The Towers apartment complex more or less marks the center of Brockton Bay and is where the middle class of the city can generally be found. While the rich have estates and mansions near Captain's Hill, and the poor can generally be found in the docks area. Besides the boardwalk, Downtown is probably the most well patrolled area in the entire city, with the gang territory map on PHO placing both it and the boardwalk firmly in PRT control along with much of the south side of the city.
The southern portion of Downtown, or the commercial district as some people call it, is controlled almost entirely by the Empire 88 with Coil's enforcers having carved out a piece of the center. Docks South to the north of here are controlled by the ABB and the trainyard/docks area are controlled by the Merchants, mostly because no one else wants the desolate warehouses and factories in that area.
Well patrolled or not though, walking home is always a small exercise in paranoia. The chances of anything happening in practically broad daylight in this part of town are astronomically low, but I can't help but be concerned.
"Soooo, this is where all the rich people live, right?" Tyche said, walking backwards ahead of me completely unconcerned about her surroundings. Then again, it's not like she has to be, Goddess of Luck and all.
"The rich live over near Captains Hill, Downtown houses the middle class. Also, would you please stop walking backwards? Goddess of Luck or not, it's important to be aware of your surroundings in a city like Brockton Bay." I reply, it really isn't that big of an issue but I'm just tired at this point.
"Hey! I'm the Goddess of chance and fate, not luck. It'd be lame if all I had for my domain was luck."
"Are chance and luck not simply different words for the same thing?"
"Kinda, but there's a difference."
"And that difference is?"
"I don't know, but if they were the same then I wouldn't be called a Goddess of chance while Eutychia is called a Goddess of luck now would I." She replied, completely ignoring the fact that she literally said Tyche and Eutychia are the same person earlier.
The Goddess of Fate bit is slightly more interesting though, I don't personally believe the existence of Fate invalidates free will or anything like that but it's still interesting to think about.
"So, you already know about the fate of everything?"
"Nope, in order to descend down and create familias every God has to seal most of their power at threat of being sent back to Heaven if they don't." she replied, this actually reminds me of another question I was wondering about.
"Are the Gods responsible for parahumans?" I asked, Tyche seems amused by the question and smiles as she gives her reply.
"Pretty sure I'm the only God in this world right now, and I would definitely remember creating parahumans. Their powers are so much cooler than the falna though! I don't think there's ever been an adventurer capable of turning into a dragon or freezing time with a touch. Well most of them are cooler anyways, running fast without being able to affect anything is just lame." Tyche enthused in response, I was just about ready to go on a well used rant on how Velocity is integral to the Protectorates power projection before remembering the girl in front of me almost certainly does not care.
"Velocity has his place in the team." I replied simply instead. "More importantly however, you talk about other adventurers and Gods as if they exist somewhere, but not here."
"Oh yeah, that'd be Orario the city of the Gods. That's a different dimension entirely though so you'll probably never get to see it. It's where the dungeon that all the adventurers fight and train in is located." replied Tyche in what I was beginning to understand is a normal pace of talking for her.
"If that's the case, then how am I supposed to increase my stats without access to the dungeon?" I asked, surely there are other methods than simply fighting monsters.
"Oh that's easy, all you need to increase stats is excelcia. Most adventurers get that by fighting against monsters but you can probably get it doing anything, so long as it's risky. Fighting other people or parahumans should be more than enough at least." Tyche stated. So risk is a necessary factor in building stats? That destroys my plan for training until I'm strong enough to handle fighting but what counts as risk?
"So risk is a necessary factor, but not necessarily fighting monsters."
"Yep, I heard the Amazons managed to level up without access to the dungeon just by fighting each other." Amazons?
"So going out to fight criminals would be able to earn me excelia?"
"Now you're sounding like a real adventurer, 'Adventurers shouldn't go on adventures' Yeah right!" replied Tyche enthusiastically. Part of me can't believe I'm seriously considering this but honestly… What's my alternative life path? Go to a nice college and get a degree in finance so I can spend the rest of my life as an accountant before the endbringers kill us all? This power gives me a real opportunity to make something significant, it would be a waste to not use it to its fullest potential.
The conversation between Tyche and I has taken long enough to reach the Towers. The outside of the building is nothing particularly special, nor really the inside but it's in a safe area of town and right by the commercial district so its rare vacancies are practically fought over. Another selling point is the nearby endbringer shelter and proximity for what counts as tourist attractions in Brockton.
