Despite the teleport being done or heralded by a bright golden glow, the five guests were surprised to find they did not need to rub any spots out of their eyes after their arrival. It was more like they had taken a close up look at a gold block, and simply had to adjust to a full range of vision again.
Once they were aware enough of their surroundings they looked at the entrance hall and gaped in awe. They had appeared on some sort of transparent circular crystal platform, ringed by a raised stop edge covered in inscriptions of an unknown type.
Below their feet they could see into the gears of some huge and great machine. Despite the various parts moving there was no sensation or noise getting through to them. The most impressive part of it though was the glowing motes of light flitting here and there like stars swirling in the skies. Combined with the dark metal and the golden highlights it made for an incredible sight. Armsmaster himself was captivated by the sight for several long moments, watching the beautiful efficiency of the machine even if he didn't recognise the purpose.
The lighting in the room came from a number of braziers and chandeliers hanging from walls and ceilings respectively. Each was burning was a clear white light.
Eventually the group turned their attention to the rest of the room. The walls were a dark red and covered in pillars, plinths and gears carved out of the walls. Golden highlights were in abundance, shining brightly in the reflection of the lights above them, set into a carved dome. Each of the inscriptions also spilled out golden light as if they were cracks showing the sun on the other side.
The size of the hall made it even more impressive. The Maiden of Virtue stood next to them at full height and the ceiling was still far beyond her reach. Their arrival area extended far enough to have fitted two full sized busses parked end to end through the centre.
There was a huge doorway directly in front of them, the gates again appeared to be gold or bronze, but other than that the room was unfurnished. However, it was not unoccupied. Spaced around the room, outside of the crystal platform, were a number of beings or creations.
The most impressive was standing in front of the doors. A huge blue giant figure stood watching them impassively. The male figure was both thick and wide, with proportions much greater than even an enlarged human would have. Its beard and hair were seemingly made of ice, while its armour was a dark brown colour, accented with steel and white fur. For some reason the greave on its left leg was styled as a portcullis. Atop its head was a great horned helm, which also had ice coming from it. Finally, it wielded a massive axe and the back of a shield could be seen over his shoulder. It also stood with the same height of the Maiden of Virtue.
At the other three pole positions from the apparent frost giant's north were three smaller but still large figures. Each was a male made of a dark blue metal mixed with a dark bronze. They wore only leggings and armoured knee high boots, along with metal gloves up to their elbows. Glowing blue lines gave off slowly pulsing lights from their armour. Otherwise they were bare chested. Their heads were all similar, but the metallic hair they wore was subtly different from each. One had a long braided beard with loose hair, another had similar braids but hair pulled back into a pony tail. The last had the pony tail but a loose beard. The all appeared to be around twenty feet tall at most.
Finally, in between each of the main guards were two more constructs. These topped out at 10 feet tall, and were much more obviously constructs compared to the intricate articulation and detail shown by the rest of the room.
The constructs heads were sunken down into their shoulders, from which sprouted thick and strong looking arms. Conversely their legs appeared shortened, but with large feet. Armsmaster guessed they would almost waddle as they walked. The heads themselves appeared more like fantasy dwarf symbols or tomb coverings than an actual face. They all were made of dark grey stone, with glowing blue inscriptions covering their surface.
The human's review of their surroundings was interrupted as their attention was drawn back to the Maiden of Virtue who had started speaking.
"Maiden of Virtue returning home after successfully providing aid to the organisation known as the Protectorate. I am returning with five guests who have been invited by Eonar."
There was a pause for a few moments before the frost giant spoke, its voice low and gravely, but carrying fresh gusts of freezing winds with each exhale. "Acknowledged and agreed. Welcome home, sister. And to our guests, welcome to the halls of Eonar. I am Stormherald Eljrrin, currently on guard duty." Then the now-named Eljrrin bowed from the shoulders before speaking what seemed to be a ritualistic greeting, "May the peace and knowledge you find here match the joy your presence brings."
Apparently the beings here took their greetings and hospitality seriously, but with the formalities done the four humanoid figures in the room relaxed slightly from their tense poses. Eljrrin in particular slouched somewhat, leaning on his axe haft, while a large grin blossomed on his face. The other male constructs in the room either leant back against the wall, or crouched down, one even taking a book out to read.
With a calm and slightly cheerful tone of voice Eljrrin spoke again, "You'll have to let us know how the fight went later, V. It sounds like you've had the most excitement out of all of us recently."
Turning his attention to the heroes and PRT officers he carried on speaking, "And it's an honour to meet those that have chosen to defend their home. No path is more righteous or rewarding."
Grinning slightly, Velocity responded while his companions were either still looking around the room or gathering their composure. "Thank you, we're always pleased to see someone trying to help the city. Do you mind if I ask, are you on guard duty a lot?"
