"Colin," Dragon's voice said carefully, "what are you doing?"
"Preparing for transit," Colin said, double- checking readiness telltales on his backup field armor repair crate. His primary had been relocated to Valkyrie's fast-deployment infrastructure facility. Due to his role in the project, it was important for him to demonstrate confidence, even if it was still in its earliest stages.
"You aren't deploying."
"Of course I'm deploying," Colin replied, checking telltales on his secondary dimensional breach detection equipment. Dr. Weaver and Valkyrie had provided invaluable insight into the operation of powers. Combining their theoretical knowledge with hard readings was critical. With the inclusion of Valkyrie's off-world responders, the imminent muster would be the largest gathering of parahumans in history.
"You are staying at the operations center."
"We've never known more about them, never had more support. This is our best chance yet." With quick, precise movements, Armsmaster swapped out a sensor for a spare. Both showed green, but he had learned to trust his instincts on these things.
"Yes it is," Dragon agreed. "You were critical to that, are critical going forward, and not just to the Endbringers, to the dimensional studies. Narwhal, Legend, the Chief-Director, even Valkyrie, they all agree. Whatever contribution you can make on-scene is not worth the risk. You can position equipment prior to emergence but must withdraw before the engagement commences, and—where are you going?"
"To talk to the Chief-Director. Appearing in person will emphasize the importance of my message."
Dragon sighed. "Valkyrie will retrieve you by portal if you attempt to deploy, and the Chief-Director has important things to do. Colin, please."
Note: The joys of command.
