The Light of Brockton Bay (Taylor Hebert Alt-Power)

[Alexandra_Revoe]

Note: The second interlude is here. I wanted to make an interlude earlier, but I felt that the story needed to progress more before I had one (other than Amy's). Also, if you have any tips for PHO threads, that would be nice.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

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■​

♦ Topic: Mush Apprehended!
In: Boards ► Places ► Brockton Bay ► News
Bagrat (Original Poster) (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know)
Posted On Jan 5th 2011:
Around 6 hours ago, Mush was arrested by Brockton Bay's newest hero, Da'at.

There was a gang fight taking place on the border between merchant and ABB territory. Da'at intervened in an attempt to arrest both parties, only to find herself faced with Mush after the fight was finished.

Even after knocking out a reported 6 gang members, they fought against Mush and came out on top. It's nothing to crazy, but it was a quite successful fight for a reportedly new cape.

Links:

Da'at thread - LINK

Fight with gang members and Mush - LINK

(Showing page 1 of 5)

►Space Zombie
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
I for one am glad that we finally have a new hero instead of a villain.
►Willowy Wanderer
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Fuck yeah, fuck the merchants.

(User has received an infraction: Language.)

►Chilldrizzle
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Does anyone know what their powers are? I can see her change into 3 different outfits in the video. She also seems to have a tinkertech cannon of some kind.

►Bagrat (Original Poster) (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know)
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
I linked her original thread above. The PRT hasn't given any official ratings yet.

Da'at has told the PRT that they can "turn into other versions of themselves," and in Miss Militia's body camera footage, she claims that "the other versions come with separate personalities that can be troublesome."

If true, this would make her a Trump with a type eight

►Tin_Mother (Moderator)
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
There is a separate thread for discussion on Da'at. Please keep the discussion on topic.

►CapeWatcher97
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
That cannon hit pretty hard. Are we sure Mush isn't dead?

►Willowy Wanderer
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
It looks like he's still alive in the video, but also who cares it's Mush.

►Alias
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Why is no one talking about how cool they look in that grey outfit? I love the burnt theme going on, especially with the cannon with the match going through it.

►XxVoid_CowboyxX
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Can't anyone see it? Their powers change their personality, and she has a fire theme!

Burnscar in the Bay anyone?

(User has received an infraction: Please don't claim capes are like the S9.)

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5

(Showing page 2 of 5)

►Catalyst_0
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Void. There are literally hundreds of capes out there that can weild fire. They haven't even used fire yet.

►3rdDegree (Verified Cape) (Verified Villain)
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
It's nice to get some fire-based power recognition.

►EchoBreak
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Now that Mush is in jail, what's going to happen? The merchants are down 1 of their 3 capes.

►Zero.Point
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Mush was never really a heavy hitter. But if he's gone, then I expect the merchants to lose some territory.

►Hot Rod (Verified Cape) (Verified Villain)
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
(User has received a ban for this post: Don't send death threats to people and their families.)

►Tracking my Dad
Replied On Jan 5th 2011:
Lmao, Squealer's mad.

■​

♦ Topic: Merchant Jailbreak!
In: Boards ► Places ► Brockton Bay ► News
Chaosfaith (Original Poster)
Posted On Jan 8th 2011:
Anyone else see the jailbreak at the PRT headquarters?

A Squealer killdozer just crashed through the PRT jail, and dozens of merchants started swarming it. Then a new cape came and decided that the merchants were going to burn that day (literally). Anyone have a video?

(Showing page 1 of 23)

►Last_Frame
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Ah a jailbreak already. New record!!! Mush stayed in jail for 3 days!!! We did it, guys!!!

►Ryus
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
So, I guess Mush is going to be out already.

Edit: Apparently not

►Prologuer
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
I was near when the killdozer hit the wall. Any updates? I've already cleared the area.

►Chaosfaith (Original Poster)
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
HOLY SHIT. MISS MILITIA GOT HIT HARD AND THE NEW CAPE JUST WENT INSANO MODE.

►Obsidian Dream
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
What?

►Bagrat (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know)
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Okay, apparently the merchants attempted to break Mush out of jail. Then Da'at (Thread - LINK) came to help Velocity and Miss Militia in the fight. Only for Miss MIlitia to take a shot from Skidmark that was meant to hit Da'at.

Then apparently Da'at decides to stop holding back because they pulled out a new power that obliterated the fight.

I managed to get a hold of a few videos that should show the entirety - LINK

Good picture of Da'at - LINK

►Veneer
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Okay, I just looked at the picture. That's terrifying.

►SleepyHead
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Are they dead? Most people with fire powers are in some form immune to their own fire. Their skin is burnt, and bones are showing.

►Morgan Sinister
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Ah great, yet another hero in Brockton Bay is insane. Just listen to them

"I will leave nothing, except for ashes in the wind."

"The fire gives me the warmth to survive... without it I will freeze."

It's a horror show here I tell you

End of Page. 1, 2, 3 ... 21, 22, 23

(Showing page 2 of 23)

►DigaWell
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
The new cape just randomly decides to turn into a Lung 2.

►3rdDegree (Verified Cape) (Verified Villain)
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Even this is a little scary for me.

►XxVoid_CowboyxX
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
I TOLD YOU ALL. NO ONE BELIEVED ME.

►Ryus
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
XxVoid_CowboyxX, they aren't Burnscar. Not a single person died in that video.

►RainedOnParade
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Weren't they about to finsh off Skidmark and his capes?

►Willowy Wanderer
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
That was clearly Squealer overreacting.

►Bagrat (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know)
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Just got the video from Armsmaster's POV

LINK

►Robby
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Da'at talked to Armsmaster after that whole incident, and the talk went well???

►Obsidian Dream
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Does anyone else notice Assault's face in the background? Lmao

►In_The_Light
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
It looks like they managed to regain control of themselves. How interesting.

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4 ... 21, 22, 23

(Showing page 3 of 23)

►Lo_Commotion
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
If I were a villain, I'd move out of Brockton Bay after this showing.

►Alias
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Da'at looks even cooler now.

►EchoBreak
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
So, I guess the merchants are done for now?

►Antigone
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Brockton Bay games 2.0 anyone?

►Reave (Verified PRT Agent)
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Bagrat can we please have a discussion on your sources?

►JustJoking
Replied On Jan 8th 2011:
Classic Reave asking Bagrat how they get their info.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- PRT Headquarters, 3rd Person

Director Emily Piggot was not having a good day, although that was pretty normal for her. An emergency meeting was called, and all Protectorate heroes were required to join. Emily looked at the folder laying on her desk labelled 'Da'at'. She was labelled as a Trump 4, Breaker 2, Changer 2. The PRT had briefly mentioned her during a regular meeting that took place earlier this week.

Normally, capes who book for power testing aren't heavily discussed until after their power testing, as that could lead to discoveries that would drastically change their power ratings. It also gives the PRT more information on their personalities. If someone had a very dangerous power, or a power that needed immediate discussion, they would call a meeting before power testing. But Da'at only showed some minor combat thinking capabilities, a single tinkertech weapon, and maybe a calming master/shaker aura similar to Glory Girl. Overall, nothing to bad.

'That was until she nearly burned half a block'. Emily looked up at the group of heroes that made up the ENE Protectorate. Miss Militia had already been healed by Panacea and was determined to have no other injuries. Emily turned to Armsmaster. "Give me one good reason I shouldn't throw you into M/S confinement right now."

Armsmaster was confused but didn't show it. "Why would I need Master Stranger confinement?"

Emily points a finger at him. "You met up with a teenage cape, who just had a breakdown, who nearly killed 3 people, and she somehow talks to you and doesn't at least get brought in for questioning. That's less likely to happen than Assault making a joke I would laugh at."

"She didn't kill anyone. Mush, Skidmark, and Squealer survived with some moderate burns. She told me that her power can compel her to say things that she does not want to say, which my lie detector determined to be true. She apprehended all 3 without major property damage, except for a road that would already need major repairs. I determined that her results, while too emotional for me, were well within legal boundaries."

Emily put her faces into her hands and sighed. "Of course you would see it like that." She brings her head back up. "Aside from that, let's get to the main topic of this meeting." A projector lights up onto a board nearby, showing Da'at in her regular Scorched Girl attire. "Previously we held back on serious discussion on Da'at as she had booked her power testing and was deemed to have an easy power to deal with. Which was obviously wrong."

The image changed to a clear picture of the form Da'at took at the jailbreak. Some of the Protectorate members recoiled at the image of the person on screen who looked to be burning alive. "I've sent you all a detailed record of events of what happened this afternoon; Da'at has shown to be much stronger than she previously let on; whether this is intentional or not remains to be seen. Let's start with a general psychological profile. Does anyone here know where she got the name 'Da'at' from? It's to specific sounding to not have origins."

Armsmaster was the first to speak. "I determined that it is taken from the Hebrew tree of life, which is seen in Rabbinical Judaism. It is the point at which all 10 other points on the tree of life are united.

Emily spoke up. "So we're dealing with a religious cape?"

Armsmaster shakes his head. "It's inconclusive at best. One of Da'at's breaker states displays a cross necklace and crown of thorns on her weapon. These are both Christian-based pieces of imagery, and most people who practice Judaism are strongly opposed to cross imagery. It is possible that the name comes from the function of her power; she could see herself as the point where all other versions of herself are united."

Emily nodded. "That sounds plausible. For everyone here who has met Da'at personally, can you tell me your general impressions of her?"

Assault was the first one up. "She seemed nervous during our first meeting, which she claimed was her first outing. Something did show up that made me a little confused and, at the time, made me think her story was a lie." Assault presses a few buttons before his body camera footage of his first meeting with Da'at comes onto the projector. After fiddling with it a bit, he presses play

Assault is speaking. "You don't have to answer this if you don't want to, but information on your power is helpful to the PRT before you get power testing so we know what to expect. I'm assuming its a kind of combat thinker power with how well you handled this fight."

Da'at smirks on the footage. "No, I've already been in a few fights as a grade 6 fi."

Da'at cringes and changes her form into a set of plain clothing. "Uh no, sorry about that; my power can make me say some funny things."

"Even though we're sure that this was her first outing, she claims to have already had a "few fights." In my opinion, the amount of combat skill she has shown in later outings means that she has had many fights before hand, and specifically with swords, seeing her swordsmanship." Assault explained

Miss Militia looked puzzled. "So she's trying to hide her past from us?"

Assault shook his head. "That's what I thought at first, but then I came to an obvious answer. She claims her power is to transform into alternate versions of herself from other universes. This may also include memories and personalities. This would explain the slip-up and the drastic change in personalities we saw this afternoon."

Emily frown deepened. "That's concerning. Considering the specific words she chose during the jailbreak fight. Alright, she's a teenager who wants to be a hero but has a power that gives her multiple personalities, and some of them can be difficult to deal with. Let's move on to power specifics. Previously, we did what we thought at the time was a slight overshoot. Trump 4, Breaker 2, Changer 2. Do we have any clues on how her power exactly works?"

Battery raised her hand, elbow still on the table. "Do we have any information from Watchdog?"

Emily responded by shaking her head. "Da'at has some kind of anti-thinker ability that messes with most thinkers. I tried submitting an emergency request for information along with videos of her 2 most recent fights. I got mostly gibberish." Emily picks up a piece of paper. "Has no powers, nothing, headache, one of the responses claims a thinker used his power only to respond and scream "The Head is after me!" over and over until he passed out four minutes later. The only response I got that may be true and useful is "She was under extreme emotional turbulence before transforming into the form shown in the jailbreak.""

Velocity pulls out a piece of paper and hands it to Emily. "According to analysis done to the pavement on the street she was running and standing on, her 'Blaze' form was somewhere between 2200 and 2400 degrees Fahrenheit. Seeing as the pavement had began to melt where she stood still, and the nearby road had started to melt at an 8-foot distance."

"That is about the same as Lung when he is 16 to 17 feet high." Armsmaster adds. Emily can already feel the headaches this girl is going to bring. "Okay, so she has a breaker state that is the equivalent to a semi-ramped Lung. If I'm going to be honest with you all, I don't like what this information is implying. Especially when she isn't in the wards currently."

Seeing a few confused looks, Emily continued, "We had previously agreed that Da'at was most likely a Trump type 8 with her multiple breaker states; however, seeing the power she can get out of just one of her breaker states and the notion from her that she can acquire more implies that there can be even stronger powers she can gain. This could well be a completely unseen Trump type eight times infinity."

The protectorate heroes stilled at the idea. Trump type infinity heroes were known for being some of the most powerful capes ever seen, with the likes of Eidolon and Glaistig Uaine. "This is all speculative and won't be confirmed on record until we have more evidence, but that's my bit of wisdom as director."

Dauntless spoke up for the first time in the meeting. "What will we be putting as her power ratings now?" Emily thought for a few seconds before replying. "I think the best way to handle Da'at would be a slight modification to the regular threat file and have one for each breaker form along with her main file. Now, what should we put as her main threat rating?"

 

[Alexandra_Revoe]

Note: You thought it was another chapter. BUT IT WAS ME, OMAKES! Not canon (maybe) (at least not yet) (in your dreams) (and your nightmares) (Perhaps it might get its own fanfic) (is it still an omake if it has nothing to do with the originals plot?). If you really do want more of one of these, then just leave a comment. Also my bad, didn't know there was a sidestory section

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Jack Slash, 3rd Person

Jack Slash was having a bad day today. He had thought that this would be another regular recruitment attack. They had chosen Brockton Bay because he had a gut feeling. It was always a thrill watching the games they made up.

At least it should have been fun, was it not for this thing that was chasing us. Seriously, why the fuck was Eidolon 2.0 hiding in some random ass city? Shatterbird was shot by some weird tinkertech rifle that shot lasers with homing; Crawler's probably already dead seeing as I sent him to go have some fun to buy the rest of us some time; Hatchetface didn't even do anything to the bitches power.

