Loki Thorson
The Iron Wordsmith
- Location
- The Land of Maple Syrup, Midgard
As you say, fearless leader.
Hymn of Harmony (Worm/Ar Tonelico Crossover Alt Trigger Taylor) (Complete)
- Thread starter dingbat779
- Start date
-
- Tags
- ar tonelico worm alt!power
- Status
- Location
- PA
My muse is taking a short holiday so the first part of the fifth arc is going to take a little time. Thank you all for reading and being patient.
Interlude Quiet Reprieve
- Location
- PA
Hymn of Harmony
or Melody of Escalation
Interlude Quiet Reprieve
-April 24, 2011-
-Hebert Residence: Cocona-
The spear flashed through the air so quickly that the metal glittered in the fading light of day. The grass was turned up from her constant and frenetic movements. The tiny girl's steps were sure and quick like a dancer's as she battled with her phantom opponents. Each one bearing the face of the ones that had taken Taylor. She was trying to tire her body and hopefully her mind as well. Her thoughts just kept coming back to how they had lost her. What if she had actually been at the hospital? Could she have prevented the abduction? She let out an animalistic growl as the spear stuck fast in the ground from a mistimed thrust. Why was she so angry? Taylor was found safe and sound. She had actually been well enough to escape her cell and rescue Kaiser of all people.
That didn't make her feel any better.
She flopped onto her rear. Her practice clothes were soaked with sweat and her hair was plastered to her scalp. Cocona brushed an errant strand of wet hair out of her eyes irritably as her body cooled down. She knew that it was sloppy to not go through proper cool down exercises, but right now she just didn't care. Her body was as exhausted as she wanted it to be, but it did nothing for her mind. The anger that she was feeling was perfectly normal. Perfectly natural. Perfectly understandable. The only thing that wasn't perfect was her exact feelings. Anger was certainly there and made the entire logic train chug along nicely. The only problem was that this train wasn't just running on anger. There were other parts that she did not want to face. She did not want to admit those things.
"How the hell do you admit to that?" Cocona groaned exasperatedly. "If I was Lisa this wouldn't be a problem. She has zero shame when admitting to anything. No...she has zero shame in admitting things about other people. Despedia's the tactless one. Sonata just wouldn't understand that there was a problem." She was surrounded by people that just threw their hang ups away. They got nervous, but never let that stop them from getting what they want.
"But what is it that I want?" She fell back on the ground to gaze at the sky. There was no moving from her current position. Did she want to be the strongest? Out of her current friends that would have to go to Despedia. She had the highest weight capacity, the greatest striking force, but without guidance she was unbelievably lethal. Her claws could shred all but the strongest Tinker tech metals. Cocona's spear was actually specially designed using such a metal. Anything that could stand up to her claws made exceptional solid weaponry and armor. The only reason those claws weren't rated higher is because of their melee limitation. Her scream was a terrible weapon as well. Disruption of binding forces was the official explanation. Des wanted to train with Cocona to improve her combat ability. As the group's resident combat veteran it made sense.
Did she want to be the smartest? Lisa was not stupid by any means. Her native intelligence was exceptional and combined with her power it was even greater. She knew of only one person that could beat Lisa in raw intelligence and that was Mir. While Despedia was the brawn, Lisa was the brain. She had a way of knowing things even without using her power. In terms of tactical planning Cocona had her beat. She grimaced at that thought. Trying to compare herself to her friends wasn't helping either. Was that what was bothering her? Was she trying to figure out her place in all of this?
"That's just too boo. Skip it." That wasn't the issue. Was it the likability? Sonata just oozed with adorableness. If she somehow made it to Ar Ciel the girl would be an instant hit. Already her popularity had taken off on the HymmnSphere back home and on the PHO Boards here. Cocona was perfectly fine with that. So it wasn't popularity that was bothering her. The fact that the younger girl was also a top tier inventor of weaponry didn't detract from her kid friendly appeal. So what if she's lugging around enormous floating cannons? She's cute and fluffy! Breathing deeply didn't fill her with new wisdom. She could tell that her thoughts were narrowing down the choices and reaching a conclusion.
Danny was certainly in her thoughts. He was like a father to them. In the case of Taylor he was her father. He just seemed to accept what was happening. Not without complaint. The man had a spirit that according to Taylor reemerged after her Trigger. She owed her Trigger for giving her dad back his fire. He saw what his daughter had been through and immediately set out to correct the problem. He supported not just her, but all of them. Danny reminded her of Dr. Gojo actually. A man of principles that would take up arms to protect what mattered. Dr. Gojo hadn't been trained as a warrior, but he still stood his ground as an able combatant. She could actually see Danny in a similar situation without difficulty. For all that he said Taylor took after her mom it was his own influence that she saw.
"Taylor..." The feelings associated with her were many. Cocona would be lying to claim that she didn't have a case of hero worship for the girl. When she first met her at the party it was hard not to like Taylor. The poor girl was so shy, but the love she had for Mir was bright as day. The dark Reyvateil was someone that Cocona herself looked up to as a mentor/big sister/surrogate mother. She was thinking that maybe her and Taylor could be like siblings. It was through the research into turning her into a Reyvateil that they found a way to save the Third types after all. That was where the hero worship was born. Taylor had easily taken a spot at the same level, if not higher, than Lady Cloche in her mind.
Then came the calls. Taylor got the interdimensional communication working, HymmnSphere, and used it to call Mir. They ended up talking and it became harder to put the girl on a pedestal. She was just so down to the ground. Lady Cloche was always a sweetheart, but her mannerisms still showed the refined Lady. Cocona was actually glad that her new friend was so easy to relate with. The first time they talked she was training. It was a little thing, but she noticed Taylor looking her over. At the time she dismissed it, but the same thing happened in other calls. Cocona wasn't sure how she felt about that. They were friends, and it was normal for Reyvateils, but it hadn't really happened to her.
Her only real experience with crushes included Lady Cloche, Luca, her own brother, and Mir. She knew later what those feelings were signaling. They were signs of respect and affection. Crushes were a normal part of growing up, but she found her eyes straying to guys more. When she went to the Third Tower area and met Aoto it was when she was undercover. As Tatsumi they were more like buddies, but she would be lying if she didn't think he was cute. They met other people, but the one that stood out was a fellow Reyvateil named Finnel. Finnel gave all the indications of being interested in her. Well, interested in Tatsumi, but the point was that it made her uncomfortable. At the time she thought it was because of not liking girls, but then realized it was something else entirely.
She wasn't comfortable with Finnel's attention because of her not knowing the real Cocona.
It's obvious now, but at the time it wasn't. She was just uncomfortable and didn't even look further into why. Croix was her brother and now Mir is her sister-in-law. She knew that wasn't going to work as relationship material. Aoto still couldn't get past seeing her as Tatsumi. It didn't even matter that she was using female mannerisms. He admitted that it was because Cocona had played Tatsumi as kind of effeminate. Annoying, but understandable. When Finnel started treating Cocona like one of the girls she wanted to scream. They had this great rapport when she was Tatsumi, but once the big reveal happened it evaporated. She wanted to be valued for herself and not what other people perceived. Her hand was clenched into a fist over her heart as thoughts gradually spun back towards present day.
Taylor valued everything that she had seen of Cocona. The experience, the skill, but she also saw her as a person. She had almost put Taylor on a pedestal. Almost committed the same act that she had railed against. She almost didn't see the real Taylor.
Taylor. Aria. Two names for one person. The people of this world that were granted powers kept their civilian and other lives separate. It was no different where she came from really. Soldiers liked to keep the service out of their ordinary lives as well. She was the full package of caring, compassionate, and strong-willed. No matter what it was she gave it her all. She valued everything and everyone in her life. When Taylor looked at a person there was no doubt she was speaking to them. Her fist clenched tighter as her thoughts slowly came to rest. She was trying to talk herself into something that had already been decided. Emotionally she already knew, but it took until now to get there mentally.
"I like Taylor." Saying into the stillness of the evening was freeing. Admitting it out loud made her feel better. Whether Taylor felt the same way or not didn't matter. She would still give it a try and see what happened. Cocona made it to her feet tiredly, but with a smile on her face. There was just one thing left to do.
She needed to get Lisa's help with this.
AN: Okay so my muse is being crazy, but I managed to give you guys another Interlude. I haven't forgotten this story of course.
or Melody of Escalation
Interlude Quiet Reprieve
-April 24, 2011-
-Hebert Residence: Cocona-
The spear flashed through the air so quickly that the metal glittered in the fading light of day. The grass was turned up from her constant and frenetic movements. The tiny girl's steps were sure and quick like a dancer's as she battled with her phantom opponents. Each one bearing the face of the ones that had taken Taylor. She was trying to tire her body and hopefully her mind as well. Her thoughts just kept coming back to how they had lost her. What if she had actually been at the hospital? Could she have prevented the abduction? She let out an animalistic growl as the spear stuck fast in the ground from a mistimed thrust. Why was she so angry? Taylor was found safe and sound. She had actually been well enough to escape her cell and rescue Kaiser of all people.
That didn't make her feel any better.
She flopped onto her rear. Her practice clothes were soaked with sweat and her hair was plastered to her scalp. Cocona brushed an errant strand of wet hair out of her eyes irritably as her body cooled down. She knew that it was sloppy to not go through proper cool down exercises, but right now she just didn't care. Her body was as exhausted as she wanted it to be, but it did nothing for her mind. The anger that she was feeling was perfectly normal. Perfectly natural. Perfectly understandable. The only thing that wasn't perfect was her exact feelings. Anger was certainly there and made the entire logic train chug along nicely. The only problem was that this train wasn't just running on anger. There were other parts that she did not want to face. She did not want to admit those things.
"How the hell do you admit to that?" Cocona groaned exasperatedly. "If I was Lisa this wouldn't be a problem. She has zero shame when admitting to anything. No...she has zero shame in admitting things about other people. Despedia's the tactless one. Sonata just wouldn't understand that there was a problem." She was surrounded by people that just threw their hang ups away. They got nervous, but never let that stop them from getting what they want.
"But what is it that I want?" She fell back on the ground to gaze at the sky. There was no moving from her current position. Did she want to be the strongest? Out of her current friends that would have to go to Despedia. She had the highest weight capacity, the greatest striking force, but without guidance she was unbelievably lethal. Her claws could shred all but the strongest Tinker tech metals. Cocona's spear was actually specially designed using such a metal. Anything that could stand up to her claws made exceptional solid weaponry and armor. The only reason those claws weren't rated higher is because of their melee limitation. Her scream was a terrible weapon as well. Disruption of binding forces was the official explanation. Des wanted to train with Cocona to improve her combat ability. As the group's resident combat veteran it made sense.
Did she want to be the smartest? Lisa was not stupid by any means. Her native intelligence was exceptional and combined with her power it was even greater. She knew of only one person that could beat Lisa in raw intelligence and that was Mir. While Despedia was the brawn, Lisa was the brain. She had a way of knowing things even without using her power. In terms of tactical planning Cocona had her beat. She grimaced at that thought. Trying to compare herself to her friends wasn't helping either. Was that what was bothering her? Was she trying to figure out her place in all of this?
"That's just too boo. Skip it." That wasn't the issue. Was it the likability? Sonata just oozed with adorableness. If she somehow made it to Ar Ciel the girl would be an instant hit. Already her popularity had taken off on the HymmnSphere back home and on the PHO Boards here. Cocona was perfectly fine with that. So it wasn't popularity that was bothering her. The fact that the younger girl was also a top tier inventor of weaponry didn't detract from her kid friendly appeal. So what if she's lugging around enormous floating cannons? She's cute and fluffy! Breathing deeply didn't fill her with new wisdom. She could tell that her thoughts were narrowing down the choices and reaching a conclusion.
Danny was certainly in her thoughts. He was like a father to them. In the case of Taylor he was her father. He just seemed to accept what was happening. Not without complaint. The man had a spirit that according to Taylor reemerged after her Trigger. She owed her Trigger for giving her dad back his fire. He saw what his daughter had been through and immediately set out to correct the problem. He supported not just her, but all of them. Danny reminded her of Dr. Gojo actually. A man of principles that would take up arms to protect what mattered. Dr. Gojo hadn't been trained as a warrior, but he still stood his ground as an able combatant. She could actually see Danny in a similar situation without difficulty. For all that he said Taylor took after her mom it was his own influence that she saw.
"Taylor..." The feelings associated with her were many. Cocona would be lying to claim that she didn't have a case of hero worship for the girl. When she first met her at the party it was hard not to like Taylor. The poor girl was so shy, but the love she had for Mir was bright as day. The dark Reyvateil was someone that Cocona herself looked up to as a mentor/big sister/surrogate mother. She was thinking that maybe her and Taylor could be like siblings. It was through the research into turning her into a Reyvateil that they found a way to save the Third types after all. That was where the hero worship was born. Taylor had easily taken a spot at the same level, if not higher, than Lady Cloche in her mind.
Then came the calls. Taylor got the interdimensional communication working, HymmnSphere, and used it to call Mir. They ended up talking and it became harder to put the girl on a pedestal. She was just so down to the ground. Lady Cloche was always a sweetheart, but her mannerisms still showed the refined Lady. Cocona was actually glad that her new friend was so easy to relate with. The first time they talked she was training. It was a little thing, but she noticed Taylor looking her over. At the time she dismissed it, but the same thing happened in other calls. Cocona wasn't sure how she felt about that. They were friends, and it was normal for Reyvateils, but it hadn't really happened to her.
Her only real experience with crushes included Lady Cloche, Luca, her own brother, and Mir. She knew later what those feelings were signaling. They were signs of respect and affection. Crushes were a normal part of growing up, but she found her eyes straying to guys more. When she went to the Third Tower area and met Aoto it was when she was undercover. As Tatsumi they were more like buddies, but she would be lying if she didn't think he was cute. They met other people, but the one that stood out was a fellow Reyvateil named Finnel. Finnel gave all the indications of being interested in her. Well, interested in Tatsumi, but the point was that it made her uncomfortable. At the time she thought it was because of not liking girls, but then realized it was something else entirely.
She wasn't comfortable with Finnel's attention because of her not knowing the real Cocona.
It's obvious now, but at the time it wasn't. She was just uncomfortable and didn't even look further into why. Croix was her brother and now Mir is her sister-in-law. She knew that wasn't going to work as relationship material. Aoto still couldn't get past seeing her as Tatsumi. It didn't even matter that she was using female mannerisms. He admitted that it was because Cocona had played Tatsumi as kind of effeminate. Annoying, but understandable. When Finnel started treating Cocona like one of the girls she wanted to scream. They had this great rapport when she was Tatsumi, but once the big reveal happened it evaporated. She wanted to be valued for herself and not what other people perceived. Her hand was clenched into a fist over her heart as thoughts gradually spun back towards present day.
Taylor valued everything that she had seen of Cocona. The experience, the skill, but she also saw her as a person. She had almost put Taylor on a pedestal. Almost committed the same act that she had railed against. She almost didn't see the real Taylor.
Taylor. Aria. Two names for one person. The people of this world that were granted powers kept their civilian and other lives separate. It was no different where she came from really. Soldiers liked to keep the service out of their ordinary lives as well. She was the full package of caring, compassionate, and strong-willed. No matter what it was she gave it her all. She valued everything and everyone in her life. When Taylor looked at a person there was no doubt she was speaking to them. Her fist clenched tighter as her thoughts slowly came to rest. She was trying to talk herself into something that had already been decided. Emotionally she already knew, but it took until now to get there mentally.
"I like Taylor." Saying into the stillness of the evening was freeing. Admitting it out loud made her feel better. Whether Taylor felt the same way or not didn't matter. She would still give it a try and see what happened. Cocona made it to her feet tiredly, but with a smile on her face. There was just one thing left to do.
She needed to get Lisa's help with this.
AN: Okay so my muse is being crazy, but I managed to give you guys another Interlude. I haven't forgotten this story of course.
Last edited:
So, Cocona has figured out that she's crushing on Taylor, at minimum. Assuming I'm not reading into things too much.
Let's see, if this follows the structure of the original, the vacation arc is coming up next. Funny thing, during the original, I kept expecting some group to show up and ruin the peace, forcing Aria and co to take them down, since that's kinda how things work in Worm.
And then nothing of the sort ended before the arc ended. It was honestly fairly surprising.
Let's see, if this follows the structure of the original, the vacation arc is coming up next. Funny thing, during the original, I kept expecting some group to show up and ruin the peace, forcing Aria and co to take them down, since that's kinda how things work in Worm.
And then nothing of the sort ended before the arc ended. It was honestly fairly surprising.
- Location
- PA
Yeah everyone is getting out of town for awhile still. Less trauma involved in the previous arc, but Danny still thinks they need a vacation.
Fifth Arc 5.1
- Location
- PA
Hymn of Harmony
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.1
-April 25, 2011-
-Hebert House for the Terminally Strange-
There is something to be said for waking up in your own bed. The medics confirmed there was nothing physically wrong with me so my dad was able to take me home. Being kidnapped was not fun, but it could have been a lot worse. The medical scanner showed that my body was free of contaminants, which was a blessing. Apparently the drug they gave me was something that metabolized without a trace. Which is kind of scary when you think about it. A knockout drug that leaves no trace at all? I can't blame Tinker tech because there actually is a solution being researched that does this very thing. Oh sure most bullshit scientific inventions can be blamed on Tinkers, but not all.
When I made it home yesterday afternoon no one was in the mood to discuss anything. We sat on the couch and watched movies until it was time for bed. Cocona and Des were still going to school today. They wanted to stay home with me, but Dad put his foot down. The sooner we all got back into our normal routines the better. Besides it would probably be noticed if they played hooky. No one came to wake me up this morning. I felt the space beside me in confusion. Sonata wasn't there. My daughter had glued herself to my side ever since I got home, but she was apparently not here now. I wasn't worried since her melody was somewhere in the house. Oh she was making breakfast with Dad. A glance at the clock showed it being after ten o'clock. This was one late breakfast.
