Read aloud to me alt Taylor

by Kahlil Johnson

Dnd

37. Undertale2

2.3

Greetings! Now don't scream again, bodies will be inconvenient this time, and besides, I'm here in the name of friendship!

The words echoed through her mind, or through something deeper, and without thinking, she was taking a deep breath to scream.

Emma could only make out what could have been a shrug and a sigh just before a hand painfully grabbed her by the throat and pinned her to the bed, all before she could even finish inhaling.

Coughing and gasping for breath, she tried to push the assailant off of her, yet the grasp remained firm, the small hand, with fingers too thin and skin like that of a mannequin's, cold and ungiving, only squeezed harder the more she struggled.

"There's no one lurking around to save you this time. Why don't you drop this unhelpful display?"

The voice, actually a sound this time, was cheerful and mocking, and the sheer lack of hesitation in the words made her heart sink.

No, no, have to fight back, have to get out of...

With a burst of despair and inspiration, she reached for the pressue recently nestled in the back of her mind, currently connected to the bed she was pinned to, and with what could be described as a push, the soft material of the mattress gave way to gaseous shadows. Letting her fall away from the bruising choke-hold.

I-I did it!

She wasn't sure what she did, she didn't even see anything worth description besides the red eyes in the dark and a slender silhouette, but she knew for a fact that she succesfully used her power to-

You're blue now.

Feeling the presence again, the redhead couldn't even say "What?" before she was flung upwards and back through the shadows, straight to the ceiling with an impact hard enough to drive the air out of her lungs once more.

"Do that again and you'll be falling upwards, cold and lonely, until you die from asphyxiation. Take a moment to imagine how that would feel like if I do it veeery slowly."

Despite being uttered with toxic amounts of glee, the words contained no emotion, no drive and no intent. The child-like enthusiasm was almost like a prop, a superfluous background.

He (?)... could kill me... and wouldn't think twice about it! I-I can't do anything! No, no, no...

Fear gripped her, and thinnest illusions of comfort fell away, dissolving as fast as her cohesion. Images of wind and biting chill filling her mind, the thoughts of falling forever...

Then the blue light, which she didn't even realise was there faded, and she was once again on her bed, almost crying out from the hurt radiating from almost everywhere on her body.

Sophia... I can reach my phone and call...

She was helpless, but maybe...

"I wasted too much time fooling around with you and your family to wait for and play with your edgy friend, and I'm rather bored of you. So let's get to the point. You want to survive, don't you?"

Despite all the confusion, despair and fear she felt, the emphasized word kept her grounded, like some sort of beacon.

She nodded weakly.

"Good! Now, I only want you to do me two favours, both of those are things you have experience with, so don't worry, it shouldn't be hard!"

They hopped on to the bed and pulled her upright to a sitting position, then settled down in a similar manner right next to her, like friends on a sleepover, if you ignored the girl with bruises all over her shaking, sniffling and sobbing with panic.

"Now, I want you..." They held up something in front of her, then the press of a button revealed it to be Emma's phone, the backround of her smiling selfie feeling too out of place, and the sudden light too bright to look at, while also illuminating the home-invader.

"...to betray your best friend!"

Her examination halted, futilely hoping that the human shaped thing right next to her would be gone if she looked away.

"W-what?" She felt like choking, tiny claws squeezing her lungs from the inside.

"I want you, to send the PRT, every single damning piece of information you have on Sophia Hess, and Shadow Stalker too, wouldn't want to leave anything out."

"W-why are you doing this?"

She expected their falsely pleasant smile to turn cruel, but it didn't, and remained unnervingly static.

"To see if they are covering up or if just incompetent. Oh, you meant in general?" Their tone was casual, like the way they dressed, and just as dissonant. "Haven't I told you already? I'm here in the name of friendship! And you should be burning in hell in that department. Now get to it before I stop finding amusement in your squirming."

With thoughts spinning in turmoil and her insides twisting as if trying to devour themselves, Emma Barnes felt almost hollow as she dragged every text, every photo and every video accumilated in the past two years into the e-mail folder, even the conspiratory texts they exchanged before her hearing. Too aware of the spider-like fingers resting on her shoulder, their owner "encouraging" her every moment she even thought about hesitating.

"Aaand sent! See, it wasn't too hard, now we can move on to the other favour! So..."

They got up and took a few steps away, once again in the dark as they put her phone away.

Emma almost sighed in relief for breaking physical contact.

Then, the crimson glint of the stranger's eyes was joined with the one coming from their chest, seemingly bleeding into their hand, only for the still-flowing ichor to stop falling inside their grip, taking the shape of a maddeningly swirling knife, it's glow pulsing steadily like the mockery of a heart, and it's shifting sanguine hues casting moving shadows and giving it's wielder the appearance of having already bathed in her blood.

Good! Now, I only want you to do me two favours, both of those are things you have experience with, so don't worry, it shouldn't be hard!

What came next, felt even worse. If not for the sheer variety of parahumans, she would be convinced that an actual demon was sent to torment her.

"Nose," they murmured. The blade moved to her eye, and she couldn't move away. She could only shut it, feel it twitching mercilessly as they laid the flat of the blade against her eyelid, "Eye…"

The blade touched her lips, a re-enactment of the steel kiss she still remembered and even had nightmares about.

H-how...

"Mouth…"

They used the blade to brush the hair away from the side of her head, the unnatural thing painful even when softly touching.

Choose.

She heard the door being banged on, or maybe it was her heart hammering and the sobs shaking her to the core, maybe even both.

She finally screamed and cried for help, struggling, thrashing. Weakly as the crimson glow was too close and too bright to let her move.

There's no one lurking around to save you this time.

She searched her tormentor's eyes for any sign of hesitation, of mercy. Anything that would let her stall, to buy enough time for any sort of help to arrive...

But nobody came, and those eyes, now bleeding, lightless pits, contained nothing other than apathy and boredom.

After the surprisingly refreshing hang-out with the Wards, I was now at home... going through the stuff my partner has been hoarding in the basement, making me wonder if I should add kleptomania next to sociapathy and uncanny valley-ness to the list of their issues.

Apparently, they weren't just watching me sleep all night this whole time, which was both a relief, and a brand new department for worry. Instead, they spent the night getting money by cheating at everything, messing up my sleep schedule in the process -the mind and body sleeping differently could not be healthy- then using the said money to buy... well, some stuff that I could easily undestand, like history books and a laptop, then there were... let's see, for example;

Knives, peppers, sauce, pasta and such. I see a theme there, at least.

I was going to make spaghetti, neither of you can cook beyond the basics and it's getting really bland.

A ridiculous amount (for me) of make up, jewelry, dresses, shirts...

You will need all that! And I will make sure that you do. Dates are like an open buffet for emotions.

Is this what the large stack of horror movies is for too?

Not really. Those were one of the few stimulating things for me back when I was alive. Now, not quite as much on my own, but in the end it's even better since you can actually be afraid! And collecting decent flicks is a thing to do, a shame that your Japan is gone though, so much quality work lost.

Somehow, just from the few minutes of face to 'face' we had in a dimensionless abyss, I'm not surprised. Now, moving on...

Disposable phones, ropes, combat knives, hatchets, shovels, hooks, various tools, an armored vest, a gun!?

Most of them were on sale, and this is way more convenient than getting what we need at the last second. Heh, I'm basically your manager.

Okay, that makes sense. But do they even sell all those to minors? Or more importantly, ask for ID?

Obviously I paid off some random guy to do it for me.

...just how much money do you have to buy all that and more?

I didn't bother counting, just stashed the piles away and took from them when needed. Got them by using proxies too, for that matter.

Thinking about all the overnight millionares people became by being lucky... yeah, without needing luck I could see how easy it would be to do what my partner did. While still technically legal, or at least they promised it was, I could only hope this didn't attract some economy-policing thinker's attention, however slim that chance was.

I sighed and moved upstairs to get comfortable on the spacious and squeaky couch, snorting to myself as I imagined Dad secretly being a Hero and hiding his identity all this time simply by stuffing everything cape-related into the basement, maybe even using it as a makeshift holding cell and keeping Kaiser as a guest for a night. It would be really effective, judging from how I would still be clueless about my partner's 'hobbies' if Vista didn't decide to comment on the smell I spent too much time around to notice.

Back then, with the Wards, I sort of let it go to not drag out our chat on for too long and to not appear too loony as a result, since their response to "But why doest it smell like that, is it buttercups again?" -after basically telling me that they ran around the city while I slept soundly- was "That's right, my favourite scent! I must have gotten some sort of Stockholm Syndrome from gorging on the flowers.", just thinking about that answer almost made me sick on spot, and the other one could keep me stocked on paranoia fuel for months if I didn't learn what the whole ordeal was about. And even now I could only take their word on how they "didn't do anything too terrible which stuck.".

...which coming from someone who apparently couldn't have any sort of empathy on their own, made the mentioned fuel really high in quality.

Thump!

I almost had an heart attack.

"Just shrug it off, don't overthink every problem that comes your way and trust your partner who cares about your consience enough to not just rob banks."

They were now on the couch too, leaning on it sideways and resting their head against me, eating chocolate with a few more bars in reserve at hand.

And having the doll-like dust-person in promixity once more made everything in my brain's recognition section scream with terror, or at least that's how it felt like, and they probably enjoyed it.

"Certainly!"

Oh how dearly I now appreciated Vista's non-creepy brand of cuteness.

The flowery aroma, in the end, turned out to be "dust" my partner used as "something physical to get around with when bored" that they sort of left hanging around me since manifesting it from nothing over and over again was apparently too bothersome. It didn't really make much sense to me, but their "magic" operated on a completely different science so fuck asking any more questions.

Well, expect why you decided to go behind my back that is!

"Mostly, I wanted to see how far I could take it after your dad went down there and failed to notice anything. I was going to start collecting stray cats at this rate."

"Okay... and before that?" Actually speaking with them was... different. "You don't simply neglect to talk about what is another parahuman power on it's own."

"PFFT!!" T-they just blew a rasberry at me! "Compared to what else I can do, moving and creating magic dust isn't very noteworthy. Besides, getting some sort of interesting reaction out of you was more important. You almost started screaming in front of your new friends and it was delicious."

Huh... they weren't kidding about being impulsive... which I should have expected, considering how I, myself was beginning to ask less "why?" and more "why not?" for obvious reasons.

Granted, in my case, I only took it as far as trying whole restaurant menus in one sitting and maybe punching Emma more times than I should have the last time we met... still wasn't fully comfortable with that whole experience. She seemed more shaken than I thought she would be, but not enough to make me take it back.

UFF!! Everything got dumped on me too quickly with too many implications! Was this the punishment for how I handled things with dad? Is this how he felt when I went "Hey, I'm a cape, excuse me as I bust nazis and sign up with the Protectorate-for-minors!"

Because currently, I felt too confused and out of depth to actually do anything.

Trying to distract myself I took the earlier advice of shrugging off, and switched the TV on, flipping through the channels and only succeeded in feeling terrible at how I ignored the latest hot news about yet another crime, fight or accident instead.

"Again with that? Bleh! Fine! Currently, there are thousands of little orphan child-soldiers fighting tooth and nail for a cause they don't know about under hundreds of African warlords, probably ending up as one themselves, yet nobody is doing anything about it." They took another bite, as the one in their mouth got sufficently melted. Restoring the admittedly adorable slur as they continued.

"Not the PRT, not the Protecorate, not the Triumvirate. Still, they aren't losing sleep over it, struggling with whatever important-enough problems they encounter wherever they currently are instead. Compared to them, what you do seems enough. Now, turn on some comedy show or such so I can enjoy your joy."

"Thanks..." They had all my self-defeating thoughts figured out, it was sweet, I think.

But having someone, even if they looked so weirdly huggable so close to me in my personal space, left me uncomfortable, uncertain, and flustered. And they well damn knew it, their trademarked creepy smiley face whenever I made eye contact with those unblinking wide red orbs from this angle didn't help either.

"So... are you just going to stick around like that?"

"Not planning to." THANK GOD!!

"But this is fun, so I might just pop up whenever."

"You... literally feed on my suffering and a-are a child! ...and I don't mean that those two are related just that you're also very immatu-"

"Yep! Good girl, not letting any possible misunderstanding go unaddressed. Your mom must be very proud of you."

"D-don't pat me on the head! And what does my... right, english professor... at least it wasn't another pun."

"I wouldn't be so sure."

"...not there... no... can you repeat the thing?"

"Made you look~"

"UGHH!!"

Stangely, this reminded me of the times I used to have the pre-bitchening Emma over. There was something about being comfortable with having a friend in your own home, something special. It was a thing Emma took away when she turned on me, another face of life I forgot about. When even was the last time my mom got brought up in a conversation for a reason that was not "make Taylor feel shitty" or "be forlorn about how she is gone"?

I wonder if I would have a friendsip like this with any of the Wards? Maybe even with one of the ones I hadn't met yet. Gallant, Kid Win... Shadow Stalker... strange, they never brought her up the whole time we fooled around, now that I think of it.

After a while Chara -thinking their name outloud now that they were physically present instead of... a mental concept felt weird- got bored of what our TV had to offer and fetched one of their movies from the basement. Some Aleph-import about a haunted house featuring a lot of stringy dark hair.

Considering how I experienced death by a living blender first hand, the amount of times I jumped was surprising, and by that I mean;

"FUCK! End the tension alrea- EEEP!! WHY?"

It was horrible, and I couldn't help but watch, 'stimulating' turned out to be a good description, my heart was pounding like drums.

"People need to appreciate cinematograpy more, don't you think?"

I swear their smile was wider and more smug than usual.

Danny Hebert parked his truck in front of his house, but didn't get out, idly watching and listening the light rain as it fell onto the old vehicle instead.

He felt exhausted, even with the not-even-half day's worth of work. It felt like everything was out of his hands, and life was there to laugh at him.

Maybe that's how she felt at that hellhole, where was I then?

He failed, miserably. There was no question about it since he saw his daughter actually smiling and laughing after spending just half an hour with some friendly faces, a far cry from how she was during her time at that hellhole called "school", and he thought that it was just a normal teenager thing! Like the cheerful little owl she was even after Annette left would ever end up as the girl who seemed to prefer death over waking up!

And he still felt guilty for his collosal fuck-up, feeling that he could never make it up... damn it! He should have at least stayed with her instead of rushing off to work for some emergency again, even if she said it was okay!

He slowly released the death-grip he had on the wheel, crying about his mistakes yet again would not help her.

Then he grabbed the grocery bag containing a few bars of chocolate from the passenger seat, before opening the truck's heavy door with a creak and stepping outside into the rain.

It was becoming yet another routine neither of them acknowledged, his daughter would go through the sweets faster than he thought was healthy, and he would replace them without her asking. It was starting to get a bit heavy on his wallet, but having something like that felt nice.

Past the old steps desperately in need of repair, a mouth-watering smell greeted him as he closed the squeaky door, evoking a pang of nostalgia.

Taylor was in the kitchen, unsurely stirring something in the pot, with another smaller girl (?) -she was rather androgynous- observing her work by her side intently, nodding at her and motioning to add a thing from time to time.

Both of them paused, smiled and waved at him enthusiastically when he approached. Prompting him to smile back at the synchronised display.

"Oh, hi Dad! We... were making pasta."

...when was the last time she had a friend over?

Apparently long enough that having a new face in the house made the guest seem... off. Or maybe she had some sort of disorder she had to cover up with lots of make up? Rosy cheeks didn't usually look like that...

"I see... it smells delicious. And who is your friend here? She isn't from-"

"Winslow? No, she-" She glanced at the other girl, who just kept smiling and shrugged. "-just moved here, to the Bay... Uhh... let me introduce you?"

He couldn't help but chuckle, Taylor had always been fumbly like this in social situations.

"Chara, Dad... Dad, Chara... and... she is-"

-my soul-mate!

His daughter flinched and flushed as if having heard something embarrassing, then continued as he waited her to go on with a questioning expression.

"...a friend I met at the library!"

"Okay... Hello, nice to meet you." He extended his hand for a hand-shake, a bit unsure with Taylor's odd behavior. She usually wasn't that awkward. Even with how often she spaced out recently. Or at least he thought so.

It's not like I was there while she was making friends... He thought bitterly.

He was also unsure if he should mention that Chara looked like a cosplayer down to the seemingly constant smile.

"Nice to meet you too Mr. Hebert."

So cheery and polite, a good change from the usual... Heh, obviously not from around here.

Yet he couldn't help but scowl at the marble-like texture of her oddly proportioned hand.

"Prosthetics, had an accident when I was little, and a family friend was a tinker."

And now he felt like an inconsiderate old jerk.

Poor girl... And she seems to be so up-beat despite all that...What kind of accident was it that she had her face and eyes replaced too... unless red is her natural colour?

"It's okay! Oh, the thing should be done by the way Taylor. Let's let it cool off a bit before serving, hmm?"

The dinner was over now, and it was delicious. He couldn't even remember the last time he had pasta with proper sauce and all, let alone at home.

"Well, I suppose it's time for me to go. It was fun to spend time with both of you. Bye, Taylor, bye Mr. Hebert."

She got off her seat after wiping her mouth with a napkin.

"Oh... uhh... goodbye... Chara..."

"Aww, don't act so lost, I'll always be around!" With a wink, she proceeded to walk towards the door. He got off his seat too and followed after her.

"Hey, uhh, I can drop you off if you need to, the streets here aren't safe at this hour."

The girl -he still wasn't quite sure on that, but asking now would be rude- just stared blankly up at him for a moment, before smiling again and shaking her head.

"Thank you, but I have a friend to pick me up anyway. And I'm sure Taylor would love to spend more time with you."

It was now his turn to stare blankly.

"Huh... really?" He asked softly, mostly to himself.

"Hmm..." She leaned to look towards the kitchen, where Taylor was busy with the dishes and leftovers, then nodded encouragingly.

"Of course! She can't stop talking about how great you are! Working hard, keeping people's hopes up despite everything... Pretty sure that she and many others would fall apart without you... heh, just like some other dad that I once knew... Bye!"

Danny Hebert smiled.

"Weird kid, but nice too."

Last edited: Aug 24, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

Jul 23, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Aug 8, 2016

#314

Edit AN: Please try ignoring the weirdness in the font. Terribly sorry.

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Topic: A New Thread

In: Boards Empire takes a huge hit as the mysterious *Phone Cape* finally appears in person

Reave (Original Poster) (Verified PRT Agent)

Posted On Jan 11th 2011:

Might as well make a somewhat offical statement seeing the amount of threads and speculations going around.

First off, yes I was there, and yes, Hookwolf, Stormtiger and Cricket all got arrested. Especially Hookwolf, Armsmaster himself made sure that he was on his way to the Birdcage after the amount of times he has broken out.

And it was glorious, the spiky bastard got sent away, pumped full of sedatives, in a damn cage after getting buried in foam. Not sure how the Big Blue managed to get around the last one, but he probably had something just for that lying around or already cramped into his halberd. Sure made things easier.

Now, on the new cape, Dreamer as he (or she, it wasn't obvious, and we all now how often that happens, so sorry in advance) calls himself, appears to be some sort of precog, just as many of you already suspected. And drop those conspiracy theories about how he was behind all the crimes he reported as a part of an inter-gang plot, it's getting ridiculous.

They knew exactly where everyone should be to win, and had that weird confidence while strolling around in the middle of a battlefield. Especially obvious in that footage where he tricked Hookwolf into jumping on top of a foam grenade.

And let me tell you, that nazi fucker is FAST, no regular person dodged him like that twice in a row without losing at least a limb before, and the smiley guy didn't even hesitate before pulling that off.

As you can see, some sort of thinker for sure.

Unfortunately, I don't have much to add beyond that. Except that he should really take a trip to the PR department. Sorry, but that mask is just unsettling.

UPDATE: Turns out that Dreamer was a girl, and you can expect to see her in the Wards soon. A co-worker of mine saw her at the base walking alongside Triumph.

(Showing page 1 of 1)

Thatdude

Replied On Jan 11th 2011:

Hell yeah!! Those racist thugs are finally getting what they deserve!

Now with that little bit of optimism out of the way, let's go back to thinking about how things can go wrong.

The other capes getting broken out in transit, Kaiser launching a crusade against the new guy, or maybe even all of the gangs doing so... You know, the usual.

Edit: Yep, they already brought in reinforcements from out of town. Even some old time 'favourites'. Fuck that trigger happy gun nut for coming back from Vegas and fuck me for still living here.

Divide

Replied On Jan 11th 2011:

Damn, I wonder if they can keep that success rate going. I mean, Hookwolf and Stormtiger both fought in the middle of a street and no one got turned into paste. Sure, there were four other heroes present, but still...

