taylor moving along with an apprehensive look on her face, keeping to herself.
Emma was talking to Sophia in the hallway.
"Have you seen Madison? She hasn't responded to my texts all weekend," Emma asked Sophia with a confused voice.
"No. I haven't seen or talked to her since Friday at school," Sophia answered.
"That's weird…think it could have anything to do with the police here?"
"Dunno."
They went on their way shortly after.
Once the students were all settled in, two detectives and three police officers exited their vehicles and moved as one group towards the principal's office after showing their credentials to the secretary.
Agate tracked along with them and I listened in as the detectives began interrogating Blackwell.
"Principal Blackwell, I am Detective Mathers, and my partner here is Detective Moreau. In January, we came by to investigate the incident in which Taylor Hebert was found locked inside of her own locker filled with toxic waste. At the time, no witnesses came forth and we were unable to continue with the investigation. Recently, we have come into new evidence of a long-term bullying campaign targeted at Taylor Hebert which took place on this institution's premises. We have some questions for you, the staff, and a number of students as part of the investigation. These conversations will be recorded. Do you agree to answer our questions?"
"We will of course cooperate. What did you need to know?" Blackwell answered professionally.
Mathers nodded at Moreau.
"Prior to the locker incident in January, did you receive reports or complaints about bullying targeted at Taylor Hebert?" asked Moreau.
"I did receive a few complaints from Ms. Hebert, but there was never any proof of it or other witnesses to support her."
"Did you file any records of such complaints?"
"No, without any evidence I could only treat them as false allegations of an attention-seeker, which is what other students have described her as."
Moreau looked at Mathers.
"Principal Blackwell, you're under arrest for obstruction of justice, criminal negligence, and accessory after the fact to attempted murder. You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future," detective Mathers declared. An officer behind him came up to cuff Blackwell.
"Wh-what? But I haven't done anything wrong! You can't do this!"
"We have a reliable witness who presented proof of the events you claim to have dismissed due to lack of evidence. If you were only doing your job to the best of your ability, you have nothing to worry about. We'll find out soon enough after we talk to the rest of the staff and students. If you do not cooperate, you may be charged with resisting arrest," Moreau answered.
Blackwell was slack-jawed. "I want to talk to my lawyer!"
"You will be provided with access to an attorney before any further questioning."
And so Blackwell was led away by two officers.
After that, the vice-principal was called in, and asked a few questions, before members of staff were interrogated. In the process, the secretary was also arrested, and they were in the midst of interrogating the teachers when I had Agate move back to Sophia Hess.
Sophia Hess felt her PRT-issued phone vibrating in her pocket. She quickly excused herself from the class and went into the girls' washroom. She saw the unknown caller number, but answered anyway.
"Shadow Stalker, this is an emergency. We have reason to believe you're currently being targeted by a powerful new Master in Brockton Bay," the voice on the phone said. It was a male voice, but not one that she recognized.
"Who is this? What are you talking about?"
"One of your friends in your civilian persona, Madison Clements, is suspected to be a Master victim. She has confessed to numerous crimes committed together with you and Emma Barnes. The BBPD are at Winslow as we speak and are likely to be compromised as well. They are preparing to arrest you with almost no evidence, just the word of your friend."
"What the fuck? Is this is a joke?"
Just then she heard the vice-principal's voice over the PA. "Would Sophia Hess and Emma Barnes please come to the principal's office. I repeat, would Sophia Hess and Emma Barnes please come to the principal's office."
She froze.
"I assure you this is no joke. This Master is extraordinarily powerful and is suspected to be responsible for Panacea's disappearance two days ago, the defeat of Lung and Oni Lee, and has compromised large sections of the local PRT and Protectorate."
"Why the fuck are they targeting me?!"
"Evidence suggests that they have a personal vendetta against you in your civilian identity. We believe the Master is Daniel Hebert, father of Taylor Hebert. You should be familiar with these names. Taylor Hebert was named in Ms. Clement's confession as the target of an attempted murder by you and Emma Barnes."
