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Letting Go (Worm/Exalted)

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Dark Abstraction said:
Infernal Monster Style can't be used by mortals, it's a Celestial Martial Art. If a mortal with awakened essence (which Missy likely doesn't have to begin with) tried to use it, they'd explode; same with Dragonblooded and Sidereal Martial Arts. She could be taught a Terrestrial Martial Art, if Taylor knew any and if Missy had awakened essence.
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My headcanon for teaching the canonically impossible tiers of Martial Arts and Sorcery by Dragon-Blooded without explosive failure is usually interconnected.
In the first place, Dragon-Blooded get both extra mote cost for using charms of Terrestrial Martial Arts they are not aspected to, and a special charm designed to remove that particular mote cost for Martial Arts charms. This is the basis I use for upgrades.

Go a tier higher. Dragon-Blooded require either a lengthy thaumaturgic procedure, OR knowledge of specialized charms, to reach for Celestal Martial Arts. Even then, with the exception of Immaculate styles that are already aspected to them, ALL CMA charms incur an extra mote cost for them. In addition, All CMA Form charms have a chance of failure - unless the Dragon-Blooded use a specific hearthstone, that removes that chance for failure (and does nothing else at all).

Logically, it might be possible to develop extra charms that require full mastery of that particular CMA Style, and explicitly remove the extra mote cost, and the chance for failure.

Go another tier higher. It's explicitly possible to learn Sidereal Martial Arts charms for Dragon-Blooded. The problem is, it's explicitly impossible to use them without suffering explosive faliure. Meanwhile, fluff-wise, the Arms of Unconquered Sun CMA style was explicitly studied by Solar martial artists in preparation for learning SMA, in the First Age. In other words, there is a precedent for preparatory practices.

So, if we are reaching for Dragon-Blooded using Sidereal Martial Arts, it becomes a natural extension of the logic to develop an extra charm to unlock the use of SMA charms for one particular style... AFTER learning at least the Form Charm - or better yet, all charms involved in the Student's Sutra (yes, I'm looking at you Prismatic Arrangement of Creation).

Why was it not developed before? Well, the answer is equally obvious. Who learns the majority of Celestial Martial Arts? Celestial Exalted, who suffer no penalties for learning CMA, and can get experience discount for TMA on top of that. Who learns, and teaches, Sidereal Martial Arts? Sidereals, who need not any preparatory practices for learning any Martial Arts charms. Celestial Exalted, Solars, and Sidereals - all of them have it easy when it comes to learning supernatural martial arts. They lack the common frame of reference, and are blind to the possibility of Dragon-Blooded requiring specialized preparatory practices.

As simple as that.

Teaching Celestial Circle Sorcery to Dragon-Blooded would (as you might guess) fall under the same conundrum by this logic. There's a precedent (Absorption charms) for learning Sorcery-derived charms that enhance the sorcerer's ability to cast spells. There's a precedent for similarly cross-trainable discipline (Martial Arts charms) requiring specialized training to use charms of higher tier than generally possible. Why cannot there be Enlightening-keyword charms that enable learning Celestial Circle Sorcery for Dragon-Blooded?

No reason there cannot be. It's just that nobody bothered to research them - Celestial Exalted don't need them, Dragon-Blooded don't believe it's possible for them to learn those fell sorceries of Anathema so don't bother looking for such a way.

And if they do bother? They are far, far too likely to stumble upon the poisoned, low-hanging fruit of becoming an akuma to get the desired result.
 
Faraway-R said:
My headcanon for teaching the canonically impossible tiers of Martial Arts and Sorcery by Dragon-Blooded without explosive failure is usually interconnected.
In the first place, Dragon-Blooded get both extra mote cost for using charms of Terrestrial Martial Arts they are not aspected to, and a special charm designed to remove that particular mote cost for Martial Arts charms. This is the basis I use for upgrades.

Go a tier higher. Dragon-Blooded require either a lengthy thaumaturgic procedure, OR knowledge of specialized charms, to reach for Celestal Martial Arts. Even then, with the exception of Immaculate styles that are already aspected to them, ALL CMA charms incur an extra mote cost for them. In addition, All CMA Form charms have a chance of failure - unless the Dragon-Blooded use a specific hearthstone, that removes that chance for failure (and does nothing else at all).

Logically, it might be possible to develop extra charms that require full mastery of that particular CMA Style, and explicitly remove the extra mote cost, and the chance for failure.

Go another tier higher. It's explicitly possible to learn Sidereal Martial Arts charms for Dragon-Blooded. The problem is, it's explicitly impossible to use them without suffering explosive faliure. Meanwhile, fluff-wise, the Arms of Unconquered Sun CMA style was explicitly studied by Solar martial artists in preparation for learning SMA, in the First Age. In other words, there is a precedent for preparatory practices.

So, if we are reaching for Dragon-Blooded using Sidereal Martial Arts, it becomes a natural extension of the logic to develop an extra charm to unlock the use of SMA charms for one particular style... AFTER learning at least the Form Charm - or better yet, all charms involved in the Student's Sutra (yes, I'm looking at you Prismatic Arrangement of Creation).

Why was it not developed before? Well, the answer is equally obvious. Who learns the majority of Celestial Martial Arts? Celestial Exalted, who suffer no penalties for learning CMA, and can get experience discount for TMA on top of that. Who learns, and teaches, Sidereal Martial Arts? Sidereals, who need not any preparatory practices for learning any Martial Arts charms. Celestial Exalted, Solars, and Sidereals - all of them have it easy when it comes to learning supernatural martial arts. They lack the common frame of reference, and are blind to the possibility of Dragon-Blooded requiring specialized preparatory practices.

As simple as that.

Teaching Celestial Circle Sorcery to Dragon-Blooded would (as you might guess) fall under the same conundrum by this logic. There's a precedent (Absorption charms) for learning Sorcery-derived charms that enhance the sorcerer's ability to cast spells. There's a precedent for similarly cross-trainable discipline (Martial Arts charms) requiring specialized training to use charms of higher tier than generally possible. Why cannot there be Enlightening-keyword charms that enable learning Celestial Circle Sorcery for Dragon-Blooded?

No reason there cannot be. It's just that nobody bothered to research them - Celestial Exalted don't need them, Dragon-Blooded don't believe it's possible for them to learn those fell sorceries of Anathema so don't bother looking for such a way.

And if they do bother? They are far, far too likely to stumble upon the poisoned, low-hanging fruit of becoming an akuma to get the desired result.
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As with all things, what you do at your table is fine. But canon doesn't support it.
 
Faraway-R said:
No reason there cannot be. It's just that nobody bothered to research them - Celestial Exalted don't need them, Dragon-Blooded don't believe it's possible for them to learn those fell sorceries of Anathema so don't bother looking for such a way.

