In an flat Area in the Forest of Philippines, a wooden cabin stood. Inside was a bed, a large water jug, a box containng food, another some clothes and a large backpack placed beside a small table with a stump for a chair. Yet what would stood out the most were the numerous weapons made of stone carved into knives, mace, axe, spears and other kinds of melee weapons placed below the left. A closer inspection would show that the weapons were placed with those of its kind showing an improvement in creation of the tools. Lastly there was a pieces of an armor arranged in a large table gauntlets, chestplate, boots and pants also made of Stone. A visitor ofthe cabin would undoubtedly find everything inside strange.
Yet anyone who stumbled into the cabin would mostly likely find their attention towards something else entirely. Standing at 6 meters was a giant of stone standing in front of the cabin and facing the river away from it. The giant was taking a ready stance arms facing the waist and legs planted firmly in the ground, If not for how rough it looked it could be mistaken as a statue or miraculous natural stone formation, a thought that
Is disabused as the giant began to slowly and surely move. Turning 90 degrees to the left it took a left front stance and blocking forward with its left arm before doing the same on its right side. Then the giant faced forward and unleash a punch as it stepped forward this was done eight times until closed the distance between the cabin and river. The Giant manuevered left and right like in the beginnning before Punching forward again until it reached back to its original position allowing someone with knowledge in Martial Arts to learn that the giant had just performed a basic Karate Kata.The giant made a small nod as if satisfied with its action before swiftly and strangely crumbling into a pile of rocks until its , what took its place was Earth in the shape of a man, before earth fell off off revealing a brown skinned and black haired boy with dark brown eyes. The boy Samson Road shaked his head in order to get rid of the remaining dust on his hair, then started taking deep breaths and exhales as if recovering after a tiring labor before heading inside the cabin pulling out a notebook and pen.
The notebook had Golem Training Log # 3 on the front page with Samson reviewing through his notes until he found his last log and started writing.
Log 70
I've Decided on the appearance of my Combat Armor to make creating it more efficient. Since my powers makes me stronger the more materials I use to make my armor I figured an armor than makes me about 3 times bigger should be good for combat. I'm confident that it can protect from most bullet and even explosives though I can see my Combat Armor getting broken and needing to fix up if something like an RPG hits it.
Log 75
Completed my Combat Armor. Still takes about half an Hour to make properly, but as far I can tell it lets me move as good as without any armor though understandably heavier. Practiced my Katas using it and I could do it pretty smoothly once I've gotten used to controlling my C.A.
Hmm Considering how Big it is I might be able to test if I can have my armor retain its shape even if I'm not wearing it.
76
Nope. Looks like my C.A. is mainly held together by my power once I'm not wearing it most it breaks apart though the Gauntlets and Boots actually remained attack. My theory is that my practice and study on how to properly make boots when I was still starting out made me good enough to make them last.
I'll need to see if I can make the rest of the armor last when not wearing it, Id make it easier to practice using my armor and maybe figured out some other tricks.
Log 82
Succeeded in making my Combat Armor Stay after removing myself from it. My theory about needing to foucs on hardening and connecting the parts so that the Armor would be like a statue when I don't wear it was right. After that it was being Careful and making sure I exited the armor without breaking it somehow, leaving my Armor by splitting it in the middle like a button shirt works as long as I'm careful and seal the armor back up before leaving.
Looking at my Combat Armor from outside I can see it's a bit ugly but it also gave a few idea on tricks I can try.
Log 83
The Armor I left in the base managed to last a few days without crumbling good.
Gonna Test If I can Move my Armor without wearing it.
I managed to make the Arms and head move as I was Touching it and while in my line of sight. Slower than when I'm wearing the armor and needed me to concentrate too. Though If I made the Armor Imitate my movements from range it was easier. Making it walk was possible to though the fact I wasn't wearing the armor meant I accidentally made it stumble into the ground and break since I couldn't move it as well as when I was wearing.
Lastly it was obvious but I confirmed that controlling the armor remotely doesn't enhance my strenght and toughness since I was able to make a small cut in my fingers unlike when I was wearing stone boots which was enough to stop me from slicing my hand.
The Limitations means its still far better for me to wear the armor instead of remotely controlling it though. But it's still a good trick and more practice might make it easier for me to control my armor remotely.
Gonna need to do more training and test tomorrow.
//////////
A.N.: A short of Samson Teenage Training grounds and his practice that lead to him creating Giant Armor for combat. Super Strenght makes it really easy for backbreaking Labor and as long your not planning for anything fancy, A cabin after chopping up some trees works it even makes for good training.
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A Stage Slightly To The Left: Altered Ambrosia — Kermie
A Stage Slightly To The Left: Altered Ambrosia
By Kermie
What if… we had chosen differently in Project Prometheus? Horizon, City Of Leviathan's Rest — Uni District
You are Mona Merola-Morales, and right now you are gliding at a leisurely pace. New Dawn moves fast, with the pace that you'd expect from such experienced heroes, but you move faster. You suppose if you actually started flapping your wings, you'd be able to get to the scene faster… but then they'd get left behind.
Behind you, the rest of New Dawn is keeping pace. "Geez kid, do you have to go so fast!?" Miss Naught yells, "You can swim, fly, and run! It's absurd!"
Dreamcatcher vaults over a car with surprising ease, and responds back. "Well, it's either that or we get here too slow! Somebody, cover me!"
"Eyes up, both of you!" Gentleman James yells out, barely dodging a musket shot from one of Dollman's creations. Up above a building, you can clearly see Marie Marionette and Dollman laughing their heads off.
Palisade throws a beautiful uppercut to a doll's head, right before diverting a force field over to Dreamcatcher. She taps one of her comms, before delivering a message to you. "Chimera, can you get to Marie and Dollman fast enough?"
You respond back, flying just above Marie's range. A doll shoots a bullet at you, but you deflect it with a swat of your scaled arms. "I've got eyes on the two, but I don't think that we can engage yet."
Your draconic eyes narrow, and your nostrils flare a bit. "Tell the others to not hurt the dolls at all! There's civilians in there- I can sense the panic and blood coming off of them."
Palisade curses, but manages to divert the New Dawn members a bit farther down the battlefield. You faintly hear Dreamcatcher screaming (he must have dreamed of Maddie's spiders again) and Gentleman James creating a makeshift blockade of chains.
A couple of the non-human dolls fly up towards you, outfitted with makeshift jetpacks- the second that you don't smell blood, you summon up razor-sharp teeth and bite down. You tap your comms one more time. "Wolong! Do you have any info on Marie's power?"
On his end, you hear the sound of absurdly fast typing and more than a few papers being rustled. "Chimera- there's a few records here. Marie Marionette's power works by controlling the water in someone's veins."
"Got it!"
You clutch your wings together and dive in, aiming for the gothic-dressed woman. She reaches out a hand towards you, but as she does, you grab the arm which she manipulates first— and completely close off your blood circulation, dragonscale jabbing deep into your arm. You rip off the arm, and throw it straight at her face. It'll regrow later after all.
She doesn't expect it, nor does Dollman expect it as you dive onto the building, open your draconic mouth, and shoot a huge blast of lightning (thanks Lady Leizi) at him. As they both fall down, unconscious, you distantly hear Miss Naught report the civilians being freed from Marie's control.
All in a day's work for a hero like you, then. Name: Chimera, Mona Merola-Morales Keywords:Autobioknesis, Enhanced Strength, Enhanced Senses, Enhanced Speed, Flight, (Variable Keywords) Side Effect: Permanent Dysmorphic Transformation Faction: Justice Unlimited Potency: 13 Plan Referenced: Chimera [Red Huntress+Crimson Soprano+Daggermaw+Soldier X+Adamant] Stats: HIT 9-12, ESPIONAGE 3-7, REPUTATION 9, OPERATIONS 4
Ibis' Notes: Mona has developed a dysmorphic appearance, where she takes the appearance of a humanoid dragon. Or draconid, or dragonborn. I dunno, I don't play D&D as much as I do Shadowrun.
Her physical powers are great- while she can't breathe fire, her entire body is a constantly-shifting and adapting redundancy, armored around the outside by a constantly-regenerating material we've chosen to call "dragonscale". She can fly and run at the speed of sound, and can lift multiple tons of weight without much effort. Aside from that, Mona can also sense many things within 5 miles of her with decent effort. However, she excels in two things: she can sense when a medium-large vibration or movement has been triggered, and she can also smell the scent of blood (petrichor, I believe it's called) over large distances, like a shark.
Abilities:
Chimera
When Mona touches a metahuman with a power that she can replicate via a mutation (non-psychic), she gains a variable buff to either her HIT or ESPIONAGE until the end of the mission.
All-In Adaptation
At the cost of taking one injury level (this damage cannot kill her) Mona can gain a +5 bonus until end of mission against one type of harm. When she is hit by that type of attack, she instead recovers one injury level. Horizon, City Of Leviathan's Rest — French Quarter
Then, Scarlet Maturity moves. He's fast, so much faster than your mind can believe something that large can be. He shakes the earth as he leaps forward, but he's so quick he gets there before you feel the tremor. He raises his right arm and swings at you with the most casual of backhand strikes.
Hiver and Rhys save you.
First, Hiver sends you back, a beam of light and a shift in gravity just barely pushing you out of the way of the fist proper. But the air is still about to hit you.
Then, a bright white barrier flares to life just in time. Scarlet Maturity's backhand strike… stops. Scarlet Maturity makes a noise that almost sounds like confusion. Faust just raises an eyebrow. "Interesting."
The barrier flexes, before turning inside-out and encroaching on Scarlet Maturity. The hulking red giant barely has time to blink before the psychic force of the force field pushes him against a wall.
It won't stop Scarlet Maturity for long. But Ete and Primtemps are shocked— time to grab Hiver and run!
As you grab Hiver's hand and just barely dodge a swing from one of Ete's flaming soldiers, you hear something. Not from the chaos erupting all around you. From inside your head.
How'd I do, boss? We're evacuating the civilians as we speak!
You smile, as you jump out the window with Hiver in tow. "You did great, Bodyguard! Definitely lived up to your title— remind me to give you a raise!"
We can discuss that later! Get on the Nevermores— me and Maddie parked them 20 meters to the left!
"Lady Leizi, who the heck are you talking to?"
"I'll explain in a second, Hiver!"
The walls behind you explode, as Scarlet Maturity roars into battle and receives a flying tackle from Chimera in return.
It was definitely a good idea to give Rhys the ability to support you from afar. Actually, you're pretty sure that him and Maddie are already trying to intercept any other POWERS members that could have been teleported here by Shell Game as you speak. Name: Bodyguard, Rhys Gardner Keywords: Force Fields, Transformation, Clairvoyance Side Effect: Moderate Psychic Field Sensitivity Faction: Justice Unlimited Potency: 9 Plan Referenced: Artificer [Mister Hunch+Dragonsteeth+Chatroom+Multiplex] Stats: HIT 6, ESPIONAGE 5, REPUTATION 3, OPERATIONS 7
Ibis' Notes: Rhys's power allows him to create force fields within a 50-yard radius of himself, and also gives him the ability to create psychic connections with anybody he touches. Using this psychic connection, Rhys can transmit basic messages and share sights. Anybody underneath this network then gets their own 50 yard radius from which Rhys can spawn force fields from. The force fields that Rhys spawns can also be shaped into an offensive tool as well, spawning knives and spikes at will. The more force fields Rhys spawns, the more easily they can be broken through.
One more interesting thing about this power is that for some reason, constructs that can be spawned by metahuman activities are considered separate people that are still part of his psychic network. As such, he could give a field to Maddie, and then spawn another forcefield 200 yards away once one of her Nevermores has covered enough distance. How does this work!? The illustrious Dr. Ibis must know!