"Attempted murder? Hebert?! Why would I murder that weak little shit?"
On the PA, the vice-principal's voice could be heard again. "Sophia Hess, you are needed in the principal's office immediately. Sophia Hess, you are needed in the principal's office immediately."
The voice on the phone continued, "You must escape from Winslow as soon as possible. Taylor Hebert is also a suspected Master, capable of controlling bugs. She could be tracking you right now."
Sophia's eyes widened and started darting around. Now that the voice mentioned it, there were an unnatural amount of mosquitoes and flies around her. She moved away slowly and the bugs seemed to follow.
"Fuck!" She immediately turned shadow and leapt through the walls of the school, enduring the pain, and dashing madly towards one of her secret stashes.
"Wait, who are you? You never answered me!"
"My name is Thomas Calvert, PRT commander."
"How do I know you're telling the truth? How do I know this isn't some kind of trick?" She asked as she jumped through walls again, through segments that she knew didn't have electrical wiring, to a section of an abandoned building.
"You can look me up in the PRT directory if you want, Thomas Calvert. Look at the latest press releases from the PRT on the capture of Lung and Oni Lee. The disappearance of Panacea is still classified. However, the PRT itself has been compromised so you won't be able to confirm anything with them. Go ahead and try to call director Piggot or Armsmaster. They won't be available no matter what your emergency. Deputy director Renick is now in charge, and has ordered a total lockdown and Master/Stranger protocols for a large number of PRT and Protectorate members, ostensibly as a security review, but I can tell you that if you go in there you aren't coming back out with your mind intact. I noticed the strangeness just as they confiscated my PRT devices and barely escaped. That's why I'm not using my PRT number. I'll call you back in five minutes once you're finished checking everything out," the voice explained calmly. Then he hung up.
Sophia reacted quickly, using her phone to look up Thomas Calvert, who was in the directory listed as a Field Commander. She then checked the PRT press releases and found one published an hour ago announcing the defeat of Lung and Oni Lee by three new independent heroes, Polychromic, Araliac, and Skitter.
"Lung defeated by three new heroes last night? That's fucking bullshit!"
She tried calling Armsmaster, the person in charge of the Wards.
"You have reached Armsmaster. I am not available right now. Please call again later or leave a message after the tone."
She tried calling Piggot. Another voice mail message.
She tried calling Miss Militia, the person usually managing the Wards. Again, a voice mail message.
"What the actual fuck?"
She tried calling the PRT operator.
"Hello, PRT hotline, how can I help you?"
"This is Shadow Stalker, I have an emergency! I need to talk to the director!" She said with urgency in her voice.
"Shadow Stalker? You are confirmed. Unfortunately, director Piggot is not available. I can put you to deputy director Renick," the operator responded.
"What? Why isn't director Piggot available?"
"You are not authorized to know that, Shadow Stalker."
"What about Armsmaster or Miss Militia?"
"They are also unavailable."
"Am I not authorized to know why they aren't available either?"
"That is correct."
Sophia took her phone away from her ear and stared at it incomprehensibly.
"Shadow Stalker? Should I put you through to deputy director Renick?"
She put the phone back to her ear. "Yes, put me through."
After a moment, Renick's voice answered. "Shadow Stalker? You have an emergency?"
"Renick, what the hell is going on?! Where is Piggot and Armsmaster?"
"You're not authorized to know that. What is your emergency, Shadow Stalker?"
"Is it true that there's a dangerous new Master in Brockton Bay, and Panacea's disappeared?"
"Who told you that? That's classified information." Renick asked with a hard tone.
"Thomas Calvert, PRT commander. I got a call from him just now."
"That's impossible. He's been undergoing a security review and he hasn't called anyone."
"But I just talked to him!"
"Whoever you talked to is NOT Thomas Calvert. Shadow Stalker, you need to come in and report everything you know about this imposter, understand? This is a major security breach."
