Canned Sunshine (a Going Nuclear spinoff/remake)
- Thread starter YuffieK
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- worm taylor hebert alt power
Skydive naked, no chute, from high enough up that she could see the inky black of space? Terminal velocity for a human, in a spread eagle freefall, is about 120MPH. She should have made a pretty nice splash when she hit the lake. Would have been an epic cannonball if she had time to figure out she was heading for water and wanted to make a really big splash.
Dad, Alan and Emma are gone, hopefully she can connect with Zoe & Anne for emotional support. They'll need it as much as she does.
And hopefully someone will tell her she's releasing extremely dangerous radiation when she makes 'splody things happen. She might be able to control that by re-absorbring it.
Dad, Alan and Emma are gone, hopefully she can connect with Zoe & Anne for emotional support. They'll need it as much as she does.
And hopefully someone will tell her she's releasing extremely dangerous radiation when she makes 'splody things happen. She might be able to control that by re-absorbring it.
YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
I realized Taylor's canon birthdate is mid-June (sometime between the 12th and 19th, possibly the 12th AND the 19th. Timey Wimey Bullshit.) 1995. This makes her fourteen at the start and I think I've corrected all the mentions of it thus far.
I'm not very familiar with Touhou. Are you thinking Hourai Doll or Unforseen Phantasmatic Transmigrations? I may have to skim those.
Thanks!
Oh, Hell yeah. Then again Taylor is accidentally responsible for Emma's death. And Danny's. And possibly Annette's, if Taylor was the reason she was on the cell phone when the crash happened. That's going to wear at Taylor's fragile psyche.
Taylor can't suck up radiation that she's emitting. She's not a black hole. Eventually she'll have enough control where it's not immediately hazardous to everyone around her. Her helium ion rocket feet for example. Taylor spent most of that trip to the Moon inside a heavily modified External Fuel Tank full of reaction mass as the core of a nuclear salt-water rocket. That was left in lunar orbit and she'll fly back up to it to get back to Earth.
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Good update is good. A breakdown at this point is also good. Looking forward to more good.
Chapter 8 - Monday, June 29th 5:12AM EDT
YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
Taylor didn't want to move.
She'd sat there for hours, utterly distraught, staring to the east like a statue. Watching the thin band of blue between the earth and overcast sky slowly brighten on the horizon. Birds stirring, waking and beginning to chip and sing. Mist slowly wafting up from the lake, undisturbed by the wind. The croak of a frog followed by a soft plop as it hopped into the glassy water.
Then a bright pinprick of light shone forth as Helios' chariot began to rise amongst the trees. His majesty banishing the Darkness once again, searing it away in cleansing fire. In the place that was her heart, so too did Taylor feel the Stygian sorrow that had filled it begin to recoil and hide in the wake of such radiant glory.
So beautiful. So peaceful.
"Radiance." she softly uttered.
In that moment, staring into the burning orb that brought life to all things, she found Tranquility. the turmoil of her soul stilled and became like the lake. It was fleeting, but she knew it now. She could find it again.
And as though the Universe acknowledged and accepted her epiphany, a soft patter of rain began to fall and a rumble of distant thunder rolled over her.
"Ugh. Guess i'd better see what all I can find on this island. I can probably swim to shore, but if I find a phone or a radio or something that'd be a lot easier. Maybe set a signal fire on the beach to get someone's attention?"
The trail lead along the coast, with two branches heading inward to small clearings, each with a pair of lean-tos like the ones she'd just left. She'd been walking carefully, not wanting to suddenly stumble on a family like some kind of deranged nudist. That thought made her pause in her tracks and Taylor carefully tried to finger comb her hair, struggling against the tangled rat's nest it had become.
"If I have to cut all this off... Wait a minute." She pulled a lock in front of her and looked closely at it. Taylor had always taken good care of her hair, and it would take a lot of work to fix it... "It's not burnt at all. No split ends even... just needs a lot of detangler right now." She worked at it a bit and separated a single strand, then pulled at it. She felt a tug but it didn't pull free. "I have indestructible HAIR? How the..."