Chuckling, the giant shot back, "From the stories we've heard I can imagine a little help is a bit of a shock. And naw, I'm not on guard duty too much, we rotate through regularly, keeps us sharp, ya know?"
As he finished speaking he was already hefting his axe up onto one shoulder, but none of the humans felt threatened as he was also turning to the doors, resting a palm against one large gear inscription. The door itself glowed for a few seconds before the giant was able to start pushing them out and open. "Still, you're likely busy, so I won't hold you up too much."
The Maiden of Virtue, who had been standing patiently alongside the humans during the exchange, nodded once she saw they didn't have any immediate questions before motioning towards the door. "This way to meet My Lady. Shall we?"
Shaking off their shock, the small group immediately agreed and started to follow the large woman as she moved to leave the room. Fortunately she kept her pace slow enough that the much shorter humans could keep pace.
The two largest giants exchanged a smile and a wink from Eljrrin as they passed each other, then they were out into a large hallway.
Much like the landing platform from the entrance hall the floor was the same transparent crystal, somehow giving a good grip despite looking as smooth as glass. Unlike before though, the crystal was now a long almost road like shape, with glowing blue lines and inscriptions speeding around like trapped lightning. There were no great machines underneath the glass, just a black reflective substance and more glowing motes of light.
However, the walls were much more interesting to the guests this time. The hall moved in both directions before ending in a junction each, but the walls were covered in inscriptions and what looked like a story of some kind. Seeing the humans pause The Maiden of Virtue checked what they were looking at before giving a noise of understanding.
"The walls are inscribed with the history of another world, you will learn the connection from My Lady, but suffice to say that there were beings similar to what you will find in these halls. They lived, and in some cases, died, but from both we have taken lessons. The walls are a reminder of those lessons, and of the people who taught them. Come, My Lady awaits."
Marching at a slow pace, the woman started off to their right, the humans catching up a few seconds later. "Although we are unique, and have our own minds, opinions and dreams, most of the beings in these halls are patterned after someone from that world. But even My Lady has learned lessons from those that came before her, and no matter what we are all family."
Reaching the junction, the Maiden turned left and continued on. "We also have a large library. If you know to look for them there are lessons in most things, even if they are more a tale of how easy it is to fall."
"Is that something that worries you, and what do you mean by falling?" Queried the PRT captain.
Pausing in her stride, the Maiden tilted her head to one side for a few moments, visibly considering the question. "Not as such, and definitely not in the way that our forebears did. The world mother visited was a much more… fantastical place. Magic, good and evil, it was more a definite creation, than the forms created by humanity. There were dark gods, abundant on the particular world our people watched over. Using their abilities they were able to corrupt the various beings and turn them to truly evil means.
We do not fear such an occurrence here, because those dark gods do not exist. However… we are not human. This has strengths and weaknesses when it comes to defending mankind. It is important to remember the why, just as much as the how, when defending, and it would pay well to remember that our views may not coincide, that is the real fear."
Unknown to anyone else, even as they quietly considered the speech, those words resonated with Armsmaster. He has been fighting villains for a long time, and had sought personal glory on a number of occasions. But was that a good reason for doing it? Had he already fallen?
Shaking his head slightly the veteran hero banished the thoughts. There would be time for a crisis of faith and contemplation later, after meeting the architect behind all of this. His brief reverie was noticed by Miss Militia and the Maiden of Virtue, but neither commented on it.
…
Apparently the teleportation chambers were out of the way for the most part, considering the lack of anyone else near them so far. However, as they approached another junction they started to see a lot more activity. Small beings that looked like stone dwarves were moving backwards and forwards, occasionally one of the larger metal men would be seen, although they were only 7 or 8 feet at most now. There were also golems set inside the walls at regular intervals.
As the Maiden of Virtue's gaze fell on one of the metal men for the first time, she made a noise of distress, quietly uttering "Oh dear".
Before the humans could ask what the issue was the woman started to shrink, her gear and clothing following suit until she no longer towered over the humans. She topped out at a little over six feet high in the end. Carefully hooking her hammer onto the large belt she looked across at her guests and spoke, "I do apologise. This is the first time I have been outside the halls and taken my true size. It was terribly rude of me to continue on. You may also call me Vivienne while inside these halls."
Staring at amazement at the much more approachable woman, it was left to the Deputy Director to break the ice this time. With a chuckle he responded, "Well, I can't say I know exactly what it's like to forget your size, but it is quite alright."
"My thanks, still, we need to go this way." Motioning forward the now reasonably sized woman continued, weaving through the foot traffic with her guests in tow.
Shooting a glance at Armsmaster, the maiden asked a question, "I forgot to ask previously, but were you able to keep your video link working through the interference?"