And if they do bother? They are far, far too likely to stumble upon the poisoned, low-hanging fruit of becoming an akuma to get the desired result.
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Ahem.

Article:
Forbidden Arcana Tutelage
Cost: –
Mins: Essence 3
Type: Permanent
Keywords: None
Duration: Permanent
Prerequisites: Any iteration of Sorcerous Enlightenment of (Yozi), Verdant Emptiness Endowment
Oh, how Cecelyne laughs at the foolish sorcerers of Creation! They ape and mimic the Primordials with their stammered incantations and clumsy mudras, ignorant of the true potential of sorcery. But in her mercy, she has endowed her Malefactors with the authority to enlighten the sorcerers of Creation, giving them a gift of true power. This Charm enhances Verdant Emptiness Endowment, allowing the Infernal to bestow knowledge of any Sorcerous Enlightenment of (Yozi) Charm that they possess on any character capable of using sorcery–even if that character does not meet its prerequisites, or is not an Infernal Exalt. While the Charm does not allow the character to access higher circles of sorcery, it does allow them to cast spells with that Yozi's initiation–and in fact, they lose the ability to cast spells without it. If an Infernal uses Forbidden Arcana Tutelage multiple times on one character to grant them multiple Sorcerous Enlightenment of (Yozi) Charms, the sorcerer may pick which initiation they apply to their spells, but they must choose one. There is no XP debt for learning the Charm–it is a free gift on the behalf of Cecelyne. However, it comes with consequences. The Infernal who used this Charm may reflexively counter or dispel any spell cast by the sorcerer that they witness by spending a point of willpower. The sorcerer still loses the motes and willpower for casting the spell.
At Essence 4, the Infernal can use this Charm to grant spells to characters they have already blessed with a Sorcerous Initiation of (Yozi). They must know the spell they wish to grant, and the sorcerer must be capable of casting spells of that circle. The sorcerer incurs XP debt as normal for learning the spell. Infernals who know the Slave-Spawn Summons, Fiend-Vassal Conscription, or All-Commanding Oversoul Beckoning spells cannot teach them to non-Infernals, but can grant their non-Infernal versions: Demon of the First Circle, Demon of the Second Circle, or Demon of the Third Circle.

Benediction of Cosmic Power
Cost: –
Mins: Essence 5
Type: Permanent
Keywords: None
Duration: Permanent
Prerequisites: Forbidden Arcana Tutelage
Cecelyne's law holds that the mighty must triumph over the weak–and she decides who is mighty. With this Charm, an Infernal can tempt sorcerers with offers of power, even allow mortals the secrets of sorcery. This Charm enhances Verdant Emptiness Endowment, allowing the Infernal to use it to grant a character access to any number of circles of sorcery, up to one higher than beings of his type could normally access. A Dragon-Blooded could be granted the ability to cast Celestial Circle spells, or an un-enlightened mortal could be granted Terrestrial Circle Sorcery. The Infernal cannot grant access to Circles of Sorcery that he cannot cast spells of. Mortals granted sorcerous power by this Charm are also enlightened, gaining a mote pool of 15 motes. This Charm cannot initially be used to grant access to Solar Circle Sorcery, but at Essence 6, this limitation is overcome. A character blessed by this Charm must pay 20 XP for each Circle of Sorcery they are granted access to, incurring XP debt if necessary. However, the Infernal may reflexively strip the sorcerer of their ability to cast spells from the granted Circles for as long as he wishes by spending a point of Willpower.


From The Demented One.
 
Ian Von Doom said:
... I was joking about the image ofthe PR departments pretty princess using someone like Hookwolf as a mace to bash down a group rather than making any kind of request or suggestion! But it's nice to create chatter on a thread when it's civil...
That said i really hope Missy doesn't try and join Taylor on her runs - the poor gal would keel over.
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She would just have to cheat by reducing the distance she actually "runs", while matching the distance Taylor runs...Though even then, Running to Forever.
 
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20 - Taylor
  • Threadmarks
    • -20-​

    "Really?" I asked, eyebrow raised and unsure whether to feel relieved, or let down.

    "Yes, really."

    Generally when someone says they need a favour, you expect something onerous, aggravating, or maybe even illegal. This favour in comparison provoked an odd feeling of ambivalence. On the one hand, it was something I could likely do easily enough. On the other hand, there were still some associations that felt strange without any emotional context. Not unpleasant, just strange.

    "I was kind of expecting something... bigger."

    Missy grinned as she pulled several books out of her bag. "I'm not a complete monster."

    "Interesting clarification. So what exactly did you need help with?" I asked Missy, as we huddled around the coffee table, lounging on the surprisingly comfortable carpet.

    "This assignment on sentence structure." She slipped two pages out from a workbook. "It made sense in class, but I swear that all of these are trick questions."

    Looking down at the front page, I scanned the questions before groaning in agreement. Indeed, it was full of obtuse examples. My earlier views on the scale of this favour were obviously hasty.

    "I see now that you are at least a little monstrous."

    "Yep." She grinned, before it flipped into a frown. "Wait, was that a crack about my age?"

    "Of course not." It was about her height. I only felt a little guilty. "You're only two years younger than me, and have that much in hero experience over me."

    It was amazing just how long I'd gone without this. Not the homework, but you know, actual social interaction. Apparently all I needed to break out of my social isolation was to be granted powers by some morally dubious entity from beyond. Beyond what? I wasn't quite sure, but it was definitely beyond.

    ---​

    "Taylor? Why are you running?"

    I looked up from my book (a surprisingly compelling bit of trashy-gothic-horror) to find Miss Militia had just entered the gym in matching green track pants and tank top.

    "Oh hi. Just recovering from my training with the boys earlier. I was a bit tired from tanking all those blasts from Gallant, but I reckon I can build up a tolerance to the emotion thing. Feeling much better now." I gestured towards the treadmill whining away under my pumping legs. "It's really quite relaxing. Got bored a few minutes in though, given the limited view. Thought I'd read a bit. "

    "Okay... But at this hour?"

    Glancing down at my recently requisitioned wrist-watch, her incredulous question made more sense. The laughably trite Clockblocker™ watch flashed 3:27.

    "Ah, I seem to have lost six hours. I guess the book was more engaging than I thought." At her continued glare. "Turns out I don't need to sleep any more, and running is recuperative so it's easy enough to lose track. I needed to find something to do in those extra eight hours a day anyway, and my options are limited. Especially when I'm still not cleared to leave the building. How's that going by the way?"

    "Shouldn't be much longer," she sighed. "More importantly, what do you mean you don't need to sleep any more?"

    "I thought it was pretty self-explanatory," I grinned. It was a cheap shot, but I couldn't help it.

    "Taylor." So much could be conveyed with tone alone. Still, I couldn't keep my growth secret for long, so might as well get it out of the way.

    "Oh, did I forget to mention it?" I spread my arms wide for extra emphasis as I shrugged. "I gained another power."

