Goddamn Teenagers (Worm, AU/time travel)

[dc2008]

Lisa looked down at her phone.

Lil' Gremlin: How find recent picz on PC?

Lisa responded with the URL of a search engine.

Lil' Gremlin: thx

A few minutes later

Lil' Gremlin: huh wow how make search history go away?

A truly noble endeavor. For variety, Lisa sent the URL of a different search engine.

A few minutes later

Lil' Gremlin: Ok but hdu see if itz gone gone fur rlz?

Lisa sent a different URL

A few minutes later

Lil' Gremlin: ??? This is in martian or greek or smthng???
Lisa: Rght sry don't dl from there, I'll send you exe, you'd've needed remove the key log in terminal anyway

Lisa sent the file, then paused. Wait, what is she even doing?

Lisa: Since when do you have PC anyway?
Lil' Gremlin: lul itz bros PC

A few minutes later

Lisa opened her door, to find Aisha, in PJs and slippers, holding an open laptop.

"Hey I still can't find his porn, it's really well hidden so it must be super naughty! I need to find it so I know who to set him up with!"

Lisa just stared, before slowly shutting the door.

"Rude!"

---

Note: We are a little over half way through the backlog of chapters previously posted elsewhere.

I may have underestimated how long it would take to get this thread up to date. (The work being done mostly on my commute)

 

[dc2008]

"This is awesome," said Chris. "When can you come in so we can play split screen?"

"Tell her about the toast!" Insight said, dragging Vista across the room. "Vicky!"

"Eh," said the teen boy on the other end of the voice chat. "Headshot, fuck yeah! I got mind-whammied pretty bad by a master. Suits are pretty sure I'm OK? I mean I'm not in the asylum or anything, but they want to be sure."

"Wow," Dennis said with feeling. "That really, really sucks. You hear about that shit, but the Winslow thing really brought it home."

"Wait did you go to Winslow?" Chris asked.

The other boy laughed. "No comment."

Dennis laughed. "Vicky will be thrilled."

"You WHAT!!!" Vicky's shout cut across the room.

"I know it's awesome!" Insight shouted, to the accompaniment of laughs from purple girl.

"But maybe wait a bit?" Chris added tentatively.

The other boy laughed. "Holy shit, I heard that from here!"

---

Note: Ayep, that be Alec

Insight is Dinah. Purple girl is Lisa.

Lisa might, possibly, maybe, be in an unnecessarily long pissing match with Branding and jaded!Taylor about her name. Lisa is taking the entirely reasonable position that her name should be AWESOME, while the adults are being stupid and unreasonable and saying some nonsense about picking a name that won't make you embarrassed when you are older *cough* Glory Girl *cough* Kid Win *cough* Clockblocker.

 

[dc2008]

"Finally," the infuriating woman said, "you will in the near future be receiving reports of Armsmaster's latest breakthrough. In short, in certain circumstances and with less than perfect reliability, he can detect our use of the cross-dimensional phenomenon we refer to as 'doors'."

"… that is both quite significant and highly inconvenient," Rebecca said after a brief pause.

"Indeed, in my timeline he never made this breakthrough, I suppose due to Cauldron's relatively hands-off approach to the Bay before, well," she gestured vaguely, "and the fact that after Gold Morning, Valkyrie, er, that's the rebranded Fairy Queen, used doors more sparingly than Cauldron ever did, and in any event he was very preoccupied with other concerns…"

Rebecca coughed, politely.

The older woman started. "Ahem, well, even he has not yet realized the full implications. Certainly this breakthrough opens the possibility of studying and perhaps duplicating previously incomprehensible advanced mover techniques, Haywire's included, but that's just the start…"

Kurt leaned forward in excitement, as Rebecca forced an expression of interest. Yes, it was on some level fascinating to hear about how later research in the woman's worldline had revealed signs that "dimensional fuckery" may be involved in many if not most power expressions, what the fuck. But did she have to be such a condescending know-it-all about it?

---

Note: Rebecca, too, is in denial about just how similar she and that woman are.

 

[dc2008]

"Victoria, no flying in the house," Carol said automatically. "Now, please say that again more slowly."

"We need to make the PRT take this seriously!"

"Take what seriously?" Carol asked.