Jolting slightly, the tinker none-the-less replied, "Yes, there was a slight drop in connection initially, but the system was able to compensate and regain contact."
Internally, Armsmaster had to admit to feeling slightly apprehensive at the question and its answer. Was it a prelude to them being cut off, had the Maiden only agreed believing it would not work? However, the response settled those issues quickly.
"Truly? That is a worthy accomplishment, you are certainly living up to your reputation of skill. I had worried you would be cut off from your compatriots during your visit."
Colin was unable to stop a bit of the pride he felt at that declaration from affecting him. Coming from a skilled warrior and such an impressive creation herself it was nice praise.
The group continued in silence, moving along the highway they seemed to be following. Many beings passed them as they moved, all of them seemingly having a purpose. A number of them looked at the unusual sight of humans in their midst, and several nodded or called greetings as they passed.
Eventually they reached a much more important looking door. It was huge, for a start, even at her full height the Maiden would have been dwarfed by the monstrosity in front of them. It was, again, covered in inscriptions and golden circles, but this time they were only a small part of the doors. Instead vines and flowers of a variety of colours were carved into the doors. The colours and depictions were so accurate it almost seemed alive.
The Maiden walked up to the door and just like the Frost Giant placed her hand on a bare circle on the door. At the repeated gesture Armsmaster was compelled to comment, "I assume all of the doors are coded to your people, the hand on the door is a security measure?"
Turning her head without removing her hand, the Maiden replied, "Yes, although that is only part of it. The Hall was designed to be secure so these are such measures, but a lot of rooms have been claimed for private use, either our own residences, or for experiments and such. By pushing my hand against the inbuilt structure I am also notifying those inside of my presence and wish to enter. They can then respond as they see fit."
Grinning beneath the bandanna covering her face, Miss Militia couldn't help but comment, "And it avoids the need to scream through the door to get someone's attention, I bet."
Laughing along with the hero, the Maiden responded, "Yes, indeed, that is one definite benefit."
Before the conversation could continue there was a beep and the circle the Maiden had been touching glowed gold. Immediately, the doors started to swing open of their own accord, moving backwards away from the group.
The group was immediately struck quiet in awe at what was revealed before them. They had exited onto another circular platform made of crystal, but this one extended out over a gorge with a bridge of light connecting it to an island further into the massive room. To either side of them there was a flat space that seemed to run around the room before the floor fell into the ravine, but the most impressive thing was the fact they could only barely make out the curve as the room turned in a large circle.
The other major shock was that the whole room other than the crystal floored areas were covered in flora completely unknown to everyone there. Bright flowers, trees and vines of a massive variety grew everywhere, popping up from lush grass and swaying in an artificial breeze. It was like stepping into paradise. Even the roof appeared to be a view of a sunny day, a realistic sun sat in the sky above them. It was hard to accept they were still underground, and hadn't moved back outside to a sculpted ravine.
Continuing to speak, the Maiden of Virtue explained the room, "This is the Hall of Azeroth. Mother re-created a lot of the native plants from that world and enabled them to live in here. You did not notice, but there is a permeable barrier over the door which prevents any pollen from coming in or out of the room, to avoid cross-breeding or any kind of ecological contamination."
The group made their way across the crystal platform before the humans halted at the edge of the light bridge. It didn't look remotely substantial enough to hold their weight. It also allowed them to get a look at the very deep canyon below them. It turned out it was more of a moat, given the river winding its way along the bottom.
Not seeing their hesitation the Maiden continued walking forward, pausing once she was several feet over the deep drop before realising her guests weren't following. Turning back around she saw them leaning over the edge of the bridge, peering into the chasm below. With a smile growing on her face she commented "It is perfectly safe, no harm will come to you in these halls."
Tentatively, but then with growing confidence the group tested the bridge before catching up with the Maiden. Once they were close by again she turned and continued walking, giving them a more detailed explanation of her intentions to try and get their mind off of the bridge.
"Our destination is just ahead. We will be stopping at a seating area that overlooks the lower path. Mother will be joining us there and we can answer any initial queries you may have. Once that's done we will move on to the chambers where you can observe a few projects at different points in their construction."
Seeing a perfect opportunity to find the answer to one of their most important questions, Armsmaster used the opening to ask a question as blandly as he could, "Is your Lady the only one involved in your creation, or does she have help?"
Unknowing of the humans true direction of interest, the Maiden simply assumed it was a polite fishing question, but felt no need not to answer anyway, "Mother has help with some of the process, mostly shaping the bodies and providing names and such, but the spark of life must always come from her."
On the other end of Armsmaster's video feed numerous breaths were released in relief at the news that at least the beings they had seen could not self-replicate. That was one worry dealt with, even if most of them were waiting for the other shoe to drop.