    ---
    ​
    My offhand comment about gaining powers was not taken as well as I thought it would be, instead leading to more power testing once the sun came up. The nerds came up with the hypothesis that I am some kind of 'Trump' that can copy powers from other capes. I could only guess they jumped to that conclusion as Miss Militia was also bereft of the need to sleep.

    I didn't correct them, mostly from lack of a better cover story. However, I just knew that this was going to haunt me later.

    ---​

    "... and introducing our newest ward, Dervish!"

    Taking my cue, I whirled onto the stage in a flurry of limbs, hair, and fluttering scarlet fabric. I drew from my internal reservoir of essence to make sure I was as impressively flawless as possible, without setting off my Anima Banner. Or as Sergeant Forester preferred to call it, 'The Lightshow'. It wasn't something I wanted happening during a PR event if I could help it. Clinical trials show that most mortals feel uncomfortable gazing upon a glowing font of demonic power. Who would have guessed?

    "Hello everyone. It is a pleasure to be here," I lied. I would have been much happier without this dog and pony show.

    I do not see such creatures anywher- oh. A colloquialism.

    "I look forward to doing my part in making this city safer." Or at least, as much as I could do without going off the reservation and taking the fight to the gangs myself. It took some effort to keep smiling as I continued spouting off the generic PR approved introduction. It wasn't that it was untrue, so much as completely lacking in character. No wonder Dennis went off-script as soon as possible.

    "Do we have any questions?" asked the MC, some PR guy who's name I'd already forgotten. He was in theory there to help manage the reporters, in case they got overzealous, but I did have more leeway with my answers. He pointed at a woman with ginger hair. "How about you?"

    "Kelly Ellis, Boston Globe." I was a little surprised that I warranted out of town reporters, but it would explain the number. They couldn't all be locals. "How do you feel about your identity being exposed?"

    "It would have been nice to have a civilian life, but it was pretty much inevitable given the power-granted alterations." My hair waved around emphatically to hammer home the point. "My hair would have given me away within a week if I wasn't careful, let alone my eyes and the sudden onset of guns." A spattering of laughter filled the crowd as I flexed my bare arms.

    "Gerald Holmes, Brockton Enquirer," a dark haired, middle-aged fellow announced as he was pointed out. Ah, the local rag. "Were you the source of the strange lights and sounds last week?"

    You may have to explain that one to me.

    Later.

    "Yes, that was me. When I get serious, I start to generate an illusion that I've been told is somewhat intimidating." I shrugged before grinning. "Think of it as inbuilt hazard lighting. If red light fills the sky and you can hear kite flutes, evacuate in an orderly fashion."

    "What are your powers then?" He asked, blatantly ignoring the whole one question each tradition.

    "To put it simply, I am what they call a grab-bag cape. I have a bunch of seemingly unrelated powers, but mostly I have exceptional physical abilities and awesome kung-fu. Next."

    "James Heath, Portland Press Herald." This one was much younger, with a blond fauxhawk and goatee. "Do you know who tried to kill you?"

    I could see the PR guy wince minutely in the corner of my eye, but I cut him off before he could interject. "Investigations are still ongoing, but I have no doubt that whoever it is will soon regret their decision."

    ---​

    Say what you will about bureaucracies and their endless red tape, but when they have a scandal on their ass, they can really move. Case in point: It had only been a week since my meeting with the Director, a day after my press debut, and I was already enrolled at Arcadia. Judging by the presence of the scowling girl near the gates when I stepped out of the PRT van, they had also sorted out Sophia's transfer as well. The PRT must have some significant pull to get two students transferred in on such short notice. Mid-term at that. I could only assume that significant 'funding' was involved. As soon as she saw me, she entered the grounds. It looked like there would be no associating with her out of costume, which was perfectly fine by me. The amusement I got from making her uncomfortable would probably get boring if I did it all the time. Especially without Emma around so that I could rub it in her face.

    I looked around the entrance, taking in the well tended lawns and actually maintained buildings, while ignoring the stares and whispers of the other students. The drop off via government vehicle had been attention grabbing. It would have made more sense to come in by myself, but 'safety concerns' overrode subtly. Making a scene at the start of the day could only lead to rumours, but really, those were unavoidable given my situation.

    The masses will always gossip about those greater. It is inevitable, and ultimately irrelevant. Pay them no mind.

    Still irritating.

    Just like the insects that they are, to one such as you.

    If you keep that up, I may just end up megalomaniacal.

    Is it megalomania if it's true?

    Letting out a snort, I moved to follow my ex-nemesis team-mate inside. Even through the tint of my sunglasses, everything looked better. There wasn't even a single obvious gang member in sight; a vast improvement over Winslow. Sure being a publicly know 'parahuman' was going to complicate things, but given how unsubtle my powers were, I might as well be blatant with them. No more hiding for me. For the first time in recent memory, I was actually kind of optimistic about school.

    "Heh." A strangely appropriate song came to mind, from one of Dad's favourite bands. "The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades."

    ---​

    "Oh are you the new Ward?"

    "What gave it away?" My hair spelled out 'Well duh'.

    "Why do you wear sunglasses inside?"

    "For your sanity."

    "What's with your hair?"

    "Magic."

    "Hey babe. How about you and me..." I glared at the sleazy jock, which proved quite well at shutting up his blatant come on.

    "Denied."

    My optimism was premature, and was quickly eroded by the barrage of inane questions. I hadn't even made it to my home room. Going from mostly ignored, to mostly gawked at wasn't an improvement. When I did finally get to my assigned home room, the teacher, Ms Applegate, insisted I introduce myself. Old Taylor would have squeaked out a quiet greeting and rushed off to a seat near the door. New and improved, Green Sun Princess Taylor on the other hand...

    "Greetings!" My voice boomed out in the confines of the classroom, causing some to flinch in surprise, others from the supposedly disturbing harmonics. "My name is Taylor a.k.a Dervish, and yes, I obviously have superpowers. Numerous, thematically-convoluted superpowers, with in-built special effects and I'm only wearing these shades for your own safety from embarrassment. Consider yourselves warned. I like reading fiction, watching horror movies and systematically dismantling my opponents. Incidentally, I take a poor view of bullying." A faint breeze accompanied my words as my essence emphasised them.

    I immediately claimed a seat near the window, one that gave me a commanding view of the room, and coincidentally the gobsmacked faces of my teacher and fellow students.

    I would say that you succeeded in making an impression.

    Hopefully that will cut down on the questions.

    "Umm, what do your eyes actually do?"

    I sighed and turned to face the girl in a pink cardigan who proved my hopes to be futile.

    "Would you like to look into them and find out?" I smiled. "I'm sure the class would love to have an example."

    My grin didn't appear to reassure her at all, and she didn't hesitate in squeaking out her answer. "No thanks."