Stretching the strand out before her, she pinched at it with her other hand, then willed a bit of heat into her fingertips, the thread parted, then instantly flashed into nothingness. "Okay, I can BURN it off. Which I guess solves any problems Future Me might have with shaving my legs. Unless it doesn't grow back... but that's another thing for Future Me to worry about." She started walking again. That boat house ought to be just ahead.
It was, though it was more of a shack than anything. Still, it was fully enclosed with a proper door. Padlocked, but a finger tip quickly took care of that.
Inside wasn't much better though. a counter with a sink along one wall, the sink had a hand pump attached to it that probably drew directly from the lake. A freestanding metal cabinet in the corner, also padlocked, with 'Property of the US Park Service' stenciled along the side. Next to that was a simple table with a drawer and a folding chair next to it. Finally, on wall handers were a pair of old flotation vests sized for small children. Taylor noted on closer examination a strong scent of mildew and the foam inside felt stiff and crumbly.
The desk drawer revealed a visitor logbook with several laminated pages and some dry erase pens. Taylor flipped to the last page.
"6/20 Williams: Party of 4, 2T" and a green check mark.
"6/21 Salinger: Party of 5, 1T, 1C" another check.
"6/27 Donner: Party of 8, 2C, 1I" Nothing marked by that though.
"7/4 P/D/NW: Party of 8, 4T"
"Hmm... Okay, one's kind of creepy but... I guess that means the people got here, spent the day and then left back on the boat? No mark on the one for Saturday so they never showed up? That makes sense. T, C and I... Teenager, Child, Infant? No clue what P/D/NW could be, but that's not for nearly a week and I'm not going to wait that long. Let's see what's in the cabinet."
That proved more useful, as inside were a large first aid kit. a long bag which contained a folding canvas cot. a tool box with a hammer, hatchet, a short saw, a couple chisels and screwdrivers. Then there was what looked like a lockbox for a handgun.
Finally, and most importantly there was a hand cranked emergency radio and flashlight, and two cheap yellow plastic ponchos, all still in the packaging.
It wasn't much, but at least the poncho was long enough to make her (barely) decent. She was safe, she was dry, nobody was probably going to barge in on her and she had a way to find out about what might be going on.
Taylor wanted to be out of here. She wanted to believe that Dad was just passed out drunk again. That Emma and Uncle Alan were far away from Albany when the Simurgh had shown up. She wanted to find out that what Dr. Yamada had told her about them was a lie for some reason.
Taylor just wanted to go home and believe everything would be all right. And she knew the longer she waited the worse it probably would be when she found out the truth.
But, she honestly didn't want to know. Because if she knew for sure... that killed any hope.
And Taylor had to have Hope now. Because Ziz, The Simurgh, The Hopekiller, That FUCKING WINGED BITCH that had terrorized the world for seven years.... had been shattered and broken when Alexandria rescued her.
Taylor lay down on the cot, closed her eyes, and listening to the soft susurration of rain and the rolling reverberation of far-off thunder, slept.
She'd sat there for hours, utterly distraught, staring to the east like a statue. Watching the thin band of blue between the earth and overcast sky slowly brighten on the horizon. Birds stirring, waking and beginning to chip and sing. Mist slowly wafting up from the lake, undisturbed by the wind. The croak of a frog followed by a soft plop as it hopped into the glassy water.
Then a bright pinprick of light shone forth as Helios' chariot began to rise amongst the trees. His majesty banishing the Darkness once again, searing it away in cleansing fire. In the place that was her heart, so too did Taylor feel the Stygian sorrow that had filled it begin to recoil and hide in the wake of such radiant glory.
So beautiful. So peaceful.
"Radiance." she softly uttered.
In that moment, staring into the burning orb that brought life to all things, she found Tranquility. the turmoil of her soul stilled and became like the lake. It was fleeting, but she knew it now. She could find it again.
And as though the Universe acknowledged and accepted her epiphany, a soft patter of rain began to fall and a rumble of distant thunder rolled over her.
