*sees it's been a month and starts screaming Hamilton's Non-stop at the top of his lungs*

Immersion chapter 7

[ ] [ ] [ ] [ ]

He was up before her, which was odd, to say the least and a bit worrying to say more. They had gotten in late last night, their debriefs and after action reports going well into the early morning, and they had crashed as soon as they saw their bed.

She felt groggy and disgusting. Hours worth of bodysuit sweat had congealed to her skin over the night and she didn't even want to think what her hair looked like, helmet hair was bad enough without adding bed hair to the mix. They should have showered as soon as they got home but it had been a very long day.

And a late morning if her phone was to be believed, later then she would usually sleep. She must have been out like the dead to sleep in like that.

Stretching she made her way out of bed in search of her husband, he wasn't that hard to find. He was at the stove, sipping on a cup of coffee as he scrambled some eggs. He was shirtless, his hair still wet from a recent shower, and was wearing his ridiculous 'kiss the chef' apron.

She suddenly found herself wide awake.

He smiled at her as she shuffled in behind him, pressing in for a hug and smelling the Irish spring scent of his body wash, "Morning sleepy head." He said with a half laugh, raising the eggs off the burner so he didn't spill or burn them, "I was just about to wake you."

"Should have woke me sooner." She mumbled, forehead resting between his shoulder blades. Her eyes trailing down.

"Eh, the bosses don't want us in til Two so I figured we deserved a bit of a sleep in." he said, leaning back into her, "Now go get a shower, foods going to be done soon."

"... In a second." She mumbled, fingers trailing down to his hip line and making him shiver.

"Puppy?"

"I'll go as soon as you explain this."

"Huh?" he asked before realization slammed into him as her finger dug none too gently into a lump of discolored skin. "Ack! Be careful, I've got a hot pan here!"

"Oh, like pain matters to you, you're invincible, right? A big macho man who doesn't need to tell his wife when he's hurt." She twisted the finger in for good measure. She wasn't pressing in too hard, just enough for her to make a point.

It wasn't much of a bruise, it was a small ugly yellow and purple patch just to the side of his hip. One anyone else she might not have worried too much but on her husband, it was a different story.

Like her Ethan was a superhero, a parahuman who had the ability to absorb kinetic energy and redistribute it as he saw fit. Bullets, cars, most explosions, he could take it all with little issue. He could walk through it all without a scratch. And what he couldn't take his costume's armor could, true it was mostly designed to take thermal and electrical damage but it still had ballistic armor on it.

For him to have a bruise…

"Sam, Puppy," His voice got soft as he turned to face her, the pan of eggs forgotten. "I'm fine, honest. Alabaster just surprised is all."

"Alabaster? Really?" Sure the Empire psycho was hard to put down with his annoying rewind ability but there was nothing he could do to hurt her husband.

"Well, he was using one of Leet's toys. A giant hammer if you can believe it, it hit harder than you would think." He gave her a half grin, "Thing blew up until his face like a minute later. It was kinda hilarious."

She jabbed him the chest, her voice little more than a hiss, "You don't get to think anything is funny while I'm mad at you. Why didn't you tell me?"

He rubbed at his neck and wouldn't meet her eyes, "It didn't seem like all that big of a deal. I mean, it's just a bruise. The other guys there ended up with broken arms and junk, I didn't think it mattered."

"I don't care about the other guys, I'm not their wife. I care about you and you need to stop being so god damn reckless so i can keep doing that. You need to stop rushing in like you're invincible because you're not." Her voice trailed as he looked at her with a smile that went from goofy to dopey, "And what's so funny now?"

"You're going to make a great mom." He said, eyes full of her.

Her face flushed, a mix of embarrassment and anger warring in her checks, "And what does that have to do with anything?"

"Because you're an adorable little worry wart." He said, arms wrapping around her and pulling her close. She didn't fight him too much. "I'll be more careful, okay? And if I get so much as a paper cut you'll be the first one to know. I promise."

"Don't make light of this. I'm being serious."

"I am too."

They stayed like that for a few moments, leaning against each other. That wasn't their first fight, not even the first one on the subject, and wouldn't be their last. But, as frustrating as it could be, it just showed that they cared.

Ethan gave her another squeeze, "Now, go get in the shower. If all that paperwork we did last night is any clue was in for a long day and I have eggs to finish."

Two hours later they were fed, cleaned, and out of the house. Leaving their modest little house in the upper end and drive towards the waterfront.