PureBlood

Replied On Jan 11th 2011:

[This post was deleted and the user was banned, death threats are not allowed.]

Aloha (Moderator)

Replied On Jan 11th 2011:

Get your supremacist ass out of here!

With that done, did anyone notice how Assault dropped down from a building then proceeded to completely shut down Cricket after somehow absorbing Strormtiger's attack on the videos floating around? How did he even see that coming while in the middle of a fight anyway, Battery couldn't have warned him fast enough.

Oh, and don't forget to thank Aegis for tanking bullets all over the field.

What I want to say is; the new cape was cool and shiny, but let's appreciate the others too.

Clockblocker (Verified Cape)

Replied On Jan 11th 2011:

Yep, ignoring conventional physics against someone whose primary source of attack is sickles or anything somewhat physical makes doing things like that real easy, speaking from personal experience here.

And I'm pretty sure that Dreamer told Assault to watch his back, which is kinda terrifying when you think about the extent of precognition she can pull off.

Also, why no love for me? I stuck my hand in a blender! A living blender made from a blacksmith's nigtmares I might add!

Edit: Nevermind, just figured out that she also made sure I came out untouched, damn thinkers. Hope she keeps being badass like that

I sighed, closed the tab, and put the phone given to me by the PRT back on the kitchen table, right next to the tragically empty last plate of leftover spaghetti once again for the umpteenth time, I then proceeded to lay on the cool surface too, sighing yet again, already knowing that the rest of the PHO thread was mostly about how the gangs, especially the Empire with their out of town replacements, stepped up their activities, and how joining the Wards would end up making me ineffective. Or people over-analysing what my power could be and arguing in circles, which was amusing, at least.

The former, especially, made me think in loops hard enough to leave me nauseous with exhaustion. What was I thinking? That putting away some glorified thugs would hinder the oldest, the most rooted organisation in the city?

Instead, the Empire stepped up their posturing, as the Merchants, the ABB and other groups got braver in the absence of the capes I helped capture, and there was always more I could do to help... which was always the case... I really need to ask a more experienced hero about how they dealt with that burden of responsibility. Maybe Armsmaster, as he was the local Protectorate leader, or Dauntless, since people expected him to kill Endbringers at some point, or Panacea, maybe? She was only a little older than me and seemed to be holding together pretty well from whenever I saw her on TV despite being known as perhaps the best healer world-wide, it would also help with meeting Victoria again, which I kept putting off.

Damn it, I felt lost and directionless again, and too tired. Not having things to deal with and distract me daily like school sucked.

Not Winslow, of course, but I was way more enthusiastic about Arcadia than I thought I would be.

That's enough! This is too boring and I'm all out of chocolate again. You're going out in costume and crashing the juniors' stroll, like they obviously invited you to.

I scowled, sure the phone contained the Wards' patrol schedules, but I wasn't sure about just showing up, and I-

You were going to go to their base for the power-testing and PR stuff today anyway, might as well go with company. Now, stop making excuses before I get too bored, it never ends well~ pretty sure our little furry friend is still around.

The way they said it sent a shiver up my spine, I hated it when they did that. And I had enough of the annoying cat they kept bringing inside to get a kick out of my suffering.

Then go and fool around with the Wards by yourself, I'm content sitting here and contemplating what to do with my life while trying to figure out how the hell to make halfway decent pasta without your help. And how do you even keep running out of chocolate when you could just eat it infinitely?

'kay, I will do just that. Won't be much meaningful by myself, just like uneating the purest thing in the world is, but it shouldn't be hard to make a decent impression of Dreamer, since you are basically copying me. Don't burn down the kitchen again, no re-dos without me, bye!

Finally silence... and now a vague feeling of regret both from finding myself alone and the fact that I might have just sent a self-admitted sociopath to patrol with the Wards... yeah, making a time table on when to call in crimes and which ones I should consider to be worthy of supervising didn't seem like a priority anymore, felt too much like homework or a soul-sucking desk job anyway.

"Meow."

And I'm definetly not dealing with that thing again! That little ball of fur was deceptively adorable, but a total asshole underneath all the fluff.

...what happened to my life to make it so ridiculous again?

"FINE! Just let me leave dad a note and get my costume... and put out some food so the feline doesn't tear the place apart." I added dryly and begrudgingly.

See? You're already much more lively, really missing that thrill, aren't you.

I grunted affirmatively as I ran down the basement stairs to fetch my stuff, thinking about the satisfaction I got as as everything fell into place right in front of me, every step to success neatly checked, as the turbulent air-blades failed to hit anyone by inches before getting stopped and absorbed by a certain kinetic manipulator, having been warned in advance then turned the attack's energy against his own opponent, who simly couldn't keep up with the now renewed and enhanced assault (heh, that was a pun) even with her bullet-sharp reflexes, surprising the original sender just long enough for him to get taken out as well. Or the moment when the screeching mess of hooks and blades flew just past by me... instead of gouging my face out.

'A thrill' was one way to put it. Getting a perfect result after so much pain...

But I doubted that the routine patrols get as hectic. Still, I looked forward to meet both Gallant and Kid Win. Maybe I could even ask what was up with Shadow Stalker's recent absence and their teammates never mentioning her, the PHO was having a theory/conspiracy war over that too. Which was rather spicy with her record as a violent vigilante.

Proves that the PRT grabbing every 'Hero' they could off the streets was not a perfect method, since some would eventually run off, I guess.

Dean chuckled dryly, shaking his head to himself as he put his phone away. His girlfriend didn't seem to have much respect for his patrol times, and was demanding his attention to invite him for yet another outing... which was fine, understandable even, but-

"So, are you done yet?" Chris asked, looking over and modifying

his designs on a tablet at a corner of the roof. "We are kind of behind the schedule, and with how tense things are these days I'm afraid that the Director will start putting tracking devices on us if we turn up too late, even if nothing ever happens when we are out here... well, they can techically already track us... and actually if I could..."

The tinker trailed off, already distracted by an inspiration about tracking and surveilance tech, and was back at his fiddling shortly after.

Both of them were used to each other's quirks, a girlfriend and scatter-mindedness, and had already wordlessly agreed to cut off a few usually vacant streets from their route, as the Director's strictness, especially recently, was very real.

Sure, there wasn't a raging gang-war going on out here quite yet... but it was getting close, with the stylised swastikas, dragons and such getting paraded around.

"Yeah, I'm done. Vicky just wanted me to be around for a new friend of hers at the mall."

"You mean she wants you and your wallet around, right?"

He sighed. "Let's just get down from here and... Wait." Gallant turned towards the metal stairs leading up to the roof, sensing someone with an aura of nerveousness and frustration with a hint of timid excitement coming up, now paired with the hollow clanking sounds their steps produced.

"Greetings! Now, do you have any idea how long it took me to find you? I had to trace half your route backwards, awkwardly ask strangers if they saw you, then climb random rooftops! I-I mean... I can't even buy groceries without having a minor breakdown sometimes, just imagine how difficult for me to ask for directions from strangers was! Umm... just... nevermind... literally... please?"

The knight-like Ward blinked in surprise as the most of the frustration instantly vanished, giving way to more bashfulness.

Emotions... didn't usually do that, not without some gradual process, even when suddenly startled. So the sight put him off, somewhat, and made him wonder if he was just seeing things or had a 'blink and miss' moment.

Which was doubtful, as he could still use his powered sense with eyes closed.

"Greetings!" The newcomer exclaimed and waved at them as she stepped off the stairs and onto the roof. Then he had to do a double take again, as her aura seemed extend further out in a weirder way than usual, with odd hues on the outer parts, looking almost like dust. "I thought it would be convenient to finally meet you two seeing that you were patrolling close by. If it's not a problem, of course."

Gallant relaxed, noting that his partner too seemed to tense until then, even when so far away from any gang territory.

"Not a problem at all. I was actually hoping to meet you sooner rather than later. Dreamer, right? How did you find us anyway? I know that they probably had our patrol schedule on the phone they gave to you but... uhh..."

"He had to answer a veeery long call from his girlfriend so we are way off from schedule." The red and gold hero chimed in, smirking.

"Don't I know it." She muttered audibly to herself, obviously grumpy despite the cartoonish smile. Then continued in her usual, slightly louder and more chipper than necessary way of speaking. "I just abused my power a bit until I finally got here. It was a bit tedious, really."

The empath gulped, he had a lot of experience concerning moods like this from Victoria, and that experience had yet to provide any other advice than 'hope for the best'.

"Then... let's try and catch up, right? Show you how patrols work, you're practically already on the team so it's our responsibility, really. Which is why you're here in the first place, right?"

Being responsible isn't what I'm good at today, but okay. He mentally scolded himself.

"Oh?" She tilted her head, overdoing the gesture like most full-masked capes did. "That's a wonderful idea, good thinking!"

She... just came here completely on a whim, didn't she? Really just wanted to just say hi... Better than most things, at least.

Walking through the street in costume while curious people or tourists kept taking photos was very different from this side. At least they weren't asking us to pose or something.

"So... all of this... is just posturing? I mean... I knew that your patrols didn't get much action, but you seriously walk..." I looked up to Kid Win on his board. "...or fly around without doing anything for hours? Sounds boring."

Gallant sighed, he had probably heard, or even shared that sentiment at some point before.

"Heroes being seen around is also a detriment for someone to commit a crime to begin with, so it's more fruitful than it first seems. And it also shows people that we are here to help, and that we are present despite how bad things currently are." He then looked directly at me. "And you really shouldn't blame yourself, the gangs would eventually get provoked even without you. It could even be a good thing, with Armsmaster working the whole team non-stop." The empath added assuringly.

Isn't he sweet? Can't help but care when sensing even the slightest distress, wonder if he gets angsty like you do when seeing chunks of the city light up in fear? Or maybe he is lucky and doesn't even have such range. Either way, he isn't already sick of helping, and isn't that impressive?

It is.

I replied absently, a bit uncomfortable from the loose parallel my partner was drawing, mostly thinking about the 'heroes being present' thing. Feeling a bit resentful without understanding why.

Hope.

Hmm?

People need hope to function, even the slightest bit of it is enough, the thought that you could leave that school behind, or maybe, just maybe getting powers to become a hero kept you going for years before it shattered, and after that you were basically a zombie. You are resentful because none of the 'Heroes' were there to fulfill the hope they promised for you too and letting all that 'bullying' happen. A bit illogical, but who else could you blame for your suffering being ignored?

You... just love psycho-analysing and philosophizing, don't you?

Yep, but don't deny that Hope is what keeps the humanity going.

Hope... huh, never really thought of it like that. I guess we need it desperately with global routine unnatural disasters... damn.

How would things be if no one showed up to fight the Endbringers, if the Protectorate or the PRT didn't get estabilished since villains never seemed to end... a world like that was terrifying.

See, hope is ridiculously powerful. And amusing, imagine if everyone but idiots gave up the moment they learned about what we can do.

...for a moment there, I thought that they were going for something heartwarming. But no, it had to be something vaguely villanous.

I have been told before that I'm not the nicest person.

Again, not surprised.

"So what is it exactly you do?" Kid Win descended to our high, looping around a bit before stabilising as he asked, sounding curious, bringing me out of my pondering. "I... haven't been exactly caught up lately, and the PHO isn't exactly reliable. Been kinda busy with a new project about- uhh, I better not even start, I usually end up forgetting what I was talking about to begin with... Wait. Did Clock already tell you about the tinker-crash thing?" I nodded rapidly after recalling, unable to stop myseld from snorting. "...damn it. For the record, it wasn't regular coffee, I was trying to copy Armsmaster's work and... overdid it." He seemed to be still embarrassed about that, the visible part of his face looking as if having just bitten on a lemon.

"Don't they have you test the stuff you make first?" I asked, perhaps coming off more mocking than intended with the static facial expression. At least my partner helped me at being conscious about things like that, sure saved me from some awkward moments and misunderstandings and some grief from the PR department.

...wait, that means unlike me, you know exactly how creepy you are!

I'm not confirming nor denying anything.

"Well... the higher ups don't necessarily know about what I just told you." The tinker chuckled nerveously. "Probably wouldn't let me bring anything remotely edible into the workshop if they did... B-but enough about me being a careless idiot!"

Such a hero. How would you ever live up to those standarts~

He is... not what I expected.

Then again, my expectations were mostly based on Armsmaster, who seemed to be an actual robot.

But knowing for sure, for better or for worse, that the PRT's Heroes I looked up to and read about for so long were just people... it was a relief. I felt more fitting to be in a team with them, to call myself a Hero too.

"Save-scumming." I replied to Kid Win after a while of silence. I think the other Wards told them about the 'random spacing out' bit, which was convenient.

"Huh?"

"You asked what was the thing I do, and uhh... I can rewind back to a specific moment as much as I want."

Okay, I might be feeling a bit proud of having the ability of holding the world's progress hostage until things go my way.

"As much as you want?" He seemed impressed, and a little skeptical.

"Yep!"

I don't sound like I am bragging, am I?

You sound like a child excited to share their expensive toys, so not exactly.

"Oh... wow... So they were serious about that? It's... really up there, is it even a thinker power?"

"Is this why your emotions suddenly changed back up there? Sorry, it has been bugging me." Gallant joined.

"Uhh... yes." And now my head hurt from thinking about what happens to my brain when Loading.

"Damn, that sounds awesome. No wonder Clockblocker couldn't stop talking about it. So does that mean- oh, wait, this could be important." He pressed a button on his forearm.

"-I repeat, confirmed parahuman presence and firefight at the parking lot on the Third Street, contact the PRT and barricade the surroundings."

"Uhh, I have a program to notify me of nearby things like that on the police radio. Not that they would let us do anything without back-up. But should we check it out?"

Hah, you actually jinxed yourself!

Well, might as well see what's going on before trying again with a headstart.

Last edited: Dec 3, 2016

412

KindaApatheticButNice

Aug 8, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Aug 15, 2016

#331

2.5

"Why don't you go and fly ahead and see if you can glean anything important while we catch up?" I shouted up to Kid Win, after seeing that he was way slower than he should have been on his hoverboard.

Resource management was important if I didn't want to get stuck here for far too long, after all.

Resource management? Sure, let's call it that.

That was just the first word that came to mind for what I'll be doing here... and okay, it does sound a little wrong.

"Uhh... I would love to but we aren't allowed to split up on patrols currently. Director's orders. We are almost there anyway."

That was inconvenient. But I could see why they would act cautious in case some villain decided that they didn't want the Wards running around and ruining their villain things.

...there were probably other reasons too, and they were probably not as morbid. Yay, optimism.

"Something bothering you?" Gallant said over his shoulder, he too was slower than he could have been as I couldn't keep up with his power-armor enhanced jog.

So really I was the one slowing them down, and it was frustrating. I knew I should have kept my morning runs longer.

"Not really, just remembering the fighting rig bust, and the first half of figuring out the right approach was more of a chore. So not super enthusiastic about going through all that again."

And that experience was also filled with dead people I eventually started getting mad at for making my job harder, but he didn't need to know that. He wouldn't end up remembering anyway.

"And the second part?"

I smiled behind the crayon smile. "That's where I figure out which way I should choose to win. Oh, and don't hold your expectations of me too high, this is only the first try."

Things got a bit awkward when I mostly sat around doing nothing after claiming to see what was coming as the nazi capes fought their bloody way out of the ambush, might as well inform them about what they should expect from me.

"Wait, what?"

"Well, the thing is... you know what? It's pointless to talk about and will probably end up as confusing, so don't worry about it. In fact, you don't really have to worry about anything at all!"

Even I sometimes got caught up overthinking the Schrödinger-like implications of our power. There was no need to make the guy contemplate his soon to be undone reality by explaining what I was doing.

Maybe you should, that's how the funniest comedians are made! =)

...

When we arrived, it was already over, and the whole parking lot looked like a warzone, complete with bulletholes, torched cars, and scorch marks from what I was pretty sure to be a grenade.

I could get something useful from all this. For example, the mentioned bulletholes looked weird, with varying sizes going up to baseball-levels and with some appearing to be melted. Very interesting.

"Huh, we were late anyway. No paperwork for us I guess." The tinker said as he descended next to us, the lights from the nearby police cars and ambulances reflecting off his armor.

"Won't stay that way unless I find the current situation acceptable. Sorry."

"What?"

"Don't worry about it." With that helpful tip said, I made way into the cordoned off area where the police and some medical workers were still running around.

"Huh, what are you-"

"Don't worry about it!" Let's get this over with.

As I searched for someone I could get useful information from amidst the busy officers and injured or dead, mostly asian gang members, I took a moment to appreciate the feeling of... control I had, in this soon to be disposed timeline.

I didn't have to worry about impressions, about being exposed, about my and the others' actions and their consequences... it was a stark difference from the overly self-conscious wreck I tended to be.

Which also, incidentally, made getting 'in character' for the type of hero I wanted to be seen as easier.

That was a pun.

No, I wasn't trying to be seen as a dangerous, creepy and eerily gleeful weirdo, except for when that would be useful, but rather as someone confident, someone who people would see, and just know that was untouchable, I at least had to try, even if it was an act, it felt like a responsibility. A hero who would not lose, like the Triumvirate used to be, a hope, and my friend's overall attitude felt just right for that.

Bored and prepertually mocking?

At least those were the impressions I got from my partner in that dimensionless void, they got a lot less intense afterwards, or maybe I just got used to them.

You are barely reacting to the voice in your head, so that might be the case.

"Excuse me, sir! Would you be able to answer if I asked what happened here?"

He was an older officer, with slightly dark skin, a rough, angular face, and graying, curly black hair which the stress of his job probably didn't help with, yet still in shape and with a keen gaze, notably calm in the shifting crowd, giving orders and taking notes with some tired resignation as he watched some skinheads getting loaded into ambulances. Must have been a frustrating sight.

Basically, he seemed like he knew what he was doing, and didn't seem to be taken aback by much by the sudden question asked by the colorfully dressed, masked person, likely having seen weirder things during his career.

"And who are you supposed to be for me to divulge potentionally classified information?" He asked back, with a brow raised. At least he didn't sound completely unamused.

"An outstanding Hero who can reverse time again and again until everyone but the bad guys are happy with the situation and would rather do it quickly instead of by trial and error, so help me please?"

A bit simplified, since no one is ever happy with the situation, yet he seemed skeptical.

"Ah, Captain Rivas, sorry for the trouble, she is with me."

Thankfully, Gallant arrived before I could put myself into a spot more awkward than I could handle, and Captain Rivas smiled tiredly.

"So she is the new teammate that I've been hearing about? She uh... isn't like the last one, is she?"

"Ah, no, she is... way more pleasant."

"Where is Shadow Stalker anyway? I haven't seen her back at base and nobody even mentioned her." I asked as the topic of the former vigilante got brought up.

"Figured that you would be asking that." The Ward sounded uncertain, and shameful. "From what I could gather, Shadow Stalker... has been violating her probabition in her civillian identity for a pretty long time, almost from the start, in a pretty messed up way, and her caseworker either neglected to do her job or covered it up, then Stalker ran away when the Director finally learned, she has been laying low ever since. I... am not sure if I should be telling you that, since the higher ups don't want the public to know just yet to not make the PRT look incompetent, but you are a fellow Ward and I'm not a fan of hiding things like that so..."

Oh... that was... a completely different issue to deal with for another day. But seriously, they got a violent psycho from the street who impaled people with bolts and then just... barely checked up on her and basically left her do whatever she wanted while unmasked? That did not sound good.

Why are you laughing, was it another accidental pun?

"So... Triumph is graduating. And... Aegis is gonna be the leader for a while, huh?"

That was a weird topic for a police officer to be asking about.

Maybe he is a relative?

"I'm sure he will do great, he has always been the most mature and responsible of us." Gallant replied encouragingly.

"Just... make sure that he tones down the meat-shield thing." He sounded proud, yet pained.

"I'll tell him that since none of you will remember! Now, can you walk me through what happened here?"

"Why wouldn't we remem... let me guess, 'don't worry about it', right?"

"Exactly! So will you help me? I am in no hurry, but I would rather get done with all this sooner rather than later and get to the part where I... you know, win and feel good about life." Also I felt a little bit like a creep for listening to a somewhat personal conversation which the conversators would not remember.

"Well, I don't actually follow half the stuff you kids were saying, but I suppose talking about yet another gang fight can't hurt." Good enough.