My apartment is located on Floor 7, an auspicious number given what I know now, I suppose. Entering the building, I turn to the elevators located past the lobby and office area with Tyche trailing closely behind me, inspecting everything with a sense of wonder. Orario is probably nothing like Earth now that I think about it, will I have to teach her basic things about the world?
"Tyche, how much do you know about Earth?" I asked, prompting the deity to face me.
"Hmm? Oh! You don't have to worry about anything, I did a buncha observation before coming down here to make sure I could find the perfect place for my Familia. So I know pretty much everything important." Tyche reassured me before returning to observing what counted for decor on the walls.
Somehow I doubt that she actually knows everything important, but I suppose that's a bridge to be crossed when we get to it. As we reach the elevator a small ding sounds before the doors open, revealing the manager of the building Mr. Simmons.
"Ah! Alex, wonderful to see you as always. Who would this girl be?" Mr. Simmons asked. I could simply deflect or make up a temporary story but seeing as Tyche will likely be staying in my apartment for quite a bit, something more permanent will be better. Best to keep it simple however, it's not like I'm capable of backing up the story if anyone actually looks into it.
"This is Fortuna, she'll be staying with me for the future while her parents are away." There, nice and simple.
"Well nice to meet you Ms. Fortuna." He spoke to Tyche before leaning over to me. "Though honestly what is it with people nowadays naming their children the strangest things? I met a child just the other day who had been named Bartholomew of all things, it's simply asking for them to get bullied I say."
"I'm sure she will be fine. A pleasure speaking with you but I've got something planned and simply can't be late." I replied, trying to end the conversation amiably before gets off on one of his odd rants.
"Ah yes yes, don't let me keep you. Goodbye Alex, and Ms. Fortuna."
"Bye!" replied Tyche, waving at Mr. Simmons as he went off towards the front desk. We entered the elevator and I pressed the number 7. Honestly if there is one thing I hate about the towers, it's the way the elevators shake and rattle as if they are about to fall apart. You would think a place like this could afford to have them renovated but I suppose even here cutting corners is standard practice.
With the slightly nerve wracking journey to the 7th floor concluded, Tyche and I step off the elevator and I lead her down the hall to my apartment. Opening the door reveals a relatively sparse apartment, I never had a reason to decorate before this after all. A small entry area leading into a living room and kitchen, with doors to a bedroom and bathroom on the far wall.
It's hardly the most luxurious of housing, but it certainly works for me.
"This place is really empty, are you sure that you live here?" remarked Tyche with absolutely no sense of social grace.
"I've never seen a reason to properly decorate. Truthfully, you should be grateful it's even furnished at all." That's only because I found a bunch of furniture on the side of the road in relatively good condition and decided to keep it.
"Alright then." Tyche replied, conceding the point. "I'll accept your poor interior design so long as you can make up for it with your cooking skill."
"Challenge accepted." I'm confident in my ability to cook, I determined early on that eating from restaurants every night would be expensive and wasteful compared to home cooking and so decided to learn how to cook proper meals for myself. This will be my first time ever cooking for another person but it shouldn't be that difficult anyways.
Entering the kitchen, I quickly realize I have no idea what Tyche might actually like in terms of food. It's far too late to go back and ask her now though, however, Tyche is a Greek deity so perhaps something traditionally Greek? Or would it be better to go for something safe that everyone likes such as pizza? Eventually, I decided on a simple lamb dish with bread as a side dish.
If there is one area that my normal frugal ways do not carry over to, it is cooking. Opening my fridge, I quickly selected 2 good looking lamb chops that I had recently bought at the grocery store. I place a skillet on the stove and set it to heat to 145 degrees before placing the lamb chops down on the skillet. The side dish is simple to prepare in comparison, bread and olive oil along with a little bit of garlic for some more taste. Now all that's left to do is wait and tend to the lamb chop as needed.
/;/
After 20 or so minutes the lamb chops are ready and I move them aside to rest. I quickly prepare the sauce before setting the table and calling Tyche in.
"Woah, I was not actually expecting you to be good at this. I really am the luckiest God!" Tyche said enthusiastically
"Thank you for the compliment. Now, I would like to ask for your opinion on a plan to increase my stats." I asked, the way I see it Luck will almost certainly be my best weapon and only true parahuman power for quite a bit, until I am able to get higher with my strength and agility stats anyways. That means increasing it is my number one priority.
"Sure, can it wait until we're finished eating though?" pleaded Tyche, who looked ready to kill the meal in front of her.
