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Metroid Rebirth (Worm/Metroid)

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So, this arc is over after the next chapter, which is an interlude from the perspective of Optics.
 
...I think I implied it last time I talked about the more militant faction of the GF that somehow survived being lynched after Fusion, but I'll say it clearly this time:

GOD. FUCKING. DAMMIT.

What will it take for these dipshits to understand that these bioweapon projects are too wasteful in terms of resources? This shit is why Ridley keeps coming back from the grave!
 
well, earth bet is mad fucked
EVERYONE OUT OF THE UNIVERSE
in all seriousness, ridley with any shard power is terrifying
OOH
IMAGINE IF HE EATS THE S9
 
I kinda think Jareth might be either a designed successor or a backup of Rinke. He is, after all, named after the Goblin King.
 
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Restoration 3.k (Kenzie)
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    • Restoration 3.k (Kenzie)



    The offices of WEDGDG, better known as Watchdog, were hardly the worst places in the world to be, even if the mystery behind the acronym sat there unyielding like an itch. Just look at it? WEBDGDG. Kenzie was certain that there was something dog-related behind it. Why would they call it Watchdog otherwise? We Endure Dog Grilling Donut Guards? No, that sounded too silly, and the people in charge were way too serious for it to be that. The problem was, whenever she asked, she got the same answer. "It's classified." Ha. She couldn't even find any records of what the acronym was supposed to mean in the deepest databases of Watchdog, and she just knew that it was probably something juicy.

    Thinking about that was a way she occupied her time when she wasn't able to tinker, so that she wouldn't linger on bad thoughts. Being on an airplane with Jedediah was one of those times where she couldn't do much. Sure, she could come up with new ideas, but the past few days, her mind had been racing. The technology she'd seen through her cube had been inspiring. She had a million new things she wanted to try building, but she needed to meet with Hunter first, see the stuff first-hand. That Power Suit of hers and the software that it ran on was something out of this world. The energy output of it was so much more than any of her batteries, and she wanted to see if she could figure out a way to make copies of it.

    Maybe even make it better.

    "Stay still, Kenzie," Jedediah said. "I know you get antsy on planes, but we want to arrive in one piece."

    Kenzie nodded. "This is where she's from, isn't it?"

    The thinker in civilian form waggled his hand. "Numbers fluctuate about that answer. You'd think that it'd be a solid integer, but this is one of the ones where it's somewhere in between. She's a curiosity."

    Watchdog had managed to buy out an entire section of the plane and staff it with PRT Agents in plainclothes. Or were they officers? Kenzie never really was sure what the right word was. She just knew that the right word definitely was not Trooper. That was the name of a striker cape out in South Dakota. She'd gotten bored one day and decided to look it up. The plane they were in was on its way to Brockton Bay, the city that Hunter ostensibly was from. That was a funny word. Ostensibly. She'd read it on a form once, talking about how she was definitely a candidate for the Watchdog project. It was why she was working with Eleventh Hour—Jedediah, after all.

    This was all probably a prelude to another training camp. She really enjoyed doing the training camps. They helped her learn a lot, and they were always in some really cool areas. Luckily, none were anything like Ellisburg had been. Dragon may have "sanitized" the footage that Kenzie had initially seen, but she knew better. Many goblins had died, and she'd almost feel bad for them if she hadn't looked into the history there. Nilbog had been a very bad man.

    A bad man who was now dead, killed by someone that Hunter had called Ridley.

    The plane's fasten seatbelts sign came on, and as hers was already connected, she idly thought about how those could function better. She could put a box under every seat that verified whether a passenger had a seatbelt on or not, and she could make sure that they were secured with light straps. Straps made of light. They were stronger than normal seatbelt straps, of course. It didn't even have to be a big box for each seat. With the new ideas she had for power generation, she could probably make it much smaller. Maybe if she got to collaborate with Armsmaster in Brockton Bay, she'd be able to figure out how to make things even more efficient with her boxes. Of course, he'd have to learn something in return from her.

    Obviously, there was no reason why she wouldn't be willing to share. Hunter probably could too.