Abilities:
Construct Amplification
If another metahuman uses [Construct Creation], [Autonomous Construct Creation], or a derivative of either, Rhys may shroud that construct inside a force field. That metahuman gains +3 to either HIT or OPERATIONS as long as that construct lives. Up to two of these "enhancement fields" may be active simultaneously, and using these fields will weaken Rhys' force fields. Horizon, City of Leviathan's Rest -- The Apiary
January 9, 2068
You are Lady Leizi. The next evening after your third dose of Ambrosia has John Henry joining you in your office after a full day of power testing. He walks in carrying a large case with an easygoing grin. You set down Dr. Mammoth Ibis' report, having just received it.
"John Henry," you say, greeting him, "I'm afraid I haven't yet had time to review the results of your testing today."
He sets down his case and sits on the opposite side of your desk. "It's part of why I'm here, Zixuan. Nothing like a first-hand account."
You gesture for him to continue. "Very well, please enlighten me."
"It's fascinating, seeing how all of the various powers we used mix together," he says, "Obviously, I'm able to control winds to let me fly. But while we didn't develop a psychic power since there was no [Clairvoyance], apparently Crimson Soprano's [Solar Absorption] combined with Automne's [Elemental Manipulation] to make something new."
John holds out his hand. A ball of lightning seems to surround his right, and he flies the ball of plasma around the room just by simply rotating his hand. "[Fundamental Force Manipulation]. I can control electromagnetism in order to create electricity."
You grin. "Well, that's certainly interesting, if a bit too similar for my power for my taste. But go on, I know there must be something more."
"Certainly." John pulls out his screen, and shows you a video. In it, you can see the "powered" section of the Apiary's gym… underneath a downpour. Ibis is screaming to get his recording equipment to somewhere safe, and Rhys is putting up a force field above John's family as a small umbrella. "I can also create clouds and storms within a hundred-yard radius, similar to how Automne could do it. I'm pretty sure that I can whip up hurricane-force winds, but we didn't do that just in case."
"This seems amazing, John. Is there anything else that I should know about?" you ask.
He returns the ball of lightning to his hand, and dissipates it. "Yeah. Just like some other metahumans, I have a small pool of "energy" that I need to use in order to generate all of this electricity. Thankfully, I can recharge that power by absorbing the electricity from the storms or by being underneath any sort of light. Or I can expend more energy than normal to do… this."
A bolt of lightning comes out from John's hand, and before you can blink, it hits the floor. Once you open your eyes, there's a message made of light, floating in the air: "Cool, isn't it?"
"Temporary light constructs," John explains, "since electromagnetism encompasses light as well. I was able to cover the whole roof of the gym. We could probably use this to coordinate the battlefield once we get down a secret code."
Are you grinning? Yes, you're grinning. "John, that's the least of what we can do. All that we need now is a way to hide your identity…" Name: Tesla, John Henry Rhodes Keywords: Fundamental Force Manipulation, Elemental Manipulation, Flight Side Effect: None Faction: Justice Unlimited Potency: 10 Plan Referenced: Soft Element [Automne+Crimson Soprano] Stats: HIT 7, ESPIONAGE 4, REPUTATION 6, OPERATIONS 6
Ibis' Notes:
John can control both lightning and conjure up storms within a hundred yard radius. He can also fly at about the speed of… a pretty fast fighter jet, though not any faster. When he puts out his hands, he can emanate lightning from them and control which way it goes within a short distance. Like a tesla!
John also has control over electromagnetism at a finer level. While he has to absorb light or electricity of any type in order to use his powers to their fullest, he can also create temporary illusions or messages made of light. These "constructs" are not solid, can only do one simple thing and disappear with a touch, but serve as a form of light that John can absorb. Author's Note:
While this one is slightly less imaginative than Goldnine-Soaked Dreams, I still had a lot of fun writing it. Hope this encourages you to make your own Ambrosia plan if you haven't already!
Author's Note:
Did you think I was done today with just one Omake? Hah, skill issue! Guess who's got two more Candidates for the pile.
Candidate Mu Name: Akasuki Bashira Age: 36 Stats: HIT 1, ESPIONAGE 4, REPUTATION 3, OPERATIONS 4 Tolerance: 5 Chaucer's Notes: Akasuki is a businessman hailing from the Corporate Playground, who found us after this round of screening for Project Prometheus. He says that he wants to be one of the support staff for the Apiary, but that he's also willing to do whatever it takes to make sure that his friends are safe. His work ethic is also very strong as well: he's been reported to be one of the most reliable workers to ask if you need some mentoring if you're new. Lady Leizi: While he does it under a pseudonym, he also runs a blog called "What Is…", a blog which focuses on what can best be described as "very strange metahuman power interactions". For example, what happens when a time reversal power and an aging power interact. "What is the latest ******** that AGL has been spouting?" has been a running gag and now a call to action on his blog, so at the very least we know that he's definitely willing to fight Crusade. Aside from that, his calm attitude and thoughtful insights would make him a good back-line/support hero. Kermie's Note: While I haven't developed Akasuki much, unlike the Naruto villains who he shares a name with, he's honestly very chill despite being a top-tier combatant- Larry from Pokemon Scarlet and Violet was one of my biggest inspirations for him. If this was a videogame, he'd be a terrifying boss battle... who would probably play a nice game of chess with you the second he's off the clock. The blog that he has is a reference to XKCD's "What If?". You might remember that from the "Light Speed Baseball" example that was brought up a few times around Faustian 4. Disclaimer from Kermie:
This next sheet contains pretty big spoilers from the most recent chapter (2.4) of the quest I'm making, Perhaps For Love, or Maybe Justice. As such, if you read that quest or are even vaguely interested in reading it, stop right now and read that first.
With that being said…
Candidate Nu Name: Kirata "Kira" Kuromi Age: 23 Stats: HIT 1, ESPIONAGE 4, REPUTATION 3, OPERATIONS 7 Tolerance: 3 Chaucer's Notes: A well-known teen genius, Kirata was screened in on Dr. Massive Ibis's recommendation, as she was a "kindred and brilliant spirit". Kira denies the kindred part, in case you're wondering. From such a young age, she already has a doctorate in medical sciences and is gunning for another in either prosthetics or neuroscience. She's a constant advocate for more medical accessibility, as a treatment from Qsanyin cured her Lupus. She's the big sister to another candidate I believe we've been considering- Himari Kuromi. Lady Leizi:…she reminds me a bit too much of Nora. I'm not sure whether that comforts or disturbs me. But personal biases from me aside, she does have a good heart beneath it all. Despite coming from a rich family, her parents were allegedly quite good before their deaths a few years ago in a villain attack. They taught her that wealth and knowledge are something to be shared. She studies doctorates with the intent of pushing medical research to newer, more convenient heights, and so both she and her sister can retire old, rich, and in peace.
Kermie's Note: If we have both Kira and Himari, their dynamic should be like Aang and Sokka's. Apart they're both extremely intelligent and very successful. Together, they're two goofballs.
No other comments from me.
I'm starting to feel a little left behind with my whole one submitted character. Two, if you're generous enough to count Kimi as a mystery box. Hope you don't mind me adding a couple more of my TTRPG girls to the roster.
Candidate "Chariot"
Name: Aki Amachi Age: 20 Stats:
HIT 3 (Kendo and Stuntwork)
ESPIONAGE 1 (Has Never Heard of Opsec)
REPUTATION 5 (Shooting Sentai Stardom!)
OPERATIONS 3 (Can Handle Any Fan Meeting) Tolerance: 6 (12 Stats for 6 Tolerance matches Rhys' statline.) Chaucer's Notes:Aki is the actress behind the character of Yellow Comet in the live-action sentai series known as Shooting Star Saviors. I've been informed by Maddie that said series is "really mid". Notably, Aki is the only member of the main cast who performs her own stuntwork and fighting scenes, owing to her extensive background of Kendo during her school years. This talent is likely the reason why she's among the more popular members of her show despite only being the childhood friend to the real protagonist.
Our initial experience with Aki was from her company reaching out to us to begin filming for their show within the Apiary. During discussions, Aki was quite happy to compliment us for continuing to fight regardless of hard times, and would independently message us saying she'd be willing to collaborate on future projects. Lady Leizi:Her becoming an actress was a very sudden change in path, I've been told. She was shaping up to become a full-fledged Kendo player, had her sister Aya not abandoned home due to conflict stemming from a failed school entrance exam. Joining Shooting Star Saviors was her attempt to reconnect with her one day.
Pitchouli's Notes: One of my first characters in the same TTRPG system, the entire plot of Aki becoming an actress because she wanted to find her missing sister was sort of a spur-of-the-moment plot decision I never really built up before just dropping it. While that campaign ultimately petered out, the resulting plotline from that one backstory reveal was still a very fun time, if I do say so myself. Also, Aki's sentai character was the Lightning-elemental wielder specializing in spears, if this was pertinent information for you to know. The legal team insists there is no connection between her and Leizi.
Candidate "Temperance"
Name: Keri Rachel Age: 26 Stats:
HIT 1 (Mere Child Wrangler)
ESPIONAGE 3 (Vigiliant Against Stolen Answerkeys)
REPUTATION 3 (A Respected Teacher...'s Assistant)
OPERATIONS 7 (Master of Endless Obligations, with a Chemistry Degree) Tolerance: 4 (14 Stats for 4 Tolerance) Chaucer's Notes: A local chemistry graduate, Keri has become a teaching assistant at a local high school and has evidently taken to her job very well. Talks with her coworkers has more than proven that she will gladly lend her aid to anybody at the drop of a hat, giving her a distinct aura of friendliness among a select few who actually interact with her.
Keri has recently started attempting to outreach to more children in her off-time, leading her to try tutoring some of them... one of which was none other than Madeline du Marseille. There has perhaps thankfully been no further communication between the two so far. Lady Leizi:Taking on every request that you receive is already stretching her thin, so to set her up to become a hero would likely end up with her schedule hitting a breaking point somewhere. Heroes don't get much time to themselves to begin with...
Pitchouli's Notes: A female candidate without a Japanese name? Blasphemy, I know. If her Candidate name didn't give it away, Keri is a very archetypical Temperance as someone who ends up taking a lot of obligations to their own detriment, hence a rather min-maxed Operations character. Unfortunately, the game she was a part of was simply not very long-lived, so she lacks the same sort of detailing my others do. I can note that her Persona was a representation of the steps of alchemy, but that's sort of it.
Sorry for stealing the style and I don't know how certain things get named so I'm taking a little bit of a wing at it if there's any issues I'd be happy to fix em
Candidate "itztli Calavera "
Name: Victor Valentino Del Rivera Age: 34 Stats:
HIT 4 (body training and Stunt-work)
ESPIONAGE 2 (Has a good deal of minor secret to keeping just not to a super level)
REPUTATION 7 (Star of the three roped stage and of screen)
OPERATIONS 2 ( Can be led around a Fan Meeting) Tolerance: 3 (I think this right plus we can boost to like 5 right) Chaucer's Notes:Mr.Valentino Del Rivera comes from a long line of Mexican Pro-wrestles who also often preformed as relatively, well know movie stars in the Spanish language Sphere. A Tradition Victor continued playing a number of heroes ,villains monsters in various productions. Maddie wanted me to added he is the main suit actor for "Xolotl vs the world" that she enjoys & that I have concerns about the age-appropriateness of her watching them. He first came to our attention in the wake of the Movement. He came to our fair city hoping to help fund relief efforts for the numerous issues the sprang up in its wake, in particular he was very concerned about families of those heroes killed in stopping the leviathan from truly waking. After some light questioning as to why, he revealed he is a Twin brother of Minor hero Golden Skull. And while he is no world famous mega-star he brings with him a good amount worldwide good will Lady Leizi:Grief is a strong motivation, but Knowing the very little of Golden Skull that I do that makes sense. He was always one of the heroes who embraced the theatrics of the job, and have a background in an actor family would fit. While he may not have too much real fight experience he has kept fit and strong almost being able to be mistaken for a man 10 years his junior
Daedalus's Notes: what can I say I love Luchadors , few things look ass cool as a Luchadors in suits, the idea behind his stats are to have a pretty strong Rep hero , my imagining of his fame is like the nick cage & the rock where a single guy but mostly only did movies in Spanish, also had the idea because I have watched santo movies earlier this year and those are basically early superhero films with a wrestling match in parts of it.
