- Location
- Idaho Falls, ID
Poor Skynet. It died as it lived. Violently.
Taylor Hebert, Dovahkiin (Worm/Skyrim)
- Thread starter YuffieK
- Start date
- Location
- Sherman Oaks, CA
Carpet Likes Deployed.
Seriously good work on this. Keep up the awesome work!
Wondering what that encounter with Lung is going to be like. How will two people with Draconic Traits interact? Will Lung gain a bit of fondness for Taylor's antics? Will their dragons even accept each other? I guess only time will tell in this case, but I really look forward to seeing this happen!
Seriously good work on this. Keep up the awesome work!
Wondering what that encounter with Lung is going to be like. How will two people with Draconic Traits interact? Will Lung gain a bit of fondness for Taylor's antics? Will their dragons even accept each other? I guess only time will tell in this case, but I really look forward to seeing this happen!
Tisaku
Head Chief Thinkomancer
then she'd
Hotdog Vendor
Author of 'Sisters of Rail'
- Location
- (5 + 3 * sqrt(5)) / 8
- Pronouns
- She/Her
Agreed to the first part.
But... one does not simply 'catch up' on Ring-maker.
Yeah, and it's very
Marvel's Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D.
- Location
- Earth
Oh, cousin. Yeah, he did said he got a cousin around Tay's age. At first, I thought he was Lisa's big bro that managed to pull the faking death trick successfully.
- Location
- Phillips County, Colorado
Forgive me for what I'm thinking about you right now. This is an excellent story, but given my personal history, this line hit like a punch to the gut.
With a knife.
Thank you for writing it, and nothing personal, but I'm going to go hate on you for a few minutes.
Then I'll keep reading.
Guardsman_Sparky
The Clueless Wonder
- Location
- Virginia
*Silently offers a @YuffieK shaped punching bag*
girador
There are only four circles in this picture
- Location
- behind a screen
You are a far stronger man than I Ed. If I had your kind of history i'd have dropped the fic from the pain of the memories.
Jack of Olives
Rolled a '3' on their Con score
- Location
- The land of fruits and nuts (California)
Poor U&L.
Let this be a lesson to everyone: If you have to destroy/assault a LMD-type robot, make sure that anyone watching knows/can-tell that it's not a real person. *themoreyouknow.gif*
Anyway, Just discovered this story, and very much enjoying it. Good to see another AU that messes with the setting without either making world-spanningly obvious changes or just changing one little detail.
Looking forward to more.
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Interlude - Uber & Leet
YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
Some pretty foul language at the start of this.
Leet had been quietly fuming at his totally not-homo life partner for the past fifteen minutes. Now finally back in the relative safety of their main pad, his frustrations boiled over.
"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT? YOU MEET A GIRL FOR HALF AN HOUR AND YOU FUCKING TELL HER YOUR REAL NAME WHEN SHE FUCKING ASKS? ARE YOU FUCKING MASTERED? OR JUST FUCKING RETARDED?!?"
"Taylor needed a show of trust."
"BULLSHIT! I WILL FUCKING PULL OUT THE BFG-9000 ON YOUR FUCKING ASS IF YOU DON'T FUCKING GIVE ME A FUCKING EXPLANATION THAT WOULD FUCKING CALM LUNG DOWN OUT OF A GODDAMN FUCKING DRAGONRAGE!" Leet screamed as flopped into his comfy chair in near-apoplectic fury. "Talk."
"I'm pretty sure the PRT was responsible for Taylor's Trigger."
Leet began flailing his arms with undirected wrath, before finally assuming a semblance of calm. He raised a quivering hand beckoning him to continue. "All right, you're gonna have to walk me through that deduction Sherlock, 'cause that's something nobody talks about, and I'm sure she didn't bare her soul to you."
"Taylor said she'd met half a dozen capes before us. Kid Win by name for one. She also mentioned she could phase. That's Shadow Stalker. Now, where would a teenage girl most likely meet a couple of Wards out of costume?"
"Arcadia. She's a student. So what?"
"Beyond the fact she knows their civilian identities because her power tells her they're a cape with just a handshake? That aspect of her power alone is huge. If she's copied Panacea? Even if she can only cast Cure Light Wounds that makes her invaluable to anyone who knows about it."
"Still not seeing it."
"Ask yourself: Why didn't Taylor consider the Wards first? Why didn't Danny call the PRT immediately? They came to US."