    Several disappointed grunts emanated from the back of the class, but no one made any other comment. After a few more seconds of awkward silence, Ms Applegate moved on to inform us of pertinent information for the day. None of it was interesting in the least.

    ---​

    The day dragged on through Math and Social Studies (only marginally better without Mr Gladly), but I was given some reprieve from the drudgery when I hit my first elective. After much nagging from Sorrowful Hymn of Youthful Indiscretion, I had chosen music.

    The semi-circular room was well lit with natural sunlight coming through a series of skylights along the curved wall. Three rows of chairs on stepped levels followed the outer circumference, with drum sets anchoring each end, and a grand piano in the lower, 'centre' of the circle. When I arrived, several students were shifting keyboards to their seats, while others were tuning guitars; mostly guys with acoustics. A short girl with dark hair had already claimed one of the drum sets and was absent-mindedly twirling a stick in her left hand.

    I scanned the stockpile of instruments, looking for something that seemed right. It didn't take long at all before I was moving, especially with a certain head-demon insisting she knew the perfect instrument.

    "A harp? That's an interesting choice." I turned to face a vaguely familiar brunette, while cradling the lightweight electric harp I had claimed. The girl herself had a saxophone slung from her shoulder, and she was wearing an all too familiar expression of intrigue. She was probably in one of my earlier classes. Yes, Social Studies.

    "I felt compelled to give it a go."

    Melodious laughter filled my head, while the girl seemed to come to a realisation.

    "So, you're Taylor then?" She held out a hand in greeting. "I'm Sandra."

    "Ah, yes." I shook her hand, doing my best not to be too forceful. "I should have guessed rumours of my appearance would have already circulated."

    She tilted her head to left, brows furrowed. "Well yeah, people have been talking about your little intro speech all day."

    "How? We've only had two periods."

    "Rumour travels faster than light?" She giggled at my flat glare. "Or it could be that the times between lessons allows for gossip."

    I shrugged. "Well at least the barrage of questions has stopped."

    "The way you shot down Steve Jacobs this morning has something to do with that." Her smile seemed strangely smug. "Instead you have a betting pool on what your eyes do."

    "Really?" I wasn't sure what to make of that.

    "Really."

    "Wow." I pondered a moment as an odd thought popped into my head. "What's the leading bet?"

    "Last I heard, explosive diarrhoea."

    I couldn't help but snort at that. "Oh, that is just sad."

    "You know..." Her eyes shifted to the nearby students before continuing, albeit quieter. "If you let me in on the secret, we could split the winnings."

    "Good morning class." The teacher walked in, preventing further collusion. Sandra mouthed 'later' as she took a seat next to me. "I see we have a new face with us today, and ah, the harp. I haven't had a student use one in quite some time. Would you like to play anything for us?"

    Yes. Please.

    I'm not entirely sure I know what I'm doing.

    Trust me. You can do this. I refuse to believe that you are bad with harps when I am part of you.

    I sighed, thinking on what to play. An old classic came to mind. "Sure."

    Thank you.

    I didn't have enough fingers to do this, nor could they reach everywhere fast enough, so my hair joined in. Needed to be able to hit all the notes after all. Checking that all the strings were in tune with a quick strum and a few tweaks, something I was sure I didn't know how to do a fortnight ago, I took a deep breath and started plucking.

    ---​

    "How long have you played the harp?" The teacher asked once the applause had finished.

    "Today," I answered honestly. The twitching of her left eye indicated she in no way believed me. Another sigh escaped my lips before I answered with what was probably going to become a default form response. "Super harp powers. Just run with it."

    ---​

    Once I was done giving Mrs Reynolds an aneurism with the oddness of my abilities, things went smoothly. Some music theory, some practice, a little wheeling and dealing, and soon enough came lunch. Sandra immediately started dragging me towards the cafeteria.

    "Come on, sit with us."

    Too bemused to really protest, I was swept up in her enthusiasm. It was strange to be so much as setting foot in a cafeteria after so long avoiding the one at Winslow. Given the oddity, my senses took in every detail they could. Instead of the major clusters of gang members with the smaller cliques orbiting, here there was a complete absence of similar social gravity wells. As far as I could tell, the biggest clumps were probably sports teams, or club members. Even then, it looked like they weren't a guarantee. I could see several people in stereotypical jock paraphernalia sitting with stereotypes of a more 'studious' type. It felt like I could watch the crowds for hours and still be unable to work out any pattern.

    Okay, I take it back, there was one point that seemed to draw in nearby diners. Glory Girl. It was easy to see that most of the tables around her were in her social circle, one way or another. Panacea sat across the table from her, wearing an expression I couldn't decipher. Her eyes met mine, or at least my shades, before she looked back at her sister. Said sister then turned to look at me as I was carried along in Sandra's wake through the crowds. Victoria Dallon was staring at me, not like I was a bizarre curiosity like the others did, but more as... It felt like she was trying to determine if I was a threat. I didn't know what could prompt that, but I was certain that's what she was doing. After another few moments of pseudo-met eyes, she turned back to her table and I found myself seated amongst a gaggle of giggling girls. Okay, that was unfair. Only two of them were giggling, apparently over some boy I'd never heard of.

    As I was introduced to Sandra's friends, Julie, Jenna, and Beth, I noticed that they had started staring behind me. Before I turned I just knew that whoever was approaching was deserving of attention, an awesome individual that I should respect and... That wasn't right. I let out a brief chuckle at the absurdity of the situation, and turned to face just another person as a warm breeze tingled the hairs on my neck. Sure she had powers, but that didn't mean anything in the grand scheme of things.

    "Victoria Dallon," I greeted with a grin curving my lips. "Fancy meeting you here."

    "So you're Dervish then," she stated rather rhetorically.

    "Or Taylor if you prefer. We're both in casual wear after all. Come to see the new girl?"

    "Taylor then," she nodded in concession. "Yeah, I thought I'd come and see what all the fuss was about. So, what do your eyes do?"

    That was rather more blunt that I was expecting, but my smile remained. I had thought that Missy was exaggerating about Glory Girl's behaviour. I knew better now. "As I told one of my home room, you're welcome to look into my eyes to find out. Do you dare?"

    My hair grasped the sides of my shades, and at her nod, lowered them just enough for her to get a good hard look through my very own windows-to-a-hell-dimension. She froze, her eyes widening and her skin paling before she managed to pull her eyes away from mine. My shades settled back in place as she muttered, "What... what was that?"

    "I'm impressed." I wasn't being facetious either, I had expected a much more active reaction. "Everyone else has fled in pants wetting terror, so bravo."

    Several loud outburst of coarse language accompanied my announcement, along with a cheer from much closer. I wondered what my share was.

    "You didn't answer my question."

    "Because that would be telling." My - at this point near perpetual - grin pulled into a more cheeky version. "Perhaps one day I may explain. But I'd have to know you much better first."