"Fuck! Real fucking convenient! Piggot, Armsmaster, Miss Miltia, not available and I can't be told why. The only guy that actually calls to warn me about the new Master targeting me, you say he's under a security review. You're fucking lying, you just want me to come in so you can lock me up like the rest of them, don't you! You've been fucking Mastered too!"
"What? No, calm down Shadow Stalker! This is the first time I've heard about you being targeted, and nobody's being locked up—"
"Oh yeah? How about you let me talk to Dauntless, or Velocity? Assault and Battery?"
"Velocity and Assault are not available but Dauntless can—"
"You think I'm stupid? Half the Protectorate's been locked up and other half's been Mastered, this is bullshit!" She hung up.
"Fuck, fuck! The hell is going on! Fucking Heberts," she angrily muttered and slammed her fist against a wall.
Her phone vibrated again.
"Shadow Stalker, this is Commander Calvert. I assume you've checked things out?"
"Yeah I did, this is fucked! What do we do?"
"I have been trying to get in touch with the higher ups but the lack of my PRT devices and Renick's false reports have made it impossible to convince them I am the real Thomas Calvert. We are likely alone facing what is potentially an S-class situation. Are you in a secure location? Did you escape from Winslow?"
"Yeah I escaped. I should be safe here."
"Good. If we're going to get out of this situation, we have to attack the problem at the source. I do not know if the rest of the Wards are compromised yet but you are the one most suited for this operation. Are you up for a very dangerous solo blackops mission?"
"I'm not a prey that runs from danger! What do you want me to do?"
"I want you to use your shadow abilities to quietly tail the Master, Daniel Hebert, and look for an opportunity to subdue and capture him so we can force him to release his victims. We suspect that his power works through prolonged exposure to hearing him speak. Be on guard for the bug-controller working with him as well. They likely have a range of several blocks, so if you attack from far their bugs might block your bolts. Can you do this, Shadow Stalker?"
"I got it. I'll take them down, no problem!"
I had more to do this morning. But before I could take any immediate action, I waited for Agate to finish her analysis. How I would proceed would change if the portal function could be used for transportation. Shortly before 8AM, she informed me of the results.
'I've acquired Parallel Dimension Manipulation Protocol, with two modules: Permanent Parallel Dimension Portal and Temporary Parallel Dimension Portal,' she reported.
'So you can make portals that close after a while?'
'Yes, but I don't know how long it would last exactly. It might be anywhere from 30 seconds to several hours. We have to open one and wait to see what happens before I can try to make adjustments.'
'Can the portal be targeted? Can we open a portal to somewhere else on the same dimension?'
'We can target to any place I set a Waypoint, and I can set a Waypoint at any fixed point in space that I go to physically. A fixed point in space is in reference to a major gravity well at least on the scale of a planetoid. But in order to target the same dimension, I would have to open two portals, one into another dimension, then another one back. Right now, the only place in another dimension that I can target specifically is the same place that the Madison portal goes to. On Earth-Bet, I can't target anything yet because I just finished the updated Waypoint system. Otherwise, we can go to random parallel dimensions nearby.'
That was pretty good, all things considered. Even if a portal lasted for several hours, it was still a potentially good tactical tool. The worst case was if every portal would be permanent; that would make the ability far less powerful. With experimentation, we should able to adjust the parameters and reduce the time the portal stayed active as well.
'Also, I can't make portals more than once per minute with my current energy levels,' Agate warned.
'Have you discovered any way to increase Prana recovery?'
'I think the Entities and shards can use mana. Whenever a cape uses a power, I can detect a tiny fluctuation in mana but it disappears almost immediately. If we could get to a shard physically, I might be able to do something. Other than that, I've got nothing. Earth-Bet, and the world the Madison portal leads to are both devoid of mana, and no humans we've met produce any Od, and I don't know how to harvest life force directly.'
Perhaps I should put acquiring a Cauldron vial on higher priority then. Those were technically pieces of Eden's dead body, right?