"So they don't trust the Protectorate. How many people really do anyway? They're the government. They're not supposed to be trusted or competent. Hell, they can't even hunt down the Slaughterhouse Nine, despite the fact those murderhobos don't have a Stranger power among them since Nice Guy bought it, Crawler's a Giger horror the size of a minibus, and the Siberian shish-kebab'd Hero and tore half of Alexandria's face off. I'd call that bit in particular pretty damn good motivation to nuke those assholes from orbit."
"True, but consider this: What if a Ward was responsible for Taylor getting powers and nobody did anything about it? And Taylor figured that out after the fact?"
Leet slowly nodded. "I see where your leading with this, because Shadow Stalker's been MIA for a couple of weeks now, and she does have that violent ex-vigilante reputation around her neck. You think Stalker did something horrible to Taylor, something as a civilian."
"Mmm-hmm, and I know where I'd start looking. Winslow High. That funds misappropriation scandal they just had seems rather conveniently timed now."
"A cover up then. And if they knew about Taylor, they would be bowing and scraping for forgiveness at her feet to get her onboard. Costa-Brown would probably offer Piggot's head on Armsy's halberd if they knew the truth, they're that desperate. Do you think Taylor knows just how far they would've gone to get her on their team?"
"Nope, which is a good thing. Taylor's also got a serious martyr complex. She's good at hiding it, but she's been through a LOT, and is just now starting to break out of it. If she went into the Wards they'd use that to exploit her to death, literally. She needs some time to develop some self confidence."
Leet harumphed loudly. "I'm still pissed at you for telling them your name like that. And antsy to build something."
"I really don't think they're going to go looking into a past of a guy who was last seen at USC over five years ago." Uber cocked an eyebrow. "Wait. Normal antsy, or...?"
Leet frowned. "Antsy Antsy. Like my head's full of bees. Shit. Yeah, I think they're prepping for an attack run."
"How long?"
"A week, tops. Depends on where they're planning to hit. It's probably going to be Sephiroth's crazier sister too."
"Fuck. That rules us out."
"Yeah. No way I'm letting that angelic bitch within a hundred miles of my head if I have a choice. Still can't believe nobody realizes they're Golden Boy's toys."
Uber went over to the fridge and pulled out a pair of beers. "Any new ideas about dealing with him, Eddie?"
"Nothing that wouldn't make Chicxulub look like a firecracker. Even if the bastard ever talked he'd have to be the universe's biggest idiot to say what his Kryptonite was."
<<<<<*****>>>>>
Leet had been quietly fuming at his totally not-homo life partner for the past fifteen minutes. Now finally back in the relative safety of their main pad, his frustrations boiled over.
"WHAT THE FUCK WAS THAT? YOU MEET A GIRL FOR HALF AN HOUR AND YOU FUCKING TELL HER YOUR REAL NAME WHEN SHE FUCKING ASKS? ARE YOU FUCKING MASTERED? OR JUST FUCKING RETARDED?!?"
"Taylor needed a show of trust."
"BULLSHIT! I WILL FUCKING PULL OUT THE BFG-9000 ON YOUR FUCKING ASS IF YOU DON'T FUCKING GIVE ME A FUCKING EXPLANATION THAT WOULD FUCKING CALM LUNG DOWN OUT OF A GODDAMN FUCKING DRAGONRAGE!" Leet screamed as flopped into his comfy chair in near-apoplectic fury. "Talk."
"I'm pretty sure the PRT was responsible for Taylor's Trigger."
Leet began flailing his arms with undirected wrath, before finally assuming a semblance of calm. He raised a quivering hand beckoning him to continue. "All right, you're gonna have to walk me through that deduction Sherlock, 'cause that's something nobody talks about, and I'm sure she didn't bare her soul to you."
"Taylor said she'd met half a dozen capes before us. Kid Win by name for one. She also mentioned she could phase. That's Shadow Stalker. Now, where would a teenage girl most likely meet a couple of Wards out of costume?"
"Arcadia. She's a student. So what?"
"Beyond the fact she knows their civilian identities because her power tells her they're a cape with just a handshake? That aspect of her power alone is huge. If she's copied Panacea? Even if she can only cast Cure Light Wounds that makes her invaluable to anyone who knows about it."
"Still not seeing it."
"Ask yourself: Why didn't Taylor consider the Wards first? Why didn't Danny call the PRT immediately? They came to US."