"You see, this place..." He gestured at the parking lot, it was medium sized and half empty, with maybe one and a half dozen parked cars, most of them now wrecked beyond repair."...was used by the ABB as a hub to stash and distribute their drugs and such, and they were pretty sneaky about it, since no one looks twice at places like these, who knows how long have they been here so far away from their usual territory. So the Empire took offense to that, and decided to... make a scene."

"And the parahuman presence?" Gallant asked, a bit disturbed, probably from imagining what other seemingly neutral places were a front for criminal activity. At least I was thinking about that.

"That's the important part, drugs, and the money from them come and go, but the capes? Those are usually hard to replace, and the nazis wanted to hit where it hurts."

"It was a trap. Oni Lee? He tends to appear for attacks like these."

"We found him on the roof, with his whole head and some of his torso blown clear off, probably got shot as soon as he stopped to see what to do."

Another more destructive than usual bullet, that had implications.

The Empire Eighty Eight was an organisation that had deep roots and a deeper past, and as a result, didn't necessarily limit themselves to Brockton Bay, sometimes sending their members away to spread their supremacist ideology and earn new assets, distance themselves from particularly troublesome names, or even loan them to other large and ruthless organisations. So it wasn't unusual for some capes to make returns when their Emperor called.

And Skulk, a tinker whose specialisation had something to do with bullets, lovingly described by the PHO as 'a trigger happy gun nut' for his known tendency to use the promise of escalating colleteral damage to avoid capture, was one such individual, having been active in Brockton Bay over a decade ago, during it's most chaotic times, and was likely responsible for the upgraded arsenal that was used here.

I wasn't sure what to do about Oni Lee, since letting him simply walk away would surely be a thing to regret, but I was sure at least one cape from the Empire's side was involved too, and I wouldn't be walking away empty handed.

Walking through the street in costume while curious people or tourists kept taking photos was still a bit weird, even on repeat.

"So... can either of you knock out Oni Lee before he gets the chance to do... well, anything?"

Tranqualisers would be useful for this, such a shame that the only Ward with those was no longer one.

And by the looks they were giving me, my companions didn't seem to be thrilled at the idea of facing an armed to the teeth murderer capable of teleporting at the speed of thought.

You can just let him get shot and let them deal with the regular goons.

...

Well, his PHO page consisted of a possibly three digit murder count, warnings about never approaching him, and discussions about issuing a kill order, so I wasn't too keen on saving someone with not even one known redeeming quality.

Not that I would actually kill him given the chance but...

Let's just deal with what's in front of us first.

"Ah, sorry, I have to go, I... have an appointment, and I might already be late!"

"Fight Oni Lee? Maybe, but he could already dead by the time I... d-don't worry about it!"

Gun shots, I thought as I stood where a certain villain would be gettin assasinated, were still far too loud for my liking, and some of the tinker tech ones were not the futuristic blaster sounds I expected them to be. Not to mention the amount of racist slurs being shouted down there, it put some of the dockworkers I knew to shame.

...my overall reactions to violence and murder nowadays could not be healthy.

I warned you, that's what happens when you watch the same crowd of people die like ten times. The concept of being horrified about death becomes kinda meaningless afterwards. But don't worry, that's why we asked for a therapist.

And it happened so quickly, I wonder if other parahumans... start seeing things from a different perspective too.

Then I heard a boom, and found myself walking with the Wards once again.

Was that a sniper? That thing sounded too distant to be Oni Lee.

And more importantly, did the Empire seriously hate me enough to get their man to shoot me? Such jerks.

On the same roof, this time looking for where the shot came from, still annoyed by the noise and profanity.

The building I was on had only three or four floors, and was flanked by two much taller ones, so finding my newest killer was easier than it could have been.

...

No, didn't see anything, have to walk all that way all over again.

...

This is harder than I thought, but I can't think of a better way.

...

Maybe I could...

...

No, Lee exploded rather indiscriminantly, doesn't help me much.

...

"So does that helmet of yours have fancy sensory stuff?"

...

"Damn it, point faster this time!"

"W-what?"

"Nevermind, just... follow me."

...

Wow, that's actually pretty far away, the range was kinda terrifying, but I don't know if I can make it in time. Now, let's make sure things go smoothly while my teammates fight nameless mooks.

...

Huh, they actually handled it pretty well, I guess my last outing should not be my standart. Still, it can be better.

"You armors are basically useless, do keep that in mind." Kid Win looked a bit taken aback, but I'm sure he would appreciate not having his arm blown off by an unusually destructive bullet.

"And the fat one tried taking everyone with him when depressed, so maybe try something else."

...

Maybe a bit more tweaks. They got too skittish, I could be more encouraging.

...

And... perfect!

The Wards are in one piece and no stray shots causing injuries or fatalities. Some of the gang members could be in better shape, but screw them!

Now, on the subject on someone getting screwed...

"Greetings! You are way shorter than I expected."

The ninja-like cape paused, probably intrigued by someone showing up on his way to getting killed, not that he knew the last bit.

"You will die, in a very anticlimactic way." And now he knew.

"But you are lucky, and you won't be getting screwed over by an Empire sniper today if you manage to convince me on saving you!"

He didn't move, just stared at me silently.

"Don't be rude, you're kinda at my mercy here!"

That guy really needs to work on his social skills, knives were not a good way to convince someone.

Yes they are.

Knives were not a good way to convince someone who wouldn't really get hurt in any meaningful way by them.

And sure, maybe I could have tried a bit more, and have chosen better words, but he really botched the second chance I gave him.

Don't worry, he was dead inside anyway.

Oh... wait, what the hell did you do and undo while I slept to know that?

Nothing good, why?

I just don't like surprises...

Well, I'm full of them. But trust me, some are hillarious.

With your sense of humor, that's not a reassurance.

The bus was convenient, and as usual with almost everything I did, awkward as hell.

Still, I wouldn't let that bring my mood down, all was going so smoothly, and even the times I died were not very painful.

But that didn't mean I appreciated being in a stinky alleyway waiting for my last objective to come down, seriously what was taking them so long? The exit that made the most sense was through here, and unless...

Clank Clank Clank

Nevermind, there he was, coming down the metal stairway, with the signature blood-red shirt and a large suitcase probably containing the weapon he used, Victor.

A bit disappointing, since I was hoping for the way more precious tinker, but getting the 'master of all trades at once' out of the way was good too.

Save please, the checklist was getting too bothersome and repetitive.

You just don't want to take the bus again~

Shortly after completing his descend, the villain noticed me waiting for him, and responded by quickly talking into the earpiece he had on.

My suspicions of this being how he got the idea of shooting me was confirmed by him shooting me. And he didn't even send me off with a one liner...

I didn't know how to feel about me being disappointed by that, but I was glad I saved so recently.

"Really, you are going to just shoot me? And here I hoped to see at least some kung-fu."

He wasn't eager to grant that request, neither did he reply verbally.

...only if I could dodge aimed bullets.

Missed.

It was I who missed, by the way.

He dodges projectiles aimed at his head way too well, I should change what I'm aiming at.

Better...

That was ineffective.

Hmm, maybe if I used something heavier than my baton, like that brick.

A couple more tries, and I finally managed to knock the pistol away. FINALLY!

Now Save!

"You should give up-" He was obviously displeased about almost having his hand crushed, while also sounding smug and sophisticated.

Ironic of him to say that.

"-the Empire has seen stronger foes, and you won't be making a difference."

Did he think I was going after his gang or something? I guess it might seem like it.

Whatever. It didn't matter what he thought. And I was more interested in pıuting him in a cell after beating and tasing him into submission.

...

Bad idea, turns out he really did know kung-fu, or something similar.

...a knife again?

Fifteenth time is the charm?

...

Okay, this isn't working, he reacts too quickly. Which is way harder to deal with than Hookwolf's wild charges. Any ideas?

Some.

"You should give up, the Empire has seen stronger foes, and you won't be making a difference." He was subtly checking his surroundings as he said it, in case this was a more competent ambush than he thought it would be.

Smart, seeing that I had four other heroes and PRT squads helping me when I last showed up.

But enough villain appreciation.

"No, they really haven't." The fact that what I said could be an actual fact, alongside what I was trying to do, made me giggle. Which succesfully got on his nerves.

"Do you really think that-" I motioned at him with the flat of my palm, and surprisingly, he did shut up.

"Oh, don't even start. I put this mask on simply because I want to have friends and feel good, not because I was planning to systematically root out this city's corruption. I have, heh, no such dreams."

I laughed, both at his weirded out expression, and from the cue of my partner.

"But don't get me wrong! You scum still disgust me, and by the time I'm done-" I jumped off from the dumpster I strategically moved to block off the way out, placing my hands on the taser and baton on my back beneath the cloak.

"-your precious Empire, all you friends and family along everything you ever knew for perhaps your whole life..." I paused for effect, shrugging.

"...will be dust in the wind." I finished, in a much more serious and much less playful tone.

Thanks for helping me with speeches, but are you sure this will be helpful?

Trust me, he will be giving you many more openings when not calm and collected. So keep at it.

"I see that you are one of the capes who get arrogant and think they can take on the world after a few flukes." He took out his knife and entered a stance, I mirrored him. "And you will be a part of the statistics for it."

"Flukes? Arrogant? Statistics? You must have misunderstood-" He lunged at me, with a perfect form, but with my 'experience' on him, I could see how he was more agressive this time, and leaned away from the strike just in time. "-because as you can see-" An attempted grab, missed, followed by a stab, saw those moves before. "-you can't touch me, nobody can..." A kick, that was new, but a bit sloppy, and I took the chance to open the gap between us by skipping away.

This feels like a villanous monologue, where are you getting all this from?

Experience.

"...but you and everyone else in my way on the other hand-" He snarled, warning me of his next attack and allowing me to easily slip away. "-had no chance the moment you were in my power's reach."

Okay, have to admit, boasting is pretty fun, I can see why it's so popular.

"SHUT IT!" I recognised his attempt at getting to his dropped gun, and simply kicked it under the dumpster before dodging his swipe as well.

That one got a reaction out of him.

Can't deny that his power is pretty lame, we could work on that.

"But enough about me, let's talk about you!" This got him to pause and narrow his eyes at me.

"I mean, having to rely on other people being an expert on something... to just be a more needy Über, and a barely D-tier parahuman, or even barely a parahuman, must suck pretty bad."

He then took a few deep breaths, and smiled spitefully at me, and I interrupted before he could open his mouth to say anything.

"Now maybe you are thinking that you got me figured out, that I have to get you off-foot to win, or maybe even to get my power working, as I did something similar with that glorified attack dog of yours." I sighed, chuckled nerveously, and continued meekly." I hate it when people are as smart as you are right now. Maybe we can both walk away to fight another day?"

I also had my progress Saved, having gotten exceptionally lucky so far.

Then with a few more tries, I managed to take advantage of 'Victor's' easily baited eagerness on taking me out by painfully slamming my baton into his sides. "Just kidding." I added as he recoiled, before administering my taser on his bare skin.

This went well, I should go out more often.

Last edited: Aug 15, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

Aug 15, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Aug 21, 2016

#348

AN: Not confident with this one, but I rarely am.

2.6

"...and lastly, you got Victor of the Empire Eighty Eight in custody... today."

I also made sure that Gallant and Kid Win's fight went smoothly, while also letting Oni Lee die, not that I was proud of the latter... actually, how little I felt about the event was a little frightening.

Of course you don't feel much, you watched it happen several times over, he would have gotten shot even without you there, he was an emotionally vacant murderer as hypocritical of me to say that is, and was blocks away from you when it happened. Pretending that it meant much would be dishonest, don't you think?

...can't say I'm okay with shrugging it off completely.

Neither should you, just making sure that you don't dwell on that ninja-fan more than he deserved.

They weren't being completely sincere, maybe not at all, and I doubted that they were even capable of that, but coming from Chara, being mindful of my conscience was a sweet gesture nontheless... once again. I actually felt bad for not being able to give much in return.

...why was a morally lacking, ambigiously-human, ghost-leech-thing, being way more decent than most people I knew?

I could talk about humanity's flaws for ages, but don't think highly of me either to avoid unpleasant surprises.

Yeah, well? So far, I haven't regretted meeting you even one bit.

I let you get chewed on for months just to see what happens until you killed yourself.

...right, you are a bit of a jerk.

Oh, and that's mild compared to some other things I do, did and undid. But ultimately, nothing matters because of the incomprehensible layers and vastness of the omni-multiverses, so all is done and all is fine!

Are... are you okay?

Just having an existensional stroke, those come and go. It's actually kinda funny.

"Taylor?" I looked up at the woman sitting behind the desk with a folder in hand, my current 'image consulant' from the PR department, Alma Curtis.

She was petite with shoulder length brown hair, appeared to be in her late twenties, but was probably older than that, and seemed to like her job while also taking it seriously, judging by both the enthusiasm and professionalism I got from her so far.

"Sorry." I mumbled, feeling guilty for drifting off again.

"No problem. Now, since we are done with recounting your cape-career, let's talk about the importance of what we do here. Since, well, don't get me wrong, some think that all we stand for is merchandising." At that, she looked at me questioningly.

I nodded, and answered shortly after, having already discussed the subject during the semi-philosophical talks I had with my partner.

"It's... shaping society." I scowled before continuing, finding the idea of grand-scale manipulation and the reality in general way more unpleasant than the idealistic and romanticised view of things. "Almost everything leads up to parahumans, one way or another. And the Protectorate is the 'offical' representation of them. So your job is to make sure the public keeps seeing the premise of costumed crazies running around as something bearable. Otherwise, you know, things decay into anarchy and the Endbringers kill us all, like they are currently doing, but easily."

"Exactly!" Really not helping with my outlook here lady. "Then you should see why things like these-" She opened a tablet and put it on front of me. "-might be problematic in the long run. Especially with a Ward."

They were pictures and clips of me as Dreamer, mostly from when I first debuted in person, and a few with me dragging an unconscious Victor by foot out of the alleyway towards some PRT officers. Majority were taken by the helmet cams, I think.

And the latter ones looked as humiliating as we hoped they would be, also strikingly menacing without context.

"Now, don't get me wrong, we do appreciate lighter color-palettes and friendly appearances, especially compared to some 'edgy' approaches, but as you can see, that can backfire."

Okay, being so calm in the middle of a fire-fight was downright uncanny, but... but, umm... and fine, maybe clubbing at some teenaged skinhead wannabe with an unwavering comical grin was more psychotic than heroic, but I really needed that guy down at the moment, he was being infuriatingly enthusiastic about being a problem and the PRT squads were more useful elsewhere.

Doesn't it look hillarious on a loop like that?

"I, uhh... could do away with the mask?"

"You don't have to go that far, but some adjustments would be helpful, I suggest sending a design of your own, preferrably with something not full-faced, lest you get stuck with something you don't like. But don't worry much, the overall costume is rather well-recieved, and the smiley is already iconic on the internet. Still, I suggest you looking through... this."

...

There being a booklet titled 'Guide to Heroic Costumes and Mannerisms' with the offical PRT seal on it, kinda killed whatever remaining romantic thoughts I had about this whole Hero thing.

"I'm also obliged to advise you about putting distance between your civillian

and cape persona with different attitudes and such, but from what I can gather, you have already been doing that, and don't seem to be overly concerned about your identity." She looked at me questioningly once again, referring to me choosing to go maskless for this session and for the meeting with the Director.

I shrugged. "This feels more comfortable for things so... adultish."

Otherwise, it pretty much felt like dressing as a clown for a funeral, glaringly out of place.

"Oh well, it should be fine here. But do be careful, there might be Unwritten Rules for capes not going for murder on sight or targetting after each other's identities, yet some won't hesitate to ignore those."

The rules... Gallant talked about those, and seeing Oni Lee getting assassinated demonstrated how well those worked nicely.

"This should be all for now, the finer points are up to Triumph and your teammates. I'll be seeing you again when the first drafts for your professional costume are done. We might even keep it as is, if you can be more mindful and approachable."

A little confused at the whole conversation being somewhat invalidated, I got up and turned to leave.

"Oh, and one last thing."

"Hmm?"

"Your patrols will be monitored by console from now on as usual, so I don't expect much issue there anymore, but please, keep in mind that the Wards aren't the soldiers you have been utilising them as, and I'm not saying this because of Youth Guard."

...oh.

Maybe I could start doing silly poses like Mouse Protector does to seem more friendly?

I thought as I made my way through the nearly identical halls to the Wards' quarters.

And on a totally unrelated note, there was no existing proof of me getting hopelessly lost, not at all.

Wrong turn.

I blame the architect.

Seriously, I get that this is all in case of invasions, but some more signs would have been nice!

The cell phone they gave you came with a map for this place~

Oh, and I'm sure that you remembering this with the gate in sight is just a coincedence.

No, I just love the frustration.

...I have no response to that.

After the short wait, the door opened, having done that on my own this time filling me with a feeling of pride and belonging.

Then those were joined and overtaken by puzzlement and a flutteringing warmth upon seeing the present Wards... all still without masks.

That was done way more unceremoniously than I expected.

"Hi there! As you can see, introductions are in order!"

Vista eagerly announced, appearing with a very long step from wherever she was, looking even more juvenile without her face covered.

Thankfully, I already knew she didn't appreciate things like that being mentioned from my last time here. A shame, her face was ridiculously pinchable.

And unlike some others, does not give a very worrying vibe to go with the temptation, also actually stays the same each time I see it.

You're just jealous that I don't have to deal with acne.

...ouch.

"I'm Missy, nice to meet you again!" She smiled at me for a few moments, then looked uncertain. "Uhh..."

Don't just stand there looking down on her ominously, you hypocrite.

"H-hey there! Nice to meet you too!" I waved at her frantically with both arms, bordering on jazz hands, hopefully covering up my error.

You really make me appreciate dying before my awkward teen phase.

"And, I'm Carlos, glad to have you." The... pleasing to look at... boy (again, it was hard to think of him as that with how built he was), said simply as he stood and waved at me from the couch he was sitting on, next to Clockblocker, who seemed to be pretty engrossed with the game he was playing.

"Ahem!"

"A minute..."

"Ignore Dennis, he has a hard time winning when not being able to freeze who he is playing against."

"Hey, being condescending at me is Missy's job!"

Friendly banter, fun, and games. It was a bit disheartening how those were still so novel.

"And Kid Win is here too, but he rarely gets out of his workshop. Locked himself in as soon as he got here, something about making thicker armor panels."

I flinched at that, hoping the girl didn't notice it.

Good job me, sending the Ward to take on thugs armed with tinker tech with a pat on the back and warnings about the ways he could get killed or injured.

...I fucked up so badly there.

I know the feeling... carry on and try doing better?

Huh, did you traumatise your potential friends too?

Best friend and our parents, got the former killed, experienced actual rage and grief for the first time, but lost whatever little empathy I had afterwards, so it wasn't as bad as it could have been.

What the fuck Chara?! Don't just drop this on me!

Wow... want to... talk about it?

If you're curious. I don't... can't care much about the whole thing.

Sometimes, I almost forget how messed up their condition was.

"...his damn girlfriend, oh, and Triumph wanted to spend some time with his niece, so bad timing there. Heh, it's us four again."

...it's your turn.

I know that! I was just... thinking.

With some apprehension, deep breaths, and a Save, I took the mask off and threw the hood back, feeling glaringly exposed.

"I'm Taylor... Hi?"

BEHOLD! The power of a god!

We put the controller down, then I reclined on the couch with a sigh of relief, taking in the satisfaction as the word 'PERFECT' flashed on the screen, much to Dennis' chagrin.

"Yep, confirmed once again, one hundred percent pure bullshit. You can stop... smiling now... please."

I had to experience total defeat more times than I had against Victor, had to accept the fact that some things required actual skill, but was ultimatelty dissatisfied with my initial imperfect victory, so then I cheated by letting my partner take over since they were far more competent at playing video games after getting used to my 'awkward, fleshy fingers' and gained a whole new appreciation for the fear Master powers were associated with as a result, but I loved this feeling of triumph, so it was all worth it despite the pettiness damn it!

We are also not doing this ever again if possible, it felt weird and now my face hurts.

Then let this be a lesson in humility and don't try taking on challenges not fit for you. I am much happier with my dust anyway, actual bodies are too gross and inconvenient.

Just casual demonic posession between friends, nothing concerning at all.

Then my post-perfection relaxation was interrupted by Missy tackle-hugging me from behind, the impact leaving me breathless and choking.

She really likes giving those. Violent little thing, so lovely.

"I knew you could do it! Now, pay up Dennis!"

"First I get stuck at console duty, miss all the action, get curb-stomped, and now I'm broke." He grumbled as he pulled out and gave away a bunch of bills to the younger girl.

"Warned 'ya this would happen~" I teased, still feeling smug and mighty.