As they were speaking they appeared to have reached their destination. Another crystal circle that extended over the large gap, but much less than the ones either side of the light bridge they had crossed previously. Just back from the circle were a series of benches that appeared to have been grown rather than built. Each was made of wood, but the trees were sideways and still appeared alive. A thatch of branches was covered by a presumably removable cushion.
Behind the seating area the island appeared to be move of a lush jungle, numerous plants of massive variety growing with carefully tended paths leading inwards.
The group were ushered into seats facing the gorge, the grown chairs surprisingly comfortable and easily able to hold under the weight of even Armsmaster and his armour.
Sitting in a chair facing them but off to one side, as if expecting someone else to join them, The Maiden spoke, "Mother was just finishing her meditations when we arrived, she should be along shortly."
While they were waiting, Miss Militia decided to ask a question which had been bothering her since their initial conversation. "You mentioned earlier that you were created with a baseline personality, and that the decision to get involved with the fight was your choice. Was your Lady opposed to that action, and can you explain more about what you mean by a baseline personality?"
As the heroine was speaking, The Maiden's attention was completely on her, but with the question asked the stone woman's gaze drifted off again while she visible considered the query. "Our Lady was not opposed, no, on the contrary she had hoped that we would help the world alongside her. That said, there were a number of individuals who were against acting now. The rise in our numbers to what you have seen is a recent thing, and they believed we should consolidate our defences first.
The reason for My Lady's delay is because she was adding to the defences of our home, in point of fact. It was this decision that broke the deadlock and allowed me to come to your aid. The breach of obscurity caused by my actions and your transmissions will be countered by the inherent protections."
Turning her attention back to the PRT staffers she nodded at the Deputy Director, "We knew that once we revealed ourselves at least some information would need to be disclosed to quiet the most important worries. Engaging the villains then disappearing would likely cause much consternation and distress among those tasked with defending the population, even just based on prior examples."
Looking back at Miss Militia she went on to answer the second part of her question, "As for the personality, think of it like this, a child's personality is part nature, part nurture, as a basic outline. The events around them, the people they interact with, it all exerts influence on that child as they grow. Our personalities are similar, we are formed by my Lady's will, and then we experience a growth, if you will. This is done before we are given our bodies, as our personality may influence how that is formed.
The best example is Logar, who was given a base male personality, then was influenced by a number of stories of trickster gods and individuals. His personality leans more towards the puckish, although Mother's influence ensures he does not cross the line into bullying. The stories also showed him how easily small internal fractures in a society can be exploited. So his personality also reflects his desire to ensure that events such as the legends of Loki in Norse mythology do not come about. A mediator and a prankster, rather than a liar and a trickster, if you will."
Settling her hands on her lap after that explanation she finished off her instructions, "You will see more once Mother arrives, but we consider the time between being given her breath of life and entering our bodies as the formative years. The day our bodies come to life is the day of our birth. From that point Mother treats us as adults, capable of making decisions or mistakes on our own merit. She is there to help, teach or aid us, providing what we need to create a happy life just as any parent would, but it is our life and we must deal with the consequences of the choices we make as best we can."
Nodding to himself, Armsmaster couldn't help but comment, "An unusual outlook, if you use an equivalent outlook as humans have on so-called artificial intelligences."
Chuckling, Vivienne spoke, "Indeed, Mother ensured we were aware of such issues after we were created, although we are not the endlessly propagating computer intelligence we are still born in a different way, and could face persecution because of it. However, we were also told mothers opinion on the cause and effect in such a situation. Mother felt that any true AI should be treated as a child and helped to grow and learn. No matter what way you create such a life, even if they have access to all the knowledge they would need they would not have the wisdom to use it properly. Such wisdom is only gained from personal experience.
You don't hand a toddler a knife and expect them to be able to use it well, you teach them to respect the harm they can cause when they reach an age where the lesson will be remembered."
The guests visibly considered that explanation for a few moments. It was obviously not a complete guideline, but as a mentality they had to agree it was a possibly viable approach. Folklore and mythology was replete with examples of the problems that came from knowledge without wisdom.
Any further discussion was put on hold however as the sound of footsteps crunching on gravel came to their ears. A swift look around didn't show anything, then the group realised that the sound was too loud, and obviously out of sight. The sound came steadily closer over the next few moments, finally allowing the humans to figure out what direction it was coming from.
The sight that walked into view had all of them gaping in awe.
…
In the PRT command centre the main staff and technicians were working around the command staff and remaining Protectorate heroes while they watched the huge main screen displaying footage from Armsmasters equipment. The sight of more giants in their midst had caused a number of swears and epitaph's to come from various mouths. They were finally about to get a view of the main instigator and the creator of all of this though.
Then Lady Eonar, the life-binder, protector of life, nature and health walked into view. And she was truly awe-inspiring.