The Protectorate Headquarters was a marvel that could be seen from anywhere in the docks. A refitted oil rig, affectionately nicknamed the rig by those who worked there, that was designed with great arcs and spires as if it were some futuristic castle. But what really caught the eye was the rainbow of shimmering light that curved around the entire structure.

Somewhere between fantasy and sci-fi the fortress stood, warning evil doers and attracting tourist across the state.

But, after driving to it for years, the couple didn't find themselves too impressed anymore. Even when a bridge of rainbow light slammed to the shore with a feather touch they didn't even blink as they eased on down for their Two o'clock meeting.

Neither were in costume, wearing only simple business casual clothes to blend in with the other hundred or so workers milling the building. Identity protection was a bit laxer at the rig than it should be, in part because of the skeleton crew that worked there and another part because of how thoroughly that crew was screened and monitored. It was an open secret and if there ever was a leak, well, it would be a short list of suspects. And likely a larger list of job openings.

They weren't the first ones to the meeting room, that honor belonged to an olive skinned woman who sat at the long conference table with her nose in a thick packet of paper. She smiled up at them as they entered, eyes crinkling and teeth blindingly white with the perfect photo smile, "First ones here, that is a change."

Ethan gave the woman a little shrug, "There was no traffic, for once. It was kinda eerie, really. It was like through a ghost town." He gave a dramatic shiver, Sam ignored him.

Instead, she took a seat next time her friend and smiled, "Morning Hannah, anyone else here yet?"

"Colin is here, but I do not see him leaving his lab until he needs to. Robin is still napping and Ian is picking Rory up."

"Shit," Ethan said, taking his seat next to his wife, "It's going to be so weird when the kid transfers over."

"There's talk about letting Rory graduate early to help hide his identity." Hannah said, a twist on her lips as she considered her next words, "His father has really been pushing for it."

"Great," Ethan slumped into his chair, "More politics. Just what we need."

Sam could certainly agree with that sentiment. They dealt with another bureaucratic and legal restrictions without the local Mayor trying to try to muscle some sway through parental privilege. She honestly felt bad for Rory, graduating the Wards was of the greatest, most important, moments of her life. And it should be that way for him too, without his father trying to turn it into a political move

And if it wasn't, if it was just a parent trying to make things better for their son, the teen's father was just making things harder for him. Director Piggot was likely to ignore the request, maybe even have Rory to stay in the Wards longer just out of spite if he pushed things too far.

Robin was the first to arrive, eyes crusted with sleep and clothes a little rumpled. Not exactly the look you would expect from a former soldier but, if she understood her dad's grumbling right, the Army's standards just weren't the same anymore. More likely Robin was the exception to the rule, going through two boot camps and still was a bit of a slob.

Ian and Rory were next through the door, both in clothes that can be described as a step further than business casual. Ian wore it easily, the suit and jacket suiting him well. Rory, on the other hand, looked distinctly uncomfortable with his clothes a bit too tight for his bulky frame. The consequences of being a growing boy she assumed.

Colin was the last to arrive, arriving at the meeting right to the minute, more well kept than any of them but obviously more exhausted than Robin. Goatee well kept, hair well maintained, and a freshly pressed set of shirt and slacks on. If it were for the bags under his eyes and the bodysuit peeking out of his collar one would have thought he had gone home the other night.

"Good, everyone's here. Let's begin. Triumph, I expect you to pass this all on to the other Wards" No greetings, no small talk, just straight to business. If Sam didn't know the man she would have thought him rude.

Rory gave a quick "Yes sir," that was all but ignored as Colin continued.

"At approximately 2200 hours last night, we launched six simultaneous raids on known E88 affiliated locations and a number of other smaller targets to recover Tinker Tech stolen from the wanted criminal Leet. We obtained these locations by following a trail of handoffs started by formed Uber and Leet minions."

He went on to explain the standard protocol of such raids. How every major site was assigned one parahuman and three PRT units with the sole exception being his own and Miss Militia's, Hannah's, location where surveillance showed it had regular E88 parahuman traffic. He gave a summary of each location, who was assigned where, summarizing the altercations, and so on. It was painfully tedious and just as long.

Just like the other necessary evils of bureaucracy that she had suffered since her teenage years. She's learned to deal with it.

"While there were a number of injuries in the Troopers ranks there were none in the Protectorate and no deaths in either group, a good op all around in that aspect." He seemed, rightly, pleased by the news. "During the raids, we made over fifty arrests, including two Empire Capes, and confiscated literal crates worth of drugs and weapons. Amount those weapons we found twenty seven Tinker devices, four of which were damaged from apparent internal damage."