    She stared at me for a moment as her colour came back and her heartbeat calmed down. "You are creepy as hell, you know that right?"

    "I have been told that, yes." My grin had only grown as she was unknowingly quite correct.

    "I'll... catch you later, Taylor."

    "Indeed. See you around Victoria. Do give your sister my thanks again for patching up that sucking chest wound."

    "Yeah, sure."

    I continued to smile even as I heard one of the girls at the table make sounds of disgust. Ah, being squeamish. How nostalgic.

    ---​

    "Psst!"

    My head snapped to my left, seeking the source of that entirely unsubtle noise, only to find my eyes meeting one of another girl. Leaning against the wall as she was, I hadn't really noticed her. She was concealed by a row of lockers as I headed towards the exit after the last, and oh so boring period was over. It was impossible to miss her now, standing less than a foot from me. Two weeks ago, the hoodie-clad girl would have been uncomfortably close. After Adorjan, my sense of personal space was effectively burnt-out. The girl's eyebrow quirked up, seemingly in surprise, but I couldn't guess why. She was the one to gain my attention after all. I could have been mistaken about her expression though, with dark hair obscuring half her face.

    I raised my own eyebrow in question as I waited for her to speak. I really hoped that this girl wasn't just another cape-watcher. It hadn't even been a full day and those were already starting to try my patience.

    Her visible eye darted to some of the students walking by, then she leaned in even closer and whispered in my ear.

    "How would you like revenge on the one who tried to kill you?"

    Well, my first day at Arcadia had suddenly taken a fascinating turn.

    "Congratulations." I took an amount of grim amusement at the way she shivered from my voice. "You have my undivided attention."

    "Follow me." She pushed away from the way, slipping past and casually sauntered away. She didn't so much as look back to make sure I was following. With a juicy titbit like that, she didn't have to.

    This may be a trap.

    Strangely enough, I had considered that.

    Of course I had considered that this could be a trap. The 'cloak and dagger' behaviour was super suspicious, but I didn't get the feeling of deceit from her. Not to say that I was an expert discerning lies or anything like that.

    Anyway, I'm pretty sure I can take her.

    I have no doubt you could easily ravish her.

    I totally didn't stumble in the hallway, but only because my powers wouldn't let me.

    Not like that!

    If you are sure. She does appear quite comely.

    I'm... going to ignore you for a while you perverted head-demon.

    Nonsense, I am not a Neomah.

    Which were they again?

    Purple skin, black eyes...

    - The sweet scent of sweat, the jingling of bells, and pleasant moans filled the air as she writhed beneath-

    I blinked away the sudden snippet of memory. They were one of the more disturbing side effects of being Exalted.

    Ah. Yes. Those.

    Another two turns and she pushed open the door to one of the numerous girls bathrooms on this floor. It was another thing that probably would have set off a bout of anxiety only two weeks ago. She was checking the stalls as I entered, presumably to make sure we were alone. Satisfied with our seclusion, she turned to me and leaned against the basins. The girl met my eyes and pulled down the hood. Her hair went along with it, revealing a rather different appearance.

    Or perhaps not.

    The right side of her face, from just below her bottle-green eye and all the way down past the collar of her purple shirt, was warped with scar-tissue; extensive burns that her close cropped blonde hair did nothing to hide. Given the sheer scale of the scaring, I was surprised by how little it disfigured her features, mostly just twisting her mouth into a cruel mockery of a smirk and melting her earlobe into her jaw. I'd seen much worse in the flashes of past-life memory.

    "Empire 88?"

    She blinked in surprise, before she let out a sad chuckle. "No, just limited styling choices when most of it was burnt off. My friends and I were never on good terms with the Neo-Nazis."

    "Friends?" I asked, quickly regretting it as her face fell.

    "Gone. Killed by Lung the other week. I barely got out," she gestured towards her face, "but not unscathed."

    Then it hit me, the Undersiders. A small-time villain group that was speculated to be involved in the Docks incident and hadn't been seen since. If so, the girl was a cape.

    "What the hell were you doing messing with Lung?" I was dimly aware that she and her friends were likely at least partially responsible for Dad's death, but I was more curious about the chain of events.

    "Our employer had us rob a casino that belonged to Lung. Said he'd make sure we were safe." She held up her hands as I opened my mouth. "By employer, I mean the scum-bag who had me recruited at gun-point. The same bastard that had his mercenaries make that hit on your transport."

    I wasn't sure what I expected, but this wasn't it.

    "And why would this employer want to kill me?" A very valid question, given that I hadn't even had my powers an hour when the shooting started.

    "You somehow mess with his powers, and he wanted that to stop. He has some kind of binary precognition where he gets to see two options and pick the best. I'm not sure exactly how it works. I only managed to figure out that much by seeing what happened when it failed spectacularly." She snorted. "It was the most satisfying thing I've seen in years."

    Infernal Monster Style may have caused that, but why would he try to kill you before you used it? How strange.

    We can ponder that later.

    The girl looked at me with a strange expression on her face, before shaking her head.

    "So you were watching as he tried to kill me?" She nodded, her face a grimace. "You know exit wounds really sting... I should trust you, why?"

    She sighed, slumping a fraction as she did.

    "Because I don't want to be a glorified slave to a psychopath. That, and I can give you details about his moles in the PRT. More importantly, his name. I can guarantee you that your Director will want him gone once she finds out."

    That sounded like it lived in the same neighbourhood as a good enough reason, but there was something missing.

    "Why approach me though?"

    "I figured you'd have a vested interest in seeing him dealt with." She shrugged. "Besides, if I stepped inside PRT headquarters myself, I'd be dead by the end of the day. I only remain among the living because he hasn't managed to track me down after I slipped away when he was busy bleeding from the eyes." Her lips twisted into a cruel grin, exaggerated by the scar-tissue. "If you could do whatever you did again, that would be just fantastic."

    Ooooh, I like her. You should recruit her as a servant.

    I think you just missed the part where she's plotting the downfall of her current employer.

    Ah, but if you earn her loyalty, she could be a most useful minion.

    You are twisted.

    Practical.

    The girl had that same odd expression from earlier, this time being more blatant with the staring.

    "You hear voices." She whispered, her eyes immediately bulging in sudden panic. "Oh shit. I promise I won't tell anyone!"

    As I watched this strange girl panic before me, it felt like something was taking amusement from my life getting so compli- Oh. Yeah. He was.
     
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    • While this chapter is a nice welcome addition to the story I am a bit sad that with the loss of Rachel there is less likely hood of Taylor leading a wild hunt through the Bay on the backs of dog Kaiju.
    There's still a chance because Exalted, but definitely less.:V
     
    zhuull said:
    While this chapter is a nice welcome addition to the story I am a bit sad that with the loss of Rachel there is less likely hood of Taylor leading a wild hunt through the Bay on the backs of dog Kaiju.
    There's still a chance because Exalted, but definitely less.:V
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    There's a Sorcery spell for that, Hound of Five Winds.