"Vicky, Aura," Amy interjected.

Vicky ignored her. "I can't believe they want to tie Amy up in red tape when she could be helping!"

"It's fine," Amy said patiently. "It will work out."

"They're puppies! Adorable puppies and the PRT doesn't want you to heal them and they suck!"

"Victoria, please watch what you say," Carol automatically said, "the PRT are valued friends and allies and while they could perhaps do better in some ways we will always be happy to work with them."

"That's what I said! They need to let Amy heal the puppies!"

"Vicky, I don't even know if I can, I never have…"

"Of course you can! You're the best in the world at healing! And then we can finally deal with Hookwolf!"

"Victoria, please slow down." Carol replied. Then her daughter's statement registered. "And you have no business fighting Hookwolf, with or without… puppies?"

"Of course not yet, I need to get the uniforms first! I don't want the puppies getting hurt! I should call Aunt Sarah back maybe she has an update!" Vicky flew over the banister and up the stairs.

"… and she's gone," Amy said with a sigh.

Carol regarded her other daughter. "What is she talking about, anyway?"

"She was going on about the Undersiders joining the Wards, and I tried to distract her with pictures of puppies Hellhound rescued from Hookwolf's fighting rings, and, well…" Amy gestured vaguely upstairs. "Now she wants to lead forth an army of sensibly uniformed begoggled monster puppies (in proper footwear), for vengeance?"

"Ah." Carol sighed.

---

Notes:

V: Look, I'm not saying we should kill all the Nazis, just, you know, the ones who are mean to puppies? Or people, I guess? Wait are there any who aren't mean to puppies or people? Maybe we should kill them all?

 

[dc2008]

Lisa eyes the equipment skeptically. "Can we skip the migraine part this time?"

Dr. Weaver smiled enigmatically. "Today we will explore the limits of your power. I have statements on pre-printed cards. You will write down what your power says, and then read it to me."

This will go poorly.

Yeah, no shit.

Dr. Weaver flipped over the first card. "Alexandria is a member of the Triumvirate."

"True," Lisa said. Obvious calibration is obvious.

New card. "There exist rules regarding information your power is not supposed to give to you."

"She believes this to be true."

"Before I read the next card, please compare the two answers carefully."

Lisa did so. Huh. She felt the first twinge of a headache.

New card. "Your power perceives what you perceive."

"True."

Dr. Weaver looked at Lisa expectantly, until she reviewed the answers again. Huh. Another twinge.

New card.

Lisa waited.

"Are you going to read it?" Dr Weaver asked.

Huh. Lisa blinked, and refocused on the card. "Powers exist, separate and apart from those they empower."

The migraine came on sharp and sudden, and was somehow accompanied by a feeling of sadness.

---

Notes:

Power: QA why your host so mean?
QA: {SMUG} Best Host is BEST HOST!!!

 

[dc2008]

"Hey, uh, older me?" Taylor asked hesitantly.

"Hmm?" The older woman looked up from her stack of papers.

"Did you ever have a pet?"

The woman adopted a thoughtful expression, before launching into a length dissertation on the benefits and drawbacks of various pets, including with regard to home defense and time commitment, and how important it was to have, ah, roommates who could take care of your pets in case of an unexpected injury or deployment. Taylor stole the woman's pen and pad to take notes.

She tried very hard not to think about the living details suggested by her counterpart's perspective. It sounded like she lived in a commune? Or maybe a fortified compound? Or an orphanage?

Body armor and M/S precautions for animals though was not something she ever expected to be thinking about.

Taylor suspected that an oral history from other!her would be fascinating.

---

Note:

It's not a commune! Or an armed compound! I just lived in a small fortified township, with redundant independent power and water supplies and five years of food, surrounded by my closest friends and platonic life-partners, and our hired mercenaries, and our collection of poor abandoned demon children, and all those other orphans we rescued, and our kennel of sometimes monster wolf-dogs, and some people who I actually didn't like too much but once you've shared a foxhole for a week you have a bond that you can never forget, and… holy shit. Why didn't Lisa tell me!

 

[dc2008]

"Hey, bro?"

Brian looked up. "Yeah?"

Aisha shuffled awkwardly. "I just want you to know that I will always love and support you no matter whether you are gay or straight or whatever."