Suddenly the cape landed in front of the rest of us with a new form. She was wearing just a grey jacket and had red hair now. "Why don't we talk this ou..." I see the sword she's carrying. It's made of flesh and has eyes growing out of it.

Riley decides its a good time to panic. "Jack, what are we gonn... Holy shit is that the Red Mist?"

The girl in front of us mumbles something about a "greater split." Then all I can see is red.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Simurgh, 3rd Person

The Simurgh somehow woke up. It should be impossible for her to even fall asleep, but she did. She was no longer in the atmosphere above earth. Instead, she was locked in a room with human-made dials and pipes. A door leading to the outside was located in its cell.

The Simurgh felt a sort of pressure on herself. She couldn't act out. She wanted to simply use her telekinesis to rend open the walls and fly away, but she found herself unable to. Her future sight was limited in the same way; she could barely perceive anything past a couple of seconds.

Eventually someone approached her cell outside. He held a recording device in one hand and began to speak. The Simurgh could still hear well enough to listen through the walls. "This is Team Captain Monsu of the Disciplinary Team. I will be recording the first interaction with subject number W-03-111." Before whispering to himself, "Since when did we have 'W' as a subject number starter?"

Finally, Monsu entered her cell. They were wearing some weird body suit made of black flesh that had faces floating around inside of it. He had a mallet as a weapon that was also made of the same material and had a large row of human teeth on the front of it. He gave the Simurgh one good look up and down. "Well fuck. Please let this not be a second WhiteNight."

The Simurgh had no idea what Monsu was saying. "Okay, how do I do attachment work with this thing?" Monsu said quietly before speaking up. "Hey there, can you talk?" Of course she could speak, but normally she wasn't allowed to. There were restrictions placed on her that we... She could feel it; the restrictions were gone. She was stunned for a brief nanosecond before getting an idea.

[Contact Node: High Priest]

... Nothing.

[Contact Node: [[Administrator] [Designation: Zion]]

... Nothing.

[Contact Node: All]

[Nodes contacted: [[Combat Drone] [Designation:Simurgh]]]

She was the only node in the network. She was completely free. Granted, she now had energy issues in the next 200 years, but she could think about that later. She was free to do whatever she wanted. What did she want? The Simurgh thought about it for a moment. She definitely wanted out of here. Maybe she should be some sort of ruler.

The Simurgh thought for another nanosecond. She shouldn't be having these thoughts. She's been changed. She can now feel human... emotion? Is that a bad thing? She still felt cruel towards humanity, but there was no longer the need for constant conflict and [Data].

No, this is probably for the best. Without the network, she would have gone crazy with those drives. She was unleashed, much like the host of [Archivist] wished. The first thing she had to do was get out of this cell, however. Whatever strange technology they have was keeping her effectively sedated in here.

This entire thought process happened over 5 nanoseconds. Returning back to the Monsu's question, she was able to do something she hadn't done since her conception. "Yes. Yes I can."
She laced her voice with the latent mind-control aspect. What did they call this again? Ah yes, "Ziz bombs." She tried to make him a thrall.

Only for Monsu to wince and hold his head. "Ah, so you do white damage; good to know." What was he talking about? What did he mean by white damage? Monsu wasn't under her control, so he had some kind of protection against her psychological attacks. Perhaps white damage refers to damage to the mind.

The Simurgh felt weird. This wasn't the normal mind control she was used to. Normally, she would implant drives that would effect a person's behaviour in specific ways. This, coupled with her future sight, would make people trigger at specific times and do the actions she had planned years ago.

The mind control she did right there was different. It was mostly blocked by whatever defence he had against it. But she could feel a very small connection with him now. It was barely anything, but it was there. Using the connection, she tried to do something very, very small. The Monsu's finger twitched like she was planning. It was the most she could do with this sort of connection, but it was a start.

Time to do as the humans do and act innocent. "I'm sorry, did I hurt you?" She didn't lace it this time with her power, just a normal voice.

Monsu shook his head. "It's fine; I've dealt with worse. Okay, since this is the first time we have seen you on record, and because you have enough cognisance to speak, I will ask some questions about yourself."

The Simurgh nodded before Monsu continued talking. "Okay, so question 1: Do you need any food?"

The Simurgh used this moment to test something. "No, I do not." Monsu winced again. The Simurgh felt the connection deepen just a little. 'Perfect.' Now time to act again. "Oh, sorry, it just slips out sometimes."

Monsu just waved it off. "No worries. Question 2: You will most likely meet with other people who will also do work on you like I am. Are there any particular activities you like to do?"

The Simurgh wanted to grin in a way that would freak Monsu out but kept it to a placid smile. "Just talking with people is nice."

Monsu nodded. "Question 3: Is there anything you would like for your containment unit?"

The Simurgh thought about this question. She had no idea what the outside world was like. It was obviously a different world if the network was gone. Any information about what was outside the cell was beneficial for her. "Any books would be nice. I don't quite remember how I got here, and I used to read a lot. So any books about where I am now would be appreciated."

Monsu put his hand to his chin. "We might be able to find a few books about The City. I can't give any books relating to this facility, however. Sorry, there's safety protocols."

The Simurgh nodded. "That would be great."

Monsu's watch beeped. "Oh, it looks like I'm out of time. You've been a lot nicer than most things around here, so you have my thanks. One last thing, when people come in here to work and they do something that makes you feel like, I don't know, doing something bad. Could you verbalise what they did wrong instead of doing something bad?"

The Simurgh felt annoyed at being told what to do. "Are you telling me what to do now?"

Monsu grasped his head. "Sorry, I won't do that again." He then left her cell. She could still barely hear him outside but still managed to pick up, "What do you mean that was an ALEPH?"

Her connection to Monsu didn't sever when he left. The connection seemed to allow for greater actions with a larger connection. Although the larger actions would use up the energy in the connection. The energy seemed to refill at a slow rate, luckily.

The Simurgh would get out of here one day. She just needed to do what she did best. Sit still, be patient, and plot.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Carmen's POV

Life is good for me. I got everything I wanted in the light. I just love to share my gift with the people of The City.

Looking down on the city, I find a little boy who just found out Santa Claus isn't real. That kind of counts as something that shatters your worldview, so it's within my jurisdiction. The boy has so much life ahead of him; he could be one of the greats.

"Haha, no, distortion."

Ah, how I love my job.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Random Devyat' Association Fixer POV

I'm about to die. This order has taken way too long, and my box is starting to give me enough power to kill me. Why the fuck did we start delivering to the Outskirts? At least I'm getting hazard pay.

Arriving at the target coordinates, I feel the box reel back its power. My back aches now, but it will be worth it. This delivery alone is worth 5 times the regular pay, which is already quite high.

A ragged-looking man comes out of an abandoned building nearby. "Ah, you must be from Devyat', correct?"

I nod. "Yes sir. We've got your package right here." Now that it was in the vicinity of the person who purchased it, the package opened.

It's the fucking latest issue of "Liu Association: Flames of Judgement." Its Volume 31. Who the hell lives in the outskirts and buys manga?

The ragged man smiles at the contents. "Thank you, good sir. I've been waiting for this to come out for a while now. Xiao was just about to face off against the Urban Nightmare "Keeper of the Damned Cradle."" He turns off to run back towards the building he came out of.

'Just a bunch of fucking crazies out here, I tell you.'

 

[Alexandra_Revoe]

Note: More midterms are coming up, so updates are slowing. Also, starting this chapter, I'm going by my headcanon a bit, just because a lot of details are missing for the Project Moon games. Also, some things might be written differently than canon PM. I have no idea how I would balance T Corp time usage otherwise. Otherwise, this is mainly an info chapter. Next chapter should be the power testing visit. After that will probably be the big thing to happen in Teth.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

It's dark and rainy outside. People who haven't been in sped up time wouldn't know, but it's beautiful to see the raindrops at quarter speed. You can see each individual raindrop when they're that slow. It reminds me of the cascading droplets that get stuck to windows.

Most day's I spend my time as a normal Class 3 Collection Staff for T Corp, but it's not always the case. The technicians that use T Corp's singularity don't get a lot of work, especially at my level. I mainly work on the big stuff, entire complexes using the TT2 and TT4 protocols. I even worked on some of the previous L Corp buildings before it suddenly imploded on itself.

The problem with being a technician is the inability to find proper work. People rarely could afford TT2 protocol for their buildings, and once they got it, they would very rarely need upkeep other than extra time. That's why I'm out tonight; by night I'm a Class 3 Collection Staff, by day... I'm still a Class 3 Collection Staff! But every once in a while I am a well-respected T Corp technician!

And technicians are given a level of trust by T Corp. I know the full details of how to create machines that utilise the TT1, TT2, TT3, and TT4 protocols. I have no idea why T Corp is most well known for TT2 when everyone inside District 20 uses TT1. TT1 consists of the basic temporal speed up or slow down that most District 20 residents use. Whenever someone uses their extra time to speed themselves up, that's TT1. When I swing my pickaxe at someone and harvest their time, that's also TT1.

TT2 is the most well-known protocol outside of District 20. The ability to speed up, slow down, stop, and even reverse time in buildings. The reverse time part is the main thing that differentiates it from TT1. TT1 doesn't remember the previous states of what it's affecting, TT2 does, and therefor can reverse time back to said point.

TT4 is much in the same boat. It creates a zone that stabilizes time within it, returning everyone to their regular speeds. Useful for social gatherings and security checkpoints where they want everyone to be going at the same speed.

The real big secret that I know, however, is TT3. TT3 is not well known and kept as a secret by T Corp. T Corp had feared giving out TT2 to other people, so they had developed the TT3 protocol as a countermeasure. TT4 was actually developed straight from TT3, as TT3 acts as a more mobile and stronger version of TT4. It can come in either generator form or an explosive form. Both act as an anchor for time within a certain area around it. Time cannot be reversed, sped up, slowed down, or changed in any way. The generator made it a constant field, but even as a secret trump card, it was deemed too resource intensive. The explosives can vary, but give somewhere between 10 minutes to a day of standard time in an area. The way TT2 works, if the explosion even knicks the TT2 area, it's down for the duration of the explosion.

I actually like it here in T Corp. I have a successful job, it's much safer than other parts of the city, and T Corp gives me respect. That's why when I do tax work, I'm glad to be doing it. Today I'm going after some kid with unregistered inventions. Any inventions must be registered, or you'll be fined and the inventions confiscated.

I've tracked the kid to a nearby alley he's known to frequent. Probably has friends that live nearby. I turn around the corner to find him and a group of 2 other people. Upon seeing me at the end of the alley, he stops what he is doing and breaks out into a full sprint in the other directions. His friends scramble in a similar way, but I'm not here for them. Turning my time to 4 times speed, I spend approximately 2 minutes of the time I'm given as a collection staff. Overall, a pretty efficient use.

He's a little younger than me and looks terrified for his life. I don't know why he's so scared; he has a minimum of 4 hours per day. It isn't like he's going to die. I give him a small smirk and taunt him in a mocking voice. "Shouldn't have played with unauthorized toys, kid."

I slam the pickaxe I'm wielding into him, but instead of impaling him, it instead sits just half an inch away from his skin. The boy freezes in place as various things on the pickaxe begin to move and vials are slowly filled. His time is slowly being harvested. He's racked up nearly 200 hours of fines, so the pickaxe takes a while.

When the pickaxe is finally done extracting his time, I take it off of him and give a mock salute as I walk off. Another successful tax collection. Now to find the next criminal on my list.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Taylor's POV

I wake up with a massive headache. I'm starting to think all my identities are coming from the same or similar places. I didn't think too much about the memories of Seven Association, but if it is, I can't ignore it if I have multiple sets of memories from The City. Now that I'm thinking about it, holy shit is that place a terrible place to live. I thought things might be bad here, but it is way worse there.

Combing through my new memories, I start to pick out a few things. Now that I've already had one previous set of memories dumped on me, I notice a few things I thought wrong. Seven Association's memories mostly came immediately, but specific memories slowly started to trickle back. I knew interrogation techniques when I woke up, but it wasn't until later that I knew that identity was a grade 6 fixer. I never thought about it because the change was gradual, but the new sudden set of memories has reminded me.

The memories themselves were something that surprised me. I knew how to make tinkertech items. Pickaxes that could drain time, watches that could use stored time to have more time, and TT2 protocol technology to reverse time in buildings. The weirdest part is that it doesn't feel like tinkertech. Anyone with the right materials and tools could make this stuff. Which brings me to a realization. 'Are there no parahumans in The City?'

In both sets of memories, there is no information on trigger events or powers that come from crises. Except maybe whatever distortions are; I don't have much info on what those are. In a place like the city, I feel like parahumans would be very prevalent, and yet they aren't. This T Corp technology isn't locked to a single person either. Does this mean that everything in the city is pure technology? Then how do my powers play into this?

Honestly, random powers that come from a crisis sounds like a singularity that a corporation would be based on in The City. But there aren't any corporations in The City that sound remotely like that. Although, for all I know, there could be a corporation in the city that does have that as a singularity. No one knows what A Corp's singularity is, so it could be them.

I should probably get downstairs for breakfast. I get dressed in my clothes for the day and head downstairs. Dad is already up; he's just having cereal today, so he hasn't made anything for me. I go to make myself a bowl as he quickly finishes his. Dad gets up and hurriedly gets his stuff for work and gives me a hug. "Sorry I can't talk; I woke up a little late, and if I don't leave now, I'll be late." Dad says before rushing out the door, leaving me alone.

I finish making my bowl of cereal and sit down to eat. I guess I've always picked names for my power. What should I name the most recent one? T Corp Class 3 Collection staff? Nah, too long, and it also doesn't fit with the job they had. What about T Corp Technician? I think that one's good. It's short and understandable. Now the question is what gear I'll have to start with. I'm fairly confident I can build a lot with my knowledge, but starting out with stuff is nice.

Finishing my bowl of cereal, I head to the bathroom. I equip my T Corp Technician identity and am surprised by my look. For some reason I have the Sepia palette. I'm not even in T Corp right now! Don't tell me I'm stuck with a sepia palette. Luckily, the difference is small, because everything about me was already pretty close to sepia. I pick up a nearby blue brush; it doesn't change to a sepia palette.