The Maiden of Virtue at full size had been impressive, but the being in front of them was easily double her height. She was walking along the 30 foot drop of the gorge and it only came up to her pelvis.
The woman was obviously different than anything else seen in the complex as well, being an organic being for a start. Her skin was a light brown, more like dry soil than anything found in a normal human. Her hair was brown and worn long, with two thick braids falling in front of her chest from behind each ear while the rest flowed free down her back. Either woven into her hair or growing their naturally were various colourful flowers. She had some form of crown on, with a tiara of burnished gold, but thick dark brown vines growing out of the top and following the contours of her head.
Her chest was contained by a jade bikini top, highlighted in more gold, a pair of matching bikini bottoms were also present and partially covered by a white and gold sarong. Alongside a pair of thick and wide bracelets shaped like more vines done in a silvery material that was all she was wearing. It was her face that betrayed the most signs of an inhuman individual though, each eye was a solid glowing gold, without pupil or iris.
Even through the video camera she seemed to embody a motherly and regal air. This was not the typical parahuman with a chip on their shoulder or suffering from their trauma still. This was someone entirely comfortable in themselves, a ruler and a queen.
Approaching the circular platform nearest the guests, the extraordinarily large woman started to glow with a golden light. The shift in the camera betrayed the heroes tensing up, wary of an attack. However the glow didn't last long and when it faded a six foot tall woman was walking along the floor of the platform smoothly. Revealed at a more normal size the woman was shown to also be barefooted.
The walk towards the seated group was almost a saunter, the woman's hips swinging smoothly as she stepped lightly across the grass to join them. Stepping into the circle of chairs she sat on the same side as her daughter, facing the PRT and Protectorate staff before speaking, "Good day and good wishes, guests. Welcome to my home."
Even through the microphone pick-up her voice was ethereal. Not light and airy as such a word would normally indicate, but layered almost. Coupled with an unknown accent it sounded as if each word was accompanied by faint music and a slight echo. It was objectively beautiful, but also not really human.
Deputy Director Renick was the first to reply to the formal sounding greeting, "Thank you for the welcome, and I understand we also have you to thank for allowing Vivienne to aid our people during the fight."
Nodding her head, Eonar raised one leg to rest it over the other while her hands came to rest on the knee, "We had planned to start lending our strength to the untenable situation for some time. I simply provided the final impetuous to move forward with that, but I am glad we were able to help."
Turning her head the impressive woman address Vivienne, "Were you unhurt, daughter? And were any of your allies?"
Smiling happily at her mother, Vivienne leaned forward as she replied, "All were well, mother. None came to harm while they stood beside me, and the villains were unable to stand up to our combined strength."
Nodding her head, Eonar turned back to the humans, "A good outcome then, I'm proud of you, daughter. You will have to take me through events later, the knowledge gained can be passed to your brothers and sisters. Before we begin, however, have the rituals of welcome been completed?"
Looking very pleased with herself, Vivienne nodded before she spoke, "Everything except the gifts, mother. I expected you would want to handle them yourself."
"Indeed, thank you for the consideration." Turning back to the government employee's she explained after noting the slightly confused looks. "Among my people it is traditional to pass gifts to someone when they visit for the first time. It's not something common beyond that, so please don't feel you need to reciprocate should I visit you. In this case though I feel it is a good idea."
Pressing her hands together in a position as if she had just clapped, there was a smaller golden glow from around her hands and in the area between the two groups. Apparently this had heralded another teleportation, as there was now a low table between them with a number of boxes and a single briefcase on top.
Leaning forward in her seat, Eonar picked up the briefcase by the sides and turned it to offer the handle to Armsmaster, "For the tinker whose craftsmanship is well known, any offer of equipment would be an insult. Instead I hope this will suffice, ingots of a metal called arcanite, with the details needed to forge it. It will be vastly stronger and lighter than any material you will find on this plane."
Opening the briefcase Eonar showed the veteran tinker the insides and the stacks of material. Picking up one of the bars Colin could already feel how sturdy this was, although the fact that the case was bigger on the inside than outside was also distracting. "Thank you, Lady Eonar, I will have to look at the documentation to see where this will be most useful."
Nodding her head, she picked up the first of the boxes & offered it to Velocity, "For the untouchable hero, a gift to raise your utility."
Opening the box Robin removed two thin metal bracers, looking them over carefully.
"Within each is what you would call a pocket dimension. This will allow you to carry more on a day to day basis, but it also includes an eject feature. With this you can fill one section in each with containment foam grenades, leaving them in your wake without disturbing your ability. They will also produce a skin level energy shield, so that you cannot be removed from a fight by a lucky strike."
While the bracers had been beautiful Robin had originally assumed they were for casual wear. The base was something like platinum, while there were engravings done in gold across the whole thing. With the explanation of what they could do though, Velocity was left gaping, eager to try them out.
