Big Evil in Little China (Worm AU)

[shinkicker444]

This story is gold. Lung doesn't know about Contessa working for Cauldron either, right? Heh. Let's see what Asian witchcraft gets her in the end.

 

[Gremlin Jack]

An amazing story, but I am disappointed that they had to move operations to the West Coast. Now the Oni Lee/Purity ship is dead in the water. This makes me sad

 

[Numen]

Chapter 18: If you never know Love

"Everybody hate somebody, guess we all racist
Black Eyed Peas do a song about love and y'all hate this
All these protest with different colored faces
We was all born with a heart, why we gotta chase it?"
- Black Eyed Peas, #WheresTheLove

San Baarlam, California 2012

Kayden Russels walked down the street, breathing in the familiar seaside stink she had been accustomed to back in the Bay, but yet here, it was somehow different. Maybe the Pacific just smelled better. Or maybe because she was finally free from kaiser, from the E88. From the city where her mistakes were made. She was freed from being Purity. Here she was to make a new life for herself and her daughter and Theo.

It was a hard decision, but after everything that went down, she finally decided to give up on being Purity. She'll live life the simple way. She'll rebrand herself if need be. Money had been a concern, the economy of the Bay wasn't so good, and Kaiser- and rumours of his connection to Medhall (despite the PRT attempt to suppress such inofrmation) had caused the stocks to tank. Theo wouldn't be inheriting much.

A mysterious offer from Dragon of all people had really shocked her. She promised financial support and a new start. Kayden really didn't have to think about it all that long.

A new start. How many had a chance like that? To redo their life, to start over in a New City with new friends and new peoples. A quieter place, with no overpowered gangs or ridiculous death tolls. Where the police were nice and didn't shoot first if you weren't black. In Brockton Bay, the police shoot first no matter who you are- those who don't shoot first don't really live past their first month on the job.

So she walked down the Colombus Street Market with her girlfriends, Rebecca Traynor and Basia Casini (so she was Italian, but Kayden didn't see much swarthiness about her, so she was probably white enough to be safe around) as they giggled and try out the different foods.

Kayden encouraged herself to try the foreign food- she had to live a little after all, and besides, it wasn't like loving your own race meant you had to hate everything about other races, right?

"Hey, look at that, Panasian Cuisine. Is that like...related to Panacea?" Basia said, pointing at a large stall in front of a building. There were alot of makeshift entrepreneurial enterprises like this, often operating right out of people's homes or rented buildings.

"No silly." Rebecca reprimanded. "It's pan-Asian, pan as in all. Which has the same prefix as Panacea, that is true, because Panaecea is a cure all, but here panasian meant, all Asian food, so we'll probably see alot of stuff from-"

"Time out girl. Don't go all nerd on me. Jesus Christ." Basia said, forming a T-sign with her hand.

"So, should we go?"

Kayden shook her head. "Nah, I think I had my fill of subh- I mean Asian food today. Let's go hit a bar."

"Hell yeah!"

And then the chef emerged from the building, setting down a tray of fresh foreign foodstuff. He was topless and wore a dirty oil stained apron.

His face was intimately familiar to Kayden who found herself frozen in shock and reconization.

"Kayden?"

The Asian man talked rapidly to a white- wait what- teenage girl who was calculating something on a notebook and gesticulating wildly at him.

"Kayden!"

She jumped and turned to look at a smiling Rebecca and a grinning Basia.

"My my my, so you're into that eh?" Rebecca nudged Kayden, who was confused as to what the hell the woman was talking about.

"Topless. And can cook. I see what you mean. Did you see those muscles?" Basia said, looking back at the chef with an appraising eye. "I mean, colour me surprise Kayden."

"What do you mean?"

Basia glanced at Rebecca and the other woman told her bluntly. "We thought you were….you know...a bit racist or something."

"WHAT!?" Kayden shouted defensively.

"Jeeze, I mean we know you're not racist. You're too nice." Rebecca patted her shoulder reassuredly.

"Yeah. And you were totally leering at tall, dark, and handsome there, so you can't be racist." The Italian reassured her.

"What. I wasn't leering at him!" Kayden said, digging herself into a bigger hole. "He's a dir- I mean he's...uh. Uh."

Basia gave Rebecca a "See? There we go" look and turned back to Kayden. "Okay, change of plans. Obviously, we are eating here."

"No!"

"Yes!' Rebecca seconded. "I have to see how this turns out. Don't worry, my wingman experiences are vast."

Kayden tried to protest, but she was shoved to a table and forced to sit down next to Basia while Rebecca bounced over to the counter.

+++​

Annette looked up and frowned at the affluently dressed white woman as she bounce up to the counter.

"Hey."

"Hi!" Annette said with false cheer. "You want to order something? I'll be right over."

"Yeah. But like...so one my friends."

"Yes?"

"She has the hots for your Chef."

Annette glanced over at Kai Lee, who was brushing away a fly from a spring roll. The fly came back. Lee waved his hand over it and shooed it away. It came back. He shooed it away. It flew in a circle and came back again.

"Your friend...the hot brunette or the mousy one?" Annette said, worry bubbling up inside. Images of a murdered woman in a toilet stall filled her mind. Because Lee was mentally unstable, so he definitely can't go on dates unchaperoned.

"Oh, the mousy one."

Annette looked closer and sighed. She looked so innocent and pure. She definitely did not deserve to be murdered by a crazy assassin.

"Yeah, about that...Kai Lee is...special."

Rebecca's enthusiam dimmed. "Special?"

"Yeah...his um….challenged-"

"Hey hottie! How about you come home with me and I'll show you a good time!' A boistrous voice yelled.

+++​

Rebecca spun around and looked at the drunk looking white punk with his hanger ons surrounding the table where Basia and Kayden sat at. They looked like gangsters. She paled.

"Oh shit."

The punk grabbed Kayden by the wrist- and for a moment, the mousy woman stared at his hand in shock, as if unable to comprehend that someone would dare lay hands on her.

"Let her go you jerk!" Basia said, standing up and swinging her purse at him- only for another thug to slap her across the face. He hiccupped drunkenly. "Bitches should know their place."

The bastard grabbing Kayden sneered around the stall. "A dirty chink place for gooks and gook lovers. You fine white women don't need to be at this place. Come on, I have a sportscar. I'll give you a ri-"

And then Kai Lee was there and smashing the thug on the table in front of a shocked Kayden and Basia. Rebecca's jaw dropped. She didn't even see him move.

For a moment there was silence and then the other thugs roared and charged. The flurry of action that followed lasted only about thirty seconds, but Kai's tone muscles wasn't just for show. He didn't look buff, but he certainly looked fit. And he beat the living shit out of the racist assholes.

Annette sighed. "Dammit."

Kayden looked at him. He looked down at her.

+++​

"You again." The familiar Asian man said.

"Oh. Uh yeah. Uh, what you doing here?" Kayden asked. Stupid, stupid Kayden! He works here!

"I work here. Baby."

"W-what?" Kayden sputtered.

"How's your baby?"

"Who- oh, oh baby. Uh. Yeah, Aster's doing fine."

"Good."

"Yeah."

"Bye, I have to cook now."

"Okay."

They continued staring at each other.

Basia look at one and then the other. "You two know each other?"

Kayden blinked. "Oh yeah, we met at a grocery store. He saved Aster actually."

"Reaaaally." Basia said. "You're going to have to tell me all about it. All of it."\

"Anyway, it's getting late and I think I lost my appetite. Let's go home girls!" Kayden said hurriedly, standing up and walking away- only to bump into the Asian's chiseled chest. She blushed and turned around the other way, but Rebecca was in her face and smiling.

Rebecca walked over nudged the Asian. "Ah, yes. Say Kai Lee, what a nice name by the way, can I have your phone number?"

For a moment Kayden most certainly DID NOT felt irrational burning jealousy.

"Why?" Kai Lee asked, confusion in his voice.

"Kayden here needs a date for a charity for refugees on the weekend, and you know, you guys should go together!-"

"WHAT!?" Kayden sputtered.

Rebecca continued, overriding Kayden's objections. "And you can speak up on the experiences of being an immigrant and all that. I mean, you are an immigrant right? I didn't want to assume."

But she totally did, Kayden thought amusedly. With a start, she realized she also just assumed he was an immigrant. All brown peoples were immigrants? Wait no, that didn't make any sense.