"Thank you?" Brian replied. "And, uh, I love and support you? And am fine with you dating whoever, so long as it's all safe and sane and consensual and all. But please shut the door, and, uh, use protection?"

Aisha nodded significantly, and then wandered away.

What the fuck was that about?

Elsewhere

"Hey, ah, Taylor was it?"

"Yeah?" Taylor replied, confused. She vaguely recognized the bouncy older girl but couldn't place her name.

"Is it true that there are knife fights in the halls at Winslow?"

"I think that happened like once or twice? It wasn't an everyday thing?"

"Oh my God! You are so brave!"

 

[dc2008]

"It has been suggested that I have been lax in preparing you for an important situation, specifically that of cohabitation."

Amy sipped her coffee. It was too early… wait, it was too late in the day for that. She was too tiredthis shit, that was better.

"Whether they be friends, family, or lovers there are certain items of consideration and common courtesy…"

Oh my God, I have a sister why am I here?

"… And so we will start with kitchen etiquette, progress to the certain important signals used to indicate a need for privacy, and conclude with a demonstration of the many ways an inquisitive child might find details of your phone or PC's browsing history."

Amy almost choked on her coffee.

---

Notes: You know, important things to know when you live with a small army of inquisitive, often parahuman children.

 

[dc2008]

Thomas sighed when he saw the tacky hallmark card in his mail.

Opening it, he removed two items, before idly skimming the preprinted message. It appeared intended to be given to a small child upon realizing some goal.

With a sigh, he discarded the card, and turned to the enclosures. The first was a press release from the PRT national office highlighting the importance of a healthy rogue community so as to offer an alternative to villainy. He tucked it away. Message received. The doll cape is to be protected from interference by the Empire, the Elite, etc.

He flipped to the next item. It was an executive summary from an early review copy of an unpublished research paper entitled Effects of Power Interactions on Precognition and Simulation. Skimming it, he was unsurprised to find that even without context, the summary alone was equal parts enlightening and alarming.

Message received. Play well and I get treats.

A few quick online searches revealed the paper's author was among those presumed lost at Madison and, of course, the paper was not available in any of the usual places online. Well, I'm sure they'd give me the full paper, for a price, but I'd rather first further search myself.

Or perhaps further excerpts would be sent to him if they felt he needed a future reminder. He rather felt he was starting to get the rhythm of this arrangement.

---

Note: I haven't forgotten him!

 

[dc2008]

Dr. Weaver looked at Lisa with tired eyes. "Sierra tells me you have been busy."

"Yep!" Lisa seemed proud of herself. "Some of the girls agreed to be nicer to him in passing, I convinced him not to cut ties with his internet not!girlfriend, who is a sweetie, and I have socially engineered PHO into seeing him as adorably neurodivergent rather than moronic!"

Dr. Weaver stared. "Did it not occur to you to talk to mebefore doing, well, any of this?"

Lisa looked offended. "I didn't even use my power!"

Dr. Weaver sighed. "That was only part of why I wanted you to talk to me. You are a teen."

"Hey!"

"I didn't say you were dumb. Rather you've been using Power to play on easy mode and need to develop new modes of thinking if you are going to successfully tackle bigger problems. Consider—and do use Power for this—what will happen if you ceased providing active support to the boy?"

"I'm sure he'd be oh. Shit."

"That said, I do very much hope you've started what will be a long and fruitful friendship with Sveta, she is a nice girl and could use more friends."

Elsewhere

"Aiden!"

The boy looked up. "Yes, mom?"

"Oh we've had the most amazing opportunity, this could change our lives!"

Aiden smiled. He wasn't sure he understood everything his mom was talking about, but Mom was happy and said it was good, so it was good."

---

Note: Power: I don't know why you are so upset, I think the plan was AWESOME!!!

---

Note note: Recall Aiden is one of the adorable
moppets Taylor and Charlotte take care of in canon. He later triggers as Chicken Little. I have mixed feelings on the use of sympathetic orphans by Wildbow. They tie in neatly with the various characters' backstory trauma (Aisha becoming better than her mom or Alex's dad, Lisa feeling misplaced guilt for her brother, Taylor empathizing with people who lost their mom). On the other hand, there is something incredibly fucked up in suggesting that the path for female teenage delinquents to get their shit together involves them becoming teen moms.