Also comfy, the hug was nice, despite the pain that came with it.

He shrugged. "Someone had to do it, for future reference and all. If not for my bravery, we would still be in the dark about Carlos' terrible poker face or Chris' ticklishness. And now we know for sure to never, ever bet against you." He finished, and nodded sagely, stroking an imaginary beard.

That doesn't sound fun.

"Hey, don't spread that around too much, it would be dull if everyone gave up without bothering to try." Better safe than sorry. I didn't want to be excluded from things just because of my tendency to win.

"Don't worry, almost everyone around here is too stubborn to do that." Carlos joined in.

Or too stupid, or too hopeful.

"We will just have to keep in mind that if you ever lose," Dennis started as he stood up and walked over to the kitchen-like part of the room. "...it was either laziness, or you being fair." I chuckled at that, comedy in truth and all. "Now excuse me as I drown my sorrow with ice cream... ugh, only vanilla? What's wrong with this day?"

"I have some chocolate, unopened, if you want." Didn't compare to any ice cream in my opinion, but maybe he had different tastes.

"Oh, did you see my need for sweets coming too?"

"No, I just like having some on me." And eating it over and over.

That's still illegal, blasphemous, and disrespectful towards the Chocolate God. Which is me, by the way.

"...how detailed was your precognition again?" Huh, he was a fast thinker.

"I might as well be reversing time." While smiling at my partner's statement, I might have seemed more proud than I already was about that.

There was a moment of silence, as Dennis seemed to contemplate my answer.

"...HAX!" He announced, before grabbing the bar from me, unwrapping it, and breaking the strip into the ice cream in chips. Hmm, maybe I should try doing that too, sometime.

He is experiencing the joy of creation, while you are doomed by your heresy to an unbountiful, stagnant cycle of redevouring the same.

This time, I let out a few giggles, the overdramatic approach to junk food and general silliness catching me off guard, earning some concerned glances.

"Uhh... Carlos? What is your surname? I forgot to ask when we were unmasking." Just divert attention!

"Rivas, why?"

"There was an officer with that name and he told me to tell you to tone down the meatshield thing! Well, he doesn't actually know that he told me that anymore... you know what I mean!"

"Oh... Thanks?"

And this is still awkward, even more so. God... damn it.

The Chocolate God refuses your prayers, as your profaned spirit is too steeped with the vile stench of sugary necromancy.

It was cheesy and childish, yet combined with my earlier mess up, the absurdity managed to leave me face down on the table doing my damnedest to not laugh out loud too much.

"Okay, I understand spacing out from time to time, but what kind of power side-effect causes laughing fits?"

"Wait, so your own sense of humor isn't one?"

"Ehh, weak comeback Missy, four out of te- oww! Violence doesn't make it-oww! Fine, seven out of ten."

Huh... they... we were... just fooling around without a care. With me... such a messed up person, willingly without masks. I... this... what is this?

You are friends, and you earned it, so enjoy, isn't this what you wanted and struggled for, after all.

"Taylor? Are you okay? That's... not a laugh anymore."

"Huh? Sorry for taking the whole bar! Here, you can have half the ice cream!"

"I-I'm fine..." ..so embarrassing, getting so emotional all of a sudden.

"Umm... want some tissues? And another hug?" I nodded, feeling confused and shaken.

Why was she being so nice? Why were all of them so friendly after not even knowing me for a week? Why...

Where were these people for the last two years of my life?

I should just Load, and spare them from this pathetic moodswing.

No... this is perfect as is. I thought in response to myself, despite, or maybe from, feeling so vulnerable.

Last edited: Aug 21, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

Aug 21, 2016

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Threadmarks Interlude B.1

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Aug 29, 2016

#369

AN: I wrote most of this while barely functioning from lack of sleep, probably should go over it all again at some point.

Interlude B.1:

Normally, towards the end of her shift at the hospital, Panacea found the seemingly endless stream of patients blending together more so than usual, eventually tuning out almost everything except the healing.

Be it the all too common injured and unbearably unsubtle gang members, their victims, the elderly, or even the children. They were all just flesh to put back together after some point.

Of course, the realisation of how she started to view what she did led to some self-reflection which caused a by-now-routine guilt trip until her sister arrived to take her home.

And at this point, Amy saw nothing wrong with it, thought that this was how it should be, thought that she maybe deserved worse even.

After all, what kind of horrible, selfish person would get sick of healing people? Especially when their whole family consisted of known heroes, how deeply rotten she must have been to turn out like this?

Indeed, it was her responsibility to do the right thing with such a special, and potentionally terrifying power. She was just complaining and being angsty for no good reason.

Vicky is late... well, there are always more patients around.

With an exhausted sigh, she pulled her hood back up and walked towards the door leading out of the plain break room. Some nurses and doctors would protest her overstaying again, but as usual, would not turn the miracle hands away.

Why does it smell like flowers, it's not the season... allergy cases will be coming in early this year, with my luck...

"GREETINGS!"

WHY!?

She jumped and almost choked as she bit back a scream at the sudden salutation, and took a moment to get her heart to calm down while also glaring at the tall girl responsible, who she vaguely recognised from school. Tyler, or something.

Who also, didn't seem to be too bothered from giving her the greatest jumpscare of her life. In fact, she didn't even seem to be paying attention to her at all... just eerily stared into nothing and made slight, unprompted expressions instead.

"What! The Hell! Is wrong with you!?"

Maybe not the way that 'Panacea the Great Healer' should speak in public, but being ignored by a random girl after getting startled with such intensity made her a bit irritable.

Why is she here anyway? A fan? Doesn't seem to be, and isn't acting like she needs a healer either, too little pleading for those.

"Sorry, the voice in my head wanted to see that face you make again." She commented, almost off-handedly, then stared off into nothing once more, before dramatically slumping in defeat, all without any discernible reason, like a creepy weirdo. "Fine! I wanted to see it too."

D-don't shrug off all my indignation with such a random excuse!

Or maybe she was just crazy like she seemed to be, worryingly so. Either way, there was something wrong up there, that was for sure.

"The voice in your head... seriously?" She herself wasn't sure whether the question was rhetorical or not.

"They are also telling me that you should embrace capitalism... well, you do look overworked, and their advice almost always turns out well... so maybe you should consider?"

"I'm not charging people just because I-"

"Oh, and I'm also here for..." Right then, Amy felt her phone vibrating in her robe. "...that. Go on, answer, it's your sister."

Certainly not a fan, but a stalker seems to be increasingly more likely.

"Yes Vicky?"

"I was just about to go and take a cab home, but I'm still at the hospital, why?"

"YOU WHAT?!"

"Okay, just... wait for me."

God... damn it Vicky, this is the fourth time you messed up badly enough for you to need me fix someone.

With a sigh and a barely suppressed urge to face-palm, she put the phone back, and now filled with a sense of purpose, firmly met the annoying girl's still indifferent gaze.

"Listen, I don't know why you're here, but I have to go, Hero business, some... people are in need of healing, yada yada yada... for a team built on reliability and accountability, you are awfully keen on cover-ups."

That rare sensation of confidence and direction quickly faded away as the words she hadn't even fully formed yet were stolen out of her mouth.

"Sorry, that last bit was mean and sounded blackmaily... but I assure you it's not. And there is a good chance of you not even remembering, so don't worry about it!"

Bluntness, 'Greetings!', lack of worries, eery bouts of spacing out and precognition... fits the description, this is the most bizzare way so far a Ward has outed themselves.

"You're uhh... Dreamer, aren't you?"

"Got it in one! Now, I don't mean to sound patronising, but you really should call and tell your sister to do as I say if you want you, her, and both of your reputations as Heroes getting out of the mess she got into intact. So first off, she should fly up and then..."

"Huh, you look uneasy... Don't worry, I already got out of my way to help you two, and I'm not leaving until everything turns out alright!"

...I appreaciate it, but you're the one making me uneasy the most.

"Broken elbow, multiple fractures on arms, broken ribs, internal bleeding... broken heart, fractured hopes and dreams, needs a head transplant, damaged sense of humor... so you aren't listening." She took a deep, shaky, and frustrated breath. "VICTORIA!"

Glory Girl, at least, managed to look ashamed.

"Sorry, sorry, just... thinking. You sure she said I could have died here... that you could have died?"

Panacea rose from where she was crouched, pausing her 'healing' of her 'patients', and wordlessly looked around the alleyway. Which was absoulutely covered with bulletholes, with most of them shaped peculiarly eliptic.

The damage wasn't from even one clip, maybe just half of one instead.

Bouncy bullets, a silly sounding, cartoonish concept that turned real and terrifying with the help of a certain Empire tinker, while also coincidentally very effective for getting around a certain 'shield'.

"I dunno, you were the one here, you tell me." Her tone, loaded with venomous sarcasm, easily conveyed her displeasure. But underneath that, there was also a form of shock.

I... could have died here. That thought was still soaking in, slowly but surely. She could even see what would have happened afterwards, with the PRT pushing their 'supervision' programs after the tragedy of the two young, independent heroes dying due to escalating gang violence, the New Wave taking a hit, maybe even throwing in their last for revenge...

And again, the blonde girl didn't look particularly proud of herself.

"I didn't know that he had armed friends coming for help! A-and why aren't we celebrating? We kicked their asses, those bullshit guns are off the streets, the good guys won!" She protested nontheless.

"THAT'S NOT THE FUCKING POINT!!"

Amy yelled at the top of her lungs, pulled her hood off, grabbed at her hair, and paced back and forth until she calmed down relatively.

Her sister recoiled and looked away, unable to meet the glare.

"Look Vicky, don't even bother with justifying your screw-up, you are my sister, my best friend, and the person I care about the most, so I can't stay mad at you, not really... but..."

What do I even say... what should I even do? I'm so lost here...

"Damn it Vicky, I was already having troubles contemplating and working around my morality for you, I didn't need mortality added over that... I can't even manage my own problems..."

"Amy..." The tiara-wearing girl trailed off, teary from the outburst.

She let out a stress-filled laugh in response, almost hysterical, and suddenly felt very tired, leaning against the wall for support.

"Let's just give the PRT their report and get out of here... I want to go home."

The TV was on, some politicians arguing about the economy, she wasn't really watching, but the noise was nice.

"So, uhh..." Victoria plopped down on the couch next to her, offering a bowl of ice cream. "...how do you think those guys didn't shoot each other with those bullets bouncing everywhere?"

Amy took the ice cream, but only glared tiredly in response.

"Okay... stupid thing to bring up and ask... it was bullshit tinker-tech anyway, those never made any sense."

"Giving me the silent treatment, huh? Can't say I don't deserve that..."

Facepalming then slowly dragging her hand across her face with a heavy sigh, Amy straightened up and smiled at her sister forcefully.

"Gee Vicky, what should I even say? That you did a good job? Congratulate you for getting away with flattening a racist guy and almost killing him with no consequence thanks to me once again? Or maybe I should talk about how awesome you are for getting the drop on his friends... who would have killed you, if you weren't warned about them coming, thanks to sheer luck! Ah, or maybe-"

"Okay, okay I get it, don't need to be so-"

"Oh, do you? Do you get it Victoria? Do you get how it feels, to conspiringly cover up a crime that would get you at least a probabition with the Wards... while also being a part of the team that is known for, 'reliability and accountability'? For the FOURTH goddamn time!?"

More silence followed, thankfully, or perhaps not, there was nobody else at home to hear the shouting. With her mother having accompanied their father to his therapy session.

"So... can't stop thinking about how we got saved by Brockton Bay's equalivant of Mouse Protector."

"Mouse Protector? Then she must have seemed very different from a distance." Amy couldn't help but feel very glad about the subject being changed.

"Posing, taunting, loudness, I wouldn't be surprised if Dreamer started playing her own theme song wherever she went too, at this rate."

"Huh... I was mostly focusing on, you know, our doom being prophesied."

It was still chilling to think about, her own actions and thoughts being known by someone else before she herself could even begin to conceptualise them. The girl's other 'quirks' weren't really warming either.

"How was she anyway? As a person I mean, we should thank her, at least."

Again, sorry for acting so... dissonant. It gets hard to... be invested in stuff and act seriously after regularly living through something more than once with more potentionally pending... effectively, I mean, it must look very different from the other side... d-don't worry about it!

"A bit weird..."

You are awesome in that regard, you know. The best healer... going around and making people's lives better for almost all of your free time... must be exhausting, I would probably lock myself away from stress one week in. You must have some real integrity to keep yourself together like that... I... I probably wouldn't have made it this far without people like you as an example, there are probably many others feeling that way too, and they should admire you for it, so thank you! S-sorry for getting so rambly, don't really have a script for this part and I have always been a geek like that when I was little, and it's making a comeback, I think... uhh, gotta go, Missy is still waiting for me at the theatre, at least there are still movies I haven't seen... Bye, I hope everything turns out alright for you!

"...but nice too."

"Oh, really? That's good. I heard she likes chocolate, maybe we could-"

"She also told me to embrace capitalism."

"Well... you are spending almost all of your free time healing people and they never really end, so maybe you should consider changing the way you do things a bit?"

Oh for the love of...

"I'm still telling Carol about what happened... and about the other times too."

I regret this.

"I undestand... Should have never dragged you down with me in the first place and just come clean in the beginning... This...this is gonna suck."

"For me too, believe me."

"But... can we do the confession thing some other day? I would like to do the thanking thing before getting grounded and buried... geez, this feels too much like asking for a last wish. I can't even imagine how pissed mom will be."

...you have no idea how much I sympathise with that.

The rich smell of food befitting the estabilishment it was served in, the clatter of platters and cutlery, the ambient chatter... the cafeteria of Arcadia was abuzz with activity, with many students relishing the longer break from the usually no-nonesense classes.

"Hmm... no, I don't see her. Maybe she has lunch elsewhere? Don't remember seeing her around here at all, now that I think about it."

"The weather is nice enough, maybe we should too. Oh, and we can ask Dean about where she usually eats, he is probably friends with her. Good thinking Ames."

"...sure."

...he is probably thinking about coming over and asking about why we feel off today. Didn't he and Kid Win got shot at recently? Maybe Vicky reads similarly... but with more guilt, unless she got over the drama yesterday really quickly... I hope he doesn't ask about that, Carol will be bad enough, and he is terrible at keeping things like that secret, don't need the PRT press-ganging us on top of everything.

Before she could get too deep into contemplating the morality of avoiding the law like this, her sister succesfully tracked down the 'knight in shining armor' -which might as well have been the nickname of Dean's both cape, and civillian personas- they were looking for at the hallway leading to the caffeteria, which was a conveniently semi-private place to ask their question.

"Hey there beautiful!"

Amy never understood the intricacies of starting conversations the way her sister did, and would rather run away if someone approached her like that. But apparently, Victoria's on and off (currently somewhere in-between, she didn't understand the intricacies of that either) boyfriend was used to that.

"I'm flattered, hey to you too." He smiled easily and genuinely, like he always did, enviably so. "So... what's up?"

Translation: I know that you want something from me.

...I may be needlessly cynical when around him. But he is so... irritating! Look at him, leaning against a wall with seamless, well-styled blonde hair and a perfect smile, like some teenage-magazine's cover model! No one should ba able to look like that wearing generic jeans and a simple shirt!

Then her eyes drifted towards her sister, who also, was wearing jeans and a shirt, complete with great blonde hair and a photogenic smile.

Nevermind. Turns out I'm the odd one out here.

"Oh, not much." Another lie, nothing new... yes, definetly too cynical. "What about you?"

"Not much again, but in a good way I suppose. And everyone has been in a good mood lately, so I'm happy for that." Then he looked around before leaning in whispering conspiringly. "Even the Director, she reduced the console duty times."

"Huh... wow, that's a feat. Guess all she needed to lighten up was a winstreak consistent enough to scare all the villains into being more flighty than fighty."

He chuckled and smiled winningly. "That's one way to put it, so how things have been going on your team's side?"

Victoria's own smile fell and turned into a somewhat sour expression.

Her own problems aside, New Wave... didn't have much momentum. And that wasn't comparing it to the massive movement it could have been.

"Oh, you know... lot's of patrolling, too little fighting... not even that much patrolling anymore I suppose... yeah, and those villains are really flighty with us too, just in case we are also cheating." But she didn't let those thoughts sour her mood, and recovered quickly.

She always moves on... god, she really is the best.

"Are you calling the hard work of our newest friend cheating?" He asked in mock-displeasure with a brow raised.

"Well, if nothing else, she won the lottery. Oh, and speaking of her... hey sis, why don't you handle this part since you were the one to meet her in person."

Amy looked up from her phone, which, even with no battery, provided a nice distraction halfway through the conversation. The microscopic life accumulated always had something new going on.

Jerry finally completed his conjugation with Larry, so exciting... pet bacteria... not pathetic or gross of me at all.

"Huh, uhh..." She waited as some students walked out of cafeteria until they were out of the hearing distance.

"...are we talking about Dreamer? All right... she, uhh... came to me while I was working at the hospital in her civillian indentity and..." Wait, what do I say for this part?

"...asked me if I would like to..." Embrace capitalism? No, and I should really stop thinking about that.

"...hang out at school! But we can't find where, uhh, Tyler is."

"Oh... you..." Fuck, did I panic too much?! Did I misremember her name too badly? "...seem excited about that, then again Taylor would put great effort into first impressions from what I know of her."

...I make my life way more tense and difficult than it should be.

Like with everything in Arcadia, the garden too was notably luxurious.

Colorful and beautiful flowers, full and bright grass, delicious fruit and so much more.

For example, close to the corners of the walls surrounding the school property, were grand and mighty-looking trees, with roots thick enough to serve as makeshift seats.

Of course, they weren't as old as they looked, for that, they would have had to be planted before the plans for the school even began. Instead, they were the product of the parahumans' effect on the market.

They probably charged something insane for making it grow so fast too... I really should have became 'the botanist' instead of 'the healer'... N-no! All the people I have saved would- why are there so many buttercups here?

The closer the sisters moved to the other side of the tree, more of the flowers inexplicably appeared, almost completely replacing the green of the grass with their vibrant yellow.

"...frustrating. You yearn for love and closer friends yet shy away at every opportunity, it won't happen your way, a leap is necessary, you know."

"I can't just... oh, already here, hi!"

Not as loud this time, at least. And more... normal in general.

The girl they were looking for was there, leaning against the trunk on a picnic sheet, dressed rather plainly and... knitting, with a plastic bag containing some yarn at her side.

Next to her was an effeminate boy -or maybe it's the other way around? I can't tell. Damn it, can't ask Vicky right in front of them either.- tall and slender, wearing a new-looking, untucked, jet black dress-shirt with the last few buttons undone, contrasting starkly both with the golden necklace around his neck adorned with a heart shaped crimson ruby matching his uniquely colored eyes, and his strikingly smooth, pale skin.

...why am I surrounded by people with good hair today? She thought lamely, inspecting the luxurious black locks and the stringy auburn mop crowned by a ring of buttercups.

"Hi there too, having a picnic? Can we join?"

"We have enough tea and pie, sure!"

"Great! Is it homemade? What flavor?"

The blonde exclaimed joyfully and dragged her less enthusiastic sibling along with her.

"Yes, made it myself, it's butterscotch." The boy looked up from where he was delicately lining flowers on the girl's hair as a golden streak, smiling charmingly. Then proceeded to setting up the plates and the cups for them. "Greetings, I'm Chara, by the way."

Amy frowned, feeling uneasy. There was something... off with this person. And it wasn't only the familiar salutation.

Superfically, he was... not handsome, but pretty, pleasing to look at even... until you stared too long and noticed those unnatural eyes staring back unblinkingly.

A Case 53 maybe? Would it be rude to... Huh, the pie is actually great! He can be a literal demon for all I care.

"I wanted to thank you for yesterday, really saved me there... don't know how to repay you, honestly. Uh, wait, damn it, does she know about the... stuff?"

...she?

"Who, Chara? Oh, they know everything."

She mentally threw her hands up. 'They' it is then.

"Don't mind me. In fact, why don't you two take a walk together? Taylor is actually a huge fan of yours, I'm sure she has a lot of gushing over to do." They suggested with a too-pleased, almost mocking tone, matching the similarly prevalent smug smile.

Is this where her weirdness went?

"What!? I don't-"

"She is the type that would rather live as a hermit if it was up to her. Don't pay much attention to that nonesense." Waving off any protests, they then picked up a porcelain teacup and gently brought it up to their too thin, too pale lips, taking a long sip.

Amy felt something flutter inside her when they winked at her over the rim.

"Are... are you seductively drinking tea?" Oh... maybe not at me then?