Log 90
Succeeded in Managing to control my armor smoothly move remotely. I can make it Walk, Run Punch, Kick and Jump easily now. That Said I still need to have clear line of sight and firm Image on how I want the armor to move. Meaning the farther away it is from me the harder and rougher the armors movements become.
Next Log will to be to see if I can move multiple armors.
Log 91
I decided to spend the day making Combat Armors instead. For me to Practice Remote control on and also too see how Tiring remaking my Armors again and again while making sure the Armor doesn't crumble while I'm not wearing it..
Answer is pretty Tiring that said as expected it's a good way for me to get better at making the armor, not to mention it lets me see just how better I get with practice and how worse my Combat Armors become when I'm too tired to make them properly. Last armor for the Day was basically so shoddy that It toppled over and broke with a simple push. Gonna need to rest for a few after this, a good way to see how long my mass produced armors last atleast.
Log 91
Nope, Controlling More than 1 armor is too difficult my head feels like its splitting and started feeling dizzy quick which just lead to the armors breaking due me messing up their movements. At the very least the way I control my armor right now is simply Imagining how it moves when I wear it, which makes controlling more than 1 too difficult.
I guess I could change how I control my armor, but at the end of the day I feel like mastering how to wield 1 armor that I'm wearing Is far better than simply being adequate at controlling multiple armors.
I think its more fun for me atleast. Especially after All the armors I made last time broke easily from trying to control multiple of them at once. And Honestly It felt more like I was just switching between which Armor I controlled when I try to control more than one instead of controllling multiple 1 at the same time.
I might try to practice it Multiple control from time to time. But I feel like its better for me to improve how I make my armor, how fast I make them, Modifying my armor while wearing it, and just focus on 1 remote controlled armor.
Armors Managed to last the Whole weekend with only the ones I made last and when tired showing real sign of damage atleast.
Log 92
Spent the day rebuilding my Armor Stock, Still tiring but hopefully it's a good training in making better armor.
93.
Spent the day Training Remote Control. Managed to stress Test how Good my armors are when I remote control them.
Seems like while I can be more reckless when using Remote Control since theres no risk for me to get hurt, my Armor arent as tough or strong as when I'm wearing them. Especially the farther they are from me.
Just theory about apart from still not being used to Remote Control, I think its because the distance create a "Lag" of my when my Power is travelling the distance from my myself to the armor.
Anyways with this I'm satisfied with Remote Control. I'll still train it from time to time but I I'm gonna focus back on Actually tricks I can use when actually wearing the armor.
////////////////
A.N. More logs this time Samson trying to see how viable being a minion master is to him, Then going nope and deciding to focus on just improving on 1 armor, which is gonna lead to him seeing if he can control giant armor.
A Stage Slightly To The Left: Goldnine Soaked Dreams II - Kermie
Her issues grew as she was in charge for longer and longer. She never should have been the leader and knew it, and her issues only got worse over time until the compassion was sanded away.
After John's recent administration of Ambrosia, (you all heard him wake up in the middle of the night after Bulwark's complaining) you've been trying to no avail to figure out how these people from your Ambrosia got into your head. No luck with that, however.
Instead, you've been telling your DNA donors (Maddie calls them your headmates, John and Ibis are debating on whether to name them Traces or Imprints) about your most recent object of frustration.
Ellie.
The streets inside your mind are well-lit today, black sky lit by a bright, glowing black hole. Everyone in your head has tried and failed to figure out how it glows, without any success. But it provides a good light as you walk down the empty city streets alongside the man you consider your second mentor. Steadfast.
"And then she called me a jerk for talking to her! Which, rude!"
Steadfast walks at a brisk pace, keeping up with you as you hover through the air in costume. "I mean, you made a horrible first impression, what with accidentally insulting her. That's why you should always read the after-action report."
"You sound like Lady Leizi." you manage to groan out.
"Well, send her my regards. Though if I have to be honest, everybody here can tell that you're attracted to this Ellie girl—"
Before you seriously consider flying into the black hole up there, a deafening boom interrupts your thoughts. You look up. It's Novalight and Crimson Soprano having a spar. A giant chunk of building falls onto Steadfast, but it just breaks apart on his head.
Steadfast looks at you, a bit amused. "Hm. Guess we can talk later. Go, have some fun."
"Alright, but I just want you to know that I'm not attracted to Ellie! Whatever you thought you saw, you didn't!"
"I heard from my son that Uiara said the exact same thing about Valiant Silver—" Nope. You fly up and away, Steadfast's voice draining away into the darkness.
As you ascend past black and yellow lit skyscraper windows, you catch sight of her. Novalight. Crimson Soprano faces her, drawing power from the black hole as a replacement for the sun.
Across from them, you see Soldier X standing on a building nearby, arms crossed. The well-built woman turns to you. "Mona. Novalight offered us an agreement. Go talk with her."
"Thanks! I will!"
As you approach Novalight, you distantly realize that unlike you, she's not in costume, simply floating a generic t-shirt and pair of jeans. Crimson Soprano almost looks a bit silly compared to her, bright colors contrasting with the rest of the dream-environment. She turns her head to you, an intimidating tone clear as she speaks.
"Mona. I wanted to talk."
"Are you going to try and blast me away again?" you ask, a bit of suspicion creeping into your voice, "or chase me down at supersonic speeds?"
She simply shakes her head. "I was just practicing with Bidu over here. I'd like to teach you a few things, so that you can be prepared for what comes next. You're going up against what could be the Leviathan and the Frozen Throne. Admit it, you need all the help you can get."
Crimson Soprano flies right behind you. "She's not lying. She hasn't tried anything nasty against me, and besides, you can't die in this dream. Best take this opportunity before she gets into one of her moods again." And with that, she flies off to join her teammate on the building roof.
You turn to Novalight. "Fine then. I accept. You better teach me something super awesome though, or I'm leaving."
She sighs, and you notice something. She's got… bags underneath her eyes. Huh.
Novalight raises a hand up. "Alright, first let's start with target practice. I'll be starting with the speed of a car, and slowly wind up to sonic speed. Your job is to hit me without even hitting a single one of the skyscrapers below us. Begin!"
She flies to the side, shooting a few warning bolts of heat as a distraction. You strafe diagonally and downwards, before landing a finger blast to her chest. She flinches back a bit, before giving a tiny smile and speeding up. "Good. Now, as we're training, I'd best get up to speed with you."
"You're not funny for that pun, y'know!" you tell, as you chase her through the winding skyscrapers.
She does a loop de loop over you, and you just barely manage to turn around and counter a heat blast from her with one of your own. "Wasn't intended. It's just that I haven't gotten much time to speak with you. But Crimson Soprano told me the basics. What is your problem with Ellie?"
You angrily launch a bolt at her, which she sidesteps. It falls into the street below, blowing up a nonsensical street sign. Who the frick does she think she is, asking that question?! "Nothing you need to know."
Novalight returns fire, scoffing. "Focus. That blast you just sent out could have hit a civilian in a real combat situation. Do not make that mistake. And Ellie will be one of your teammates, so—"
With a sudden burst of speed, she flies right past you. You just barely hear her as she flies past your head. "Why are you treating her the same way I treated her mother?"
You fly down, shooting another blast from your fingers up. "Who are you to say that?! And besides, I'm not you!"
She sighs, tilting her head an inch to dodge your attack. "You're not. And that makes you repeating my mistakes even worse to see. New Dawn is breaking up— was always broken— because of the conflicts between my faction and Heavenly's."
It's honestly heartbreaking; the second worst person you know just made a great point. (The title of worst goes to Scarlet Maturity.) "…so?"
"So you can't be arguing over nothing or treating her badly just because she's grieving!" she barks out, clearly just a bit annoyed, "Both of you are going to be the pillars of Justice Unlimited, what with your high Tolerances. Breaking it up spells disaster for everyone; you'll bring out the worst in each other."
You bite back a sigh. Frick, this sucks.
…but she's definitely given you a bit to think on.
"…can we just get back to training? I missed when I was able to shoot you."
"I'll stop talking when you land a hit." she drawls out.
"Alright then, here I come!" 10:00 PM
Mona's Dreamscape — January 9, 2068
You are Lamar Thompson. As the training finishes and Mona drifts further into sleep, her visage dissipates, leaving only you and your fellow friends inside the Ambrosia to occupy this strange mindscape. You distantly hear Soldier X and Crimson Soprano leaving to go check out something else. Leaving only you and…
Yelena floats down from behind you. As she slowly steps down from flight, you notice how… tired she looks. "Lamar."
"Yelena."
While Bidu and X definitely have a negative opinion of Yelena, the fact remains that she was genuinely one of your best friends for a while. She doesn't look nearly as wound up as she was during her days leading New Dawn. It's nice to be able to talk with her on even footing for once in a while. "What do you think about Mona?"
She sighs, facepalming. "Agh, I don't even know what I was thinking during those first few weeks of confusion. Chasing her down for being better than me— same as with Yu, just a lot more physical. She's definitely quite an energetic young lady, though."
You nod impartially, before leaning against a wall. "Definitely. And she could probably rival King with enough training."
"She'll outlive King by decades, eons even. Hell, I wouldn't be surprised if she manages to outlive us! She might end up as the strongest metahuman ever."
She chuckles a bit. It's a sound you didn't think you'd ever hear again in your life— technically it took both your deaths for it to happen. But then her expression turns serious, and you can see the bags underneath her eyes. "But I'm glad for that. Lamar, I left behind nothing. If it wasn't for Wolong, New Dawn would be nothing more than a husk right now. Horizon's going to need somebody like her to carry the slack in the next few years."
"It is a bit of a husk already. Wolong's been running himself ragged from what I've heard at our card nights."
She turns away, a bit ashamed. When she speaks again, it's quieter. "I just hope that she can be different than me. She's got what I never had, that Valiant Red did. That strange, indefinable ability to be a leader. I'm just worried that she'll take up everything on her shoulders like I did. I'm just worried that she'll restart the rivalry between me and Heavenly Astrologian with her and Ellie."
For a second, you think of your son. Rakeem. How him becoming a hero like you was honestly terrifying at first.
"…all we can do is hope that what we teach the ones we love today can help them be better in the future."
She takes a deep breath out, and nods. "That's definitely a wise piece of advice. Heard it from Rebecca?"
"No, I think Kaitlyn said it once."
"Justiciar? Hmph, sounds about right. Good night, Lamar."
"Good night, Yelena." Author's Note:
I was inspired and I had some free time.
Before I go, here's some extra headcanons from this AU:
-Steadfast, being the dude thrown into a lot of combos, is in charge of delivering all the "are you ok? How's your host/you doing?" messages. The 1 Potency heroes are second in that regard.
-Each DNA sample represents one psychic trace/memory. Same samples in different plans don't get you clones.
-Since Mona has Extreme Psychic Sensitivity, she has her DNA donors show up every other day. Same with Noelle.
-Any psychic like John Henry or Yara in the future will be able to hear the words of the traces during daily life, though I'm still working on outlining that.
-Bulwark is still salty.
AN: God, I hope I formatted this correctly. I'm willing to remove some of his abilities if I have to. Candidate:
Name: Sansho Hoshiguma Codename: Red Horn Age: 35 Stats:Hit: 9 Espionage: 3 Reputation: 2 Operations: 5
Appearance: Tall, muscular build. Shoulder-length, unruly, and often greasy hair. Yellow eyes. Shark-like teeth.
Origin: Sansho was one of unfortunately many cases of a metahuman whose career started with immense misfortune. According to the records of the orphanage he stayed at, he was born with congenital amputation. He had no arms past his elbows when he was born. His powers manifested when he was 15, which caused a pair of large spikes to pierce out from beneath the skin of his "stumps". Unsure of what was happening to him, Shansho fled the orphanage out of fear of what his power could do if he was near others. As a relatively uneducated orphan, Shansho had no idea who he was supposed to turn to, if there was anyone he could turn to. If that was all that happened, perhaps his story would have been a happier one.