    Ironically, since it is of "Five Winds", AND Adorjan has four wind-daughters, its likely to be one of spells readily available through Sorcerous Enlightment of Adorjan.

    P.S. on an unrelated note where does Seven Seas in real-life phrases come from? You know, like pirate boasts of being Terror of the Seven Seas...
     
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    A reputable source says this about it:
    The origins of the phrase 'Seven Seas' can be traced to ancient times.

    In various cultures at different times in history, the Seven Seas has referred to bodies of water along trade routes, regional bodies of water, or exotic and far-away bodies of water.

    In Greek literature (which is where the phrase entered Western literature), the Seven Seas were the Aegean, Adriatic, Mediterranean, Black, Red, and Caspian seas, with the Persian Gulf thrown in as a "sea."

    In Medieval European literature, the phrase referred to the North Sea, Baltic, Atlantic, Mediterranean, Black, Red, and Arabian seas.

    After Europeans 'discovered' North America, the concept of the Seven Seas changed again. Mariners then referred to the Seven Seas as the Arctic, the Atlantic, the Indian, the Pacific, the Mediterranean, the Caribbean, and the Gulf of Mexico.

    Not many people use this phrase today, but you could say that the modern Seven Seas include the Arctic, North Atlantic, South Atlantic, North Pacific, South Pacific, Indian, and Southern Oceans.

    However, our oceans are more commonly geographically divided into the Atlantic, Pacific, Indian, Arctic, and Southern (Antarctic) Oceans.
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    Excellent job on showing just how terrifying the Exalted can get.

    I was honestly expecting Abyssal from the opening. I'm not sure whether Infernal is more or less worrying. No, not even now, at the stage we're at.
     
    DeviantD said:
    My offhand comment about gaining powers was not taken as well as I thought it would be, instead leading to more power testing once the sun came up. The nerds came up with the hypothesis that I am some kind of 'Trump' that can copy powers from other capes. I could only guess they jumped to that conclusion as Miss Militia was also bereft of the need to sleep.

    I didn't correct them, mostly from lack of a better cover story. However, I just knew that this was going to haunt me later.
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    Just wait until you develop a truly disturbing power, then watch everybody freak out as they try to figure out who you "copied" it from. :evil:

    DeviantD said:
    I found myself seated amongst a gaggle of giggling girls. Okay, that was unfair. Only two of them were giggling,
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    I would say 2 girls is enough to constitute a gaggle.
     
    Segev said:
    I was honestly expecting Abyssal from the opening. I'm not sure whether Infernal is more or less worrying. No, not even now, at the stage we're at.
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    Less worrying. A lot less worrying. The Green Sun Princes are mutagenic and mad, twisting the world and the people within it to the essence of the defeated creators of the universe, but they're powers aren't inherently evil; Malfeas is a Tyranical-King, but that doesn't mean you have to be, you can use his prowess with leadership and battle to drag a nation to glory, or use the Pyrian ideal to create a truly egalitarian society where everyone knows their place in life and is content with it, heck even the power of Adorjan can be used for good by cutting out evil peoples or by making people let go of their more troublesome feelings.

    Abyssals have none of that.

    They are made to murder and it shows.

    They're equivalent to Craftsman Needs No Tools only works if they're creating tools for war and murder, be it a fortress, armor for a soldiers bent on genocide or daiklaves, they don't have neutral options, the same goes for the social charms, the reinforce negative intimacies without no option for positive things, unlike even Kimbery, and even their medicine charms work by maiming others to heal.

    Suffice to say, the Green Sun Princes are not nearly as potentially dangerous to the actual world, as the Abyssals are.
     
    greensun said:
    Less worrying. A lot less worrying. The Green Sun Princes are mutagenic and mad, twisting the world and the people within it to the essence of the defeated creators of the universe, but they're powers aren't inherently evil; Malfeas is a Tyranical-King, but that doesn't mean you have to be, you can use his prowess with leadership and battle to drag a nation to glory, or use the Pyrian ideal to create a truly egalitarian society where everyone knows their place in life and is content with it, heck even the power of Adorjan can be used for good by cutting out evil peoples or by making people let go of their more troublesome feelings.

    Abyssals have none of that.

    They are made to murder and it shows.

    They're equivalent to Craftsman Needs No Tools only works if they're creating tools for war and murder, be it a fortress, armor for a soldiers bent on genocide or daiklaves, they don't have neutral options, the same goes for the social charms, the reinforce negative intimacies without no option for positive things, unlike even Kimbery, and even their medicine charms work by maiming others to heal.

    Suffice to say, the Green Sun Princes are not nearly as potentially dangerous to the actual world, as the Abyssals are.
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    And that's quite ignoring the problem of Resonance that Abyssals bring to the table. If they aren't actively murdering people and stuff, they instead start to passively murder the world immediately around them and everything in it.

    Or at least, that's a pretty good summation of what I have heard on the subject in the past.
     
    Although, with Torment in the equation, Taylor will still have the potential to absolutely wreck anywhere she's put down roots.
     
    Baughn said:
    Only if she upsets Adorjan--

    Oh.
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    Note that this particular implication was later retconned to make Torment a purely internal thing, rather than Yozi-triggered.

    Also, Adorjani Torment in particular is more than a little troublesome—it unavoidably hurts people you have positive Intimacies for, but with Adorjan Charms you can fall in love with people at will—so the writer may be handling it differently than the book.
     
    21 - Taylor
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    • -21-​

    I continued to stare at the blonde girl, whose name I still didn't know, as she backed into the corner where the washbasins met the wall. It hadn't seemed all that likely that I'd need to deal with someone figuring out the voice in my head. I had figured that because I didn't need to speak to her out loud, anything odd pauses could be passed off as getting lost in thought. I'd seen plenty of 'normal' people act weirder. But it had happened none the less. When in doubt, deny.

    "You... What makes you think I hear voices?"

    She stared at me like I was some kind of cat to her mouse for a few more seconds before shaking her head and taking a deep breath.

    "Okay, look. As a gesture of trust that I won't spill the beans and in the interests of future cooperation, I am a Thinker. I piece together information from the smallest of clues. It's the reason Coil had me forcefully recruited, and the reason he'd rather kill me than let me loose with details on his organisation. Your expressions indicated you were having a conversation, but not with me. Just so you know, your hesitation just then? Good as confirmed it."

    Well fuck.

    Indeed, this may be a problem. Perhaps you should dispose of her once you have received the information you require.

    I'm not just going to murder her because it would be expedient. Besides I thought you wanted her as my minion?

    It would be a waste, yes.

    "And there you go again."