    The plane landed smoothly on the tarmac, and it taxied its way over to the terminal. She was so excited about this part of the trip. Brockton Bay was supposed to have a lot of capes, not just people in the Protectorate or the villains. There were hero groups too like New Wave, Second Sight, the Enforcers, and a few others that were listed as "other" on Brockton's informational pages on the PHO wiki. Sure, there were a lot of villains too, including some major racists.

    She'd have to be careful. Not only was she a tinker, but the racists would see her as someone who didn't belong because of her skin tone when not in costume. The Optics costume she wore didn't have much skin exposed, but she only had worn that for events and training camps. She hadn't even been wearing it when she'd helped Hunter out. Well, beyond the headpiece. It was good tech! She needed to be able to see what her drone was seeing plus every other feed she had, after all.

    The fasten seatbelt sign turned off, and Jedediah offered her his hand. She took it with a beaming smile to him. He really was like a big brother, or at least what she imagined a big brother would be like. He was a bit paler than he should have been, but his dark hair was slicked back, and he was probably in his late teens to early twenties. Maybe more of an uncle? Whichever. He was nice. Probably one of the nicer trainers she'd had.

    "Come on, kid," Jedediah said. "Commander Calvert's out there waiting for us."

    "Should we be wearing costumes?" Kenzie asked, and after getting shushed, she repeated her question, quieter. "Because if he's from the PRT, is he supposed to know who we are? Aren't secret identities a thing?"

    "He already does know who we are," Jedediah said. "And I suspect he put a cover story out for anyone else we're dealing with."

    He looked tired. Was that because of her? Or was it just because of the plane trip? It didn't matter, as they went off the plane and made their way toward the baggage claim. She was pretty sure she didn't have a whole lot here that she was allowed to bring. If she'd been allowed to bring everything, it'd probably have to be shipped by truck as some of her boxes got pretty big. They had to be in order to fit all the stuff inside. Yet another reason that she needed to talk with Armsmaster and work with him. Maybe he could help her make her boxes smaller. And then she could put those smaller boxes into bigger boxes, and then learn how to make them smaller so she could keep going. Boxes into boxes into cubes into boxes, no matter how box-like or cube-like she needed to go.

    Jedediah snapped his fingers in front of her face. "Kenzie don't go into a fugue on me. Keep an eye out for Commander Calvert."

    Kenzie did a quick look over the room. Looking for someone like this would be even faster if she had a direct link to her tech that she could access when not in costume. Maybe some sort of camera or something that could be put into a pair of glasses or some sort of contact lens that could overlay the eye. Or… maybe she was thinking too small. Maybe something even better. Maybe something to do with dimensions so that it could exist in the eye yet not in the eye. Cameras with screens that could be seen and operated by the person with it in their eye. That sounded cool. She'd just need to figure out and prototype it before she tested in the field.

    Assuming she got to go into the field. The PRT really had something like fifteen more trainings for her this year alone. Not that they weren't interesting. But they did take a lot of energy, and they cut away from her time to tinker. She liked having time to tinker.

    Ah. There he was. A tall, thin, somewhat lighter skinned black man dressed in a nice suit. He had a pair of glasses on, stylishly chosen to match the blue Italian suit. The smile on his face seemed slightly forced as he moved to greet them. Kenzie hadn't even needed to point him out. "Ah, Miss Martin, Mister Crowley, it is good to meet you in person. Welcome to Brockton Bay."

    "Commander Calvert, right?" Jedediah asked, and after the man nodded, Jedediah continued. "Good to meet you too. I know Kenzie's been looking forward to this trip."

    "I have!" Kenzie said. "So, Mister Commander Calvert person, what are you a commander of?"

    "Well, Commander was the rank that I hold within the PRT structure, Miss Martin," Commander Calvert said. "I work primarily as a freelancer now, and they allow me to retain my rank when performing functions within the PRT's purview. If the two of you would follow me, I have someone already picking up your bags."

    "Sure thing," Jedediah said. "Come on, Kenzie."

    Commander Calvert led them to a more private area of the airport, where not too many people were, and Kenzie could see that none of the cameras were pointing toward this area. Of course, the cameras she'd seen at this airport weren't great quality, and she knew she could make better ones in a heartbeat. She just wasn't allowed to beef up the cameras in a random airport, even one in Brockton Bay.