I wasted no time opening a temporary portal. It was best to start this test as soon as possible. It went to the world that the Madison portal went to, one of Cauldron's worlds that formerly contained a part of their experimental facilities that spanned multiple worlds connected by portals. They had abandoned it after the Simurgh attacked the facility, and the rest of the world was largely uninhabited as well, as far as I could remember. The portal opened directly on the floor underneath the couch, but with a smaller surface area, effectively hiding it. It opened up to the atmosphere above looking down on empty flat grasslands.
That done, I left the apartment and went to a nearby abandoned warehouse, while sending off Agate to finding Sophia Hess.
School had just started and students were filing into their homerooms. The police had already arrived and were parked outside. They were staying in their vehicles and hadn't moved out yet. Students were whispering to each about the police vehicles they saw on their way in.
We found Taylor moving along with an apprehensive look on her face, keeping to herself.
Emma was talking to Sophia in the hallway.
"Have you seen Madison? She hasn't responded to my texts all weekend," Emma asked Sophia with a confused voice.
"No. I haven't seen or talked to her since Friday at school," Sophia answered.
"That's weird…think it could have anything to do with the police here?"
"Dunno."
They went on their way shortly after.
Once the students were all settled in, two detectives and three police officers exited their vehicles and moved as one group towards the principal's office after showing their credentials to the secretary.
Agate tracked along with them and I listened in as the detectives began interrogating Blackwell.
"Principal Blackwell, I am Detective Mathers, and my partner here is Detective Moreau. In January, we came by to investigate the incident in which Taylor Hebert was found locked inside of her own locker filled with toxic waste. At the time, no witnesses came forth and we were unable to continue with the investigation. Recently, we have come into new evidence of a long-term bullying campaign targeted at Taylor Hebert which took place on this institution's premises. We have some questions for you, the staff, and a number of students as part of the investigation. These conversations will be recorded. Do you agree to answer our questions?"
"We will of course cooperate. What did you need to know?" Blackwell answered professionally.
Mathers nodded at Moreau.
"Prior to the locker incident in January, did you receive reports or complaints about bullying targeted at Taylor Hebert?" asked Moreau.
"I did receive a few complaints from Ms. Hebert, but there was never any proof of it or other witnesses to support her."
"Did you file any records of such complaints?"
"No, without any evidence I could only treat them as false allegations of an attention-seeker, which is what other students have described her as."
Moreau looked at Mathers.
"Principal Blackwell, you're under arrest for obstruction of justice, criminal negligence, and accessory after the fact to attempted murder. You have the right to remain silent and refuse to answer questions. Anything you say may be used against you in a court of law. You have the right to consult an attorney before speaking to the police and to have an attorney present during questioning now or in the future," detective Mathers declared. An officer behind him came up to cuff Blackwell.
"Wh-what? But I haven't done anything wrong! You can't do this!"
"We have a reliable witness who presented proof of the events you claim to have dismissed due to lack of evidence. If you were only doing your job to the best of your ability, you have nothing to worry about. We'll find out soon enough after we talk to the rest of the staff and students. If you do not cooperate, you may be charged with resisting arrest," Moreau answered.
Blackwell was slack-jawed. "I want to talk to my lawyer!"
"You will be provided with access to an attorney before any further questioning."
And so Blackwell was led away by two officers.
After that, the vice-principal was called in, and asked a few questions, before members of staff were interrogated. In the process, the secretary was also arrested, and they were in the midst of interrogating the teachers when I had Agate move back to Sophia Hess.
Sophia Hess felt her PRT-issued phone vibrating in her pocket. She quickly excused herself from the class and went into the girls' washroom. She saw the unknown caller number, but answered anyway.
"Shadow Stalker, this is an emergency. We have reason to believe you're currently being targeted by a powerful new Master in Brockton Bay," the voice on the phone said. It was a male voice, but not one that she recognized.
"Who is this? What are you talking about?"