    "Okay, fine." I glared at her, prompting an all too visible flinch. "Let's assume you are correct, and you aren't getting thrown off like your boss. Why did you freak out?"

    She actually looked somewhat abashed. "All the little details cascaded on me and I, uh. I kindaequatedyouwiththeButcherandpanicked."

    "Could you repeat that, in English?"

    "The only cape that I know of that hears voices is the Butcher, and they're bat-shit insane. My power extrapolated from there, and well..."

    "Ah." There wasn't really anything I could say to that, rather than point out that I wasn't. Of course, I had no real evidence other than my lack of killing sprees.

    "Well at least it hasn't told you to kill me or anything." She gave me a cocky grin, which slowly slipped off her face at my hesitance to answer. Her right eye twitched. "Oh."

    Troublesome.

    I will not apologise for wanting my Mistress to remain unimpeded.

    I don't expect you to.

    "Relax, I'm not going to hurt you." That did seem to help things, as she hadn't run screaming. How to word this... "It was only an errant thought, in the case that I couldn't gain your loyalty."

    At this point she still appeared quite concerned but not so much of the afraid-for-her-life look. "But you'd kill me if tried to talk."

    "No. It would take more than making my life inconvenient to flat out murder someone. For example, I haven't so much as hurt you, even though you have a good deal of the blame for my father's death."

    She became still, statue-like if not for her face. Her eyebrows twitching in I could only guess was rapid thinking. I somehow doubted that she didn't know, so she must have thought I wouldn't piece it together.

    "I would appreciate if you don't tell anyone though. Especially if it ends up with other people acting like this." I half-heartedly pointed at her, as she still didn't look all that convinced. Shaking my head, I let out a sigh at how pointless the denial was at this point. "Geeze, you have one helpful voice in your head and people think you're crazy."

    A sound that could be mistaken for laughter had the girl step closer again, though still with hesitant steps and that odd twitch to her eye still going strong. "Okay, Let's try this again. Hi, I'm Lisa, and I'd like to help you take down our mutual enemy."

    I raised my eyebrow at her use of normal name, before grasping her offered hand.

    "Hello Lisa. I'm Taylor, and I'll happily-"

    My words were cut of by a vibration in the floor, swiftly followed by a muted roar of an explosion.

    And to think I complained about being bored.

    Well it was rather dull at this school of yours, aside from the music.

    "Sounds like something major. Come with me." I didn't wait for a response, instead moving out of the bathroom, Lisa's hand still in mine.

    "Wait. WAIT!" I turned to face her. "At least let me put the wig back on."

    A few seconds to put her disguise back in place and we were moving through the throng of students piling out of the building and towards the emergency evacuation point. Luckily, the numbers were naturally diminished as most had already left after the last class. When we arrived, it was to find that just about everyone was staring South. It was easy to see why. One of the few skyscrapers in Downtown was considerably shorter, and on fire. Really weird purple fire.

    "The Medhall building," Lisa whispered from my left, through gritted teeth. I had reclaimed her hand somewhere along the way, not wanting to lose her in the crowd. Not sure if I was more concerned about the health of this strange new acquaintance, or potentially losing the resource she represented.

    It could be both.

    Well, yes. I suppose.

    Are you sure you do not want to make her yours?

    Leaning towards her, and ignoring a certain voice, I whispered back, "Who the hell could have done that?"

    She stared at the building, eyes widening, and growing paler by the second. I was about to ask her if she was okay when she suddenly pressed the heel of her other hand to her forehead, wincing. "Shit, shit shit."

    "What's wrong?"

    "Too much on you. Headache. Bakuda."

    "What?" I had been briefed on Thinker headaches, but that last word really didn't fit. Unless it was some brand of painkiller?

    "Bakuda. Tinker. Bombs." Ah, okay then. She scrunched her eyes closed. "Medhall linked to Empire. Oww. Okay, I'm going to be useless for a bit. Shit." The rest of her grumbling quickly verged into the unintelligible as she tried to use my shoulder to shield her eyes from the evil daystar.

    A buzz in my pocket was quickly revealed to be a message on my work phone.

    -Emergency situation-
    -Proceed to pick up point A-
    -Transport en route-

    A bit of redundant statement given the burning ruin, but I had my marching orders. So there I was standing amidst a crowd of students, a whimpering Thinker slumped against me, a PRT van inbound, and the aftermath of innovative demolition in plain sight. Indeed my life had just become complicated.

    Staring down at Lisa, I realised I couldn't just leave her here. I knew enough to know how debilitating migraines could be, more so for Thinkers. If she couldn't user her powers, it stood to reason that she'd be even more vulnerable to the people after her. But then, I couldn't just blow off the PRT escort either, as that would cause me just as much headache. She'd told me that she wouldn't be safe heading to the PRT, but with no real option that I could see, I'd just have to make sure that no-one did anything. If she was being paranoid, no harm. If she was correct, I'd just have to remove some more of this Coil's goons. Still, there was something off about how she had suddenly flipped from scared of me to comfortable enough to use me as a lean-to. Ah, I see.

    "You know, you don't have to be quite that clingy in order to get protection." She stiffened against me. Just a little, but it was there. "I am a hero, despite the whole creepy vibe thing, and I was agreeing to help you before the explosive interruption." She moaned in pain, but otherwise didn't respond. "Oh and your reaction before? As good as confirmed."

    "Oh har har," She mumbled into my jacket. "This is all your fault you know. Took too much to find you safely, and then you had to be all weird. You and your stupid weirdness."

    "I need to get going, otherwise the PRT will get antsy. You don't look like you're in any state to be wandering off, so I can take you with me and punch anyone who tries anything."

    "No. Too much chance of things going wrong, and you can't baby-sit me the entire time. I doubt they'd let you, especially with this shit going on." She waved a hand in the direction of the purple pyre. "I'll pop some pain-killers and blend in with the crowd, I'll be fine. The emergency response will make it easier to avoid attention."

    She dug through the pockets in her cargo pants, pulling out a small, unlabelled pill bottle and a usb-stick. "Here. Everything I've managed to get on Coil, aka Thomas Calvert, and his operations."

    I looked on as she popped a pair of the small white capsules, the dragged out a pair of sunglasses from another pocket. She looked considerably more sketchy with them on, even if they were necessary for bare minimum functionality it the afternoon sun.

    "Are you sure you'll be okay?" She nodded. "How will I contact you if I need to?"

    "Oh, don't worry, I'll be fine. Message All Seeing Eye on PHO if you need me for something. Ta ta for now." She turned and waved dismissively as she walked off confidently. The effect was ruined somewhat by the occasional stumble. Shaking my head, I turned and made my way towards the pick-up.

    I'm still not sure letting her go off is a good idea.

    She did have a point Mistress. Even if you managed to convince those who ostensibly command you, it would lead to us being stuck in that same dull building instead of going out and participating it what is likely to be a significant event.