    "Now that we are in a safe area, we can speak plainly," Commander Calvert said. "Of course, I know who the two of you are, as I did invite you. There were several layers of security that covered your identities, but I do have appropriate clearance."

    "Yes, of course," Jedediah said, and Kenzie noticed that he had relaxed ever so slightly. "Why did you call us here?"

    "Well, you are here mostly as an escort for Miss Martin, Mister Crowley," Commander Calvert said. "She seems to like you, and a girl her age should never travel without an escort."

    Jedediah nodded. "She's a difficult one to wrangle. I don't mean that in an offensive way, Kenzie."

    Kenzie shook her head and moved to give the older man a hug. She'd make sure that everything was going to be okay for him. She made a mental note that she needed to check out what the Watchdog computers said that Eleventh Hour was going to need to deal with soon so she could give him some sort of heads up. Yes, he might have been a sort of precog, but that didn't mean that he couldn't use some help. Everyone could, after all.

    "After the events last week, I'm sure she must have been exhausted, and I saw that there were even more trainings put onto her schedule," Commander Calvert said. He shook his head and tsked. "Whoever is in charge of handling scheduling for you, Miss Martin, has not taken into account that you are a child of eight."

    "Almost nine," Kenzie said proudly. "I can handle it."

    "I'm sure you can," Commander Calvert said. "But I've spoken with some representatives at the Youth Guard, and they agree with my assessment. Too much training for someone your age is not necessarily a good thing. And given that you have already worked with Hunter, there may be a benefit to having you here in Brockton Bay rather than somewhere else."

    "She's being considered for a Watchdog project," Jedediah said. "Would she still be able to be considered for that if she were to be staying here?"

    "I would prefer it if the both of you were here," Commander Calvert said. "I have set up lodging for the two of you, actually."

    "Where would we be staying?" Jedediah asked.

    Kenzie decided that she'd let him and Commander Calvert have their discussion about the place they were staying. It was too boring for her to think about anyway. She pulled out her customized tablet, a compressed box with a screen on it, and she connected to the local wireless network. With a few quick strokes on the tablet's screen, she swiftly bypassed the security on the network, gaining access to the full internet. From there, she decided to push into the local PRT's records. There was information there that she was certain to need. Now that she was in town, it would be easier to handle than from WEDGDG computers, and since she wasn't on the PRT network, it would look like the access came from somewhere else.

    Before the stuff at Ellisburg, it looked like Hunter had gone to Canberra for the Simurgh attack. Shockingly little footage made it online from that attack, but what little that did looked very interesting. It looked like Earth got invaded by aliens, and Hunter knew exactly what they were. Kenzie knew that it would be a long time before she got called in for an Endbringer attack, and she was pretty sure she didn't want to go. But maybe she'd be able to provide tech to people that did go so they could have a better chance of coming back alive.

    There was still the risk that they wouldn't, and that meant that the tech she could give might get stolen. That wasn't a good thing. Her tech was her tech. Wait. She was getting sidetracked. Hunter. She wanted to know more about Hunter. The PRT records on her recorded by Deputy Director Renick and Director Piggot were not all that large, but there was a reference in there saying that Panacea confirmed the relationship between her and Ratcatcher, a Protectorate cape for Brockton Bay. Hunter was his daughter.

    Kenzie pulled up a picture of Ratcatcher on her tablet and immediately winced. He desperately needed a better costume. The rat control was cool though. She accessed his files, and she read through his record. Apparently, the man had triggered sometime in 2009, after his daughter went missing, and he got control of rats. Incredible control of rats. Now, in 2011, his daughter had shown up again. Just… older than she should have been. Hunter. Ratcatcher's civilian name was redacted, but Kenzie knew her way around those limitations. It really wasn't that big a deal to look into them. Name. Address. Phone number. Daniel Hebert. Daughter named Taylor Hebert. Taylor Hebert associated with the cape known as Hunter, also known as Samus Aran. She apparently was staying with her father, at the address which she copied down on her tablet.

    "Kenzie, what are you doing?" Jedediah asked, stepping up to her.