"Fine, enjoy the food." I replied. At my words Tyche immediately starts to rip apart her lamb before moving onto the bread portion I gave her. I end up finishing my meal quite a bit after her and go to clean up while talking about my plans for the evening.
One benefit of living in a crime ridden cesspool is that there are a lot of acceptable targets in the eyes of the law. Parahuman vigilantism is technically illegal but it's incredibly rare to see the PRT going after someone for it unless they are seriously breaking the law in the process. This is good for me as apparently conflict is a necessary part of my power's growth cycle.
My plan for tonight is to head north into ABB territory and get into as many fights as possible without overly risking my life. I won't be trying to play hero for tonight, I intend to get a much better costume before that happens, but it isn't unheard of for non-parahuman vigilantes to pop up every now and again.
Of course they almost all get killed, seriously injured, or arrested within a month but this is only going to be a one night thing to give me a good jump off point with my stats.
I'm not the most physically fit of Brockton teenagers but I do have a bit of muscle and a self defense class under my belt. Of course it would be idiotic to go out equipped with only that so I intend to even the playing field with pepper spray and a blunt weapon of some kind, probably what I can find around my apartment.
I'll be going into ABB territory instead of E88 because it lessens the risk of running into a parahuman before I'm prepared. The ABB also has the added benefit of people mistaking me for an over eager empire 88 gangster instead of a new vigilante.
Part of me is absolutely still not on board with this plan but the rest of me… the rest of me just wants to make something of myself. Even if it ends up being behind a mask as a parahuman.
"What are your thoughts on my plan?"
"Hmm?" Tyche looked up from where she had been snacking on bread. "Well I don't know, you're supposed to be the adventurer, all I can say is good luck and I'll be ready to update your status when you get back."
I … suppose that's a fair point, this is on me to do and it's not like Tyche knows much about this city anyways.
"Oh! Almost forgot, take this coin with you, it can be your good luck charm from me!" Tyche said, a good luck charm huh? Considering who gave it to me, it's possible it might actually hold good luck. I slipped it into the breast pocket of my shirt before entering my Bedroom to prepare for the night ahead.
The name of the game with clothing tonight will be padding to blunt impacts. I fully intend to end most of my fights before they can even land a blow via liberal use of pepper spray, but it will still be good to have.
After a few minutes of deliberation I end up wearing a hoodie with a thicker jacket and shirt underneath, along with sweatpants and a bandanna to protect my identity as well as gloves to avoid leaving fingerprints. It honestly won't do much to protect me from direct hits, but glancing blows should be at least slightly blunted. The bandanna also isn't perfect, I would prefer to have a full face mask, but it's the best I can do for now. It's not as if anyone will be able to succeed at tracking down a generic white teenager based on nothing but his face anyways, fingerprints would be more helpful with that, hence the gloves.
Before heading out I grab my pepper spray, an essential for anyone living here, and a wrench that was in the cabinets underneath the sink for some reason. After much deliberation I also grab a pocket knife that I had bought but never carried. Better to have it and not need it than to not have it and need it. To complete the arsenal I also grab a few zip ties from my bathroom, no arrests will likely be made tonight but they could still prove useful.
I stuff the wrench underneath my hoodie and tuck it into my pants, placing everything else into my pockets and beginning to head to the door. My plan is to walk to the edge of ABB territory and then mask up once I start seeing gang signs, sticking to the alleys all the while. I say my goodbyes to Tyche before heading out of the building and beginning to make my way north, guided by a map on my phone.
It's not a particularly long walk before glances down alleyways reveal red and green ABB tags and my nerves reach even higher. Am I really doing this? Even putting aside the danger, it's also questionably legal and getting caught would really screw up my plans right now, even if I do have a get out of jail free card in the form of being a parahuman.
Still, you only live once, and it would be a waste to turn around now. Slipping into an alley I put on my bandanna before walking out and beginning my search for a target.
About 5 minutes of sticking to the alleyways later, I hear voices speaking in a language I don't recognize from around the corner. 2 men, ABB from their choice of red and green clothing, are approaching the alleyway I'm currently hiding in. A 2 on 1 is hardly ideal, but I have an opportunity for an ambush here to even things out a little early.
In my current position within the alley I'm located behind a dumpster midway in. The wait for them to approach and pass me is agonizingly long from my perspective but once they do everything seems to speed up. Pulling out the wrench from under my hoodie I choose to target the man closest to me and make an overhead swing at his back. Going for the head would be far too risky, I'm not trying to kill anyone after all.
