As I see it I had a few paths to building a legacy. The first is the most mundane one but not the easiest. I could become rich. Sell what I could get from the dungeons, and take up jobs from anyone that wanted a cape for hire. But is money made like that truly something that will build a legacy? If I could get rich like that guy from Mali who went around Africa gifting gold then maybe. Lung must be rich with everything he does but he will still be forgotten a few weeks after inevitably dies.
Kaiser has money and political power. He leads the E88 and will probably be remembered for as long as the E88 was a thing. I could champion a cause. Something more palatable than white supremacy, that is. Build an organization that will last long after I am gone. I will put a pin in that, no matter how much leadership scares me.
Then there is raw physical power. I could strive to become the strongest cape. Become feared and loved for everything I could do. Erase the worst villains from the face of the world. This will depend a lot on how my dungeons work. A bit too dependent on my power for my liking but I won't complain about having a good power.
Then there are the legends mum told me she looked up to the most growing up. The ones that shaped the course of history. The inventors, philosophers, artists and scientists. Probably the hardest path to walk. But definitely not something to completely disregard.
I don't know if there is a clear single path to leaving a legacy. But I could see the vague shape of the future I want.
—
I had picked and chosen my costume from the bundle of uniforms I had gotten. The most sensible costume would have been an entirely black costume or one that would blend in with the dreary colours of most of Brockton Bay. But that wasn't what made you memorable.
The core of my costume was the standard ninja uniform I had received. the greyish blue colour shirt and pants and the green vest that was worn over it were practical and good-looking. I used a black skin-hugging neck gaiter I received as my mask. I decided to wrap some bandages as well. While I didn't see the point to it, I thought it added some flair.
I rolled a die to see which faction I will first bother. It landed on the PRT. So I threw the dice again and It landed on the Empire.
How to crumble the Empire? Thanks to my reset power I could do a lot of risky things. I made sure that I had everything I decided to take with me in the appropriate seals and left my home.
Take a bus to the whitest part of the town. From there walk to the poorest neighbourhoods allowed to exist. Follow the worst of the racist graffiti and slurs. Let the instincts carry me forward. Jump from house top to housetop. Keep out of anyone's sight. Look for suspicious gatherings. Ah, there it is. Only took three hours, easy peasy. There was a drug deal taking place in the middle of the day.
From my vantage point I can tell the vehicle they took to get here. The supernatural stealth training I had let me get to the car before they did. I dropped down and I bought up arguably my best loot. I had rolled my teleportation seal on a kunai. I unrolled it and stuck it to the top of the car. I am sure they wouldn't notice.
Then I left before they found me.
—
I spent my time back at home practising sealing. I was gradually learning how to modify the seals. Especially the storage ones, since they were the ones that the other world had studied the most. I was able to use my [Skill] and tweaks to the blueprint to decide what went into the seal and what was left outside. Currently, I had to concentrate a lot and create specialized seals to do it. Even then the process demanded too many metaphysical differences between the items. I was able to distinguish between a rock and a sponge but not iron and steel.
I had been teleporting to the car intermittently. Once it was stopped but in front of a normal house, another time I teleported above a moving car. I was able to teleport back before I alarmed them. But finally, I was standing in front of what looked like an obvious drug den.
"Hey boys, is this where they are teaching how to cook Italian?"
There were four people in total in the 'kitchen'. All armed.
"A cape."
Shouted the slow one.
"You cape, are you new to the Empire? Didn't hear Kaiser make a fuss about recruits."
"Me, Empire? Nah. I said I am here to learn how to cook and maybe even learn how to burn down the building."
One of the goons doesn't even bother hearing me finish the sentence. He shoots me, probably trying to catch me by surprise. Your average ninja is fast enough to dodge a kunai or a throwing star even when thrown by fellow ninjas. However, a bullet is a lot faster than any of that.
I didn't want to learn how death by bullet felt. I wasn't far gone enough to take a shot to see how it feels. I was moving as I talked. I can't outspeed a bullet but I can outspeed the shooter. There are a thousand tells I can use to tell where and how they will be shooting. All I have to make sure that no bullet hits me is to keep them in my eyesight and move.
It was sad how fast they went down. All the training in me was screaming for me to continue fighting. Ah well, I am sure there will be someone out there that can help me.
Part one of the plan went down without a hitch. I wasn't going to burn the building down. No, I had a better idea. I tied them up with some rope I found.
"Hey, smelly weirdos. Here's a proposal. Call your bosses to tell a new cape wants to talk to them or else I will burn down." I look around and point at the stash of cash they were counting. "All that cash and drugs, holy fuck I am on the wrong side."
Suddenly one of the goons starts laughing.
"You bitch. Did you think just because you got a power you can walk all over us? Who do you think you are? The saviour of Brockton Bay? Or is this your way of joining the Empire?"
I could torture or threaten them but that's all pointless. I just wanted to meet a cape.
"You know what? Sure tell them whatever you want to tell. I don't care. I want a cape here in an hour or I will burn the building down. Oh if you don't trust me then know that you won't burn with the building. You will just be sent to the cops or the PRT."