    "Um…" She looked down, a little guilty.

    "Come now, Mister Crowley," Commander Calvert said. "You cannot blame the girl for being curious. However, Miss Martin, I would suggest that you keep anything you have seen on that network to yourself. Not only for your own sake but for those who you looked into."

    Jedediah gave the commander a sharp look. "I'm responsible for her, sir."

    "And I am responsible for both of you. Clearly, Miss Martin has proven that local securities need to be upgraded again. Miss Martin, I will ask that you please remember how you managed to pull that off, as it will become important when you speak with some of your future colleagues later." Commander Calvert gestured toward the door. "Now, if the two of you please, your ride awaits. Unfortunately, I have pressing matters upon which I must attend to. But Jason should be able to get you to your accommodations."

    "Jason?" Kenzie asked as she followed Jedediah outside. Two dark-haired white men in suits and sunglasses followed behind them, carrying their bags for them. They came up to a dark black SUV with tinted windows.

    "Your driver," Commander Calvert said. "He prefers to use his first name rather than being formal. You will quickly discover he has many quirks."

    The passenger-side window of the SUV rolled down to reveal an Asian man in his early twenties with a wide grin on his face in the driver's seat. He wore a green hoodie halfway unzipped revealing a white wifebeater. Kenzie couldn't see his pants, but she could imagine that he might be wearing something equally as unprofessional.

    "Yo, Commander C! What up?" asked the driver.

    "Jason, I've got the people you're going to give a ride to here. This is Mister Jedediah Crowley and Miss Kenzie Martin. Mister Crowley, Miss Martin, this is Jason Mendoza." Commander Calvert gestured to the driver. "Don't let his demeanor fool you. He is a very qualified driver."

    "Gee, thank you, Commander C. Oh, dip, you didn't tell me that one of them was so little and cute," Jason said with a smile. "Sadly, according to the bylines and guidelines I have to follow, means you can't sit up front, little lady. Hop on in back. Jed, you can sit up front if you want."

    "I'll do that," he said, after he opened the back door and helped Kenzie inside. Then he took his own seat. He glanced out the window. "Thank you, Commander."

    "No, thank you, Mister Crowley," Commander Calvert said. "I will be contacting you at your flat to further discuss plans. Ultimately the goal will be to satisfy Youth Guard requirements and giving Miss Martin the best possible options available to her."

    "That sounds good, Mister Commander Calvert, sir," Kenzie said from the back seat as she buckled herself in. She tapped her tablet a few times, and she smiled at him. She'd make sure to do her research on the man later so she could know everything she needed to about the man who was sponsoring her. There really was no such thing as too much information. "Thank you."

    "Of course," Commander Calvert said. "I need to make sure that you two are quite comfortable. You will have your own work to do. Jason, make sure to take the scenic route. Show our guests the best parts of town."

    "You got it, boss," Jason said, and he closed the window once the trunk door was closed and Commander Calvert tapped the door with his hand. He looked at Kenzie in the mirror and then over to Jedediah. "So, Commander C wants you to see the city. I guess I'll show you what I know and what my boss showed me when I moved here."

    "Where'd you come here from?" Kenzie asked.

    "Florida," Jason said. "I came after my boy, Doug, took a strong hit from Florida Man that should have hit me." He tapped his fist against his breast and then kissed his fingertips and pressed them against the roof of the car. "RIP in peace, dude."

    "Sorry to hear that," Jedediah said. "So, where's the place you're showing us first."

    "Nah, no big," Jason said. "We're going to drive down near the Boardwalk. Great shopping, and you can see the Protectorate Headquarters rig thing from there. Even see the light bridge. It's really cool, and totally not something that you ever want to toss a Molotov cocktail at to try and blow up."

    Kenzie laughed. As if a Molotov cocktail would blow up the bridge. That sort of tinkertech was too resilient.

    "So, what about you two? If Commander C has you here, that makes you two… really important people, right?" Jason frowned. "A new Ward, maybe? Well, not you, Jed, but little Kenzie? Oh, dip. Kid, I'm sorry."

    "For what?" Kenzie asked.