 

[dc2008]

"Emily," Phil said, unusually frazzled. "Do you know why Youth Guard, Branding, Missy and each of her parents are all going at each other?"

"Hmm?" Emily looked up.

"A literal pile of memos and formal messages were dumped on my desk an hour ago, and I'm hoping someone can give me some context because I don't trust any of them to give me a straight answer."

Emily nodded. "That would explain the heads up meeting request from Legal. I'm going to go with a hunch and suggest you ask Dr. Weaver."

Later

"Were you able to figure out what was going on with Missy and company?" Emily asked.

Phil rolled his eyes. "You may recall Missy's continuing requests for weapons, armor and combat training?"

Emily grimaced. "Yes, I might have seen a dozen odd 'Dirty Harry' notes from her."

"Well, apparently at a recent mixer Victoria Dallon and Missy got in a screaming match about proper PPE in general and footwear in particular…"

"… so now everyone is accusing everyone else of endangering a child, and either Missy has developed a sudden fascination with statistics and deftness at social manipulation, or she's getting coached by someone, possibly Miss Dallon, or perhaps Brandish. Dr. Weaver disclaims responsibility and seems to find the whole situation amusing."

Emily sighed. "The PRT is entirely supportive of providing appropriately tailored PPE to our Wards. I am fully confident that our esteemed colleagues can identify a range of possible action plans and look forward to discussing with them at such time as they can reach a consensus."

Phil snorted. "That is pretty much what Dr. Weaver said."

Piggot nodded. "Smart woman. If they look like they are in danger of reaching a consensus, start forwarding them the 'Dirty Harry' notes, piecemeal."

 

[dc2008]

Piggot is just glad that all these lunatics are bothering each other instead of her. Her basic attitude toward Vista is frustration that Piggot needs to keep the pint-sized potential strategic asset safe from the girl's own idiocy long enough for her to mature enough to be able to use her powers effectively. And, while she sympathizes with the girl's desire for better equipment, the girl just doesn't understand her limits and gets into scraps she has no business being in. And also physically cannot carry actual useful levels of gear.

Put differently, in a city with Oni Lee and Hookwolf, it's not clear that better armor would really make Vista safer. The girl has no business being in a position where she even can get hurt even now yet she keeps. Getting. Injured. At least now the level of force required to render her mission incapable is low enough that the girl isn't too badly banged up. Give her the ability to tank small arms and she'll just find a way to get shot at by higher-lethality weapons.

I will also point out that Piggot knows what it looks like when a junior trooper is trying to hide an injury. Yes, it's usually due to stupid bar fights versus stupid actual fights, but the idea is the same.

Also, Max is not stupid. Well, he is, but in this matter he has his head screwed on straight—covering his ass. There is a non-zero chance that someone quietly contacted the PRT after Hookwolf ran into Vista, and offered Othala healing as well as a polite suggestion that the girl stay in her lane. It's hard to not kill Wards when they jump in front of murder blenders.

So in short, from Piggot's perspective, Missy's parents are self-centered pieces of shit, Missy is suicidally reckless with a chip on her shoulder, Youth Guard are well-meaning fools, and Branding gets kudos for somehow making this disaster adorable but loses points big for believing their own propaganda.

I will also point out that, for all Vicky gets shit on, at least in this fic when told how her power can be more dangerous than she realized, she did earnestly and in good faith make a huge effort to do better. She did it in a super-annoying way, and at high volume, but she's trying. While Missy, on learning that her power is actually more dangerous, does a lot of dangerous shit including putting a ball bearing through her own foot and setting the kitchen on fire.

---

Honestly if I was Piggot at start of canon I would be almost more worried about Vista than Sophia. Yea, Sophia is a loose canon with a trail of bodies, but she's not a good person. She enjoys her brutality and does it retail. She also tends to act out in ways that preserve plausible deniability.

Vista, Vista is a good person. If she snaps, she won't linger over her bad deeds, she will do them quickly and efficiently. Vista, she can operate on a strategic level, in a way Sophia simply cannot. Vista will feel righteous in her brutality, not guilty, and will proudly flaunt it, rather than hiding it. And Vista wants to go clean up the city so, so bad, without realizing the reasons why the Protectorate heavy hitters are so hesitant to escalate.