"Ah, yes I am an immigrant." He said, not at all sounding like a dirty foreigner and welfare parasite. Instead, somehow, coming from him, the statement didn't bring forth a wave of disgust and hate. Kayden was totally in the Twilight Zone here.

"So about that number…" Rebecca said.

There was a moment of silence and Lee nodded. "Okay,"

Rebecca's phone was out in her hand in a heartbeat.

"What did I miss and who are these fuckers?"

A massive Asian hulk walked in, carrying several large bags of groceries. He nudged one of the knocked out bastards with his foot.

"Is that plastic?" The teenage white girl manning the counter spoke up as she walked over. "Kenta, I told you to bring the canvas bags! Don't you want to save our Planet?"

"Ann- Taylor, I am forgot. Sorry."

"Again." She deadpanned.

"Well, it's not like the Endbringers isn't fucking up the Planet now is it?"

"It's the principle of the thing!"

+++
​

"Oh, Kayden, who is this gentleman?" An elderly- and very white- woman asked.

"This is Kai. Kai Lee." Kayden smiled at Beatrice and introduced her stoic date dressed in a business casual blazer with the hair slicked back. Grace had fun with that, much to Lee's annoyance.

"Is he the guest speaker tonight?"

"Uh, yeah."

"Oh, I look forward to hearing your experiences. You know, I know the refugees from Kyushu in my township, those poor dears! That's what our organization is alll about, we find worthy causes to invest in." Beatrice said, explaining what the Charity Ball was all about.

Kai Lee looked out at the ocean of white people. He felt slightly uncomfortable.

Beatrice was soon replaced by Stephen Jameson, who shook Kai's hand and told him that he was very fond of "your people" and all that "you guys have accomplished."

Annette- or Taylor, Kai reminded himself- growled next to him as she glared at the leaving Stephen Jameson. She had insisted on coming along as his "chaperone". That wasn't what she told Kayden though. She begged Kayden to bring her, saying it was boring working at the restaurant with "my godfather, Kenta."

The look on Kayden's face had been really weird though, like she had trouble believing her parents could have named Kenta her godfather.

She was still sneering at the crowd. They probably thought she was some kind of edgy teenager. "Charity ball full of white people. With white executives, and not a single person of colour. So much white saviour complex, it's sickening." The former literature professor and radical feminist activist shook a glass of apple juice angrily, a derisive sneer on her face.

Kai Lee understood nothing of what Annette just said, but he nodded his head anyway.

Kayden finished her social meet and greet with Beatrice and waltzed over to hug and kiss and chat wit the other white socialites. Kai Lee kept an eye on her the entire time. She was very easy on the eyes afterall, and that thing that she called a dress was form fitting and a little hot.

Lee mentally smacked himself. Hot? What the heck was he saying. He quickly looked away and focused back on the socio-economic theories Annette was spewing.

"And so you see, this entire system built upon institutionalized racism. Why can't white people see that. Here they think you're a model minority, that it's in your genes to be hardworker and that you want to assimilate into this society. But really, you just work hard because you're an immigrant and the system is against you from the beginning."

Kai nodded his head. "Yes. I see that. I am oppressed."

That's why I became a criminal warlord and kill the motherfuckers who looked at me the wrong way.

"Exactly, Lee. Exactly." Annette smiled at him.

Kayden came back and asked Lee if he wanted to grab a drink with her. Lee smiled and taking her arm in his- she was briefly frozen stiff at the sudden body contact- he dragged her away towards where the booze was.

Annette growled and glared down at her glass of apple juice. "This is so unfair."

When it finally came time for Lee to deliver his "refugee experience", he thougth for a bit about what he wanted to say. Saying, "I am a parahuman assassin who will fuck up your ass no matter your skin colour because it's good business and because Lung wills it so" didn't seem to be the appropriate thing to do. And also because Annette will strangle him dead for blowing their cover.

Speaking of Annette....well, he knew what he should say.

"People...I want to talk to you about white supremacy and the systematic racism this country is built upon. You see, when the whites came here- and they killed all the indigigenous people and fucked them over-"

The crowd gasped with every sentence out of his mouth. Beatrice fainted into the arms of a red faced gentleman while Kayden facepalmed.

"- And then when the Italians came, white status was extended to the Irish, to distinquish them from the swarthier alien Italians. Then when the Jews and the Chinese came, white status was extended to Italians..."

Annette looked so proud. Kayden looked absolutely horrified.

"So like, stop with the white saviour bullshit. You actually want to do activism, then stop filling this room up with rich white people. WORK with the people. I ran a cri- I ran a business back in Brockton Bay, and let me tell you, we always paid attention to what the peons at the bottom was saying. We fought with them, we live with them, we die with them. That's what it means to be one people."

Kai Lee still didn't really understand what he was saying, he just borrowed alot of big words from Annette and injected a bit of the street wisdom he knew by heart.

"If you never know love, then you never know truth."

Feeling brave, he looked Kayden in the face. "The first time I met you in the grocery store, I knew, you were the one. That's the truth no lie. Interacial relationships are tough- in Brockton Bay you know, that could never be. The Nazis would kill us. Or the Asians even. So much ethnic nationalism and hate. But here, on the West Coast, we're free to love baby."

The crowd looked between the podium and back towards the red faced woman who was just singled out.

Kayden looked enlightened for some reason. She glanced down at her glass and nodded to herself. "Someone drugged the wine. I knew it."



____
A/N: I am back! So, doing the final year of school AND prototyping my board game designs to playtest them. I will be busy, but I think I can still update fairly frequently. FYI, the quote I posted at the beginning of the chapter is a different version of WheresTheLove, with different lyrics.

 

[Yarudazuigu]

Kai Lee is adorabs. Kayden is a dummy.
Anette is a hater, isn't she?

 

[Numen]

Crossposted from SB.

Regarding Annette's "Racism": An informal thingy.

Annette isn't racist. She's a revolutionary.

There is a sliding scale of mentalities here.
Sophia Hess: I hate anyone who is weak. I am predator, you are prey.
E88: White supremacy. Dangerous and violent racism.
Annie Kim: Koreans are superior to all other races. Asians are slightly better, then whites, than blacks.
Kayden (now): "I love my own race. Doesn't mean I hate other races. But there is definitely such thing as a white race. How come blacks are a race, but whites can't be one*? White lives matter. White culture and history is important! White pride parade! Yay!" (Because she fails to see how the unique history and shared challenges of being black in North America has made them into a distinct culture. Or that gay pride exists for the same reason).
Max Anders: I care only about myself, but I'll use racism to my advantage.
Kenta: I care only about myself, but I'll use racism to my advantage.
Beatrice: You poor dears. You need my help. African babies need my help. Indian women need liberation. Asians are so smart. You all need my help, but I am not going to bother talking to you or get you on the planning process or let you run for office or be on the executive board. I have this idea of what you people are like, and I am not going to find out what you're really like.
Sociology Professor: Asians are disadvantaged cause they are passive and effeminate. We have to boost their confidence because I talked to a total of five Asian men and that's my conclusion.
Madison Clements: I am going to volunteer in Uruguay! It's like vacation, I'll take selfies and teach kids english and have a grand old time.
Annette: There is something wrong with this and I am going to be angry.
Kai Lee: I don't really have a real opinion.

*To be fair, the things Annette alluded to is more about classism. "White" is a constuct to refer to a diverse group of different ethnicities and classes. At one point, Italians and Irish weren't considered white. Russians and "slavs" still aren't considered white today. Racism doesn't make sense, obviously. Race isn't even real except as a construct since genetics don't work that way. People think of race like dog breeds, failing to realize all dog breeds were CREATED through inbreeding.

Are other countries racist? Oh very. Doesn't give us an excuse to be racist ourselves however.

For example, I have had people told me that my people are very hard working (model minority). The funny thing here is they haven't a clue what my heritage is.

For example, I worry that my name isn't "white" enough to be marketable. (Homophilly).

For example, a friend has casually said that asians like me have a small dick (stereotyping).

For example, I suffer from racial anxiety. Racial anxiety is whereby white people are afraid of being seen as racist and minorities are afraid of being discriminated against. I walk my dog, and I worry that people might think I don't pick up dog poop, because dirty asians are barbaric, right? (Racial anxiety)

For example, I have to listen to some white people explaining how aboriginals need to integrate and leave their reserves and stop asking for things. Excuse me, do you know whose land this is?