    "You got powers. My boy in Jacksonville told me the shit he had to go through to get them," Jason said. Then he frowned. "Probably shouldn't say that around kids. The stuff. The shirt. Whatever. But it was bad. Worse than Florida Man bad. Worse than the Jaguars losing bad. And you're what, seven, eight?"

    "Almost nine," Kenzie said.

    Jason shook his head. "I'm sorry that you had to have whatever you had happen happen to get your powers and stuff. It's not right. Jed, sorry to you too if you have em."

    "You sure you don't have powers, Jason?" Jedediah asked.

    "Nah. I don't have the brain things. Or the brains. My doctor said that my brain was super smooth, yo, like an egg," Jason said. "But I really do hope that you two like it here. Brockton Bay's got some weird things with gangs, but stick with Commander C, and the PRT? You'll be good."

    "What about Hunter?" Kenzie asked.

    "Oh, armor lady? She's cool too," Jason said. "Haven't gotten to meet her in person yet, but I got to see the fight between her and Lung. She was awesome. I would love to have her in my dance crew. She's probably super flexible. And tall."

    "You have a dance crew?" Kenzie asked. "What do you dance to?"

    "Mostly EDM, some hip hop, and some other stuff," Jason said. "But it's hard to get the crew big enough with all the gangs. They keep getting taken. We're down to forty-five people now."

    Jedediah looked back at Kenzie and he mouthed for her to not follow-up on that question. "Where does the Commander have us staying?"

    "Oh, not too far from Arcadia Elementary," said Jason. "I think it's not a bad school, but I don't know. Schools aren't really things I'm interested in. Oh, look, there's the Boardwalk. During the summer, it's usually pretty full. Maybe three times the amount of people here. You know, double."

    "Right," Jedediah said.

    "The PHQ looks cool," Kenzie said. "And that light bridge is tinkertech, right?"

    "Yep! Don't drive on it without authorization. But if you're going to be a Ward, you probably won't go in there without one of the Protectorate peeps," said Jason. He then showed them more of the city on their way to the apartment building they were staying at. While he clearly wasn't the brightest person in the world, he was interesting and fun to talk to. He also never really spoke to Kenzie like she was a child, so Kenzie kind of liked him.

    She'd have to see how she could help him. Maybe she could locate Florida Man and send in a tip to the local Protectorate down there so that the guy who killed his friend Doug was caught. The man seemed nice enough, and there had to be something she could do for him. Especially if he ended up helping her eventually get to meet Hunter in person. Well. Taylor Hebert. Or rather… Samus Aran. That last name seemed to be the more appropriate one.

    She'd work with the Wards and maybe get to look at Hunter's Power Suit. Just seeing it from a drone had inspired her so much already. She could only imagine the inspiration she'd get from seeing it in person, and she wanted to talk with that AI some more.

    She just hoped it wouldn't take too long. Something told her that this Ridley guy that Hunter mentioned was going to make some trouble somewhere other than Ellisburg soon enough.

    The first question was "where?" and the second was "how could she help?"

    Because she fully intended to.
     
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    • Ganurath said:
    A vast improvement on Coil's canon driver.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Well, he's Calvert's driver, not Coil's. And not necessarily a personal driver.

    krayken said:
    Jason is a great character, though I swear I mistook him for a monk at some point...
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...

    Gee, I wonder why.

    Elipses said:
    Ooooooooooo!

    So you think he is Jason from that Place that is known for being Good?

    Yeah, I can see it.
    Click to expand...
    Click to shrink...


    He only has 45 people in his dance crew. How could he be from there?
     
    You know, I wonder how a certain ethics professor from Australia is taking the whole Simurgh thing?
     
    Revival 4.1
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    • Revival 4.1



    It might not have been the best idea to bring the goblins back to Brockton Bay with me. Of course, I hadn't actually gone back properly yet. Still, I felt responsible for them. They had survived the explosion of their hometown, and they were the only remaining members of their… subspecies. Then there was the issue of Polka's Metroid DNA. I couldn't let her run free, not knowing how to control what she could do, what she was. I was as responsible for taking care of her as I would be for taking care of her progenitor. Of course, the method of taking care of him would be much more permanent. This time.