With Sophia, Piggot has to worry about waking up one morning to discover that Sophia was caught on grainy video accidentally killing a few homeless drug addicts. With Vista, she has to worry about waking up one morning to discover that the girl used scrap metal (or entire ships) to play "orbital drop" with Hookwolf and Lung. Or with a couple dozen gangers and bystanders. And is giving a press conference about it.

 

[Tawsnrrtsyip]

With Vista, she has to worry about waking up one morning to discover that the girl used scrap metal (or entire ships) to play "orbital drop" with Hookwolf and Lung. Or with a couple dozen gangers and bystanders. And is giving a press conference about it.

Click to shrink...

Keeping in mind I'm not disagreeing with you - it could be so much worse. There's a one-shot out there where she takes out a Leviathan-scale Lung and most, if not all, of the E88 in one shot by shorting out the ionosphere to make the grandfather of all lightning bolts. Scrap metal infantry-scale KKV is a nothing in comparison, though doing that with the contents of the Graveyard might be a bit much for her, if only by way of potential collateral.

 

[dc2008]

Keeping in mind I'm not disagreeing with you - it could be so much worse. There's a one-shot out there where she takes out a Leviathan-scale Lung and most, if not all, of the E88 in one shot by shorting out the ionosphere to make the grandfather of all lightning bolts. Scrap metal infantry-scale KKV is a nothing in comparison, though doing that with the contents of the Graveyard might be a bit much for her, if only by way of potential collateral.

Click to shrink...

Yep—Vista be terrifying. She could also put things into orbit, also known as Ziz bait.

 

[tenmachi]

Yep—Vista be terrifying. She could also put things into orbit, also known as Ziz bait.

Click to shrink...

What really scares me about Vista's power is, if taken to a logical extreme, she could probably produce the relativistic baseball and then direct it toward Ziz...

(for those wondering wot I'm on about, Randall Munroe thought out what a relativistic baseball pitch would be like.)

 

[RichardWhereat]

Keeping in mind I'm not disagreeing with you - it could be so much worse. There's a one-shot out there where she takes out a Leviathan-scale Lung

Click to shrink...

I want to read that fic.

 

[Ravenwood240]

I want to read that fic.

Click to shrink...

Ask, and thou shall recieve. It is a three part story found here:

My Random Fiction Bits and Pieces

A dumping ground for scenes, shorts, one-offs, and other detritus from what passes for my mind...

forums.sufficientvelocity.com

 

[dc2008]

I have not forgotten you lovely people of SV! I will be back in the office starting tomorrow, which means time on my commute to continue uploading my backlog

 

[dc2008]

Dear Valued Customer,

Substantial complications have arisen with the Nemesis Program. Accordingly, the program has been terminated, effective immediately. In consideration for any inconvenience this might cause, we are providing to you the following accommodation:

{favor obligations reduced by one}{cash payment equivalent to one favor}{other as appropriate}

We believe this will more than compensate you for any inconvenience. We remind you that we will aggressively enforce our confidentiality arrangements.

This message will disappear shortly.

Thank you for your understanding.

Best regards
{do not actually sign}

 

[dc2008]

Tagg looked her directly in the eye. "Who the hell are you?"

Dr. Weaver sighed and, after at glancing at Kamil, set the jamming device on the table.

"This is the most sophisticated and effective anti-eavesdropping device known to exist, and incorporates techniques known to PRT, along with techniques drawn from various rogue and villainous groups, including some whose existence we do not officially recognize. I am a temporally displaced dimensional refuge from an alternate world line containing its own iterations of Aleph, Bet, etc. I am telling the two of you this so as to reduce the amount of time and resources expended investigating the sudden appearance of," she gestures to herself, "some strangely knowledgeable woman who has been graced with inexplicably high levels of trust and authority."

Tagg looked at her skeptically. "Prove it."

"Unfortunately other!you and I were pushed into a fatal confrontation which you did not survive. Anything I know about you was thus learned either by observation or hearsay and is thus useless as direct evidence. If it is any consolation, you likely would have prevailed in our confrontation but for ill-advised meddling by a parahuman who really should have known better. You already have the views of Costa-Brown and the Triumverate. Thinktank is compromised, but you can ask indirect questions such as whether I can be trusted and what my intentions are." She turned to Kamil, "as for you, I believe this should suffice."