"Ugh. Guess i'd better see what all I can find on this island. I can probably swim to shore, but if I find a phone or a radio or something that'd be a lot easier. Maybe set a signal fire on the beach to get someone's attention?"
The trail lead along the coast, with two branches heading inward to small clearings, each with a pair of lean-tos like the ones she'd just left. She'd been walking carefully, not wanting to suddenly stumble on a family like some kind of deranged nudist. That thought made her pause in her tracks and Taylor carefully tried to finger comb her hair, struggling against the tangled rat's nest it had become.
"If I have to cut all this off... Wait a minute." She pulled a lock in front of her and looked closely at it. Taylor had always taken good care of her hair, and it would take a lot of work to fix it... "It's not burnt at all. No split ends even... just needs a lot of detangler right now." She worked at it a bit and separated a single strand, then pulled at it. She felt a tug but it didn't pull free. "I have indestructible HAIR? How the..."
Stretching the strand out before her, she pinched at it with her other hand, then willed a bit of heat into her fingertips, the thread parted, then instantly flashed into nothingness. "Okay, I can BURN it off. Which I guess solves any problems Future Me might have with shaving my legs. Unless it doesn't grow back... but that's another thing for Future Me to worry about." She started walking again. That boat house ought to be just ahead.
It was, though it was more of a shack than anything. Still, it was fully enclosed with a proper door. Padlocked, but a finger tip quickly took care of that.
Inside wasn't much better though. a counter with a sink along one wall, the sink had a hand pump attached to it that probably drew directly from the lake. A freestanding metal cabinet in the corner, also padlocked, with 'Property of the US Park Service' stenciled along the side. Next to that was a simple table with a drawer and a folding chair next to it. Finally, on wall handers were a pair of old flotation vests sized for small children. Taylor noted on closer examination a strong scent of mildew and the foam inside felt stiff and crumbly.
The desk drawer revealed a visitor logbook with several laminated pages and some dry erase pens. Taylor flipped to the last page.
"6/20 Williams: Party of 4, 2T" and a green check mark.
"6/21 Salinger: Party of 5, 1T, 1C" another check.
"6/27 Donner: Party of 8, 2C, 1I" Nothing marked by that though.
"7/4 P/D/NW: Party of 8, 4T"
"Hmm... Okay, one's kind of creepy but... I guess that means the people got here, spent the day and then left back on the boat? No mark on the one for Saturday so they never showed up? That makes sense. T, C and I... Teenager, Child, Infant? No clue what P/D/NW could be, but that's not for nearly a week and I'm not going to wait that long. Let's see what's in the cabinet."
That proved more useful, as inside were a large first aid kit. a long bag which contained a folding canvas cot. a tool box with a hammer, hatchet, a short saw, a couple chisels and screwdrivers. Then there was what looked like a lockbox for a handgun.
Finally, and most importantly there was a hand cranked emergency radio and flashlight, and two cheap yellow plastic ponchos, all still in the packaging.
It wasn't much, but at least the poncho was long enough to make her (barely) decent. She was safe, she was dry, nobody was probably going to barge in on her and she had a way to find out about what might be going on.
Taylor wanted to be out of here. She wanted to believe that Dad was just passed out drunk again. That Emma and Uncle Alan were far away from Albany when the Simurgh had shown up. She wanted to find out that what Dr. Yamada had told her about them was a lie for some reason.
Taylor just wanted to go home and believe everything would be all right. And she knew the longer she waited the worse it probably would be when she found out the truth.
But, she honestly didn't want to know. Because if she knew for sure... that killed any hope.
And Taylor had to have Hope now. Because Ziz, The Simurgh, The Hopekiller, That FUCKING WINGED BITCH that had terrorized the world for seven years.... had been shattered and broken when Alexandria rescued her.
Taylor lay down on the cot, closed her eyes, and listening to the soft susurration of rain and the rolling reverberation of far-off thunder, slept.
Denial, it's not just a river in Egypt.
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Pelham/Dallon/New Wave is my guess. The numbers are right for it, and it's a small world.
IndigoPhoenix
Devourer of Citrus
- Location
- Everywehere
Nothing bad ever happens to the Donner Party!
