Now I'm curious what form "Beak" is going to take, its Lobotomy E.G.O, It's Ruina form, or something in-between, like "Fourth Match Flame".
The Light of Brockton Bay (Taylor Hebert Alt-Power)
- Thread starter Alexandra_Revoe
- Start date
- Crossover
Teth 2.7
New
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.
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.
- 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 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.
- ???'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.
Note: Surprise bottom notes. Time for The Trigger Event of Taylor Realization
-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
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Are most of these alternate Taylors from Lobotomy Corp. and/or Limbus Co. ? Because my main issue with those games is that as popular as they both claim to be their wikis read like shitty Google translates. The "story synopsis" was basically "guy makes plague, guy hired to cure plague, guy is actually 57 guys in coat and he needs to mutate his coworkers into iguanas to cure the plague he made to force everyone to buy health insurance. Now fist fight this random bear because fuck you." And also something about riots happening because they put the female lead in a skintight wetsuit.
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So basically Taylor has come unglued again, like Scorched Girl the other night, and is somehow altering reality near her trying to make a way out?
Damn, now she's got Shaker mixed in there too.
Damn, now she's got Shaker mixed in there too.
- Location
- New Carollton, Maryland
should be 'too late'
should have a period after ma'am.
...that.
uh.
i'm not sure how to even respond to that. what? i'm not doubting you, just...
what?
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Not sure if you know the Project Moon lore. This guy is way, way off of what the actual lore is.
- Location
- New Carollton, Maryland
Cutiepie
Professional Mom
- Location
- Ask my kids, they can find me wherever I hide
- Pronouns
- She/Her
I find this story interesting even though I have no idea about the crossed over elements (I don't play videogames and have almost no knowledge about most of them) but I found the "small bird" dream to be extremely disturbing. It really bothered me that instead of trying to heal the damage done to the rabbit, small bird's power consumed and destroyed it. Sure, there was "peace" afterward, but at a pretty steep cost. Still, I'll keep reading to see where this goes.
I've seen enough of lobotomy corporation and looked into limbus corporation. Also with my experience with the nasu side of type moon projects the way little bird acts is exactly the weird kind of morality some of the characters subscribe to. One of my favorite things though is that the characters all have such a wide range of emotions and motivations. each one has its own unique flavor and thats one of the reasons I love their stuff.
Because the Bird isn't your friendly policeman of the woods, it's basically Punishment Incarnate (at least in the minds of denizens of The City)
The Small Bird swore it would kill ANYONE who will try to harm the Forest dwellers. But everybody said: "How would you do it with your tiny body and beak?", and so it ripped open a new maw that can swallow whole even adult human(possibly bigger prey even)
The Limbus Corp Wiki, unless I caught it after a troll went through. It didn't even mention what genre of game it was.
The part about riots was some unhinged political BS that happened outside the dev's studio because South Korea is apparently weird about female characters. They got a bunch of busses painted like billboards to show up and everything.
AweStriker
Mobocracy
- Location
- Wherever He Wants
The Fandom wikis for Limbus and Ruina are intentionally low-quality for a variety of reasons related to Fandom being a bloated mess of bad corporate decisions and ad placement, which might explain your experience. They're both on wiki.gg now.
If I remember correctly it was an issue they had internally with the artist that then went over to the public because of what you said with the public view on female characters over there, the part about the actual lore is way off though, but it is still a little hard to understand since the original work was made on Korean and some stuff will absolutely be lost on translation.
When it comes to Limbus/Lobotomy Corp/Library of Ruina lore it's like taking relatively simple storylines and just making them as fucked up as physically possible. The City in and of itself is just lacking in "Good Emotions" and the whole setting is based around the power of the mind to affect reality, which is why things like Abnormalities happen all over the place, sprouting from people on the brink of mental collapse and such. That's why I personally think the Worm/PM crossover here works so well since they base their "Power Sources" on very similar concepts, though PM takes it way further into the eldritch monstrosities side of things.
All in all, the wikis are not particularly great at detailing stuff, as someone said before the fan-made works are a little scuffed and just generally low quality. There are multiple videos summarising or explaining the lore on YouTube though, if you have like an hour or two to burn.
As a small summary of the games, they go in release order. Lobotomy Corp comes first, which is basically a fallout shelter where you extract energy from abnormalities while on a time loop. Then comes Library of Ruina, a turn-based deck fighting game where you explore more detailed storylines around the inhabitants of The City. After that comes Limbus Company, relatively similar to LoR but it's a gacha with no cards, but that's where the Identities concept comes from, where you have 13 playable characters and you gacha on which Identity of them you get to use.
I don't know if you can tell, but I am obsessed with this setting lmao
I rate the odds of Hess getting capital-G Ganked to be pretty damn high right now. My lack of popcorn is agonizing.
Tisaku
Head Chief Thinkomancer
- Location
- Under Leviathan's left foot
I'm going to mention this because I see this in later chapters too; but be careful when using numerals instead of words when using numbers. There's a whole ruleset about it, which you may or may not care about, but probably the best way to think of it is that using a numeral turns the paragraph into a report. It robs it of all emotional content. Instead of an exciting fight scene you end up with a dry after-action debrief being read by someone in a monotone.
Also, it might be useful for you to do a global search for "'s" across a chapter when you think it's finished. Lots of grocers' apostrophes which I don't think are intentional (but unfortunately are very, very common among writers...)
Teth 2.8
New
Note: Midterms are over. Back to writing! Needed one more chapter to really set the stage.
- 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 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.
- 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.
-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.
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- Location
- Under Leviathan's left foot
Now I'm picturing a flashlight held in flashlight hands.
So much shit hitting the fan. Even more will to if the details of why this happened get out.
Tisaku
Head Chief Thinkomancer
Protectorate
Loud
restraints
- Location
- England
It makes sense in a world with masters and strangers. It's super understandable for people to think minor inconveniences that make sense shouldn't apply to them, though.
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Teth 2.9
New
Note: Happy 50k words!
- 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."
-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."
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JVR
Contessa's #1 Fangirl
- Location
- Cauldron Compound
I think the PRT will be forced to retreat at some point, but so will Taylor. She just got rebranded as an independent villain, and she'll be alone as she can't go home again. Honestly, her best bet is to just go public with what happened and take the PRT down with her. If her life is burned, burn theirs up as well.
I don't think it's villain time for her yet. PRT is slowly putting together the pieces of what happened to her, and Piggot is going to be livid when she has all the evidence that SS caused Taylor's trigger event, and had been actively bullying her for over a year possibly before and definitely during her time as a ward, and nobody reported it. Even Armsmaster isn't blind enough to not realize that a cape that's already unstable because of her powers, got them due to what is basically a murder attempt, then finds out her attacker is supposedly "one of the good guys", is having a mental breakdown of epic proportions, and has not just suddenly decided to go villain.
Taylor is in desperate need of psychological help, and her body sounds pretty damaged as well. Hopefully she gets help, and not just a smackdown into lockup. She needs a hug, badly - go Vicky!
Taylor is in desperate need of psychological help, and her body sounds pretty damaged as well. Hopefully she gets help, and not just a smackdown into lockup. She needs a hug, badly - go Vicky!