Instead, children who saw his powers reported him as turning into a Behemoth, and things snowballed into manhunt from there. Confused and scared, Red Horn ran for his life and harmed some authorities in the process. Many first responders suffered severe injuries, and three of them died from blood loss. News outlets took this story and ran with it, exaggerating Sansho's actions and stirring citizens into a frenzy.
With everyone seemingly out for his blood, is it any surprise that he joined the criminals that accepted him with comparably open arms?
Sansho would become known as Red Horn; a metahuman that jumped between gangs on the regular, often tearing his opponents limb from limb. Yet, he managed to slip away from criminal elements whenever they began to get cornered, even in situations where he was in a position of leadership that would make harder for him to run.
Red Horn was finally cornered when the Ghost Dragon Triad was taken down. He surrendered willingly and was brought to court. It turned out that Sansho had saved a lot of money during his many years of criminal activity and hired a very good lawyer. Sansho's crimes had been... remarkably minor. Many of the opponents he killed were notorious criminals in the first place; the deaths of only ten police officers, including the ones he killed at 15, along with some of the other deaths he was responsible for, were labeled as self-defense. With the combination of a plea deal that saw additional members of the Ghost Dragon Triad caught and various assets uncovered, Sansho was only sentenced to prison for eight years. He insisted on those eight years himself. He was freed two years before The Movement and disappeared from the public eye, though a minor news story at the time of his release described him as "rather lethargic". There are no official statements he was involved or not.
Powers: Red Horn is capable of producing spikes from any bone in his body. This process was initially painful, but using it for so many years has resulted in a remarkably high pain tolerance. He typically produces spikes from his knees, head, and stumps. Red Horn also has immense strength that has resulted in a relatively high movement. Red Horn does not run so much as bound at his top speeds, though it takes a few seconds for him to reach them. His teeth are like a shark's, just as sharp but far more durable, capable of digging into solid steel.
Red Horn also has something he has referred to interviews (during his incarceration) as his "Berserker State" at times, his dark yellow eyes would glow and he would roar like a mindless animal. His way of fighting would become even more vicious and deadly. He claims that he could focus little more than eliminating the enemy in front of him. Though the memories of his Berserker State in his earlier years were often fuzzy, he was eventually capable of discerning friend from foe, analyzing his opponent, and even following some complicated orders while "deep in his madness." Although he was able to use it often and for long periods of time in his younger years, nowadays he can enter his Berserker State
Reports of Red Horn's past fights showed a gradual increase in combat prowess; what started as aimless stabs and swipes became accurate and calculated. He also learned some form of kickboxing to mix into his fighting style. This training is evidently so ingrained that even fights in his Berserker State maintained a degree of elegance.
Red Horn also displays a unique form of vampirism: he can absorb foreign blood through his skin. Some photos after his fights had foot print shaped patches of bare ground among puddles of blood, and he often looked remarkably clean after tearing his opponents apart, though the same could not be said of his clothes. This likely factors into the regeneration he has sometimes displayed.
Berserker State: When Red Horn reaches the Critical Injury (Adrenaline) state, he gains +3 to any hit roll but cannot roll any Espionage roll outside of reacting to a sneak attack. This ability activates automatically and can only be used once per combat encounter. This ability can activate early after witnessing sufficiently upsetting events. Using this ability more than once a day may result in Red Horn being incapacitated.
Howl of Rage: This ability activates the same moment as Berserker State. Targets in Red Horn's vicinity must make an Operations saving through to keep maintain their composure at DCs of 5, 10, and 15. DC above 15 will result in no change. DC 15 will result in losing one immediate combat action. DC 10 will result in a target perceiving Red Horn as the biggest threat and focus their attacks on him until attacked by another character. DC 5 will result in the target being Terrified and losing their turn. They must then make another Operations saving through with a +2 modifier at the beginning of their next turn. Rolling another DC 5 will give them an additional +2. They will automatically succeed on the third time if they fail again.
A roll below 5 will result in the target passing out from fear. They can be woken up by another character.
This ability can be used once per use of Berserker State.
Chaucer's Notes:Red Horn, yes, I remember him. The reveal of his Berserker State sparked yet another chicken-or-the-egg debate regarding emotion-based powers. No one knows for sure if his powers gave him his Berserker State, or if it was always something he could always do. I'd best not mention it to Mammoth and Massive Ibis. I'd hate to watch them fight about this after seeing them get along so well.
Leizi's Notes:I believe Red Horn was with the Ghost Dragon Triad the longest. I remember seeing him when I was first introduced to the rest of the triad. There... was always some degree of kindness when he spoke to me. At the very least, he never looked at me with contempt or derision like so many others did. If he did not believe in me, he certainly never showed it. He had a tendency to... root out undesirables. Anyone that bragged about doing something particularly heinous was swiftly made an example if he could get away with it. I... I wish I had reached out to him sooner, even just to congratulate his release. He deserved that much. A/N: I wasn't something I could smoothly fit into this, but Sansho read a lot of books and more than a few movies during his time in prison. Those and the number of people he met in his lifetime have given him a certain wisdom of how people work, though that understanding is muddied when politics are involved. He recognizes that Crusade's primary purpose is to discredit Justice Unlimited by any means necessary, but can barely comprehend the level of foolish greed that lead someone to pull that just a few months after The Movement.
You may have noticed that I switched between his names more than once. On the job, he's Red Horn. In private, he's Sansho. It's a courtesy he would extend to everyone if he joined Justice Unlimited, including Lady Leizi, unless someone asked otherwise.
I've had this character concept in my head for a long time, so I have a lot opinions on how he would react to things.
I plan to describe Red Horn's minor involvement during The Movement in one or two omakes. One will have Red Horn as something of a secondary character, and the other will be from a few minutes after trying to slip into an evacuation point. I, uh, don't know how those evacuation points worked, if there were any set up at all.
I hope to have at least the first one done before the memorial so he can show up in the background. Maybe a third one where he encounters an "ice golem" a few days before Justice Unlimited does.
[X] Plan Defending Doctor But Silver
-[X] Name: Doctor Silver
-[X] Costume: A subtle mix between a trenchcoat and a labcoat, with a round pair of goggles on top to go with it.
-[X] Color Scheme: Silver base with a Dark Blue contrast.
-[X] Emblem: A round shield with a subtle eye motif
References to past suicide attempt not described in detail. Suicidal ideations.
Horizon, City of Leviathan's Rest– The Apiary– January 9, 2068
You really should have turned in after your meeting with John Henry—or Doctor Silver as he's elected to call himself—but you're too restless for bed just yet.
You smile to yourself as you walk aimlessly around the Apiary. Nora had been furious that her alma mater had refused to award her any kind of honorary degree after everything she had done for them. Especially after they gave tenure to the professor who stole her paper.
"Need to submit a thesis for review by committee" my tight ass! Bastards just want a chance to steal from me again. I'm too busy being a superhero to do a post-doc! I just wanna be able to make people call me "Doctor Valiant Silver", dammit!
You shake your head while grinning. How many times did you have to listen to that particular rant?
And what wouldn't you give to hear it again.
Maybe you're reminiscing about the woman who was Valiant Silver because of what's planned for tomorrow. Without conscious thought, your feet lead you to her old laboratory. Where her final legacy lies.
The EXCEED-BEYOND armor.
To your surprise, the light is already on in the lab when you arrive. You walk in, your shadow long against the wall, and look for who else is here.
It's Ellie.
You see her seated, cross-legged, in front of the EXCEED-BEYOND. She's reading through a thick, bound volume of text with several other volumes stacked next to her. Her tongue pokes out of the side of her mouth as her eyes flit across the manual with razor-sharp focus.
You walk behind her and knock on a table to announce your presence. She jerks with a start, but calms down when she sees you.
"The hour's rather late, don't you think?" you say, "Are you certain you shouldn't be getting your rest for tomorrow?"
"I'm trying to get through Valiant Silver's manuals," she explains, holding up the text in her hand, "If I'm going to wear this armor, I need to know everything about it."
You hold back a sigh. Focused as always. Instead of arguing the point, you ask, "How was dinner?"
Ellie freezes.
"With the Rhodes and Ibis families, Ellie. How was dinner with them? I know you were invited. You did attend, didn't you?"
"Yeah," she says quickly, "I went. I came here afterwards."
"Well?" you prompt.
"Well, what?"
"How was it?" you say, slightly exasperated.
"It was fine," she says, "It was . . . nice."
You see a complicated mix of emotions on her face. Her expression flashes like she's unsure what to feel and settles on vague neutrality.
"Yeah. It was nice," she finally mumbles. Then, in an effort to change the subject, "What is wrong with this manual? Half of it is impenetrable scientific jargon, and the other half is an erotic-thriller staring characters named 'Brave Platinum' and 'Watera'."
You raise an eyebrow. "Well?"
"Well, what?"
"Did you read it, darling?"
The tips of Ellie's ears turn cherry-red as she buries her face in the manual. "I thought it might have been a code or something. . . . then I got invested. I wanted to know how it ended."
You can't help but laugh at that. Ellie just flushes harder.
Your chuckle echoes through the room and trails off as your eyes come to rest on the armor in front of Ellie. On the currently-dull eyes of the EXCEED-BEYOND.
"You know," you muse, "If it wasn't for the existence of this armor, I likely wouldn't have chosen you for Project Prometheus."
Ellie sits up at that and looks back at you. You meet her gaze.
"Giving you power like Black Swan's would probably destroy you."
"I would never—" she starts, offended.
"Misuse it?" you interrupt, "Oh, of that I have no doubt. You don't have a villainous bone in your body. No, it's not others being harmed that I am concerned about. It's you."
She gazes at you, uncomprehending.
"Darling, what would you do if you didn't need to sleep? If you didn't need to eat? If you didn't need rest? How would you spend your time?"
She gives you a blank look. You answer for her.
"You would work yourself to death, Ellie. You would drive yourself mad unendingly being a hero. You would give yourself no leisure, no self-care, nothing to nourish the soul," you emphasize, "Even if you had invulnerability like Black Swan, you would destroy yourself. Your body might live, but the person inside would die."
The unsaid addendum echoes through the room: just like your mother.
Ellie seems less than pleased with your assessment. "So, you're giving me this armor because I can't be trusted with a real power?"
"No," you reply, "I'm trusting you with this armor because you're compatible and we're desperate. We need the power that it wields."
You gaze up at the suit full of wonders and terrors.
"Perhaps having to learn to control it, master it, and maintain it will force you to slow down. Connect with others. Rest. Or maybe it will consume you. All I know for certain is that it will not corrupt you."
You look at Ellie.
"This armor could either lead you to your salvation or damnation." You close your eyes. "I just pray it isn't a curse."
* * *
You are Noelle Han, although you prefer "Ellie".
You have absolutely no idea where you are.
The last thing you remember is Natalie counting down from one hundred as she placed the mask of anesthetic over your face. The room you're in is dimly lit, with the largest source of light coming from a crack in the curtains that make up the far wall. Faint whispers fill the air, just beneath the threshold of audibility.
As you look around, you realize it's a lounge of some kind. There is an impossibly long bar in front of you that is blacked and scorched. There are rows and rows of shattered bottles behind the counter, their fluorescent contents oozing all over the shelves and pooling on the floor.
The rest of the room is in no better shape. Smashed furniture litters the ground, pulverized into splinters and cushions savagely slashed open. A glass table has been cracked in half, a jukebox has been destroyed, and there are broken vinyl records everywhere.
The only object intact you see is a plush couch with large tears in it. On it, you see the figure of a petite, elfin woman lying backwards, completely limp. She's maybe half-a-head shorter than you, pretty, with messy, bobbed black hair and wearing a t-shirt with Uiara's symbol on it. A sleeve of rose-shaped tattoos run down one of her arms.
She's still, so perfectly still that the only thing that lets you know she's alive is the endless stream of words that she appears to be muttering.