    … Well, it better be permanent this time. This version of Ridley seemed more intelligent than the last clone. At least I assumed it was, given the Kraid-like goblin that I fought in Ellisburg prior to the detonations. Yes, it was possible, given convergent design, that Jamie Rinke produced the goblin, but in the past, Ridley had been shown to obtain abilities that he encountered. Given Polka's Metroid DNA, and what material Rinke had used to spawn her, this Ridley had Metroid DNA as well.

    Just what the heck was the Federation thinking this time? And where had they managed to obtain new DNA for Ridley to combine with the Metroid DNA? There shouldn't have been any left of either. But I'd been proven wrong before.

    I sighed, leaning back in my ship's chair as I ran another scan for additional Metroid DNA or Ridley on this planet, specifically the Eastern Seaboard of the United States. However, there weren't enough satellites for me to bounce signals off, and somehow, Ridley managed to hide himself from the scans. No news reports had come around reporting a giant purple space pterodactyl yet either.

    "Lady, it's been two weeks," Adam said. "Your father has been attempting to get into contact with you, your friend Emma has been trying to make contact, and Director Piggot has been attempting to as well."

    "What's wrong with that amount of time?" Polka asked, tearing herself away from another piece of ration that Jareth had given to her. "My queen makes decisions!"

    Jareth snorted. "She's worrying about what killed our King. She may have intended on performing the deed herself, but it was already done when she arrived."

    Perceptive thing, for a creation that, according to all records, wouldn't live that long. However, the bioscans that I'd performed on both goblins had indicated a stability to them that wasn't found in others that had existed in Ellisburg. Rinke had done something different when he'd created Jareth, and Polka was literally made from the Ridley clone's biomass. She was different, and it was possible she would mutate the way Metroids did. Right now, she was basically a baby, and she'd imprinted on me, similarly to the last baby Metroid that I'd encountered. The Baby had saved my life. By saving hers, perhaps I was attempting to return the favor.

    "Director Piggot is attempting to make contact once more, Lady," Adam said. "Shall I put her through?"

    I sighed and nodded. Adam made the connection, and the director of the PRT ENE's face came up on my ship's screen. She looked healthy, well, as healthy as she could look, given her condition, albeit stressed. I assumed she was able to see my own face on her screen as well, given she wasn't holding any sort of telephone.

    "Hunter, Adam said that you're finally ready to talk?" Piggot asked. Her eyes clearly were attempting to scan more than just my face as I spoke to her.

    I gave a quick glance at what was visible from my camera before nodding. Polka wasn't able to be seen.

    Piggot nodded. "I read your report about the destruction of Ellisburg, along with the reports of the others who were on the line with you. As much as I don't get along with the man, Calvert seemed an ideal person to be your point man for that mission."

    I tilted my head for her to go on.

    "I am impressed with the level of detail that your report contained," Piggot said, and then she held up a hand. "That Rinke was already dead when you got there was something that none of the thinkers were truly able to predict. Nor were the other actions that you took that day. Saving two of Rinke's creations from the explosion? You do understand how they are made, correct?"

    "Biomass from some sort of victim, either animal or human," I said, coughing after a second. My voice was a little on the scratchy side from disuse over the past couple weeks. "Or… some other protein source, as the case may be."

    Polka climbed the armrest of my seat, and she managed to pull up a cup of water for me, with some effort. I took a sip of the water, keeping Polka from the view of Piggot.

    "Yes. Many of the goblins in the town of Ellisburg were made from the remains of those who had once lived within it, as far as I was able to tell," Piggot said. "You might not know this, but I was part of the original PRT strike team that went into Ellisburg. I got to witness the horrors of the goblin horde firsthand."

    I nodded, allowing her to continue.

    "Nilbog had converted the town, killing people off to make his creations, and they could breed themselves further. We didn't know what we were getting into when we went in, and our team suffered for it. I was one of a very few members of the PRT that made it out alive." Piggot gave me a level stare. "Calvert was one of the others. I am not unhappy with the destruction of Ellisburg."

    Polka climbed up more on my armrest. Piggot's eyes flicked to her, indicating that the camera picked up the small Metroid hybrid.