"Perhaps, or maybe, partner, you're just projecting your hopes." They put the cup back down elegantly.

"..." She only stared blankly in response before looking away with a deep, fed-up sigh, suddenly more interested in her knitting.

There was a barely bit back choking-like sound as Victoria almost spit out her own sip.

"I'm liking this one even more every second. Why haven't I seen you around before? You are rather... distinct."

Good question, they look like a wax sculpture came to life... via dark magic. Someone would have mentioned that by now.

"I'm just visiting for Taylor here, I'm home-schooled."

Somewhere around this point, Amy began tuning the conversation out, mostly from habit, as her input was usually asked only at the start, and while leaving.

Still, the pie was delicious, so she wasn't complaining. Even if the tea was a bit iffy.

But it wasn't enough to take her thoughts off of what the future might hold.

Maybe I can tell about the cover-ups we have been doing to Aunt Sarah instead of Carol? Damn it, she is my Mom, why am I feeling so apprehensive about her?

"Because she will finally have a proper excuse to believe in how much of a bad girl you are. But you already know that."

She shuddered and recoiled as she felt the hand belonging to the voice graze her head, and relief set in when she felt that it was just a flower left to sit on her hair.

Of course... why am I panicking for no reason.

"I'm pretty scary, and your beloved sister went away with my dear partner while you were drifting off, so you feel isolated. Oh, and the sudden mind-reading. Don't worry, it's actually just your soul I'm looking at. Such a pretty blue thing."

Again, she felt paralysed from uncertainty. The source of the said uncertainty sitting now right next to her didn't help either... away from any prying eyes.

"With how similar you two are, I expected yours to be red too, but I guess you lack the... defiance, my partner has. Still, 'overly self conscious wreck desperately needy of a special sort of validation' should define both of you pretty well, unless I read you wrong. Then again, Taylor has been doing much better than the time we first met."

"What... are you doing?" She was confused now, more than anything.

"Oh, I'm only rambling, and maybe messing with you a bit." They laid down and put their head on her lap, laying peacefully with eyes closed, humming a soothing tune.

They weighted almost nothing, yet she was too lost to simply push them off and walk away.

"You know, just like you, I was adopted into a pretty great family too, they probably would have been heroes if they could, now that would be interesting."

Less panicky but still confused, Amy opted to simply sit still until things made sense again.

"They were stupidly kind, and loved me like their own, and again, just like you, my sibling was my best friend. He was just as kind as them, maybe even more so, such a shame, he could have grown to be great."

"W-why, what happened?" She couldn't stop herself from asking, almost entranced by the too-sweet voice.

"I was rotten to the core, despite everything they did, promised, and meant for me, so he died for that. The end."

"..."

"And I loved them too, or maybe I just pretended until I couldn't tell the difference? Maybe I just used them, perhaps without even meaning to, from the very beginning. I don't remember, and it doesn't matter. Tell me, are you also like that? Rotten beyond recovery and undeniably selfish?"

"H-huh?"

For a while, they stared at her, and through her.

Then they laughed, perfectly child-like, but completely mirthless.

"You even start thinking if you are some horrible excuse of a person at the slightest hint of doubt, just like her. This is hillarious. So does that mean you don't really care about all the lives you saved or turned around? Dismissing them so easily."

"Then again, why would all those people mean anything, similarly to the amount of 'Thank you''s you get daily, it all loses it's..." They paused, and frowned, worryingly unamused.

"You are gonna just stand there and take all this, aren't you? And I wasn't even going for anything in particular, barely even went outside what you have already been telling yourself. You are bad at coping, you know."

"Oh well, lower your head and let it all pass, that does seem fitting for you. Bye then, you are boring. My partner probably needs me anyway, she always tends to play it stagnatingly safe without me."

With that, the weight on her lap disappeared, giving way to a sigh of relief.

Lastly, I think you should know that you are a good little girl at heart, no matter what you keep telling yourself. The way you are obsessed over being like that should tell you so. But, no matter how stubborn you are, no matter how much you manage to shrug off, if you keep pretending to be an overly devoted saint like this, that little girl will...

Suddenly, the unnatural field of buttercups, and nothing else, burst into flames, all except the one left on her head, burning down to nothing in seconds.

...even that creep wants me to take a break. What even was that thing?

Last edited: Aug 29, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

Aug 29, 2016

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Threadmarks Interlude B.2

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Sep 4, 2016

#406

I would like to thank Major Session for helping me with this chapter, really appreciate the aid.

Interlude B.2:

Being a PRT Director meant being a lynch pin of sorts, responsible for keeping parahumans in line; be it the Protectorate, villains, independents, or rogues. The state of a continent such as Africa demonstrated how important it was to keep things balanced, how important their duties were.

It was a stressful job, usually leading to consecutive replacements in the position until someone with a strong enough resolve arrived.

And finding someone like that was not easy, as only a fool would envy the position, even in regions which were considered 'peaceful', so Thomas Calvert more than willingly 'working' for that seat, with goals even more important and difficult to obtain in a place like Brockton Bay, chaotic at the best of times, was a great asset in the eyes of Rebecca Costa-Brown.

Granted, Coil has been having... problems, with his operations, which led to him using his connections to request the transfer of a certain Ward away from him.

A thinker, a wildly successful one, with a power strong enough to make Coil's own brand of precognition fail and get false results... not that it stopped there.

The Path was not limited against her by the Entity, at least not in the same way. In fact, it functions with no apparent faults... until whatever her power is makes it unreliable, with even the most straight-forward of steps inexplicably collapsing or changing. That... has never happened before, I have always had a 'priority' over other precognition-based Agents so far. Perhaps... it is the equivalent of mine from the Counterpart?

If that was true... If this 'Dreamer' really did have Scion's version of Path to Victory… Then keeping the girl close would be a very good idea. Another Agent possibly of that caliber, potentially not as restricted as unlikely as that sounded... was indeed, a very good idea.

Director Piggot's voice interrupted her musing, coming from the computer speakers.

"Dreamer refused again. The girl simply has no interest in leaving the Bay, and as you already know, we can't force her."

Of course, it was not that simple. Chief-Director resisted the urge to sigh, lamenting that fact.

"I understand, Director Piggot. But perhaps you haven't been convincing enough... on purpose."

She could somehow almost see the shrug in the woman's steely gaze through the monitor.

"I admit that having her around... is very convenient for me. But I assure you that I did everything I could. Unless you want me to resort to antagonizing her?"

It was left unsaid how badly that could backfire. They had already lucked out with how such a potent parahuman signed up into the Wards program with no issues. Deliberately antagonizing such a powerful precog and possibly turning the equivalent of the Path on the PRT and Protectorate...

...well, one issue she fortunately never asked about. Shadow Stalker is in Coil's hands instead of ours now, anyway.

"I see... but there are still leverages we can use. She is prone to hero worship, correct?" A visit from one of the Triumvirate was usually enough to solve almost any problem, be it crime, politics or other.

"She has expressed excitement upon meeting other known heroes, yes. And it didn't seem to be a part of her cape persona act."

Rebecca nodded, satisfied with the answer.

"Thank you for your cooperation. Now, there is one last thing I want to discuss. Who, or what is..." She brought up a number of pictures and footage onto the screen, all featuring one very distinct individual, usually in casual settings and accompanying the Ward they were discussing. "...this?"

There were inconsistencies in between each appearance. Be it height, apparent age, facial features, or hair. Too much to be heels, make-up, or such. But there were also consistencies; the hair was always a shade of brown, the eyes always a striking shade of red, pale skin with a permanent fake-blush, there was also always something... vaguely, yet clearly inhuman.

And more peculiarly, they were usually sporting a heart-shaped necklace (again, slightly different each time), a worryingly ever-present smile, and the green and beige or yellow color-scheme, usually with a sweater, but there were also coats and even a dress thrown in. All of those were almost synonymous, or at least heavily associated with Dreamer.

Perhaps a fan of sorts? Or maybe the other way around...

Of course, there were no matching identity, even outside the US's databases. And no footage of them exiting or entering the PRT building, or any other place, just this person spontaneously appearing and disappearing at will. So tracking them had proved impossible.

Almost like an urban legend from Aleph. Rebecca mused sourly. Reminded of... an old friend's childish antics. For a busy tinker and a leader with lots of responsibilities, Hero somehow always managed to find time for such things.

The Director frowned, thoughtful.

"Honestly, ma'am... I don't know much more than you do." Piggot didn't seem to be pleased by that any more than she was.

"So you have been letting an almost completely unknown parahuman run around in your own base. That... does not sound like you, Emily." Rebecca had some respect for the woman and her choices, but was tempted to declare the Master-Stranger protocols on her right then and there.

"I questioned Dreamer about the issue." Her displeasure was still obvious. "Her friend, 'Chara', apparently appeared after she got her powers... then she told me to not worry about it and classify them as a projection. A concerningly independent one, considering that they have been seen active while she was asleep." Piggot said with an almost scowl.

Interesting. But not immediately useful.

"Are they a threat?"

Piggot sighed in tired frustration, with enough intensity to make some consider a quick retreat to avoid getting fired.

"Not yet, as far as I can tell, and I would rather have it remain as such. Not that it's very reassuring. So I have upped the surveillance accordingly. They also have... a close relationship with Dreamer, both in and out of costume. So I have been reluctant to go hard on them, for the same reasons I have been avoiding strong-arming her transfer." Piggot did scowl this time, and it wasn't a pleasing sight.

"Playing safe and keeping the status quo then, understandable. Anything else to know?" Rebecca asked.

"Well, as silly as that sounds, I recommend not saying their name out loud too much as it seems to draw them. And there was also an incident where.."

Dennis was having a lazy day, so lazy, in fact, that it was exhausting. Even the patrol was more of a slog than usual, and he was too tired to even do anything interesting. It really was a stagnant cycle of boredom.

I can feel myself becoming one with the couch... with my costume on. This will be an interesting find for future archaeologists, at least. Dennis thought as he woke up from his brief nap.

With that insightful observation done, he forced himself into an upright position, and he could swear that his brain made a flip during the motion.

Then he noticed the hunger-inducingly sweet smell, which was probably what woke him up, coming from the Wards' rarely used kitchen. Then Dennis found himself way more motivated to move around and actually get off the couch.

"Now, now, we can't rush here. Be patient until it's done." Missy, with a more 'responsible adult''ish tone than usual.

"Mmm... but it already looks and smells so good!"

Huh, that voice? Rory's little cousin is here then. A shame that we won't be seeing her around anymore, with Triumph graduating and all.

After a brief check for scribbles on his mask, because he totally would draw at least a moustache if he caught anyone sleeping here, Dennis got up and moved to investigate whatever the two girls were doing.

Oh... Taylor's at-best-chaotic-neutral scary friend is here too. And they are smaller than usual, barely taller than Vista... because why not!

The person, Chara, had just started to pop up from time to time; sometimes at school, sometimes at the cafeteria, and eventually here... slowly asserting themselves. Nobody was really sure when it happened, but seeing the uncanny valley incarnate randomly appear became 'normal' at some point.

And they are creepy-and-adorable instead of creepy-and-hot this time... they can look surprisingly good for a person living off of chocolate, tea, and poisonous flowers.

He shuddered as he remembered them stuffing down handfuls of buttercups with wordless aggression. Buttercups that were not growing there moments ago. Making the rest of the picnic incredibly uncomfortable.

It was probably just to mess with everyone, or spite Taylor for something. She too seemed off during the whole thing. I swear they are Dreamer's unholiness manifested the moment she takes that mask off. Like, it has to go somewhere, right?

Still, despite their unsettling presence, he didn't really mind having them around. Having someone who appreciated groan-inducing puns was even nice sometimes.

"Hey guys! What'cha doing there?" Dennis then turned and feigned surprise after approaching the small group gathered around the oven. Heh, because all of them were short. "OH! Our most favorite fan is here! Why didn't you wake me sooner?"

He smiled and laughed in response to Dinah's own juvenile laughter.

And it's not the horror-movie-ghost-child variety, so refreshing.

"She wanted to draw mean words on you, but I didn't let her!" She pointed at Vista, with a deadly serious look. Deliberately ignoring the other girl's betrayed expression.

Hah, I knew it!

"My Hero!" Clockblocker exclaimed dramatically and took a knee. "How can I ever repay you?"

"Hmm... can you just pay me?" He couldn't help but burst out in giggles at that.

"Good thing that I go to a different school. A tattletale and greedy." Vista grumbled, crossing her arms and huffing.

"Don't mind her, she just doesn't have a child-like wonder like we do!" Dennis said.

"B-but she was the responsible adult in this situation! What you just said makes no sense!" The youngest Ward protested.

"Vista..." He shook his head and tsked condescendingly. "...you should know by now that immaturity does not necessarily mean 'child-like wonder'."

"You can't just win an argument by saying random smart-sounding words! Chara, back me up here!" The shaker demanded.

Chara interrupted their routine of smiling blankly and silently eating chocolate which they often defaulted into whenever Taylor wasn't around in favor of smiling blankly and conversing with unnerving amounts of cheer.

"All of you are still full of wonder, and definitely immature. But don't worry, I'm sure whatever innocence you have left will be ripped away from you by this world soon enough!"

...that's not a thing you should ever say encouragingly.

"Even me?!" Dinah asked incredulously.

"Possibly, with that Fragment looming over you so eagerly. Oh! The pie is done." They put the remaining chocolate on the counter and put on an oversized, for them, pair of baking gloves as well as an apron. "Go take your seats, I will serve it for you. Hmm... Now, where are the knives?"

Eager to eat pie, Dennis pointed over their shoulder. "In that drawer over there." But couldn't resist the urge to sneakily brush his hand against the unsupervised bar of chocolate.

It's just a harmless prank. Let's see them on the backfoot for once.

"Thanks Comedian, you get the first slice... right after our adorable guest here, of course." Chara said, as they brought out the dessert, seemingly straight out of a cooking book, with an aroma to match.

"Sounds fair. She'll probably be having her tea parties with the adults from now on." Dennis mused.

But probably not, Armsmaster was unlikely to let any children anywhere near the PHQ outside of tours.

"Here you go, and there are still enough left for the rest." They exclamied, now also donning a chef hat they somehow produced, possibly from thin air.

Dennis had already finished half of his slice by the time Vista got hers.

Good thing that the mouth part of this mask is removable.

"It's delicious! How do you even get so good? It's better than the ones at uncle's fancy parties!"

"And can you teach me?" The girls seemed to be enjoying their slices as much as he was his.

"Seeking perfection is one of the few things left I can still enjoy. And of course I can teach you! I was going to with Taylor too, anyway."

Then they moved back to the counter across the table... picked the bar of chocolate and took another bite.

Huh, it wore off quick. Such luck.

"Itsh blockhy anh thasthless." Swallowing a bit forcefully, they looked directly at Dennis, making direct eye contact through the mask, and let the bar go... mid-air, where it sat frozen. "Comedian, I'm in a good mood, but it better wear off soon."

They easily managed to sound threatening despite the silly attire.

And in response, he simply nodded, took his plate, then swiftly walked off to his room where he contemplated the laws of reality.

And tried not to gibber in terror.

"So they have a possible trump rating on top of possible stranger, changer and mover ratings, and are possibly depressed, understood. But how did you get all of that in such detail?" Rebecca asked the computer screen from her office, the stars barely visible in the night sky due to Los Angeles ever present lights.

"As I said, I upped the surveillance accordingly. Will that be all?" Piggot said from the computer, sitting at her messy desk in Brockton Bay

"Right. Costa-Brown out." Rebecca said, feeling slightly unnerved.

Possibly, with that Fragment looming over you so eagerly.

"Door, to the Doctor's office." Alexandria announced.

The roof of the Brockton Bay's PRT building, besides the expected things such as a helipad, featured a garden of sorts, lining the edges.

Just small, easy to maintain, simple trees and bushes, as anything more would require more effort than just watering. After all, nobody was coming up here to admire the nature, but for cigarette breaks or a relief from the suffocating offices and repeating hallways instead.

Yet recently, a more colorful flora started to flourish, colorful patches of flowers, the products of a pass-time of all the Wards and even some PRT agents now, for whenever waiting around for the next patrol or such got too tedious. That said, the rate at which the said flourishing happened was rather unusual.

"I suppose you were expecting me." Alexandria's tone was stoic and not too impressed as she landed, but on the inside, she was less composed than she would like to be.

Just like with Contessa; all I say and do may already be accounted for to a degree making free-will seem like a lie, and even the tiniest of her actions may serve a not readily apparent purpose. Or maybe not. It's infuriating to think about.

"Of course I did, and I have already heard your whole spiel about dangers, responsibility, maturity and arrogance. So let's get to the point, shall we? My answer is still 'No'." Dreamer rose from where she was tending to some flowers, and turned to face the renowned hero.

It's pointless to actually bother then...

Contrastings Alexandria's simplistic glossy and black attire, her own costume was bright, matte, green and yellow, with a flower pattern intricately woven into the latter and as a trim around the borders of the cloak. Yet despite the artsier redesign, the drawn on somewhat-manic expression remained, much to the chagrin of some PR workers, now on a porcelain-like mask, similar in both form and function to Clockblocker's, and the updated crown appeared to be made from actual gold, an odd sight as it was still fused with the 'face', decorated with three shining red rubies at each point of the ornament, matching the heart-shaped one holding the cloak together. The rest, however, remained largely untouched.

"I expected a warmer welcome." She replied dryly.

"Oh, believe me, I did a lot more gushing than was necessary, you were always the one I looked up to the most since childhood, you know. And I still admire you greatly, even after... well, after seeing how manipulative and cold you can be. Comes with your position, I suppose. Can't imagine how crushing all that responsibility would be like."

Alexandria grimaced internally, thinking about Legend and his more positive reception from such occasions.

But he isn't in the exact same position as me, is he? Yet I can't see anything changing him from being the all-loving 'Hero' that he has always been, despite getting his hands dirty when needed too.

In hindsight, they probably should have sent him instead for this part, since her own brand of convincing by putting on pressure and forcing to choose was unlikely to work against a thinker on this level.

"Thanks for seeing the best in me. But could you elobarate on your reasoning?" She didn't have to leave completely empty handed, at least.

The girl paced a bit at the question, her steps loud and clear so far above the busy city-trafic, and seemed to be unsure what to do with her hands, until she settled on mimicking the older woman's cross-armed pose.

"It's nothing complicated, really. I have lived here all my life, and this is where all my family and friends are." She appeared thoughtful after that statement, standing silently before turning towards the most open view of the city visible from her position, facing the setting sun, faintly glowing behind the thick layer of clouds. It was a beautiful sight.

"Besides, I'm far from finished here. The gangs have gotten wise enough to try avoiding all manners of confrontation where it matters, since it's hard to replace parahumans... so now the villains aren't winning, but the problem is still there. Not to mention how I can only be at one place at a time..." She threw her hood off, letting her hair free, and resumed pacing, this time more spirited. "Oh well, it's only delaying the inevitable, I'm simply not giving up, and they simply can't endure forever. All their capes will surely fall, one by one, and the rest will follow... I'm determined to see through it. Then maybe... this place won't be known as an example of futility, but as an example of what could be, for everyone to see. At least that's what I hope to do... S-sorry. I think I'm still excited from meeting you."

She trailed off, sounding embarrassed after the passionate tirade.

'Dreamer' in more ways than one then.

"An example of what could be? Here? You must be driven." Driven like the most dangerous of us are. Maybe we should just move Coil instead.

"I'm really not. At the start, I've been doing all this to have a place to belong and just because being a Hero is the 'Right' thing to do. But now that I got what I wanted and can feel truly happy, I can't help but look back and..." She trailed off once more, before turning her back again. "I-I'm sure you are busy and have better things to do than to listen to me rambling."

I suppose, but I'm not done here.

"Before I go, can I see your... partner?"

That got her to turn around and face her almost immediately, yet she stood silently for a moment.

"Listen... I'm not sure what will happen now, but... they are very impulsive, and half the stuff they do will be just to mess with you. So... don't take them too seriously?" With that ominous advice given, she walked off and closed the door behind her, leaving the Triumvirate member alone.

"Chara?" She called out after waiting for a minute, feeling foolish.

"The look on your face as you choke to death really suits you."

One moment, she was looking at nothing in particular, and then suddenly, as if they were always there, she noticed them, utterly still down to the every last strand of hair despite the light breeze.

She didn't need an enhanced memory to forever remember the image of the too wide crimson eyes piercing through her.

The way they said it... the same power? Doesn't make sense, but I'm used to assuming the worst.

"And how or why would you know something so specific?" She replied coldly.