It's . . . not comforting. You still have no idea where you are or how you got here. Now, your only options are to go past those curtains or . . . well, you can't just abandon this woman, can you? That she looks oddly familiar only helps solidify your decision.
You walk over to her, her words still inaudible. She appears to be subvocalizing. You try calling out to her to get her attention, but her glassy eyes don't look your way. You inhale.
The hard way it is then.
You reach and out and touch her shoulder to shake her—
. . . tactile telekinesis to hold everything in place. He was expecting that. Grown predictable. Trap. Fusing atoms you're holding together. Abandon top most layer, convert energy into hard-light shell. Strike. No, ineffective. He made his atoms hyperdense, would need the Big Bang to even dent them. Switch tactics. Attack his mind. Psychic wail—no, emotional control. He feels guilty. Shame. Thinks it's his fault things are the way they are—abandoned everyone without a word and left good heroes to die. Doesn't know if it was the right choice. Doesn't know if any of this is the right choice. Name is bitter for the man on top of the mountain. Amply feelings, twist, guilt into despair, despair into nihilism—
You gasp as you're pulled away and the stream of information leaves your mind. You feel dizzy, like a whole library was just crammed into your brain. How quickly was this person thinking?
"T-thanks," you stutter to the person who rescued you.
"Think nothing of it," she says in a mellifluous voice that's a tad hoarse, "You're our best chance of getting out of here, after all."
. . . it's always something with these mysterious types, isn't it? And she's definitely the mysterious type, albeit one who's seen kinder days. She's barefoot in a torn and soiled floor-length, blue gown. Her black hair is in disarray and her opera mask is cracked and falling apart.
You can't help but notice she looks identical to the woman on the couch.
"I wouldn't touch my counterpart. She's trapped in an active connection and I can't sever it."
"Connection to 'what'?" you ask with narrowed eyes.
"I can't tell you. And, before you ask, I can't tell you who I am either. All I can say is I'm your only way out of here and that you'll have to trust me absolutely and do everything I say exactly as I say it. Do you understand?"
You size her up and consider your options. You're in an unknown space with one woman who says you're trapped and another woman who's totally unresponsive. You have a feeling that you're in mortal danger here—one wrong move and that's the end. And your only lead has just told you she will be providing no information and expects total obedience.
You sigh. Bad options all around. But only one real choice.
"Yes," the woman in blue says, "First we'll have to carefully—what are you doing?!"
You reach out and touch the woman on the couch again—
. . . partner running interference. Her telepathy is stronger than what's available. Psychic strikes won't work. Can also catch physical attacks. Need something invisible. Radiation? No, wised up to it. Shielded. She won't fall prey to that trick again. Sound? Same issue. What then? Needs to breathe. Slowly up concentration of oxygen in the air. Oxygen toxicity for both. Won't notice until it's too late—
—With a mighty yank, you push away the intrusive thoughts in your mind and pull the woman off the couch. She spills bonelessly to the floor while you clutch your head and pant with the effort. You're rewarded by seeing the woman in blue's jaw drop open.
Everything's quiet except for your breathing and then—
"Fucking ouch," the woman from the couch says, "My head feels like it's been worked over by one of those guys who make mochi. What do you call them?"
"Baker?" you offer.
"No thanks, I hardly know her," she replies absently, "Where the fuck am I?"
"How . . . how are you awake?" the woman in blue asks with wide eyes, "It shouldn't be possible. The connection is active, but . . . thinned? How?"
"Ah, fuck, it's you," the couch-woman swears, "Guess that answers that question. Fuckin' awesome. Why the fuck am I here?"
"Who are you two? Where are we? Someone start explaining something in clear sentences. Right now," you demand, having finally hit your limit for this nonsense.
"Ow, ow, indoor voice, please!" the couch-woman says, covering her ears, "And to answer your question, you are in a metaphysical space connected to the collective unconscious."
"The Stage," you breathe.
She narrows her eyes at you. "You've heard of it? Just who are you?"
"Ellie Han," you reply right away. Because that's what a normal person does when someone asks you your fucking name.
". . . that means nothing to me. I have no idea who you are." Couch-woman blinks owlishly. "My name's Nora Kim. You might know me better as—"
"Valiant Silver," you say, a large number of things clicking together in place in your head.
"Oh!" she says preening, "You've heard of me then!"
". . . it'd be hard not to. I'm—"
A sharp stake of pure pain jabs you between your eyes and into your brain. Before you can even scream, images flood your mind.
". . . the parasites that steal the wealth of Horizon live arrogant lives in their Ivory Towers, confident their wealth and power will insulate them from any consequence! They send their children to learn to perpetuate the cycle, while the poor and needy die in gutters! The Defiance Unit is here to teach them that there is no outrunning justice!"
You find yourself oddly calm. A man in a black facemask and a green and yellow hoodie shouts into a microphone while a flying woman in a red dress rains death from above. A shirtless man in a black duster swaggers around, amused, while a woman in black tactical armor gives orders. Finally, there's a guy dressed like a . . . vampire? He's doing something to people where they fall to the ground and stop moving. He's getting bigger and his eyes are glowing.
You feel a hand on your arm. Kelso is trying to drag you under the table where Chihiro and Sadie are already hiding. You pull yourself free.
"Be right back."
You grab the metal case you told everyone contained a saxophone you were learning for a music elective. You still can't believe they bought that—you're tonedeaf as fuck.
"Question!" you shout, raising your hand as Mr. Communist Manifesto keeps ranting, "My dad died of Jorando's Disease after we couldn't afford the treatments from Ọsanyìn. I worked eighteen hour days for six months on top of school and was 2k short when he died. Then I got robbed by a metahuman gang—like yours—got severely burned, and went into insane medical debt. Then I tried to kill myself."
Levithan's Blood, your life is depressing when you say it out loud.
"Am I 'part of the cycle of parasitism?'"
Yellow-and-green looks like you just kicked him in the dick. Which you suppose you did, verbally.
You point to Chihiro. "She found me before I could go through with it and got me to the hospital. Is she part of the cycle?"
You point to Kelso. "He went back to his dad who he hates and begged him to anonymously pay for my medical bills and thinks I don't know. Is he a parasite?"
You point to Sadie. "She comes over everyday and makes me dinner so I'm not alone. You gonna beat her up to teach the rich a lesson?"
The guy dressed like a neon eyesore is sputtering, but Nosferatu walks toward you. He's eight feet-tall now.
"Oh? You wish to register a complaint?" he sneers.
"Yeah, Bram Stoker's Dickhead, I do." That gets a laugh out of the shirtless guy. "You're attacking the wrong people. Most of the rich kids don't even go here; they're at the Foot or on Elysium. You just don't have the stones or the power to go after the people you're actually mad at, so you're flailing around like jackasses while pretending to be righteous and shit. So either grow a pair and go bother a corp, or fuck off."
Young Dracula looks like he's going to hit you, but stops when the armored lady holds up a hand.
"Just what are you hoping to accomplish?" she asks.
You pull out your screen and text Uiara and hot-Triad lady. Leviathan's Blood, you hope one of them shows up.
"Just letting you know that you won't be hurting anyone."
"Oh?" the Buffy-ass looking ponce says, "Just why is that?"
"Because I won't let you."
The case opens and your armor falls onto you. Thankfully, without catching on your clothes again. The helmet snaps shut and the HUD activates. In less than five seconds, you're suited up for the first time.
Dang, that probably looked awesome. You hope someone caught it on camera, because either way your secret identity is fuuuuuuuuucked. Then Vampy McVampireface is upon you and all you can think of is survival.
You snap back to reality. You can't even breathe before the sensation reverses direction, and something flows out instead of flowing in.
You don't really know what you're doing out so late at night. There's no one waiting for you at home anymore, so you just kind of wander. It's then that you see them. Two girls in frilly dresses beating up an ice golem in an alley. One has large gauntlets that cover her fists, while the second has a bladed whip.
You've heard about "magical girls" appearing recently. They're always followed by bad news. Demands for money, people no longer venturing out, strange creatures made of ice stalking in the night. You guess it's true.
"This one's pathetic! Smash it again, Bethany!" shouts one of the girls. The other girl obliges by sending a spray of ice flying off the golem, who lets out a loud keening sound.
You don't like it. It reminds you of a boy at school you once knew who used to pull the wings off flies to watch them panic and crawl around.
The golem makes more sounds and then you catch a snippet of something:
". . . elp me. Help me. . ."
The whip girl strikes it again and now the sounds are like sobs. You make your decision then.
You pick up a trashcan nearby and throw it at fist-girl. It hits her in the head and sends her to the ground. You grab the lid and swing it into the whip-girl's face so hard you feel her nose crunch. She collapses in a pool of blood.
You expect retaliation, but they both start shrieking and fly away. As they do, one drops a vial of a glowing, golden liquid that makes your hair stand up on end.
The golem craws toward you desperately, still making the crying sounds.
"'lease," it begs, reaching a spindly arm for the vial, "'lease 'elp me."
In for a penny, you suppose. You open the vial and pour it onto the creature as it asks. As you do, the ice sublimates and shatters. From the frozen shell emerges a girl, no older than eleven. She's shaking and sobbing uncontrollably.
"I want my mom!" she says through the tears, "Please? Can I please have my mom?"
You stare in horror as you think of all the ice golems you've heard of being destroyed. Are they all . . . just girls like this one? Before you know it, you're hugging her and she's clinging to you like driftwood in a storm. Her tears are soaking into your shirt.
"I'll help you find your mom," you promise with a shaky voice, "And if we can't find her, I'll keep you safe. I promise."
In that moment, you know you'd rather die a thousand times than ever break your word.
You and Valiant Silver bounce away from each other and end up on the floor. Your head hurts so much that, for a second, you think you're going to be ill. You both climb up on shaky legs.
"Were those magical girls?" Valiant Silver says clutching her head, "Also: fuckin' owww."
"You saw that?" you ask, struggling to stay up.
"Yeah," she replies, "I think we saw each other's memories."
". . . how?"
"I don't know fucking know!" she complains, "I don't even know how long I've been here—wait."
She grabs your arm, terror in her eyes. "The Leviathan. It was moving. What happened with the Leviathan?!"
". . . it stopped," you say looking away, "But . . ."
You don't finish the sentence.
Valiant Silver runs a hand over her face and lets out a single sob. "Fuck."
You don't say anything. You both sit there for a second before she visibly pulls herself together.
"Okay. Okay. We did it, at least." She looks at you. "Does the name 'Project Prometheus' mean anything to you?"
"Yes," you say, "The last thing I remember I was—"
"Getting powers? What powers? Do you know what EXCEED-BEYOND means?"
You nod. "It's supposed to be my armor."
Valiant Silver pales. "Uh oh. Shit. That's a major fucking problem. I mean, not you. You seem nice. That's not the problem. It's—"
The pain comes back and, with it, a new flood of memories.
You're sitting in bed, moping.
Why are you moping? You got everything you wanted. Phlogiston is rotting in Wonderland. You've destroyed the Demon Flamez. And now you've realized you have superpowers? You can just go join a corp, make super powerful technology, and live in luxury for the rest of your life. You win!
Then why do you keep staring at your stupid phone?! And why are there no new messages?! Who are you even waiting for?!
Uiara—Yazmin—has no reason to talk to you now. You cracked the security on her grandfather's data and gave it back to her. She helped you take revenge on the fuckers who robbed you and put the scars on your back. Transaction over, everyone wins.
. . . you just thought you two had a connection, is all. You had that whole thing where she touched your face. You thought maybe you were gonna kiss, is all.
You sigh into your pillow. She was really disappointed when you said being a hero was stupid. Of course she was—she was like a saint or something. The kindest person you've ever met. With the most killer rack. Who thought you could be a hero too before you laughed in her face.
Goddamnit Nora, stop sucking so bad.
And stop moping! And stop looking at your phone! You are not down that bad!
. . . still nothing.
You want to eat ice cream and cry now. Okay, maybe you are down that bad.
You think you're going to die. Every time the memories come, it's like your soul is unraveling. It hurts, and now something is leaving you.