"So they don't trust the Protectorate. How many people really do anyway? They're the government. They're not supposed to be trusted or competent. Hell, they can't even hunt down the Slaughterhouse Nine, despite the fact those murderhobos don't have a Stranger power among them since Nice Guy bought it, Crawler's a Giger horror the size of a minibus, and the Siberian shish-kebab'd Hero and tore half of Alexandria's face off. I'd call that bit in particular pretty damn good motivation to nuke those assholes from orbit."
"True, but consider this: What if a Ward was responsible for Taylor getting powers and nobody did anything about it? And Taylor figured that out after the fact?"
Leet slowly nodded. "I see where your leading with this, because Shadow Stalker's been MIA for a couple of weeks now, and she does have that violent ex-vigilante reputation around her neck. You think Stalker did something horrible to Taylor, something as a civilian."
"Mmm-hmm, and I know where I'd start looking. Winslow High. That funds misappropriation scandal they just had seems rather conveniently timed now."
"A cover up then. And if they knew about Taylor, they would be bowing and scraping for forgiveness at her feet to get her onboard. Costa-Brown would probably offer Piggot's head on Armsy's halberd if they knew the truth, they're that desperate. Do you think Taylor knows just how far they would've gone to get her on their team?"
"Nope, which is a good thing. Taylor's also got a serious martyr complex. She's good at hiding it, but she's been through a LOT, and is just now starting to break out of it. If she went into the Wards they'd use that to exploit her to death, literally. She needs some time to develop some self confidence."
Leet harumphed loudly. "I'm still pissed at you for telling them your name like that. And antsy to build something."
"I really don't think they're going to go looking into a past of a guy who was last seen at USC over five years ago." Uber cocked an eyebrow. "Wait. Normal antsy, or...?"
Leet frowned. "Antsy Antsy. Like my head's full of bees. Shit. Yeah, I think they're prepping for an attack run."
"How long?"
"A week, tops. Depends on where they're planning to hit. It's probably going to be Sephiroth's crazier sister too."
"Fuck. That rules us out."
"Yeah. No way I'm letting that angelic bitch within a hundred miles of my head if I have a choice. Still can't believe nobody realizes they're Golden Boy's toys."
Uber went over to the fridge and pulled out a pair of beers. "Any new ideas about dealing with him, Eddie?"
"Nothing that wouldn't make Chicxulub look like a firecracker. Even if the bastard ever talked he'd have to be the universe's biggest idiot to say what his Kryptonite was."
Leet does get unusually anxious and twitchy in the days before an Endbringer attack. This is because his Eden shard (one of the very few living ones) is reacting to Eidolon's subconscious desire for conflict. He and Uber have also come to the conclusion that Scion is NOT a hero by any means and is actually the one controlling the Endbringers, as evidenced by the regular timing of their attacks, Scion taking his damn sweet time showing up to an attack and his "Being a full-on dissociative whackjob the rest of the time."
When you realize that Adrian Veidt and Lex Luthor are RIGHT, that's going to skew your worldview hard.
When you realize that Adrian Veidt and Lex Luthor are RIGHT, that's going to skew your worldview hard.
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Ok, this chapter was a serious WTF moment. And not because of the swearing.
- Location
- United States
I'm ... guessing that Uber had some sorta Sherlock skill going on? Because that was taking 2 plus 2 and getting 27. Oh, and everything else.
Well, let's see where this goes.
Well, let's see where this goes.
- Pronouns
- Yes
This makes absolutely no sense. Leet getting an early warning about the Endbringers thanks to his connection to Eidolon's shard? Sure that works. Leet NOT telling people? Eh...well if you want U&L to be sociopathic bastards and/or complete morons I suppose that works.
U&L figuring out someone is controlling the Endbringers? Sure. Them believing Scion is controlling the Endbringers? Maybe, if Leet built the right sort of sensory device they could get the wrong bits of information and jump to that conclusion...but jumping to that conclusion because Scion treats Endbringers the way he treats everything else? That makes no sense.
FullNothingness
Mostly DHMO.
Telling people you can predict Endbringer attacks is not exactly conducive to remaining 'non-conformist rogues'. Everyone would jump to grab them.
- Location
- Internet, The
One thing that bothers me a bit is Leet repeatedly destroying his own equipment. I like that you try to explain why people think his creations break apart, and making it part of an anti-theft system is very neat. But I'd expect any tinker and especially someone who cannot recreate his tech like Leet, to have anti-theft measures that don't literally blow up their own equipment.
Possibilities range from teleport-swapping the tinkertech with fakes to only small parts of the costumes being actual tinkertech and them just taking the actual tech with them, from using mundane high-tech and only pretending it is tinkertech to using some exotic device that I cannot even hope to imagine.