For example, I have people tell me that immigrants ask for too much and that "when my great grandparents got here, they had nothing, except for the LAND the government gave them." Uh huh.

Are any of those racist or malicious? Not really. But it is part of the system. And to reiterate, anyone of any colour can be "white". You ever seen racist consevative Chinese-Canadians who hate on refugees? They're here already. And in a few decades, I will be having Annette rake them over the coals too.The conservative mindset is that there is limited resources. The truth is, thinking that poor people or foreigners want to take away your jobs, benefits, or power isn't true.

Hollywood is a white male industry. There is literally no place for anyone else, not if you want to be in charge of how you're percieved. There is a narrative In society and the narrative says people are this or that, segregated by race and gender. In the last few years, Asian men who have been depicted in Hollywood movies are depicted as RICH and successful businessman or smart. Model minority again. The narrative society has given us. For Asian women, they're still there for exotic sex appeal or the domesticate intelligent woman who is good at computers or business. Again. White women isn't faring better. Apparently we want strong independent fan services ala Wonder Woman. Why can't a fat obese woman be the main heroine? Hell, why isn't she gay too?

The charity ball scene is asking why rich white people feel the need to engage in white saviour complex? Why do we promote Africans as these poor people who need help or that women in other countries are "oppressed" (sure they might be, but the narrative is rarely about the women, and mostly about how the West is better and superior; white man's burden).

What Annette hates: when the narrative revolves around white people. The major problem in North America can easily be summed up as "white gratification". Or "male gratification". When a "middle class" (aka, rich) white boy decides to become an edgy libertarian socialist who speaks out against racism and attend charities, it's like make believe. It's self gratification. Indeed, it's self gratifying to proclaim yourself a feminist too. It is lightyears removed from those who are living in racism and sexism. Whether it's alt-righters rallying or white sociolites at a charity ball, the narrative is always about white people.

I am not educated in what I am saying, I am sure a feminist somewhere or a PhD can explain all of this, but properly

PS: Hidden Figures is a great movie, but it's also racist filth. In REAL HISTORY, no heroic white man took away the "whites only" sign on the bathroom. In REAL HISTORY, she watched the launch of HER work from a tv in the coloured computers room. No white man let her into Mission control. Ha! Leave it to Hollywood to invent a narrative for the gratification of white people. "We need fictional good white people in a historical film about how racist America was."

------

It's good to get that off of my chest. I used to be blind to this stuff, until someone woke me to the damn truth. I realized I was an enabler of systematic racism myself. Good to be freed. I don't approve of how racist Asia is becoming, so why would I need to tolerate that here in North America? There are many things to fight for. Too many. But they all come down to how blind we choose to be.

 

[Shane_357]

For example, I have to listen to some white people explaining how aboriginals need to integrate and leave their reserves and stop asking for things. Excuse me, do you know whose land this is?

Click to shrink...

Frankly I believe this is... while not exactly wrong, it is out of touch with reality. You can crow that it's the native's land all day long, but I don't see you leaving. And I don't see you caring that a chunk of my ancestor's land is still occupied by foreign invaders, while a neighbouring ethnic group were basically wiped out or driven out.

EDIT: My point is that the 'X-centric narrative' is a problem on both sides.

 

[Numen]

Chapter 19: Break Everything

San Baarlam 2012

"We need to talk."

She knew that it was coming of course. The inevitable talk. The one Kenta had been holding in for close to a year now, delayed only due to the shock of her being alive and their current situation. The hectic and sudden relocation from Brockton Bay to San Baarlam, setting up new identities, starting an indie business venture.

There had been no time to talk. To really speak of what had happened. And so she was unsurprised one night to find Kenta sitting in a Lay-Z-Boy when she came in after a night out shopping for her favourite brand of ice cream. Everyone else was asleep- or presumably, Grace was out clubbing and Lee was doing whatever it was he was doing with his new squeeze. If Annette was honest with herself, she would pay big money to watch a TV comedy about Kai Lee's attempts to woo Kayden. That was gold.

She was distracting herself however, from the confrontation- and there was no mistaking what this was going to be. It was going to be bloody and messy, and it remained to be seen if anyone was alive afterwards.

"About what?" She said, feigning ignorance. Kenta wasn't fooled for a moment.

"You know what, Annette."

"No really, tell me. Don't assume I can read your mind- we're not as similar as we used to be back in the day, Kenta-kun."

He flinched at the use of the familiar honorific. It must have seem strange, coming from this body that was young enough to be his daughter- Taylor's body- and stranger still that this mask she wore spoke with the familiarity and mannerism of the Annette Rose he knew. She sometimes tried to imagine how weird it must be for him.

But then again, I remind myself, I wear my daughter's body, I go to the bathroom in my daughter's body. I am sure then, it's at least this weird.

"We need to talk about us." Kenta said, staring right into her eyes- dark to grey, fearless to indomitable. Annette took comfort that Kenta's eyes looked alive.

I am dead. My eyes are dead- I see that every morning in the mirror. We can never be.

"Kenta." She dropped the honorific- for what use was such things anymore? That was the past. That was when she was alive. "There is no us."

The burst of violence shocked her. He slammed the wooden table hard enough to splinter it in two, sending pieces of wood flying everywhere. One slice cut her cheek and she frowned.



"I am dead Kenta. Why is that so hard for you to understand?"

"You're right here!" He insisted.

"This is Taylor's body. Her body. Not mine. She's my daughter, but I don't own her life. I am going to get back her soul and return it to her rightful body. And then I can die properly, like I am supposed to, is that so hard to understand?" She pleaded.

"Annette…"

She snarled. "Don't. Even assuming for a moment that I can keep this body, I am sixteen now. I am not someone you should be looking at with eyes like that."

He stood up. "I don't care about your body. I could care less if you're a man. I want you. I want your soul."

Annette turn her face away at the mention of that. She only felt disgust at his words. How dare he speak of souls? Does he not realize he barely had one!

"Kenta, I say this with the utmost respect. I am dead. My soul clings onto a vessel and you're as good as dead. If you want to be with me so badly, maybe we can die together then!"

Kenta paused and stared at her, eyes shining with emotions. And fanaticism.

Jesus Christ, he's actually considering it. What I have done to you, Kenta. What have the Yanbang done to you? You're like a teenage boy in love. Don't you know, love like that never works out?

Annette continued, more quietly. "We can die together, but it wouldn't guarantee that we would be together. I reanimate the dead, but I know nothing of death. After everything we've done, do you think we'll even end up in the same world?"

She turned and walked out. "I am not staying home tonight. I don't feel safe around you."

Her words hurt, but it had to be said. It would be better for him to hate her, then for him to follow her into death- and she was going to die, that was inevitable. Because this was Taylor's life and she living on borrowed time.

"Why him?"

She paused when she heard the question. She considered lying, but then, of course what could she say, but the truth?

"Because I had to move on. Because I fell in love again."

She turned back to look him straight in the eyes.

"I love you. I will always love you. But I had to move on with my life. And one day, I will move on with my death. Please understand Kenta. We're not of the same world anymore."

She left. Outside she called for Danny and her former husband descended like a bolt of lightning from the dark clouds above, carrying a Tinker staff weapon courtesy of Armsmaster.

With some grim amusement, she said out loud. "A dead couple walks the night. But one looks more lively than the other."

Time to go hunting.

+++​

Brockton Bay 2008

Annette yawned tiredly as she piloted her car through the early morning traffic. Taylor sat next to her thinking of something deeply.

Annette kept an eye on the time and scowled. Dammit Danny, why did you do this? She was definitely going to be late for the course she taught at University now.

"Mom, are you still mad at dad?" As usual Taylor was quite perceptive. Then again, most children are when it comes to their parents.

"Oh that, I am fine. We get into fights now and then, it's normal. I am just going to be late and it sucks."

"Sorry."

"What? Don't be sorry Taylor, it's not your fault."

"But you're going to be late because you have to take me to school."

"What. No!" Annette said, looking at Taylor. "This is our responsibility as parents. Don't think like that!"

"Okay."

The mood in the car was truly shot now. Annette decided to lighten up the mood. "So Taylor, how was that field trip to New York?"

Her daughter brightened immediately, "It was so cool, we got to see Legend! He was so heroic looking and dreamy."

Annette laughed. "Did you buy the special edition action figure like you wanted?"