Seeing them is much more unsettling in person. Is it even human?

"Hmm?" They put a thin finger at their chin, tilting their head as if in thought. "Why do people do anything at all, when not half-heartedly going through the motions or obligations?"

She didn't reply to the rhetorical question, and kept trying to make sense of what she was seeing with the Thinker aspect of her powers.

Maybe they really are a projection... like Manton's? There are similarities... and would explain some of their oddities.

"The answer is simple..." They rotated their wrist, and a bird perched on the still extended finger shortly after.

It was a pidgeon of sorts, with feathers elegantly shifting from grey to black, forming aesthetically pleasing patterns on it's wings, which it moved softly in an expressive way, as it curiously chirped at the parody of a human being.

What are they-

"...and the same as the reason for why I'm doing..." Their other hand snapped to grab the cute little bird before it could fly off. "...this." The pale hand squeezed, the thin but ungiving fingers slowly digging into the unfortunate critter's flesh, and she could hear the hollow bones snapping and getting crushed along with a bird's equalivant of a horrified scream.

"It fills me with a warm and fuzzy feeling which I still love no matter how old it gets."

They let the crippled animal go, and watched as it fell, then watched as it weakly squirmed on the ground, with a nauseating fascination.

Alexandria took an involuntary step back, disturbed.

Chara took a step forward, silencing the bird.

"Want to hear a story?" They asked, with the tone of a child enthusiastically wanting to show something to their mother.

"I want you to tell me what you know about the Entities." She didn't want to screw around with any other sick games.

"Those hillariously simple and disgustingly single minded parasites? Well I heard that the remaining one might eventually kill you all! Wouldn't that be tragic?"

She was getting frustrated, from getting more questions than answers and from being openly mocked about her greatest struggle... which no one should have known about.

"How do you-"

"But do you know what would be even more tragic?" They chuckled, and covered their mouth with their still bloody hand, as if getting ready for a punchline. "If one day, you and all your friends in your secret brewery club were to meet a scary monster, long before the Golden Day you were dreadingly preparing for, and disappear without a trace!"

The thing laughed out loud in pure bliss at the shocked expression on her face. It sounded nothing like a human.

"Was that a threat?" She managed to let out, her mind frantically going through numerous possibilities.

They know, maybe everything, how do they know?

"Ooh, that's the feeling I was talking about! Those endings have always been my favourites, you know. All the struggles, all the sacrifices, all the lies and all the pain from their past, present and future... all completely meaningless after getting destroyed!"

They giggled some more, recovering from the earlier 'laughing' fit.

"A maddening shame that it's impossible to deliver that very same end to every single world, believe me, I tried. But hey! That just means it doesn't matter if you fail in every regard, there is always another stupid earth to live on!"

She was tempted to just fly away now... why didn't she? Yet another ability of theirs?

Either that or it was a mix of shock and an odd curiosity.

They might have true precognition... and might have simulated choking me to death somehow... did the Doctor get others involved in that simulation after watching it happen? Is that how they know about Cauldron? A stretch, but...

"What? You thought humanity's continued existence rested on your shoulders? Well, you were wrong, aren't you relieved? Or do you regret all of your sins even more?"

"SHUT UP!"

"I see you would rather think about anything but that~ Okay! Let me answer some of your questions instead. For starters, you were totally on the right track with those hypotheses of yours!"

"Hypotheses?" Just keep them talking, they will give something useful away eventually.

"Oh, I'm really not worried about that, in fact I would rather have you know as much as possible, just for the sheer discomfort and paranoia that would cause."

...so even thinking isn't safe? She was trying to take everything in stride at this point. Which was better a better alternative over having a breakdown over all of her and her colleagues' conspiracies being exposed.

"Now, where were we? Ah, yes. You were very accurate with your idea about what happened in my 'simulations'." They giggled as they said the word, as if privy to an inside joke.

"You did beg and cry for help after losing control and being brought to the brink of death, but that wasn't the most interesting one to see, which was a pleasant surprise, since I learned that you have friends who would actually answer those cries! Granted, it might have been just 'Earth's mightiest Idiot' being emotional. He was a bit of a weirdo, talking about empty wells and stuff."

They paced around her as they talked, like a vulture, steps sharp and predatory, very unlike their partner's.

"Must be nice, knowing how at least someone has your back. Even that surprisingly incompetent fedora girl did everything she could for you, but she became such a klutz after not even a minute with me, and she was so confident at the start. At least she was easy to convince into talking, she was actually kinda dead inside, or at least very bland, even showed me that nasty flesh garden of yours!"

That... that must have been a part of the Path, right?

"Oh well, my partner is getting impatient, and I had my fun. Here, let me get the door for you this time, don't want to miss the club meetings after all! Especially since you must have a lot to talk about in this one."

Chara grinned jovially, showing all of their teeth, with a fist put through the rest of their head.

"Yeah, that doesn't even hurt. Don't even bother, if you value your time. I would have killed myself again long ago if it was possible to do so. Now go on, Mother dearest must be worried sick."

Alexandria growled and stepped into the Doctor's office, partially covered in dust, and the doorway closed behind her.

She felt shameful relief at the latter.

Last edited: Sep 29, 2016

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acerbicCatharsis

acerbicCatharsis

(Verified Watching You)

They

Sep 8, 2016

#443

Hey K.A.B.N., I know what will cheer you up!

CAPITALIST PROPAGANDA!

And in true capitalist spirit I'll throw in a second poster ABSOLUTELY FREE!

Remember kids, drawing hands sucks, its a universal truth.

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Sep 12, 2016

#445

AN: Not much going on in this chapter as a whole, and I'm not sure if I handled it well. So once again, your opinions and suggestions would be very appreciated.

3.1

I filled in the last part of my biology assignment and put the pen away with a tired relief... then eyed the papers suspiciously in case all my work was suddenly undone, as my partner was currently away, which meant that my homework was at the mercy of their completely random whims.

Huh, this reality still exists... no, too soon, wait for it...

"NO, GOD DAMN IT!!"

I shouted, not from any temporal fuckery, but from a deceptively fluffy ball of living white vile fluffiness dropping on me and hanging on with it's surprisingly painful and tiny claws.

"Meow!?" At least the thing wasn't as smug as usual.

"Let go, damn it!" It did, jumping off onto my desk, scattering everything, and hissing lividly.

I slouched in exasperation and let out a fed up breath, then angrily stomped to my door, opened it, and pointed at the offending feline.

"Get out!" I growled at it, but it responded with jumping and climbing higher up then hissing agressively at me from the safety of a wardrobe's top.

Needless to say, after an epic offense consisting of stacking many thick books on top of my chair, which was very perillious as it was the kind with wheels, and then poking at the stubborn kitten with a ruler, the thing finally let up and scurried off to whatever hell it came from.

"And don't come back! You aren't actually my cat you fraud!"

Satisfied, I collapsed on top of my chair with relief, which doubled upon finding all of my assignments undamaged and still not undone. Even the stacked books poking into my spine didn't take much away from the moment.

Wait... what actual hell did the thing come from? The window was closed!

After a moment of thinking, I warily did what the gang members and such from all over the world kept neglecting to do, looked directly upwards.

"Greetings!"

Yep! There Chara was, casually laying down (up?) on the ceiling. Their longer than usual, about waist high -perfect without bothering with any showers or products like I had to as always- hair splayed open and defying gravity as well.

At least I could take comfort in that I didn't have to worry about being inherently terrifying, not that they cared about that, probably found it amusing even.

They were eating chocolate and looking smug with those big shiny eyes and the snug, featureless, purple robe-thing with white sleeves they were fond of wearing. I was starting to wonder if they were secretly a cat too, they basically were, doing everything as they pleased and eating or being lazy all day.

...yeah, they were totally the human equalivant of the Cheshire Cat. And were likely to be as human as that grinning thing was a cat.

"Hi... okay, no Loads, what did you do?"

I did not police their behavior all the time, since it was not only impossible but also weird of me to do so to begin with, yet them doing something lasting always had me a bit paranoid. Which was justified, with what I knew.

...not that I felt terribly concerned about Emma's face getting remodeled, I wasn't even sure if I would have put much effort into convincing them to take it back if I knew back then. I would choose them over her at any rate, anyway.

Still, I would have preferred to not learn about that whole fiasco and Shadow Stalker, during a perfectly pleasant picnic and make the rest of it very awkward. At least I learned that Sophia had no real friends outside being an emotional crutch for Emma as a result of a cross-questioning the Wards were no longer aware of. Except maybe Dean who would only know that something happened if he was looking at me at the moment.

...still bitter at them and the local PRT for screwing up so badly, admittedly.

"Hmph." The simple noise managed to convey both indignancy and offense-taken at my last comment. "I was just checking Missy's progress with the cooking lessons. And unlike you, partner, she doesn't burn the kitchen down to require any blatant abuse of power."

Oh, that currently little...

"That Happened Only Once! And you are breaking the rules of physics just to look cool, how is that not a 'blatant abuse of power'?" I snarked back, smiling as well.

They gave a big shrug, with their eyes closed and smirking, chocolote bar inexplicably having disappeared somewhere, and then reclined again with their legs crossed and hands behind their head, seemingly napping peacefully with no concern about one of the fundamental forces holding the universe together.

Okay, it really did look cool, and ridiculously comfortable. I wanted to do things like that too, damn it!

...pretty sure they were rubbing it in my face how being flown by Vicky or such was as close to that as I could get.

"Well since I'm not bound by any rules or regulations, there is no boundary for me to cross for my actions to be considered an abuse, and if someone tries to dispute that by bringing in morality and responsibility or such; their opinion is invalid as I'm much stronger than them."

It was hard to argue with their logic, even when they were likely to be making stuff up on the fly.

"While you on the other hand..." They got up, then calmly walked down the wall and onto my desk where they sat down facing me. "...are a US citizen, a Ward under the PRT, and a student with many other social constructs binding you. Also, for someone with an infinite amounts of time to study, you suck at chemistry." They added, grabbing and looking at one of the many papers still scattered over my desk.

I responded by huffing and turning my chair around. "Weren't you the one telling me to completely ditch the school at the start?"

"I mostly meant the dungeon of humilliation, pain and torture called Winslow which you dealt with by standing there and meekly taking everything thrown at you back then. But okay, be lazy, you can always cheat where it matters anyway."

"Yep, thanks to you, so unheroic of me." I replied dryly, and returned the high-five as I lazily rotated the chair back. "We're the worst, the lowest of the low, the evil incarnate."

"Aww, they grow so fast. At this rate, you might even destroy the world soon." I rolled my eyes at that and returned to doing the last of work from school, and Chara disappeared shortly after with not much going on.

...days were too slow without any patrols. At least I could take comfort in the fact that nothing bad enough happened for the Protectorate or the New Wave or such to give me a call. Not even the unpowered fights escalated much anymore, which was notable, right after a full-blown gang war dying quietly.

The enemy are still unsure and even afraid, but won't be able to sustain their vigilance. It will be easy, when the moment is right.

That's the plan, but it would have been much easier without them being so cautious.

ABB was around only in name now, with Lung supposedly out of town to find recruits and to avoid defeat without Oni-Lee to cover him as he ramped up, hopefully gone for good, and the Merchants were down to just Mush and Squealer, barely a presence as well.

The problem was the Empire, who would have maybe driven out even the PRT, without having to spread themselves thin anymore.

But they had to act timid, as they learned with many of their capes getting caught, first with Hookwolf's faction, then Victor followed by Othala along with a just as easily baited Rune during a rescue attempt on the skill-thief. And I wasn't even there in person for the latter ones.

Following those and understanding the precedent of 'every encounter possibly being their last' I was setting up, they started to employ some sort of one-way teleporter, suspected to be a reverse Mouse Protector in ability, as well as the threat of tinker-tech weaponry much more wisely to avoid... pretty much everything they could.

Inconvenient, more than anything else, and the city was looking much better already despite the nazis having no noteworthy rivals. Mostly thanks to the police not being severely impeded by the threat of villains, leaving them free to ramp up the arrests and such.

It was refreshing, seeing the gang-tags on the streets getting covered up to finally stay that way. Seeing even the worst-off places and the most corrupt institutions slowly heal, not influenced by the constant promise of violence...

Or maybe I was just seeing what I hoped to see, maybe what I did wasn't as effective as I wanted it to be, but that wouldn't stop me.

Don't get too hopeful either way, Happy Endings don't last. Even if they did, this is definetly not one yet.

I frowned darkly, the rest of the world, it's worst villains and the Endbringers coming to mind.

...I would get rid of them too, for the rest to be able to maybe heal as well, no matter how slow or small it would be, once I was old enough to join the Guild like Armsmaster suggested.

I had to at least try, to be able to call myself a Hero.

You really like having those dramatic tangents of heroicness while sitting at home in your pajamas, this is the fourth one today. Oh well, it's good to see that you're still so Determined to keep the promises you made to this fair city~

...it was frustrating that they didn't bother with existing physically at the moment for me to throw stuff at them, even if they were very good at dodging for someone seemingly immortal.

Maybe you're just bad at throwing, have you thought of that?

...no, pretty sure your standarts are too high.

After I was done with the school related work, I decided to busy myself with knitting while laying down on my bed, and as I worked on the sweater I was making for Dad, due to the mention of promises my mind wandered to... the rather passionate press-statement I gave to truly become a Ward in public's eye two days after Alexandria's visit.

...which resulted with the Director scolding me for going off script and antogonising the gangs.

You basically promised to deliver a genocide on every single villain and their followers. So she might have had a point.

D-don't put it like that, I'm not out to murder them!

A crusade then.

And you are the one basically writing my speeches, I wouldn't have gone off declaring cheesy stuff like 'My power is invincible and you have no hope!' or 'I'm the gravest consequence of your actions.' if not for you!

I only helped you at phrasing your own ideas to become the deterrent you were aiming to be. Besides, would you have preferred if there were to be misunderstandings about things resuming to the way they were? I think the whole speech was inarguably decisive for our purposes.

Still think it was a bit too dramatic.

It's hard not to be cocky, sarcastic or dramatic when you have the level of reality manipulation that I do. And it's the same with you as well, treating life as the 'play' it begins to resemble and acting like fun and games whenever you have to do one thing too much more than once.

...I should really stop getting into easily derailed arguements with you.

But you won't, I'm the easiest person for you to complain to and to complain about.

Well, you are almost constantly around in my head or soul or whatever. Like an imaginary friend, but real.

So like a tulpa?

Yeah, something like that. But coming from an eerie dark void instead of my mind.

I wasn't actually born there. At least I think so. Everything is possible, I guess, since even I don't really know what I am.

Huh, that's a relief. I was getting woried that they weren't joking about being a literal demon.

I'm still melting or burning any crosses I find in my vicinity, it's too amusing not to.

As we were discussing the viability of such a decision, my dad knocked at the still open door, prompting me to frantically hide the knitting needless and the yarn behind me.

"Hey deary, I'm going out for groceries, need anything?"

Uhh, chocolate?

I got crates of the stuff stashed away inside the void now. It's even better than a refrigerator.

...huh, makes sense.

"Nothing in particular... but could you wait a few minutes downstairs? I... I have a surprise for you." I smiled at him, hoping that I wasn't accidentally making a Chara impression again.

"...okay?" He answered, unsure but curious, before walking off with the familiar creaks and squeaks of our home accompanying him.

We had been growing apart again lately, mostly due to me waving him off being my first response whenever he got worried, or changing the subject if that didn't work. And I have been avoiding him recently too, to escape the fallout of the mentioned dramatic press-statement.

I... I didn't want that.

I was embarrassed for letting things devolve back to this.

Trying to live my life around him instead of with him, telling him as little as possible and keeping our interractions to 'good mornings' and such... it was stupid, being bound to old habits like that.

And I didn't want that. I was certain.

So that's why I was making him a sweater... which might not have been what we really needed, but I had to start somewhere, to at least let him know that I still cared.

I ignored the doubts surfacing with that last thought, concentrating on my work.

Now, how do I...

You know what, gimme, I will do the last touches, okay? Watch carefully.

Oh... thanks.

It felt odd, watching my own hands work somewhat awkwardly with skill not my own, but weirdly relaxing too when used to it.

Umm...you are enthusiastic about teaching stuff, I noticed.

It's a thing to do.

I looked over what I created one more time, alternating between embarrassment, a fickle pride and anxiousness as if playing with a switch.

It was a simple thing. Dark brown with 'Best Dad' written in white in front of it with big, wobbly letters, giving a more childish feel. And maybe it was not completely even on both sides as I had to approximate it according to Dad's other clothing and due to my inexperience, but my partner assured me he wouldn't mind.

He craves a better parental relationship as much as you do. That bland loser doesn't have much else to genuinely look forward to in life.

...well, I knew they didn't hold practically anyone in high-regards either, so at least their opinion of him wasn't that insulting.

Yeah, he is also a forgettable bland loser, there are just too many of those around.

It really hurt that I couldn't think of a way to protest in a meaningful way. Dad loved me, would do a lot for me, and had the dedication to keep the Dockworkers' union going... but that wasn't much from my partner's point of view. 'His excuses to keep going', they called it.

I'm sure you will come up with something, we can wait some more.

Uhh... He has friends! Like Kurt, Lacey and many others from the union! He has more to his life than just work and me.

...I know your experience would tell you otherwise, but having those is not anything special.

Before they could go on about how all Dad did was meaningless or such, I remembered something important to keep in mind when having a prolonged conversation with them; arguing over a thing like that with someone who had no feelings, morals, or any real regards towards social norms was definetly not productive.

Right... seeing everything as worthless sucks, good catch again partner. Now let's stop thinking about thinking.

This is why you are around me in the first place, just doing my part. I responded, noticably giddy.

It was frighteningly easy for me to fall into Chara's cynicalism and despair as well sometimes, but we managed.

"So... what you got there?" He asked from the couch, already with a smile easily reaching his eyes.

I wordlessly revealed the sweater to him with an over the top flourish, biting my lips.

"Oh..." He got up and took the fuzzy thing from me, looking it over with a hard to describe blend of expressions, but happiness was in there for sure. "...you made this?"

I nodded quickly. "But I had help, from Chara, the uhh... girl who made pasta that one time." I added, not wanting to take the whole credit.

He put it on, but not before looking over the text of 'Best Dad' once more with some trepidation, and perhaps shame.

"It's beautiful, think I should wear it to work, or would it be too much like bragging?"

I chuckled at that, but didn't reply, unable to think of an answer. Causing an awkward silence.

"So... uh, how is that friend of yours?" He asked, after we settled down on the couch.

I had to take a moment to remember in order to answer, as Chara tended to completely make up who or what they were to explain their appearance every time they met someone.

"They are fine. I'm still taking cooking lessons from them." Again, I was not great at conversations like these.

"Oh... I really liked the pie you made the other day." Neither was he, at least in this situation. "You uhh... are you two... close?"

If I were drinking something at the moment, I would have both spit it out all over the place and choked on it.

Chara could be oddly pretty in a still unsettling way, enough to make me momentarily flustered without trying sometimes, and fortunately didn't prefer to take the appearance of what I considered to be 'my type' like Carlos and Rory but...

Damn it Dad, I didn't need that image in my head.

"N-No!" I then looked at him sheepishly. "I uhh... see them more as a sibling, really."

Huh... I guess I actually did, or someting close, now that I think of it.

Aww, my nonexistant heart is melting by proxy.

"I see..." He trailed off.

And we settled into a silence once again, somehow more comfortable this time.

"Taylor, I..." I took a deep breath in preparation, recognising the tone as too sincere. "...I want you to know that you are brilliant, and are doing more than anyone has any right to ask of you, and have done nothing wrong... you're a good girl, and my little owl too."

I was tempted to get up and pace, maybe just leave to my room as well, but for a moment Dad held on to me... and I decided against it.

"I know that I can't truly understand how you feel... but I recognise this time how much you worry now, how driven you are to not stand by and to do the right thing, also the doubt that comes with it... just like Annette."

I felt my eyes widen, now suddenly teary, making me feel weak for losing control like that. All those emotions clashing inside me like a storm... this was too sudden, I was not prepared, damnit.

But still... Mom was usually a subject we avoided, yet being compared to her in this manner... I couldn't help but feel proud.

"Perhaps it's meaningless of me to say that but... everything will be allright."

For a moment as I sat there, still confused about what I was feeling... all was fine.

"Heh... heheh... I'm such a shitty hero."

I let myself collapse in the pristine hallway, finally accepting the situation, feeling unbearably filthy with biting relief, and too exhausted... no, too distraught to even move anymore.