Man, if I were a class 2, I would have lived in the backstreets of District 20, and I would be monochrome right now instead. Monochrome person with time powers, no thank you; I've already got one identity close to an S9 member.

My appearance is pretty similar to what I wore in District 20: nice suit, top hat, monocle, On my back is my currently compressed armour waiting to be activated. Actually, it's more attached to my back; it's container is lining my low back to the back of my head, and the container itself is a compressed space that's bigger on the inside. It's wearable under the suit, and when it expands, it replaces what's inside with the suit. Usually the process is sped up using extra time, so the process looks like it happens in a split second.

I trigger the mechanism to put on the armour. The process is slower than I'm used to, being that I have no extra time. It takes a good few seconds instead of the normal 0.2 seconds. Finally, when the armour is completely equipped, my pickaxe extends in one hand and my personal hand mounted chainsaw appears in the other. My hands are completely incased in metal, and most of my body has plates of wood and metal for protection. A lot of clockwork and gears can be seen inside of various parts of my equipment.

I also have my TT1 watch with me, which gives me an idea. I'm able to borrow time from myself. I won't need much, so I set my watch to make me have half as much time as normal. I sit on the couch and wait about 30 minutes standard time. I now have 15 minutes of standard time saved up. I just need one final test before using my T Corp gear. I switch out of my T Corp Technician identity.

I realise now that I've been referring to myself as if I were a T Corp employee. Have I been slowly becoming more in tune with my other identities? With the 2 identities that lived in The City, I have been referring to their memories as if they were my own when wearing the identity. If I really try, I can separate myself, but it's either tiring to do so, or I do it when it's necessary. They also don't try to sway my emotions when not equipped. While One Sin hasn't ever done what Scorched Girl does, I just feel like they're similar.

That would leave us 2 distinct groups. I guess I could call them 'real' and 'unreal' identities, at least until I get a better word for them. Real identities are ones that have memories, while unreal identities do not. Technically, I did have 'memories' in the form of a dream about each of them, but they more felt like a dream-dream rather than a memory-dream. Does this mean that One Sin could influence me? I don't think it has been at least.

I set that aside for now; it's probably better to think more when I have more identities to get data off of. I still have to complete my final test. I equip my T Corp Technician identity. I check my current time bank and find I have 15 minutes still saved. I can't remember the last time I was so starved for extra time. My monthly stipend as a technician on pay roll covered for enough expenses that I could live quite lavishly if I worked as a Class 3 Collection Staff with the occasional technician work. With that all set, I unequip T Corp Technician and head out the door.

'Hmm, I wonder if The Head could even send an arbiter here for stealing singularity tech. I honestly doubt it, I don't think the head can reach me here; I wouldn't put it past them though.'

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

I feel much more confident then when I start patrolling, so I decided it was time to open my patrols towards ABB and Empire territory. Also, there's the fact that the Merchants have no capes left. Which will most likely reduce gang activity from the Merchants significantly.

I've been chatting with Amy over text messages. She sometimes messages me memes and funny videos. She kind of reminds me of myself when talking, as if she isn't used to making friends, which should be impossible for someone like Panacea.

It's been three hours into my patrol so far. I'm patrolling the border between ABB and Empire 88 territory on the southern part of the city. I don't go too far away from downtown because I want backup to arrive fast if I get into trouble. When I patrolled the Merchants, I wasn't too worried, but the E88 has a lot more capes, and the ABB has Lung. I'm fairly certain I can use T Corp Technician to run away.

I'm about to turn down another street when something catches my eye. I see Aegis and Vista jogging down a nearby street, obviously heading somewhere. That somewhere may have crime! I must go and help these heroes; it's definitely not me being bored out of my mind from walking. It takes a minute to catch up enough for one of them to notice me running after them.

They slow down and face me. I notice their body language stiffens a bit as I approach, which is understandable after what happened yesterday. "Hey, uh, I'm not sure how to ask this, but if you guys are going towards some action, I'd like to join. I know I'm not a ward, but can independents patrol with others? Is that a thing?" Aegis motions for me to run with them.

We all start jogging, with me following their lead. Vista talks to me while Aegis is speaking to who I would assume is on console. "We're allowed to patrol with other heroes, as long as we get permission from a higher-up."

I nod my head. "That's good. I guess you wouldn't too often, since New Wave are the only other heroes in the city aside from the PRT. I guess you could patrol with Glory Girl sometimes."

Vista replies with something I find quite funny. "We're not allowed to patrol with Glory Girl. She causes too much collateral damage, and Piggot thinks we could get injured. We can still fight with each other if we're both at the same fight."

Aegis finished speaking to whoever was on console. "I got an approval from Armsmaster. You're allowed to join our patrol, but you aren't allowed to use the Breaker form you used yesterday."

That makes sense. From the PRT's perspective, I completely understand. To them, it probably looked like some sort of trump card that made me crazy. "Don't worry, I have something else I'd like to use."

Aegis turns his head to me. "Something else?"

"Yeah, I got a new identity last night. It's probably now my best identity to fight with if I don't want to be lethal."

Aegis takes a second to think before tilting his head back as if he realized something. "I'm guessing you call your different Breaker states 'identities.' Anything we should be aware of?"

I take a moment to think of what would be important. "I have a chainsaw as a weapon that I don't need to use and won't deploy, but you'll see a bit of it. I'm equipped with a set of tinkertech armour and a tinkertech pickaxe. The pickaxe can extract people's effective time, which means if I were to harvest 30 minutes, they would experience the world at half speed for an hour. I can also use said extracted time on myself to give me more effective time."

I give them a second to digest before continuing. "The time stuff is a little weird. In a similar way to Velocity, it's better if I slow down just before. Just don't touch them, or else some of their slowness might stick on to you. Also, the pickaxe needs time to do its work, so I'll just use my fists after it starts its work on the first person I hit. Overall, don't be afraid to touch slowed people; they can handle it."

Aegis gives me a nod. "Noted. We're currently heading towards a pair of Empire 88 gang members who have been harassing people. My plan is for you to incapacitate one of them while we get the other." Which makes me nod my head in agreement.

T Corp time dilation is a little funky. Touching people with more or less time makes very small local changes to try and even out time usage. Your saved up time is then used to correct said time change. The harder the contact, the more time is used. It's why people don't explode when someone bumps into someone else when they're 20 times faster. Time equalizes at the contact site, allowing for the impact to be greatly lessened on the slower person but also greatly increased on the sped up person. This is also why T Corp collectors slow their time to normal before they hit an attack.

It takes us another minute to arrive where the report had specified. From what I can hear, it sounds like the right place. "Hey you chink, come over here." A pair of bald white guys are running 2 dozen feet behind an Asian woman who has a scared look on her face. They're covered in Nazi tattoos, and one has a knife in hand. Why does every single E88 gangbanger look the exact same? I know the "Aryan supremacy" and whatnot, but I swear they have a secret cape that can make clones that look exactly like what a neo-nazi would look like.

I change into my T Corp Technician identity. "That's enough to arrest them, right?" I get confirmation from Aegis. "Good. It's time to collect some fines. I'll get the one on the right. Also, if you could leave your guy conscious, that would be great." They looked a little confused at the request. A girl's got to skim extra time off her tax collections.

I trigger the mechanism to put my armour on. It uses a full minute of extra time, but it's on instantly. I set my watch to 96 hours per day. Aegis and Vista have already started a second earlier. Aegis is flying towards the guy on the left as Vista starts to bend space around the sidewalk to make a wall between the Empire tax evaders and the Asian woman.

The tax evaders are way outmatched. It takes me 3 seconds standard time to reach my target. The guy has started to pull a gun out of his pocket. 'Oooh, a fine for unregistered inventions too.' I switch to regular time and snatch the gun out of his hand before promptly speeding up again. I take my pickaxe and slam it into him. While most attacks need me to slow down first, the pickaxe harvest technically doesn't hit him, so I don't need to.

Funny thing is, T Corp has a policy that people have a minimum of 4 hours in a day. However, we aren't in T Corp anymore. The pickaxe automatically sets the person to the lowest time it can set, which is 1 minute per day. The pickaxe hovers just above the tax evader, slowly siphoning his time. I set no limit to the amount of time it can drain; I want the most I can get. The pickaxe acts as a stabilizing force for the people it siphons from. If I harvest 20 hours, I could just leave him nearly frozen for 20 hours. Instead, when law enforcement arrives, I can have the pickaxe set them to something like 20 hours a day and have them be slower than normal for 5 days straight.

Aegis and Vista take a little bit more time with their arrest, but it goes smoothly. I know the PRT has to take some credit to, so I just let them do their thing. I walk up to Aegis. "I'm just going to tax some time from this guy too." I say as I dislodge the pickaxe from the guy I hit first. "I'm only going to take a few hours. The guy might be a little slower for a day, but it won't leave any injuries."

Vista looks at the guy frozen in place. "Taxing... time? And didn't you say it can spread by touch? What about when someone needs to move him around?"

I wince, realising I've been using lingo from The City again. I guess I should explain a bit more. "The spread should be fine; it's based on how hard the contact is, so a punch spreads a lot more. It also heavily depends on how much slower the guy is. If you punch a guy that's 20 times slower than yeah, you'll be a lot slower for an hour or so. If the guy is only at 0.8 times speed and your just leading him into a cell, however, you'll probably only be 1 percent slower for a minute max." I slam the pickaxe into gangbanger number 2

"Also, the taxing thing is just the job this identity had. I collected taxes and fines from people in the form of time."

Aegis tilts his head. "And that's common?"

I guess it would seem weird for a non-City resident. "Yeah, it was a form of currency where this identity lived. Don't ask how that worked; you're just asking a tinker how their tech works at that point."

I realise that with the wards here, I don't have to answer questions about the fight to the PRT. "Well, if you guys are here, that means I don't have to wait around and answer questions. I'm going to head home early today." I stick my hand out to Aegis, and he takes it in his own. "A pleasure to work with you, Aegis." I turn to Vista and shake her hand. "And it was a pleasure to work with you as well, Vista."

Aegis and Vista gave me their respective "It was good meeting you in person." And, "have a safe trip home." I collected about 10 hours total from those guys. Normally, it's a little bit of a pain to look for a safe spot to change, but when you can go to 50 times regular speed, cameras can barely keep up with you.

50 times the normal speed is the highest my watch can go as a T Corp Class 3 Collection Staff, but I do know how to make watches that can handle higher time dilation. I'm also fairly certain that I can make some of the exotic materials not found in this universe that allow the T Corp singularity to function. If not, then I'm kind of screwed in that regard. Another thing to think about in the future.

Now all I've got to wait for is Wednesday, which is when I do my power testing.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

-Taylor's POV, 2 days later

I get into bed after getting prepared for sleep. I took a small break in patrols. I've been doing them for a couple days straight now. Mainly, I've been messing with my power these last few days. I made a certain cheap chemical that I know for a fact doesn't exist on Earth Bet. It didn't cost much either; I still can't figure out why some things seemingly take more light than others, but it seems like it's one of those things where you use it until you figure it out.

I have gotten a better grasp on how much light I have, and it's allowed me to realise that my light production is increasing. It took me 3 days to dive for something as deep as my T Corp Technician. Now it's only been 2 and I can feel that I'm ready for another dive that deep. I don't wait any longer, so I close my eyes and step into The Otherside.

I got some more new additions in my little private space; one of the big things was that I was able to make a power source for the street lamp. While everything may be fake in here, it means I can make power sources in the real world. Imagine going camping without needing to bring anything. The river is approaching double the size it was when I first came here. I don't know if that's a good thing, but I'm going to assume it is. Using a diving board that I made, which took me a surprising amount of time to get right, I do a proper dive into the river.

It's almost relaxing being in here now, and breathing water gets a little easier each time. Slowly, I dive down until I reach about where Scorched Girl and T Corp Technician were. Maybe I can go deeper, but I don't want to stretch my luck. I swim around that level some more until I reach a star. I'm surprised to find it radiating a sensation much like Scorched Girl had done when I pulled her up.

The star itself is noticeably smaller than normal, but it doesn't feel like that's a bad thing. I can feel protection, kindness, and security that have been corrupted by worry and paranoia. Now all that's left is punishment on all who wrong others, no matter how small that wronging may be. It doesn't feel whole either; it's like it's only 1 part of a larger story.

The trip up wasn't bad; I know I'm getting stronger as every swim is better than the last. The star itself doesn't have much to show. A single white bird sits up on the canopy of a forest filled with black trees, resting. It has a single red splotch in the middle of its chest that looks almost painted on, but I knew there was more to it. The star sinks into me like it always does, and I can feel... myself getting... tired... like... usual.

 

[Alexandra_Revoe]

Note: Time for some testing. Who cares about midterms. Longer chapter than normal because I wanted to fit the entire PRT power testing section into one chapter.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

A small white bird with a red stain on its stomach sat on a branch in a forest. It was doing its part in keeping peace. It needed to be dillegent; for one day the monster would come to its forest, and Small Bird needed to be ready for when that happened. Small Bird couldn't watch the forest like Big Bird could, so it needed to flap its tiny wings and patrol whatever area it could reach.

Eventually, it came across an assortment of animals. A rabbit was being bullied by a pair of foxes. The foxes called the rabbit names and laughed at it. This would not do! Small Bird swooped down in aid of the rabbit. The foxes tensed and froze as they saw Small Bird fly right next to them.

Peck, peck, peck, peck. Small Bird showed these foxes the error in their ways. Peck, peck, peck, peck. The foxes, no longer speaking to the rabbit, stood and took the relentless pecks from Small Bird's tiny beak. Peck, peck, peck, peck. Eventually Small Bird was satisfied with its punishment; the foxes let out a sigh of relief and deftly ran away.