"Taylor! Come on! We know you're up!" Dad called from downstairs. My plans to just laze away the day were now shot. I made my way towards the kitchen where the smells of tasty food beckoned. The last traces of laziness banished by my true master declaring it's desires.
"Smells great guys." I smiled at them. Sonata was standing at the stove in a plain black t-shirt and a blue denim skirt. She was tossing the food in the pan deftly without spilling a thing. I planted a kiss on her head and got a purr in response. Dad finished setting the table before coming over to hug me. I buried my face in his chest and just relished the feeling of closeness. He rubbed my back soothingly.
"Glad that you're home, little owl." He murmured into my hair.
"Glad to be home, Dad." A giggle escaped me as Sonata wedged in between us to claim her own hugs and cuddles. "I love you guys." Before the moment could grow any sappier there was the matter of the food.
"I made a breakfast scramble. At least I think it's a breakfast scramble. Okay okay...I'm hoping it's at least close." My daughter shrugged without concern.
"If it tastes even half as good as it smells then you're good." Dad assured her. She dished up the food. Scrambled eggs, cheese, diced potatoes and peppers, all in the same pan. Simple and well seasoned.
"Mmm...very good, hun." She lapped up the compliment from me happily. Breakfast was quiet, but there was a faint undercurrent of anticipation. It wasn't a sense of doom, but there was a definite feeling of something. Yeah that was vague, but I couldn't put my finger on it at all.
"Sweetheart." Dad began to say as he pushed the last morsels of food around his plate. It was a talk. Not a bad talk given what his melody was saying, but it would be weighty. "Is there anyway for you to make a better tracking device?" Of all the things he could ask that was not what I was expecting. I took a sip of orange juice to give me time to answer. It would have to be something that couldn't be spoofed, detected, or shut down. It would have to run nearly indefinitely. Something that was small enough to be ignored. A subdermal implant would do the job nicely actually. The trick was making one with all of the bells and whistles that wouldn't be the size of a pocket watch. Subdermal anything shouldn't be large enough that it can be seen from six feet away and bulging from the skin.
"Actually Armsmaster's been working on something like that. It's in the final stages and he needs to test it first." Sonata chimed in on the topic. I just continued to chew my breakfast contemplatively. It wouldn't hurt to see if he would like some help. Then again he had Dragon and I didn't want to horn in on their alone time.
"I'll have to think about how to do it, but making a tracking device myself is probably for the best. There's no such thing as being too careful." Especially when you've already been kidnapped once, but that part went unsaid.
"What would you say to taking a vacation? Just a short one. We would leave on Friday and be back Sunday night." Dad suggested. The last time we took a vacation was before Mom died. It felt good to hear him make the suggestion as it highlighted how things were getting better.
"A real vacation? Where would we go, Grandpa?" Sonata asked excitedly. Can't fault her enthusiasm. The only place she's known is Brockton Bay. Roaming the internet doesn't count.
"Well if your mother says yes..." I nodded eagerly eliciting a laugh from him, "...Okay. There's a place in Pennsylvania that we spent some time at. It's quiet and out of the way." Quiet sounded good. The idea of an actual quiet vacation sounded really good about now. Too many things hit us too close together. I knew that we were all feeling the strain.
"It's a nice little bed and breakfast. I'm surprised it's still there." The place in question had been around since the 60's, but apparently was still open for business. It was as if time slowed down while you were there. I was already feeling impatient for Friday. Dad ruffled my hair playfully.
"Easy kiddo. Friday will come soon enough. How about you call your friend Lisa and see if she can get away." He said with a smile. Realization dawned on me. Somewhere along the way all of us had become a family. My answering smile was just as bright.
"...Probably shouldn't pack the rifle, but the Noisy Cricket is out of the testing stages..." Sonata muttered to herself. First order of business? Talk my daughter out of bringing heavy weapons. Dad just laughed.
"Honey...I don't think that's such a good idea..." I was fishing for something to convince her that bringing the heavy artillery was bad. She tilted her head quizzically at me.
"I'm just factoring in our usual luck. If I didn't bring weapons then we'd need them. The law of Universal Perversity." She shrugged her shoulders as if delivering a devastating logic bomb. The sad thing was that I couldn't even disagree with her. Our luck was bad even when it was good.
"Why not get a couple of those ELMAs to follow us? We could load them in the van maybe." Dad wasn't even trying to talk her out of this. They both turned to me.
"Okay. Point made. I'll go to headquarters and see what's there. Hmmm...probably need to upgrade my armor again." The idea of further improving my armor was thrilling, but at the same time it was frustrating. Is this how Armsmaster felt whenever he found a situation he wasn't prepared for?
"Ooh I'm coming too! I've got a couple ideas for improving my Song magic rig." My little girl was clearly over the moon about improving her equipment. That reminded me of something.
"I have an idea that you might like to test out. The individual parts were already approved, but I haven't tried putting them together yet. It would be bigger than your Cutey ELMA, but it would function as an add-on. Consider it a present so no asking me what it is until it's done." I tapped her on the nose. She pouted adorably, but that wouldn't work. Dad chuckled at our antics.
"She looks just like you wheedling something from your mother." He said with warm nostalgia. I pulled my baby closer so we could smile at him together, cheek to cheek, until he dissolved into laughter.
"The Ship Graveyard Project has been given the green light. The Mayor requested the dockworkers' help in tearing down the eyesore. We'll be getting help from some construction equipment that Dragon is donating to the city. I have to be there to sign off on the delivery." Dad grimaced towards the end, "I know it's not ideal..." I waved him off.
"It's fine, Dad. You can just drop us off at HQ. They wanted to talk to me anyway." Now I was grimacing. They were bringing in a psychologist to speak to me. I would go and do what was said. If I showed myself to be cooperative then the ordeal would end sooner.
"I'll just get the lab warmed up for your arrival." Sonata grinned with a distant look in her eyes. I turned and gave my daughter a look. She was acting kind of weird. It wasn't something immediately apparent, but it was pinging on the Mom-dar.
"Honey? Can I do a quick scan?" It wasn't anything harmful. If it was then I would be getting warnings and alerts. This was something my own systems didn't see as trouble. Dad looked between the two of us in some concern, but wasn't freaking out.
"Uh sure thing, Mom. You don't have to ask." She looked confused.
"Yes I did. You have a right to your privacy." I brushed her hair tenderly as my awareness expanded. Her eyes started to glow in sync with my own. A pale green luminescence with white pupils. A black ring emerged in her irises that faintly resembled targeting reticules. She blinked and the effect receded as I drew back.
"Well doc is it terminal?" She asked humorously, but there was definite curiousity there.
"A few of your systems have updated based on acquired data. If you're not noticing a difference that's fine. Just a few things have been enhanced based on usage. Targeting, thinking speed, and an ability to determine stress points." All good things for a gun Tinker to have. I would almost say she had a Shard. While it's functionally similar the difference is how it was acquired. She needed it and got it. There was no trauma needed. Also Shard powers are a bit more bullshit.
"So nothing wrong? Just a...software update?" Dad asked. He was doing a lot better at keeping up with technology.
"I just wanted to check it out. She was getting a bit too gun happy." I ruffled her hair playfully. She stuck her tongue out at me, but was clearly pleased that I noticed. Left unsaid was that I would always notice her.
"Alright ladies let's clean up. We've got places to be." Dad stood up which was the cue to get a move on. I wasn't looking forward to my talk with the psychologist. They were bringing in a well known and respected parahuman psychologist named Dr. Jessica Yamada. She was highly recommended with a waiting list for her services. Someone got me bumped to the head of the queue. I would accept the privilege gracefully. Part of me was irked that there were people waiting to speak with her and someone put me ahead of them.
"You're broadcasting again, Mom. She actually volunteered to speak with you. Apparently you interest her." Sonata hip checked me. I blushed. I'm not immediately assuming the worst anymore.
It's a work in progress, okay?
-PRT Headquarters-
The office was designed to set a relaxing atmosphere and succeeded remarkably well. I was seated on a rather comfy leather sofa with cushiony armrests. The furniture was designed more for comfort with the carpeting having a delightful texture. Well I thought it was nice. Now I'm starting to think they made this room too comfortable if the carpet is making me think of a nap. The Cutey ELMA in my lap barks to catch my attention. Whoops. I let myself get distracted. Seated at the desk was a pretty woman in white coat, button down shirt, and a tasteful skirt. Her shoes were clearly for comfort and function than pure appearance, but still looked nice.
"I am so sorry. Apparently someone forgot to forward a few things to me." She smiled apologetically. Dr. Yamada stood up from the desk and made her way to a high backed leather chair. In her lap was a notebook. Every inch the professional.
"It's fine." I patted the ELMA sitting in my lap. Getting kidnapped did make a bit more paranoid. She smiled at me and nodded.
"You have been through a fairly traumatic experience. How are you holding up?" She asked me considerately.
"I've been better. If I'd had my armor, and not just an emergency unit, would I have still been taken? I get that the Travelers and Coil are responsible for taking me. Maybe I could have been more prepared?" The small machine butted my chin with it's head lightly. The emotive work was superb. I smiled a bit as my worries about Sonata's specialty evaporated further. She programmed the ELMAs after all.
"So you feel that part of this was your responsibility?" Dr. Yamada asked curiously.
"Tricky really. Could I have gotten away with my full armor? Maybe. If I was willing to go full lethal." The idea made me a bit sick. "I was still outnumbered by a well coordinated group." My distaste must have shown on my face.
"Would it have been worth it?" Again that was tricky. Save my family a lot of worry on one front, but a lot of scrutiny on another. I waved my hand back and forth in a so-so gesture.
"Probably not. They needed me for something so I was fairly safe." Logic was kicking my butt. The doctor looked at me over the top of her notebook. She shook her head slowly.
"When they told me I was skeptical. Please don't be offended, but I was curious to meet a young cape that was so level headed. It's a sad fact of my profession that many of the people I meet genuinely need help." Her melody was apologetic. I couldn't find it in me to be upset with her.
"That's fine...no problem at all...so that means we're done?" Maybe I was just a tad eager to leave. I liked her, but it was a relief. She laughed at my enthusiasm. Good to know that I didn't offend her.
"Yes, we're done. If you don't mind I would like to talk to you from time to time." She held out a business card for me. A private line was written on the back. "What do you have planned for today?"
"Improving my equipment further. I had quite a few ideas from some of the things that Coil had. What better way to thumb my nose at him than steal his pirated designs? It's only fair since he stole from me first." I was feeling a bit vindictive. Coil and Squealer played with my designs and now I was going to improve it using their ideas.
"Oh dear...that's a scary face." Dr. Yamada commented with a faint smile. I flushed a bit in response.
"Not really a heroic attitude is it?" Her melody told me that she was teasing. I giggled a bit. We left her office together and were heading down the hall.
"Unfortunately this is my stop. I have to speak to Miss Militia. Try to stay out of trouble, please?" She waved goodbye.
"Trouble has a habit of finding me!" I waved back as my path continued onward to the lab. It was nice talking to her. The appointment felt more like procedure. Then again didn't police officers have to go through similar things after a traumatic incident? The parallels were there if you bothered to look. We were government agents after all. The Youth Guard did have a point in that it was distressingly easy to forget the Wards are kids. They just took an overzealous approach. When it was taken all together the picture it painted was of good ideas implemented poorly. The PRT wasn't perfect. I was part of it and could see the cracks in the system. The treatment of independents and rogues was draconian.
The PRT was a government sanctioned military organization. That was a gross oversimplification, but it gave me a basis to start from. They had the monopoly on parahuman relations. Scared men on Capital Hill made laws that the PRT was expected to enforce. Since they were the face Capes saw the most then the blame fell on them. People tended to forget that it was old men and women pulling the strings. Did that make them evil? Hardly. Did it absolve the PRT of mistakes? Nope. When you have people that can dead lift super tankers, teleport to anywhere, or become a one man Macross Beam Massacre fear is perfectly natural. The fact that no one can regulate Scion probably adds to that fear considerably. He's benign, if unpredictable, but still no one understands him. No one can keep him in check.
This was what I was against. I know the Reyvateils just want me to observe and not stick my neck out, but they understand my needs. They knew what I was trying to accomplish.
The door to my lab opening distracted me from my thoughts. The large fabricator was all warmed up. Sonata was in her portion of the lab working on the weapon system designs I left her. It was a nice division of labor since she was better at armaments than I was while my armor designs were better. We could both build utility items. She waved to me as I walked in, but didn't look up from her work. I sat down at my terminal as the design schematics for the first three ELMAs came up. Each one an improvement over the last in terms of versatility, but the Mark II frame was still the most durable. It was also the most iconic. The public liked the Mk II the best.
I was a slave to PR now. That's another sin I can lay at the PRT's feet. Sonata snickered as apparently I'm transmitting my thoughts again. Oh well let her laugh. The Cutey ELMA sitting at my feet gazed up at me curiously. Interesting idea. It would work well since many of my designs were built to have easily changed parts. I didn't have Kid Win's specialty of modular design, but it was good enough. Keeping the armor's appearance and upgrading functionality was child's play. The new Cutey ELMA I was designing would be mobile reconnaissance and an extra weapons pack. My new blueprint was fired off to Dragon along with the upgrades to the Mk II. The whole thing was designated Mk IV for simplicity. Calling it the ELMA Linkage Mk II with Optional Surveillance and Weapons Pack was a mouthful.
Now I closed off my connection to the chat channel since it wouldn't do to have someone, like my daughter, get an early peek. Sonata likes the smaller unit with it's greater maneuverability. The thing is that I don't like leaving her lightly armored if the force fields fail. She wasn't supposed to be out in the field, but there she was. No one forced her to go. I was taken so my baby wanted to find me. She had her Buster rifle and her playlist that could mimic my Song's effects. So the first was to make her a set of collapsible armor like Cocona has. Hers was designed to maintain flexibility. Sonata already had the flight unit and force field projector with the Cutey ELMA. That left me with some space on the chassis to install a Harmograph and the same amplifiers from the Mk III. Okay now I was happier with her armor. That was going to be a surprise. The design was sent over to Dragon as well for review.
The last thing to design was going to be a Divine Army armor. The Jacqli Robo design was awesome. Mir didn't build it herself, but she did personalize the machine. I set the coloring to white with gold trim for the more heroic approach. The combat system was designed to be used by a Thinker however. There would be a MP model and this custom model. The custom model was going to be for Lisa. I couldn't figure out how to make such a large thing shrink into an ELMA without Armsmaster's help. It couldn't transform, but then again it didn't need to. Heavily armored with redundant force fields and high energy plasma weapons. Seeking missiles and miniguns rounded out the weapons systems. It also had containment foam grenades and sprayers. The force field bubble grenades were added as well. A larger platform could carry more nonlethal options after all.
Now the trick was going to be getting all of this by Friday.
AN: Paranoid Taylor is Paranoid.
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.1
-April 25, 2011-
-Hebert House for the Terminally Strange-
There is something to be said for waking up in your own bed. The medics confirmed there was nothing physically wrong with me so my dad was able to take me home. Being kidnapped was not fun, but it could have been a lot worse. The medical scanner showed that my body was free of contaminants, which was a blessing. Apparently the drug they gave me was something that metabolized without a trace. Which is kind of scary when you think about it. A knockout drug that leaves no trace at all? I can't blame Tinker tech because there actually is a solution being researched that does this very thing. Oh sure most bullshit scientific inventions can be blamed on Tinkers, but not all.
When I made it home yesterday afternoon no one was in the mood to discuss anything. We sat on the couch and watched movies until it was time for bed. Cocona and Des were still going to school today. They wanted to stay home with me, but Dad put his foot down. The sooner we all got back into our normal routines the better. Besides it would probably be noticed if they played hooky. No one came to wake me up this morning. I felt the space beside me in confusion. Sonata wasn't there. My daughter had glued herself to my side ever since I got home, but she was apparently not here now. I wasn't worried since her melody was somewhere in the house. Oh she was making breakfast with Dad. A glance at the clock showed it being after ten o'clock. This was one late breakfast.
"Taylor! Come on! We know you're up!" Dad called from downstairs. My plans to just laze away the day were now shot. I made my way towards the kitchen where the smells of tasty food beckoned. The last traces of laziness banished by my true master declaring it's desires.
"Smells great guys." I smiled at them. Sonata was standing at the stove in a plain black t-shirt and a blue denim skirt. She was tossing the food in the pan deftly without spilling a thing. I planted a kiss on her head and got a purr in response. Dad finished setting the table before coming over to hug me. I buried my face in his chest and just relished the feeling of closeness. He rubbed my back soothingly.
"Glad that you're home, little owl." He murmured into my hair.
"Glad to be home, Dad." A giggle escaped me as Sonata wedged in between us to claim her own hugs and cuddles. "I love you guys." Before the moment could grow any sappier there was the matter of the food.
"I made a breakfast scramble. At least I think it's a breakfast scramble. Okay okay...I'm hoping it's at least close." My daughter shrugged without concern.
"If it tastes even half as good as it smells then you're good." Dad assured her. She dished up the food. Scrambled eggs, cheese, diced potatoes and peppers, all in the same pan. Simple and well seasoned.
"Mmm...very good, hun." She lapped up the compliment from me happily. Breakfast was quiet, but there was a faint undercurrent of anticipation. It wasn't a sense of doom, but there was a definite feeling of something. Yeah that was vague, but I couldn't put my finger on it at all.
"Sweetheart." Dad began to say as he pushed the last morsels of food around his plate. It was a talk. Not a bad talk given what his melody was saying, but it would be weighty. "Is there anyway for you to make a better tracking device?" Of all the things he could ask that was not what I was expecting. I took a sip of orange juice to give me time to answer. It would have to be something that couldn't be spoofed, detected, or shut down. It would have to run nearly indefinitely. Something that was small enough to be ignored. A subdermal implant would do the job nicely actually. The trick was making one with all of the bells and whistles that wouldn't be the size of a pocket watch. Subdermal anything shouldn't be large enough that it can be seen from six feet away and bulging from the skin.