The impact is enough to send the first man reeling, and by the time the second has turned around I already have a pepper spray canister in my left hand and aimed at his eyes. He's sent to the ground with a quick spray and his friend gets the same treatment to keep him down,though I'm not sure it's necessary with how hard I hit him.
The hard part is over now, I could end the fight here by hitting them while they are down but neither of them have even thrown a punch yet and I won't get excelia out of something this easy. No need to make it easy for them though.
The man I hit at first gets another solid hit to the back of his knee, hopefully keeping him down long enough for me to have a fist fight with his friend. At this point both of them are spewing curses and threats, though the first mans are through clenched teeth.
The other ABB gangster has taken the opportunity to get back on his feet and take a swing at me. It's actually surprisingly accurate given the current state of his eyes, but still not very powerful. I'm able to deflect it with my left arm and follow up with a hit to the upper chest. I'm not sure what's exactly there but I remember it being pointed out as a weak spot in my self defense class, the solar plexus maybe?
It seems to have the desired effect on the gangbanger though, as he starts to clutch his stomach and seems to struggle for his breaths even more than before. I'm too focused on the second man, though, and the first is able to get up and attempt to swing at me. I can only assume that the combination of pepper spray and poor luck affected him badly as the swing misses its target of my head entirely and barely clips my shoulder, spinning me around.
I'm quick to respond with a repeat of my punch to the chest I had used on his friend, apparently this is all too much for the ABB member as loses his balance and falls back against the wall, hitting his head and hopefully losing consciousness.
One left, and it's all I can do to batter him with punches in the hopes he'll eventually go down. His aim is even worse now than it was initially and so whatever weak response he gives is easily dodged. Finally, he slumps down on the ground groaning, not unconscious but disabled at least.
"Fffuck you, Empire bastard, Lung will kill you."
I highly doubt Lung will particularly care about what happened to some random thugs, but at least they think I'm Empire. All in all, only about 30 seconds or so have passed since I first hit that man with the wrench, but it felt like minutes in the moment. But honestly, that went about as well as I could've hoped, all things considered, even if I took a few minor hits here and there. Now all that's left to do is figure out what to do with these two.
Calling the police is a no go simply because it'll accomplish absolutely nothing and put me at unnecessary risk. There's no real evidence these two are members of the ABB or even if they were going to commit any crimes. Sure they probably were and there's a possibility one of them might have outstanding warrants, but it's still just not worth it.
So in other words, I guess I'll just be leaving them here. It's not like they're particularly injured, I'm pretty sure the second guy is faking so I don't hit him anymore honestly, and they can probably manage to get home on their own. Of course the danger of being in ABB territory has just gone up by quite a bit if these two alert anyone else.
Bet it'll be a lot harder to do that without phones though
Searching their pockets for their phones only takes a second and I quickly crush them with the wrench before leaving them behind and moving out on my way to find some more gangsters. That was a good fight, but the night is still young and it's not yet too risky to be here.
I see a few more groups of probably ABB over the next 30 minutes or so, but all are too large for me to feel comfortable taking on just now. Finally, I manage to find two more ABB members, approaching reveals the two are actually talking to each other in English about something.
"...right, I heard you got moved all the way out to Ruby Dreams. I thought that joint was supposed to be legit?"
"Mostly legit, but they got some shit with the deliveries, also a little side operation with some illegal games." Illegal games, now that sounds interesting.
"So what, they got you guarding that? Must be an easy job out of the city."
"Eh, maybe. Some of the patrons might get rowdy ya know?" I've heard enough, as rousing as this conversation is becoming. I really do have to get back before too late, I've still got school tomorrow after all.
The plan is pretty much the same as before, except instead of an ambush it's a sneak attack where I'm forced to approach them. I'm not exactly a ninja so approaching slowly is probably a bad move, rushing them before they have time to react will have to do.
With the plan set I take my makeshift weapon out and choose my target. The guy on the left is much bigger than the guy on the right whose much shorter than me, probably around 5'4. The priority will be to disable the big guy as fast as possible and then turn my attention to the other one.
Choosing my moment carefully, I break out into a flat sprint and quickly nail the big guy in the flat of his back. No time to waste, I immediately followed up with pepper spray and another hit that was aimed towards the neck. Luckily for me the hit lands and the big guy is left clutching his throat as his buddy reacts and aims a punch towards my head.