Armsmaster, the Protectorate leader moved on to do what he had to, recognising that he wouldn't be able to come up with the right thing to say, and the other Heroes followed silently, awingly unerring in my eyes.

The Simurgh is descending on Canberra, and I'm not even allowed to be there.

Such a joke.

It's not funny.

Last edited: Dec 21, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Sep 25, 2016

#469

Edit: I forgot to thank Major Session for his help with this... sorry.

3.2

I bit down on my sandwich agressively, trying to satisfy my still present need for physical violence by mentally replacing the bread with something much more lively.

The thing wasn't even good, who the hell thought that putting white cheese in there was a good idea, ruining a perfectly fine sandwich? Cheddar was just fine, way better than this too salty, flaky excuse of a dairy product currently offending my taste buds as well as wasting my time and money.

...I will try to be calmer and get something I would acually want to eat, next time, maybe.

Food... such an amazing... concept? Whatever it is, we should cherish it, appreciate it, relish it, be grateful for our ability to experience tastes so diverse and sublime!

...I think I'm too angry to have normal thoughts. But I'm pretty sure I was trying to look at the bright side of things there. Hah, optimism! A sign of me doing mentally well despite everything!

"Hey there Tays! Can I join your lunch?"

I groaned in response as the waves of admiration and sincereness washed over me. I threw a sharp glare at Dean who was at the other end of the noisy caffeteria for directing his girlfriend towards me. I told him, especially him to leave me alone for a while.

That's right, look away in shame and listen to bad jokes from Dennis.

Despite the vague response, Vicky made herself at home with some clatters from platters and cuttlery, having bothered to get some proper food unlike me.

"So... everything okay?" She asked as a conversation starter, I must have had a rather severe expression if she had to go for something so generic.

"Cut. That. Out." I said slowly, actually growled out, despite my efforts to keep calm. I was easily irritable today.

Normally, I tolerated her obnoxiously inviting aura, with some mild offense and annoyance, as it was something like trying to constantly breathe on manual for her, but I had no patience for it with my mood right now.

"Ah, sorry about that. Are you going to-"

"Are you?" I asked impulsively, currently not at all bothering to filter anything. My mood and the annoying headache I had made it very difficult to care about doing so, along with the obvious excuse to not give a damn.

"What?" She asked back innocently with a little pout. Adorable, really.

"Are you really sorry Victoria? Because, from what I know, those words don't hold much merit for you. Are you being dishonest with me?"

It was still too satisfying to see her look at me with hurt confusion, attempt to retalliate hotly, and then look away indignantly with clearly not enough shame.

I heard my partner laugh gleefully at the exchange. I still felt guilty and dirty after doing things like these, but Chara probably relished those unpleasant feelings as well.

"I mean," I drew some circles in the air with one hand as I lazily laid my head down on the arm. "-you went and did the excessive violence thing four times despite giving who knows how many promises to poor Amy. And let's be honest, you weren't going to stop, didn't even feel wrong for doing so. Just criminals, right?"

She stood up sharply at that, making me grimace from where I was resting as the waves of enforced emotions assaulted me once again.

But I could tell, beneath the knee-jerk anger, the words hurt, hitting her where she was the most insecure and unsure.

I giggled as she sat back down, still indignant, so predictable.

...it wasn't my fault that playing with people like this was so... fun.

At first, I though I could have something with her akin to what I had with Emma, seeing that she had a somewhat similar personality and a social standing while also being a known Hero who was kind enough to keep company to the suicidally-depressed me way back inthat timeline.

Then I learned how 'Alexandria jr.' had a streak of covering up almost-fatal injuries against random unpowered mooks.

Which was only slightly disillusioning, as I could understand where she was coming from, having myself more than once reloaded after hitting a skinhead too hard with a baton for spitting out racist bullshit.

I mean... we were still close, certainly friends. I even told her about the shit that went down at Winslow, about the bullying, with my partner's encouragement, and it was certainly a relieving experience.

But that certainly did not help with my diminishing opinion on her upon finding out more about her hypocritical, self-important behavior as well as having to sit through way too many frankly insufferable shopping trips.

So not the 'Best Friend' I wanted, at least not right away. Which was admittedly foolish to expect. But right now, despite appreciating her still sitting there for me...

"You piss me off, people like you..." She looked up at me with a startled surprise, having been distracted by her own thoughts as well, still reeling from my earlier bluntness.

"I discussed with my partner what would it take to theoretically make this city, or at least parts of it perfect. Already knowing that it was impossible, mind you." I was now sitting straight and drumming my fingers heavily on the circular table, keeping my tone 'professional' and staring Vicky directly in the eye. She was confused by, and even slightly afraid of my odd, indulging behavior, used to seeing me being playful even in serious situations.

I think this is why Chara enjoyed making people uncomfortable... there was something universally satisfying about it. Maybe it was the feeling of being in Control of the others' reactions?

"One of the conclusions we came to was how idiots or opportunists acting on their own who justified themselves and whatever they did as 'right' or 'necessary' or such would always exist and could always potentionally ruin everything. Slowly stacking up their pile of selfish bullshit, one more 'acceptable' step at a time with others around getting used to the smell too. The worst type of evil not being aware of it being so and all that. Whether they were to be powered or not, no matter their intentions. I mean, just look at all the nazis who claim to be working for the greater good and even calling themselves heroes, or-"

"Look, I'm not like that bitch, okay?" She interrupted, seeing the comparison I was going to make.

I felt... a sort of pride when she wilted at my unimpressed glare. I sat silently for a moment to appreciate the feeling, it was why I was doing this, after all. To feel something other than churning misery and grudges.

That edgy wannabe, ruining everything...

"Ah, so Dean did tell you why I was moody... you're right, you're definetly not as edgy."

She chuckled lightly at that, I laughed. Encouraged, she laughed too... then I finally lost my temper.

"I can't believe..." I stood up sharply and threw the half-finished sandwich at the wall. "-that that bitch..." Unsatisfied, I kicked at my chair, sending it noisily skidding on the floor, attracting a lot of attention. "-managed to get away with her shit for such bullshit reasons!"

An irresponsible case-worker, a bitchy principal, and a lawyer-daddy, just... URGHH! Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid...

It was like a goddamn joke, planets alligning over and over again to screw me over!

...okay better go back now, everyone was looking at me weirdly, judging by the utter lack of caffeteria noises, and I wasn't the only one throwing a tantrum judging by the lack of sarcastic comments echoing in my head, it was not unlikely for the PHQ to be at the bottom of the sea by now.

I half-heartedly glared at Dean again. Just to say 'I know', more than anything. And he gave a thumbs up in response this time, seeing the lack of any meaningful animosity... damn it.

At least he was still going to choke on orange juice at some likely to be prude joke Dennis was about to make.

"So... everything okay?" She asked as a conversation starter, I must have looked even more exhausted and miserable than I thought for her to go for something so generic.

In response, I furrowed my brows in a particular way, which made her do an 'oh' face and look away bashfully as I felt the invasive aura recede.

"Today I learned that the bitch who almost murdered me, tortured me daily, and turned my best friend against me was also running around with my current 'friends' calling herself a 'Hero'... so no, I'm still bitter about that." That was an understatement, the thought of such a lack of consequences was still driving me crazy.

Stupid, so stupid... ridiculous, like a joke...

"Oh... that sounds even worse than how Dean told me." She sounded genuinely sympathetic, making me look down with some shame for exploiting her good will earlier for some messed up stress-relief.

She was not the greatest person... but was also far, far from the worst. Still... she was close enough to both of them in some ways that I did feel gratification from screwing with her, even if it did make me feel somewhat uneasy.

...but no, I was honestly angry at her behaviour too, even if it wasn't to the same degree. What if she punched someone innocent into a wall and then attempt to cover it up with her sister? Just the tought of her leveraging her lawyer-parent to shut anyone up made me angry. And I could honestly see her doing just that, even if not completely willingly.

"He probably only figured out that I was... really pissed off at Shadow Stalker's civillian ID, didn't want to talk about it at the time."

I acually did 'talk about it', to confirm that none of my friends were enablers, so vigorously in fact, I wasn't even sure who knew what right now with the amount of Loads involved.

And then was left with an empty feeling at the bottom of my gut when it turned out that all of them had the best intentions in mind and were nothing like the teenager demographic back at Winslow.

...yet I couldn't help but still compare Vicky to Sophia, both 'Heroes' who covered up some messed up stuff and carried on without any lingering guilt, thinking that their good deeds more than made up for it.

I wasn't being exactly fair and rational here, nor was I terribly concerned about being so. I allowed myself that, at least for a while.

...I wonder if the white brightness of pure pureness deal Arcadia has even in the caffeteria helps my mood, or makes it worse. The frosted windows made it look like we were in some damn purgatory whenever there was just a little bit of light outside, how did they even manage that? And how much did they pay people here to keep the silverware so sparkly? Or were my standarts were overly low? Everything here was just so... pristine.

"Sorry, I wasn't listening." I replied when her little rant about accountability was over... like I said, a hypocrite. "Look... I'm just... thinking in circles... and very negatively..." I wasn't usually this bitchy, was I? "...I will probably be fine in a few days." It was fine, no one was really hurt except in some forever forgotten memories.

"Hmm, I see." She started, nodding sagely.

...I hated this about her too, at least right now.

"Now, why not, instead of sulking all day, we go to the Board-"

"Vicky." I interrupted, knowing where this was going. "Shopping trips with you, for me, are frankly insufferable. I really have no patience for you to go looking at at least a hundred pieces of overpriced clothing I don't give a damn about." On my own time picking stuff for my own liking? Maybe. But it was a very different experience with Vicky involved.

She momentarily looked at me with a hurt expression, again with that slight pout. Still adorable, no wonder Dean kept emptying his wallet for her.

...I used to feel noticably guilty when she did that, Chara was apparently right about it getting progressively easier too.

Maybe that was concerning, but at the moment, I didn't care. I was still a Ward despite that fiasco, nobody had any right to judge.

...as I said, thinking in circles, negatively, and likely hypocritically. It got more self-defeating the more I cared and thought.

Hypocrisy... such a fun subject to think about. God, and it was everywhere when you did so, like constantly hearing a new word you learned being used.

"You can just talk at me you know? I'm listening. I know it sounds like nonesense but... it helps. At least that's what Amy said..." Vicky piped in after a few more moments of silent fuming.

Wordless, I looked blankly ahead for a few more moments, before letting out a shaky sigh.

"You... are a good friend Vicky, despite everything. I shouldn't forget that."

"Thanks?" I must not have been great at compliments given how confused she sounded.

"It... it kinda ruined everything you know, and now everything is daunting." I started after a while of thinking, finding it hard to put my exact issues into words.

"I had... have this Dream I'm working for, of winning completely, making this city into something at least close to perfect. A victory so great for the Heroes, that they would see this place as a spot, a symbol of Hope." I paused, biting back some anxiety that told me to stop talking about such nonesense, and continued softly.

"I experienced, no realised that I was experiencing a special sort of despair once; the idea, the reality of the Endbringers, Villains and other despicable things slowly eating away at the civillisation, ultimately reaching the bone despite so many selfless efforts... everyone has that despair buried somewhere within, and it's maddening, maybe that's why so many people with powers chose to be selfish and carve a place for themselves, seeing every other option as pointless."

Brockton Bay is, or used to be the embodiment of that idea, a microcosm perhaps. With Lung playing the Endbringer, a monster that regularly caused untold destruction, Kaiser's Empire being the desperate people who chose to be selfish in response, and the PRT, Protectorate and New Wave being perfectly insufficent to stop things from getting worse.

Grossly oversimplified and maybe inaccurate perhaps, but I reckoned that model to be accurate to some degree.

Vicky listened attentively as I searched for my following words. Which was assuring.

"So yes, I wanted to be the Great Hero who would show the world that it was possible to recover even from the worst. Now, I know how I sound, a new and inexperienced cape who is an idiot and doesn't know how things work. Too idealistic, too naive... well, maybe I am those to some extent. But I am aware how... people themselves are a problem. I just figured out I could go forward anyway, do you understand?" I chuckled softly, surprised at how much I felt the need to say, all those weren't even necessarily relevant. Not that I was managing to articulare myself exactly in the way I wanted in the first place.

"But honestly, I do what I do, not from any sense of genuine Heroism or goodness, neither from any strong Want for achieving that Dream, at least not primarily, but because I feel like I'm responsible to at leasy try, after finding something resembling a Happy Ending and with a power like mine..."

Is this how Dad felt, struggling to secure jobs at the docks practically all by himself? Was he genuinely hopeful about getting anywhere?

I wasn't checking Vicky's reactions at this point, looking down and still struggling to find the right words instead.

Right words... damn it, why was it so hard.

"So when I learned that the very organisation I decided to dedicate my cause to and my friends turned out to be directly responsible for the worst years of my life with their incompetence and ignorance... it made me really demotivated, bitter, and miserable."

Was that actually true? Was that the reason for me to be feeling the way I felt? Or was it just an excuse at this point? It hurt to think about... like trying to make out the heads and tails of an ouroboros consisting of half a dosen tangled up snakes.

"Wow... didn't know your plans were so... grand. Um... it's actually impressive how relatively calmly you're taking all this. Not even suing the PRT and all." Vicky might have been more socially inclined than I was, but even she was at a loss on what to say for this.

"It would be too bothersome, the same reason I haven't been getting back at Winslow, really. Besides... I have my ways of venting." Like yelling at people, toying with their feelings, and generally amusing myself by seeing their reactions to all sorts of stuff.

...I wasn't very proud of that, as it was something a sociopathic megolamaniac would do in his free time... but the experience was still fascinating, and nobody got hurt. It was mostly an abstract issue of morality really, maybe a rather complex one at that.

Oh, so are you finally done with the 'oh, I'm such a bad girl!' act? Dishonest angst like that is rather annoying. And besides, being thrilled by seeing her reaction to getting hurt by you only shows how much you love her as a friend. Since it's not something you would normally or publicly do, like a guilty pleasure.

I... will keep that in mind. So you've been quiet, is something wrong?

I get emotionally exhausted, irritable, and depressed while near to you. I can appreciate those feelings for a while, but overall, it kinda sucks.

Right... sorry.

"Hmm... well, it sounds like you'll be brooding and questioning the meaning of life like this for a few days."

It felt more like a few months, but she was probably correct.

"Where are you going with this?" I asked wearily, but I was glad that my opinion on shopping didn't discourage her.

"Well, seeing that you are generally pissed off at the world, I say we 'go out' and let it be known."

That... did sound better than occupying myself with bitter, repetitive, and unhelpful thoughts throughout the day. But...

"So you want me not only to ditch school but to 'go out' without permission from the PRT? And didn't your family also set up a console system to prevent 'unruly behavior?"

I wasn't actually very concerned about those, but it felt very awkward to-

I already have the costume. The old one, to not raise questions about how you got the fancier version.

"Oh nevermind, we're going. Winning always feels good anyway."

Glory Girl floated gently, as she followed Dreamer, who was surprisingly good at roof-hopping, traversing the uneven architecture of the Docks via many means with no hesitation about tripping or falling, but admittedly with far less grace.

The weather was sunnier than Victoria was used to, giving the city a brighter color palette, and there wasn't much traffic also due to the hour, making the excursion much more pleasant... not that the other girl seemed to be in a mood to appreciate that.

It was jarring to see the usually immaculate, calm, and mirthful 'Dreamer' sloppily parkouring to cope with an inner turmoil. It made her look like a crazy-person with the colorful and somewhat formal costume sporting such abuse.

"Ouch." She intoned in the place of her friend for dropping from a rather high ledge and into an improvised roll. Whose only (under)reaction was an annoyed growl as she shook her probably bruised arm and dusted her cloak. Which was rather disturbing coming from an askew smiley face.

"So... have you actually made any headway with that grand plan of yours? Or is it still just a concept?" The blonde asked as she lowered herself, wincing a bit when she noticed the other girl was slightly limping.

She seemed passionate about 'winning completely' , which means she would want to talk about it, right?

"I talked about it both with Piggot and Armsmaster. I still hate the former for trying to bury the Shadow Stalker issue, but I admit the woman knows how to use what she has." The bitter contempt got through despite her attempt at keep her tone even and characteristically cheerful.

She certainly does.

The heroine thought unpleasantly. Remembering her own encounters with the no-nonesense Director. More than once had the woman tried to get the New Wave under 'a proper supervision'... which she turned out to be right to worry about, as Victoria herself proved.

"It's uncanny, how much she reminds me of my old principal... I wonder if being bitchy gets you authority over shitty places or the other way around. Damn, I wish I could just hate them, cut all my ties and save the day on my own, reality sucks."

Glory Girl nodded in sympathy, remembering the Thinker's earlier rant about it being too easy to hate the figureheads with not many options instead of the system dealing their hands. And her following acknowledgement of a need to work together.

Not many were so emphatetic, either hotly choosing to be vigilantes or even villains and perhaps ironically making things worse. It was actually outstanding how fast she internalised the situation of the cape-scene.

Didn't she also talk about good deeds paving the way to hell sort of stuff earlier? It all comes together now... damn, reality does suck, it's too complex and full of... consequences.

She learned that herself way back, earning the nickname 'Colleteral Barbie'... she tried to not let it get to her.

"Can't blame Blackwell for needing a Ward at school, can't blame Piggot for not want to risk losing me... " She grumbled once again and sat down on a ledge facing her to catch her breath, a bit awkwardly with the cloak in the way, probably feeling sweaty and miserable beneath the inconvenient costume. "... at least none of my teammates were happy with all the nonesense." Oh, she was venting, success!

"Well, you wanted to get rid of the circumstances making this shit possible and even necessary, right?"

That got her to look up sharply, making Victoria nerveously giggle at the vague reaction.

"Right, I should keep that in mind... uhh, thanks for listening. I thought that what I was saying was coming off as nonesense."

Gratitude... that was gratitude. Whew, I didn't mess up!

"Not at all! You're actually, um, uncommonly passionate. Not taking the status quo as a must and all."

"Hmm... not uncommon, I would say. There are many others, including you who want to make a lasting change for the better... I'm just powerful enough to do it without ruining everything and also pleasing the public! Unlike you guys who are severely gimped~"

It was both awesome and concerning when she said stuff like that.

"Hmm... do you see that store at the corner? Yeah, go stand in front of it, and prepare to stomp hard on a fancy go-kart. Don't worry about holding back." She sounded disproportionately nonchalant given the message delivered.

Glory Girl recognised this as her doing her 'thing'. Where she showed up, or called, and then proceeded to casually solve whatever the issue was step by step.

A hostage situation? Here's the exact thing to say to get through it smoothly. Now feel free to laser or punch him to your hearts' content!

A gunfight? Already alerted the authorities before it could even start. But hurry up, they need you to tackle the fat guy with the detonator.

Oh, and here's the exact route one of Squealer's vehicles will take. Screw their bullshit invisibility. Also, you just knocked out Skidmark with that, congrats!

And many more.

The competence, even more so than her insight, made it rather hard to believe that the girl standing by her side was only at it for barely more than a month. It was like the Ward's mere presence meant victory, even now she felt relatively relaxed knowing that nothing would go wrong with her friend watching over the situation.

"Go-karts?" She still asked. "Uh, let me guess; Uber & Leet?" They were the safe bet if something ridiculous was involved.

"Yep!" She chirped and didn't elobarate any further, didn't even turn to look at her, wordlessly gazing down at the street she had pointed at earlier instead. Which was conspiciously vacant, the work of the police, most likely. Explaining the earlier phone-break.

Glory Girl floated away moments later after an awkward period of silence, seeing that her company had nothing more to say or ask for.

At least she seems to be back to normal, leaving me hanging like that just 'cause...

It wasn't anything new, really, her getting very blunt and to the point while talking and spacing off more than usual while using her power just before an event. It was a sharp contrast with the smug and hammy play she put on while actually in action.

Hmm... I think I hear them coming.

The noise of engines was there... but it lacked a certain 'booming' behind it. Making her think it was coming out of some speakers instead.

She almost laughed out loud at that. If true, that was pathetic even by Leet's standarts.

Shortly after, she floated up, listening to the approaching sounds carefully and approximating exactly when and where she should come crashing down.

If Taylor left this so up to me, it either means that I'll totally nail it, or that it doesn't matter if I miss... wait, is this why Clockblocker keeps regularly shouting 'BULLSHIT!" whenever doing something with her? Sounds about right.

She then let herself fall, barely catching the red and blue kart with angry sounds of metal tearing and warping. Über was playing the part of Mario again, it seemed.