    There is that. Hopefully they don't sideline the Wards too much and I'll actually get to fight someone. Spars just don't seem to be as thrilling anymore.

    I only had to wait outside the East gate of the school for about two minutes before one of the more armoured PRT vans rocked up. My eyebrow raised as the side door opened to show several agents in full response gear, guns ready but not pointing at me.

    "Come on in Scary, it's nice and cosy in the party van."

    "Hello to you too, Subtle." I looked at the other troopers, but only one other seemed familiar. Of course, the riot gear did make identification troublesome. "New squaddies then?"

    "Yeah, Davidson and Singh are out of town on leave, the lucky bastards." I nodded and climbed into the cab, sitting myself next to Lady, who's actual name I still hadn't figured out. Damn lack of name tags. Forester closed the door behind me and the van began moving again.

    "You know I never caught your name the last time."

    "Understandable with all the bullets flying. Davis."

    I nodded, accepting that more than a last name was unlikely without actually getting to know her. I looked at the other two troopers, head tilted.

    "Reed."

    "Murphy."

    "Forester!"

    I snorted. "Yes, thanks for that clarification. So, what's the plan?"

    I just knew he was grinning behind that faceless helmet. "We're dropping you at HQ for briefing, before heading off to ground zero to do damage control. An act like this usually isn't isolated."

    "Yeah, given that a Japanese sounding bomb tinker just blew up an E88 front, I expect it to escalate."

    I was met with silence.

    "Did I forget to mention I had intel?"

    Forester chuckled, shaking his head. "You know Scary, you certainly make things interesting."

    "It's almost as if its a god-given duty." After all, he wasn't a god per se.

    "Before I call this through, mind explaining?"

    "Oh, I was having a casual chat with a Thinker. Apparently Medhall is owned by the Nazis, and someone named Bakuda is the most likely suspect. Because really, purple fire?"

    Indeed, it should be green if anything.

    "Well that makes too much damn sense. There was evidence to suggest that Lung had recruited the Cornell bomber. Shit."

    As Forester proceeded to call in that little bit of info, I relaxed back into the not-all-that-comfortable seat. It had certainly been a day. A dull, frustrating and confusing day. Was it petty to want to learn how to make clones, just so I could send one of them to school instead? As much as the idea appealed to me, I doubted they'd let me do that. It was still something worth investigating though. I did have to wonder, was absorbing boring memories all at once better or worse than actually living through them?

    As the sound of more explosions echoed across the city, I took small comfort that at least things were unlikely to be dull for a while.


    I wrote this, but then realised it felt off. Whether it was a bit too crazy/contrived/OOC I'm not sure, but it just didn't feel right and boxed me in to a direction I didn't want the story going.
    But I figure people might find it amusing even if I'm not taking this route.

    //////////////////////​

    "Oh har har," She mumbled into my jacket. "This is all your fault you know. Took too much to find you safely, and then you had to be all weird. You and your stupid weirdness."

    I couldn't help but chuckle, even as I fumbled with my phone.

    -Have intel on emergency-
    -Bringing to pick up-
    -Expect passenger-

    With that sent, I pondered the best way to get her to the van.

    Typically, one carries a damsel in distress...

    I managed to keep the groan internal, but it would be easier than slowly guiding her. Especially given the ad-hoc executive nature of my decision. Taking a quick look around and finding myself morbidly thankful for the distraction, I hooked my other arm under her legs in totally-not-bridal-carry. I had to admit though, the startled eep was kind of amusing. Judging by the musical giggling in my head, Sorrowful Hymn thought so too. It was like something out of a fairy tale. A slightly off fairy tale.

    "What are you doing?" She mumbled as I moved towards the pickup point as smoothly as I could. In other words, very.

    "Taking you to my pick-up."

    "You mean? No! I need to go to my safe house."

    "Can't leave you here, you're in no condition to evade Coil's men. But I'll make sure you're safe. Assuming you aren't lying of course."

    Lisa squirming in my arms. I wasn't entirely sure if she was trying to escape or get more secure. Probably the former though. I didn't release my grip, and she soon stilled. She was silent long enough for me to get most of the way to the East gate of the school.

    "This is a stupid idea," she hissed through clenched teeth.

    "You got a better one?"

    Silence.

    "You better not fuck up and get me killed." It might have been the migraine, but she sounded more petulant than angry at me.

    "If anyone is dumb enough to attack you, they will very quickly regret it."

    We only had to wait outside the gate for about two minutes before one of the more armoured PRT vans rocked up. My eyebrow raised as the side door opened to show several agents in full response gear, guns ready but not pointing at me. Us.

    "So... who's your girlfriend?"

    I blinked at the non-sequitur before the voice sunk into my brain. Of course.

    "Hello to you too, Subtle." I looked at the other troopers, but only one other seemed familiar. Of course, the riot gear did make identification troublesome. "New squadies then?"

    "A few, but more importantly, who is the girl. You'll be getting chewed out over the breach in protocol, so she better be worth rerouting my response team in the middle of this clusterfuck."

    Okay, so I may have been ignoring several procedures in my impromptu act of witness protection.

    "Thinker. She has info on the bombing and other important things that the Director needs to know." I looked at the other troopers again, wondering what the chances were. Time to be so straightforward that it loops around to devious. I poked Lisa and whispered, "I need you to look at the troopers."

    She grumbled something about torture, but did so anyway. Once she was blearily staring at them, I deployed my cunning plan. "Seeing as the Thinker is watching and can detect lies. Any of you work for Coil?"

    Fortunately, one didn't need to be a Thinker to pick out certain clues. Body language can be quite incriminating. Especially when said body language is the desperation-driven pointing of an assault rifle at a pair of teenage girls. I was already dodging to the side when one of the other troopers, I reckoned it was 'Lady', interceded on our behalf. For the uninitiated, intercession sounds painfully thump-like. I felt a little guilty when I heard the muffled cry of pain from the much jostled Lisa.

    Huh. Didn't think there would actually be one. "Well, that proves your suspicions at least."

    "What the fuck?" An incredulous, pained moan from Lisa was echoed by Sergeant Forester and one of the other guys in the van.

    "We've got moles," I answered with a grin.

    "Fuckin' hell. Okay get your smug ass in here and help restrain this bastard. We need to get moving pronto, and I have a nasty feeling that we're all going to be holed up in MS shit when we should be dealing with the other shit show."

    "Yeah, given that a Japanese sounding bomb tinker just blew up an E88 front, I expect it to escalate."

    I was met with silence as I took a seat, placing Lisa next to me and then practically cocooning the mole with my hair.

    "What? I said I had intel."

    Forester chuckled, shaking his head as he closed the door behind us. "You know Scary, you don't have to get me in on all the interesting jobs."

    "But where would be the fun in that?"
     
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