This is in reference for some snippets where taylor gets Utsuho Reiuji powers or the powers of the Yagatarasu, a lunar god that can split the atoms and make suns.
As for sucking up radiation, I made a bad assumption that she could emit as well as intake any kind of energy. This would have let her clean up any lingering radiation in her immediate vicinity.
As for the trip to the moon - Ummm, you haven't published that stuff yet, have you?
I suspect they'll want to make sure the wards are in a different COUNTRY than she is. Why would you put killable kids anywhere near the walking natural disaster? She's not Ash Beast, but she's not that far from it either when she starts throwing around high energy particles.
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ooh,i want to see Victoria be humbled a little...
a little much actually.
That's because she masters herself into a sunflower whenever she looks at the sun and all worries disappear!
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YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
Are you sure? It's entirely possible that in a week, Taylor will be visiting the Wards...
Ding! Ding! Ding!
Nope, nothing bad at all!
Well Taylor can certainly pull that off.
It's under Apocrypha. Couldn't pass up celebrating Moon Day!
Next bit is coming together nicely. Thank you for your support!
Chapter 9 29/6/2009 1437 Hours
YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
PRT Building, New York
Doctor Wells was not scowling as she was beingfrogmarched escorted to Director Wilkins' office by a trio of troopers in full gear. The nametags reading Brown, Jones and Smith being the only thing even slightly distinguishing them from any other regular trooper in the PRT.
When they and many others arrived at Station 42 with orders for everyone to clear the area, she'd started to protest loudly. Before she said anything potentially sensitive out loud, like the fact Taylor Hebert was still under in all that mess, Smith had immediately stepped up to her and declared in a menacing tone that brooked no argument: "Ma'am, We. Are. DONE. Here. Or do I need to take you into custody?"
They'd then put her on a fast VTOL transport and she'd spent the next hour silently glaring at them.
Now though, perhaps she could get some goddamned answers.
As she entered the office though, it wasn't Marsha Wilkins behind the desk, but Rebecca Costa-Brown, looking surprisingly unfrazzled. Oh yes, there were bags under her eyes, the lines on her face were tighter, her hair beginning to work its way free of the bun she normally kept it in, but all in all, it looked like she'd just had a long night rather than three like everyone else.
"Clear the room." she stated.
Smith saluted and left. As the doors closed, Rebecca pushed a button on the desktop's keyboard and a loud clunk sounded, followed by the faint whine of a white noise generator.
Ruby walked toward the desk. A single sheet of paper and a pen were laying on it. "Read, understand and sign this." the Director intoned.
It was a non-disclosure agreement of course, but the penalty for breaking it...
"Director, why am I signing a document that states I will be immediately shot for high treason for breaching it? My clearance is..."
She was cut off by the Director simply placing a service pistol on the desk. No words were spoken, but the meaning was plain to see. Ruby stared briefly at the gun, then locked eyes with the Director. They were hard, flat and unblinking.
A cold sweat began to form on Ruby's brow. Slowly reaching for the pen, she then proceeded to sign her life away. Director Costa-Brown then took the pen and paper, nodded, then countersigned it before placing them and the gun back in her desk. She then pulled out a thin folder.
"Doctor Wells, what you are about to read is the PRT's official report on the incident in Albany, New York on the Twenty-Sixth of June, 2009. This report will only be made available to anyone below the rank of regional director with the express permission of the President, the Chairperson of the Joint Chiefs or myself. Anything contained within it will not be discussed outside this room. The President, Alexandria, Legend and I will be appearing on every media platform in three hours to inform the world of the publicly releasable contents of this folder. I suggest you read it carefully before you voice any opinions. Do it quickly though, there is too much to do to waste time."
Ruby pored over it. It was thankfully concise, stating just the facts. Rebecca was studying something on her terminal in the meantime.
"The Simurgh was responsible." Dr. Wells finally uttered.
"WEDGDG's findings were conclusive. The Triumvirate, as direct witnesses, corroborated it."
"Ten to the thirty-third joules? How much energy is that?"