"One of your friends in your civilian persona, Madison Clements, is suspected to be a Master victim. She has confessed to numerous crimes committed together with you and Emma Barnes. The BBPD are at Winslow as we speak and are likely to be compromised as well. They are preparing to arrest you with almost no evidence, just the word of your friend."
"What the fuck? Is this is a joke?"
Just then she heard the vice-principal's voice over the PA. "Would Sophia Hess and Emma Barnes please come to the principal's office. I repeat, would Sophia Hess and Emma Barnes please come to the principal's office."
She froze.
"I assure you this is no joke. This Master is extraordinarily powerful and is suspected to be responsible for Panacea's disappearance two days ago, the defeat of Lung and Oni Lee, and has compromised large sections of the local PRT and Protectorate."
"Why the fuck are they targeting me?!"
"Evidence suggests that they have a personal vendetta against you in your civilian identity. We believe the Master is Daniel Hebert, father of Taylor Hebert. You should be familiar with these names. Taylor Hebert was named in Ms. Clement's confession as the target of an attempted murder by you and Emma Barnes."
"Attempted murder? Hebert?! Why would I murder that weak little shit?"
On the PA, the vice-principal's voice could be heard again. "Sophia Hess, you are needed in the principal's office immediately. Sophia Hess, you are needed in the principal's office immediately."
The voice on the phone continued, "You must escape from Winslow as soon as possible. Taylor Hebert is also a suspected Master, capable of controlling bugs. She could be tracking you right now."
Sophia's eyes widened and started darting around. Now that the voice mentioned it, there were an unnatural amount of mosquitoes and flies around her. She moved away slowly and the bugs seemed to follow.
"Fuck!" She immediately turned shadow and leapt through the walls of the school, enduring the pain, and dashing madly towards one of her secret stashes.
"Wait, who are you? You never answered me!"
"My name is Thomas Calvert, PRT commander."
"How do I know you're telling the truth? How do I know this isn't some kind of trick?" She asked as she jumped through walls again, through segments that she knew didn't have electrical wiring, to a section of an abandoned building.
"You can look me up in the PRT directory if you want, Thomas Calvert. Look at the latest press releases from the PRT on the capture of Lung and Oni Lee. The disappearance of Panacea is still classified. However, the PRT itself has been compromised so you won't be able to confirm anything with them. Go ahead and try to call director Piggot or Armsmaster. They won't be available no matter what your emergency. Deputy director Renick is now in charge, and has ordered a total lockdown and Master/Stranger protocols for a large number of PRT and Protectorate members, ostensibly as a security review, but I can tell you that if you go in there you aren't coming back out with your mind intact. I noticed the strangeness just as they confiscated my PRT devices and barely escaped. That's why I'm not using my PRT number. I'll call you back in five minutes once you're finished checking everything out," the voice explained calmly. Then he hung up.
Sophia reacted quickly, using her phone to look up Thomas Calvert, who was in the directory listed as a Field Commander. She then checked the PRT press releases and found one published an hour ago announcing the defeat of Lung and Oni Lee by three new independent heroes, Polychromic, Araliac, and Skitter.
"Lung defeated by three new heroes last night? That's fucking bullshit!"
She tried calling Armsmaster, the person in charge of the Wards.
"You have reached Armsmaster. I am not available right now. Please call again later or leave a message after the tone."
She tried calling Piggot. Another voice mail message.
She tried calling Miss Militia, the person usually managing the Wards. Again, a voice mail message.
"What the actual fuck?"
She tried calling the PRT operator.
"Hello, PRT hotline, how can I help you?"
"This is Shadow Stalker, I have an emergency! I need to talk to the director!" She said with urgency in her voice.
"Shadow Stalker? You are confirmed. Unfortunately, director Piggot is not available. I can put you to deputy director Renick," the operator responded.
"What? Why isn't director Piggot available?"
"You are not authorized to know that, Shadow Stalker."