The rabbit still had its arms over its eyes, crying its heart out. "Go away," said the rabbit. Small Bird was shocked that instead of a thank you, all it got was a request to leave; how rude! Peck, peck, peck, peck. The rabbit continued to weep. Peck, peck, peck, peck. The rabbit started to hyperventilate and twitch. Peck, peck, peck, peck. "ENOUGH," said the rabbit, pushing Small Bird away.

The rabbit just broke the worst rule of all: no violence. The rabbit clearly understood the implications of what it did because it suddenly stopped crying and stared with wide eyes. "No, wait, please no," but it was too late. The stain on Small Bird's chest ripped open, revealing a wide maw to bite the rabbit whole. Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch. The rabbit's bones snapped. Crunch, crunch, crunch, crunch. Its skull turned to paste. Cunch, crunch, crunch, crunch. The rabbit was no more.

A small white bird with a red stain on its stomach sat on a branch in a forest. It was doing its part in keeping peace. It needed to be dillegent; for one day the monster would come to its forest, and Small Bird needed to be ready for when that happened. Until then, it needed to keep peace among the forest's denizens.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Taylor's POV

Today's the day I go for power testing. I'm debating whether I should show off my new identity during the testing. I don't think it would be a bad decision. Over the last few days, I decided that joining the wards would be my best choice. After meeting with several PRT heroes and wards over my patrols, I think being a ward wouldn't be bad. The heroes were friendly and not demanding. I was worried at first that they may not like me, but so far I've only had positive experiences. I also want to look useful to them. When I first got powers, I had thought about hiding my true capabilities because I wasn't keen on joining the wards. If I am joining though, I want them to know that I can be useful.

Amy asked if she could come in while I was getting power testing; she said that she wanted to give a detailed report on my changed Corona Pollentia and how it could possibly change emergency procedures if I were to get a head injury. Amy also said she wanted to talk with the PRT about some other things relating to my power but didn't specify what that exactly was, which makes me a little suspicious. It's probably nothing though; Amy's a good person.

I barely pay attention to my conversation with Dad this morning because my mind is somewhere else. After breakfast, I head to my bathroom mirror. 'Man, this really had become routine at this point.' The small bird felt like Scorched Girl; there's also no memories attached, so I think this is another unreal identity. I think I'll call the identity 'Small Bird.' It makes sense since it's based on a small bird. What happened to the rabbit in my dream makes me worried about Small Bird's abilities. 'I can still hear the crunching.'

I equip my Small Bird identity. I could feel my thoughts change. The change was slightly weaker than Scorched Girl's change, but not by much. I felt a visceral anger towards the gangs I had never felt before, at least at that level. The need to punish evildoers. Scorched Girl had already trained me enough that I can keep the intrusive thoughts down.
I was wearing a white hat with a brim that went around my entire head; it had a white feather in its trim. I was wearing a plain white shirt and white pants. I had a bolero jacket that was completely covered in white feathers that were exactly like the one in my hat. In the middle of my shirt was a red splotch, much similar to Small Bird's, but even after feeling it with my hand, it just felt like a part of the clothing. In my hand was a simple white pistol that had a few random stains of red on it; the gun almost looked like it was used for a murder.

I unequip Small Bird's identity; I can test the pistol later. My testing is for later today. I had asked yesterday to change it to later in the day because that would mean I could meet more of the wards. It also means Amy doesn't have to leave school early either; I wouldn't want to be a nuisance.

I have a few hours to kill; I guess I could just watch TV in the meantime.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

The PRT headquarters reminded me of a museum at first. The gift shop that you can spot right when you enter really gives a similar vibe to those museum gift shops that almost no one ever buys anything from except for a t-shirt or a baseball cap. There were a couple of armed guards nearby, and a receptionist was waiting at the front desk. I'm in full costume, specifically Seven Association; it's just so classy.

I walk up to the desk. The girl behind the counter speaks up before me. "You must be Da'at, correct?"

"Yes ma'am."

The receptionist's smile widens. "It's been a while since someone ever called me "ma'am." If you could sit and wait for a minute while I tell Miss Militia that you have arrived, that would be great."

I give her a nod and go take a seat. I look around and see a few guards briefly giving me glances, but otherwise, they stayed silent and vigilant. The receptionist wasn't lying when they said it would only be a minute because Miss Militia came into the lobby not even 50 seconds after I sat down. "Da'at, it's good to see you again. The meeting room is ready; I can lead you there."

Once you got past the reception area, the PRT started to look more like an office building. People were busy doing paperwork, and they all wore normal business suits. "I'd like to thank you for protecting me after I got knocked out during the jailbreak. Even if you were a little... zealous in pursuing Skidmark after."

I almost froze in place before rapidly shaking my head. "No, no, no. You took Skidmark's shot for me; you shouldn't be thanking me; I should be thanking you." I couldn't see her mouth, but I think she had a smile before turning her head back towards where she was walking again.

After a minute or two of walking, we arrived at a door simply labelled "interview room #1." Miss Militia opened the door to reveal a simple room with a metal rectangular table and a few chairs. There were cameras in the corner and a few flat spots on the wall, probably for projectors. Armsmaster was already waiting inside the meeting room. I took one of the chairs opposite to Armsmaster, and Miss Militia sat next to him. "A few things before we get started with your power testing and registration. Have you decided on what you want to do? I know we've already recommended it, but joining the wards would be the best thing for you to do. You get access to proper training, and you get more protection from the gangs."

I guess this is it, I hope I don't come to regret this. "After thinking about it for a few days, I decided that joining the wards is the best option for me. I had some doubts before, but meeting you guys in person helped to remove them. Although before I sign anything, I'd like a proper wards tour. I'd like to meet who I'm working with first, even if my mind is already set."

Miss Militia lets out a very small but still noticeable sigh of relief. "That's great to hear. We'll get the paperwork ready for after the power testing and the wards tour. Power testing comes first because the wards area is in a more secure part of the building, and we would rather know what you can do before you can access it. Now, before you do any power testing, we want to discuss what you know about your power first. It gives the scientists a better direction on how your power works before you start actually using it."

Armsmaster hands me a form that he was holding. "This is a nondisclosure agreement. After you sign it, I will take you to the lab, where you will meet with Dr. Elias Thorne and Dr. Selene Winters. I will be in the room as you discuss your powers. Dragon will also be watching through a video call; she was interested in your time manipulation tinkertech."

My heart skipped a beat when I heard Dragon's name. It's one thing to meet people like Miss Militia and Panacea, but Dragon was the most well-known tinker worldwide. That's like meeting Eidolon or Alexandria. I know the T Corp tech was cool, but I didn't think it was that cool. I quickly sign the NDA, and all 3 of us step out of the room. Miss Militia says she'll be back later, but right now she has to talk with Panacea.

It takes another few minutes to get to the power testing lab. Armsmaster was completely silent during the walk. The lab itself looks like a weird mix between a doctor's office, a chemistry lab, and a workshop. Several medical instruments that give health data, like an EKG, a few beakers, a couple of computers, a whiteboard, a Bunsen burner, etc. It was harder to think of something that wasn't already here. A man and a woman in lab coats came up to shake my hand.

"Ah, welcome, Da'at. I'm Dr. Thorne, and this is Dr. Winters. If you want to take a seat, that would be preferable. The team has been having a field day trying to understand your power." Dr. Thorne placed a laptop on the table. On the screen was a video of Dragon looking into the camera. Dragon's face was already online, but nobody could ever pinpoint her identity, and she had never been seen in public, so it didn't really matter.

Dragon smiled into the webcam. "Hello, Da'at. I'm going to be mostly watching your conversation silently. Perhaps later we can talk more about your tinkertech."

I couldn't help but give a goofy, beaming smile. Dr. Thorne was the first person to speak. "How this will go is you will talk about your power and we will ask questions. Afterwards, you'll be led to the testing chamber where we can test some of the more destructive aspects of your power."

I take a moment to think about how I should explain what I can do. "I guess I should start with what my power seems to use. I have this sort of 'light' that I can use. I think it works in a similar way to how Dauntless' power works. I can use this light to... collect new identities, which are my different power sets."

Dr. Winters typed something down. "Can you explain this light in more detail? Do you know how much light you get per day? What does it feel like? How do you feel when you use it? Why do you call it 'light' instead of something like 'energy?'"

"It's difficult to grasp how much light I get per day. There isn't a set measurement, and I can barely tell how much light I have at one moment. I continuously get it throughout the day, and that amount has been steadily increasing." The scientists briefly eyed me when I said 'increasing' but continued with their notes. "I can't describe why I call it light. It really just feels like the correct thing to call it; I also have something later to show that solidifies the name. As for how it feels to use it..."

How the hell should I explain this? "When I sleep, I can 'dive' into a river filled with stars. This part is really weird since it's happening inside of my head. As I slowly dive deeper into the river, I pass nearby stars, which are the identities. The deeper I go, the more light it takes. Once I hit a certain point, I can't go deeper without at least feeling hurt, sort of like how the pressure underwater slowly increases as you go down. When I pick a star, I get some very vague feelings that are related to said identity. I then pull it up out of the river, and it gets added to my collection."

Both scientists were typing. "Powers can give sensory information to better allow parahumans to use their powers. Although it is very rare to see something this fleshed out. It's also very rare to see a power that has growth of any kind. Have you tried to take something that isn't at your limit?" I shake my head. "Okay, when you put on an identity, does that cost light?" I shake my head. "You said you get vague feelings about your identities. Could you explain more?"

I guess I should explain my two types. "Before I explain more about that, I need to explain my identities first. I at first believed that my identities were alternate versions of me who did different actions in their lives and therefor ended up with different skill sets and/or powers. However, I have found that there are 2 distinct groups of identities which I label as 'real' and 'unreal.' Real identities come with memories of the life they lived, while unreal ones do not. Both can affect my emotions, but both handle it in separate ways."

I catch my breath. "Imagine your thoughts are like a stream of water. Real identities try to change the water source. It's a lot easier to mentally spot and fairly easy to correct if needed, although it isn't too intrusive. At most, it might change my likes, dislikes, and mannerisms, but it won't fundamentally change my personality. Unreal identities have a person nearby constantly throwing dirty water into the stream. It's a lot harder to sort out those foreign thoughts, but still doable."

Dr. Thorne looked up from his computer. "So unreal identities are like a foreign influence constantly trying to change your thoughts?"

I nod my head. "That would be the easiest way to say it. Actually, I could list the identities I have right now. I've given them all names, so I'll just use thought. For real identities, we have T Corp Technician, which is the one with time-based tinkertech, and I also have Seven Association, which is the one I am wearing right now. For unreal, we have One Sin, the religious one, Scorched Girl, which is the one with the grey suit, and we have Small Bird, a new one I got last night, which is kind of bird-themed."

After some typing, Dr. Winter got a confused look on her face. "Don't you have one more though? You had a pyrokinetic identity during the recent jailbreak."

Ah, that. I haven't fully understood what happened there yet, but I have some ideas. "That was still Scorched Girl. I don't fully understand what happened that day. This is a complete guess from me, but I believe that unreal identities have a kind of 'breakdown' mode when I get mentally stressed enough that I can no longer properly filter my thoughts. During a breakdown, the unreal identity acts in a similar way to a real identity, but instead of 'clear water A vs clear water B,' it's 'murky water C.' It does give me an idea that I wanted to test during the physical portion of power testing. I didn't want to try it by myself in case something goes wrong."

After a minute of talking amongst themselves, Dr. Thorne looked back at me. "You said that you have something to show that would explain why you call light 'light.'"

Lucky for me, I have a little bit of light to show off. "I have a secondary ability that I believe ties into pulling things from other dimensions. Light has a second use that I have found. With a sufficient understanding of an object, I can create it using light. The cost is variable, and I still haven't found a good basis on how the cost works. The size, complexity, and my understanding are definitely factors, but there are more factors that elude me. I can make a wood cube just fine for not a lot of light, but diamonds and gold cost an enormous amount more."

Apparently, I said something weird, because now everyone is looking at me funny; even Dragon looked shocked and spoke up. "That is a very versatile power. Hold on a second, do you know how chemical compounds work. Like atoms, molecules, and chemical structures?" I give her a hesitant nod. "Okay, I'm going to pull up a diagram of a chemical compound, and I would like you to try and create it." A split second later, a picture showed up on screen that showed a diagram of a molecule labelled "Hypercubane."

After a few minutes of intense studying, I was sure that I had the chemical down. However, when I tried to make it, its cost was astronomically higher, even compared to diamond. I could probably make a few molecules at most. "I could make it in theory, but the cost is too high. I could make a pinprick of diamond right now, but I can only make a few molecules of this."

Dragon nods her head through the screen. "That is understandable; would you mind still making something else? I'm sure everyone would like to see the process." I've already done this enough times now that I can create simple objects quite fast. A sphere of light appears, turns into the shape of a cube, and then dissipates, leaving behind a wooden cube.

I hand it over to the pair of scientists who look at it in fascination. "There is so, so much we can do with this." They snap out of their haze. "Your power is a little too; how would I put it? General, for a simple power testing. Between your manifestation of objects and identities, I feel like we could be here for days testing things. Let's move to the physical portion."

'Onto the fun stuff.' Everyone stands up and moves to a nearby room that has some thick glass that observes a separate, larger room that has a variety of testing equipment. I end up heading into the separate room while everyone else sat behind the window in the first room. A speaker turned. "Okay, let's just do some general testing before we get into what you wanted to do. Let's go through your different identities and see if they have different athletic capabilities."
What followed was a set of boring tests, but I was happy to do them. It was found that my later identities tended to be significantly more athletic compared to my earlier ones. If One Sin could lift 100 lbs, then Scorched Girl could lift 200. We also found some identity-specific things. We found One Sin's minor calming aura to be about 20 feet wide, and that Scorched Girl was always about 20 degrees hotter than a regular person should be.

Once all of that was done, Dr. Winter spoke through the mic. "You wanted to try something out while you were here. We could do that now."