    "You are responsible for the actions of the goblins you saved, Hunter," Piggot said, her lip curling slightly. She clearly didn't like that they existed. "I will request that you keep them under control."

    I nodded. "Anything else?"

    "Are you planning to return to Brockton Bay any time soon?"

    "Yes," I said. "But I believe I will need to set myself up with a new place to live. Additionally, a place to park my ship would be appreciated."

    "We can set up a place in the Protectorate HQ for your ship," Piggot said. "As for setting you up with an apartment, the bounty you received for Ellisburg and the one for the capture of Lung should be able to cover your initial rent and some furniture. I'm sure your father would be happy to accompany you."

    I nodded.

    "My Queen, what is an apartment?" Polka asked. "Is it like the ship?"

    "It is a living quarters, Polka," I said. "A place for us to stay that isn't the ship."

    "Oh," she said, and then she waved to Director Piggot. "Hello! I'm Polka, the third! Jareth is here too, and the spooky voice, Adam."

    Piggot sighed, and she looked intently at Polka. Then she met my eyes for a second. I saw weariness, fear, and a bit of trust in those eyes. Trust in me. "Polka, I am Director Piggot of the PRT East-North-East. Will you be good for Hunter? Your Queen? Will you listen to her?"

    Polka nodded rapidly, the orbs on her back shaking some in the process.

    "Good," she said. "Hunter, how much of a risk is the being that killed Rinke?"

    "Fully grown, Ridley could become anywhere between a city-wide to a planet-wide threat," I said. "It depends on how this one was… made."

    "Have Adam deliver me a dossier on what you can about this Ridley," she said. "I want to know what information I can pass my people. Additionally, I have a new assignment that you can handle."

    "Hmm?" I asked.

    "Lung is to be transported to the Birdcage within two days, but there may be an attempt to break him out of prison," Piggot said. "If you wouldn't mind escorting his transport to ensure that he arrives at the Birdcage safely, that would work. You would be compensated for your time, of course."

    The moment I nodded, there was a distortion in the broadcast, and an echo of some sort of explosion could be heard.

    Piggot let out a curse. "My capes will handle this issue; however, I want you back in Brockton Bay, Hunter. Return, pair up with Velocity to investigate these explosions, and stop whoever is behind them. Those are your orders."

    "I'm not one of your capes," I said.

    "No, but you are a bounty hunter. Your fee will be met. Any objections, Lady?"

    I nodded my ascent, and we disconnected.

    "Forgive me for interrupting," Jareth said. "But wouldn't the right move be to go away from the explosions? That was what you did with Ellisburg, was it not?"

    I just grinned and set a course for Brockton Bay. Whatever was going on there needed to be dealt with before Lung was to be taken into the Birdcage, whatever that was. We'd make our way back there.

    "Lady, you have another call," Adam said over the speaker. At the same time, a young dark-skinned girl's face appeared on the viewscreen. The upper half of her face was covered by a mask pulled up to reveal her mouth.

    "Oh wow! I wasn't sure that would work!" Optics said a grin wide on her face. She frowned when she saw me in the camera. "Oh. Wow. Uh. Did not expect you to not be wearing your helmet on the ship. That's cool. That's cool."

    "I did not authorize the connection, Lady," Adam said. "Optics bypassed the security system."

    I blinked. That was impressive. That she figured out how to go around the security that we had on this ship was well beyond what I was capable of at her age. That said, I doubted she could jump as high as I could back then. "Optics. Why call?"

    "Because you're awesome! And I'm in Brockton Bay now," Optics said, and then she reached up and removed the mask completely, revealing her to be a very young girl. She couldn't have been more than seven. "And since I've seen your face now, I'll show you mine. Hi, I'm Kenzie. Also known as Optics."

    "Samus Aran," I said. "Hunter. Taylor Hebert. Whichever." I genuinely didn't care about what people thought my name was. I knew who I was, and I knew what mattered.

    "Queen!" Polka added.

    "Oh, is that one of the goblins you saved?" Kenzie asked. "She's cute. What's with the orbs on her back though?"

    "I'm Polka! And they're my dots!" Polka said.

    I shushed her. "Complicated."