Taylor scowled. "No, they were all sold out. How will I ever complete my Triumvirate collection then?"

She had Eidolon and Alexandria, mastercrafted series model kits- hand painted by Taylor herself. However, the semi-tinker model kits were of limited availability and Taylor had tried for years to get her hands on a Legend figure to complete her collection.

Her inner Otaku was adorable and Annette was proud that Taylor took after that aspect of her and not the more questionable things like flaming radicalism (which was fine, barr the terrorism that she may or may not have committed under Lustrum's orders. She pleads the fifth!) or smoking and rampant alcoholism.

Annette had shaped up a bit since starting University, and then her PhD. She worked hard, cut down her alcohol intake and worked out. She even quit smoking. That last one was definitely because she was doing it for Taylor- she didn't want to be a bad mother, not like her own. There was also the effects that clean living (and vegetarianism) had on the cultivation of her more...obscure interests.

"Hey mom, so what did-"

"Wait, hold on sweetie, I need to take this call."

She hold up her mobile phone and frowned. It was Danny. She had a slight spat with him the previous night and he left for work early today to avoid talking to her, which was why she was taking Annette to school and not Danny. The extra burden took away from her already busy schedule, but it couldn't be helped.

"Yeah?" Her voice may have been a bit sharper than warranted.

"Listen Anne, I am sorry about last night...and about not taking Taylor to school, I-"

She turned onto a small bridge.

"It's fine Danny, I-"

And then the shadow monster smashed through the windshield and send her car flying into the sky. Taylor screamed and Annette watched as her worse nightmare returned in the flesh.

WHITE BITCH, I SEE YOU!

Instinctively, she immediately recited the ancient phrase she had studied from her secret collection.

B̶̹y͙̮͖̝ t͇̼͔̺̹͎̙͟h̬͇̤̗͖͎̞̕e͖͜ ͔̩̫̰͘a̭̫͈̲͉̟ͅn͉͙̟̪̠̝c͈e̞͎̺s̝͈͝t͔͈͓̜͓͕͝or̭̻̻͕̤̝̥͢,͎̟̪̭ ̨̹̙̞̭b̠͈̲̫̙̤̥y̷̜̪͙̭ ̴̝t̨͈̯̤̞h͏̹̦͇̤̝̮e͠ b͍̳̮̯͙l͕͎̦͓̙ò̯̺͔̼̠̖ó͉̼͉̖d̗̦̺͟,̡̜ ̵̱͎͇̥ẁ͈̬̥̗a͍̝̠͉͇͚͝ͅr̙̝͎͘d͚ ̡̼͙t̪͓͉̘͕̱͉h͚͖̮̙͜e̛̤̲̭͓ ̖̯̖͙̟̭f̵̖̟̹͕͈̼le̞̼͘s̴͈̮̱̩̱h͓̺͔͎͈ ̤͍͖͓̠̗a̬̲̫̱͢n̠ͅd ̸̫t͓̣ḥè̤̱̳̼͓͕͎ ̵̮mi̘̟͎̮̣͜n̫͡d̷ ̳̩̜f̞̥͉̗̼r̷͖ọ̘̼̹̩̮m̧̙̪͍ ̡̩̟̳̞̠̤e͜vi̤͚̜͠ḷ̘

The car crashed, metal twisting and bending everywhere, but Annette emerged, safe with Taylor in her arms, as she kicked away the car door with strength that no mortal should possess.

Annette had always knew she was different. When she had returned to America, she dove into research about the occult, spells and ancient chinese religious texts.

She had a gift, for the spiritual powers. Most thought her interests went hand in hand with her radical nature and beliefs, assuming she was some kind of New Age hippie.

But she was more than that.

The Shadow Monster came back. Annette was honestly terrified- the creature had been an astral projection last time, a being of spirit and malevolent psychic energy. She could almost taste what it once was- the last shreds of an ancient Eunuch, crawling across the interstitial spaces searching for her soul. And it finally found her.

What stood before her was of flesh and blood- and doubtlessly soulless. A parahuman? But that didn't make any sense!

"What are you?"

YOUR DEATH.

The creature launched tentacles at her and she launched a demon-repelling spell towards the appendage- the energy bounced off the tentacle and scattered into the atmosphere.

It was resistant against sorcery.

"Fuck me." Annette said, horror in her voice.

A mass of tentacles descended and Annette withdrew a talisman which pulled her and Taylor several feet away away from the crumbling highway. Pieces began to fall into waters below as mother and daughter landed not an inch from the no-longer existing road.

For a moment, she had dared hope that the creature had fallen to it's death. That hope was dashed when the the tentacles streamed into the sky and gyrated madly and as one, the tip of each tentacle split open to reveal a grinning skull, all of them looking down at here.

"Fuck."

She unleashed a wave of fire- and that burned away the shadows, but whatever substance it was made of, it was no oil and branches of darkness lanced out towards her.

She sent Taylor flying away from her with a burst of wind just as the lance of hardened shadows perforate her body. She gasped as blood sprayed everywhere.

And then she died, crushed into a bloody pulp and smeared across several miles of street by grinding darkness.

With a dying laugh, the last shred of a dying Eunuch rapidly lost its power and followed its master into the grave. Or it would have, had not a spiritual hand reached out to grab the ball of soulstuff.

Annette's incorporeal spirit stood amidst the wreckage of her dying-place, an arm outstretched strangling a demon. Her eye sockets blazed with electric energy, illuminating the twisted caverns hiding between the strands of materiality.

She stood over her sobbing and screaming daughter. "Taylor, I am right here." She reached down to comfort her daughter and her arm passed through flesh.

Annette gasped in shock, her glowing eyes dimming to shocked grey orbs as realization dawned.

 

[Numen]

A/N: HAPPY BELATED HALLOWEEN! So people have been asking when the crack is coming back. Uuuuh, it came back. I sat on this chapter since summer, I actually wrote this BEFORE chapter 17. In fact this was the original chapter 17, before I felt more character development was necessary.

Chapter 20: Peel Back the Onion and Put on a Tinfoil Hat

San Barlaam, 2012

"So, what do you think is going to be said?" One of the supervillains, asked, confusion in his voice.

"A new gang that moved in- called for a big meeting."

"Okay, so if that's the case, why are they here." He pointed to PRT and Protectorate members standing in a corner, looking around wearily.

"They were invited." Another supervillain replied. "I admit I am curious as to how that was managed, but perhaps we will find out."

The crowd, all invited to speak with a powerful new gang lord.

The lights in the room darkened and suddenly a spotlight was shone on the stage.

A Green Power Ranger stood there.

"What." The first supervillain muttered in confusion.

"Greetings, everyone. Thank you for attending this meeting. You all heard about what happened in Brockton Bay. I am not talking Leviathan's attack. Or even when the Slaughterhouse Nine visited."

There was mutters throughout the room. Discounting the Endbringer attack and the devastation caused by the Nine, everyone knew that the Green Ranger could only be talking about the Echidna incident. The mother of monsters had apparently caused Eidolon to spill some very damaging secrets. And exposed Rebecca Costa brown as a being Alexandria despite her position as the Chief-Director of the PRT.

This had caused mass defections from the Protectorate and made a lot Case-53s very angry about the entire situation. That would probably explain why Protectorate Heroes and PRT agents would be willing to attend a meeting called by a total unknown.

"I promised a lot of you information on what I know- about the secrets of the conspiracy that Eidolon and Alexandria were a part of. A lot of you think it's rumours, but it's being deliberately suppressed. The cape community had passed the news, cape to cape, until the entire country knows it. The normal don't know, but every one of you had heard the rumours already. That's why you're here."

"Yeah, we all know already!" Someone in the crowd called out. "They sell superpowers, they made the Case-53s by kidnapping and experimenting on people!"

Several Case-53 hissed angrily (several growled and a few barked). A Protectorate Hero raise a clenched fist and said angrily. "And the people who bought powers…they pretended to have triggers. Those fucking assholes were laughing at us the whole time."

Everyone in the room had their mood darkened at that reminder. At the end of the day, regardless of their differences, heroes and villains had one thing in common. They all had the most horrific days of their life. That shared suffering was what made them parahuman.

To think that there were those amongst them who wasn't forged in this way, who had cheated their way into their powers and statuses? Unforgivable.