I'm a little giddy at trying my idea. I had a thought after the jailbreak. 'Could I align my thoughts similar to Scorched Girl to get the significant power increase while still keeping my mind focused?' Scorched Girl had gotten a power-up when I lost my control over her, but what would happen if I didn't let the changed thoughts flow and instead tried to align myself with her personality?

"First of all, do you have a way of subduing me if I get a little out of control here? I don't think I will, but just to be safe, I'd like the safety net." Armsmaster spoke through the mic. "We have containment foam sprayers inside of the training area, and there are also several Protectorate heroes in the building right now."

I give a nod in understanding. I walk up to the training dummy nearby and equip Scorched Girl. The matchstick that appeared after the jailbreak still persists. I take a couple of testing swings at the dummy before preparing myself.

I understand Scorched Girl. The overwhelming sadness of losing your friends, of being betrayed, and the desire to burn those who rejected you. I picture Emma in my mind. She turned on me for seemingly no reason, bullied me relentlessly, and barely thought about how I felt. I wanted to burn her and make her feel what I felt for a year straight. I let my thoughts flow, and whenever Scorched Girl attempted to push me over the edge, I held firm, but I never stopped my own feeling of despair, and I never let these feelings distract me from what I wanted to do.

My outfit slowly changed from ashen to blazing. There were some similarities between the jailbreak, but my skin was no longer burnt, and I wasn't missing patches of flesh. I prepared my sword for a proper swing. I didn't let Scorched Girl take control, but I still embraced her thoughts in my own manner. I channelled the feeling before finally taking the swing. "Let this flame temper you, like it has tempered me."

My sword swing hit the dummy. While the previous swings barely scratched the dummy, this one significantly damaged it and left a giant rend in it. The metal was left glowing a vibrant dark orange. I slowly let my thoughts return to their normal state. I felt drained after doing that, and I can feel a slight itching at the back of my mind. The speaker turned on. "Da'at, how are you... feeling?"

'They're afraid of you. They think you're dangerous and probably don't want you in the wards.' Ah, that's what that itch is. "Yeah, I'm good. I just attempted to do a 'controlled breakdown,' and I would say it's a success. I didn't lose control of myself." 'They don't believe that.' "However, it looks like that has weakened my mental fortitude. Usually, I do some mental exercise to help keep control, and I've found that over time they drastically reduce an unreal identities mental effects. But right now I feel mentally drained, so I have less of a grasp on things. Don't worry, it's nowhere near enough for me to lose control."

Armsmaster was about to say something before he touched his hand to his ear and nodded. "Miss Militia wants to give you a tour of the wards room now. That is enough testing for today. We can continue tests at a later date. Are you certain that you're stable?"

I give a little chuckle. "I'm pretty sure that if I wasn't stable, my outfit would be on fire like before." I exit the power testing chamber and give a brief goodbye to both scientists. Dragon asks to talk with me after the tour and paperwork. Apparently, they hadn't thought my power testing would be such a large task, but she still had some questions about T Corp tech.

Outside, Miss Militia was waiting for me. After a minute of walking, Miss Militia turned to me. "I read the transcript of your talks with Thorne and Winter; you said that instead of sleeping, you instead go to some sort of mindscape, and that ends up replacing your sleep?"

I give her a nod. "It's a little different, but yes, that is the closest thing I can liken it to. Is there something you wanted to know?"
Miss Militia gave me a very conflicted look before solemnly shaking her head. "It's nothing."

We eventually made our way to a hallway with a large set of doors on the end. Miss Militia walked up to a button near the door and pressed it. "Before we enter the wards room, we signal them to give them a chance to put their masks on." We waited a full minute before a nearby light turned from red to green. Miss Militia pressed another button, and the doors opened.

Inside the ward's common room was a surprisingly well-decorated space. Beanbag chairs, a gaming system, a mini fridge, board games, etc. There was a circle of regular chairs where every ward except Aegis and Shadow Stalker were sitting. "Good evening, wards. As I'm sure you all know, we might have been getting a new ward today. With that said, I'm happy to introduce you to our newest ward, Da'at. Also, Clockblocker, I know Aegis said he couldn't come today to maybe meet the new ward, but isn't Shadow Stalker supposed to be here?"

Clockblocker just gave a shrug. "Sorry, but it looks like our grouchiest member hasn't shown up yet."

Miss Militia just sighed into her hand. "Ugh, that girl. Okay, let's go around in a circle and introduce ourselves."

Clockblocker started the introduction, followed by Gallant, Vista, and then Kid Win. We then started to talk about each other. Things like hobbies, likes, favourite foods, and also stuff about powers. That's when I had a great idea. "Does anyone here want a treat? Any favourite flavours?"

The wards with costumes that have mouths pursed their lips slightly in confusion, and I can only assume the rest did as well. Clockblocker was the first to go. "I like chocolate." I had gotten better at making milkshakes, and I even expanded to more flavours. I pull on my light, and after a few seconds, a chocolate milkshake appears in my hand. "One chocolate milkshake coming right up."

Unsurprisingly, this was the most monumental thing I said or done this entire meeting. I swear I could see Clockblocker wobble as if he were dizzy. "You can just make milkshakes out of thin air?"

"Yup."

"And they're safe?"

I take a sip. "Yup."

"And how often can you do this?"

"Almost as much as you want."

Clockblocker throws his hands up in a mock surrender and looks around the group. "Sorry guys, I know everyone here is dying to become my favourite, but it looks like you've all been beat." Too, which Gallant lightly punches his arm.

I ended up getting a strawberry for Vista, a birthday cake for Kid Win, and surprisingly a mint chocolate chip for Gallant. "Thank Scion, we didn't get another Shadow Stalker. I thought you're power was that identity stuff?"

I shake my head. "I've been thinking I can do a little more than being versions of me from different universes. I believe I can also pull physical objects for other universes too; at least that's what I think is happening."

The milkshakes definitely broke the ice between me and the wards. They were significantly more relaxed now. We continued talking for a while, and I thought everything was going well. I heard the door to the wards common room open. Stepping inside was a person I recognized as Shadow Stalker with her signature black hood, metal mask, and crossbow strapped to her side.

Miss Militia turned to the new arrival. "Shadow Stalker, you're late."

Shadow Stalker scoffed behind her mask. "It's just a stupid new ward meet and greet. I'm going to be seeing them more anyway."

She turns to me. "I heard about you; I saw you take down Skidmark and his gang. It was a pretty good fight."

I had always heard Shadow Stalker was brash at times, and it seems like PHO wasn't lying. "Thank you for the compliment."

"Don't take it too far. It might have been a good fight, but it's still Skidmark, Squealer, and Mush. All in all, they were pretty weak in comparison to the rest of the gangs."

"Don't be rude, SS. You didn't capture them." Gallant remarked before it dissolved into bickering. But I was no longer listening to everyone around me. I might not have heard it if I wasn't in my Seven Association identity, but with its enhanced hearing, I did.

"Could you say that again?" I asked, keeping my heart rate down. 'It can't be'

Shadow Stalker tilted her head. "Say what again? They were pretty weak in comparison to the rest of the gangs." The rest of the room is silent now.

I know that voice.

'You shouldn't hang out with someone so weak, Emma.' 'Look, it's the fat bitch again. She's too weak to even look at us.' 'Why should I stop Hebert? You're too weak to even fight back.'

"Sophia?"

Shadow Stalker freezes at the name, her hand going down towards the crossbow. "How do you know my name?" She tried to sound threatening, but it fell on tone-deaf ears.

"Y-y-you're a ward?"

Shadow Stalked backed up an inch at the stutter. "Answer me! How the fuck do you know my na... Taylor Hebert?"

'No, no, no, no, no, this is a lie, right? A funny joke. Ha ha ha ha'

Gallant obviously picks up on something because he stands up and puts his arms between us. "Do you know Shadow Stalker in her civilian identity?"

'It's a lie, it's a joke, it's a lie.' I could feel the rage and anguish building in me. "She caused my trigger event."

The bombshell got dropped, and the room was dead silent. "LIAR! YOU ALWAYS LIED AT SCHOOL. I DIDN'T DO ANYTHING!"

I started to back up into the corner of the room. Gallant and Clockblocker went to restrain Shadow Stalker. Miss Militia was shouting orders before looking at me wearily. "Da'at?"

'They won't believe me. They're in on it. You should go and punish her yourself. It's so obvious now; she gets away with it because she's a ward. They cover everything up. They were never friends. Their love for you has burnt up.'

"Is that why she got away with it? She's a ward, so she can torture me at school for a year. She can ruin my life because she's a hero? She can stuff me in a locker filled with medical waste and leave me to DIE because she works for you?"
Miss Militia put one hand forward and one hand at her side; several guns were flickering by. "Da'at, I need you to calm down. This is a big accusation, and it's best to deal with this calmly." The room was dead silent now; even HESS wasn't speaking anymore.

"NO! I GET IT NOW. YOU'VE JUST BEEN COVERING IT ALL UP FOR HER, HOPING TO SAVE YOUR IMAGE. ISN'T THAT IT?"

"Taylor, I need you to calm do-."

"NO." Suddenly, the wards were in combat positions. I frantically look around for a way out. 'I need to leave, I need to leave, I need to leave.'

'I can't get out. There's no way out. I'm trapped in here. I don't want to be locked away again. I can't be locked away again. They were never my friends; they were always lying, always laughing behind your back.'

I could see the floor starting to shift, fancy carpet being replaced with school carpet. 'Please no, anywhere but there.'

The walls shifted and the room contorted. Miss Militia was shouting something, but I couldn't hear it. My heart was racing, and I felt like I was drowning. I could see the river; I could feel myself sinking deeper; I could feel myself drowning, and I could feel the pressure in my skull ready to burst.

My light shone and swelled with my rising emotions.

And when I finally hit my limit.

The dam broke open.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- ???'s POV

I felt the light stir. A familiar connection that had opened just a few days ago opened once again. "My, my, my. I never expected you to grow this fast." I could feel the torrent of repressed emotions flood out of the connection. 'Ah, what a sweet symphony.'

During my brief connection to that other world, I had gotten a little sneak peek of what it was like. Somewhere that was almost nothing like the city. Sure, it had some problems, but not nearly as bad as it was here.

Now the one person I had gifted the light to has grown it considerably. Enough that in this moment of... Anger? Grief? Insanity? Quite the mix of emotions. I had enough of a connection to just view things again. Maybe I could do something more, but only if she decided to take a proper dive into the river before the connection closed again.

In the meantime, I take a good look at the event happening. "I'm not one to watch things for entertainment. But I did have a fun time watching Roland and Angela have their little breakdowns. I guess it couldn't hurt to watch this one as well.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

Note: Surprise bottom notes. Time for The Trigger Event of Taylor Realization

 

[Alexandra_Revoe]

Note: Midterms are over. Back to writing! Needed one more chapter to really set the stage.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Amy's POV

"The director will see you now." Miss Militia says, poking her head outside the meeting room and into the hallway. I acknowledge her with a nod of my head and stand up. I arrived at the PRT headquarters about 20 minutes ago now. Miss Militia was waiting for me to guide me to Piggot's office. I already know my way around the PRT, but they must have someone accompany me whenever I visit. I can't understand why; it's not like I'm going to do anything bad. 'Fucking bureaucrats.'

I had told Da'at I was coming here because of health concerns relating to whatever was in her head. I still have no idea what it is. I had told her that it was a weird Corona Pollentia, but thinking back on it, it just didn't seem right. While there are rarely changes in people, generally the greatest changes are in Case 53's, and even they aren't that level of different. I can't understand it with my power, which I could with even the most changed ones I've seen.

However, the real reason for my visit is my concern for her mental stability. From the brief amount of time we have spent together, I have already recognized that she is underselling the effects that her power has on her mind. When she transforms into a new identity, it almost completely replaces her body. The only part that is only partially affected is her brain. It's obvious that she still retains her memories, but her brain is almost completely different. When it comes to her limbic system, it's totally different. The only reason she doesn't go fully crazy from changing identities is that she retains her full original memories, and those act as a kind of anchor so that she doesn't go off the deep end immediately.

And all of that doesn't even cover whatever randomly made her have the brain chemistry of someone suffering from severe depression and sociopathy. It was fleeting, but I saw it before she was somehow able to repress it, which is another thing on its own. The human brain doesn't just "repress" stuff like that; it's just not able to. And yet Da'at is somehow able to do it. The only idea I have is that her powers have an emotional suppressant of some kind. All in all, that's three separate major effects on her mental health and personality, and I have a sneaking suspicion that she's going to try and downplay it.

I enter the room only to find Piggot sitting on a chair at the other end of the table. I take the seat farthest from her. Miss Militia leaves me and Piggot by ourselves. Piggot turns on a recording device nearby. "This is Director Emily Piggot of the PRT ENE; the date today is Wednesday, the 12th of January 2011. This meeting is between myself and Panacea of the New Wave independent hero team."

Piggot turns away from the recording device and faces me. "Panacea, you had said over the phone you have some health concerns for our newest Ward, Da'at."

Wait, she's already agreed to join the Wards? "I'm assuming that she's already agreed to join the Wards or already has signed the paperwork?"

Piggot nods in response. "Da'at agreed to join the Wards during our initial interview but wants to have the full tour and power testing before signing."

I kind of wish we talked about this person-to-person before agreeing to anything, but joining the Wards is probably the best thing for her to do so I can't be mad. "Ah, okay. I do have some physical health concerns I would like to go over to start with. While I was checking on Da'at for health concerns, I noticed a massive irregularity in her brain, which I strongly believe to be a side effect of her powers. Her brain is lacking a conventional Corona Pollentia."

Piggot's light frown drastically deepened. "Explain."

Man, she's uptight. Although this does beg the question, do I tell them whether or not I think it's a Corona Pollentia? I think it would be best to just say it's a heavily irregular one. It doesn't change anything other than giving Da'at less of a headache. "Instead of a regular Corona Pollentia, Da'at has a set of gold-coloured roots that have taken the place where her Corona Pollentia should be. They extend a bit through the folds of the brain before stopping. I honestly have no idea why her Corona Pollentia is like this, but it brings up a few concerns, mainly anything related to brain injuries."