"I asked Watchdog that myself. Approximately 2.4 quadrillion gigatons. 6 times the gravitational binding energy of Earth."
"And Eidolon contained that?"
"At the eventual cost of his life. You and I and everyone else are still here because of that."
"What about Taylor?"
"Miss Hebert is no longer your concern. That you are addressing her by her given name shows that you are currently unable to view matters objectively. She is just another statistic."
"She's still alive down there!"
"Can you be certain? Did you detect any indication of that fact before I ordered you away? I'm aware that Alexandria herself could not survive being buried like that for so long, a fact known by VERY few people. That is part of my duty as Chief Director should the worst case scenario come to pass. Your last report stated that Miss Hebert was a potential S-class threat. Now she is either dead... or neutralized."
"That's cruel."
"So is this world. I cannot always choose to walk the high road. Every day, I know that I may be responsible for acts of... questionable morality. Truly heinous ones even. Every one of them another dark mark on my soul that I know I will eventually have to answer for. We all have our own sins to bear. But I truly believe that what I am doing is for the greater good. That I am PROTECTING the public. Can you say the same?"
Ruby stared back at Rebecca... and was the first to turn her head away.
"What about the others from Station 42?"
"Director Armstrong just finished a similar discussion as this one with Doctor Yamada. The other personnel from the site will be suitably debriefed and reassigned as appropriate to their level of knowledge and involvement. I suggest that you return to Boston to ensure that Doctor Yamada makes a full recovery and leave this matter to be very quietly and very PERMANENTLY buried."
"Just like Taylor Hebert?" Ruby defiantly snarked.
Rebecca arched an eyebrow back at her. "Am. I. Clear. Doctor?"
"Yes, Madam Director. Crystal."
"Then you are dismissed." she replied, entering the code which deactivated the privacy measures and unsealed the doors.
Doctor Wells shook her head as the troopers once again began escorting her. She sighed and fell into line. "Get me on the next flight to Boston. I need a fucking drink."
The General Assembly of the United Nations
6:00 PM EDT
President Whitmore stepped up the the podium as the Secretary General called for order. The Chief Director stood behind him and to his left, and the two of them were flanked by Legend and Alexandria. All four wore a black and green armband on their right bicep.
"Gathered Delegates. Honored Diplomats, Fellow Leaders. Nearly twenty years ago, Hadhayosh, the Behemoth, the First Endbringer, wrought a great scar of destruction upon our fair world. Since then, every nation has suffered at the hands of these foul beasts. I stand before you now as one whose country has just suffered such a tremendous blow."
"But Today, We now have Hope! Humanity can now Dare to Dream of a Brighter Future! That there is now a Light at the end of this long, dark tunnel! We can now say that we CAN Confront the Monsters beating at our Door! That these Fiends CAN BE STOPPED!"
"I am here to announce to you all that Eidolon, the Greatest Hero of the Protectorate, proved something no one, not even Scion himself, has managed to accomplish before!"
"THAT WE CAN CANCEL THE APOCALYPSE!!!"
"I am here to say that when the Angel of Destruction chose That Day to End Humanity, One Man was There to Stand Defiant in the Face of Her!
One Man, in the most Noble Expression of Self Sacrifice Imaginable Gave Everything to Save Us All!
He was not Alone in that Act... The Good and Blessed People of Albany Shared in that Victory...
They too Shall Forever be Remembered and Honored alongside David Bruce Simmons, the Man Known as Eidolon!
These People, Whom We Shall Never Forget, are the Ones who Slew the Simurgh!"
The chamber erupted with cheering and applause.
The President waited for a full minute before bowing his head, raising a hand for silent prayer, then finally stepping back and allowing the Director to approach the podium.
"Ladies and Gentlemen. My name is Rebecca Costa-Brown. I am the Chief Director of the Parahuman Response Team of the United States and these are the findings we have concluded from the events of Friday afternoon..."
In a small shack at the edge of a large lake, a young woman sat on a cot in utter shock at the voice she had just heard.
"That... duplicitous... cyclops..."