"Actually Armsmaster's been working on something like that. It's in the final stages and he needs to test it first." Sonata chimed in on the topic. I just continued to chew my breakfast contemplatively. It wouldn't hurt to see if he would like some help. Then again he had Dragon and I didn't want to horn in on their alone time.
"I'll have to think about how to do it, but making a tracking device myself is probably for the best. There's no such thing as being too careful." Especially when you've already been kidnapped once, but that part went unsaid.
"What would you say to taking a vacation? Just a short one. We would leave on Friday and be back Sunday night." Dad suggested. The last time we took a vacation was before Mom died. It felt good to hear him make the suggestion as it highlighted how things were getting better.
"A real vacation? Where would we go, Grandpa?" Sonata asked excitedly. Can't fault her enthusiasm. The only place she's known is Brockton Bay. Roaming the internet doesn't count.
"Well if your mother says yes..." I nodded eagerly eliciting a laugh from him, "...Okay. There's a place in Pennsylvania that we spent some time at. It's quiet and out of the way." Quiet sounded good. The idea of an actual quiet vacation sounded really good about now. Too many things hit us too close together. I knew that we were all feeling the strain.
"It's a nice little bed and breakfast. I'm surprised it's still there." The place in question had been around since the 60's, but apparently was still open for business. It was as if time slowed down while you were there. I was already feeling impatient for Friday. Dad ruffled my hair playfully.
"Easy kiddo. Friday will come soon enough. How about you call your friend Lisa and see if she can get away." He said with a smile. Realization dawned on me. Somewhere along the way all of us had become a family. My answering smile was just as bright.
"...Probably shouldn't pack the rifle, but the Noisy Cricket is out of the testing stages..." Sonata muttered to herself. First order of business? Talk my daughter out of bringing heavy weapons. Dad just laughed.
"Honey...I don't think that's such a good idea..." I was fishing for something to convince her that bringing the heavy artillery was bad. She tilted her head quizzically at me.
"I'm just factoring in our usual luck. If I didn't bring weapons then we'd need them. The law of Universal Perversity." She shrugged her shoulders as if delivering a devastating logic bomb. The sad thing was that I couldn't even disagree with her. Our luck was bad even when it was good.
"Why not get a couple of those ELMAs to follow us? We could load them in the van maybe." Dad wasn't even trying to talk her out of this. They both turned to me.
"Okay. Point made. I'll go to headquarters and see what's there. Hmmm...probably need to upgrade my armor again." The idea of further improving my armor was thrilling, but at the same time it was frustrating. Is this how Armsmaster felt whenever he found a situation he wasn't prepared for?
"Ooh I'm coming too! I've got a couple ideas for improving my Song magic rig." My little girl was clearly over the moon about improving her equipment. That reminded me of something.
"I have an idea that you might like to test out. The individual parts were already approved, but I haven't tried putting them together yet. It would be bigger than your Cutey ELMA, but it would function as an add-on. Consider it a present so no asking me what it is until it's done." I tapped her on the nose. She pouted adorably, but that wouldn't work. Dad chuckled at our antics.
"She looks just like you wheedling something from your mother." He said with warm nostalgia. I pulled my baby closer so we could smile at him together, cheek to cheek, until he dissolved into laughter.
"The Ship Graveyard Project has been given the green light. The Mayor requested the dockworkers' help in tearing down the eyesore. We'll be getting help from some construction equipment that Dragon is donating to the city. I have to be there to sign off on the delivery." Dad grimaced towards the end, "I know it's not ideal..." I waved him off.
"It's fine, Dad. You can just drop us off at HQ. They wanted to talk to me anyway." Now I was grimacing. They were bringing in a psychologist to speak to me. I would go and do what was said. If I showed myself to be cooperative then the ordeal would end sooner.
"I'll just get the lab warmed up for your arrival." Sonata grinned with a distant look in her eyes. I turned and gave my daughter a look. She was acting kind of weird. It wasn't something immediately apparent, but it was pinging on the Mom-dar.
"Honey? Can I do a quick scan?" It wasn't anything harmful. If it was then I would be getting warnings and alerts. This was something my own systems didn't see as trouble. Dad looked between the two of us in some concern, but wasn't freaking out.
"Uh sure thing, Mom. You don't have to ask." She looked confused.
"Yes I did. You have a right to your privacy." I brushed her hair tenderly as my awareness expanded. Her eyes started to glow in sync with my own. A pale green luminescence with white pupils. A black ring emerged in her irises that faintly resembled targeting reticules. She blinked and the effect receded as I drew back.
"Well doc is it terminal?" She asked humorously, but there was definite curiousity there.
"A few of your systems have updated based on acquired data. If you're not noticing a difference that's fine. Just a few things have been enhanced based on usage. Targeting, thinking speed, and an ability to determine stress points." All good things for a gun Tinker to have. I would almost say she had a Shard. While it's functionally similar the difference is how it was acquired. She needed it and got it. There was no trauma needed. Also Shard powers are a bit more bullshit.
"So nothing wrong? Just a...software update?" Dad asked. He was doing a lot better at keeping up with technology.
"I just wanted to check it out. She was getting a bit too gun happy." I ruffled her hair playfully. She stuck her tongue out at me, but was clearly pleased that I noticed. Left unsaid was that I would always notice her.
"Alright ladies let's clean up. We've got places to be." Dad stood up which was the cue to get a move on. I wasn't looking forward to my talk with the psychologist. They were bringing in a well known and respected parahuman psychologist named Dr. Jessica Yamada. She was highly recommended with a waiting list for her services. Someone got me bumped to the head of the queue. I would accept the privilege gracefully. Part of me was irked that there were people waiting to speak with her and someone put me ahead of them.
"You're broadcasting again, Mom. She actually volunteered to speak with you. Apparently you interest her." Sonata hip checked me. I blushed. I'm not immediately assuming the worst anymore.
It's a work in progress, okay?
-PRT Headquarters-
The office was designed to set a relaxing atmosphere and succeeded remarkably well. I was seated on a rather comfy leather sofa with cushiony armrests. The furniture was designed more for comfort with the carpeting having a delightful texture. Well I thought it was nice. Now I'm starting to think they made this room too comfortable if the carpet is making me think of a nap. The Cutey ELMA in my lap barks to catch my attention. Whoops. I let myself get distracted. Seated at the desk was a pretty woman in white coat, button down shirt, and a tasteful skirt. Her shoes were clearly for comfort and function than pure appearance, but still looked nice.
"I am so sorry. Apparently someone forgot to forward a few things to me." She smiled apologetically. Dr. Yamada stood up from the desk and made her way to a high backed leather chair. In her lap was a notebook. Every inch the professional.
"It's fine." I patted the ELMA sitting in my lap. Getting kidnapped did make a bit more paranoid. She smiled at me and nodded.
"You have been through a fairly traumatic experience. How are you holding up?" She asked me considerately.
"I've been better. If I'd had my armor, and not just an emergency unit, would I have still been taken? I get that the Travelers and Coil are responsible for taking me. Maybe I could have been more prepared?" The small machine butted my chin with it's head lightly. The emotive work was superb. I smiled a bit as my worries about Sonata's specialty evaporated further. She programmed the ELMAs after all.
"So you feel that part of this was your responsibility?" Dr. Yamada asked curiously.
"Tricky really. Could I have gotten away with my full armor? Maybe. If I was willing to go full lethal." The idea made me a bit sick. "I was still outnumbered by a well coordinated group." My distaste must have shown on my face.
"Would it have been worth it?" Again that was tricky. Save my family a lot of worry on one front, but a lot of scrutiny on another. I waved my hand back and forth in a so-so gesture.
"Probably not. They needed me for something so I was fairly safe." Logic was kicking my butt. The doctor looked at me over the top of her notebook. She shook her head slowly.
"When they told me I was skeptical. Please don't be offended, but I was curious to meet a young cape that was so level headed. It's a sad fact of my profession that many of the people I meet genuinely need help." Her melody was apologetic. I couldn't find it in me to be upset with her.
"That's fine...no problem at all...so that means we're done?" Maybe I was just a tad eager to leave. I liked her, but it was a relief. She laughed at my enthusiasm. Good to know that I didn't offend her.
"Yes, we're done. If you don't mind I would like to talk to you from time to time." She held out a business card for me. A private line was written on the back. "What do you have planned for today?"
"Improving my equipment further. I had quite a few ideas from some of the things that Coil had. What better way to thumb my nose at him than steal his pirated designs? It's only fair since he stole from me first." I was feeling a bit vindictive. Coil and Squealer played with my designs and now I was going to improve it using their ideas.
"Oh dear...that's a scary face." Dr. Yamada commented with a faint smile. I flushed a bit in response.
"Not really a heroic attitude is it?" Her melody told me that she was teasing. I giggled a bit. We left her office together and were heading down the hall.
"Unfortunately this is my stop. I have to speak to Miss Militia. Try to stay out of trouble, please?" She waved goodbye.
"Trouble has a habit of finding me!" I waved back as my path continued onward to the lab. It was nice talking to her. The appointment felt more like procedure. Then again didn't police officers have to go through similar things after a traumatic incident? The parallels were there if you bothered to look. We were government agents after all. The Youth Guard did have a point in that it was distressingly easy to forget the Wards are kids. They just took an overzealous approach. When it was taken all together the picture it painted was of good ideas implemented poorly. The PRT wasn't perfect. I was part of it and could see the cracks in the system. The treatment of independents and rogues was draconian.
The PRT was a government sanctioned military organization. That was a gross oversimplification, but it gave me a basis to start from. They had the monopoly on parahuman relations. Scared men on Capital Hill made laws that the PRT was expected to enforce. Since they were the face Capes saw the most then the blame fell on them. People tended to forget that it was old men and women pulling the strings. Did that make them evil? Hardly. Did it absolve the PRT of mistakes? Nope. When you have people that can dead lift super tankers, teleport to anywhere, or become a one man Macross Beam Massacre fear is perfectly natural. The fact that no one can regulate Scion probably adds to that fear considerably. He's benign, if unpredictable, but still no one understands him. No one can keep him in check.
This was what I was against. I know the Reyvateils just want me to observe and not stick my neck out, but they understand my needs. They knew what I was trying to accomplish.
The door to my lab opening distracted me from my thoughts. The large fabricator was all warmed up. Sonata was in her portion of the lab working on the weapon system designs I left her. It was a nice division of labor since she was better at armaments than I was while my armor designs were better. We could both build utility items. She waved to me as I walked in, but didn't look up from her work. I sat down at my terminal as the design schematics for the first three ELMAs came up. Each one an improvement over the last in terms of versatility, but the Mark II frame was still the most durable. It was also the most iconic. The public liked the Mk II the best.
I was a slave to PR now. That's another sin I can lay at the PRT's feet. Sonata snickered as apparently I'm transmitting my thoughts again. Oh well let her laugh. The Cutey ELMA sitting at my feet gazed up at me curiously. Interesting idea. It would work well since many of my designs were built to have easily changed parts. I didn't have Kid Win's specialty of modular design, but it was good enough. Keeping the armor's appearance and upgrading functionality was child's play. The new Cutey ELMA I was designing would be mobile reconnaissance and an extra weapons pack. My new blueprint was fired off to Dragon along with the upgrades to the Mk II. The whole thing was designated Mk IV for simplicity. Calling it the ELMA Linkage Mk II with Optional Surveillance and Weapons Pack was a mouthful.
Now I closed off my connection to the chat channel since it wouldn't do to have someone, like my daughter, get an early peek. Sonata likes the smaller unit with it's greater maneuverability. The thing is that I don't like leaving her lightly armored if the force fields fail. She wasn't supposed to be out in the field, but there she was. No one forced her to go. I was taken so my baby wanted to find me. She had her Buster rifle and her playlist that could mimic my Song's effects. So the first was to make her a set of collapsible armor like Cocona has. Hers was designed to maintain flexibility. Sonata already had the flight unit and force field projector with the Cutey ELMA. That left me with some space on the chassis to install a Harmograph and the same amplifiers from the Mk III. Okay now I was happier with her armor. That was going to be a surprise. The design was sent over to Dragon as well for review.
The last thing to design was going to be a Divine Army armor. The Jacqli Robo design was awesome. Mir didn't build it herself, but she did personalize the machine. I set the coloring to white with gold trim for the more heroic approach. The combat system was designed to be used by a Thinker however. There would be a MP model and this custom model. The custom model was going to be for Lisa. I couldn't figure out how to make such a large thing shrink into an ELMA without Armsmaster's help. It couldn't transform, but then again it didn't need to. Heavily armored with redundant force fields and high energy plasma weapons. Seeking missiles and miniguns rounded out the weapons systems. It also had containment foam grenades and sprayers. The force field bubble grenades were added as well. A larger platform could carry more nonlethal options after all.
Now the trick was going to be getting all of this by Friday.
AN: Paranoid Taylor is Paranoid.
Last edited:
To be fair, in Worm, being paranoid is both a blessing and a curse, because while they often are out to get you, sometimes they're only out to get you because you prepared for them.
Okay, that one's funny.
Missing a comma there.
- Location
- Dodging chaos dragons in Limbo
Thanks for the interesting story. The S9 interlude was surprising, tbh, but not implausible. Sonata is a bundle of cuteness hiding a rather sharp edge if she were pushed. Overall, your characters are quite well executed, if a bit one-dimensional. Kinda like a fix-it fic, everyone except the dedicated antagonists is sorta happy. Quite rare for a Worm fanfic... lol. Not that it is a problem, happiness is needed as well. I am curious as to what Cauldron thinks about Aria and co... they have been strangely quiet.
Thanks! Looking forward to future updates.
Thanks! Looking forward to future updates.
Fifth Arc 5.2
- Location
- PA
Hymn of Harmony
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.2
-April 27, 2011-
-PRT HQ: Aria's Lab-
I'm bored. That's something I never thought about feeling, but there it was. Become a Ward, learn about your powers, get the backing of a large organization, and do some good. That's what you expect, but right now I'm bored. My current armor designs and revisions were sent for approval. All of my home schooling assignments were caught up. I had even finally gotten around to organizing my junk drawer and locker. They weren't allowing me to patrol until further notice. The other Wards weren't allowed to patrol either. The PRT Armored Division was now a large enough force to handle things. It was unclear if this was the new status quo or just a temporary measure. I'm not ashamed to admit that desperation was settling in and I wanted something to do.
With that in mind I started sorting through the other Ar Cielan tech at my disposal. I came to a rather startling conclusion. The medical tech I had given them wasn't even scratching the surface. Some of the tech was too advanced for the current level of growth, but others were just right. I booted up my terminal and started listing the medical devices that could be built now. The medical bed was fairly simple and used variable spectrum light to improve recovery. That was a good one to work on. Already the boredom was easing.
"Medical stuff, huh?" Sonata asked as she rested her chin on my shoulder.
"Weapons and armor helps a lot. The thing is it was starting to feel like I was moving away from my original goals...I wanted to help people, y'know?" She hummed thoughtfully in response before saying, "What about the nanite injectors?" Nanite injectors were extremely potent recovery items that could be used quickly to stabilize even the worst injuries. The thing is they needed a baseline to work from. Though a slight programming tweak to the nanite that mapped the target's body first would work. Program it to stay away from brain tissue as well. A few more tweaks to only heal what actually needed healing and it was set.
"I hadn't even thought about them, but good idea." I complimented her as my fingers worked their magic.
"You're too worried about Nilbog or similarities to the more infamous bio tinkers. Relax. It's not like you're running up to people and jamming your concoctions into them." She mimed holding a struggling person while stabbing an invisible syringe.
"Okay honey...I get it. I'll try not to worry so much." I assured her once my laughter was under control. She knew exactly what was worrying me. The difference between me and those wackos was that I wasn't going to use this stuff untested. It worked on Ar Ciel, but that didn't automatically mean it would work as expected here. So the medical bed design was finished as was the programming and design for the nanites.
"Oh no kiddo...you are not doing another working lunch. Not on my watch." Mouse Protector strode in the lab with...fanfare? I gave my daughter a suspicious look as that silly Mouse Protector jingle played. She mouthed 'sorry' but didn't look repentant at all.
"Uh...what do you mean working lunch?" I asked the sword wielding cape. She made an elaborate gesture at the clock sitting right across from my workstation. It was that late already?
"Growing girls need to eat! Come on ladies." MP chivied us out of the lab and onward to the dining hall. She had taken it upon herself to keep an eye on Sonata and I. It was sweet, but like everything else she did it was over the top. My daughter gave me an amused look.
"Thanks for coming to get us. Mom gets so into her work it would take a bomb to dislodge her." My traitorous offspring chirped happily.
"Oh it's fine...I know how it can be with the very best of Tinkers. If Dragon didn't come around as often as she does then Armsy would never leave the lab. I heard she caught him trying to increase the caffeine in coffee once. Then there was the chemical stimulant he wanted installed in his suit..." The large ham continued to regale us with tales of Armsmaster's follies the entire way to the cafeteria. Okay so it was funny. Sonata had a look on her face like she couldn't believe what was being said. We entered the room and made a beeline for the buffet.
"Today's special is chicken wing pizza. Huh." It smelled good and I made sure to get a few slices for myself. I tested the sauce before deciding some horseradish would go good with this. A few of the cafeteria workers snickered and money changed hands. They're actually betting on my eating habits now. Well my cover's blown so grabbing the Hoisin sauce and tabasco was perfectly alright then. Mouse Protector and Sonata were both staring at my tray before shuddering. In sync.
"I know that Mom's weird biology gives her unusual cravings, but now I'm worried." My daughter shook her head in disbelief.
"Is it any good?" The Mouse asked out of morbid curiousity. I took a bite of my pizza and nodded. There was the right amount of spice, sweet, and salt. I was coming to a few conclusions about a Reyvateil's diet. We had different needs than other people did. Flavor was wildly subjective of course as it was a matter of personal preference. I noticed out the corner of my eye the valiant and brave heroine fix herself a slice and take a bite. She chewed thoughtfully for a few moments. Nodded her head. Then promptly walked over to the soda fountain and consumed her body weight in liquids.