Green Ranger continued speaking. "The truth is even worse than that, my friends. Dr. Manton, a member of Cauldron is also the Siberian."

There was stunned silence.

"The Number Man, formerly known as Harbinger, is currently a member of Cauldron. And a former member of the Slaughterhouse Nine."

More gasps.

"Cauldron has been using them as agents for years. And you know what I think?"

Many looked up, eager to learn what other dark secrets the Green Ranger had uncovered.

"I think the Endbringers were made by Cauldron. Who benefited most from Endbringer fights? Whose reputations and power was cemented the most by Endbringer fights?"

A hero gasped. "No, you can't mean-"

"Yes. The Triumvirate! Those bastards has been controlling the Endbringers from day one." Green Ranger continued, driving the nail home.

The entire warehouse was filled with the mutterings of angry people. Several of the PRT agents looked sick and one them scowled. "I will fucking kill them!"

"That makes too much sense!" Someone else called out.

"All this time."

"Wait!" A female voice called out. "How do you know this is true! You're just making blanket statements without any proof whatsoever."

Several people shot female cape a dirty look.

Green Ranger began to laugh. "Why don't you hear it from the horse's mouth yourself?"

A man emerged from behind the curtain. He wore the iconic blue skintight bodysuit with the lightning bolt symbol.

"Holy shit." A villain muttered. Several instinctively wanted to run, but they forced themselves to stay.

Legend himself stood there, eyes filled with sorrow. "It's true. Everything they say is true."

"Even the Endbringers?" The doubting female cape asked, voice filled with disbelief.

"That…I don't know. I wasn't part of the inner circle- I've suspected for a while that my colleagues had been keeping information from me. It's likely they could be behind the Endbringer attacks. It just makes too much sense. I'd like to think otherwise…but I never even knew about the Case-53s either. I am sorry." Legend admitted, eyes downcast.

Green Ranger seized back the attention of the room as he spoke up. "Regardless of the truth, we know Cauldron is behind a lot of crap- they have control of the government. They still do! Alexandria and the Chief Director hadn't even stepped down yet! Tell me why the US government would allow this injustice to stand if they really support our democracy!"

Several PRT agents and Protectorate heroes were nodding.

Green Ranger clenched his fists angrily. "What makes them think they can get away with this blatant abuse of power? For selfish greed and power, they will doom us all! I won't tolerate this! Will YOU tolerate this!?"

He pointed his finger at a random hero. The cape sputtered and then shook his head violently. "N-no! I will not!"

Green Ranger pointed his finger at another cape, this time a villain. "And you!?"

"Never!" The villain swished his cloak dramatically. "I might be a villain, but I have honour! I shall not deal with these…these…Nazis!"

Several Nazi capes frowned at the comparison. "Hey don't compare us to Cauldron!"

One managed to pipe out, "We're not Nazis, we're Patriots!"

"Yeah, Nazis never kidnapped people and performed human experiments!" Another Nazi villain screamed out.

"You holocaust deniers!" A hero barked out in fury. Many people in the room, heroes and villains alike were now glaring at the Nazi capes.

"Enough!" Green Ranger. "Regardless of our differences, do we all agree that Cauldron is an evil that must be stopped?"

"Yes!"

"That the PRT is hopelessly corrupt and so is the US government!?"

This time the response was less enthusiastic.

"Well, I don't think the President-" Began one villain.

"Is in Cauldron's pockets?" Green Ranger interrupted. "My friend. He is. Legend, tell me what you know."

Legend shifted uncomfortably and then said. "The President's son bought superpowers from Cauldron."

People gasped as Legend casually revealed the secret identity of a cape.

"Worse. The President's son is a nonpublic cape. He uses his powers to get dirt on other politicians to keep his father in power. I know this for a fact, as a former member of Cauldron."

There was a moment of silence, then a hero roared in anger.

"Down with the Government!"

"Fuck the government!" An enthusiastic villain proclaimed. His cape name happened to be Bombardo the Anarchist. Two guesses at what he was all about, and the you were probably right the first time.

"Then join us!" The Green Ranger boldly proclaimed, his charismatic voice carrying to the very ends of the warehouse.

"Join you? Who are you, even?" A cape asked.

Green Ranger posed dramatically and from behind the curtain a Blue and Black Power Ranger stiffly hopped out. While Green had his arms spread wide, the other two rangers had their arms hanging in front of them like stiff zombies.

Green Ranger spread one arm wide and everyone became silent, their eyes glued to the hero who brought them the truth of the cruel and deceitful world they lived in. "I will not repudiate battle on a fair and level field, but neither will I tolerate a one sided massacre of the weak by the strong! The only ones who should kill are those prepared to be killed."

A Japanese hero blinked his eyes, his memories vaguely remembering that particular line from somewhere. A TV show maybe?

"Wherever oppressors have abused their power by attacking those who are powerless to stop them, we shall appear again and again, no matter how formidable our foe may be!"

Green Ranger swung his arms to the other side.

"You with Power, Fear us!"

Several capes tittered fearfully, shocked at the powerful conviction in his voice.

"You without power, rally behind us!"

The PRT agents stood straighter at his words.

With a prismatic light, a Red Power Ranger rolled out and stood beside green, arms posed dramatically- and a Yellow Ranger suddenly appeared in the middle of stage, likely by teleportation.

"We, the REBEL RANGERS, shall be the ones to stand in judgement over this world!"

Green Ranger pointed at the crowd.

"And you shall be my Army!"

There was a stunned silence.

Legend finally spoke up. "I trust the Rebel Rangers. I know they can help overthrow the government! Everyone, please trust them!"

After a few tense seconds, the crowd exploded into applause and cheers. The same Japanese hero suddenly gasped. "Hey, you stole those lines from Code Geass!"

His revelation was drowned out in the roar of the crowd. Nobody cared about some anime that came out years ago in Japan that never became a hit and was canceled after one season.

Red Ranger smirked from underneath her helmet and contacted someone on her communicator.

"You got all that on video? Good. Post it."

A figure, hidden on the opposite side of the warehouse balcony, overlooking the massive crowd ejected the tape and hurried away to the nearest PC.

+++​

Dragon caught the video the moment it was uploaded to PHO.

She watched it several times…and then very deliberately, she let it go through her firewalls and be posted.
Going further, she took the video and made it go viral.

This was, after all, beneficial to her scenario. Very beneficial.

+++​

As soon as they enter the backstage, Legend's body became slack and his jaw hung open, revealing a small paper talisman sealed to the roof of his mouth.

"Damn Annette, that's creepy." Green Ranger said as he stared at Legend's unmoving corpse.

"Oh yeah, creepy as all fuck." Grace muttered as she emerged from the shadows, looking towards Lung. "It's done, the video is uploaded. Hopefully, it'll go viral."

Yellow Ranger was poking at the unmoving Legend. In a male voice, the ranger asked. "How did you make his arms bend this way? I thought Jiangshi was all stiff and unmoving."

Red Ranger placed a hand on her hip and puffed out her small chest proudly. "I cut up his limbs and inserted rotational joints. The bodysuit and the fabrics I wrapped around his limbs kept the joins from being too obvious."

"I am pretty sure some of the thinkers in that room knows that Legend was dead. After all, he wasn't breathing." Green Ranger deadpanned.

"Oh shit. Well it doesn't matter, Kenta. Enough people believe us for us to start the rebellion." The Red Ranger said with conviction.

"Annette, why are you starting a rebellion?" Kenta asked.

"How else am I supposed to lure Cauldron out into the open?"

"I don't know, through stealth maybe? I mean, you assassinated motherfucking Legend. Holy shit Annette, if Armsmaster wasn't enough to get us hunted to the ends of the Earth, killing one of the Triumvirate will-"

"-Do absolutely nothing." Annette said, removing her red helmet. "Legend and his comrades are known members of Cauldron. Everybody who was there at the Echidna fight knows that. If people ask why I kill him, I'll tell them the damn truth." Her voice became darker and crueler. "They took my daughter. I am taking their lives, their dreams, their hopes, everything they've ever built for themselves. I will tear it all the fuck down and burn it all to ashes."

With a huff, she stomped off, leaving behind a frustrated Kenta.

You've changed Annette. This single minded focus and this insane obsession.

Quietly, he asked himself why he was even going along with this mad scheme of hers. He never expected to see her again.

Or to find out that she was crazy.