You're thumbing through the EXCEED-BEYOND's manual, when you hear a loud voice you recognize. It's coming closer and so, before she can see you, you dive under a table.
Black Swan comes in with a tray of pastries, calls your name, and leaves when she can't find you.
Why won't she leave you alone? What is her problem?
Why is she so passive-aggressive with you? First being nice then saying something to hurt your feelings? What did you do to make her hate you so much?
You try to bury the feelings of disappointment. You wanted to be friends with her. She seemed so . . . good. Kind. Light. Golden. You really thought you could be friends at first. Now, you wish she'd leave you alone forever.
. . . so why the fuck do you keep thinking about her?
"Fuckingshitballsouchfuck!" Valiant Silver screams as you both come back to yourselves, "What was fucking vague about 'don't use DNA from people who are still alive'?!"
"You're dead!" you protest.
"Then why is this happening, smart-girl?! Why are we hitting ontological resonance then? Two people can't connect to the stage in the same way. That's why one has to be dead!"
"What does that even mean?" you shout back, "And why would it matter?! Your notes said you changed the DNA sample enough that there should be no overlap!"
"Well, I guess I fucked up then, huh?! I'm not a geneticist, dammit!"
You resist the urge to smack her. It won't change anything even if it would feel so, so very good.
"Okay," you say, forcing yourself to stay calm, "What is happening? Explain. What is ontological resonance and how do we stop it?"
"Doesn't work like that. It's not something you 'stop'," Valiant Silver says, "It's like teleporting into space that's already occupied. We're trying to exist at the exact same spot on the psychic plane at the exact same time. We're cutting into and annihilating each other."
"So. What. Do. We. Do. About. It?" She's making it very, very hard to keep resisting your urge to smack her.
Valiant Silver rubs her head. "Okay. Okay. You're in the EXCEED-BEYOND armor, right? I think I can use it to fix this—"
"I'm not in the armor."
". . . what?"
"I'm not in the armor," you repeat, "Why would I be in the armor for this part?"
"Why the fuck are you not in the armor?! I specifically put in the instructions that you need to be in the armor when creating the connection to The Stage! You're creating a permanent link to the psychic gestalt that is the collective unconscious!"
You blink at her.
"It means extremely fucking dangerous! You need the EXCEED-BEYOND to regulate it!"
"I've read your 'instructions' cover to cover," you snap back through gritted teeth, "Including your fanfiction where you drive around in a van solving mysteries with your girlfriend. It says nothing of the sort."
She shakes her head in defiance. "It is vitally important. There is absolutely no way in hell I would . . . have forgotten . . ."
All the blood drains from her face. "Oh."
The pain comes back.
You're second to last to the meeting, scrambling to your seat while everyone glares at you. Stupid round table. Who cares if it's thematically appropriate? It just makes it easier for them to judge you.
". . . sorry," you mumble, slouching in your seat and pouting," Late night."
"Indeed," Zixuan says, raising her eyebrow," Well?"
"Well, what?"
"Why did you call this meeting?" some girl with silver skin says.
You feel yourself slowly start to flush. ". . . and we're certain that I'm the one who called it?"
Everyone groans except Harper, who giggles, and Yazy who looks really upset for some reason.
"How late were you up last night?" Harper says laughing, "Were you watching one of your anime girls play video games again?"
"Mrsha is a vTuber, and she's graduating soon," you say, offended, "And I was working! I just . . . had her on in the background."
"Wait, what the fuck?" Eve says through her holographic avatar as a knit forms in the silver girl's brow. Now everyone but her, Eve, and Yazy is laughing at you. Can't they understand you're losing your oshi?!
Rakeem rolls his eyes and rubs his temples. "Some things never change."
"Hey! At least I'm not the last one here! I beat Rosemary, didn't I?"
Why . . . why is everyone looking at you like that?
"Boss . . . Mrsha graduated eight years ago," Eve says.
"What? Eight years ago? When I was twelve?"
Silver-girl eyes you. "Valiant Silver, what year do you think it is?"
"W-what kind of question is that?" you ask, a cold feeling coming from your gut. You turn to Rakeem, "And who's the new girl? Did Novalight stick us with a new member without saying anything?"
Why are they looking at you like that? Why does Yazy look so scared? Why . . .
. . . what were you doing here again?
As data flows into your mind, it pushes something else out. Like a boat displacing water.
You're sick of this. It's nearly eight o'clock and mom still isn't home! Who cares if you're ten now and can come home by yourself? She should be here!
She doesn't care about you. She only cares about . . . work! Where stupid Novalight pushes her around and makes you cry and no one does anything! You hate it! You hate her! You wish you had a real mom!
Hot tears burn in your eyes as you decide you're not gonna take it anymore. You grab your backpack and fill it with food, a change of clothes, money from mom's emergency stash, a mini pop-tent, and your stuffed fox, Juju.
You can't leave Juju behind.
You march down to the station, buy a ticket for PubTrans, and take the train to the Worker's Mitt to your favorite park. You know it's safe, so you can live there now. You find an empty spot shaded by trees and set up your tent as the last light from the sun fades.
You're not crying. You're not. You climb inside and stuff your face with as much food as you can spare—you'll have to ration it for a bit until you learn to fish—and fall asleep cuddling Juju.
When you wake up, it's pitch black and you're freezing. You didn't have room in your backpack for a blanket. You hear something rustling outside and go to call for your mom before you remember she's not here. She doesn't know where you are. No one does.
Fine! That's fine! You don't need them! You don't need anyone! You—what was that sound just now?!
It sounded like . . . buzzing. Really loud buzzing. You hear something land and walk closer to you. You squeeze Juju to your chest and hold your breath as it stops in front of your tent.
And knocks.
"Ummm, excuse me?" a shy, kind voice backed by buzzing says, "Are you okay?"
"I'm fine!" you scream, sticking your head out of the tent, "Leave me alone!"
She rears back in surprise before settling down. She tilts her head at you and then kneels down so her head is nearly level with yours.
"Then why have you been crying?" she asks with no judgment.
"Because . . . because . . . because I want my mooooooooooooooooooooom!" The last word comes out with a big, ugly sob and now the tears are flowing and you can't stop them. You're shaking and shaking, even as the nice bee-lady flies you home.
When you get back, your mom is already in the sky without her costume. As soon as she sees you, she grabs you in her arms and is sobbing and yelling and holding you so tight she might never let go.
You're sorry, you try to say, you're so sorry. You'll never do it again. You'll never get mad like this again. You'll bear it forever. You're sorry. Please. Please. Just stop crying mom, please.
Your brain snaps back into your body like toothpaste being squeezed back into the tube. But, before you can yell at Valiant Silver again, you feel something else.
This is your fault.
Well, not entirely your fault. Theodore was the fool who went ahead with the experiment without proper testing. Kyoko enabled him. Now he's dead and she's unresponsive.
Oscar is gone. Run away, as always. Like a child hiding his soiled sheets under the bed. He's used your device and gone so far, you doubt he'll ever come back.
Yemọja has rallied the metahumans in the city—even Novalight's remnants of New Dawn—but they will make no difference. It's just a fragment, but even a fragment of a god is a god.
It's your fault. All of your faults. You were not just Icarus flying too close to the sun—you all were flying into the sun. And you—the mother of psychic technology—built the machine that let them.
Perhaps Oscar had the right idea. Perhaps . . . you should run away too.
You return to your body and every atom of your being is throbbing with agony. It hurts so much that, for a second, you think you've died. Valiant Silver recovers faster than you do, and pulls you to your feet.
"We must do something immediately," the woman in blue says. You can't see her through the tears, but you know it's her. "I'm losing my ability to keep us all separate. Hurry."
"That last memory . . . it wasn't Ellie's and it definitely wasn't mine," Valiant Silver says, "Who are you?"
"I cannot say—"
"Oh, fuck you!" you and Valiant Silver shout together. Then the maker of your armor grabs your arm and says,"As much as I hate to admit it, she's right. If you're not in the EXCEED-BEYOND, then you have to get to it now. Where are you in reality?"
"I'm in the training room," you reply, "In the Apiary—"
"Perfect!" she shouts, "The Apiary will help you. You just need to get out of her."
She starts pacing.
"Okay, listen to me. Your consciousness is here, but you're still tethered to your body. It's going to take more willpower than you could ever imagine, but you can get back if you focus and—"
You squeeze your eyes shut and will yourself to wake up from this dream. You snarl with the effort and feel something 'pop'.When you open your eyes again, you're back in the Apiary.
". . . oh shit, you already did it. Kickass."
Valiant Silver's voice echoes in the back of your head as you take stock of your situation. You're still strapped in the bed and connected to what remains of the machine that delivered the dose of Ambrosia into your veins. There is a maelstrom of blue and purple energy flying out of your body and destroying everything in sight.
Lady Leizi and Handyman are trying to get close to you, but the sheer force of the energy is keeping them away. You pull at the straps, but you can't get free. You're bound fast, and you can feel your skin chafing and pulling as you wriggle helplessly.
"Ellie, just get to the ground. I can take it from there."
"I . . . I'm trying!" you pant, a sheen of sweat all over your body. You still ache everywhere; your head feels like it's being crushed in a vise. You pull and pull and wriggle and writhe and all you manage to do is rip open the skin on your wrists and ankles. You feel a hot sensation and the blood flows, but the straps are so tight that you can't even slide out.
Your breathing comes hard and fast. Why did they tie you so tight?! You keep struggling and try to stay calm.
You can do this.
You can do this.
You have to do this.
You have to do this, but you just can't!
You scream with frustration and terror as you draw more blood. It's not working! Why isn't it working? Why can't you just get to the floor? Why you always so fucking worthless?
You're breathing even harder and your heart feels like it's hammering out of your chest. You're lightheaded and try to call for help, but your throat is closed and you can't breathe. Are you dying? Are you going to die here?
A knife of pain splits your skull.
You're eleven and the rain has soaked through your bag, through your clothes, and into your bones.
School let out four hours ago. After-class activities ended after three. Everyone has been long gone.
You'll sit there for another six hours before you give up and walk home. Your mom is in the hospital—the villain Heracles nearly broke her neck trying to escape from Wonderland—and she won't wake up for days.
But you don't know any of that at the time. You just know that no one came for you and that you can't tell where the rain ends and your tears begin.
You're cold, so cold. And you walk home, shivering uncontrollably, crying your heart out, you know that you're alone.
No one cares.
You can tell that you're back in reality, but you still feel the way you did that night. You're trapped. Trapped. And no one is going to help you. You're going to die alone—you're always alone—
"Ellie! Ellie! Stop! You're having a panic attack! I know it's hard, but you have to calm down, please—"
You close your eyes and scream as the memories come back.
In middle school, you decided how you were going to make friends: the school tennis team.
You saw the girls playing together. You saw how they laughed and joked. You know that was your way in.
So you begged your mom to buy you a tennis racket and the uniform. And you practice for hours and hours by yourself, copying older players, watching tape, making sure you were perfect. When it came time for tryouts, you were ready!
And you were! When you tried out, you were good. No, the best! You beat everyone, even a member of the varsity squad. You were a shoo-in! The coaches were raving about you! You were going to make the team, and compete, and have friends!
You were practically floating on air when you came back from the showers and into the locker room. Only to come crashing back to Earth when you realized someone broke into your locker. They destroyed the racket your mom bought you and ruined the clothes she worked so hard to pay for.
Then some older girls jumped you and threw you against the lockers. They told you that you were "stuck up" and that you needed to "learn your place". They hit you a few times, but nothing hurt as much as their faces when they called you a "freak".
You don't know what you did wrong, but it must have been something. What did you do to make them hate you so much? You wish they had just said.
But you knew it was your fault.
You walked home that day and told your mom you didn't make the team. You never went back.
No one will ever help you. No one cares about you. You're not the most important thing to anyone—you weren't even to your own mother. You're not good enough to be loved. You'll always be alone. You'll die here—
"Ellie, that's not fucking true. I know this is hard. I'm asking you to do the hardest thing in the world. But you're spiraling—you can't give in. You can do this."