"Seriously...how can you eat that? I'm not gonna see if I somehow got your sense of taste. She really should have known better." Sonata watched Mouse Protector come back to the table.
"Well that was certainly unique. You must have an asbestos tongue." The poor heroine sounded a little hoarse. I patted her hand while humming softly. She tilted her head at me, "You're a healer too?" Her throat sounded a lot better, but her voice was hushed. I'll admit that I'm guilty of being surprised at her subtlety. You don't last long as she has by being brash all the time.
"It's not something I talk about because it really only works on Capes." Something about my Songs interacted more smoothly with those bearing Shards. That's not to say it has no effect at all on non capes, but it would be more akin to plink healing than actual recovery.
"Hey did ya hear?" A man asked as he and a coworker sat down several tables away.
"Heard what?" The other man asked.
"A whole shipment of replacement limbs has gone missing. The driver swears he didn't take his eyes off the cargo." That was unusual and worrying. His companion nodded.
"Right...I heard about that. It's even weirder that the guy still drove all the way to his destination without realizing the shipment was gone." Who could do that? Make an entire shipment vanish and no one even know that it's gone? They trailed off into lower tones as the topic changed. I didn't need to hear whatever it was that had them smirking like that.
"You know eavesdropping isn't very nice. Missy warned me about that." Mouse Protector brought my attention back to her. "If you're gonna do it at least pretend you're not listening in, okay? I don't care what dirty laundry you wanna listen to, but try to be discrete." I couldn't help snorting at her comment.
"You're telling me to be discrete?" I put all of my amusement into that. She clutched her chest dramatically.
"Ack! You cut me to the quick!" We all had a good laugh, but it didn't quite drive from my mind what I heard. It made me curious about anything else that might have been stolen. I couldn't help the chill that ran down my spine and hoped that it was a premonition of things to come. A slender finger poked me in the side and set me off into giggles. Sonata's eyes stared into mine telling me to stop brooding. Later. I could think about this stuff later.
-PRT HQ: Wards' HQ-
Apparently I wasn't going to be given my chance at investigating what was said just yet. To be honest I didn't even want to do it just yet. My conscience was telling me to do it, but a wiser part was telling me to give it a rest for today. Okay so Mir threatened to tell my father if I didn't relax today. I couldn't keep the chat channel completely separate from my normal thoughts. That was as good an indication as any that mentally I was tired. Sonata was curled up against me on one side. The rest of the Wards trooped in slowly with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Aegis made a beeline for the couch and collapsed face down. That was weird. Normally Aegis was inexhaustible. The guy just didn't get tired like ordinary mortals yet there he was sacked out on the couch. He started snoring as soon as his face hit the cushion.
"Hey Aria, Sonata." Vista greeted us with a smile.
"Hey Vista. What's going on with Aegis? He's out cold..." He hadn't even stirred at the sound of his name. That was a heavy sleep.
"He got picked for power testing a new cape. She came in to get registered and was told to do her worst." Clockblocker was chuckling. Why hadn't I heard about that?
"She didn't hurt him, did she?" Sonata asked in concern.
"Naw...but whatever her ability is it put him to sleep. He's just shrugging it off." Clock waved dismissively.
"As long as he's okay." I couldn't sense any concern, but they did find it amusing. "Think this new cape is joining the Wards?" I didn't know if they would transfer someone if we had too many on the team.
"Nope. She's already on another team. Betcha can't guess who." He smirked as the silence stretched on tantalizingly.
"The Undersiders. She's joining up with the Undersiders. Jeez Clock. Give it a rest, huh?" Kid Win sounded a aggrieved. Another cape joining the Undersiders?
"Uh...I thought they were still thought of as villains." Sonata asked. She beat me to the punch.
"It's all very hush hush which means everyone knows about it, but they cut a deal. Changing some names, becoming more PR friendly, and agreeing to work with the organization." Gallant interjected as he moved Aegis' legs and sat down. The biologically redundant cape just stubbornly put his legs back, but the empath didn't care.
"I can see it actually. It's better to have them under some supervision than none. Right?" I shrugged. It wasn't like we had any bad experiences with the Undersiders. According to after action reports they helped out a great deal against the Merchants.
"We're not exactly sure what else was agreed on, but that's it. Oh the new cape's name is Nyamo Mask." My blood ran cold. What did he just say? Gallant looked at me in sudden concern.
"What kind of name is that anyway?" Clockblocker asked before going on to hum something cheerful and very catchy. Sonata gripped my hand and the tenseness started to fade.
"Think she's still here?" I asked. "It would be nice to meet the new girl." Gallant looked perplexed at my chance of attitude, but shrugged.
"She's still filling out paperwork. So I guess the Director's office...hey Aria! Where are you going?" He asked as I was already heading for the door. I gave a nonchalant wave back and vague assurances. For some reason I was getting hints of amusement from Lisa and Despedia over our connection. The fact that they were amused and not upset helped me calm down more, but the mystery was eating at me. Sonata was hurrying along in my wake.
"You're going to have to explain this, right? You kind of just bailed without giving a reason." She commented idly. I slowed down to let her catch up.
"Probably. The thing is Nyamo Mask is what Saki called herself as a disguise. If she somehow came to Brockton Bay..." I suddenly had this horrible image of gangbangers turning into cakes. Lots and lots of cakes. I was mostly sure that she couldn't do that anymore, but the image wasn't leaving me. We turned the corner when a very familiar voice interrupted my musings.
"Aria!" A happy tone greeted me as someone bounced with energetic glee in my direction. The melody was familiar yet blended with the Song. Like how different Reyvateils express the same Song differently. The figure crashed into my midsection with enough force that I had to brace myself. Now Sonata was amused. It didn't help that Assault was there watching the scene with laughter in his eyes.
"M-Nyamo Mask I presume?" I smoothly kept myself from blurting out her identiy. She gazed up at me, her eyes shining with mirth. Well played. Very well played.
"That's me! The one and only!" She twirled in place and posed cutely. Her hand was up near her face like a Lucky Cat with one foot off the floor. The mask she wore was white with black whiskers and it looked like she was wearing Saki's outfit. The overall impression was adorable innocence. Completely nonthreatening.
"Is this your costume?" I asked her curiously. She nodded.
"Newtype helped me pick it out. That's Tattletale just so y'know." The amount of energy she was giving off was making me tired just watching her. Sonata glomped her happily. The black kitty ears and tail were setting off all of the cuteness triggers.
"The PR department is gonna cry, but that's just the way it is. Are you sure we can't convince you to join the Wards?" Assault joined in the conversation.
"I would've loved to work with Mouse Protector, but I'm happy where I'm at." The cat cape shrugged apologetically.
"Okay. Just had to try one more time. I think you'll be safe with these two. They look a little shifty, but they're good people." The Protectorate cape winked at us before striding off while whistling that song.
"He was going to take me on a tour to visit the Wards, but I guess you've been elected." She smiled brightly at us. It was a half mask that still left her mouth visible. Sonata linked arms with her and off we went.
"Nyamo Mask?" I asked curiously.
"It just sounded right. The music I heard was just so catchy and filled me with energy." She gazes at me again, "When I heard you were kidnapped...and then the Merchants at the Marketplace..." I put an arm around her shoulders. "So yeah...boom instant super heroine. My head was kind of messed up. The music, the action, everything was happening all at once. I finally came down...in Imp's lap." She sounded mortified.
"Imp's lap? How?" Sonata asked in disbelief.
"I was still feeling threatened so...I went looking for a friend. Apparently she found me and brought me back to their base." Nyamo had it rough apparently. I checked her Shard and almost had heart failure. The pseudo Shard that Sonata was developing was fully realized in Madison. The patterning was exactly the same. Terrible day, bullshit super powers, but one core difference. This Shard pulled her psyche back together. There were bizarre similarities to how Despedia's Shard screwed up though. Research for later. For now we had a friend to give the ten cent tour to, but I wasn't going to forget this. Thankfully I didn't have to give an explanation to my friends as they had someone else to fuss over. Nyamo and Vista were too cute for words. If either of them knew what I was thinking it wouldn't have been so cute.
"Wow it's the Lollipop Guild." Clockblocker joked at seeing the two together. Nyamo hissed and Vista started distorting space. The chase was on with Clock, using instincts honed from past experience, ran away from the two shortest capes.
"So...you two know each other?" Gallant asked me. Of course he wouldn't forget my earlier freak out.
"She's a good friend. I sensed her melody and well...new cape...friend's melody in the building..." I trailed off and let him draw his own conclusions. He patted my shoulder comfortingly.
"At least she's doing alright." He watched the chase along with the other Wards. Despedia walked through the door just as Clock looked back to check the progress of his pursuers. This was not going to end well. My friend squawked in a very convincing impression of a chicken as the temporal cape collided with her. He bounced off.
"Ouch...that's...gotta hurt." Granspear said as she sidled out from behind the startled girl. Vista and Nyamo looked at each other before bounding over to the spear wielder. Clockblocker was picking himself up off the floor.
"Call us the Lollipop Guild with Granspear here." Vista dared him. He waved off frantically.
"Oh no...that's fine. I'm good. Totally fine." He managed to say in one breath.
"I'll say...rowr..." Nyamo absently said. She looked mortified a half second later, but the damage was done.
"Clockblocker? Seriously?" Vista asked incredulously. The poor redhead grumbled something about "No respect" before flopping down on the couch. His melody wasn't actually upset at all. Madison's observation just threw him for a loop. The little looks he sent her way weren't missed. I had this weird feeling he liked being chased around and scolded. Never mind. Not thinking about that. That way lies madness and brain bleach.
"So what did I miss?" Granspear asked as she moved to stand next to me. Her melody had been a little strange the past few days, but in what way I couldn't tell. It was like it wanted to wrap around mine. Another mystery for later. When we weren't surrounded by everyone of course. She was brought up to speed while Despedia had a Mona Lisa smile. At the rate things were going I had more mysteries to solve.
-Hebert House: Sanctum Santorum (Basement)-
The results were in, and well, they were nowhere near as bad as I thought. Despedia's Shard had picked up an enormous amount of data and had been growing an offshoot like a tree. This offshoot needed fertile soil to grow. Apparently Des and Madison had been at the Marketplace together or at least near one another. I'm going to start referring to these Shards as Seeds because that's what they closely resembled to me. In all of the confusion and panic Madison became fertile soil. In that time after Triggering she was in a state much like Despedia's initial one. The major difference was that Despedia patterned herself after a more frightening song. Madison's song was considerably more lighthearted. The tone of the song was determined by the recipient and manifested abilities from there. So I patched up Despedia's Seed and Madison inherited an offshoot from the Hybrid. Yeah. That's a good term. Any Seed that I have to extensively patch would be more likely a Hybrid by plant logic. So Madison picked up a cheesy heroic mentality in the process. The good part is that it subsided. It's still there whenever she uses her powers, but otherwise it isn't doing to her like it did to Despedia.
"Here you are burning the midnight oil again." Cocona said quietly. I turned to face her and smiled.
"There was just something bothering me, but it's okay. Seriously it's okay." She hummed thoughtfully, but it really was okay.
"What was keeping you up? If you don't mind sharing." The shorter girl sat down on the love seat and I joined her. I didn't need to be at the terminal now. My work and speculation was finished. She leaned her head on my shoulder. It felt nice.
"I was trying to get to the bottom of Madison's Trigger. The more we find out about Trigger events, Shards, and all of this the more I want to tear my hair out. It just doesn't make any sense." I sighed, but there was no heat to my words.
"You sound like Mir." Cocona observed with amusement.
"I've decided to stop calling them Shards. It's...a clunky term. It was more a placeholder I guess, but calling them Seeds seems more appropriate. With the right soil and nutrition they grow. Then once they've reached maturation they bud off to someone else. Despedia's Seed was glutted with data. It matured and grew much faster than it should. The offshoot had to go somewhere and what do you know? Madison filled with worry and concern is fertile soil. Then the Merchants come, add the water, and we have growth." The metaphor was apt at least. She nodded slowly at my reasoning.
"I'm happy for you. It's not easy being a researcher." Cocona praised me with a faint smile. Her eyes glimmered faintly with fond amusement. A strange idea came to me as I looked over her elfin face. Her hair was unbound and framing delicate features. Why was I suddenly having trouble breathing? She reached up to touch my face and I calmed down. Whatever this was it felt good. It felt like flying and roller coasters. My arms held her close. She laid her head on my shoulder. I couldn't think of anything to say. What could I say? What was there to discuss? For tonight I was just going to forget talking. We sat in the basement, holding onto one another, and sometimes?
Words were just unnecessary.
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.2
-April 27, 2011-
-PRT HQ: Aria's Lab-
I'm bored. That's something I never thought about feeling, but there it was. Become a Ward, learn about your powers, get the backing of a large organization, and do some good. That's what you expect, but right now I'm bored. My current armor designs and revisions were sent for approval. All of my home schooling assignments were caught up. I had even finally gotten around to organizing my junk drawer and locker. They weren't allowing me to patrol until further notice. The other Wards weren't allowed to patrol either. The PRT Armored Division was now a large enough force to handle things. It was unclear if this was the new status quo or just a temporary measure. I'm not ashamed to admit that desperation was settling in and I wanted something to do.
With that in mind I started sorting through the other Ar Cielan tech at my disposal. I came to a rather startling conclusion. The medical tech I had given them wasn't even scratching the surface. Some of the tech was too advanced for the current level of growth, but others were just right. I booted up my terminal and started listing the medical devices that could be built now. The medical bed was fairly simple and used variable spectrum light to improve recovery. That was a good one to work on. Already the boredom was easing.
"Medical stuff, huh?" Sonata asked as she rested her chin on my shoulder.
"Weapons and armor helps a lot. The thing is it was starting to feel like I was moving away from my original goals...I wanted to help people, y'know?" She hummed thoughtfully in response before saying, "What about the nanite injectors?" Nanite injectors were extremely potent recovery items that could be used quickly to stabilize even the worst injuries. The thing is they needed a baseline to work from. Though a slight programming tweak to the nanite that mapped the target's body first would work. Program it to stay away from brain tissue as well. A few more tweaks to only heal what actually needed healing and it was set.
"I hadn't even thought about them, but good idea." I complimented her as my fingers worked their magic.
"You're too worried about Nilbog or similarities to the more infamous bio tinkers. Relax. It's not like you're running up to people and jamming your concoctions into them." She mimed holding a struggling person while stabbing an invisible syringe.
"Okay honey...I get it. I'll try not to worry so much." I assured her once my laughter was under control. She knew exactly what was worrying me. The difference between me and those wackos was that I wasn't going to use this stuff untested. It worked on Ar Ciel, but that didn't automatically mean it would work as expected here. So the medical bed design was finished as was the programming and design for the nanites.
"Oh no kiddo...you are not doing another working lunch. Not on my watch." Mouse Protector strode in the lab with...fanfare? I gave my daughter a suspicious look as that silly Mouse Protector jingle played. She mouthed 'sorry' but didn't look repentant at all.
"Uh...what do you mean working lunch?" I asked the sword wielding cape. She made an elaborate gesture at the clock sitting right across from my workstation. It was that late already?
"Growing girls need to eat! Come on ladies." MP chivied us out of the lab and onward to the dining hall. She had taken it upon herself to keep an eye on Sonata and I. It was sweet, but like everything else she did it was over the top. My daughter gave me an amused look.
"Thanks for coming to get us. Mom gets so into her work it would take a bomb to dislodge her." My traitorous offspring chirped happily.
"Oh it's fine...I know how it can be with the very best of Tinkers. If Dragon didn't come around as often as she does then Armsy would never leave the lab. I heard she caught him trying to increase the caffeine in coffee once. Then there was the chemical stimulant he wanted installed in his suit..." The large ham continued to regale us with tales of Armsmaster's follies the entire way to the cafeteria. Okay so it was funny. Sonata had a look on her face like she couldn't believe what was being said. We entered the room and made a beeline for the buffet.
"Today's special is chicken wing pizza. Huh." It smelled good and I made sure to get a few slices for myself. I tested the sauce before deciding some horseradish would go good with this. A few of the cafeteria workers snickered and money changed hands. They're actually betting on my eating habits now. Well my cover's blown so grabbing the Hoisin sauce and tabasco was perfectly alright then. Mouse Protector and Sonata were both staring at my tray before shuddering. In sync.
"I know that Mom's weird biology gives her unusual cravings, but now I'm worried." My daughter shook her head in disbelief.
"Is it any good?" The Mouse asked out of morbid curiousity. I took a bite of my pizza and nodded. There was the right amount of spice, sweet, and salt. I was coming to a few conclusions about a Reyvateil's diet. We had different needs than other people did. Flavor was wildly subjective of course as it was a matter of personal preference. I noticed out the corner of my eye the valiant and brave heroine fix herself a slice and take a bite. She chewed thoughtfully for a few moments. Nodded her head. Then promptly walked over to the soda fountain and consumed her body weight in liquids.
"Seriously...how can you eat that? I'm not gonna see if I somehow got your sense of taste. She really should have known better." Sonata watched Mouse Protector come back to the table.
"Well that was certainly unique. You must have an asbestos tongue." The poor heroine sounded a little hoarse. I patted her hand while humming softly. She tilted her head at me, "You're a healer too?" Her throat sounded a lot better, but her voice was hushed. I'll admit that I'm guilty of being surprised at her subtlety. You don't last long as she has by being brash all the time.
"It's not something I talk about because it really only works on Capes." Something about my Songs interacted more smoothly with those bearing Shards. That's not to say it has no effect at all on non capes, but it would be more akin to plink healing than actual recovery.
"Hey did ya hear?" A man asked as he and a coworker sat down several tables away.
"Heard what?" The other man asked.
"A whole shipment of replacement limbs has gone missing. The driver swears he didn't take his eyes off the cargo." That was unusual and worrying. His companion nodded.
"Right...I heard about that. It's even weirder that the guy still drove all the way to his destination without realizing the shipment was gone." Who could do that? Make an entire shipment vanish and no one even know that it's gone? They trailed off into lower tones as the topic changed. I didn't need to hear whatever it was that had them smirking like that.