Doctor Wells was not scowling as she was being
When they and many others arrived at Station 42 with orders for everyone to clear the area, she'd started to protest loudly. Before she said anything potentially sensitive out loud, like the fact Taylor Hebert was still under in all that mess, Smith had immediately stepped up to her and declared in a menacing tone that brooked no argument: "Ma'am, We. Are. DONE. Here. Or do I need to take you into custody?"
They'd then put her on a fast VTOL transport and she'd spent the next hour silently glaring at them.
Now though, perhaps she could get some goddamned answers.
As she entered the office though, it wasn't Marsha Wilkins behind the desk, but Rebecca Costa-Brown, looking surprisingly unfrazzled. Oh yes, there were bags under her eyes, the lines on her face were tighter, her hair beginning to work its way free of the bun she normally kept it in, but all in all, it looked like she'd just had a long night rather than three like everyone else.
"Clear the room." she stated.
Smith saluted and left. As the doors closed, Rebecca pushed a button on the desktop's keyboard and a loud clunk sounded, followed by the faint whine of a white noise generator.
Ruby walked toward the desk. A single sheet of paper and a pen were laying on it. "Read, understand and sign this." the Director intoned.
It was a non-disclosure agreement of course, but the penalty for breaking it...
"Director, why am I signing a document that states I will be immediately shot for high treason for breaching it? My clearance is..."
She was cut off by the Director simply placing a service pistol on the desk. No words were spoken, but the meaning was plain to see. Ruby stared briefly at the gun, then locked eyes with the Director. They were hard, flat and unblinking.
A cold sweat began to form on Ruby's brow. Slowly reaching for the pen, she then proceeded to sign her life away. Director Costa-Brown then took the pen and paper, nodded, then countersigned it before placing them and the gun back in her desk. She then pulled out a thin folder.
"Doctor Wells, what you are about to read is the PRT's official report on the incident in Albany, New York on the Twenty-Sixth of June, 2009. This report will only be made available to anyone below the rank of regional director with the express permission of the President, the Chairperson of the Joint Chiefs or myself. Anything contained within it will not be discussed outside this room. The President, Alexandria, Legend and I will be appearing on every media platform in three hours to inform the world of the publicly releasable contents of this folder. I suggest you read it carefully before you voice any opinions. Do it quickly though, there is too much to do to waste time."
Ruby pored over it. It was thankfully concise, stating just the facts. Rebecca was studying something on her terminal in the meantime.
"The Simurgh was responsible." Dr. Wells finally uttered.
"WEDGDG's findings were conclusive. The Triumvirate, as direct witnesses, corroborated it."
"Ten to the thirty-third joules? How much energy is that?"
"I asked Watchdog that myself. Approximately 2.4 quadrillion gigatons. 6 times the gravitational binding energy of Earth."
"And Eidolon contained that?"
"At the eventual cost of his life. You and I and everyone else are still here because of that."
"What about Taylor?"
"Miss Hebert is no longer your concern. That you are addressing her by her given name shows that you are currently unable to view matters objectively. She is just another statistic."
"She's still alive down there!"
"Can you be certain? Did you detect any indication of that fact before I ordered you away? I'm aware that Alexandria herself could not survive being buried like that for so long, a fact known by VERY few people. That is part of my duty as Chief Director should the worst case scenario come to pass. Your last report stated that Miss Hebert was a potential S-class threat. Now she is either dead... or neutralized."
"That's cruel."
"So is this world. I cannot always choose to walk the high road. Every day, I know that I may be responsible for acts of... questionable morality. Truly heinous ones even. Every one of them another dark mark on my soul that I know I will eventually have to answer for. We all have our own sins to bear. But I truly believe that what I am doing is for the greater good. That I am PROTECTING the public. Can you say the same?"
Ruby stared back at Rebecca... and was the first to turn her head away.
"What about the others from Station 42?"
"Director Armstrong just finished a similar discussion as this one with Doctor Yamada. The other personnel from the site will be suitably debriefed and reassigned as appropriate to their level of knowledge and involvement. I suggest that you return to Boston to ensure that Doctor Yamada makes a full recovery and leave this matter to be very quietly and very PERMANENTLY buried."