"Only four?" Someone mumbled, earning themselves a rough elbow from their already embarrassed wife.

Colin gave them both a look but moved on with barely a pause.

"Twenty seven dangerous Tinker tech weapons off the streets and out of the hands of criminals. It's a decent start but not good enough. That is even a quarter of the suspected tech on the streets. Tech that is as likely to blow up in the users faces as hurt a civilian. It hasn't even been a month yet and we're already hearing reports of people being held up by swords and laser guns, amount other things."

That was news. Not surprising news but news all the same.

"More worrying are the reports police have given us the last few days of two separate "Gadget Heroes", their words, sighted in the city. Given the recent influx of Tinker Tech, I find their timing suspicious. And worrying give the habits of "Leetech"." He pressed his lips thin, though she wasn't sure if it was because of the danger the would be heroes were putting themselves in or the abbreviated PRT slang that had wormed its way into official reports.

"Even if they turn out to be actual Tinkers I'm still worried about the implications, both the sudden advancement of their devices and the sudden need action. And this is why we need to keep an eye on the Archer Bridge Merchants."

A second of silence, a moment of confusion and did belief from bear everyone in the room. Hannah just nodded her head as if it made perfect sense. She obviously knew something the rest of them did not, a perk of being the Second in Command of the East North East Protectorate.

"Um, sir." Rory started, raising his hand as if he were in a classroom, "The Merchants? I mean, they're just a start up gang. Shouldn't we be worrying about Empire? They did buy up most of the Leetech and are likely to retaliate after we raised them, right?"

Colin gave him a nod, "Usually, you would be right. But what can the Empire Eighty Eight really do with the devices? At most, they'll have a month or two of extra firepower before the lack of maintenance has the machines crumbling in on themselves. But the Merchants are a larger problem because they have something the E88 or even the ABB don't. A Tinker."

He said the word as if it explained everything, and maybe it did. "So, we're worried about Squealer copying the tech?" She asked, trying to dredge information about the Merchants she could remember to the forefront of her mind. There wasn't much, they hadn't been a priority. "Doesn't she have a vehicle specialization? Won't that get in her way?"

Colin, in near full Armsmaster mode, nodded. "It will, as will her lack of quality materials. But that isn't what I'm worried about. What concerns me, what should concern all of you, is how Tinkers can be inspired by other Tinkers' work. It works better when one is working together with another tinker but dismantling another's tech works just as well. Ideas and designs will bubble into her head and suddenly her lack of options and materials will hardly be an obstacle. She will build something that will outpace anything she has put out to date.

And given the Archer Bridge sect of the Merchants rapid assimilation of other Merchant gangs, we can assume it will only be the first of many as they try to grab more territory. Every Leet device she gets her hand on is another possibility she can add to a new whole."

They all let that sink in, Ethan letting out a huff as he leaned forward, "So now we have to worry about an army of literal monster trucks, great. How are we searching for them?"

"We're monitoring electric draws from the grid in known Merchant territory. I don't believe we'll see much from that, one of the first things most Tinkers design is a private generator, but I do hold hope for observing salvage yards and staking out the boat graveyard. She can make her own power but not her own materials. In the meantime," he turned his eyes to Rory, "I'm taking Kid Win off patrol and console schedules until further notice."

"What, why?" The Ward leader spluttered before controlling himself, "I mean, may I ask why sir?"

Colin gave a nod, "I need to catalog the new Tinker Tech we obtained from the raids. His knowledge of video games will be useful… and it will be a good experience for him."

That wasn't the whole story and they all knew it. Colin had been trying to take the young Tinker under his wing since the boy joined the Wards and this was clearly another attempt to help the boy. The rumor mill said that his past attempts hadn't gone well, at all.

Sam shot a look at Hannah, hoping the woman would keep a handle on things and stop the poor kid from burning out.

"Now, onto other news. During our raids, the police had an altercation with a new parahuman, an apparent Electrokinetic who claims to be a new independent hero …"

An:

Yeah, lot of fluff and exposition but next chapter should start with a fight. So look forward to that.

It shouldn't take a month but I make no promises. I can blame this delay on a lot of things. Mandatory overtime, my wife's job going out of business, my daughter literally eating a page of the chapter. But the real reason is something else.

It was my turn to play Persona 5.

Thank you [USER=75910]Auks[/USER] and [USER=41279]scriviner[/USER] fir ggivigthis a look over.