"You know eavesdropping isn't very nice. Missy warned me about that." Mouse Protector brought my attention back to her. "If you're gonna do it at least pretend you're not listening in, okay? I don't care what dirty laundry you wanna listen to, but try to be discrete." I couldn't help snorting at her comment.
"You're telling me to be discrete?" I put all of my amusement into that. She clutched her chest dramatically.
"Ack! You cut me to the quick!" We all had a good laugh, but it didn't quite drive from my mind what I heard. It made me curious about anything else that might have been stolen. I couldn't help the chill that ran down my spine and hoped that it was a premonition of things to come. A slender finger poked me in the side and set me off into giggles. Sonata's eyes stared into mine telling me to stop brooding. Later. I could think about this stuff later.
-PRT HQ: Wards' HQ-
Apparently I wasn't going to be given my chance at investigating what was said just yet. To be honest I didn't even want to do it just yet. My conscience was telling me to do it, but a wiser part was telling me to give it a rest for today. Okay so Mir threatened to tell my father if I didn't relax today. I couldn't keep the chat channel completely separate from my normal thoughts. That was as good an indication as any that mentally I was tired. Sonata was curled up against me on one side. The rest of the Wards trooped in slowly with varying degrees of enthusiasm. Aegis made a beeline for the couch and collapsed face down. That was weird. Normally Aegis was inexhaustible. The guy just didn't get tired like ordinary mortals yet there he was sacked out on the couch. He started snoring as soon as his face hit the cushion.
"Hey Aria, Sonata." Vista greeted us with a smile.
"Hey Vista. What's going on with Aegis? He's out cold..." He hadn't even stirred at the sound of his name. That was a heavy sleep.
"He got picked for power testing a new cape. She came in to get registered and was told to do her worst." Clockblocker was chuckling. Why hadn't I heard about that?
"She didn't hurt him, did she?" Sonata asked in concern.
"Naw...but whatever her ability is it put him to sleep. He's just shrugging it off." Clock waved dismissively.
"As long as he's okay." I couldn't sense any concern, but they did find it amusing. "Think this new cape is joining the Wards?" I didn't know if they would transfer someone if we had too many on the team.
"Nope. She's already on another team. Betcha can't guess who." He smirked as the silence stretched on tantalizingly.
"The Undersiders. She's joining up with the Undersiders. Jeez Clock. Give it a rest, huh?" Kid Win sounded a aggrieved. Another cape joining the Undersiders?
"Uh...I thought they were still thought of as villains." Sonata asked. She beat me to the punch.
"It's all very hush hush which means everyone knows about it, but they cut a deal. Changing some names, becoming more PR friendly, and agreeing to work with the organization." Gallant interjected as he moved Aegis' legs and sat down. The biologically redundant cape just stubbornly put his legs back, but the empath didn't care.
"I can see it actually. It's better to have them under some supervision than none. Right?" I shrugged. It wasn't like we had any bad experiences with the Undersiders. According to after action reports they helped out a great deal against the Merchants.
"We're not exactly sure what else was agreed on, but that's it. Oh the new cape's name is Nyamo Mask." My blood ran cold. What did he just say? Gallant looked at me in sudden concern.
"What kind of name is that anyway?" Clockblocker asked before going on to hum something cheerful and very catchy. Sonata gripped my hand and the tenseness started to fade.
"Think she's still here?" I asked. "It would be nice to meet the new girl." Gallant looked perplexed at my chance of attitude, but shrugged.
"She's still filling out paperwork. So I guess the Director's office...hey Aria! Where are you going?" He asked as I was already heading for the door. I gave a nonchalant wave back and vague assurances. For some reason I was getting hints of amusement from Lisa and Despedia over our connection. The fact that they were amused and not upset helped me calm down more, but the mystery was eating at me. Sonata was hurrying along in my wake.
"You're going to have to explain this, right? You kind of just bailed without giving a reason." She commented idly. I slowed down to let her catch up.
"Probably. The thing is Nyamo Mask is what Saki called herself as a disguise. If she somehow came to Brockton Bay..." I suddenly had this horrible image of gangbangers turning into cakes. Lots and lots of cakes. I was mostly sure that she couldn't do that anymore, but the image wasn't leaving me. We turned the corner when a very familiar voice interrupted my musings.
"Aria!" A happy tone greeted me as someone bounced with energetic glee in my direction. The melody was familiar yet blended with the Song. Like how different Reyvateils express the same Song differently. The figure crashed into my midsection with enough force that I had to brace myself. Now Sonata was amused. It didn't help that Assault was there watching the scene with laughter in his eyes.
"M-Nyamo Mask I presume?" I smoothly kept myself from blurting out her identiy. She gazed up at me, her eyes shining with mirth. Well played. Very well played.
"That's me! The one and only!" She twirled in place and posed cutely. Her hand was up near her face like a Lucky Cat with one foot off the floor. The mask she wore was white with black whiskers and it looked like she was wearing Saki's outfit. The overall impression was adorable innocence. Completely nonthreatening.
"Is this your costume?" I asked her curiously. She nodded.
"Newtype helped me pick it out. That's Tattletale just so y'know." The amount of energy she was giving off was making me tired just watching her. Sonata glomped her happily. The black kitty ears and tail were setting off all of the cuteness triggers.
"The PR department is gonna cry, but that's just the way it is. Are you sure we can't convince you to join the Wards?" Assault joined in the conversation.
"I would've loved to work with Mouse Protector, but I'm happy where I'm at." The cat cape shrugged apologetically.
"Okay. Just had to try one more time. I think you'll be safe with these two. They look a little shifty, but they're good people." The Protectorate cape winked at us before striding off while whistling that song.
"He was going to take me on a tour to visit the Wards, but I guess you've been elected." She smiled brightly at us. It was a half mask that still left her mouth visible. Sonata linked arms with her and off we went.
"Nyamo Mask?" I asked curiously.
"It just sounded right. The music I heard was just so catchy and filled me with energy." She gazes at me again, "When I heard you were kidnapped...and then the Merchants at the Marketplace..." I put an arm around her shoulders. "So yeah...boom instant super heroine. My head was kind of messed up. The music, the action, everything was happening all at once. I finally came down...in Imp's lap." She sounded mortified.
"Imp's lap? How?" Sonata asked in disbelief.
"I was still feeling threatened so...I went looking for a friend. Apparently she found me and brought me back to their base." Nyamo had it rough apparently. I checked her Shard and almost had heart failure. The pseudo Shard that Sonata was developing was fully realized in Madison. The patterning was exactly the same. Terrible day, bullshit super powers, but one core difference. This Shard pulled her psyche back together. There were bizarre similarities to how Despedia's Shard screwed up though. Research for later. For now we had a friend to give the ten cent tour to, but I wasn't going to forget this. Thankfully I didn't have to give an explanation to my friends as they had someone else to fuss over. Nyamo and Vista were too cute for words. If either of them knew what I was thinking it wouldn't have been so cute.
"Wow it's the Lollipop Guild." Clockblocker joked at seeing the two together. Nyamo hissed and Vista started distorting space. The chase was on with Clock, using instincts honed from past experience, ran away from the two shortest capes.
"So...you two know each other?" Gallant asked me. Of course he wouldn't forget my earlier freak out.
"She's a good friend. I sensed her melody and well...new cape...friend's melody in the building..." I trailed off and let him draw his own conclusions. He patted my shoulder comfortingly.
"At least she's doing alright." He watched the chase along with the other Wards. Despedia walked through the door just as Clock looked back to check the progress of his pursuers. This was not going to end well. My friend squawked in a very convincing impression of a chicken as the temporal cape collided with her. He bounced off.
"Ouch...that's...gotta hurt." Granspear said as she sidled out from behind the startled girl. Vista and Nyamo looked at each other before bounding over to the spear wielder. Clockblocker was picking himself up off the floor.
"Call us the Lollipop Guild with Granspear here." Vista dared him. He waved off frantically.
"Oh no...that's fine. I'm good. Totally fine." He managed to say in one breath.
"I'll say...rowr..." Nyamo absently said. She looked mortified a half second later, but the damage was done.
"Clockblocker? Seriously?" Vista asked incredulously. The poor redhead grumbled something about "No respect" before flopping down on the couch. His melody wasn't actually upset at all. Madison's observation just threw him for a loop. The little looks he sent her way weren't missed. I had this weird feeling he liked being chased around and scolded. Never mind. Not thinking about that. That way lies madness and brain bleach.
"So what did I miss?" Granspear asked as she moved to stand next to me. Her melody had been a little strange the past few days, but in what way I couldn't tell. It was like it wanted to wrap around mine. Another mystery for later. When we weren't surrounded by everyone of course. She was brought up to speed while Despedia had a Mona Lisa smile. At the rate things were going I had more mysteries to solve.
-Hebert House: Sanctum Santorum (Basement)-
The results were in, and well, they were nowhere near as bad as I thought. Despedia's Shard had picked up an enormous amount of data and had been growing an offshoot like a tree. This offshoot needed fertile soil to grow. Apparently Des and Madison had been at the Marketplace together or at least near one another. I'm going to start referring to these Shards as Seeds because that's what they closely resembled to me. In all of the confusion and panic Madison became fertile soil. In that time after Triggering she was in a state much like Despedia's initial one. The major difference was that Despedia patterned herself after a more frightening song. Madison's song was considerably more lighthearted. The tone of the song was determined by the recipient and manifested abilities from there. So I patched up Despedia's Seed and Madison inherited an offshoot from the Hybrid. Yeah. That's a good term. Any Seed that I have to extensively patch would be more likely a Hybrid by plant logic. So Madison picked up a cheesy heroic mentality in the process. The good part is that it subsided. It's still there whenever she uses her powers, but otherwise it isn't doing to her like it did to Despedia.
"Here you are burning the midnight oil again." Cocona said quietly. I turned to face her and smiled.
"There was just something bothering me, but it's okay. Seriously it's okay." She hummed thoughtfully, but it really was okay.
"What was keeping you up? If you don't mind sharing." The shorter girl sat down on the love seat and I joined her. I didn't need to be at the terminal now. My work and speculation was finished. She leaned her head on my shoulder. It felt nice.
"I was trying to get to the bottom of Madison's Trigger. The more we find out about Trigger events, Shards, and all of this the more I want to tear my hair out. It just doesn't make any sense." I sighed, but there was no heat to my words.
"You sound like Mir." Cocona observed with amusement.
"I've decided to stop calling them Shards. It's...a clunky term. It was more a placeholder I guess, but calling them Seeds seems more appropriate. With the right soil and nutrition they grow. Then once they've reached maturation they bud off to someone else. Despedia's Seed was glutted with data. It matured and grew much faster than it should. The offshoot had to go somewhere and what do you know? Madison filled with worry and concern is fertile soil. Then the Merchants come, add the water, and we have growth." The metaphor was apt at least. She nodded slowly at my reasoning.
"I'm happy for you. It's not easy being a researcher." Cocona praised me with a faint smile. Her eyes glimmered faintly with fond amusement. A strange idea came to me as I looked over her elfin face. Her hair was unbound and framing delicate features. Why was I suddenly having trouble breathing? She reached up to touch my face and I calmed down. Whatever this was it felt good. It felt like flying and roller coasters. My arms held her close. She laid her head on my shoulder. I couldn't think of anything to say. What could I say? What was there to discuss? For tonight I was just going to forget talking. We sat in the basement, holding onto one another, and sometimes?
Words were just unnecessary.
Last edited:
Profanity isn't a very heroic weapon..............
- Location
- PA
Fixed. Thanks. Wow...Swore wielding capes...scary stuff.
Fifth Arc 5.3
- Location
- PA
Hymn of Harmony
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.3
-April 28, 2011-
-Hebert Residence-
There are worse ways to start your day. The cushions were comfortable and it was long enough that I wasn't contorting to fit. The sleeping face of Cocona just inches away from mine made me feel warm inside. The first rays of sunlight caressed the basement in cheery light. She was just so cute. Her expression was peaceful with a faint smile on her lips. It was sort of blurry about what time we finally got to sleep. There was no discussion about this. Sometimes words just got in the way. I embraced her warmly as she slept on. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. She opened her eyes slowly and stretched out. Her gaze fell on me without hesitation or confusion and smiled.
"Good morning." I said quietly.
"Mmm...good morning. Were you awake long?" She asked sleepily. My fingers ran through her hair of their own volition.
"Long enough to know you're a cute sleeper." The spell that was cast over this moment made it easier to say these things. Somewhere in the back of my mind a voice was telling me not to obsess. Just go with it and see where this leads. She blushed faintly.
"Geez Taylor..." Cocona lightly slapped my shoulder before burying her face in my chest. Her alarm started to go off and I could feel her annoyance spike. I just stroked her hair.
"Guess we better get up." Neither of us looked thrilled, but there was little we could do. It was a clock. I couldn't just tell it to shut up. Cocona gave me a little smile before rolling off the love seat and heading to her room. Already the love seat felt cooler. Suppose I'd better get up. It was a testament to how preoccupied I was that my white haired friend was able to sneak up on me. I was brushing my teeth, minding my own business, when she spoke.
"Hmmm...daydreaming is a good look for you. That little smile and spaced out expression? Adorable." Despedia started my day with that seeming non sequitor.
"Well that was random. I wasn't daydreaming." I was mystified. She smirked just a little bit wider.
"Come on Taylor...level with me. Cocona wasn't in her bed when I woke up." My face heated up at the insinuation.
"It wasn't like that at all. I swear. We just sat in the basement all night. Then she had to go practice. See? Perfectly reasonable." Another comment like that and my already pounding heart would jump out of my chest. My friend just laughed before walking out of the bathroom.
I still wasn't sure how to react. It was like my body was moving on autopilot. The feel of her in my arms just felt so right. What was I going to do now? Well, I knew one thing that wasn't happening. I wasn't being a typical idiot like in one of those comic books and denying it happened. There was no point in denying my feelings. Cocona would have told me if she didn't feel the same way. No, not going to be a clueless protagonist in my own story. I wasn't sure if my first hurdle was going to be Dad. What would he say about it? The fact that he accepted me being his alien gynoid daughter spoke wonderful volumes. That I wanted to be a hero and he supported me was icing on the cake. I brought home a daughter? He was ecstatic. My interest in Cocona was going to be a little more difficult to swallow.
"You're obsessing. Don't do that." Sonata suddenly spoke up from beside me. I nearly jumped half a foot, clutching my chest in shock.
"Geez Sonata...warn me next time." I managed to gasp out. She just hugged me in apology.
"Sorry, Mom, but you were off in La La Land. Let's go to breakfast, okay?" Oh great now she sounded contrite for startling me.
"It's okay sweetheart." I draped an arm around her shoulders and guided her to the table. Dad was watching Despedia do the cooking today. Judging by how everything smelled it was well prepared. Cocona was staring at the coffeemaker as if it would percolate faster.
"Good morning, Taylor." Dad kissed me on the forehead in greeting.
"Morning, Dad." I smiled back at him. The sound of Mom's flute in the house's melody was especially vibrant today. It bolstered my confidence. I could talk to him about this. Just have to wait for after breakfast.
It's sometimes hard to believe that my life has come so far in such a short time. For the longest time it was just my dad and I. Now we have a full house and all the smiles we could want. The part that still confuses me is just how much respect I get. I know that it's because of my inventions. I know that I actually deserve the respect. It actually amuses me to think about how my life has changed. I wouldn't change any of this for the world. My family sitting around the breakfast table. Eating, talking, and bonding. This is paradise. Despedia and Cocona had to hurry out to catch the bus while Sonata started the dishes. Dad was still reading the paper and showing no signs of leaving.
"You've been pretty quiet today, Little Owl." He broke the silence.
"Yeah...guess I'm a little preoccupied." I gave a little shrug.
"I'm gonna go watch cartoons." Sonata kissed me and Dad on the cheek before heading into the living room. I swear she can read the mood of a room better than I can. Dad set the paper down and looked at me expectantly. Let's avoid blurting out easily misunderstood comments. Saying that I slept with Cocona, while technically accurate, would turn this into a comedy.
"Well Dad...I have a crush on Cocona." There we go. All nice and clear without rushing. I could have cheated and listened to his melody, but not this time. He stared at me for several moments.
"Does she know?" Dad finally asked. There was nothing in his tone to give me clues.
"We slept together on the love seat in the basement last night. I think it was pretty clear." He shook his head as I finished speaking.
"That's really not how you do it, kiddo. Just because you think she understands doesn't mean you shouldn't say something." He sounded aggrieved. The words he spoke finally caught up to me and it was all I could do not to stare at him. He was giving me relationship advice?
"You're...giving me relationship advice...?" Good job at sounding horribly confused, Taylor.
"I won't say that it isn't a shock. It is and it isn't. On the one hand I had this image of someday tormenting your future boyfriends with a shotgun. The thing is you don't really hang around with boys aside from the Wards. I would have to be blind not to see how you and Cocona look at each other. Just talk to her and don't take it for granted. You both deserve some happiness." Dad patted me on the shoulder. I could tell he wasn't a hundred percent thrilled, but he wasn't telling me no either.
"Thanks Dad." I smiled at him and he smiled back. He was going to put in a long day at work before the trip tomorrow. That was going to leave just Sonata and myself home alone. Once he was gone I moved into the living room to sit with my daughter. She wasn't watching the TV at all. Her eyes locked onto mine curiously.
"Did you really think Grandpa was gonna throw a fit?" She asked me. I sighed heavily.
"No, no I didn't. I was expecting him to be a little upset or at least taken off guard. Sometimes your mom has her moments. I know it was irrational, but with how well everything's been going...I guess I just didn't want to rock the boat." I smiled wryly. Sonata wrapped her arms around my waist and snuggled close.
"You're the best mom anywhere." She told me matter-of-factly. I teared up a little at that and held her closer.
"Thanks sweetheart. I love you."