The third box was passed to Miss Militia, who opened it to find an apparent copy of her uniform sat nestled in tissue paper. "For the hero so capable at striking from afar, a uniform of Lightless Silk. Far stronger than even the best of spider silks available, this will stop bullets, knives and even reduce physical strikes against you."
Balancing the box on her knees, Miss Militia lifted the top part of the costume, feeling the unheard of silk between her fingers, "Thank you, this will help a lot."
To the obvious surprise of the PRT employee's, the next box was given to Director Renick. They had expected this to be a cape only affair, but apparently not. "For someone leading their people, a ring to protect your mind and detect poisons. No master will be able to overcome the enchantments layered into a ring of Elementium, you will always be free of their influence. The metal used will keep the ring warm, no matter what is done to it, and it is also indestructible. It will vibrate slightly if you pass it over something which is poisoned."
"And finally, for a man on the front lines of a fight, but bereft of powers, I give the power to create a shield to stand between you and your enemies. With the right gesture and your own will, a barrier will be raised your allies can stand behind safely." The final box was given to the PRT captain, who withdrew a single bracer and a small booklet.
Exchanging glances the group eventually said their various thanks before the deputy director spoke, "As amazing as the gift is, I'm afraid we will need to have our people check for any… unwanted interactions, before we can start using them."
Smiling gently at the roundabout way of being told the items would be checked for threats, Eonar nodded regardless and spoke, "I understand. I expected such requirements in fact. Each box contains the full breakdown of each item and details of its creation. Still, you are here with purpose, do not let me distract you from that."
Nodding his head slightly, Armsmaster acknowledged the point and refocused, "Yes. Following the fight against the E88 and comments made by Vivienne, we would like to discuss the process you are using for creating your… children?"
Pausing, he waited a moment for Eonar to nod to indicate he had the right manner of addressing the relationship between creator and creations before continuing. "As you seem to be aware, we have had a number of problems with parahuman created beings in the past. We are obligated to investigate any such parahuman as much as is possible to determine if there is a threat to innocent life."
Waving a hand grandly, Eonar replied to the underlying query in the heroes speech, "A reasonable attitude to take, how would you like to proceed?"
Leaning forward, Miss Militia took up the fact-finding next, "Well, first of all we have a number of questions we would like to ask, then if we could visit the production facilities and work through there it should give us a good basis to work from."
Smiling at the woman, Eonar leaned back and settled her hands back onto one knee as she spoke, "Ask away."
"First of all, can you confirm you are the parahuman creating the various beings we've seen today."
Smiling at the serious faced heroes, Eonar considered how to answer the question for a moment before speaking, "A complicated question to start with, if unknowing. I will answer the spirit of your question first, I think. I am indeed the creator of all you have seen today, and all those yet to be seen. However, you should be aware that I am not actually a parahuman, not any longer."
Exchanging glances, and apparently the only humans in the room, the PRT group looked confused at that statement. Miss Militia was the one to ask the obvious question though, "Can you explain what you mean by that?"
"Certainly," Agreed the green woman, not relaxing from her position at all, "I was a parahuman, originally. My trigger event was, as all of them are, traumatic, but centred around being confined. When I triggered, it was with a power that allowed me to escape from that confinement, in a way. My power was the ability to divorce my soul from my body, travelling as and when I liked. I believe popular culture would term his as Astral Projection."
Raising his hand slightly, Velocity asked a question once Eonar's attention was drawn to him. It was an interruption, but this was bothering him enough he had to bring it up, "Sorry for interrupting, but can I just ask, you seem really calm about the whole thing. Most parahuman's have trouble discussing their triggers at all, but you seem almost at peace, why is that?"
Smiling at the man to ensure he knew it wasn't a difficult question, Eonar gave a response that shocked all of them, "I'm unaware if this is common knowledge, but the source of parahuman powers reinforces the trauma of their triggers, it is forever locked in their mind. This is why they are not talked about, it has the same effect of trying to talk to a victim of shock seconds after the event in question. This is partially caused by what was deemed the conflict drive. Parahuman's being manipulated by their power to both put it to use, and to engage in conflict with them."
At that bombshell the parahumans both in person and listening had to stop and gape, no one had ever suggested they were being affected by their power to fight. The deputy director swore quietly before speaking, "Parahumans are driven to fight, you're certain?"
Giving them a look of sympathy, the unusual woman nodded, "I am, the people who helped me were most thorough in their work."
The three parahumans were unable to come up with any rebuttal to that confirmation, each of them sitting in shock and trying to figure out how much of their lives had been dictated by the apparent need for conflict. Armsmaster was the most logical of the three though, and quickly realised the rest of Eonar's story may give more information, but this wasn't something that could be resolved here and now.