He quickly receives the same pepper spray treatment as the big guy along with an overhand wrench swing into his shoulder. The other has already recovered at this point and manages to get ahold of my arm. Getting grabbed is actually dangerous for me so I react quickly and use my off hand to smash the wrench as hard as I can into his face. He drops like a stone and I'm left to deal with the other guy.
Apparently this guy has at least a little fighting experience as he took the small reprieve as an opportunity to back away and square up against me as best he can with the pepper spray still in his eyes.
"You fucking crazy white boy? ABBs gonna kill you for this shit dumbass." I don't give him the dignity of responding, instead choosing to circle around behind him quickly and drive the wrench straight into his back. He spins around quickly but is met with another hit to the chest from the wrench that finally sends him sprawling, ending the fight.
That was a good bit closer than the other fight. A combination of better opponents and worse circumstances, I suppose. Regardless, this is more than enough for tonight. Before beginning to head home I break their phones and walk a distance away to take off my bandanna. From here, I'll make my way back downtown as fast as possible before returning to the towers.
It's a relatively short but nerve-wracking trip to the well lit streets and storefronts that mark the beginning of Brockton Bay's well off area. By the time I make it back to the towers the adrenaline has mostly worn off, and the few hits I took are beginning to hurt.
Those are definitely going to end up being bruised in the morning, hopefully none are visible.
Making my way up to the 7th floor and unlocking my door, I'm greeted by the sight of Tyche reading on the couch upside down. She looks up when I enter and her face breaks out into a big smile.
"Alex! You're back, how did it go? Actually don't tell me, let me update your status first!"
"What exactly does 'updating my status' entail?"
"Oh I just need to put a drop of blood on the Falna and it'll update to include everything you've done since it was last updated." Tyche replied. So that would be why I didn't feel any different then.
"Alright then, move over and give me some room to lay down." Tyche does as I request and I take off my hoodie and jacket before laying down and rolling my shirt up.
"Alright then." Tyche takes a pin from… somewhere? Where is she getting this stuff? "Let's see here… Oh! That's actually really good for a single night of work, I thought you were going to do way worse."
"I appreciate the confidence, Tyche." I say, looking over the paper that itemized the progress I made tonight.
Alex Lavere
Level 1
Strength I74
Endurance I87
Dexterity I51
Agility I71
Magic I0
Luck H103
Skills:
Polytheism: Allows for invocation of power from the Gods when certain conditions are met.
Magic:
None
103 Luck huh? I suppose I was pretty lucky, and the other stats seem about right considering what my fighting style was out there. No magic, unsurprisingly, but more important is the fact that I'm already starting to feel the difference in my physical abilities, this will make a real difference in any future fights.
I'm officially a parahuman
The thought hits me out of nowhere, up until now I was just a normal person with maybe slightly better than average luck, and even that might have been placebo. Tyche was the only actual parahuman, but now, I have actual quantifiable differences between me and your average human.
This brings up the question of where exactly I want to go, the wards seem like a terrible option for a lot of reasons. Number one being I have no idea how they would react to Tyche or anything with the Falna, and every other gang is obviously out. That only really leaves the independent route, which of course just happens to be the most dangerous.
Wonderful.
"I can't believe this is actually working out, you're the best child ever!" Tyche exclaimed suddenly, her excitement finally pouring over as she leaped forward and hugged me. "We're gonna be the best Familia ever, even better than the ones back in Orario!"
"I'll do my best, Tyche." The exhaustion of the night seems to hit me all at once, at this point it's nearly midnight and I normally go to sleep at ten. Waking up for school tomorrow is going to suck isn't it? With those as my final thoughts, I slip into unconsciousness next to the girl who has managed to change my life so much in a short period of time.
AN: I am aware Ruby Dreams being ABB is fanon, but it's good fanon and works for the story so whatever. Excelia gain only requiring risk and exertion is canon, as is the Amazon's method of fighting each other to level up and they are able to achieve levels as high as 6 so it should be no problem here. Gotta say, first person perspective feels odd to me, I feel like I'm having trouble properly describing scenes with detail and especially with pacing. This chapter feels like it should be at least a few thousand words longer somehow. Oh well, feel free to give criticism below, I would appreciate it. To address something people said about last chapter though-the plot is kinda dead in the water if he didn't accept the whole goddess thing fast, I tried to justify a bit more with his mindset in this chapter though hence the speed run into vigilantism.