"Love you too, Mom." We just sat on the sofa together. My heart was warm and everything felt just right. How do I keep this feeling? Tomorrow our vacation starts once school's out.
"What do you say we forget going in today and visit Lisa? See if she's up for hanging out." I smiled at Sonata.
"That would be great." She smiled back happily. I was already getting out my phone to text her. "You still text her?"
"The chat channel is great, but I like the idea of keeping it secret still. We've kind of become lazy about security." I concluded with a wry smile. The phone buzzed back. "We're good to go. She's at her apartment."
"Is anyone else gonna be there?" Sonata asked as she started getting ready to leave.
"Nope. Just the three of us." It would be nice to see her. I haven't gotten to spend any time with her since the rescue. We set off from the house and made our way across town. For the record? I hate buses. Once you've discovered flying everything else is sub par. Sonata enjoyed the ride, but then again she enjoys everything which made the ride more tolerable.
The city was recovering in the wake of everything that had happened. It's funny, but months ago I thought the city was a sad place. Gangs everywhere, cape violence, and all of it a melting pot waiting to spill over. The truth was that no matter how bad things got, the city endured. There's something to be said for that kind of resilience. Sometimes it almost felt like Brockton Bay was the nucleus of something larger. All races and ethnicities in one place. Heroes, villains, and the everyday people. What I saw everyday could easily apply to the rest of the world. No matter where you go the same problems still exist. The thing that amazes me is how the common people handle it all. We live in a world of Endbringers, super powers, and maniacs all heading towards the collapse of society. Society has fallen before and we've still managed to rebuild. The biggest problem was Scion. We could fix the rest of the problems, but that meant nothing when Scion finally decided to move. How much longer would he be willing to play the hero that rescues kittens from trees? No one knew. The world, just like Brockton Bay, was teetering on the brink and no one knew when the dominoes would fall.
Something just occurred to me. I was thinking of how Brockton Bay has been kept on the knife's edge. Even though the PRT and police are better armed now, there's been little progress. It's not for lack of trying, but it feels like something is hobbling efforts. The world represented in our city. Other cities had problems, but nowhere have things appeared so carefully managed. Managed? That opened up a wide range of terrifying possibilities. Sonata grabbed my arm.
"Hey Taylor? Our stop is coming up." She looked at me in concern. It's just so weird hearing my daughter call me by name, but secret identities are a thing.
"Sorry, I was spacing out." We got off the bus and headed for Lisa's apartment. I looked up at the window to Sophia's place, but there didn't appear to be anyone home. Someday we needed to sit down and hash things out. I just couldn't muster the care or focus to actually remind myself of all of the trouble we had. It was best to just move on and let it go. Both of us were in a much better place than we used to be. When we got up to Lisa's apartment she let us in.
"Hey there!" She greeted me with a hug and a kiss on the cheek before moving on to Sonata, "You two look good."
"Hi Aunt Lisa!" Sonata hugged her back hard eliciting an faint groan, "Oops...too tight?" She looked sheepish.
"Just a bit. What brings you two around?" She lead us over to the couch.
"I haven't seen you in a few days and wanted to change that. We also saw Madison the other day and apparently you've been keeping secrets." I arched an eyebrow playfully. She shook her head.
"It wasn't my story to tell. It's good that you got to talk to her though. I don't think that's the only reason you're here." Lisa smirked.
"Mom's got a thing for Cocona and thinks the rest of us haven't noticed." Sonata stated. I gawked at her bluntness. Lisa's smirk, if possible, grew wider.
"I wasn't even sure until last night. Honestly I didn't even notice until last night before deciding to take a chance." Oh. Sonata was sporting a smirk too. The two of them ganged up on me. I pouted at them, but it didn't work.
"Don't even try it. It won't work. Sonata? That was funny, but next time no trolling your mother." The blonde said to my child.
"She would have taken forever though." Sonata grumbled.
"I wouldn't have. Geez that's why I wanted to come over. To actually tell Lisa about it and get her opinion. Dad reminded me that I need to actually talk to her. I decided to let actions speak louder than words." Lisa patted me on the shoulder.
"Girls like hearing that they're appreciated. As long as you appreciate her, and let her know it, then you're fine." She assured me. "Just think about the trip. You'll have plenty of time to talk to her more."
"There was something else I wanted to talk about. It was something I thought about on the way over." Sonata and Lisa both looked interested so I told them my thoughts. My suspicion that this was some kind of experimental world in miniature right here in Brockton Bay. Sonata looked worried while Lisa sported a grim frown. I ruffled my daughter's hair softly while my friend gave her a one-armed hug.
"Dang it...it fits. The situation should be getting better here, but it's not. The only gang we have to worry about is the Empire now, but without the other gangs to keep them in check..." She trailed off ominously.
"But don't we outnumber the Empire now?" Sonata asked. Lisa and I shared a look.
"I managed to dig up some information. Muspelheim and Niflheim got off a plane yesterday. I've already forwarded the information to the PRT." The blonde girl looked irritated about something.
"Lovely. I'm guessing they manipulate fire and ice. No one really has any information on them except the Nazis." The Empire 88 has an affiliated organization, Geselleschaft, that operate primarily in Europe. Given the kind of money they had to work with it stood to reason they could smuggle the two villains into Brockton Bay through unofficial channels.
"How did you get this information?" I asked her curiously. Lisa looked more irritated.
"I owe someone a favor." Her melody wasn't distressed, just pissed. The level of anger and wounded pride she was feeling would be enough to kill. She gazed at me. "You're curious. Fine. It's Faultline. I owe a favor to Faultline. Relax. It's nothing major or even illegal. I just don't like owing that woman any favors."
"Why don't you like her?" Sonata asked. Thank you sweetheart for asking the question I wanted to. She won't flip out at you.
"Why? She's such a know-it-all and lords it over everyone." Neither of us felt brave enough to ask Lisa the obvious question. She's family, we love her, and she was very good at payback.
"You know it won't be illegal?" I asked with concern. Her expression softened.
"I was careful. I made sure the deal was clearly spelled out. Including the nature of the favor." She assured us. "Faultline wants me to look over some footage from a job that didn't go so well. She's pissed. My need just so happened to coincide with hers."
"Can you talk about it?" I asked her. She grimaced, but shook her head.
"Sorry, but this is need to know only. If I need help you'll be the first person I call." That was probably the best I was going to get out of her. The conversation turned to lighter things after that, but it didn't stop me from being concerned. I trusted Lisa not to get in over her head, but I didn't know Faultline. She might be a mercenary with a code, but that didn't equal trust. There's a reason she's listed as a villain. The woman has a reputation for taking in Case 53's and always abides by her contract. At least she has principals. I pushed my concerns to the side and instead enjoyed the visit.
-Undisclosed Location-
The place was built like a nuclear fallout shelter. Heavily reinforced walls, ceilings, and floors with thick blast doors cemented the impression. It was rather large with an access door to the bay large enough for three ships to enter at the same time. The location was a steal since the former owner was dead and had made sure that it was off the books. Squealer sat in the richly appointed office with a pensive expression. She looked across the desk at the people seated before her. These four were being transferred to a place that could contain them, but the transport information had been leaked to her. The former Merchant cape had a choice. She could spring them or let them rot. The idea of going solo didn't thrill her so a rescue was in order. She followed the instructions given to her to the letter and managed to get away without any difficulty. The armored PRT agents would have been a nightmare due to some asshole giving them another upgrade, but this was just a smash and grab.
Now she had four more capes to help with her goals. A few precautions were made before meeting with them. Her mask was now covered her whole face with what looked like dirt bike goggles and face plate. She installed a redundant filter in the mask to prevent fumes, exhaust, and dust from reaching her. Flechette launchers were installed in the ceilings in case of uppity behavior. They were loyal, but she wasn't going to be stupid about this. Why did she need to plan so thoroughly? Smack and Angel were known to her. He was practically invulnerable unless you were using sharp objects. Anything he was hit with would just make his blows stronger. Eventually the extra power would go away or he could deliberately use it all at once. Angel was the reason for the gas mask protection. Squealer was off drugs now and dammit she was not going back. The female cape was addiction given form. Her smoke was highly addictive and intoxicating. She could apparently Master someone with it as well.
The other two were apparently new. Well, one of them was. The competent lieutenant was a cape that Skidmark knew about, but never bothered telling her. He was clean shaven in a uniform scrounged from the supply room. The smile on his face was genuine, but there was something creepy in his eyes. Skidmark called him "Gent" due to his good manners. A strangely clean name. His power was to neutralize one aspect. When asked aspect of what he just smiled. Almost a study in contrast was the scruffy punk that sat next to him. He was wearing the same uniform, but managed to look sloppy. His power let him turn into a werewolf. He had a low level regeneration that couldn't be stopped short of actually killing him. When he changed all of his abilities increased. He became a Brute, Mover, Striker, and the regeneration became stronger.
"So you're the boss now, huh?" Angel asked as she lounged in her chair. The girl was beautiful, Squealer would give her that, but her Princess attitude annoyed her.
"Yeah I am and it would be nice if you remembered that." She reminded the younger woman. "I didn't have to get you out of there, but I did. I'm a generous boss, Princess." Angel looked annoyed at the new nickname, but subsided with a mutinous look.
"Now now...there's no need for fighting. I for one am grateful for the rescue. Thank you." Gent's smile widened in appreciation. She smirked behind her mask. Playing peacemaker already?
"I don't care who I work for as long as I get my fix." The scruffy man said. His voice was shaky and his hands were jittery.
"Let me have another shot at Glory Girl and we're good." Smack sounded too excited about facing her again.
"First off drop your obsession with the kid. I'm serious. If you end up fighting her that's fine, but none of this wacko shit. If you do more than smack her around I'll drop your ass. You were almost Birdcaged already. Fleabag? I'll hook you up, but you gotta keep an eye on Smack for me." Smack grumbled while the newly christened Fleabag nodded his head enthusiastically. She slid a pill across to him that vanished before her eyes. Another pill was slipped to Smack that he put in his belt pouch.
"What's the plan, Motor Boss?" Angel asked in a petulant tone. Trying to needle her by calling her that. Squealer smirked.
"I like that. You can call me Motor Boss from now on." She delighted in the younger girl's suffering at failing. "We're rebuilding the Merchants. Quietly this time. We've got all this space that we're going to use. I've seen what can be done with organization and training. That's the way we're going. We'll make our own troops. I've got the numbers for Coil's mercenaries and, even better, I have the tech to outfit them."
"You certainly dream big." Gent commented with a faint hint of awe in his voice.
"Where'd ya get the idea for this?" Angel leaned forward, her fit of pique forgotten.
"A woman in a hat showed me the way." Motor Boss grinned. Plans within plans was what Coil had said. He failed because he saddled himself with the Travelers. They were powerful, but lead by a dumbass. She wouldn't be a dumbass. She was fully aware of this group's capabilities and would take no chances.
Never again would she be considered trash.
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.3
-April 28, 2011-
-Hebert Residence-
There are worse ways to start your day. The cushions were comfortable and it was long enough that I wasn't contorting to fit. The sleeping face of Cocona just inches away from mine made me feel warm inside. The first rays of sunlight caressed the basement in cheery light. She was just so cute. Her expression was peaceful with a faint smile on her lips. It was sort of blurry about what time we finally got to sleep. There was no discussion about this. Sometimes words just got in the way. I embraced her warmly as she slept on. Unfortunately all good things must come to an end. She opened her eyes slowly and stretched out. Her gaze fell on me without hesitation or confusion and smiled.
"Good morning." I said quietly.
"Mmm...good morning. Were you awake long?" She asked sleepily. My fingers ran through her hair of their own volition.
"Long enough to know you're a cute sleeper." The spell that was cast over this moment made it easier to say these things. Somewhere in the back of my mind a voice was telling me not to obsess. Just go with it and see where this leads. She blushed faintly.
"Geez Taylor..." Cocona lightly slapped my shoulder before burying her face in my chest. Her alarm started to go off and I could feel her annoyance spike. I just stroked her hair.
"Guess we better get up." Neither of us looked thrilled, but there was little we could do. It was a clock. I couldn't just tell it to shut up. Cocona gave me a little smile before rolling off the love seat and heading to her room. Already the love seat felt cooler. Suppose I'd better get up. It was a testament to how preoccupied I was that my white haired friend was able to sneak up on me. I was brushing my teeth, minding my own business, when she spoke.
"Hmmm...daydreaming is a good look for you. That little smile and spaced out expression? Adorable." Despedia started my day with that seeming non sequitor.
"Well that was random. I wasn't daydreaming." I was mystified. She smirked just a little bit wider.
"Come on Taylor...level with me. Cocona wasn't in her bed when I woke up." My face heated up at the insinuation.
"It wasn't like that at all. I swear. We just sat in the basement all night. Then she had to go practice. See? Perfectly reasonable." Another comment like that and my already pounding heart would jump out of my chest. My friend just laughed before walking out of the bathroom.
I still wasn't sure how to react. It was like my body was moving on autopilot. The feel of her in my arms just felt so right. What was I going to do now? Well, I knew one thing that wasn't happening. I wasn't being a typical idiot like in one of those comic books and denying it happened. There was no point in denying my feelings. Cocona would have told me if she didn't feel the same way. No, not going to be a clueless protagonist in my own story. I wasn't sure if my first hurdle was going to be Dad. What would he say about it? The fact that he accepted me being his alien gynoid daughter spoke wonderful volumes. That I wanted to be a hero and he supported me was icing on the cake. I brought home a daughter? He was ecstatic. My interest in Cocona was going to be a little more difficult to swallow.
"You're obsessing. Don't do that." Sonata suddenly spoke up from beside me. I nearly jumped half a foot, clutching my chest in shock.
"Geez Sonata...warn me next time." I managed to gasp out. She just hugged me in apology.
"Sorry, Mom, but you were off in La La Land. Let's go to breakfast, okay?" Oh great now she sounded contrite for startling me.
"It's okay sweetheart." I draped an arm around her shoulders and guided her to the table. Dad was watching Despedia do the cooking today. Judging by how everything smelled it was well prepared. Cocona was staring at the coffeemaker as if it would percolate faster.
"Good morning, Taylor." Dad kissed me on the forehead in greeting.
"Morning, Dad." I smiled back at him. The sound of Mom's flute in the house's melody was especially vibrant today. It bolstered my confidence. I could talk to him about this. Just have to wait for after breakfast.
It's sometimes hard to believe that my life has come so far in such a short time. For the longest time it was just my dad and I. Now we have a full house and all the smiles we could want. The part that still confuses me is just how much respect I get. I know that it's because of my inventions. I know that I actually deserve the respect. It actually amuses me to think about how my life has changed. I wouldn't change any of this for the world. My family sitting around the breakfast table. Eating, talking, and bonding. This is paradise. Despedia and Cocona had to hurry out to catch the bus while Sonata started the dishes. Dad was still reading the paper and showing no signs of leaving.
"You've been pretty quiet today, Little Owl." He broke the silence.
"Yeah...guess I'm a little preoccupied." I gave a little shrug.
"I'm gonna go watch cartoons." Sonata kissed me and Dad on the cheek before heading into the living room. I swear she can read the mood of a room better than I can. Dad set the paper down and looked at me expectantly. Let's avoid blurting out easily misunderstood comments. Saying that I slept with Cocona, while technically accurate, would turn this into a comedy.
"Well Dad...I have a crush on Cocona." There we go. All nice and clear without rushing. I could have cheated and listened to his melody, but not this time. He stared at me for several moments.
"Does she know?" Dad finally asked. There was nothing in his tone to give me clues.
"We slept together on the love seat in the basement last night. I think it was pretty clear." He shook his head as I finished speaking.
"That's really not how you do it, kiddo. Just because you think she understands doesn't mean you shouldn't say something." He sounded aggrieved. The words he spoke finally caught up to me and it was all I could do not to stare at him. He was giving me relationship advice?
"You're...giving me relationship advice...?" Good job at sounding horribly confused, Taylor.
"I won't say that it isn't a shock. It is and it isn't. On the one hand I had this image of someday tormenting your future boyfriends with a shotgun. The thing is you don't really hang around with boys aside from the Wards. I would have to be blind not to see how you and Cocona look at each other. Just talk to her and don't take it for granted. You both deserve some happiness." Dad patted me on the shoulder. I could tell he wasn't a hundred percent thrilled, but he wasn't telling me no either.
"Thanks Dad." I smiled at him and he smiled back. He was going to put in a long day at work before the trip tomorrow. That was going to leave just Sonata and myself home alone. Once he was gone I moved into the living room to sit with my daughter. She wasn't watching the TV at all. Her eyes locked onto mine curiously.
"Did you really think Grandpa was gonna throw a fit?" She asked me. I sighed heavily.
"No, no I didn't. I was expecting him to be a little upset or at least taken off guard. Sometimes your mom has her moments. I know it was irrational, but with how well everything's been going...I guess I just didn't want to rock the boat." I smiled wryly. Sonata wrapped her arms around my waist and snuggled close.
"You're the best mom anywhere." She told me matter-of-factly. I teared up a little at that and held her closer.
"Thanks sweetheart. I love you."
"Love you too, Mom." We just sat on the sofa together. My heart was warm and everything felt just right. How do I keep this feeling? Tomorrow our vacation starts once school's out.
"What do you say we forget going in today and visit Lisa? See if she's up for hanging out." I smiled at Sonata.
"That would be great." She smiled back happily. I was already getting out my phone to text her. "You still text her?"
"The chat channel is great, but I like the idea of keeping it secret still. We've kind of become lazy about security." I concluded with a wry smile. The phone buzzed back. "We're good to go. She's at her apartment."
"Is anyone else gonna be there?" Sonata asked as she started getting ready to leave.
"Nope. Just the three of us." It would be nice to see her. I haven't gotten to spend any time with her since the rescue. We set off from the house and made our way across town. For the record? I hate buses. Once you've discovered flying everything else is sub par. Sonata enjoyed the ride, but then again she enjoys everything which made the ride more tolerable.