Deciding quickly, he spoke to keep things going, "We can consider the implications of that later, right now we have business to attend to."
"Indeed, as I said previously, my parahuman talent was a version of Astral Projection. However, in my highly emotional state during the trigger my soul fled much further than simply the confines of this planet and reality. We are aware of alternate reality Earth's due to our trade with Earth Alpha. However, I went much, much further, beyond the bundle of realties we suspect and know of." Eonar immediately picked up on the man's desire for something else to focus on that started speaking again. Her hands moved slowly and carefully during the speech emphasising various words.
"It would have been fatal, honestly. The connection was not designed or supposed to stretch so far or so thin. I am not sure if I was really aware of this, it was not discussed directly, but I believe I may have been subconsciously suicidal at that point, which further pushed my rout. Regardless, I was eventually found by, or I found a group in a totally separate reality called the Titans."
Gesturing to the side Eonar created illusions of each of the beings she had found. Despite the relatively small scale, each figure seemed impossibly large. One was clearly a close duplicate of the being in sat in front of them, the facial features were different, but clothing, colour and everything else matched.
The rest of the group were male, with the first clothed in stone like blue robes trimmed in gold. His skin looked like dark ice with glowing white eyes and a long white beard and hair. A second was in robes of silver, a hood covering his head, but his beard and eyes were the same as the first being. The remaining three were clad in metal armour in dark colours, each had a long and braided beard and hair. Two wore winged helms, while the third was bare-headed.
Pointing at each in turn, Eonar gave their names, "Eonar, Aman'Thul, Norgannon, Golganneth, Khaz'goroth, and Aggramar. Beings of power best described as beyond god-like, they were ancient and wise. They saw my plight immediately and Eonar rendered aid to stop me dying."
That caused the humans to twitch again, looking back at who they believed to be Eonar, but this time their host held her hand up to answer the question before it could be asked. "I have taken the name of Eonar for now, and most of her looks, to honour the woman who was as close as a mother to me. Right now I am too young to settle fully into my powers, looks and name. In time, I will change to reflect my personality and ability, but for now I can honour the incredible woman who saved my life and soul, then gave me purpose and a future."
"The Titans were each born from the soul of an entire world, and they reflected the awesome power that gave them. When I met them they were travelling the void between stars looking for more nascent Titans. Strengthening and protecting their spirits whenever they were found, and giving guiding nudges to any race they encountered. Once I was stable and coherent, they cared for me and protected me. Part of that was investigating what had brought me there."
Gazing at each of her audience in turn, Eonar looked quite grave as she spoke her next words, "They swiftly found out that parahuman abilities are given by an external source, connecting to each of their users at their bleakest moment. Using this darkness to manipulate them to conflict and collect the data it produces. The power connected to me was swiftly researched, and then destroyed. In its place, the Titans granted me a gift such to awaken me as akin to them. The small slivers each placed in my care would learn and grow with me, merging and matching me, until eventually I will become a Titan myself."
Again her guests were left gaping. The idea that this woman would become powerful enough to walk the stars and reshape world was both mind-boggling and terrifying in equal measure. Watching from the video link back at the PRT headquarters, Director Piggot was quietly swearing up a storm at another massively powerful group inside her city. She was glad the entire thing was being recorded on multiple levels as well, because the information about parahuman powers was an entirely separate mess they would need to deal with. Piggot had already ordered the information classified and had the recordings saved under top level restrictions.
Amusingly, it was the director to regain her composure the quickest and prod one of the attendee's to query just how quickly they would have a god like being in their back yard. It was Captain Michaelson who eventually asked the question. "Ah, that sounds like a lot of power, is that going to happen… soon?"
Laughing happily, Eonar replied with a smile in her voice, "By the light, no. Certainly centuries, more likely millennia will pass before I reach that level. You can rest assured you will not have such issues with me in the lifetime of anyone alive now. And I plan to re-join my benefactors when that happens, so I will cease to affect this world when it does come about."
Velocity mindlessly blurted out a comment at that statement, the repeated shocks keeping his mind mostly blank, "Wait, you're immortal?!"
"Only as far as old age will not take me, I can still die, although it would take far more effort and knowledge than most can bring to bear."
The self-proclaimed Titan watched her silent guests try to digest the various shocks she had delivered for a short time before realising their return to sense would be unlikely to come any time soon. Clearing her throat to get their attention she spoke, "I suspect this is more information best left for later consideration. Perhaps we should continue to discuss the reason you are here in the first place?"
Visibly shaking herself, Miss Militia immediately latched onto the change in subject, "Yes. That definitely seems like a good idea. We've established that you are the only one creating the individuals here. Can you confirm they cannot reproduce on their own, please?"