But before you can even tell her that she's wrong and you can't, you're back in the past.
You're sitting alone in a freezing warehouse, surrounded by monsters that were once girls. You're trying in vain to sleep; tomorrow, you'll all have to steal more goldnine. That means fighting. That means maybe dying.
You know the girls don't need to sleep, but they like to pretend. Only on this night, you can hear someone crying.
"Dad, mom, Jethro . . . I want my dog!"
Heartbroken sobs fill the air, and another girl loses her patience.
"Shut up, Elsa!" she sneers, cold as ice, "We all miss our parents! Quit being a baby!"
"I . . . I wanna go hoooooooooooome!"
"Shut up! Just shut up! Shut up right now—"
"Enough," you order in the coldest voice of all, and one word is enough. The room falls quiet except Elsa muffled weeping.
You get up and lie next to her in bed. She tries to cuddle with you, best as she can with her geometric body. It's freezing, but you're used to it.
In a way, you envy her. At least she can cry. You've finally accepted your mom is dead, and you can't shed a tear.
You're finally completely and utterly alone. But you're not sad. You're just numb.
You're just cold.
You don't have any more strength. You can feel your eyes closing. You wish you could apologize to Lady Leizi. This was a waste. You were a waste. You're sorry. You just can't do it anymore.
"Fuck. That."
The voice in your brain is so red hot and angry, it burns you.
"No. I'm not letting you go down this path. I've been there. There's nothing that way. Ellie, I swear this: I will save you. But you can't give up. Promise me."
"I-I can't—"
"Shut the fuck up, yes you can. Promise me right now. Now."
Her voice is like a trumpet calling for the end of the world. You can feel it electrify your body.
It's not fair. You had finally stopped struggling. It was over. She . . . how dare she make you feel again. . . you—
"I promise."
—will never give up. Ever.
"Good. Because this next part is going to hurt like a motherfucker."
It does. A pulse of psychic force rips form you, temporality disrupting the maelstrom. It hurts so much you leave your body, but when you come back you're still strapped in the bed.
"What—"
"Wait for it."
A burst of light blasts your bed, destroying it and throwing you to the floor. You furiously rub your slick wrists to get the circulation flowing again. You try to stand up and stumble like a newborn calf. You force yourself to walk, but, just as your unsteady legs are about to give out, your sight is filled with the most pure vision of gold. It's a balm to your soul and soothes your shattered nerves.
Wait, no. The gold is hair. You're being saved by a golden-haired angel that smells like starlight.
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaay."
Valiant Silver's remark is like a bucket of ice water. Oh, it's not an angel. It's Black Swan. She's helping you limp out of the room. How embarrassing.
She helps you forward, but your senses are still dull and your body heavy. You fall over—
And John Henry catches you. He's sweating and gritting his teeth in pain, but he and Black Swan have you. H-how? Why?
"I sent an SOS," Valiant Silver says in your mind, "Shine a beacon in the night, and you're bound to get two things, kid: moths and heroes. Moths and heroes."
The floors begin to shift and pull you forward. The wall splits in half and a golden child made of light greets you. The child rushes forward and tackles you with a flying hug.
"I missed you too."
The child grabs your hand and leads you forward with only Black Swan and John Henry keeping you upright. As you walk through the endless tunnels, you lose track of where you are. You know you're moving, but that's it.
You're elsewhere.
It's sunset and the world is cast into an eternal, golden hugh. You're on a hilltop, beneath a deciduous tree the colors of fall. Before you is an endless field of golden roses, turned to face the sun.
Valiant Silver is there. She's golden too.
You two stand on the hilltop and look out at the field for a while.
"I . . . I don't understand," you say. You sit down and pull your knees into your chest.
"Hmm?" she asks, still looking out.
". . . why was I given EXCEED-BEYOND armor? Why do I deserve it?"
"Hmm," she repeats, "Wrong question."
"Wrong question?"
She flops down next to you, legs spread and arms behind her. She blows a lock of hair out of her face.
"Wrong question," she confirms, "The right question is: what do you want?"
You blink and chew on that. What do you want . . .?
You remember a woman singing you a lullaby as you burned with fever. Everything hurt, but it was okay when she was there. A cool hand strokes your head, and you know everything will always be okay.
You want . . .
Mom works feverishly at the kitchen table late one night. You had torn a massive hole in your uniform and had nothing to wear. You were so ashamed, you hid it in your closet. Mom somehow found it and now is fixing it. Later, she would replace it and pretend like she didn't know about it when you asked in the morning. All because she knew how upset you were.
"I want . . ."
You pump your legs for all they were worth, and your opponent's lead shrinks. You get closer, and closer, and finally at the last second you pass—
You win! You've won your race! You're cheering by yourself, but you don't care! Your team has enough points to win now! You pumped your fist in victory, and, as you do you see a distant speck in the sky. Everyone else is pointing and whispering: What was Heavenly Astrologian doing here?
But you know.
The tears finally come.
"I wanna see my mom again!" you sob into Valiant Silver's chest. She holds you and strokes your hair as you weep. "I . . . I miss her!"
"Yeah," she says, "I know what you mean. I miss my dad."
Your heart is shattered into a thousand jagged pieces that cut you—it has been that way for some time. You've just finally let yourself feel it. You clutch your predecessor's arm.
"How do you make it stop? How do you make the pain stop?"
She looks away. "I don't think you can. I think it hurts forever."
You hiccup in despair and try to pull away, but Valiant Silver holds you close.
"Sometimes when people leave, they take a piece of your heart with them. They rip a hole inside you that never closes, never heals. And it aches, always."
"T-then . . . ?"
"The hole doesn't get smaller," she says, "But your heart does get bigger. Filled with other things. And then there's more inside of you than just the pain."
She shares with you some memories. Not violently shoved into your head, but handed over, gently.
The most beautiful woman in the world tucks a strand of hair behind your ear and calls you "her angel". You tell her a joke that makes her frown and roll her eyes, but she pecks your lips anyways.
An elegant woman is the only one to vote to not strip you of your position. She understands why you must do what you are—even though it will kill you. She wishes you would stop with her whole being, but she loves you enough to let you make your own choices.
A bubbly blonde woman breaks into your lab and makes you eat and smile, even as her heart is bleeding too. Maybe it's always been bleeding and you've been too selfish to see it. No matter what, she moves forward.
A man made of metal sits next to you while you're at your lowest. He says no words, demands nothing from you, but his presence is reassuring. It grounds you, like gravity. When you're ready, he'll be here.
An insectoid woman is your first, truest, best friend. She is good, so pure, that her soul shines like the sun. It's so bright that it makes your soul shine too, reflecting her glory.
A glowing figure sits on your computer telling you a never-ending string of bawdy jokes. She's always in your ear, chatting away, always ready with a quip or scathing remark. She will be there for you until she is no more.
A silver girl talks without deception. She lives with her whole heart on her sleeve, and reminds you that you can too. She demands you teach her about 'relationships' and it's two weeks before you realize she's deliberately doing the opposite of whatever you tell her.
You blink the memories away, letting them wash over you.
"Find people you can love," Valiant Silver says, "Who will love you. Hold them close and keep them safe, forever."
"But," you say, "who—?"
Your memories leak out.
An elegant woman in amazing sunglasses is the first person to give a shit about your girls. She appears, solves all your immediate problems, and offers to make you a metahuman. All seemingly just because it's the right thing to do.
A warm man invites you to eat with his family. The chaos of the evening takes you outside of your own head, and before you realize you're smiling. His wife stuffs you to the gills with food, and sends you home with leftovers. You sleep well for the first time in ages that night.
A portly man with a kind face sets you up with a room and everything you could need, without even having to be asked. He's unimposing, but makes it clear you can call on him if you ever need to.
A tiny girl sits down with a diagram and meticulously explains to you that if you dress as a "rocker chick" then you won't overlap with her "goth" aesthetic and you two can be natural allies. She also explains her friend is a dumbass and chronic fumbler and tells you not to take it personally.
A blonde woman sees you reading the rules and regulations for Justice Unlimited and nearly cries at how so very, very happy she is that someone else appears to have their head on straight. She recruits you for a daring plan: she will tame this madness.
A man made of clay has the same sad and guilty eyes you do. You want to get close, but he's like a cat. You'll have to earn it first, but, once you do, you'll always have it.
Black Swan . . . is . . . her hair like gold?
"Gaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!" Valiant Silver cheers while laying backwards.
"Stop saying that!" you protest, joining her on the ground.
"Hey, if anyone is allowed, it's me!" she says, "Valiants have a legacy of being lady-killers. You have a lot to live up to!"
"What does this have to do with anything? Why does this matter? Why are you showing me this?"
She looks at you from the ground, her grin becoming something more serious.
"Because that's how you find the will to live." She pins you with her gaze. "You take a piece of their hearts and give them all of yours."
"But, what if—". You can't stop that image that flashes.
Casualties from New Dawn include beloved member Heavenly Astrologian—
"You protect them," Nora says, "You protect them with everything you have."
"But—"
"You'll fail," she says looking to the golden sunset, "People you love will die in front of you and tear another hole in your chest. The pain is inevitable. It will hurt forever."
She turns to look at you.
"You do it anyway. You let them in and you let yourself love them knowing it will hurt."
She gazes at the endless rows of golden roses.
"That is what it means to be 'valiant'."
You swallow the lump in your throat, but it doesn't go away. You feel something bubble up from your heart and burst out of your mouth.
"I want that," you whisper, "I want that more than anything."
"I know you do. Which is why the EXCEED-BEYOND is yours," she says. Then she perks up. "And good news! We're here!"
Suddenly, you're back in your body. The black bodysuit of EXCEED-BEYOND splits open like a chrysalis, and Black Swan and John Henry help you climb inside. Your vision goes black, and then a message appears.
ACT IN THE NAME OF GOOD, YE WHO BEARS THE CONSEQUENCES OF THY ACTIONS.
FIND THY LIMITS.
EXCEED BEYOND.
"Aaaaand there we go! Okay, I can fix this now! Gotta use my power, but I've Rebounded anyway. At a certain point, you can only get so wet."
". . . huh?" you whisper.
"You okay, Ellie?"
"Sleepy . . ." You can barely keep your eyes open.
"Geez, you really needed to let all of that pent up feeling out, huh? Don't worry. Get some rest, and this will all be fixed when you wake up."
". . . will you still be here when I wake up?"
Valiant Silver is quiet for a long time.
"No. I . . . I can't leave where I am. I don't think I'm dead, but I'm not truly alive either. I'm being kept something else. Somewhere else. I'm . . . only here because we're connected. When we split, there'll be nothing keeping me from being dragged back."
". . . I want you to stay . . ." you say with tears in your eyes.
"I want to stay. So much. I'm so glad I met you. Just . . . do me proud, okay? Ah, what am I saying? Of course you will!"
Everything is glowing golden. You see a radiant angel and a silver man standing over you. You can feel the heartbeat of a lost child, waving goodbye sadly. Even more, you can feel lightning, shadow, clay, and others pulsing in time. You feel the whole city as the light fills the hollow places in your heart, melding the jagged pieces together with gold.
It's not pristine. It's not perfect. But what was broken has been reforged into something new.
You're so sleepy. Your eyes flutter close and you feel at peace.
". . . thanks . . . I love you, Mom."
". . . I love you too. Now get some sleep."
Luck Check: 4. Unlucky!
Snippets of words wash over you.
". . . using it doesn't hurt? How . . .?"
". . . can think so clearly . . . I was fucked up . . ."
". . . Oh. Two. . . power always meant for two . . ."
". . . too much for one. Need two . . . so obvious . . ."
". . . kid. Too late for me, but thanks . . . love . . . "
But you can't make sense of them. You drift off into a dreamless sleep, the bleeding in your chest stopped.
You don't feel cold anymore.