The city was recovering in the wake of everything that had happened. It's funny, but months ago I thought the city was a sad place. Gangs everywhere, cape violence, and all of it a melting pot waiting to spill over. The truth was that no matter how bad things got, the city endured. There's something to be said for that kind of resilience. Sometimes it almost felt like Brockton Bay was the nucleus of something larger. All races and ethnicities in one place. Heroes, villains, and the everyday people. What I saw everyday could easily apply to the rest of the world. No matter where you go the same problems still exist. The thing that amazes me is how the common people handle it all. We live in a world of Endbringers, super powers, and maniacs all heading towards the collapse of society. Society has fallen before and we've still managed to rebuild. The biggest problem was Scion. We could fix the rest of the problems, but that meant nothing when Scion finally decided to move. How much longer would he be willing to play the hero that rescues kittens from trees? No one knew. The world, just like Brockton Bay, was teetering on the brink and no one knew when the dominoes would fall.
Something just occurred to me. I was thinking of how Brockton Bay has been kept on the knife's edge. Even though the PRT and police are better armed now, there's been little progress. It's not for lack of trying, but it feels like something is hobbling efforts. The world represented in our city. Other cities had problems, but nowhere have things appeared so carefully managed. Managed? That opened up a wide range of terrifying possibilities. Sonata grabbed my arm.
"Hey Taylor? Our stop is coming up." She looked at me in concern. It's just so weird hearing my daughter call me by name, but secret identities are a thing.
"Sorry, I was spacing out." We got off the bus and headed for Lisa's apartment. I looked up at the window to Sophia's place, but there didn't appear to be anyone home. Someday we needed to sit down and hash things out. I just couldn't muster the care or focus to actually remind myself of all of the trouble we had. It was best to just move on and let it go. Both of us were in a much better place than we used to be. When we got up to Lisa's apartment she let us in.
"Hey there!" She greeted me with a hug and a kiss on the cheek before moving on to Sonata, "You two look good."
"Hi Aunt Lisa!" Sonata hugged her back hard eliciting an faint groan, "Oops...too tight?" She looked sheepish.
"Just a bit. What brings you two around?" She lead us over to the couch.
"I haven't seen you in a few days and wanted to change that. We also saw Madison the other day and apparently you've been keeping secrets." I arched an eyebrow playfully. She shook her head.
"It wasn't my story to tell. It's good that you got to talk to her though. I don't think that's the only reason you're here." Lisa smirked.
"Mom's got a thing for Cocona and thinks the rest of us haven't noticed." Sonata stated. I gawked at her bluntness. Lisa's smirk, if possible, grew wider.
"I wasn't even sure until last night. Honestly I didn't even notice until last night before deciding to take a chance." Oh. Sonata was sporting a smirk too. The two of them ganged up on me. I pouted at them, but it didn't work.
"Don't even try it. It won't work. Sonata? That was funny, but next time no trolling your mother." The blonde said to my child.
"She would have taken forever though." Sonata grumbled.
"I wouldn't have. Geez that's why I wanted to come over. To actually tell Lisa about it and get her opinion. Dad reminded me that I need to actually talk to her. I decided to let actions speak louder than words." Lisa patted me on the shoulder.
"Girls like hearing that they're appreciated. As long as you appreciate her, and let her know it, then you're fine." She assured me. "Just think about the trip. You'll have plenty of time to talk to her more."
"There was something else I wanted to talk about. It was something I thought about on the way over." Sonata and Lisa both looked interested so I told them my thoughts. My suspicion that this was some kind of experimental world in miniature right here in Brockton Bay. Sonata looked worried while Lisa sported a grim frown. I ruffled my daughter's hair softly while my friend gave her a one-armed hug.
"Dang it...it fits. The situation should be getting better here, but it's not. The only gang we have to worry about is the Empire now, but without the other gangs to keep them in check..." She trailed off ominously.
"But don't we outnumber the Empire now?" Sonata asked. Lisa and I shared a look.
"I managed to dig up some information. Muspelheim and Niflheim got off a plane yesterday. I've already forwarded the information to the PRT." The blonde girl looked irritated about something.
"Lovely. I'm guessing they manipulate fire and ice. No one really has any information on them except the Nazis." The Empire 88 has an affiliated organization, Geselleschaft, that operate primarily in Europe. Given the kind of money they had to work with it stood to reason they could smuggle the two villains into Brockton Bay through unofficial channels.
"How did you get this information?" I asked her curiously. Lisa looked more irritated.
"I owe someone a favor." Her melody wasn't distressed, just pissed. The level of anger and wounded pride she was feeling would be enough to kill. She gazed at me. "You're curious. Fine. It's Faultline. I owe a favor to Faultline. Relax. It's nothing major or even illegal. I just don't like owing that woman any favors."
"Why don't you like her?" Sonata asked. Thank you sweetheart for asking the question I wanted to. She won't flip out at you.
"Why? She's such a know-it-all and lords it over everyone." Neither of us felt brave enough to ask Lisa the obvious question. She's family, we love her, and she was very good at payback.
"You know it won't be illegal?" I asked with concern. Her expression softened.
"I was careful. I made sure the deal was clearly spelled out. Including the nature of the favor." She assured us. "Faultline wants me to look over some footage from a job that didn't go so well. She's pissed. My need just so happened to coincide with hers."
"Can you talk about it?" I asked her. She grimaced, but shook her head.
"Sorry, but this is need to know only. If I need help you'll be the first person I call." That was probably the best I was going to get out of her. The conversation turned to lighter things after that, but it didn't stop me from being concerned. I trusted Lisa not to get in over her head, but I didn't know Faultline. She might be a mercenary with a code, but that didn't equal trust. There's a reason she's listed as a villain. The woman has a reputation for taking in Case 53's and always abides by her contract. At least she has principals. I pushed my concerns to the side and instead enjoyed the visit.
-Undisclosed Location-
The place was built like a nuclear fallout shelter. Heavily reinforced walls, ceilings, and floors with thick blast doors cemented the impression. It was rather large with an access door to the bay large enough for three ships to enter at the same time. The location was a steal since the former owner was dead and had made sure that it was off the books. Squealer sat in the richly appointed office with a pensive expression. She looked across the desk at the people seated before her. These four were being transferred to a place that could contain them, but the transport information had been leaked to her. The former Merchant cape had a choice. She could spring them or let them rot. The idea of going solo didn't thrill her so a rescue was in order. She followed the instructions given to her to the letter and managed to get away without any difficulty. The armored PRT agents would have been a nightmare due to some asshole giving them another upgrade, but this was just a smash and grab.
Now she had four more capes to help with her goals. A few precautions were made before meeting with them. Her mask was now covered her whole face with what looked like dirt bike goggles and face plate. She installed a redundant filter in the mask to prevent fumes, exhaust, and dust from reaching her. Flechette launchers were installed in the ceilings in case of uppity behavior. They were loyal, but she wasn't going to be stupid about this. Why did she need to plan so thoroughly? Smack and Angel were known to her. He was practically invulnerable unless you were using sharp objects. Anything he was hit with would just make his blows stronger. Eventually the extra power would go away or he could deliberately use it all at once. Angel was the reason for the gas mask protection. Squealer was off drugs now and dammit she was not going back. The female cape was addiction given form. Her smoke was highly addictive and intoxicating. She could apparently Master someone with it as well.
The other two were apparently new. Well, one of them was. The competent lieutenant was a cape that Skidmark knew about, but never bothered telling her. He was clean shaven in a uniform scrounged from the supply room. The smile on his face was genuine, but there was something creepy in his eyes. Skidmark called him "Gent" due to his good manners. A strangely clean name. His power was to neutralize one aspect. When asked aspect of what he just smiled. Almost a study in contrast was the scruffy punk that sat next to him. He was wearing the same uniform, but managed to look sloppy. His power let him turn into a werewolf. He had a low level regeneration that couldn't be stopped short of actually killing him. When he changed all of his abilities increased. He became a Brute, Mover, Striker, and the regeneration became stronger.
"So you're the boss now, huh?" Angel asked as she lounged in her chair. The girl was beautiful, Squealer would give her that, but her Princess attitude annoyed her.
"Yeah I am and it would be nice if you remembered that." She reminded the younger woman. "I didn't have to get you out of there, but I did. I'm a generous boss, Princess." Angel looked annoyed at the new nickname, but subsided with a mutinous look.
"Now now...there's no need for fighting. I for one am grateful for the rescue. Thank you." Gent's smile widened in appreciation. She smirked behind her mask. Playing peacemaker already?
"I don't care who I work for as long as I get my fix." The scruffy man said. His voice was shaky and his hands were jittery.
"Let me have another shot at Glory Girl and we're good." Smack sounded too excited about facing her again.
"First off drop your obsession with the kid. I'm serious. If you end up fighting her that's fine, but none of this wacko shit. If you do more than smack her around I'll drop your ass. You were almost Birdcaged already. Fleabag? I'll hook you up, but you gotta keep an eye on Smack for me." Smack grumbled while the newly christened Fleabag nodded his head enthusiastically. She slid a pill across to him that vanished before her eyes. Another pill was slipped to Smack that he put in his belt pouch.
"What's the plan, Motor Boss?" Angel asked in a petulant tone. Trying to needle her by calling her that. Squealer smirked.
"I like that. You can call me Motor Boss from now on." She delighted in the younger girl's suffering at failing. "We're rebuilding the Merchants. Quietly this time. We've got all this space that we're going to use. I've seen what can be done with organization and training. That's the way we're going. We'll make our own troops. I've got the numbers for Coil's mercenaries and, even better, I have the tech to outfit them."
"You certainly dream big." Gent commented with a faint hint of awe in his voice.
"Where'd ya get the idea for this?" Angel leaned forward, her fit of pique forgotten.
"A woman in a hat showed me the way." Motor Boss grinned. Plans within plans was what Coil had said. He failed because he saddled himself with the Travelers. They were powerful, but lead by a dumbass. She wouldn't be a dumbass. She was fully aware of this group's capabilities and would take no chances.
Never again would she be considered trash.
Fifth Arc 5.4
- Location
- PA
Hymn of Harmony
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.4
-April 29, 2011-
-PRT Headquarters-
Today was the last day I could be here for the duration of my vacation. Dad was thinking a couple days, but the PRT thought at least a week sounded better. A whole week without being allowed to come to my lab during the day. On the reverse my dad was taking that same period off from work, but leaving himself available for emergencies. Sonata wasn't with me today as she was helping with the packing at home. I checked my emails and alerts to make sure nothing was on the burner before leaving. It would be mortifying to come back and find out that I missed something important. There was a message from Dragon waiting in my inbox.
Sender: Dragon
To: Aria
Subject: Testing Results
Message: I have some good news for you. The test results have come back positive for your armors. The permission was granted for you to take them with you for your safety. A PRT representative has been assigned to transport your equipment to your vacation site. I hope you enjoy your little surprise.
I stared at the message for several minutes. What was the surprise? The fact that she got all of it put through so quickly? A separate email had been sent to show me what the projected response has been. The medical professionals that were hired by the PRT for consultation were already fighting over the medical bed. They were a little leery about the nanites, but liked the idea of something for major emergencies. Honestly, if you needed one of those syringes then you weren't in a condition to be picky. Another email was from Medhall asking for a consultation on new medical equipment. I forwarded their request to the PR department as well as legal. Sorry guys, but there are no end zone runs here. That's what channels are for. I know that I complained about the commercialism in the PRT's mission, but then greedy corporate scumbags remind me of the alternative.
I knew who the head of Medhall actually was in fact. No one was going to hear that Max Anders, the CEO of the corporation, was Kaiser from me, but it did color my perceptions. A great deal of money went into Medhall that was funneled back into the E88 and the Geselleschaft. I ended up sending a few more emails off to legal. It was just more people scouting me for when I was old enough or offering me collaborations. The most insulting offer was to make an entirely new power source based on my Sol Reactors specifically for a bomb. Who in their right mind would want a bomb with that kind of payload? The weapons I designed were dangerous enough without adding intercontinental missiles to my resume.
"I need a real lab assistant. One that can actually take care of the lab while I'm out. There are still a ton of things that I want to build that require monitoring. Well, there's nothing stopping me from asking Armsmaster. I have some parts sitting around here that could be used." With that decided I set off from my lab to see the Halbeard himself. One of these days I was going to slip up and greet him that way. Hopefully someone would have a camera to capture his response and my last moments on Earth. I let him know that I was coming and he told me to come right into his lab. The good thing about having close working relationships with people is that it makes getting things done easier. People kept telling me that Armsmaster was a lot less social before I joined, but it was hard to picture.
I walked into the lab where he was working on his Motoslave again. Give a man a hover cycle and he'll be content for a day, give the man a design and he'll Tinker for a lifetime. His armor incorporated elements of the ELMA MP designs, but vastly more efficient and compact. It was just too bad that I couldn't make use of his talents for my own stuff, but much of his tech was incomprehensible to me. I could tease it out by using my power, but it was taking more effort to call up Oversight. It was a trade off. The passive abilities like hearing melodies, remote communication with electronics, and exceptional Social-Fu were growing in utility. The active abilities that I had to consciously use were fading. I won't lie. There was a part of me that was going to miss just being able to throw myself into the flow, but that was the price for actually knowing about my powers.
"What was it you needed or is this just a social call?" Armsmaster's voice brought me back to the present.
"I was looking for your permission to build a lab assistant." I told him. He hummed in thought.
"Another gynoid like Sonata?" He asked me curiously as his tools were put to one side. I shook my head.
"I tried to build an assistant and got a daughter. If I built another gynoid the same thing would happen. It's just in my nature I guess." The idea of restricting a gynoid to one function just made me feel creepy. I loved Mir dearly, but sometimes her thought patterns crept up on me. This was one of those cases. Mir would never dream of restricting a Reyvateil to one purpose. What else is a gynoid, but a Reyvateil without Song Magic? The scary thing was that I knew how to build a Reyvateil. I exhaled and let my mind clear before the design even started compiling.
"So then you want something more automated." He scratched his chin in thought. "What would you need to build something like that?" The blue clad hero asked.
"I have everything in my lab already. There's even a spare head in my locker. I really need to clean that thing...every time I think it's done more stuff appears." My projects locker was like an Eldritch location that things just appeared in to clutter it up further.
"Why bother with a humanoid head if you're not making a gynoid?" Armsmaster sat down. He was typing something up on his terminal which I could only assume was a report. He was giving his permission, but making me defend my position. I could respect that.
"Which looks friendlier? A face that you can relate to or a faceplate? I would be perfectly happy with a blank plate for the face, but then the PR guys would say to make it friendlier looking." We both sighed at that thought. When would my bot ever be seen outside of the lab? Probably at the worst possible moment. We didn't need more storm trooper comparisons.
"You can build it, but will you have time?" He asked me. I checked the time. There was just enough time to put the robot's programming together and slap it together.
"If I get started right after lunch I'll have a couple hours." That apparently satisfied him and he walked me to lunch. Everyone and their brother was making sure that I got to meals on time. They were being so unobtrusive about it that I didn't notice immediately, but they were protecting me even here. I made the PRT extremely nervous given that I was kidnapped already. I will say that lunch with Armsmaster was fun, but very bizarre. The first clue were the looks he received on entering the cafeteria. I forgot that he normally took his meals in the lab. The staff just didn't seem to know how to handle the sight of the Protectorate leader in the flesh.
Going back to the lab still left me with just enough time to get my project done, but by then common sense had prevailed. I didn't want to build anything if I didn't have more than two or three hours to spend. Before I could talk myself out of it I turned right back around and headed out the door. It was Friday and it was about time to start my vacation.
-Hebert Residence-
The house resembled a kicked over anthill with the amount of activity going on. Dad was moving things to the van while the others were bringing out bags. It was a two day trip and they apparently packed like we were going on an expedition. Lisa stood off to one side with a single carry bag and a bemused expression. She was the first to catch sight of me and approach.
"They do realize we're going away for like two days, right?" Lisa asked after we exchanged hugs.
"I thought they did, but maybe Dad's taking us away longer. Though he would have told us. I think." Did I miss the memo? Probably. Some days I'm on top of everything, but some things still get away from me.
"Hey Lisa! Is that all you're taking?" Des asked as she hefted the light bag curiously.
"It's a weekend trip. I didn't think we needed more." She said dryly. The redhead stiffened slightly at that before laughing sheepishly. Uh oh?
"Guys! Guys! We over packed!" She bolted back in the house, words vanishing in her wake. We looked at each other and laughed.
It was a very embarrassed group that had to unpack the van and troop their belongings back inside. They would have to put all of those things away when we got back. Dad rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.
"We haven't had a vacation in a long time and I guess we all got carried away." He chivied us into the van before setting off onto the open road. We were heading to a place in Pennsylvania that mom and dad went to for their honeymoon. Lisa was playing the part of navigator. Sonata and Despedia were watching a movie on the DVD player with Cocona sitting beside me. Part of me wished that we could just fly there, but one of us would have had to carry the parental unit. There was some news I received before leaving headquarters that needed to be addressed. I wasn't going to obsess over something on our vacation so it was best to get it out of the way.
"I got some disturbing news." I rubbed the back of my neck. That got their attention.
"What is it, Mom?" Sonata asked curiously. The others perked up to listen.
"My sonic weapons are not to be used until a further investigation is done." I didn't understand that particular ruling. They were a part of my nonlethal arsenal and the most versatile. Lisa snorted in annoyance.
"Squealer. She was using a majorly ramped up version of your sonic weapons at the Docks. The force of it took out a building in one shot and shattered glass for half a city block. That was a directed blast. I guess I didn't mention being practically at ground zero of that." She commented. My mind blanked at the description. I knew that my sonic weapons could easily go from nonlethal to insanely deadly. It's another thing entirely to hear a first hand account from a loved one who was almost a victim.
"Taylor...breathe honey...breathe..." Cocona was rubbing the back of my hand soothingly. Sonata had moved over to sit on my other side. Des was rubbing Lisa's shoulder comfortingly.