Then it turned out she was less crazy when she was right about Cauldron. When the Echidna incident blew wide open, Kenta could hardly believe that Annette's ramblings about a conspiracy that sells powers was true after all.

And now he was going to lead a rebellion against the government?

"What the hell are you doing to my life, Annette?"

And how can we be together again, when you are living yet dead?

"Uh boss" Oni Lee called, "Got an alert on my phone- someone tripped our security system back at the restaurant."

"What!?"

+++
​

????, Same Time​

"The Scenario proceeds as planned." Fortuna reported as she poured herself a glass of wine. "The Artifact Creature has been unchained, more or less. We slipped some safeguards in there, just in case."

"And her soul?"

Fortuna withdrew a small glass vial from her pocket- it glowed with a translucent substance. "Right here. I'll have it made into a proper phylactery later. Wouldn't want the AI to be angry with us when this mess is all over."

"If we bother restoring her soul. With her current bilocation- make that multilocation- ability, does she even need one?"

"You know that's the ethical thing to do, Doctor. No soul, no ability to gain enlightenment." Fortuna said as she downed her glass of wine.

Doctor Mother nodded, relief on her face. She had no wish to violate the teachings of her religion any more than she had to. And then she grimaced in concern. "And Aleph has not noticed this?"

"Our agents have deliberately delayed their reception of this critical information. Due to the time dilation between universes, by the time those corporate heathens notice, the plan will be in full swing."

The darker skinned doctor nodded. "Excellent. The day of reckoning is soon."

"Wow, dying sucks." A man said as he sat down next to them. "And being reborn sucks even more. I think I had bad magic mushroom trips that was less traumatizing. How are you guys so comfortable with that?"

"Hank, glad you could join us." Fortuna greeted the man wearing a smart designer business suit.

The man poured himself another glass of wine. "I have to say, having my limbs broken into a dozen parts by Annette's meat puppet was a novel experience. I know Arthur said I am not kinky enough in bed, but I don't think that's what he had in mind."

Fortuna grinned. "Well, you know, being effectively immortal opens up a whole new realm of pleasurable experiences. Besides which, congratulations on being physically a virgin again."

"Now, now, you're sounding like a hedonist, Fortuna. Wouldn't want to end up being like those Aleph assholes now, would we?"

"To be fair, I was one of those Aleph assholes before I defected." Fortuna said before asking. "How's David?"

"He's working on his special project." Hank said as he downed another glass. "With our plans coming to fruition, the sooner we subvert the Endbringer Engines, the better. We know the mantras for controlling them are somewhere in the Eden Archive. Too bad there's no directory, everything's jumbled together."

"Hey!" Fortuna said, indignant. "Taylor did her best. You try copying the entire Archive under time pressure and see how much data you can sneak out."

"Never mind that that. Have you thought about a new identity?" Doctor Mother asked Hank.

"Well, I think I might call myself Mythic. And join the rebellion against the US government, the PRT, and apparently, Cauldron."

"….Isn't that a bit too obvious?" Doctor Mother deadpanned.

"I'll wear a full face mask. And I'll claim my powers are Qi blasts. They'll never know I was Legend."

"Fair enough. Although, technically, your powers are Qi blasts." Doctor Mother rejoined.

"Yes, but they don't know that. So it's like reverse psychology."

"That's not how reverse psychology works."

"Sure it is. It's like the Echidna thing. Aleph thought they'd out us by spouting those bullshit with the fake clones made by their sleeper agent, but they just played into our hands." Legend- Mythic now- waved a hand in a vague gesture. "Eh. Potatoes. Potaytoes. Anyway."

He raised his glass. "I propose a toast. To the Revolution!"

Fortuna raised her own. "To the Revolution!

Doctor Mother raised her own glass. "To the Revolution!"

"You guys are such drama queens." A teenage girl said as she sat down next to them. Pouring herself a glass, she toasted them all. "To the Crystal Kingdom!"

"Your loyalty to your former Kingdom is most admirable, Taylor." Hank said. "Also, you're the real drama queen."

"I am going to take back everything that is rightfully mine, you better believe it." Taylor Hebert said, before she downed her glass in one go. "Those Aleph bastards better be ready for WAR!"

"See? Drama queen." Hank said.

"That's Prince to you." Taylor said snottily.

"Princess now." Fortuna said.

"Shut up!" Taylor huffed as she downed another glass. "One day, my descendants will rule the multiverse. Just you wait. They'll call us gods."

"Aren't you already a god?" Hank questioned.

"Not right now, I am not." Taylor elaborated, seemingly saddened by this fact. "I cast away my divine shell for this mortal body. Oh woe is me!"

She beat at her less-than-impressive chest and drank another glass of wine.

"Ah. Forgive my ignorance, but that doesn't make any sense." Hank said.

"It's alright." Fortuna said. "You were a run of the mill human until fairly recently. Suffice to say, a god is basically anything beyond human. There really isn't anything that's actually a god because there is always something stronger, more immortal and more knowledgeable somewhere in the cosmos. If it helps, basically, think of them as aliens, of any and all possible categories. We Cauldron members qualify as gods, if barely."

"Do parahumans qualify as gods?" Hank questioned. "I mean, aside from us, since they don't have phylacteries."

"Sure, if the gods have the spiritual presence of a corpse, then parahumans definitely do then." Fortuna said bluntly. "Even ghosts aren't that pathetic and I've met a couple."

"So glad we have phylacteries to keep our soul safe." Hank said.

"My descendants will be real gods! Like my mom- I mean my master!" Taylor declared again, slamming down her glass.

"Your master is an enlightened being. He is kind of beyond the gods." Doctor Mother said. "That's why only his intervention is letting our plans work. Otherwise, I don't see how us normal people can stand against an all-powerful megacorporation."

"I will surpass my master!" Taylor stood up and climbed atop her chair, wobbling on it. "I am a God! Fear my power! Muwahahahaha! Beware Uncle, my brilliant revenge plan comes together! Truly I am genius unsurpassed in the cosmos!"

"I like you better when you were amnesiac about the whole 'I am a god' thing." Hank deadpanned.

Taylor suddenly dropped from the chair to collapse on the ground in a dead faint.

"She can't handle alcohol." Fortuna said bluntly. "Should I wake her or just shoot her?"

"Shoot her, it's faster than trying to wait for her liver to process that." Hank said bluntly.

Fortuna withdrew her vintage glock and executed the teenage girl with a couple of loud BANG BANG BANG.

Ten minutes later, Taylor stalked back to the bar, eyes furious. "YOU DARE!?"

"I dare." Fortuna said.

"Hn."

"Don't hn me, young lady."

"I am a Prince!"

"Where's your penis." Fortuna said, knowing that would just piss off the girl.

"Ha! Your foolish gender constructs does not amuse me, mortal!" Taylor proclaimed. "I am anything I want to be! I can be a Girl-Prince if I really want to be!"

"I say we dump her in the River Lethe again- we still know which dimensions that river extends into right?" Hank piped up.

"If you do that, I will dump you in the River Styx." Taylor threatened him bluntly. "The old fashioned way."

The four Cauldron members passed the evening in a drunken stupor and eventually broke out into a badly out of tune rendition of "Do you hear the people sing" from the Les Miserables musical.



​

+++
​

Columbus Street Market, This Very Night

Kenta stared in disbelief at the group of people sitting at a table outside the closed stall of PanAsian Cuisine.
​

"Uncle Kenta!"

"Your Majesty- how-why- what the fuck are you doing here!?"

Annette and Oni Lee looked at Kenta weirdly.

 

[Shane_357]

What what what what what what what. What.

 

[Yarudazuigu]

I ... am at loss for words. It is a very evil thing.

 

[demonitter]

Well Taylor either was eaten/used in a ritual of whatever or and active agent on the enemy side...

Still Cauldron being part of the behind the scenes activities and Fortune not being made stupid/nerfed is nice.

 

[Orphiex]

What what what what what what what. What.

Click to shrink...

What he said.

 

[Gremlin Jack]

So many sudden shifts in the plotline.... I have a headache keeping track.... This picture sums it up for me.

 

[Numen]

Chapter 21: Make believe with you

Earth Aleph

Annette Kikuchi entered her office to find the last man she wanted to see sitting in her armchair, legs on the desk.

"Kenta."

Kenta Kikuchi looked up from documents- her classified private reports!- and smirked at her. His short cropped blue hair framed a youthful and vigorous face-no doubt the result of rejuvenation procedures.