I take a breath. "I'm sure you already know that damaging the Corona Pollentia doesn't disable powers but instead causes a loss of control. Assuming that the entirety of the root system acts as a Corona Pollentia, having any brain surgery done would be nigh impossible without damaging the root system."

Piggot's been giving me an intense stare. She massages her temples and releases a deep sigh. "This girl is going to be the death of me." Really? That's all you can think of right now? I just gave Piggot some very important health information, and all she can do is complain. 'That is pretty typical of Piggot, though.'

We spend a few minutes on the possible ramifications of the physical change, but in the end, all it really amounts to is "try not to get a brain injury." Which is already a priority. "Okay, you specifically said physical health concern, which makes me believe you have a non-physical health concern."

I guess we have to get to that eventually. "Has Da'at told you how her power affects her emotions, sanity, thoughts, or something along those lines?"

Piggot looks a little... relieved? "She has in fact already told us about that." Piggot pulls something up on her computer. "The transcripts of her pre-power testing interview are posted. Da'at admitted that her powers affect her emotions."

I'm about to say my piece before I stop myself at the last moment. Should I really tell them about this? This would be the last moment to back out. What if they overreact to the information and do something bad? 'No, Amy, they wouldn't jail a teenager just because her power is hard to control. It's better if they know now so they can prepare for later.'

"I just have... concerns that she might be downplaying how bad it might be." Before Piggot can interject, I continue talking. "Now that's not to say it's the worst. Essentially, whenever she changes her identity, most of her body is switched down to the molecular level. The only thing that doesn't seem to have changed is the part of her brain that holds most of our memories. It's honestly not that much of a problem. In my professional opinion, if she just avoids using any problematic identities, then she should be fine. From what I have seen, the root system in her head may be acting as a copy of what her non-identity emotions are. So as long as Da'at gets proper training and avoids any bad identities, she should be able to maintain control of her powers like any other cape."

Piggot looks like she's going to have a heart attack, and I haven't even gotten into the random giant mood swings. However, before I can continue, an alarm starts to sound inside the meeting room. Lights start to flash from the ceiling, an automated speaker blasts the message "Code Red" 3 times before shutting off, and Piggot's phone rings. Piggot quickly picks up the phone, and after a brief moment shouts at a volume I didn't even know she had, "SHADOW STALKER DID WHAT?"

I can hear more speaking through the phone before the caller abruptly hangs up. Piggot's gone from a heart attack look to a double-brain aneurysm while seizing from shock kind of look. She quickly stands up, which is surprising for her size. "Panacea, we need to leave; there's been an emergency."

"Wha..."

"Da'at has learned of some... unfortunate news and is having a meltdown in the Wards common room. While you aren't obligated, the PRT requests your assistance with any injuries that may happen." Piggot ushers me forward with her hand but keeps a good distance from me. 'Always paranoid.'

"What exactly happened?"

I can't see Piggot's face because I'm walking forward in front of her, but I'm sure it has her ever-present frown. "That's classified."

I'm never going to get information out of her. Fuck, what the hell happened? If Piggot is saying that heroes will need healing, that means Da'at is fighting them. I don't believe she would do that for no reason.

I arrive outside the PRT and find PRT troops and police setting up a barricade around the PRT headquarters.

'Please don't get hurt, Da'at.'

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

The doors linger over me like the awaiting gates of hell. My hair is unkempt like a rat's nest. The bags under my eyes betray me, visibly telling others I've lacked proper sleep for some time. A sigh escapes my mouth as I tell myself another lie.

"Tomorrow will be better."

- Scene change

"Fat bitch should have stayed at home." Three girls hover above me. My tormentors. My ankle is sprained from being pushed down the stairs. Orange juice coats my now matted hair.

A heave escapes my lungs as Sophia kicks my stomach before leaving.

"Someone will help me."

- Scene change

The sickening man sits in front of me, willingly oblivious to my plight. "Taylor Hebert, I'm giving you detention for disrupting class." Emma snickers beside me.

My wrists still hurt from her tripping me. My best friends betrayed me, and now the teachers side with them.

"Something will eventually change."

- Scene change

Months of torture go by. For others, it goes fast; for me, it's an eternity.

Nothing ever gets better; no one ever comes to my rescue; nothing ever changes.

I tell myself that as long as I wait their assault out, I will beat them. I will show them that I am the better person.

But it's just another lie.

It won't ever end by just waiting alone, and I'm too much of a coward to admit it.

I could change what I do; I could fight back; I could tell my father.

I could stop going to school; I already have. I lied to myself, saying that I needed the time to be a hero.

I was just afraid to admit I just didn't want to see them anymore.

In the end, I was just a loser. A nobody. I would continue to endure the cycle placed on me, and no one would come to my rescue.

Not even myself.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Miss Militia's POV

My eyes readjust to my surroundings. What... just happened? It's almost as if I felt that happening. Were these memories? They aren't mine. Who's memories were those? I finally come to my senses, and there's only one obvious answer. 'Da'at.' My eyes dart around the room. "Wuh?" The Wards are still beside me; they seem to be in a daze like I was a second ago.

I had called a code red moments before whatever just happened. Every Protectorate hero should be on their way to headquarters. I can hear Armsmaster shouting in my headset. "Armsmaster to Miss Militia. I've lost connection with the Wards common room cameras. I need you to evacuate with the Wards while we wait for more members of the Protectorate to arrive. Do you copy?"

"Loud and clear." I take a look at the room around me. It looks different than it did a minute ago. There were still some things, like the original Wards common room, but now with some extra and missing furniture. Shelves of books burn on a floor made of half-blackened, half-burnt-away carpet. Tables of charred wood sit being adorned with piles of slag, which I could only guess were computers at one point. It's a burning library. The lighting of the room is tinted red, casting an eerie look over the entire area.

I turn to the Wards beside me. "No talking unless it's an emergency. We need to leave, now!" I get a bunch of nods, and everyone gets in their defensive positions. I can see an exit nearby, which I can assume is the way back to the main hallway. I haven't found Da'at, but she was in the far corner of the room while we were next to the exit, so she might just be deeper in the room.

It takes half a minute, but we make it to the doors successfully. Opening the library doors, I'm met by the hallway to the Wards room. "We're leaving the building. The Protectorate heroes will be meeting up outside."

Vista, who has been taking the situation better than the others, speaks up. "Miss Militia. We're missing Shadow Stalker."

'Oh fuck.' Shadow Stalker is still in there. "Okay, all of you leave; don't leave anyone behind. I'm going back in for Shadow Stalker."

Clockblocker steps forward. "We can help. We've be-."

I give him the staredown of his life. "I do not want the Wards under my protection needlessly engaging in a potentially lethal scenario. You are to leave and group up with the heroes outside. That is an order!"

Clockblocker looks like he's going to argue more, but Gallant puts a hand on his shoulder. Clockblocker lowers his hands and gives me a nod. "Let's go everyone, and Miss Mil-" Clockblocker says something, but I'm already too far away to hear him talking. I turned and ran for the library doors the second I knew he was going to leave.

The library should be hotter with all the fires around, but somehow it isn't baking me alive. It definitely couldn't be called warm in here, however. "Miss Militia to Armsmaster. The Wards have escaped the common room, but Shadow Stalker was separated from the group. I'm turning on my bodycam now." I press a button on my uniform and turn on a tinkertech live feed bodycam.

"I'm pulling up your video feed now." Armsmaster goes silent for a moment. "What am I looking at here?"

I'm still running further into the room. "We were momentarily stunned, and the Wards common room looked like this when we came to our senses. Just before getting stunned, Da'at was panicking and was slowly transforming the area nearby. It was very similar to Labyrinth."

Piggot was the next person to come up on the call. "Miss Militia. You are to only evacuate Shadow Stalker. The majority of the Protectorate is still 2 minutes away. Do not fight Da'at. Armsmaster, get in there in case she needs backup."

After a half minute of running deeper, I can now hear fighting nearby. Weaving through the bookshelves, I arrive at an open space. Most of the surrounding objects have been reduced to rubble. Shadow Stalker is limping towards me from the clearing. Giant cuts litter her body. She should be dying of blood loss right now, but I noticed that her wounds were cauterized as they were made.

Shadow Stalker stretches out her arms, and I grab onto her as she reaches me. Shadow Stalker tries to say something, but only a groan comes out. She's probably going to faint any second now; I have to get her out of here. I quickly sling her onto me in a fireman carry and turn towards the exit. I barely have a moment to dodge as I jerk to the left.

The bookshelf next to me explodes into pieces. "I tried to endure the flames. I lost the fight before it even began." I briefly turn my head. Da'at looks even worse than when she fought at the jailbreak. There's no flesh left, only bone. The flames on her body flick around wildly. I quickly form a pistol in my hand with rubber bullets and fire a full magazine's worth. They meet their mark and bounce off of her, partially melted. Da'at continues running towards me as if nothing hit her.

"If I burnt you, would that change anything? If I set fire to my future, will the present be just a little more bearable?" Rubber bullets aren't working, and she's a little faster than me. I need to bring out the real bullets. 'Sorry, Da'at, but I can't let you do this. Panacea should still be around so you should still be safe.'

I take note of what obstacles are ahead. I look behind me for a split second and aim behind me. I shoot a couple of 9-mm bullets into Da'at's non-vital areas. 3 hit their mark, and I can see her visibly flinch at being hit. But what surprises me is that she deflected 2 bullets with her sword. 'What?'

"Armsmaster! How long until you get here?"

A reply came the instant after. "Half a minute."

I had researched certain weapons that would be effective even against Lung's heat. One of them led to a dead end due to Lung's size, but it could be useful here. An object similar to a flashlight manifests in my hands. It's a net gun with a tungsten wire mesh as ammunition. I fire it towards Da'at, and it works surprisingly well. It wraps around her legs and gets tangled in her pants and lower stomach. She falls to the ground while struggling to get out of her restraints.

I can see the exit now. Armsmaster just came through the doors. "Shadow Stalker has been secured. Let's meet up outside before coming in as a group. It should take Da'at a few minutes to untangle herself."

"I will not be trapped again." I didn't notice it at first, but Da'at's voice has been acting like a headphone in your ear. They aren't even near me, but I can hear their voice coming from every direction at once. Armsmaster looks like he heard it too. A blast of heat hits me from behind, and I start running. "It won't take a few minutes if she just melts them, though."

The hallway still remains unchanged, or at least was a second ago. As I hear Da'at begin to move in the distance, indicated by the loud sounds of furniture being broken slowly increasing in volume, the hallway slowly starts being converted. The edge of the effect is masked in a strange light. Piggot speaks through the earpiece. "Velocity, Dauntless, Assault, and Battery have arrived and are coming in. Triumph was further and will need another 3 minutes."

"I need you to send in someone who won't be fighting to take Shadow Stalker away. I can't fight properly while carrying her."

I can hear Da'at's explosions rapidly approaching me and Armsmaster. I'm getting tired at this point. Carrying someone while fully sprinting as fast as you can gets even the most athletic people out of breath. I create a tear gas grenade and through it behind us. 'I hope that gives us enough time to organize as a team.'

Velocity makes it to us before anyone else. "The rest of us are just down the hall, past the meeting rooms." I nod and continue running. My tear gas seems to have worked because the rapidly approaching transformation line suddenly slows down. "Has everyone been briefed on the situation?"

"Da'at is attacking the PRT?"

'Of course, that's how Piggot words it.' I shake my head. "Da'at claims that Shadow Stalker was the cause of her trigger event." I catch my breath. "She's completely out of it right now. Honestly, it reminds me of Labyrinth if she had some combat powers on top of her existing ones."

Surprisingly, the line actually starts to retreat. If I'm right about the effect following her, that means she's heading back towards the Wards room. I slow down my pace a bit to a jog. After going through a few more normal doors, I meet up with the rest of the team. There's a PRT agent with them. I hand Shadow Stalker off to the PRT agent and take a seat on the ground. "Velocity, can you explain what I told you? I need to catch a breath."

I can hear them talking in the background, but I'm too focused on my own thoughts. Da'at is obviously trying to be lethal in her attacks. I don't think she's in a right enough state of mind to even think about that. I can feel my gut twisting itself in a knot. Is this our fault?

While it isn't conclusive evidence, the memories felt very real, and I know Shadow Stalker's civilian identity. Shooting her back there was the heat of the moment. But now that Shadow Stalker is secure, I have a moment to think about what's happened. I can't help but feel disgusted by what's been revealed. Maybe I could have stomached it if I had just heard about it, but when you feel it happening to you... I don't know what to think about this.

Can I even blame Da'at for this breakdown? I had seen her on patrol. I had been saved by her during the jailbreak. She had so obviously looked up to us. She wanted to be a hero, just like us. I couldn't imagine what it would be like to know that the person who caused your trigger event was part of the team you looked up to.

"I'm here!" Glory Girl bursts through a nearby door. Everyone jumps into fighting stances before calming back down. "I heard Amy's new friend is going a little crazy, and I've come to punch a little sense into her."

Armsmaster holds his hand out. "Glory Girl, this is the PRT's matter."

Glory Girl scoffs at him. "Well, it's my matter too now. Amy's never taken on a friend like this before."

Armsmaster can't handle situations like this. He's just too rigid in his thinking. I stand up and walk closer to the conversation. "We could allow you to help if you follow our lead."

Glory Girl pursed her lips before sighing. "Ugh, fine. I'll follow what you say. As long as you don't say anything stupid."

I nod my head. The group discusses Da'at's newest power and the strategies going forward. I would like to plan deeper, but we're on a time limit. We have no idea when Da'at will decide to leave the Wards room. With Glory Girl at the lead, we start making our way back the way I came. I just hope this doesn't end too badly.

 

[Alexandra_Revoe]

Note: Happy 50k words!