"I'm breathing. It's just a shock. At least now I know why they said something." I leaned back in the seat. My traitorous mind was already extrapolating the best way to harness the sonic waves further. I also had some grudging respect for Squealer. The Merchant Tinker was able to take one of my designs and build it on a macro scale.
"The part that's confusing to me is that they're banning your sonics, but what about your lasers and darts?" Dad asked from the front seat. That was easier to answer.
"I think it's the scale. Lasers can be made bigger, sure, but those can be seen. Sonic vibrations can't. You might see a distortion in the air, but otherwise they're invisible. The darts are limited in size. Though I never did figure out why you never made a larger dart." Despedia looked at me curiously. Wow. She handled that explanation nicely. Sonata perked up at the discussion.
"The reason for the size of the darts is that it's easier to form the shell with smaller sizes. The larger the dart, the more unstable the shell, until you're just firing a photon ray. Though if you make it too small then it picks up too much speed and..." She made a motion indicating something small just sailing off in the distance.
"Yeah...it wouldn't stop. The dart would just keep right on going." The smaller the dart, the faster it spun, and the more density it achieved. What holds the dart together is magnetism brought on electrostatic attraction. "Suffice it to say a 'dart' with that kind of charge wouldn't just stop at the initial target. It would punch straight on through." The idea for making such a weapon to fight Endbringers occurred to me, but was quickly scrapped. It would have to be a large weapon, probably mounted with solid footing, and the photon "shell" would be a risk to anyone between it and the target. If there was even the slightest instability in the shot it might even just explode right out of the barrel.
"Personally I think it's political censuring. Someone in city hall probably heard about the incident and freaked out. Once they've calmed down from the knee jerk reaction you'll get your emitters back." Dad said with a light shrug.
"You think so?" I asked curiously.
"As soon as they realize how useful something like that would be for demolition they'll change their tune." Dad joked. The mood in the van lightened at the humorous response. Until further notice I would need something else that was nonlethal. Containment foam was good of course. Most of the PRT wore some form of ear protection. A truly evil and devious idea came to mind. Sonic emitters were out, but what about hyper frequency bombs that only affected the inner ear? It was something to look into anyway, but I'd rather focus on the here and now.
-Northeastern Pennsylvania-
Downtown Wilkes-Barre was a college town and the entertainment showed that strongly. There were bars and clubs within a stone's throw of each other. A movie theater dominated the side of a street with restaurants within walking distance. We were going to be staying in the Ramada Inn on what they called Public Square. The Inn was also within distance of the bus terminal. The city planners did a good job of putting everything nearby for convenience. Wilkes-Barre was a city that had been on the decline during the 90's until fear of Leviathan drove people further inland. There was nothing important enough for Behemoth and no Tinkers of any value to draw down the Simurgh. It's sad, but the decline was halted because of the Endbringers. Some part of me was morbidly amused that they would actually be responsible for someone's prosperity.
We were checked in by a pleasantly smiling woman at the counter. Dad gave us each our cards for the rooms. No one was doubling up. With the money that Dad and I were now bringing in there wasn't a need for that. The bellboy was escorting our belongings up to the rooms with us following. I was growing a little irritated though. The armors were supposed to be waiting for us, but I hadn't seen anyone. I wasn't going to worry anyone yet. If worst came to worst I could just call them up. Easy. I wasn't even bothering to unpack given it was just going to be a couple days. My family probably saw how nervous I was getting, but were giving me my space. It wasn't like I expected to be attacked within minutes of our arrival, but it would have been nice to have them available.
"Wait...that melody..." I heard a familiar melody outside my door. Someone was whistling a jaunty tune that I recognized immediately. I hurried to the door and checked out in the hall. Standing right in front of Dad's door was a woman maybe as tall as Lisa. She had curly brown hair, shoulder length, with an open face. Her clothing was deliberately casual and worn the way someone would wear a costume. Mouse Protector!? Without her helmet!? The door before her opened and Dad stood in the doorway. They said a few words that I was sure must have been an audio trick. It had to be. When she leaned up and kissed him my entire world blue screened.
"We're sorry, but the AriaOS has crashed. Please contact your local administrator when she wakes up." Then darkness claimed me.
AN: Interlude next chapter! Ain't I a stinker?
or Melody of Escalation
Fifth Arc 5.4
-April 29, 2011-
-PRT Headquarters-
Today was the last day I could be here for the duration of my vacation. Dad was thinking a couple days, but the PRT thought at least a week sounded better. A whole week without being allowed to come to my lab during the day. On the reverse my dad was taking that same period off from work, but leaving himself available for emergencies. Sonata wasn't with me today as she was helping with the packing at home. I checked my emails and alerts to make sure nothing was on the burner before leaving. It would be mortifying to come back and find out that I missed something important. There was a message from Dragon waiting in my inbox.
Sender: Dragon
To: Aria
Subject: Testing Results
Message: I have some good news for you. The test results have come back positive for your armors. The permission was granted for you to take them with you for your safety. A PRT representative has been assigned to transport your equipment to your vacation site. I hope you enjoy your little surprise.
I stared at the message for several minutes. What was the surprise? The fact that she got all of it put through so quickly? A separate email had been sent to show me what the projected response has been. The medical professionals that were hired by the PRT for consultation were already fighting over the medical bed. They were a little leery about the nanites, but liked the idea of something for major emergencies. Honestly, if you needed one of those syringes then you weren't in a condition to be picky. Another email was from Medhall asking for a consultation on new medical equipment. I forwarded their request to the PR department as well as legal. Sorry guys, but there are no end zone runs here. That's what channels are for. I know that I complained about the commercialism in the PRT's mission, but then greedy corporate scumbags remind me of the alternative.
I knew who the head of Medhall actually was in fact. No one was going to hear that Max Anders, the CEO of the corporation, was Kaiser from me, but it did color my perceptions. A great deal of money went into Medhall that was funneled back into the E88 and the Geselleschaft. I ended up sending a few more emails off to legal. It was just more people scouting me for when I was old enough or offering me collaborations. The most insulting offer was to make an entirely new power source based on my Sol Reactors specifically for a bomb. Who in their right mind would want a bomb with that kind of payload? The weapons I designed were dangerous enough without adding intercontinental missiles to my resume.
"I need a real lab assistant. One that can actually take care of the lab while I'm out. There are still a ton of things that I want to build that require monitoring. Well, there's nothing stopping me from asking Armsmaster. I have some parts sitting around here that could be used." With that decided I set off from my lab to see the Halbeard himself. One of these days I was going to slip up and greet him that way. Hopefully someone would have a camera to capture his response and my last moments on Earth. I let him know that I was coming and he told me to come right into his lab. The good thing about having close working relationships with people is that it makes getting things done easier. People kept telling me that Armsmaster was a lot less social before I joined, but it was hard to picture.
I walked into the lab where he was working on his Motoslave again. Give a man a hover cycle and he'll be content for a day, give the man a design and he'll Tinker for a lifetime. His armor incorporated elements of the ELMA MP designs, but vastly more efficient and compact. It was just too bad that I couldn't make use of his talents for my own stuff, but much of his tech was incomprehensible to me. I could tease it out by using my power, but it was taking more effort to call up Oversight. It was a trade off. The passive abilities like hearing melodies, remote communication with electronics, and exceptional Social-Fu were growing in utility. The active abilities that I had to consciously use were fading. I won't lie. There was a part of me that was going to miss just being able to throw myself into the flow, but that was the price for actually knowing about my powers.
"What was it you needed or is this just a social call?" Armsmaster's voice brought me back to the present.
"I was looking for your permission to build a lab assistant." I told him. He hummed in thought.
"Another gynoid like Sonata?" He asked me curiously as his tools were put to one side. I shook my head.
"I tried to build an assistant and got a daughter. If I built another gynoid the same thing would happen. It's just in my nature I guess." The idea of restricting a gynoid to one function just made me feel creepy. I loved Mir dearly, but sometimes her thought patterns crept up on me. This was one of those cases. Mir would never dream of restricting a Reyvateil to one purpose. What else is a gynoid, but a Reyvateil without Song Magic? The scary thing was that I knew how to build a Reyvateil. I exhaled and let my mind clear before the design even started compiling.
"So then you want something more automated." He scratched his chin in thought. "What would you need to build something like that?" The blue clad hero asked.
"I have everything in my lab already. There's even a spare head in my locker. I really need to clean that thing...every time I think it's done more stuff appears." My projects locker was like an Eldritch location that things just appeared in to clutter it up further.
"Why bother with a humanoid head if you're not making a gynoid?" Armsmaster sat down. He was typing something up on his terminal which I could only assume was a report. He was giving his permission, but making me defend my position. I could respect that.
"Which looks friendlier? A face that you can relate to or a faceplate? I would be perfectly happy with a blank plate for the face, but then the PR guys would say to make it friendlier looking." We both sighed at that thought. When would my bot ever be seen outside of the lab? Probably at the worst possible moment. We didn't need more storm trooper comparisons.
"You can build it, but will you have time?" He asked me. I checked the time. There was just enough time to put the robot's programming together and slap it together.
"If I get started right after lunch I'll have a couple hours." That apparently satisfied him and he walked me to lunch. Everyone and their brother was making sure that I got to meals on time. They were being so unobtrusive about it that I didn't notice immediately, but they were protecting me even here. I made the PRT extremely nervous given that I was kidnapped already. I will say that lunch with Armsmaster was fun, but very bizarre. The first clue were the looks he received on entering the cafeteria. I forgot that he normally took his meals in the lab. The staff just didn't seem to know how to handle the sight of the Protectorate leader in the flesh.
Going back to the lab still left me with just enough time to get my project done, but by then common sense had prevailed. I didn't want to build anything if I didn't have more than two or three hours to spend. Before I could talk myself out of it I turned right back around and headed out the door. It was Friday and it was about time to start my vacation.
-Hebert Residence-
The house resembled a kicked over anthill with the amount of activity going on. Dad was moving things to the van while the others were bringing out bags. It was a two day trip and they apparently packed like we were going on an expedition. Lisa stood off to one side with a single carry bag and a bemused expression. She was the first to catch sight of me and approach.
"They do realize we're going away for like two days, right?" Lisa asked after we exchanged hugs.
"I thought they did, but maybe Dad's taking us away longer. Though he would have told us. I think." Did I miss the memo? Probably. Some days I'm on top of everything, but some things still get away from me.
"Hey Lisa! Is that all you're taking?" Des asked as she hefted the light bag curiously.
"It's a weekend trip. I didn't think we needed more." She said dryly. The redhead stiffened slightly at that before laughing sheepishly. Uh oh?
"Guys! Guys! We over packed!" She bolted back in the house, words vanishing in her wake. We looked at each other and laughed.
It was a very embarrassed group that had to unpack the van and troop their belongings back inside. They would have to put all of those things away when we got back. Dad rubbed the back of his neck sheepishly.
"We haven't had a vacation in a long time and I guess we all got carried away." He chivied us into the van before setting off onto the open road. We were heading to a place in Pennsylvania that mom and dad went to for their honeymoon. Lisa was playing the part of navigator. Sonata and Despedia were watching a movie on the DVD player with Cocona sitting beside me. Part of me wished that we could just fly there, but one of us would have had to carry the parental unit. There was some news I received before leaving headquarters that needed to be addressed. I wasn't going to obsess over something on our vacation so it was best to get it out of the way.
"I got some disturbing news." I rubbed the back of my neck. That got their attention.
"What is it, Mom?" Sonata asked curiously. The others perked up to listen.
"My sonic weapons are not to be used until a further investigation is done." I didn't understand that particular ruling. They were a part of my nonlethal arsenal and the most versatile. Lisa snorted in annoyance.
"Squealer. She was using a majorly ramped up version of your sonic weapons at the Docks. The force of it took out a building in one shot and shattered glass for half a city block. That was a directed blast. I guess I didn't mention being practically at ground zero of that." She commented. My mind blanked at the description. I knew that my sonic weapons could easily go from nonlethal to insanely deadly. It's another thing entirely to hear a first hand account from a loved one who was almost a victim.
"Taylor...breathe honey...breathe..." Cocona was rubbing the back of my hand soothingly. Sonata had moved over to sit on my other side. Des was rubbing Lisa's shoulder comfortingly.
"I'm breathing. It's just a shock. At least now I know why they said something." I leaned back in the seat. My traitorous mind was already extrapolating the best way to harness the sonic waves further. I also had some grudging respect for Squealer. The Merchant Tinker was able to take one of my designs and build it on a macro scale.
"The part that's confusing to me is that they're banning your sonics, but what about your lasers and darts?" Dad asked from the front seat. That was easier to answer.
"I think it's the scale. Lasers can be made bigger, sure, but those can be seen. Sonic vibrations can't. You might see a distortion in the air, but otherwise they're invisible. The darts are limited in size. Though I never did figure out why you never made a larger dart." Despedia looked at me curiously. Wow. She handled that explanation nicely. Sonata perked up at the discussion.
"The reason for the size of the darts is that it's easier to form the shell with smaller sizes. The larger the dart, the more unstable the shell, until you're just firing a photon ray. Though if you make it too small then it picks up too much speed and..." She made a motion indicating something small just sailing off in the distance.
"Yeah...it wouldn't stop. The dart would just keep right on going." The smaller the dart, the faster it spun, and the more density it achieved. What holds the dart together is magnetism brought on electrostatic attraction. "Suffice it to say a 'dart' with that kind of charge wouldn't just stop at the initial target. It would punch straight on through." The idea for making such a weapon to fight Endbringers occurred to me, but was quickly scrapped. It would have to be a large weapon, probably mounted with solid footing, and the photon "shell" would be a risk to anyone between it and the target. If there was even the slightest instability in the shot it might even just explode right out of the barrel.
"Personally I think it's political censuring. Someone in city hall probably heard about the incident and freaked out. Once they've calmed down from the knee jerk reaction you'll get your emitters back." Dad said with a light shrug.
"You think so?" I asked curiously.
"As soon as they realize how useful something like that would be for demolition they'll change their tune." Dad joked. The mood in the van lightened at the humorous response. Until further notice I would need something else that was nonlethal. Containment foam was good of course. Most of the PRT wore some form of ear protection. A truly evil and devious idea came to mind. Sonic emitters were out, but what about hyper frequency bombs that only affected the inner ear? It was something to look into anyway, but I'd rather focus on the here and now.
-Northeastern Pennsylvania-
Downtown Wilkes-Barre was a college town and the entertainment showed that strongly. There were bars and clubs within a stone's throw of each other. A movie theater dominated the side of a street with restaurants within walking distance. We were going to be staying in the Ramada Inn on what they called Public Square. The Inn was also within distance of the bus terminal. The city planners did a good job of putting everything nearby for convenience. Wilkes-Barre was a city that had been on the decline during the 90's until fear of Leviathan drove people further inland. There was nothing important enough for Behemoth and no Tinkers of any value to draw down the Simurgh. It's sad, but the decline was halted because of the Endbringers. Some part of me was morbidly amused that they would actually be responsible for someone's prosperity.
We were checked in by a pleasantly smiling woman at the counter. Dad gave us each our cards for the rooms. No one was doubling up. With the money that Dad and I were now bringing in there wasn't a need for that. The bellboy was escorting our belongings up to the rooms with us following. I was growing a little irritated though. The armors were supposed to be waiting for us, but I hadn't seen anyone. I wasn't going to worry anyone yet. If worst came to worst I could just call them up. Easy. I wasn't even bothering to unpack given it was just going to be a couple days. My family probably saw how nervous I was getting, but were giving me my space. It wasn't like I expected to be attacked within minutes of our arrival, but it would have been nice to have them available.
"Wait...that melody..." I heard a familiar melody outside my door. Someone was whistling a jaunty tune that I recognized immediately. I hurried to the door and checked out in the hall. Standing right in front of Dad's door was a woman maybe as tall as Lisa. She had curly brown hair, shoulder length, with an open face. Her clothing was deliberately casual and worn the way someone would wear a costume. Mouse Protector!? Without her helmet!? The door before her opened and Dad stood in the doorway. They said a few words that I was sure must have been an audio trick. It had to be. When she leaned up and kissed him my entire world blue screened.
"We're sorry, but the AriaOS has crashed. Please contact your local administrator when she wakes up." Then darkness claimed me.
AN: Interlude next chapter! Ain't I a stinker?
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Well, there is this one guy. I think he's dating an Origin at the moment...
To be fair, given what happened immediately prior, I'm not surprised at that reaction.
Yes, yes you are.
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The post-trilogy LN shows him as still being an oblivious harem protagonist
Isn't that the guy who snuck the Sol Reactor design to Taylor's head and the dreaded Funbuns?
Yes, it's what's-his-face (I don't remember his name, and can't be bothered to look it up).
Although you're mistaken in one regard; he didn't slip Taylor the plans for the Sol Reactor. He slipped Taylor the plans for the "Ar Tonelico?" (or "Ar Tunelico"), which is a powerful hand tossed bomb craftable in the first game (perhaps too powerful; using it ensures a party wipe and possibly a game over unless you get really clever). Taylor took those plans and turned them into the Sol Reactor Mk1, and that's where it all began...
The Sol Reactor is the result of refining that funbun otaku's haphazard attempts at bomb design into something that's useful for a purpose other than causing an apocalypse.
While having no idea what he was doing, Lyner managed to miniaturize Lost Technology, using materials that he didn't recognize
- Location
- PA
Lyner's Tinker Level: Funbuns!
Lyner's Sync Level with Shurelia: Not appropriate for children/this forum
Shurelia's Tinker Level: OHGODWHY!?/...Bullshit.
...Yeah, Lyner would be borked if Grathmelding actually relied on tinkering more than your ability to sync with Shurelia.
Still doesn't explain how he was able to miniaturize Lost Technology that even Shurelia never learned how to build the original version of.
Look back at Shurelia's reaction to him making it. She's completely dumbfounded and didn't even think it was possible to make something like that.
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Eh, the information might be in the Tower, and she's just restricted from viewing it. Seems like something those guys would do. *Shrug*
The miniaturization is odd though. Unless someone had been trying to make something like it already and he just got access to the prototype blueprints.
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- Status