She slid a folded slip of paper to the man who glanced at it and blanched. After clearing his throat, he said "I believe her."

Tagg adopted a calculating expression. "Jack Slash."

"Yes," replied Dr. Weaver. "Other interventions as well. In my worldline, well, a few of us survived the succession of apocalypses, but Bet was rendered effectively uninhabitable."

"The Endbringers?"

"Among other things. The worst was when Jack Slash convinced Scion that human extermination would be fun, but there were other incidents as well."

Tagg's face hardened. "I see."

Dr. Weaver shrugged. "Steps are being taken to avert the truly existential risks, but wide-scale clean-up is being delayed for now to preserve the value of future knowledge. This group is part of the ground work for that clean-up."

Kamil leaned forward. "We will have questions."

Dr. Weaver nodded. "Yes, and you will need time to prepare them. To ensure information hygiene you are both being protected at the same level as myself, and this room will remain secure, but needless to say this information must remain tightly controlled."

---

Notes: Taylor likes Kamil and all but thinks he is a bit of a softie sometimes. Sometimes you just have to clusterbomb the village of mastered orphans, and Tagg, despite his many problems, at least understands that.

Taylor is a woman who will crawl a mile over ground glass to save the life of a child who spat in her face the day before. But if that same child is a threat to those under Taylor's protection, she'll pull the trigger herself. She will feel awful about it later, but she'll do it.

 

[dc2008]

"The hit and run killed a child, you say?" The aged mobster looked almost bored.

"Yes, and the mom was hilarious, just bawling everywhere, waving her one arm around—"

"Stop. You killed the child of a one-armed woman?"

"Yes?"

"Describe her."

"Tall, fit, intense eyes, dark curly hair."

"How old?"

"I don't know, she probably would have been a late teen when GM happened—"

Bang

The man looked down in surprise at the hole in his chest.

"Fffather?"

"Fool. You did not kill the child of a woman. You killed the child… of Skitter. We can merely pray that your death will satisfy her, and save the lives of your wife and my grandchildren."

 

[dc2008]

"Can I ask you something?" Taylor asked, nervously.

Her counterpart looked up. "Of course."

"Ah we, uh, gay?" Taylor blushed.

"Excuse me?"

"It's just, I like guys I think? But I also notice some girls are pretty? And I noticed when you talk about the future you never mention a boyfriend or husband but you do talk about women who you spent a lot of time with and maybe live with? And that people kept giving you lilies, which the internet says is a gay thing?"

Older!her stared at her in shock. "Wait they mean what? I just… why go didn't Lisa tell me? I thought that was just a joke on Lily's name since she and Sabah got them too but…." Taylor had never seen older!her look so flustered.

Older!her shook her head. "Sorry, I did have some boyfriends but nothing long-term, and I never had a girlfriend but I was friends with some women who I at times lived with, although we never did anything, well not like that, but we… huh."

Well this is awkward.

Her older counterpart was at this point mumbling to herself. "Wait, that's what Ashley meant that time, the lanky bitch, and I wondered why Keith invited me to help with the LGBT outreach thing off-world…"

"Uh? Do you need time to think about it?"

---

Notes:
Jaded!Taylor has had a lot of fucky experiences, and still lives a cape!adjacent life. It's damn hard for her to find people she can relate to as a peer. And damn hard for her to find people she can really trust. And her formative years were a traumatic mess. And her issues around trust and vulnerability are truly mind-blowing.

If you put a gun to my head I'd say this Taylor is probably Demisexual with a slight heterosexually leaning, with a lot of unresolved trauma mucking things up. It certainly isn't something she has thought much about at all beyond saying if asked that she's straight and all these girls she shares her not!commune with are friends and teammates. For good or ill she's basically detached emotional intimacy from sex, and has pretty much given up on finding a long-term romantic partner. She had her found family, and however unconventional it might have been it was hers.

 

[dc2008]

Aisha shifted uncomfortably. Why was Dr. Weaver looking directly at her?

"I am pleased with the results of your basic fitness training," Dr. Weaver told the group. "Starting next week, you will have the opportunity to participate in periodic self-defense training sessions taught by off-duty troopers. They are not being paid for this, so you will treat them with respect."