"What about Armsmaster or Miss Militia?"
"They are also unavailable."
"Am I not authorized to know why they aren't available either?"
"That is correct."
Sophia took her phone away from her ear and stared at it incomprehensibly.
"Shadow Stalker? Should I put you through to deputy director Renick?"
She put the phone back to her ear. "Yes, put me through."
After a moment, Renick's voice answered. "Shadow Stalker? You have an emergency?"
"Renick, what the hell is going on?! Where is Piggot and Armsmaster?"
"You're not authorized to know that. What is your emergency, Shadow Stalker?"
"Is it true that there's a dangerous new Master in Brockton Bay, and Panacea's disappeared?"
"Who told you that? That's classified information." Renick asked with a hard tone.
"Thomas Calvert, PRT commander. I got a call from him just now."
"That's impossible. He's been undergoing a security review and he hasn't called anyone."
"But I just talked to him!"
"Whoever you talked to is NOT Thomas Calvert. Shadow Stalker, you need to come in and report everything you know about this imposter, understand? This is a major security breach."
"Fuck! Real fucking convenient! Piggot, Armsmaster, Miss Miltia, not available and I can't be told why. The only guy that actually calls to warn me about the new Master targeting me, you say he's under a security review. You're fucking lying, you just want me to come in so you can lock me up like the rest of them, don't you! You've been fucking Mastered too!"
"What? No, calm down Shadow Stalker! This is the first time I've heard about you being targeted, and nobody's being locked up—"
"Oh yeah? How about you let me talk to Dauntless, or Velocity? Assault and Battery?"
"Velocity and Assault are not available but Dauntless can—"
"You think I'm stupid? Half the Protectorate's been locked up and other half's been Mastered, this is bullshit!" She hung up.
"Fuck, fuck! The hell is going on! Fucking Heberts," she angrily muttered and slammed her fist against a wall.
Her phone vibrated again.
"Shadow Stalker, this is Commander Calvert. I assume you've checked things out?"
"Yeah I did, this is fucked! What do we do?"
"I have been trying to get in touch with the higher ups but the lack of my PRT devices and Renick's false reports have made it impossible to convince them I am the real Thomas Calvert. We are likely alone facing what is potentially an S-class situation. Are you in a secure location? Did you escape from Winslow?"
"Yeah I escaped. I should be safe here."
"Good. If we're going to get out of this situation, we have to attack the problem at the source. I do not know if the rest of the Wards are compromised yet but you are the one most suited for this operation. Are you up for a very dangerous solo blackops mission?"
"I'm not a prey that runs from danger! What do you want me to do?"
"I want you to use your shadow abilities to quietly tail the Master, Daniel Hebert, and look for an opportunity to subdue and capture him so we can force him to release his victims. We suspect that his power works through prolonged exposure to hearing him speak. Be on guard for the bug-controller working with him as well. They likely have a range of several blocks, so if you attack from far their bugs might block your bolts. Can you do this, Shadow Stalker?"
"I got it. I'll take them down, no problem!"
Last edited:
Rended Space
00Skaven
- Location
- The Under-Empire
Ok wow I only just started reading this and there's already an update...
Rended Space
00Skaven
- Location
- The Under-Empire
Aaaaaand there we go
How much more obvious can he get, Sophia? Sure, trust some guy you've never heard of before.
Rended Space
00Skaven
- Location
- The Under-Empire
Bacause Sophia believes that predators don't hunt each other or some stupid thing like that. I don't really recall her being the brightest in the actual story anyways.
- Location
- Germany
It could also be the real Coil. This seems like something he would try out (and it might not backfire fast enough so he drops that timeline).
Shards using mana is something I like - magic (Soul/Mind controlled/produced effects) is one of the reasons acutal humans are necessairy instead of simply simulating the entity-cycle.
Shards using mana is something I like - magic (Soul/Mind controlled/produced effects) is one of the reasons acutal humans are necessairy instead of simply simulating the entity-cycle.