Possibilities range from teleport-swapping the tinkertech with fakes to only small parts of the costumes being actual tinkertech and them just taking the actual tech with them, from using mundane high-tech and only pretending it is tinkertech to using some exotic device that I cannot even hope to imagine.
YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
Leet does not get a telepathic message saying "The Simurgh will attack Canberra on Tuesday" he gets the vague impression that an Endbringer is coming soon. Anyone with a calendar can guess that, Leet just has verification on the guess.
Also natural disasters do not target cities on a schedule. Endbringers do, therefore they must have some sort of intelligence guiding them. Who could be powerful enough to direct them though? Maybe the guy who's the most powerful thing on the planet because who else could?
- Location
- United States
Or they're jumping to those conclusions because they're gamers and, speaking as a gamer, we jump to some pretty far out conclusions. Like guessing how a story is gonna play out because you've played a million just like it or close enough to not matter. And sometimes confuse them.
"Shit, unarmed. Well, if I duct tape a short pipe, a tank of gasoline, and a harpoon handle together and throw some odds and ends in here, I have a Small Makeshift Gun! Wait... I'm playing Resident Evil 3, not How To Survive. Shit. Gotta find some herbs. BRB."
Might work if they were mystery fans, too.
"The butler did it! What's my evidence? Dude, it's ALWAYS the Butler."
One obvious conclusion to make is the common "twist" that the main hero is actually a bad guy. Or the main baddie is actually doing the wrong things for the right reasons and changes the MC's mind. And people call that shit out all the time. I'm mostly unsurprised at the conclusions U&L have drawn. And what little surprise there is is because I haven't seen it in a worm fic before. But yeah, Gamers would call this shit out in a heart beat. I've totally done it before.
"That big shiny golden dude is the tip top of hero's and everyone loves him? He's probably a depraved monster that's real good at hiding it."
"This dude is the Queens trustee advisor? Okay! Oh, smoke ninjas and the Queen is dead? And Emily is missing? The Spy Master did it at the Right Hands bequest." I enjoyed killing Campbell. Fucker.
YuffieK
(Verified Ninja Princess)
You're correct. The stuff that gets blown up / destroyed is mundane tech pretending to be tinkertech. The actual good items are things like power sources and energy weapons, which they hang on to and reuse. That charred metal tube? It looks like it was the powerpack for that lightsaber, but it's slagged beyond any hope of reconstruction.
- Location
- The City
Wow. It's unusual do see a story where Uber and L33t set up as the heroes the world needs while working in secret.
Considering that there are college courses for critical thinking and deductive reasoning, it is entirely likely that Uber it has been training those skills. Honestly, if he's attempting to protect l33t as established in this story, he needs those skills at a super high level.
Considering that there are college courses for critical thinking and deductive reasoning, it is entirely likely that Uber it has been training those skills. Honestly, if he's attempting to protect l33t as established in this story, he needs those skills at a super high level.
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- Location
- Existance
"Oh please. Like you could even get it working again."
"Hey!"
"Sorry."
"Low blow, dude."
- Location
- Beyond the Unknowable Veil
Why are they assuming the Endbringer controller needs to be all-powerful? As far as they know, he just needs control rights and could be a resentful sewer worker in some obscure town.
- Pronouns
- Yes
If you define "telling people" as announcing it publicly, and not taking precautions to keep your identity hidden this would be true. However informing the PRT of this privately with the request their identity be kept quiet would allow them to not only keep doing what they like most of the time, but let them bank favors with the PRT that would help them fix stuff like the PR disaster that led to them being known as beating a prostitute to death. And then there's all the lives they'd save. Which is why unless U&L are extremely sociopathic morons their described course of action does not make sense.
From the story he seems to get a much better timeframe than what anyone else can come up with, and also the identity of the attacking Endbringer. That would be very valuable even if that's all he got.
Everyone with a calender can guess wrong by several weeks. Leet can narrow that down considerably with is incredibly valuable even if he can't reliably predict which Endbringer is attacking. Narrowing it down to a couple of days would be enough that they'd have teams on standby ready for the word of where the Endbringer is attacking.
Only if you ignore all the natural phenomena that occur on a schedule, but granting this for the sake of argument, the guiding intelligence could be their own, or from a near infinite number of potential hidden groups. Remember until Tt. got a look at Leviathan they didn't know the Endbringers weren't extreme monster capes that went nuts.