She shifted her eyes among the group until everyone was nodding, then she refocused on Aisha.

"As previously stated these sessions are proceeding on the basis that none of you, save New Wave, are parahumans, but that you may in the future become parahumans. Training will thus be conducted on an unpowered basis, and use of powers you may or may not have in this training is prohibited." She shifted her focus to Vicky, who had raised her hand, and continued. "Power nullifiers and trumps exist."

Vicky lowered her hand.

"Your training will be consistent with guidelines promulgated by experts regarding appropriate training procedures for your respective ages, weights, and so forth. It will focus on self-defense, defense of others, and disengagement. You will not be taught to 'fight dirty', and nothing you, I, or anyone we know can do will change the position of the PRT on this point."

She continued to look straight at Aisha. "Some of you may be able to through friends or family members arrange for supplemental training."

Right. Dad and Brian. Got it.

"Because this group is in some sense associated with the PRT, if the PRT becomes officially aware that you are, in an organized fashion, seeking from others training that the PRT considers 'inappropriate', I will be forced to act. I have no discretion in this matter." Her eyes seemed to bore into Aisha's soul. "I am sure you all understand."

Ohhhhhhh. Aisha's eyes widened. She carefully did not nod.

Across the room, Lisa suppressed a cough. Dr. Weaver ignored her. "There is another matter I need to go deal with. I will be back in no less than fifteen minutes. I am sure you can productively occupy yourselves for that time."

With final looks at Aisha and Lisa, Dr. Weaver left.

"Ok," said Charlotte. "Is it just me or was that weird?"

"No no no, it makes total sense," Aisha replied sagely. "I know a guy."

---

Note: You will recall that Dr. Weaver has already talked to Aisha's father about this.

 

[dc2008]

"Oh," Cassie said, looking around the apartment. "This is much nicer than my place!"

"Eh," Amy waved a hand dismissively. "It's a security thing, all hell will break loose if I abuse it."

"Anyway," said Taylor, setting an overstuffed folder on the table. "Operation kitty."

Later

Knock knock. Vicky looked up. "Come in!"

Amy slipped in. "Vicky," she said seriously, "we require your assistance with a matter of critical importance!"

Later Still

"And the mental health benefits are clear, as seen in these studies…"

"Victoria," said Carol.

"…and there are now good reliable not tinker tech automatic feeders and litter boxes…"

"Victoria, you—"

"…and the costs of acquisition are quite reasonable, especially as Amy can wrap a basic tune-up into the work she is already doing with the PRT…"

"VICTORIA YES WE CAN GET A CAT."

---

Note: Kitties are serious business!

 

[dc2008]

"James," Max interrupted. "It doesn't matter."

"But our members' beliefs have been subverted! We must find and make an example of this master!"

"Rune was a problem because 'I'm in the Empire to stick it to the man' is not a stable basis for long-term loyalty. Calling it a master effect saves face and prevents grunts from worrying about a witch-hunt. Like this one."

"How can you say it doesn't matter!"

Max resisted the temptation to roll his eyes. "Because ultimately it doesn't matter why they're loyal, so long as they are loyal. I've humored this long enough, we have more important concerns."

"What could be more important than a master undermining the very foundation of our movement!"

Max bit back his first, second, me third retorts. James was a true believer immune to rational persuasion. He tried a different track. "There is always a master, or a thinker, or some other ideological threat. So long as recruitment and retention keep up, we will prevail."

"But—"

"I'm more worried about the fact that we got hit last night, again, by suspiciously militaristic men in ABB colors!"

"The so-called dragon would resort to race traitors to—."

"Jesus, James, it's not Lung!" Brad interjected.

Right, he's here too.

Brad continued, "Lung doesn't fuck around with tactics and plans and shit. No, you can tell it's some thinker sniffing his own farts because the op, just like the prior ones, is way too fucking clever. It's Coil."

As James sputtered and protested, Max found his gaze drift to his expensive designer watch. However much the perks are worth it, this can be a real pain in the ass.

---

Notes: Hookwolf is not smart, and knows it. Sometimes, this is an advantage. In contrast, James and Max both know that they are, in fact, very very smart.