"Just like Taylor Hebert?" Ruby defiantly snarked.
Rebecca arched an eyebrow back at her. "Am. I. Clear. Doctor?"
"Yes, Madam Director. Crystal."
"Then you are dismissed." she replied, entering the code which deactivated the privacy measures and unsealed the doors.
Doctor Wells shook her head as the troopers once again began escorting her. She sighed and fell into line. "Get me on the next flight to Boston. I need a fucking drink."
The General Assembly of the United Nations
6:00 PM EDT
President Whitmore stepped up the the podium as the Secretary General called for order. The Chief Director stood behind him and to his left, and the two of them were flanked by Legend and Alexandria. All four wore a black and green armband on their right bicep.
"Gathered Delegates. Honored Diplomats, Fellow Leaders. Nearly twenty years ago, Hadhayosh, the Behemoth, the First Endbringer, wrought a great scar of destruction upon our fair world. Since then, every nation has suffered at the hands of these foul beasts. I stand before you now as one whose country has just suffered such a tremendous blow."
"But Today, We now have Hope! Humanity can now Dare to Dream of a Brighter Future! That there is now a Light at the end of this long, dark tunnel! We can now say that we CAN Confront the Monsters beating at our Door! That these Fiends CAN BE STOPPED!"
"I am here to announce to you all that Eidolon, the Greatest Hero of the Protectorate, proved something no one, not even Scion himself, has managed to accomplish before!"
"THAT WE CAN CANCEL THE APOCALYPSE!!!"
"I am here to say that when the Angel of Destruction chose That Day to End Humanity, One Man was There to Stand Defiant in the Face of Her!
One Man, in the most Noble Expression of Self Sacrifice Imaginable Gave Everything to Save Us All!
He was not Alone in that Act... The Good and Blessed People of Albany Shared in that Victory...
They too Shall Forever be Remembered and Honored alongside David Bruce Simmons, the Man Known as Eidolon!
These People, Whom We Shall Never Forget, are the Ones who Slew the Simurgh!"
The chamber erupted with cheering and applause.
The President waited for a full minute before bowing his head, raising a hand for silent prayer, then finally stepping back and allowing the Director to approach the podium.
"Ladies and Gentlemen. My name is Rebecca Costa-Brown. I am the Chief Director of the Parahuman Response Team of the United States and these are the findings we have concluded from the events of Friday afternoon..."
In a small shack at the edge of a large lake, a young woman sat on a cot in utter shock at the voice she had just heard.
"That... duplicitous... cyclops..."
You know that adage: "You should never meet your heroes?" It's especially true when they're... not.
I was tempted to make RCB's full legal name "Rebecca Maria Alejandra Costa-Brown" but that seemed a little too on the nose.
I was tempted to make RCB's full legal name "Rebecca Maria Alejandra Costa-Brown" but that seemed a little too on the nose.
IndigoPhoenix
Devourer of Citrus
- Location
- Everywehere
Alex, we've got some bad news for you. You're not in a grimderp setting anymore. That excuse isnt gonna fly.
Imagine seeing Taylor fight leviathan and remembering the speech:
"So that was a f*cking lie!"
"So that was a f*cking lie!"
Draxsis
SANLOST
- Location
- United states
And this is why you always always double tap when pulling a stunt like this. Always confirm that the person you think is dead really is dead before you try to give credit for their accomplishments to someone else.
Something tells me that Taylor is going to have words for a certain one eyed flying brute when she gets back to civilization and let's everyone know she's still alive and very, very unhappy.
Hello my betrayer, we meet again, for the last time... Well, at least Taylor's got something to focus on right now. Revenge is always good for that.
einargs
Verified Spiller of the Egg Yolk
- Location
- The Egg Yolk, Outer Layer
- Pronouns
- They/Them
There's no way they don't know that Taylor isn't in there. Alexandria knows from the tests that Taylor can hold her breath indefinitely. Further, she knows that Taylor can take much worse than the facility self destruct. And she knows that if Taylor was down there and in distress, she'd be putting off radiation that they could detect through the rubble.