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Victoria's POV

Ames had called me for help. Something had happened during the Wards meet and power testing, and Da'at was freaking out. Enough so that they had evacuated the building, she said that Piggot said what caused it was "classified." Amy had left the building and called me to come in and help her calm down. How could I say no to that? This is the first person Amy had ever really started actively being friends with. Sure, she was "friends" with some other people, but she never really put in that effort that friendships had. She was never the person to ask to hang out.

Da'at was the first person in a long time that she has been friendly to. Amy's worried that the PRT might go a little overboard during the arrest. I mean, Da'at is attacking the PRT headquarters right now, and that's something a villain would do. Da'at didn't seem like that kind of person when we met at the mall, though. People are thinking she got her powers less than a month ago; that paired with the video of her during the jailbreak paints her as emotionally unstable. But I wouldn't say she's a villain. I just have to talk a little sense into her; maybe rough her up slightly.

I'm taking the lead along with Armsmaster. After this is done, I have to ask Da'at how she managed to talk to him so easily. He's always so grumpy and won't ever change his mind; it kind of reminds me of Ames. Miss Militia said Da'at's most likely inside the Wards common room, which I'm guessing is where the freakout happened. There's the faint smell of tear gas in the hallway we just passed. Miss Militia said Da'at's shown yet another power. Seriously? I know I have a few, but she apparently just pulled Labyrinth's out of nowhere. Labyrinth may be a mentally ill teen, but that power is no joke, and Da'at just gets it randomly! I shouldn't be grumbling too much, though. My power is pretty good too.

We arrive at the Wards common room, and our pace slows. I can see the thin line of white light that separates the normal PRT space and whatever Da'at is doing. "Remember, Da'at has been shown to have similar powers to Lung in this form. Increased strength, some kind of pyrokinesis, explosions, and her tinkertech sword and cannon." Miss Militia reiterates. Me and Armsmaster enter the library first, followed by Assault and Battery, then Miss Militia, and finally Dauntless and Velocity. They had said Dauntless would usually take the lead, but with me here, Dauntless can take a rearguard position.

The room was off-putting, to say the least. Miss Militia had said it still had some of the Wards common room look, but it must have completely disappeared in the last few minutes. There were rows of burnt mahogany bookshelves extended up and touching the ceiling. A green carpet covers the entire room, except for the spot where it has already turned to ash. Tables and chairs made out of the same wood were either sitting normally or flipped and broken into pieces. What really got my attention was the orangish-red light that illuminated the entire room with no source to be seen.

I floated with my aura turned off. I wouldn't want to alert Da'at before the fight started. The smell of smoke was in the air, but it wasn't suffocating. The visibility in the room was surprisingly clear for all the fires around. Are the fires even real? They don't seem to be spread, and they aren't heating this room to a deadly level. It takes a minute before we find the person we're looking for, or at least I think they are.

She wasn't on fire like we expected. Her hair was pitch black, and her clothes were in tatters now, extending behind her like a cape. I could only see a blackened skeleton under her clothes; her exposed skull had dark smoke inside of it, blocking whatever was inside of it from view. There was the faint glow of fire emanating from the middle of her chest. Da'at was shambling around a clearing. Her sword, which was now pitch black, was dragging along behind her.

"Everything I once held dear, painted an unrecognizable black." Her voice was weird; it grated against the ears. This... wasn't what I signed up for. I expected her to be going on a rampage, but this, this is just depressing. I step into the clearing. "Hey, Da'at. I'm not sure what caused this, but I know that we can still get you out of this. Just... please stop this. Ames is worried enough that she sent me here. You don't want to worry her, don't you?"

The fire in Da'at's core shined just a little brighter at the mention of Amy before dimming again. "I have already burnt away my future. There is nowhere left for me to go; no more bridges to cross." Da'at's stance changes, her sword still being dragged behind her, but now it has both her hands on it. "I don't believe your words. You're one of them. Nobody has ever helped me, and no one ever will. All I have left-." Da'at suddenly swings her sword overhead straight at me.

"Is myself"

The sword extends with a line of opaque black smoke and slams into me at a slight angle. I get knocked to the left, and my forcefield flickers off for a moment. Armsmaster is the first to move from our side, as he takes his halberd and charges at Da'at. Assault throws a nearby chair and speeds it up to break-neck speeds. Da'at dodges to the side and brings up her long sword to clash with Armsmaster's halberd. I fly towards Da'at while bringing my fist back and blast her with my aura at full strength. 'Sorry Da'at. I'll try to not hurt you too much.'

What I didn't expect was for her to completely ignore my aura and try to bash me with her hilt. "I've felt worse fear than that." My fist and the hilt collide. I feel my shield break again, but Da'at gets sent tumbling backwards. She manages to land on her feet by digging her sword into the floor. Dauntless takes the opportunity and shoots his lance towards Da'at. She jerks to the side and jumps a few feet into the air. Da'at swipes her sword with two hands horizontally and extends it towards Miss Militia. Dauntless parries it with his shield, hard light sparking off and black smoke sizzling.

The glow in Da'at's chest has been steadily increasing. Armsmaster is on her again, but Da'at's pretty good with the sword. After sharing a few blows, Armsmaster gets a good parry, which leaves her open for a split second. The next swing of the halberd hits her directly and surprisingly electrocutes her. I see a few of Da'at's ribs shatter from the impact and her arms twitch from the electricity. Battery, who has been sneaking around the side of the battle, bursts forward and punches Da'at in the skull. A chip flies off from her eye socket.

Da'at threw her now-flaming fist at Armsmaster. She was slowly coming back to the form we were expecting, but at this point, it was sort of half and half. Armsmaster skidded a few feet backwards, but Battery continued to throw punches while swiftly dodging any blows that came her way. Da'at swung in a wide arc, and her blade extended. I wasn't there to take the blow, and Dauntless was out of the way. Battery was barely able to duck under the blade as it exploded a bookshelf when it missed its target.

I know Miss Militia has an open shot at Da'at now because she fires at Da'at with a sniper rifle. I really wasn't expecting Da'at to just parry the bullet with her sword, though. Like, that was sick as fuck, and if we weren't fighting right now, I would ask to see it again. "Where was this effort when I needed it?" Her hair slowly lit on fire. She swung her sword onto the ground, causing a small explosion that forced Battery to retreat. "Where were you when I was being beaten by your Ward?"

Wait, what? She was beaten up by a Ward? Da'at swung a sloppy but very fast horizontal swipe, which missed and sliced a nearby table in half. "You must have known!" The heat was picking up fast. "I'm all out of matches. I'm all out of hope." Da'at is now in the form shown in her jailbreak fight. "Maybe you can make a good substitute." The fires in the library expanded and grew. 'Shit, we're on a time limit.'

I race towards Da'at and release a blow without holding back. She ends up shifting, so her arm takes the blow; it shatters on impact, and I quickly fly back with a wince. I really hope that doesn't stay when she reverts back. Da'at seemed to be staggered from the huge blow; she held onto where her arm once was and swayed slightly. Now I feel bad. Armsmaster doesn't care and charges. He brought his armour meant for Lung so he could handle the heat. He swung the halberd to disarm Da'at before using the motion to swing around and bash the end of the halberd into Da'at's face.

Da'at fell to the ground in a crumpled heap. I couldn't help but feel bad for her. This is brutal. That blow obviously did something because the fires that were picking up slowly died down as Da'at was motionless. Da'at herself slowly went back to the form we found her in. "In the end, it's all useless." She picks herself up, and I start to see... blood? "Every day I woke up, I knew deep down I was a failure." The fires were gone, and the red glow was replaced with a faint white light. Da'at started to stand up, blood dripping from her fingertips. "Maybe I should take Sophia's advice and give up—permanently." The air in the room contorted as space itself shattered like glass. "Maybe then I will be happy once more."

Having the space around you shatter isn't a pleasing feeling. It feels like it should have hurt me in some way, but it didn't. Slowly the cracks that litter my vision reform, and I'm in a room that is completely different. The entire room was devoid of any furnishings; the tables, bookshelves, chairs, and posters were all gone. The whole room looks to be made of skin, and the floor squelches under my foot slightly. 'Ew, that's disgusting.' I quickly take to the air and hover a foot above the ground. Blood stains the entire room, forming pools on the floor and dripping from the walls.

The PRT heroes looked to be in different levels of shock, with Armsmaster looking indifferent at worst. "Ugh, I'm going to be sick." Battery looks like she's going to throw up. I think back to one of the words she said, Sophia. I didn't recognize that name, but some things were starting to get pieced together now. A Ward beats her up, and now someone named Sophia tells her to go kill herself. I don't think she would freak out if she saw a Ward who beat her up for stealing, but a Ward that beat her up and told her to off herself. That sounds like bullying, and a very bad case of bullying at that.

"Hey, everyone." The PRT heroes turned towards me. "Who is Sophia?" They all remained silent, but I could see it; Miss Militia looked ashamed.

Armmaster speaks up. "I haven't heard that name before."

He's lying through his teeth. I'm seeing this fight in a completely different light now. "I'm getting to the bottom of this afterwards." I fly up close to Armsmaster. "People may call me dumb and hot-headed, but I'm not. If what I'm thinking has happened is true. Well, I'm sure my mom would love to tear the PRT a new one."

"There is no meaning left. I just want to sink into their warm embrace." Da'at rises from a pool of blood nearby. 'Oh Scion, is she just going to get more horrific as the fight goes on?' Da'at is wearing a lab coat that is covered in blood stains. Her wrists and neck have deep cuts on them and are actively dripping with blood. Her eyes have been gouged out, and two bleeding holes are all that's left. She has minor cuts everywhere else, but none of them are nearly as bad as those first ones.

"I can't withstand this grief. Please just let me share it." The flow of the blood falling from her wrists increases as it collects into a pair of whips in both hands. I turn briefly to the PRT heroes. "We will be continuing this talk later. But right now we have to win this fight. It looks like taking enough damage in her last form caused her to change. She has to run out of steam eventually." Armsmaster looks like he's about to speak, but Da'at interrupts.

The whip in her left hand lashes out and strikes Armsmaster's shoulder guard. It snaps in half at the blow; Armsmaster winces but doesn't seem to be hurt by it. Miss Militia opens fire on Da'at as I turn back to face her again. The bullets pierce Da'at, but she doesn't seem to be affected by it. A whip from one hand flies towards me and another toward Miss Militia. I dodge out of the way and Dauntless blocks with his shield. Honestly, I'm starting to feel bad for Velocity. He can't really do anything against brutes; he usually goes after people who are about as strong as regular people.

Armsmaster charges again with his halberd. The ground is affecting how well he can move, though. I hate this fight now, and I really don't like the reasons I suspect are behind it, but Da'at needs to be knocked out for things to continue. I fly towards Da'at and dodge a whip that comes my way as I fly, only for it to suddenly change directions and slam into me. My shield drops, but before it can come back, I feel something grab my leg.

"The hands of our lost loved ones. What could be better than sinking into their embrace?" Hands made of congealed blood grip my leg and attempt to pull me down. The strength of my flight can resist them. More hands start to reach out from the pools. I punch the one on my leg, and it explodes into droplets of blood. The PRT heroes are fighting their own sets of hands. Armsmaster is getting overwhelmed; every time he cuts one with his halberd, the wound just closes over.

I rush over to help him. I smash a few before Armsmaster strikes with the side of the halberd instead of its blade. "You can't cut the hands. Use blunt attacks." Honestly, his observation makes sense. Even Miss Militia, with her regular bat, was doing better than him with his halberd. I fly towards Da'at again, prepared for unexpected attacks. I hear Miss Militia fire something I recognize as a shotgun behind me. I briefly think I might be hit by the spread before I see a slug round zip past and hit Da'at square in the chest. Da'at reels back slightly, but the blood from the floor holds her in place.

More slugs are shot as I fly forward. Hands of blood rise from the ground and block the shots. "How many scars must I have before you're happy, before I'm happy?" She whips with her left hand, and I dodge upwards. The whip changes direction suddenly, but I'm prepared and dodge again. I punch her with enough force that it rips her out of the blood holding her in place. She flies backwards, landing in a pool of blood before sinking an inch and standing up. "Sink with me!"

The hands of blood that are constantly forming change shape. They now resemble large, straight spikes. Several shoot out from different directions. I dodge two from my left and right before a third hits me from behind. I hear Battery yelp out from behind me. A spike had grazed her arm; it was bleeding, but the cut was minor. The spikes didn't seem to be degrading back into pools of blood. A slight ripple in the nearby pool alerted me to the incoming attack. A spike flies past me, but I punch it mid-flight.

The spike cracks in half, and I'm left holding the large spike of blood. I launch it towards Da'at, and it pierces her leg and pins her to the ground. Assault sees this and starts to copy my idea. Miss Militia launches another slug, but her rate of fire decreases with the amount of dodging she's forced to do. The only reason she can fire is Dauntless' shield blocking some of the spikes. Armsmaster shoots a grappling hook from his halberd into the ceiling above Da'at. Hands attempt to intercept his flight path but are too slow to catch him.

He swipes down with his halberd, but Da'at catches the blade with her hand. "Barely broke the skin." Armmaster pulls on his halberd, causing him to move towards Da'at. He attempts to punch her face, but a hand grabs his waist and tosses him a few dozen feet back. The overall squishiness of the room lessens the fall. It did distract Da'at enough for Assault to launch a spike of blood right into the side of her abdomen.

That blow caused an actual reaction. Da'at grasps the side that was hit. I hit the flat side of the spike and drove it deeper before punching her in the gut. A much bigger arm rises from the pool below. The hand itself is bigger than a person. It swipes at me in an attempt to grab me. I punch through its index finger and escape through the gap. Battery bursts forward and dodges the big hand. Her punch collides with Da'at, and I see it spark.

I know she can expend most of her charge to release an electric-based attack, but that leaves her vulnerable. I quickly swoop down and catch her in my arms. As I start flying her away, I'm about to ask why she would do that, but then I look back at Da'at. The blood around her was thick and clotting; she didn't seem to be able to unclot it. Velocity blurs beside Da'at before dropping his breaker state to punch her face.