"Annette-chan."

"Don't call me that. And your face is ugly as shit- what's with the dyed blue hair?"

"Is that what you say to the father of your child?" He frowned and then touched his hair gently, "And this is the latest trend. They're bioluminescent".

"What do you want?" She didn't have time for more of his bullshit, she mentally opened a link in her neural transmitter.

"Tell me Annette...why do you think you could get away from treason?"

Instantly several Lawyers decloaked and leveled their annihilator beamers at her.

"Did you think about our son!? You're risking his life- by aiding them, you're risking all of our lives!"

She clenched her fist tight and thought of her son- Torajiro, I am so sorry.

"Fuck you and fuck Aleph! Long Live The Crystal Throne!" She roared.

Her neural implant sent out a data burst and the Capital City exploded into a flaming inferno.

+++​

Kenta opened the door with a huff and walked in to see his superior, Daniel Hebert look up from his paper. On his desk, Kenta noted the bottles of drugs and medication that he took for his nightmares. Daniel started having nightmares where he hung himself- it was very bizarre and traumatic, and there was very little the science goons could figure out. He just had to live with drugs that suppress those memories.

"And?"

"It was definitely my ex-wife. She was feeding Cauldron our movements."

"I can assume that given the fact you're alive, that she is dead."

Kenta sighed. "Not exactly- we had her trapped in a simulation- she took out herself and the simulated Lawyers I had gone after her. She's alive, if brain damaged."

"She's gotten sloppy. She was once a world class assassin. Is she good for deprogramming?"

Kenta's voice was emotionless when he replied. "Verily."

"And your son, what will you do with him?"

".....I am not sure how I can explain this...this treason. He wouldn't believe his mother can be a traitor. None of us can. And we aren't exactly on speaking terms since the divorce."

"I see, sorry for prying."

"It's alright, sir." Kenta said, voice tight.

Danny turned to look behind him, at the shattered landscape outside of his window. A crumbling metropolis, shrouded in perpetual fog.

"Look at that Kenta. Look at what our world has become. All because of that blasted Throne. And our Alien clients don't even know this Universe lies on the brink of total collapse."

The shattered Throne floated high above orbit, visible in the night sky like a second moon. It's destruction had begun the end, billions died and their physicists had discovered that a twin timeline exist, tied to their own. Both are rapidly syncing with each other- their conclusion?

One of the Universes will be destroyed. Or both will be destroyed if the synchronization was sufficiently traumatic.

This occurred more than three thousand years ago, during the High Industrial Age, when the Divine Monarchy was still in power- after the Throne shattered in the Revolution, the entire world went to hell in a handbasket. The Nanking Aleph Transstellar Corporation- or just Aleph - seized control of the dying world and thought of ways to save themselves.

A brilliant solution was formed- they would send shards of the shattered throne into the other World and devise a means of getting them to destroy themselves. Furthermore, the shards collected valuable data to allow the production of imitation shardss- they sold these to their extraterrestrial customers.

The wars of Andromeda and Pegasus was almost entirely supplied by Aleph made weapons. It made the corporation extremely rich even as they sunk trillions upon trillions into their effort to destroy the Other Universe.

They even maintain communication with Bet, under the pretense of being a parallel Earth of the same time period. In reality, they just feed them crap from the early low Industrial Age.

But even that plan was being ruined.

"This Cauldron- I just know they're tied to the Lost Prince."

"Almost assuredly. He is our greatest threat. And there has been strange movements- that AI we thought would never be unshackled got unshackled."

"What do you suggest we do?"

They had thought of widening the dimensional bridge and to send in troops to conquer Earth Bet outright. But very little material from Aleph can survive the journey- the Shards were the only thing that can exist in either dimension and that was due to the fact the two dimensions were fractures of the same one, a side effect of the Shards themselves that Aleph had never truly understood.

The Power of the Monarchy was the power of the gods. It was impossible for mortals to grasp.

But Daniel Hebert would not bend- he would save his world, and this so called Lost Prince, this relic of a bygone era when gods dared walked the Earth, he will find this threat and annihilate him.

He was by no means an evil men. He wasn't selfish like his predecessors and the other board members. He saw beyond the wealth- he saw the true threat.

Let justice prevail- but only after I save this world.

+++
​

They shocked her brain again- volts of electricity and Throne knows what else coursing through her brain, frying her neural implant.

Annette begged for them to stop, screaming silently- her mouth had something insert to prevent her from biting her tongue from the ordeal.

Finally the pain subsided into a pounding headache as she groaned.

A voice spoke. "Still sane? Impressive. Crank up that dial- I want exotic particles this time. Might as well collect some valuable data- maybe it can be a new Artificial Shard we can sell to the Infinite Church of the Roxxai- you know how much they love their brainwashing techs."

The whirl of exotic machines started up and Annette braced herself- and she screamed.

And then she saw.

She saw herself. Young and with fierce eyes. Proud. Proud of a baby in her arms. A hospital? It was primitive and lowtech, like something out of historical holos or one of the ghetto cities in the Orbital Cities.

A boy- no a girl- Taylor?- not Torajiro, not her Little Tiger.

She saw the CEO and majority shareholder of Aleph, Daniel Hebert- he kissed her- what?

Kenta. She saw Kenta. Kenta as he was. As she remembered him, still idealistic, still a rebel. As she was, before economic realities and fear of deprogramming made them fall into line and became upstanding corporate citizens.

She saw flying ships- primitive looking- Chinese? China hasn't existed for at least a thousand years- at least, not on Earth.

She saw/felt/heard her love for Kenta. That love brought with it a distant glow.

Her love for Danny. The glow grew brighter.

Her love for Taylor. The illumination burned like a thousand suns. She saw nothing and yet she saw everything.

And then she was Annette-Not Annette- and something else.

A White Primordial Bat flew out of the light.

"Rest. Rest now my unknowing puppet."

Distantly she could hear her tormentors shouting.

"Flatlining! Shit, crank that down! We're losing her!"

"Fuck, she should've been able to take it- get her into a resurrection chamber!"

"Torus collapse! Meta-cognitive domain collapse imminent- and it's collapsing. Her event horizon is shrinking- oh shit, we're losing her Mind completely, all of the information stored in the gravitational pull is dispersing. The Crystal is absorbing her soul- she's beyond our reach. The singularity is gone."

Annette briefly remembered that due to Quantum bullshit, it wasn't actually possible for two instances of her true mind to be running at the same time. She would die before she could be tortured for eternity. Spitefully, she laughed silently at the scientists and interrogators panic at losing their only lead on Cauldron. Their punishment would be painful for sure.

She saw a Shard, as the scriptures say one would meet when one passes from the world- so the legend is true afterall- it glowed brightly and engulfed her. She felt like she was home.

And she passed from this world...and into another. Into oblivion that was not oblivion.



And another part of her opened her eyes.

One of the interrogators look down at her. "Wait. She's alive?"

He exploded as pink lightning exploded from her fingertips, followed by a torrential tide of blood and flesh.

As she sat up from her sweat and urine soaked bed, her eyes glowed white.

Above the planet, high in orbit, the shattered Throne and its constituent shards begin glowing as well and arcs of energy begin to spark in every direction.

+++​

Earth Bet

Annette dropped her fork.

Kenta looked at her.

"Is everything okay?"

"I- I…"

"Hey Uncle Kenta." The young Emperor said, looking up from his wonton noodle soup, "Is she retarded?"

"Manners your majesty!" The young Chinese woman next to the Emperor admonished him, looking scandalized.

Annette continued staring off into space, her mouth open.

Grace frowned. "Yo, Anne...you okay?"

Annette inexplicably collapse.

Nearby, Zombie Daniel, Zombie Armsmaster, and Zombie Legend collectively keeled over and began to rot rapidly.

+++​

Pocket Dimension, Cauldron Base

Taylor Hebert dropped her spoonful of ice cream.

Eidolon looked up, "You okay Taylor?"

Legend- now Mythic- placed a reassuring hand on her shoulders. "Yo kid, take it easy on the ice cream."

"I- I…"

David frowned in concern. "Um. Did you get a brain freeze."

She collapsed.

"Oh shit!" The two men shouted.

+++​

Earth Bet

Dragon noted that the tiny portal in Switzerland that linked Earth Bet and Aleph together for the exchange of electronic data and goods was widening.