There's no explanation other than that this is Alexandria quietly burning Taylor's identity and ability to join the Protectorate so that Cauldron can use Taylor elsewhere.
Cauldron almost certainly caused the facility explosion in the first place. Alexandria is a thinker; she wouldn't leave a fuck up like the captain in charge of the (possible? I don't remember if they know for sure) endbringer killer unless she wanted this to happen.
If Cauldron wanted to recruit Taylor directly, this wouldn't have happened. They would have let her sit in care while they deal with Glastig Uaine and then pitched once Contessa could model her better. And why would they want to directly recruit Taylor? Why expose the existence of something like cauldron to an early teen.
But if they want to control Taylor indirectly, why not use the Protectorate? The Protectorate is built to handle parahumans, and Taylor was already in the system. Sure, Taylor being a child complicates using her as a weapon somewhat, but for an endbringer killer exceptions are easy to force through.
I'm guessing that it's just easier to get the result they want outside of the system.
Taylor can't kill Behemoth, but she has a good chance of killing Leviathan.
Cauldron doesn't really care about Taylor being a hero, and her powers are too scary and destructive to help support the Protectorate. Plus, she's too young to really be trusted by the public the way Eidolon or Chevalier or other top heroes are for at least another decade.
So why bother dealing with headaches like Taylor going to school instead of training (read: getting into fights). Or the headache of publicly sending a young kid to kill Leviathan, especially when you want to say that Eidolon killed the Simurgh.
Cauldron presumably set the facility explosion into motion before Glastig Uaine grabbed Eidolon, since the facility choice was made before that happened. So I'm guessing they already have a plan for Taylor.
Taylor is in a nice, private island where she can meltdown and decompress. (Arranging for her trajectory to land nearby is well within numberman or Contessa bullshit.) They can nudge people into her path as needed once she's more stable and they have better data.
It's not hard to make Taylor want to fight Leviathan and then provide the opportunity, afterall.
So to sum up my guesses: Cauldron knows Taylor is alive. They don't want her in the Protectorate, so they burned that bridge intentionally. They probably arranged the entire facility mess. Taylor being on the island, isolated, where she can relax and meltdown and process, might be intentional as well. Cauldron won't contact Taylor directly.
Brightstone
Feral Goblin
Eh, it's better if Cauldron isn't plot fu infallible. That said, the cyclops line was absolute gold. Considering that she can absorb radiation... she might be able to use him like a snacky treat and leave a no longer radioactive statue behind. Since Simmy's doom went back through her connection, Behemoth's would be a sippy straw.
And her being a rogue or villain that thinks that she has nobody left,a villain that is indestructible and uncontainable is significantly better?!
If they want her,they could just door her into a unhabitable earth and make her go dependant on them for human interaction.
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YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
Scion's still around as the ultimate threat and nobody knows that Benny and Levi have been put on standby, so they aren't out of the grimderp woods yet.
Becky knows that that would've contianed HER long enough to suffocate. Contessa can't Path Taylor and they still aren't sure about her actual powers. RCB's thinking: "She'll probably keep though. Right now I've got a National Disaster to spin doctor."
Not for a while.
It's Worm. EVERYBODY lies.
Taylor's venting at the moment, but she's going to start using her head next chapter. Maybe incorrectly, but Taylor's a smart cookie.
She got SOMETHING to focus on.
Again, RCB isn't sure of ANYTHING, which really grates at her. But she can't divert resources publicly right now to help. So, Taylor's been put in a box and she'll get around to it later. She can't be EVERYWHERE.
Station 42's destruction was in fact A Series of Unfortunate Events and not some Contessa Pathing BS. Whether of not there WAS some External Force nudging things along is up to the reader.
Taylor's not connected to the Endbringers. Neither is Ciara (currently) through David's ghost. Claiming him tripped the circuit breakers to the EB Cores that [High Priest] was bleeding out of.
That's The Omega Protocols.
Next time: Our favorite Little Owl starts to hatch a plan. Maybe not a great one, but Taylor's only fourteen. She doesn't have much experience with this sort of thing.