Nodding her head, Eonar answered while she settled back in her chair, "That's correct. I should explain that the original Titan's created a number of machines that could produce living beings, but I feel that it is at once unwise, but also more than a little unethical in these circumstances. Alongside the PRT's existing issue with self-replication, by any name. The knowledge for such does not exist anywhere else beyond my understanding that it was possible, I have not considered it any further than that."
Raising his hand slightly, the PRT captain asked a follow up question, "Can you explain what you mean by unethical in those circumstances? I would have thought the unethical part would be linked into the PRT's reasoning, but you sound like you think they are separate issues."
"There is an element of ethics there, but most of the reason for the response by the PRT is because of the example set previously. For myself the ethics comes from the fact that each of the beings living in my halls are my children. To create a machine to churn them out thoughtlessly would be akin to creating a child without compassion, concern or love. My children will know they are part of a family, and remember they are never alone."
Nodding his head the captain accepted that with a single word and settled back in his seat.
Armsmaster meanwhile pushed on to the next stage of the questioning, "Next, can you tell us where the materials for your children come from and what they are?"
"As a Titan I am able to mould the Earth itself as I need. My children are all of stone and metal, it is a trivial effort to draw the correct items up from the depths and mould them as if they were fresh clay." Dipping forward it her seat, Eonar scooped up a piece of the loam the benches were sat on and raised it to chest level. Once everyone was watching the piece of earth flowed into a perfect orb the size of a baseball, before it hardened and brightened. Once she was finished Eonar leaned forward and passed the ball to Armsmaster to check.
Using some of the sensors in his armour the tinker quickly realised what he was holding, "This is a perfect marble sphere. There are no deformities or abnormalities in this at all."
Nodding her head, Eonar agreed, "Such is as my power allows me to do, on a much greater scale as I so wish. This and my will are all that is needed to create my children."
Seeing that Armsmaster was still engrossed in studying the marble sphere, and the implications of such an ability, Miss Militia took steps to keep the conversation going. "Well, that will certainly settle some fears based on previous intelligent tinker work. I believe the next step would be to ask if we can observe the whole process."
Jerking slightly, Armsmaster rapidly looked up and re-joined the conversation, "Yes, indeed. We will need to observe and check as much of the process as possible to allay all of the gears."
Standing smoothly, with the almost silent Maiden of Virtue copying her almost instantly, Eonar nodded her head, "While you will not be able to follow the entire process through from start to finish due to the time it takes for a new individual to mature, I have children at each stage of the process to allow you to see everything. I trust this will be acceptable?"
Exchanging glances, and hearing a few comments from Director Piggot, Armsmaster eventually nodded his agreement, "That will be acceptable."
Gesturing to the platform she had arrived on, Eonar smiled as she spoke, "In that case, please follow me."
Leading the group onto the circular platform Eonar paused and waited while they grouped up near the centre. Vivienne was calm and looking out at the room, lost in thought. Her guests, however, were checking around themselves in an obvious and slightly nervous manner. Presumably they were looking for how the light bridge would be activated, since this was how they had moved around previously.
Personally, Taylor preferred to walk in her home, although she doubted the humans would appreciate being carried along in her hand, so they were forced to use a different method.
Once everyone had settled, Taylor raised a loosely clenched hand, pointing it away from the group. Instantly there was a crunch of moving machinery. The platform slid away from the dock built into the side of the cannon smoothly and slowly. Taylor was more focused on her guests to make sure they didn't lose their footing. Fortunately the movement of the platform was slow enough that they all adapted quickly.
Once the circular platform was away from its base the speed picked up. None of the people standing on top felt a thing, other than increased movement of the wind. Taylor could see Armsmaster, at least, working up to a query about how the platform worked.
Before he could do more than glance around they reached another door, just as immense as the first. This one opened as the platform approached, the group slipping through without slowing or stopping.
The other side couldn't have been more different to the area they had left if it tried. Instead of a vast amount of plants and grasses, the room was a light grey stone. Geometric patterns and ornate designs covered the walls of the huge square room. At one end of the room were hospital like beds, a couple filled with a still stone or metal body that matched the heights of the giants they had seen so far. Some of the bodies were just as detailed as those seen walking around, the rest were in every stage between that and a rough mannequin like shape.
The complete opposite wall had a variety of plinths, each a curling column similar to ancient roman constructions. Above each of these surfaces floated an orb of what looked like glass, gold and bronze wiring trailing over each of them. Seven of the orbs were currently glowing with different levels of brightness, the brightest at the level of a normal lamp.
In the middle of the room, side by side were two circles. One contained a platform just like they were already stood on, the other was empty and waiting to receive them.
The other sides of the room had stacks of metal ingots and stone bricks showcasing every kind of material known to man, and a large number that were not.
As the platform descended to its dock, Taylor spread her hands out in to encompass her guests, "Welcome, to my workshop."