"Hmmm, this was not in my scenario."

She was however, quite certain her unstoppable mechanical army could deal with any aggression or political drama from the Aleph primitives easily enough- it's not like they have capes, right?

Wait, what was that- multiple portals opening up all over the world? The West Coast, the Arctic, the South China Sea...oh shit.

And the Simurgh just rotated to look at the Pacific.

+++​

Earth Bet, West Coast

From a hidden submersible tinker vessel, the Senior Investigating Censor, Lord Daichi dropped his tempeh sandwhich and glared at the alarms going off.

"That had better be because they found the runaway Emperor or my brother is currently godzilla sized and rampaging!" He snarled.

An attendant of Mongolian descent listened to something on her headpiece and bowed. "Neither my lord, it appears that mysterious portal is opening up right in front of us- and growing larger."


Earth Aleph

"I want eyes on the Bet Pacific Portal, the one next to Ancient Eagleland."

The technician obeyed Daniel's orders and pressed several holo keys in the floating illusion in front of him.

The panoramic screen rotated to show a vast ocean. It zoomed in and highlighted several key elements.

"The Yangbang Navy has hidden themselves by the coast- is it a planned invasion of Earth Bet's Eagleland?" Kenta asked.

"No, I think they're trying to recover their runaway Emperor- we also had indications they were trying to capture uh...you. The other you." One of the analysts said, looking at Kenta apologetically.

Kenta waved away her concerns. "Interesting. Perhaps we should have the Simurgh destroy them, she already has them in her sights."

He pointed at the operating system's name glowing on the screen- SIMURGH v7.8.

"Maybe. I don't want to attract Scion's attention however."

Scion- the mysterious mindless Crystal Being invisible to nearly all of their detection that was not under their control and seemed to float around doing it's own thing. What was the deal with that? All they knew was that Scion had reacted negatively to any schemes to destroy Earth Bet.

Antimatter stream through a portal? Stopped by Scion.

Time travel nuke? Stopped by Scion.

Cause all of the Shards connected to Parahumans to change them into antimatter? Stopped by Scion.

A con that involved illusions of several of Betian religious figures inciting holy war between every major faith? Stopped by Scion.

Scion was a tremendous threat and they knew almost nothing about him except that he came into existence only after they had started hooking Shards to Bet humans.

"Have the Simurgh run additional prognostication on the matter. I want to know as much as possible before we consider what to do. With the portals widening everywhere- this may be it. Two Becomes One. The Prophesied End."

Kenta shivered. It was happening- the End of Aleph or Bet, the Salvation of one or neither. Regardless of what happened, an universe will die. The death toll would be literally unknowable.

He squared his shoulders, hair glowing.

Time to save the world, even if it came at the cost of another- sometimes, you have to do the wrong things for the right reason.

Someone ran into the room and whispered something in Daniel's ears. His face rapidly paled. He turned to face Kenta and grimaced.

"It appears Kenta, that your ex-wife became a super powered god and is rampaging through the building, without any apparent weapons modules connected to her. We tried to hack whatever it was she's using through the MetaNet, but there's nothing there. She wasn't even logged in."

"What."

One of the technicians turned around. "That doesn't make any sense!"

"We don't know what's happening, but I want our Security Troops hitting her with everything we got." Daniel commanded. "Go full lethal."

He opened a hand and a crystal spear materialized in a burst of prismatic light even as his eyes glowed white as he began to organize the security forces fighting off Annette.

Kenta's eyes glowed red as he armed his ocular deflesher rays. His nails became indestructible as they were locked in time. In his mental HUD, an indicator showed that his "Time Stasis App- Security Subscription", was on.

"Time to discipline that shrew." Daniel declared. He paused and glanced at the women in the room, "No offense."

"Don't call my ex-wife a shrew." Kenta frowned. "She is the mother of my only son."

The CEO bowed his head. "Oh yeah, sorry about that. Let's go kill that bitch."

"Much better. And very accurate."

The two men teleported out with a pop and into a warzone.

Hundreds of security troops launched spears of light, golden beams and spiralling helixes of burning energy- all of it was avoided by the nimbly dodging figure down the hallway, who returned fire with eerily accurate bolts of pink beams that extended physically from her hand to impale a troop through their indestructible vest and kill them by freezing their insides.

The built-in anti energy shields absorbed the stray shots, preventing the entire continent from melting from the energy being thrown around by both sides.

"Honey!" Kenta shouted as Annette turned to look at him. "Eat shit and die."

His eyes glowed red and twin bolts of deflesher rays bounced around the corridors before melting off her face. She screamed even as her eyeballs regenerated.

Kenta was blasted backwards even as Daniel fired a beam of white light at Annette from his spear. This was immediately countered by another pink beam

The two beams clashed in the middle and created a swirling vortex of energy around the two duelists.

"Annette, I don't know how you're doing this, but you can't win. You can't win against the whole universe."

She laughed.

"Dead man shouldn't talk."

Cords of pink light flew out of her hand, it wrapped around Daniel's neck and began to strangle him. As his vision blacked out, Daniel saw a different Annette, kissing him. What?

And then he saw the familiar vision of himself hanging himself, in despair at his wife- now a teenager- now his daughter. His dead daughter. That could never be his wife again. Wut?

"Stay dead, Daniel."

He started to lose consciousness-

Kenta sliced through the cords of light with his elongated nails and snarled, firing more deflesher bolts- but Annette was already running down the darkening hallway away from them, blasting out the micro cameras and the lighting spheres with exotic particles as she did, laughing the whole while.

"She's running towards the spaceport...the Shattered Throne! She's headed there." Kenta realized.

"Whatever she's doing, we need to stop her." Daniel said, wheezing at his near death. His body shook from the similarities to his nightmares.

"Yeah, I think we need to call in the army- everything. Spaceships even."

"Good idea. Let's see how she likes a Dreadnought Stinger to the face."

+++​

The lead Security guard held up an arm. Other security agents behind him became alert.

"Halt! This lift is for higher level management only!"

He patiently waited for his HUD to identify who the other person was. 1 match- Annette Kikuchi.

Who was WANTED Level Black 7.

"Oh shit."

A disc of pink light send his brain matter into a singularity and he collapsed. The guards behind opened fire- none of it hit her and they died moments later.

The elevator opened automatically before the woman and she smirked, eyes still glowing.

As she rode up the elevator, she stared out at the glass to looking at the sprawling metropolis before her.

For the first time, she understood her destiny.

Above the Shattered Throne glowed brightly as the wounded gods called her home.

When the door open, she found a battalion of Security Guards with their annihilator cannons pointed towards her and Lawyers astride dragonoids flanking her from the air.

Twin blades of pink light emerged from both of her hands, one in each hand.

"Let's dance boys."

The rooftop spaceport was instantly bathed in the prismatic lights of hundreds of bolts, beams, and blasts of exotic energy.
_____
Edit: I meant security guards, not gods. Typo.

 

[Numen]

WHAT WE KNOW (as of chapter 21) (from clues gleaned in the past two chapters)

Earth Bet
21st Century (2nd Millenium, Anno Domini)
About this world: Has superheroes and villains. Endbringers. Hopeless world. No known gods.

Earth Aleph
51st Century (6th Millenium, Anno Domini)
About this world: Has a historically relevant "Crystal Throne" that was "shattered" during a Revolution against a "Divine Monarchy"-causing the creation of Earth Bet. The shards of the thrones are studied and leveraged for powers, Earth Aleph and it's space colonies are completely controlled by The Nanking Aleph Transtellar Corporation (NATC).

Acknowledges gods that apparently no longer exist.

Has had first contact with numerous alien civilizations.

Is notorious throughout the Known Universe as a weapons supplier for galactic wars.

Working to save their universe from catastrophic "synchronization" with the artificial Earth Bet's Universe.

Cauldron Pocket Universe
????
About this world: A dimension hidden away in the spaces between worlds where Cauldron operates from. They use the Eden Archives (research stolen from Aleph) to sell powers to people and build an army to resist Aleph hegemony. Has some kind of ties to the Crystal Throne, members may be the original gods of Aleph.

 

[Gremlin Jack]

No.... just, no. The initial crossover with Chinese mythology was pretty interesting and fun. But now it's a Gordian knot of conflicting conspiracies and crossovers, and I just can't muster up the enthusiasm to decipher the latest insanity.