They exchange glances. I don't think they have anything to lose.
"Sure. I will call the brass."
—
I do listen to the call closely. They have a code I made sure to memorize, which was followed by your average Nazi lingo. They sold me as the worst devil on the planet, who also happens to be Jewish, Lesbian and a Feminist. And here I thought they will go with the potential recruit aspect.
It happens when I was waiting for some cape to come. I wasn't expecting Kaiser but someone more like Stormtiger. And that was exactly who came in.
"You know there are better ways to get in touch with us, right?"
"Like?"
He tilts his head and continues.
"Before I tell you that, you here to join or are you a kike playing hero."
I couldn't pretend to butter him up. I take out my kunai.
"You want to start or should I?"
He seems to have expected this. He grins.
"I love when I get a chance to teach arrogant indies a lesson."
He comes at me with an air claw strike, I easily move out of his way. From then on it's a constant exchange of blows. He knows how I am going to strike before I commit to it. He has refined his power very well and used it to enhance his martial arts skills.
We exchange punches, kicks, pushes and pulls. There are times when his experience with one on one matches and urban fights lets him get in a punch or an air blast at me and there are times when my more refined instincts let's get in a kick.
"I am thinking you are not a kike after all. We can have a lot of fun, you know. I can tell you enjoy this."
Ignoring his leer as he said enjoyed, the only reason I was having fun was that I was holding back. I am physically superior, significantly in speed and marginally in strength. Though, I think he is also holding back. All he has used so far were his tiger claws and short air bursts.
"Ah, sadly I don't associate with white people. You know, Because of my insidious Jewish plans and stuff."
"Shame."
I start moving faster. The minor advantage he had due to sensing the air around us is made null. Is it going to be that hard to find someone that can put up a good fight and not remind me that they are a nazi? Whatever, I was holding back from taking advantage of too many openings anyway.
It's when I go for a decisive punch that my head abruptly starts ringing. That's someone's power, right? What was her name?
I crouch down as a scythe comes out to cut me.
"Cricket, I told you I can handle it."
My ears are still ringing. I think she did something to my balance too. My instincts tell me to create a hand sign and—do something to break—Genjustu but I don't think I can do that. I didn't want to use it yet but I pick up a new kunai and throw it.
I don't know if either of them knocked it off target or if my balance was completely off but it falls on Cricket's feet. She looks at it and gives me an ugly grin.
I am down on the floor by this point.
"Why did you interrupt the fight? You know I had it in hand. Also, you ended it in such an unsatisfactory way." Says Stormtiger and he moves to confront her.
As a types something on a phone and shows it for storm tiger to read.
"You didn't want me to have all the fun? And you think we will be able to keep her?" Stormtiger reads aloud. "Now that you mention it she might fit into the empire. We only have to show her what we are made of. And maybe some—encouragement."
She types something else and Stormtiger reads it.
"No. I am sure you or rune can persuade her. No need to send her abroad. We can keep her in line, we can find what or who she cares for—"
Sounded like they weren't going to say anything important. I activate the wind trap seal on the kunai Cricket was holding. It takes them by surprise when wind erupts from the kunai and knocks them away before even the aerokinetic can do anything. They are lucky it wasn't an explosion.
I jump up and knock out Cricket with a well-placed chop. I didn't enjoy the mood-killer of a power. And I had heard that she was some sort of combat precog. I was looking forward to that fight. Not to mention she was mute. So no nazi bullshit. Ah well.
Next, I turn towards the slowly standing-up Stormtiger. He has been readying a wind blast like the one I just used. But in his battered state, getting around his clumsy attempt was a child's game. I move fast and knock him out as well.
"Remember you are the ones that pulled that un-sportsman shit first. I was fully onboard for a one-on-two fight."
Now for the real reason, I was here. I bend down next to Cricket to get what I wanted I and while I was doing it, I hear a faint sound from far away so I turn my head to see what it was. Something bursts open the thin walls of the drug house and shatter my head.
I was back in my bed. I had died.
No pain, no delay. One second I was alive and the next I died without even knowing how I did.
I cover myself under sheets and scream into a pillow. I scream again. Sure there was no pain. Sure it happened in an instant but I still died.
It took me a while to calm myself. So how did I die?
Did one of the 'hostages' shoot me? No, I had removed all their guns. A sniper? Oh.
I don't think that was a regular sniper. It could be but that was probably Victor.
Was he trying to steal my skills? I think in between their incessant racist ramblings the goons had said that I had a lot of training. Makes sense why they sent those two to deal with me. They wanted a good fight.
Victor shot me because I was about to see their faces. Admittedly I was going to do a lot more. Nothing villainous, search their bodies to figure out their actual identities.
As for skill stealing, either it doesn't work on my power-given skills or [Mental Resistance] took care of it.
So now the question was, did I want to do it again? I meditate on the question a bit but my answer was yes. I want to know their identities even more now.
—