Name: ????, Noelle "Ellie" Han Power: The EXCEED-BEYOND Armor Side Effect: Extreme Psychic Field Sensitivity Faction: Justice Unlimited Potency: 13 Stats: HIT 8, ESPIONAGE 4, REPUTATION 6, OPERATIONS 9 Notes: Ellie wields the EXCEED-BEYOND armor, which has four modules with different power sets. Modules must be selected for a scene and may be changed between scenes. Using any power in blue will disable the module until the end of a combat encounter. Using module "dynamite" will disable the EXCEED-BEYOND armor until the end of the mission. Always Active: Anti-gravity, Energy Shielding, Mental Manipulation Immunity Module "Paper": Pyrokinesis, Energy Blaster, Drones, Targeting Suite, Railgun Module "Scissors": Psychic Energy Blades, Agility Suite, Telekinesis, Pilebunker Module "Rock": Enhanced Strength, Advanced Energy Shielding, Power Nullification Module "Dynamite": O̵̺͓̊͌͊p̵̞͕̔̚ē̵͔͜ņ̵͍͎̊ ̸͎̌̄̌ẗ̶̖͘h̶̝̮͐̋ë̵̺̺́ ̷̺͊S̵͍̊̈̕t̷̮̎͝ą̶̩̞̄g̶̮͘e̶̦̲̟͌
What will we call our newest hero?
[ ] Valiant Gold
[ ] Valiant Sun
[ ] Valiant Sapphire
Write-in (subject to QM veto, name must include "Valiant") [ ]
What color(s) will Ellie paint the EXCEED-BEYOND armor?
Write-in (subject to QM veto) [ ]
What is Ellie's Emblem?
Write-in (subject to QM veto) [ ]
Author's Note: I made another DNA submission to @Bitterman, so now I'm choosing to make that everyone's problem. Again. Enjoy!
(Also, if you like listening to music while you read, here's a recommended track. Put it on halfway through!) Horizon, City of Leviathan's Rest -- Edge Of The Uni District -- October 22, 2066
The day was ending, and the night was beginning to encroach upon Horizon, the City of Leviathan's Rest. The sunset was painting the sky into a canvas of orange, purple, and red. Miguel De Leon stood atop a skyscraper, arms crossed, watching the beautiful skyline. If you had asked him, he would have said that he probably looked like an imposing figure. If you had asked anybody else, they would have been inclined to disagree. Standing at 5'6'', his goggles and jacket may have been extra durable to allow for his power, but they didn't give him any style points, just the occasional bad tan line. But to Miguel, that didn't really matter. He was at peace here, high up in the air with nobody around.
And then he got a notification. Snapped out of his dissociation, he quickly fished through his jeans, grabbing his buzzing screen. Miguel read the message, and then sighed. Of course somebody had to need a ride at this time of day. Just when he was getting a break.
He grabbed onto the ledge of the fence with his right hand, pushed down—
And jumped.
It took exactly 5 seconds for him to hit the floor. +0.25 to account for not hitting anybody downstairs, -0.78 from how he purposefully sped up by going face first and using his power. He put on his goggles and closed his eyes, as he hit the ground hard with a—
BAM!
A couple of uni students looked at Miguel a bit strangely as he got up from the floor, dusting the gravel off of his face. It was perfectly fine with him, though. After all, part of his power could be best described as…
Um, how had his girlfriend described it? "Fall damage immunity?" There was a bit more to it than that, but close enough. He then got up, dusted his arms off, and started running to his destination- there was no point in risking more property damage when he was this close to his target.
He turned a corner, somersaulted over a railing, and if his screen was right (which it normally was, except for that one time where he almost had a nasty run in with a villain) there she was. His newest client.
Miguel put his hand up and waved. "Yo! Are you, uh…"
He took a quick look at his screen, just to double-check. Best to be safe (getting paid) than sorry (which meant cashing out roughly nothing and eating cold and probably rotten leftovers again). "Leia? You need a ride to the restaurant on the other side of the borough, correct?"
The girl looked up from her own screen. She had a comfy blue sweater on, and shoulder length, jet black hair. Probably styled like that so that it wouldn't get caught in the wheels of the wheelchair that she was sitting on. "Yes. Though you spelled it wrong, it's Leah."
"Girl, how'd you know I spelled it with an "ia"?"
She grinned, apparently privy to some joke that Miguel wasn't a part of. "Vibes. But you're the taxi dude, right? Where's your car? I paid extra for the "super premium" package on that one app, and I've gotta get to dinner with my friends soon…"
Miguel stared at the girl in disbelief, before deciding to just go and demonstrate with actions instead of words. He slowly began to rise up a few inches in the air, dropping it after three seconds. "You won't need a car. I can get you across the borough in less than five minutes. Didn't you read the description?" (Seriously! It hadn't even been fine print or text, he had advertised it as such beforehand! "Fly me across this borough" and everything!)
If Leah's eyebrows could have shot clean off of her hairline, they would have. "Um, no thanks. I think I'll stick with…"
She looked over to a nearby subway tunnel, before sighing. Miguel hazarded a guess. "Lemme guess, PubTrans doesn't get you to exactly where you need to go?"
"Yeah, and I thought a taxi would be faster… Can you carry both me and my wheelchair? It's Intelihealth, so it's foldable."
Miguel nodded. He had served clients like Leah before, and he had experience with everyone, from buglike metahumans to metahumans with elemental bodies. A girl in a wheelchair wasn't even registering on the scale by now. He began to reach into his jacket, pulling out a few things. "Sure I can, it doesn't look like a powered chair. Here, take these ropes- tie them around your waist, they'll make sure that you don't go flying off. I'm pretty confident in my powers, but I just don't wanna be sued, y'know?"
Five Minutes Later…
If you had asked anyone who wasn't familiar with Miguel what it looked like, they'd have said that it was an odd scene. A 20-something year old girl clinging to a 26-27ish looking dude's back. Of course, neither of them really cared— Miguel was honestly more worried about dropping the wheelchair folded underneath his arm then dropping her. "Alright. I'm Unbound, but you can call me Miguel for the duration of this trip, and I'll be your transporter slash taxi driver today! Where do you wanna go, Miss Leah?"
Leah… yawned? He had to appreciate the honesty at least. "Ok, you can spare me the theatrics. I'm not a kid. Get me to the burger place in three minutes and I'll tip you extra. Y'know, the one with the bacon special."
"...Fine then, but you can definitely be nicer to the people getting you to where you need to go next time."
Miguel squatted down to his knees- and jumped. In what seemed like an instant, they both ascended above one of the three story buildings nearby, accelerating to at minimum 50 miles per hour. Almost immediately, Leah's grip slipped, but thankfully the ropes attached to the inside of his jacket/business outfit held. After the last accident, Miguel had sworn on the Leviathan's Blood to not let anyone slip. It hadn't been like his cousin had died or anything, but being used as a human fall cushion was not something Miguel wanted to relive, thank you very much!
Leah grabbed onto Miguel hard enough to crush something if he hadn't been ready. "Oh geez, that's fast!"
"Hey, you wanted the super premium package, so sit back and enjoy the ride!"
For a few seconds that seemed like an eternity, they stayed up in the air, flying horizontally over the crowds of students… and then they began to slowly drop.
"Hey, why are we-" Leah asked.
"Yeah, I've got a four second limit on the flight. Brace for impact."
Leah screamed in terror as they began to fall more down instead of forward, but Miguel didn't flinch. Bracing for impact, he bent his legs as he landed with a bang on the marble roof of a university's lunch area, before running around the marble dome on the roof. He was still running at a good speed. Not as fast as he could fly, but definitely faster than the average non-powered sprinter. After a few more moments passed, Miguel bent his legs again, and leapt.
Leah was still freaking out. "Leviathan's Blood, this is crazy! Can you chill?"
"Hey, you said three minutes or less. If you're scared, just bury your head into the jacket. I've heard that it helps!"
Leah did exactly that, trying her best to block out the wind and the terrifying falls. For a minute, everything was darkness.
They were rising for a bit. Then they were falling. Rising. Falling. Rising…
After a while, Leah found the courage to meekly peek her head out from behind the jacket. Her eyes immediately widened.
They were facing the sun, and they were definitely a lot higher up. Elysium and the Apiary loomed large in the distance, and it was like she could almost touch the Zenith, the sun painted on the glass skyscraper seeming closer than ever. Below, the light of the sunset was shining down through the skyline of the district, painting everything a beautiful shade of orange. It was awe-inspiring, and the colors almost seemed to dazzle her as they both flew through the concrete skyline. She had seen the Uni District for almost a year now, but never like this before. Her sister and friends had been completely right. Flight really was the best power. "Wow. What a view."
Miguel grinned, readjusting his grip on Leah's wheelchair. "Now you can see why people pay more for me! There's a helluva lot of things that you can get to see from here. It's my favorite part about my power."
They rose through the sky for a second, before beginning to drop down again. The wind whipped around Leah's head, though it was mostly Miguel that felt the breeze. This time, Leah didn't look away as they fell. "Yeah, I can definitely see why. I kinda wanted to go higher, though."
Miguel nodded just a tiny bit, possibly trying to not lose his goggles as they fell down to the roof of another building."Trust me, this is just how it is. Besides, I'm happy with what I've got. It's enough to get anybody out of the way of any of the big fights, so I'm happy with that."
There had been something unsaid there. But Leah didn't feel like asking much about anybody's New Dawn membership, so she simply looked over to the other side of the district as she felt a small jolt from Miguel hitting the floor.
After a while, Miguel jumped again, going higher and higher, but never tall enough to reach much higher than the Zenith. Leah considered asking him to try and touch a cloud, but decided against it. Instead, she decided to ask a question to pass the time. "Are you mad that you can't go any higher? Like- Automne or Elysium levels?"
"Mmph, I'm fine with where I'm at now. Really." Miguel said, a hint of denial (and not the New Dawn team!) in his voice.
"Are you though? Don't you wish that you could see what it's like up there?"
When he spoke again, there was a small bit of… longing? There was longing in his voice. "Of course I do, sometimes. My power really is just "jump good". It's not that impressive, and sometimes I just wish that I could be more. Better."
Leah could definitely relate. Her mother was also a metahuman, but not a particularly impressive one. Sure, singing incredibly well paid the bills but…
"But I've learned to be happy with what I have," Miguel interrupted, "and yeah, I won't be the same as the people above me in terms of what they were born with, but…"
He hit the ground— and jumped again. This time, both him and Leah reached out for the sun. "We're not gonna be here forever, right? So I wanna enjoy the ride while it lasts, as the person I am. The person I was meant to be. I'm no Automne, I'm no King. But I'm Unbound. And you're Leah. Nothing wrong with being unapologetically ourselves. Nothing wrong with being content, being enough."
"That's easy for you to say," Leah shot back, "You don't have anything stopping you from doing these things, and you can walk, unlike me."
Miguel dove down again, this time landing on a lower building. He nodded his head in agreement. "Yeah, that's true. But there's still something you can have anyways. Something that isn't related to how we were born…"
He jumped up again, this time accelerating even faster, even higher. And for a second, both Leah and Miguel simply hovered up there in the sky, not in the clouds, but not on the ground either. Miguel pointed towards the sun. Orange and yellow and purple and disappearing below the horizon.
"Even when things hurt, even when everything goes wrong, the world will always be beautiful. There's always gonna be something new to discover. Any of us can live with that wonder in our hearts… you've just gotta let it in, be open to it. That's how I live my life. Free and happy, in spite of the world."
At that moment, even if she wouldn't admit it to herself, Leah was genuinely happy as well. She smiled, with a grin bright as the sun. "Huh. Didn't expect to get a philosophy lesson today. But it's nice to hear from someone so optimistic. Lot better than the doom and gloom I've been hearing recently."
"And good timing as well, Ms. Leah. Brace for impact again, because below is the restaurant you want!"
"Wait, why are you speeding up our fall OH LEVIATHAN MY HANDS ARE SLIPPING—"
(In the end, Miguel got there in two minutes and fifty-five seconds without any injuries. And yes, he did get that extra tip.)