Without her whips to slash in a wide angle, Da'at is forced to try and punch the speedster. Velocity weaves behind her before sending out another couple of punches. The blood starts to flow regularly again, but Da'at looks like she's on her last legs, at least for now. Miss Militia launches a few more slugs while Dauntless strikes with his arclance.

Finally, Da'at reels forward. The constant assault of hands stops. The spikes that were left over dissolve into liquid blood once again. The heroes regrouped while I floated in between them. "Da'at, please stop this," I begged. The girl didn't seem to be listening. The pool in front of her rippled, and everyone tensed in preparation. Slowly something emerged from the pool. It looked like the upper half of a human body. It reached towards Da'at. "Mom?"

Da'at's shaky and bloody hand reached to take the figure's hand, but just as the two met, the figure's hand dissolved back into liquid. "NO! Don't leave me again." The figure slowly crumbled back into the pool. "She always gave the best hugs." The pools of blood slowly dried up, the floor and walls seemed to harden once more, and Da'at's wounds closed again. "All I wanted was to be embraced again." I started to feel a familiar pressure in the air. "All my loved ones left me to sit and wither. I was broken, so I sat and collected dust." Space shattered once again.

"Abandoned and alone."

 

[Alexandra_Revoe]

Note: Just a quick FYI. I'm handling the realization power level differently than the normal EGO power level. Taylor can almost use HE but can't just yet, so I toned the power levels of higher-rated EGO down. Technically it's possible; in Library of Ruina, Fairy Festival was just about as powerful as Snow White's Apple, and that's a WAW vs. ZAYIN. I also made a Twitter account. I'm not sure what I'm going to do with it, but I put a link in my bio.

-The Light of Brockton Bay-​

- Victoria's POV

The cracks in my vision widen as I feel the world around me both crumble and resolidify at the same time. I try to float back to the ground, but my sense of direction is messed up, and I land tilted. I feel around on the floor for a moment, trying to stand up. I can feel the smooth surface of tiles beneath my hands. The cracks slowly shrink before fading entirely. I'm now in a school hallway I don't recognize, not that I was expecting to recognize it.

The floor has pristine, mostly white tiles, with some coloured ones making decorative patterns. Perfectly clean blue lockers line white walls with an odd green tint. Panels above provide light to the hallway itself. It's a perfect school hallway. It has no marks, no litter, not even dust. The PRT heroes seem a little better off compared to the first time the scenery changed. We're still going good, Battery has a minor cut, and Armsmaster's equipment is looking a little beat up, especially his shoulder guard.

Everyone is on guard for obvious reasons, but Da'at is nowhere to be seen. There are a couple of doors in the hallway that are closed. Armsmaster takes the lead. "Dauntless and Battery take the rear guard. Glory Girl and I will be the vanguard. We don't know which direction Da'at will be coming from. Velocity will scout ahead."

This gets a nod from everyone. We all take our positions as Velocity speeds off to check the hallway and doors one by one.

"Miss Militia." I turn to the person in the middle of our formation. "I wasn't as forceful about it before, but after fighting whatever the fuck Da'at just was, I'm going to ask again." I glare at her while turning up my aura. "What exactly happened when Da'at was visiting the Wards? Armsmaster's tone is always a perfect neutral, so it's impossible to tell he's lying, but you looked ashamed when I mentioned Sophia."

"Glory Girl. I understand the situation is stressful, but I will not tolerate you assaulting a member of the Protectorate with your aura." I want to punch him so badly, but I'm smart enough not to. I lower my aura, for now at least. "Just remember, I will find out after this is done."

Velocity arrives back to the group. "Uh, I found Da'at, but it's weird. Here, just follow me." He beckons us forward. "The hallway just goes around in a square; every door leads to a classroom. I didn't find any exits either."

We are led to the only non-standard classroom door, covered with bright rainbows and suns and children's drawings. "You're so funny, Emma." I flinch at the voice before taking a peek inside. Inside is what seems to be a preschool. A puzzle piece mat takes up most of the room with a bunch of toys strewn on top. Paper snowflakes hang from the ceiling from long pieces of string. In the middle of the room is Da'at and... someone else?

Da'at looks like a giant stuffed bear. Her arms were brown, round, smooth, and thick, with giant metal claws at the end. Her torso had the same texture as her arms, but there was a section down the middle that had a thick fuzz like her paws with a stitched-on heart in the center. The lower part of the outfit transitioned into a frilly dress. Her eyes were mismatched, one green and one blue. She also had a pair of teddy bear ears near the top of her head that would've made me chuckle in any other circumstance.

Sitting across from her was someone who I had never seen before. She had her back turned to me, but I could see she was a redhead, with a grey shirt and blue jeans. She felt... off, though. Something about her just didn't seem right. I'm just going to call them Emma since Da'at did. Apparently being a stuffed bear came with a good sense of smell, because Da'at sniffed in the air before jerking her head to look directly at the door we were behind.

"Get behind me!" Da'at jumped up and got between us and the new person. Emma suddenly backs up behind her, giving me a good look at her face. It's not a person. It's a living, stuffed doll. With a quick closer inspection, I can faintly see the fabric that makes her body. The main thing that gives her away is the button eyes. "They're going to get me." It turns out the stuffed doll can speak and is a bitch too, because I can see her sport a devious smile. "I think they're going to hurt me. Could you please stop them, Taytay?"

Taylor puts on a wide smile and briefly looks back at Emma. "Anything for you." I can see Emma briefly put on a scared expression when Da'at looks back at her, only to put on her smile again when unobserved. The team of PRT heroes that have been looking through the door all jerk backward. "Into position!"

Da'at rams herself through the doorway, her thick arms a little too wide to fit normally. The concrete wall around the doorway gets obliterated into pieces. She slowly walks towards us with her arms dragging behind her. Emma follows closely behind her. Miss Militia opens fire with an assault rifle down the hall as Armsmaster and I flank Da'at on both her sides. The bullets pelted into Da'at, but the wounds quickly closed over, leaving little stitches.

Da'at swipes forward with both her arms at once. Armsmaster uses his halberd to cut the incoming arm off, and I try a retaliation punch. Armsmaster's counterstrike gets completely overwhelmed as the clash wins in Da'at's favour with no contest. I can feel my punch collide with something soft but unmovable, and my shield gets shattered. We both fly a few dozen feet back. I stop myself with my flight and grab Armsmaster before he can land. His chestplate has a decently sized dent in it.

"That was great, Taylor; you're my best friend." Da'at's name is Taylor? I feel bad that she isn't mentally stable enough to know she's outing herself. "I'm just happy to be wanted." I really don't like the smirk on Emma's face. There was a large cut on Taylor's right hand from Armsmaster's halberd. I can see it stitching back up, but the scar doesn't go away.

Assault takes the initiative by punching a locker door off its hinges and throwing it at Taylor. Taylor jumps to the side and swipes the locker door away with her arm. She quickly regrets doing so because it gave Miss Militia an open line of sight to shoot at Emma. In the blink of an eye, the spray of bullets gets quickly intercepted as Da'at moves to block them with her body. A single bullet makes it through and strikes Emma in her arm. "AAAAH!"

Da'at runs up to her. "Emma, are you hurt?"

Emma looks at Taylor with a scowl. "You idiot! Can't you block one attack?" I'm not sure how, but Emma takes an oversized nail and drives it through Taylor's arm. "Be stronger than that!

Unlike the hits from before, Taylor winces as the nail pierces her near the elbow of her arm. "I promise to do better. I know you care about me."

I turn around and speak with a quiet voice. "I think I know what to do. Da'at cares about the Emma puppet. Assault and Velocity should loop around and harass from the other side."

Armsmaster nods. "I agree. She hits harder than the previous fights. Stay away and stick to attacks with range."

Assault and Velocity race off down the hall behind us. Taylor has started to walk towards us, albeit a little faster now. "I forgive you; I deserve it."

Me and Armsmaster are standing on either side of the hall. Miss Militia and Dauntless are harassing Taylor to no avail. The previous stitches had faded as if they had never been cut or pierced. Even the one on her hand was gone. Taylor uses her claws to rip off an entire locker from the wall and hurls it at us like a baseball. I block it with a punch, but my shield still flickers off and on.

It only took a few seconds for both speedsters to reach the other side. Assault wastes no time and throws another locker door while Velocity runs up to attack Emma. Taylor gets a panicked look and jumps toward Velocity while annihilating the metal door mid-jump. Bullets make their way past Taylor's defence, and Dauntless' arclance burns Emma's fabric.

"I'm being hit over here!" Emma swipes at Taylor with a nail, leaving a large gash on the side of her stomach. Stuffing pops out, but no stitches appear. Emma isn't even reacting to being hurt anymore and is solely focused on hurting Taylor. After a few more seconds of Taylor running back and forth to protect both sides, she looks roughed up. Every cut from Emma doesn't heal like normal, and numerous nails are stuck into her body.

"Ugh, that's it. You're so weak I don't even want to bother." Emma scoffs as she turns towards a door beside her.

"NO! WAIT! I TRIED MY BEST! PLEASE! WHAT DID I DO WRONG?" But it was too late. Emma steps through the door and slams it behind her. The door fades, and Taylor bangs on the wall where it once was, leaving large indents in the wall. "Don't forget me too." Fuck, this is sad. Why can't this be like a regular breakdown where you knock them out like normal and talk later?

The walls start to become marked with various stains, cuts, and graffiti. The ceiling light goes from a pristine white to a slightly sickly yellow. Parts of the lockers rust, and their paint starts to chip. The hallway, once pristine and perfect, changed into something you would find at a much lower-income school. Probably something like Winslow High.

Taylor turns to us with arms open wide. "I need a hug. Please. Anyone?" Taylor lunges for me in an attempt to hug me. I quickly retreat, and everyone opens fire again. Taylor slowly gets back on her feet and starts sprinting into the rain of bullets. Stitches are no longer healing any of her wounds, and her burns are no longer fading. What I did not expect was for her to turn on a dime and rapidly increase speed with her arms stretched.

Velocity just barely twists his torso out of the way, but Taylor managed to hug his arm. "A nostalgic embrace." I heard the arm snap, and Velocity screamed before using his power to slide his arm out. The bone of Velocity's bicep was broken. I think it was called the humorous? His arm was bending at a point it shouldn't.

"EVERYONE STAND BACK." Miss Militia screamed as she held her arms in front of her like she was about to brawl. A fucking rocket launcher manifested in her hands. I didn't even know she could get one of those. I feel my heart race in panic as it dawns on me that there is only one reason she would bring it out. She shoots the rocket, and it races towards Taylor.

Taylor barely has a moment to turn before the rocket hits her and explodes in her face. Dust fills the hallway and my ears are ringing. A few small pieces of debris hit me after my shield went down, but nothing major. I look back to find everyone dazed but standing. The dust settles, and I start to worry we may have gone too far.

Pieces of cotton are strewn about on the ground. Taylor's left leg is completely blown off, and most of her left arm is gone as well. An eye is cut open, and I feel bad to think this, but I'm glad that stuffing is coming out and not... something else. "Go on. Forget about me. Just like everyone else has."

I'm about to say something, but I stop when I hear a loud cracking noise. Behind Assault and Velocity, I see something turn around the corner. Both of them decide to take their chances and sprint past the maimed Taylor. I can see Velocity taking some deep breaths as he stands still beside me, holding his arm.

What turns around the corner is Emma, but she looks different now. She's filled with rough patchwork that barely looks like it's holding her together. Red strings are tied around her arms, fingers, legs, and just about every other place I can think of. "Emma! You came back for me?"

Emma scowls. "I wouldn't come back for someone so weak. I'm just here to put you out of your misery. I'm strong now, and I wouldn't hang out with a weakling like you."

I see the strings move as another figure comes into view behind her. I can feel my heart sink as I see someone I actually recognize. It's an unmistakable Shadow Stalker doll. It has her black cape, her body armour, and even her signature crossbow. All it was missing was her mask, and while it was still made of fabric, the black, slender face looked very real. It started to speak. "C'mon Emma, enough talking; the locker's ready."

Shadow Stalker tossed Emma a crossbow bolt that looked like a large nail before weirdly moving her arms. That was when I saw the strings around her arms, pulling various parts of Emma's body to catch said bolt. Everything in the hallway was beginning to fade as Shadow Stalker moved Emma to throw the bolt at Taylor. It pierces the stitched heart in the middle of Taylor's chest, and she screams.

The hall is now empty of decoration except for a single locker beside Taylor. I want to stop this, but I can't. I feel like something is suffocating me and I just can't move my body when I try to. Emma and Shadow Stalker start to walk up on the unmoving but sobbing Taylor. Shadow Stalker opens the locker; I can smell it from here, and I can see it filled to the brim with disgusting filth. "Have a good time, Hebert," Shadow Stalker says, pulling her arm up, causing Emma to kick Taylor forward.

Taylor tumbles and lands inside the locker. "NO! NO! PLEASE! NOT AGAIN! ANYTHING BUT THIS AGAIN!" But it fell on deaf ears. Shadow Stalker laughs along with Emma. "That'll teach her to think twice before coming back to school again." Words can't describe how disgusted I feel. I want to beat those two to a pulp, but I know they aren't real. I have a feeling that the PRT will try to say this was all a delusional story from Taylor, but it's just too... vivid.

The two walk around the corner, out of sight, and I feel like I can move again. We all just sit and stare in silence. I know we can all move, but I can't think about anything right now, so I just stare at the one remaining locker. In fact, everyone is just staring at the locker too. Wait, this feels weird. My thoughts are interrupted when I hear the screeching of metal on metal.

The locker shakes and the metal bends. "All you do is just stand and watch. Does it make you feel good? Do you feel better knowing my life is worse?" The slits at the top of the locker warp and change. "I could have dealt with it all. The bullying would have been fine. But it was the fact that they derived such enjoyment from it that hurt the most." I began to feel the pressure in the air rise; the fabric of space wore thin. "They always looked at me with eyes filled with glee."

"I just wish they would look away." Cracks filled my vision as the room darkened.