    "Oh… she's the one from the sac that had that fuzzy thing nearby," Kenzie said. She shook her head on screen. "Do you need help locating the other thing? I'm pretty good at finding things! They say my specialty is cameras, but they're not completely right. My specialty is boxes. Of all sorts."

    "Maybe we can meet when we get back to Brockton Bay," I said. I needed to figure a way to distract her from Ridley. If this version of Ridley was as intelligent as the original as opposed to the clone that had been on the Bottle Ship, he would not hesitate to try and use a child to get to me. "Perhaps at the PRT headquarters downtown. You did say you were there now, right?"

    "Uh huh!" Kenzie nodded rapidly. "I'm here with Eleventh Hour, and I'm going to be working with the local Wards. I'm supposed to be spending most of my time on console duty, but they are giving me more tinker options and Armsmaster is there and so is Kid Win so I can have help with some tinkering."

    I just nodded. I hadn't met Kid Win, but I assumed from the name that he was likely one of the child superheroes, like Kenzie was. I really didn't like that children were being allowed to fight those that were termed supervillains. Of course, I didn't really have a leg to stand on, as I'd begun my training on Zebes when I was only three. At least Kenzie would have people looking out for her.

    "Optics," Adam said. "I would ask that you refrain from bypassing security the next time you wish to speak with Lady. I do not wish to be forced to devote resources to keeping you out."

    "Sorry, Mr. Adam," Kenzie said, looking apologetic. "But I was so eager, and I saw that Director Piggot managed to talk with her, and I wanted to talk with her. You're awesome, Miss Aran!"

    I smiled. Then her screen rocked at the sound of an explosion, coming from somewhere nearby. Kenzie had even been jostled from her seat, and the lighting screwed up in the background. I blinked. "Kenzie, what just happened? Are you okay?"

    "I'm fine," she said, but she started looking around nervously. She muted herself and called out for someone. A man dressed in a costume with a timekeeping motif walked past the camera, clearly nervous. He glanced at something offscreen, and then he pointed at Kenzie. She pulled her mask on completely.

    The screen unmuted, and the man in the costume looked at the screen. The lower half of his face was covered by a bandana. "Hunter, my name is Eleventh Hour, and you're needed here in Brockton Bay. The explosions are close."

    "What are they?" I asked.

    He shrugged. "If you don't get back here, the danger level, especially for Optics, is an eight. With you here, that drops by half. And it halves again if Optics is with you directly. Please, come as quickly as you can."

    "We're on our way," I said, disconnecting the call. I kicked the ship into gear, flying at speed toward Brockton Bay. I increased to supersonic speeds so that we would arrive at the Protectorate Headquarters within half an hour. In the meantime… "Jareth, Polka, I'm going to ask that you two remain on the ship until I am able to clear you coming off."

    "Of course, Madam Hunter," Jareth said. "I will trust your orders."

    "Uh huh, my queen!" Polka agreed.

    "Lady, multiple explosions in a short proximity, at such strength may indicate the beginning of a spree," Adam said. "Oni Lee has been known to carry grenades."

    "Those weren't grenades," I said. The explosion shock waves had been too eruptive for any fragmentation grenade that wasn't in the room with the cameras. "Run a search on capes that can make bombs. It's possible there may be one."

    "Of course, Lady," Adam said. "There's a record here from six months ago. Cornell University was held up by a cape who made a bomb threat. Said cape has reappeared in Brockton Bay within the past three months. Associated with the ABB."

    I nodded, and I frowned. Was this person attempting to free Lung somehow? "Who is this cape?"

    "Vocal recognition from the called-in bomb threat have identified her as Katherine Yoshida," Adam said. "But she called herself Bakuda. A bomb tinker."

    Well. That worried me. I needed to get to Kenzie faster. My father could take care of himself, but she was eight. Maybe I'd get the chance to show this so-called bomb tinker what a real bomb was like.

    Assuming I could get authorization. I didn't want to blow up everything in Brockton Bay, after all.
     
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    • Piggot: "Super Bomb's are now authorized."

    Taymus: "you sure?"

    Piggot: "At least your explosives will have a standard yield we can rebuild off of."

    *nervous Taymus and Adam noises*
     
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