Even with a severly damaged vehicle, the Thinker of the duo manged to swerve and drift the kart in a way that led to a safe, if disorianting stop with his driving skills

"What the hell you bitch?! Are you actually crazy!? That could have killed him!" Leet yelled at her hotly from where he made a sudden stop as well, clearly panicking and concerned for his partner in crime.

Victoria momentarily faltered at the good point the tinker made, but quickly regained her composure.

"Don't worry, she is here, so nothing is a coincedence. Still, gotta admit that you two got terribly unlucky." Then she got back to removing the deformed machinery warped around her boots.

Unless she is more pissed off than she has been letting on... nah, Taylor wouldn't commit murder, not on these two clowns. I think.

It was admittedly hard to read her with how she rapidly changed moods and mindsets especially when needing to use her power... but she was always a Hero in the end, while also being simultaniously scary and dorky.

She even called us crown-buddies more than once... definetly not murdery. Still, should have thought this through especially with that camera flitting around... Mom's gonna be pissed.

Leet looked at her with confusion oddly fitting for his Luigi cosplay, and then switched to a terrified realisation when he spotted Dreamer menacingly strolling out of an alleyway with a baton in hand towards an Über still recovering from the shaky ride.

"Fuck, why is she here? She isn't supposed to... I wasn't prepared for any... Fuck!" The tinker was understandably shaking now, visibly arguing against himself on just driving off without his friend, if only for a few moments.

There were still debates about 'the supposed ultimate precog'; on her powers, on whether or not she was involved in any given incident, and her patterns. Regardless, a few things were unofically agreed on.

Dreamer would in some way influence the events if enough of a fuss was made, not even in person more often than not, and the only way to 'win' in that case was running away, preferrably by teleporting, as all other options led to a certain defeat, which meant the end of the road, as she also evidently watched over any breakout attempts. Turning every encounter into a possible 'last stand'.

The latter, more so than the rest was what made her so popular, or notorious depending on who you asked.

"So what's it gonna be? Against a GM who doesn't give a damn about how many twenties you roll!" She dearly hoped that what she just said made sense, they were on stream, after all.

Then her fears of looking silly on camera were realised when Leet regained some of his composure and shot her with a net exploding out of a metal sphere from a modified t-shirt cannon he pulled out of his hammerspace, obviously no longer concerned about staying in-character, even ripping off the fake moustache and throwing away the silly hat.

"Hey!" She shouted out as she struggled against the surprisingly resilent transparent net which also somehow anchored her to the ground, but the tinker opted to ignore her, trusting his invention to keep the blonde girl out of the play for at least long enough, much more concerned about the unusually competent Ward instead.

Who meanwhile had, with an ominously uncharacteristic lack of commentary and brovado, reached and engaged Über in a confrontation, swinging at him before he could even get out of the ruined kart after the stuck safety belts slowed him down.

Not wasting time? No, she wouldn't say no to hamming it up, even with no one watching... she isn't letting him max out his kung-fu skills, of course!

Losing balance from the hit to his back and the lingering dizziness... Über tripped and fell clumsily on his back onto some scattered wreckage from the gutted part of the kart, dropping his red cap. Which looked as pitiful as it looked painful, since he was dressed like a middle-aged, plump plumber.

"What are you even doing?" Dreamer asked, sounding annoyed more than anything, then turned away to walk towards the still struggling and groaning Über who had fallen to the opposite side of the stylised vehicle.

Leet responded to the dismissal by frantically swearing and throwing his weapon away, then digging into his fanny pack for something else to use, as the second sphere he fired malfunctioned and dropped on the ground in a sorry state after travelling only a few feet.

"You should be running away." The masked girl stated as she kicked the Villain back down, as hard as it was hard to currently think of him as such, eliciting another pained groan. "Are you seriously expecting the power of friendship, or maybe love to help you?" She giggled and kicked away the fanny pack, which matched the one the still standing 'Brother' was going through "Oh, and Spoilers; all those two nebulous forces would do for you, would be to irk me for you two scum for having something like that in the first place! Hihi~" She finished with a shrug, tilting her head to the side as if winking.

Geez Taylor, tone down the psycho vibes, will you? Don't they give you guys PR managers for this sort of stuff?

Unnerved, Leet took a few steps back towards his still functional kart, before taking a few deep breaths and going back to digging into his seemingly bottomless bag. Appearing to be unable to actually choose in the daunting situation.

"Oh, but you see it, don't you? You know exactly how desperate you should be... with everything you have worked for and everything you had being about to be taken away from you!" She announced for all to hear, finding it humorous judging by the tone, and started to calmly walk towards the tinker after one more kick to the thinker. "Use that desperation then! Take all the chances, pull out all the tricks, scrape the bottom of the barrel! But know, that all you do against me will be..." She took a deep breath, after stopping and doubling over with ugly laughter as if exclusively in the know of a mean prank being pulled."...useless, useless, useless, USELESS!!"

W-what the fuck Taylor? It's just Leet, why are you letting all the crazy ou- ...oh, the snitch! It's not just him she is telling that to! Hah, awesome! ...unless the intended audience is Shadow Stalker only, instead of all the criminals in general, then it's... kinda unsettling also.

Apparently, the repeated yelling made the scrawnier member of the duo make up his mind and bolt, turning his back to the possibly unhinged thinker.

"Because I have a Dream!" She continued, undettered and enthusiastic as she threw the baton, the stick hitting the back of his head after furiously twirling through the air. "I don't care who I have to ruin, I have a need to reach the end, and I'm Determined to go through!"

Okay, that sounds less deranged and actually somewhat heroic, at least.

Then she jumped on and tasered the tinker who fell from the impact, with an unwawering smile against any and all protests, into submission.

"Uhh... Success? ...look, I needed him to be dispirited enough to not grab anything out of his bag of tricks of self-destruction... and now I'm left with only half the lines I was planning to use for the press-conference... let me just get you out of that net. W-why are you looking at me like that? Is something funny?"

...yep, she's definetly over the blue mood from earlier. Another job well done!

"I mean.. I still can't get over of them not letting us go. You get what I'm saying?"

Amy gave her sister a subdued thumbs up once again, eyes wearily glued on the shaky early footage from Canberra playing on the TV.

"Well... at least you'll be able to do something useful after all is said and done... damn, the whole Protectorate is going! Why isn't New Wave?"

Amy bit her lip and grabbed at a pillow, already feeling exhausted at the prospect of travelling and aftermath of yet another Endbringer, and nodded slightly.

Was this couch always this comfy? Why can't it just... swallow me whole for a while? Like, for just a month...

"I mean, I can fly fast and hit hard like Alexan... Hello, Dean~" She abdurtly interrupted her rant to answer her phone, going from indignant to painfully flirtatious in mere moments.

"Oh, I figured she would be like that, kinda feeling the same here, honestly. How bad? Is it worse than... you know, that time..."

Huh, so I guess they aren't sending nuclear launch codes to an omnicidal maniac... yay. Wonder what would they call her if that were to happen... Nightmare?

It didn't take much for Amy to guess which mutual friend they were talking about, and only slightly more to figure out what 'that time' referred to.

An unhappy Taylor was an odd and rare thing to be around. As the one time she was particularly displeased, aside from constant brooding, she randomly alternated between unsubtly complaining about 'Fucking Edgelords!', being pissed at inane things like dairy products, and intense glaring coupled with oddly specific mutterings... all ultimately followed by 'going out' and acting absoulutely insane even by Brockton Bay standards.

Oh, and her perhaps equally insane psychic friend apparently ate a bunch of flowers to vent... for her?... so at least they are creepy towards everyone and not just me.

She shuddered at the mere memory of unignorable words stabbing through her mind followed by the heavy smell of burning buttercups.

...she could almost feel the smell even now.

"What? Actually ate all the chocolate?! But she rarely even... powers acting off? That's weird... Uh, what about Chara, they usually cheer her up just by being around!... gone as well? Okay, I'm coming! Better than pacing around in my home anyway..."

Don't leave, please.

"Hey Ames! I'm gonna go drag Tays out of her emo-phase again, wanna join?"

"No, have fun. I uhh... have to prepare some stuff for the... you-know-what."

"Oh... um, don't stress over the bird-bitch too much. It will be fine, like always."

"I-it's okay... her real victims won't need healing anyway. It won't be as tiring..."

Damn it! That was the worst thing to say!

Hmm... she went out in costume without letting Carol know again... ugh, whatever, no one actually cares enough to do the supervising, it was a dishonest effort to begin with.

As usual with when she was alone at home, she felt lost, directionless. And to make it worse, the stressful thoughts stemming from the ongoing Endbringer attack made it hard to occupy herself with food, movies or silly videos for long.

Screw you Alice! Of course you're mad! Not running away upon seeing that permanently grinning, condescending not-cat! Why do I even have this on here?

She put her phone away with a frustrated sigh, suddenly empathysing with the concept of being angry at cheese. Then after a few moments of fidgeting, she put her hand back on the device.

Jerry the Third is conjugating with... Larry the Fourth? Or someone similar enough... must be fate, so romantic... yes, exchange those genetic materials! Increase your chances of survival! Hahaha, I need help...

She paced around, opened the fridge, internally debated on if dubbing the identical bacteria she barely recognised from before as 'the Second' or so was culturally insensitive, laughed happily, closed the fridge, jumped on the couch, up , up , got embarrassed, opened the fridge, tried to recall how the hell fridges worked, failed, looked it up on the internet, felt hollow satisfaction from knowing more, somehow ended up browsing articles on cold fusion, became once-again disillusioned with the lies of existence, closed the fridge.

Wait!

Opened the fridge, took some ice-cream, closed the fridge, opened the fridge and put it back.

Nevermind.

This... depressed behavior was getting depressing.

After standing still for a minute or so without thinking about anything, Amy walked off to the bathroom and splashed her face with some cold water, trying to regain some of her fortitude.

What am I even doing with my life?

She thought as she looked into the mirror, wondering if she always looked so tired, and briefly entertained the notion of covering her face with some of the make-up her sister left lying around. She would probably end up looking like a clown, if she tried.

I feel like I'm constantly going through the motions... is it even still me at this point?

"That would depend on your point of reference, but ironically, you are a natural down to the soul at keeping yourself from changing."

She flinched and froze from where she was looking down at the sink, heart beating as if trying to break out, an unpleasant feeling which was not-quite fear filling her.

She recognised both the voice, and the damnably charming, even musical quality it carried, which was very out of place, as the former was her own, yet they made it disturbingly pleasant to listen to with the latter.

Hah, then they must be very... chara-ismatic!

She slowly looked up, expecting... hoping to wake up screaming after seeing that expression on her own reflection.

"And all that after I told you not to burn yourself out. Tsk, tsk, ignoring perfectly good advice made with all the good intentions, must run in the family, and yes, I do mean this one. A bunch of hypocrites, at least the Dallons, wouldn't you also agree?"

Once again acting on instinct, she found herself standing utterly still, hoping for them to just leave and stop bringing up topics she would really rather not think about.

That's not how reflecfions work... that's not how anything works... why is them not making sense so much more disturbing than any other parahuman?

The thing in the mirror responded by huffing in exasperation and shaking their head, as if frustrated by silly childish antics.

"I'm not a bear, you know. You can move..." Amy blinked blankly, the not-Amy seemed unamused. "...you can just turn around and walk away."

Oh...

And she did just that, trying not to blush as well as trying to ignore and not dwell on the whole... thing that just happened.

How did they even see a reflection in a reflection to put that lipstic on... and would it look like that on me too? No, it was probably the eyes complimenting-...what the fuck?!

Adorable, let's get to the point then.

She turned around to go back only to realise that the bathroom door was gone, leaving her on a low roof in a... tidy looking city-scape full of greenery. And it wasn't even supposed to be daytime right now! Unless...

She turned around again, and felt like collapsing upon seeing the deific figure with countless wings in the distance. Surrounded by halos of debris smoothly moving as if in a performance; blocking off, redirecting, and crushing the smaller figures flitting around it.

"What, haven't seen a murderous Angel before? You're silly, but don't worry, she is actually a total fraud." She jumped at the condescending tone, and turned around sharply to glare down at Chara who now looked like perfectly sweet, small child... at a first glance, at least.

Great, so now slapping them will just make me feel worse... and again, what even are they!? No grab-bag should be able to do all this stuff!

"I'm magic! I think... Oh, and maybe the power of LOVE!"

She slowly sat down on the comfy-looking gravel surface in response, taking deep breaths.

I was right from the start... and it's not too late! I should just look down, ignore everything, and wait for the crazy to end.

"Now now, you can feel sorry about yourself later, we're here for a reason, so let's get over my proposition quickly for your sake!"

They gently tugged at her hand, making the girl recoil at the unexpected sensation similar to that of holding a prostethic limb. Both in texture, and in the lack of her power activating.

"Okay, just... don't touch me and make it quick."

It's the Simurgh! It's gotta be too important for me to shrug off, even coming from them, right?

Amy stood up and started to pace, averting her sight both from the Endbringer, and the unholy... faux-child. The latter somehow coming off as more menacing... it was probably the distance.

"Hmm, so eager to leave... oh well, I'm sure that's just you being shy!"

She couldn't tell if they were being serious, with their expression being a smile that just refused to drop more than a few moments. It was like a word that lost any and all meaning after saying it too much. Or maybe it came back around and meant everything at this point.

"You see, soon, the Protectorate ENE will arrive here in full force, like the heroes and warriors they are expected to be... then die if left as is, every. single. one of them."

"Huh." Amy replied absently, slowly processing the information.

It wasn't uncommon for teams to be crippled during the Endbringer battles, but getting completely wiped out... that required a bit more than bad luck.

"H-how?" She couldn't stop her voice from wavering with emotion. The Protectorate... they weren't exactly close, but she knew them for a while now, and had more than a few pleasant memories with them... even if they were mostly associated with gruesome wounds. The idea of them being no more after today... it was surprising how much the possibility moved her.

Chara shrugged with a pout. "Dunno, maybe she got curious about why their timelines were not what she expected."

"What do you mean by... Ugh... just tell me why you brought me here!" She didn't want to get involved in anything with them at all, if possible.

"Wow, don't be so blue, curiosity is natural, you know."

Then there was a loud boom in the distance, shaking the building they were on, accompanied by a flash of emerald light. Eidolon was letting loose.

"Right, later. You see, my partner too was devastated by the tragedy, and asked me- no begged me to somehow keep them safe... seriously, that girl made such a big deal of asking a favor from a friend."

That 'partner' again... Taylor? Wait, she has been dressing up as them all this time? Or the other way around?

She felt the urge to scream for thinking idle thoughts like that while capes from all over the world fought for the fate of a whole capital a few miles away.

"The former. Now, you see, I found it very annoying to keep a whole group of people from something that doesn't need to be remotely close to them to blow their brains out. So I decided to give up on playing the guardian angel, and simply off the troublesome bird."

For a moment, Amy felt the whole world stopping and doing a double take at the statement.

"E-excuse me?" She came to a stop and made eye-contact again.

The child met her incedilous stare with a neutral expression, and she once again found herself unnerved, and worse, fascinated by the too aesthetic, too artifical features. Then they calmly pointed at themselves, and then at the civillisation-destroying monster, completely still in the middle of a chaotic onslaught against it, as if orchestrating every single.

"Imma kill it."

Oh, okay, now it makes sense.

"Then please do tell me, what do I have to do with this?" She felt oddly calm, having long went past the threshold where human mind could effectively give a damn. Or at least that's what it felt like.

Still waiting to wake up screaming...

"Nothing, really. You are completely irrelevant. It just didn't feel right to do something like that right away, then I remembered how frustrating your waste of potential was, and decided to make the most of the situation. So how about it? I murder the angel, and you owe me like... five fun favors." They beamed and looked up at her with their palm open and raised high to signify the number.

Any moment now...

No, there was no waking up, only faustian bargains.

She swatted the hand away from her face and took a few steps back, the uneasy feeling she got from being in the proximity of them redoubling.

"You don't give a damn... this whole time you could... it's an Endbringer... and you don't actually give a damn beyond your own amusement." She muttered shakily, mostly to herself.

That just... didn't happen. Heroes, Villains, Rogues... even the most apathetic and selfish of them stood together when the Endbringers and the monsters comparable to them were near... that Truce was one universal factor keeping the world running...

"Just so you know, I'm simply hauling the Heroes away if you say no. Or would it be more fitting to go through with it regardless? Such a dilemma... well then there are only three, they are practically endangered."

Five favors... how bad could it be? She was already grinding her life away for the 'greater good'... what was the difference now?

"T-three."

"Hmm?"

"Only three, not five."

"Sure, why not, I'm still basically getting those for free on my end."

...free? A-are they serious?

"But I'm warning you, if you refuse to play along for one reason or the other, I'm taking away the heart of your soul fooreeveeer~"

"W-what is that supposed to mean?"

"Well, you will be a bit like me. Lose all empathy, sociopathy taken to the extreme..." Their smile widened, looking positively excited, even manic from her angle. "You won't be able to feel love, you won't have to be afraid of love, you will be able to experience true LOVE... perhaps you will even find that state of being preferrable? In fact, my first favor will be having you spend a week like that! Letting you know what's coming as well as giving you a choice which would be stupid to refuse as a starter!"

Was that...was that supposed to be reassuring?

"So what... we're partners now? Are you going to make me sign a contract with my blood?"

They chuckled with mocking amusement, then winked. "Tsk, tsk, tsk... you wish. And no, you're just my... favourite toy, for now."

She wasn't sure whether to be relieved or not, and still hoped that what they have been saying this whole time was complete bullshit told in order to simply mess with her.

Am I... am I actually rooting for the Simurgh? ...why... what did I do to deserve being put in this situation?

"Well sorry, but this won't actually be a fight. Now, before I go and antogonise an inter-global conspiracy group even further... behold."

9̴̦̣̝̠͈̣̱͓̰̯̟̥̘̲̳͍͌̄͛ͥ͂̀́́

̴͎̦͓̰͇̗͎̟̣͉̳̞̮͖͌ͫͪͥ̑́̆͐̏̄ͪ͝ 9̧̳̤̻̗̩̙̣̙̱͚̜̺͈͎͙̮̜̜͂́̅̄͂͋̓ͥ̽̋͋̃̀͡9̸͈͍͙͎̺͖̞̭̣̪̼̘̻ͤ͐ͫ̐ͬ͟9̬̻̺̱̦̖͍̘̒͌̃ͣ͗̓ͨ̌̿ͩ͟͠

̢̡̡̛̤̰͇̝͇̱̩̯̳͈̼͎̫̫̮͈̥̩̓ͩ̀͂ͦͮ͡ 9̢̯̹̖̮̗̬̳̒̍ͨ̐ͫ͋̂̑̇̑̀̀͜͡9̷̝̗̳̿͒̒̔̋̓͛͐ͯ̉́ͅ9̻͇͎͎̖͉̞̜̰̗̻̳͈̘̹̤ͣ̈ͧ̉̓̆̐ͨͯ͒̒͢͠9̗̰̤̳̹̼̖̓̽̓̎̃͆͗̅͑̇̈́̇ͥͤ̋ͬ́́͞

̢͕̭̖̩̩͈̪͎̜̙̼̗̙͙̝̒̈́̊ͣͩ͛̓̀͛̽̚͝ 9ͬͩ̋ͣ͊̿̀ͦ̔͊̒ͦ͗͠͏̥̜̩͙͔̞̮̰̞̯͖̬̗9̷̴̵̜̞̹̠͙̘̹̲̟̗̜̯̻͚ͥ͂̈͌̾͋͒̿̎ͬ͂ͣ̐ͬ͜9̵̢̨̹̼̻̘̻͂ͬ͑ͮ̋ͬ́͝ͅ9̡̟̜͍̜̗̬̗̐̋̌͒̃ͧͮͥ̎ͅ9̢̜̦͈̜͉̱̥̘̥͔͇͔͎̞̝̩̩͆̿ͯ́

̶̷̬̹͙̗̺̖ͨͩ̿̏̐̒ͩ͟ 9̡̺͖̫͈͌̐́ͮ̆9̶̡̧͖͙͔̝̗͔̒͗̈͐̓̋́̈́̎̽̇̓͋ͤ9̡̪̥͚̹̥̼̺̳̬̠̟̐ͣ̏͋̓ͬ̂͋̎̍ͣ͆ͫ̑ͣͣ̓͆́9̴̗͓̹͍͈̩̘̺̩̒͛̌͑̑ͯ̓͐̓̑ͭ̍̌͒̇͐̓́̕9̨̧̛̮̘͈̟͔̯̻̻̳̳͓̤͔́́ͥͪ̆͗̂ͤ͑̑ͭ̂̚9̵̝͚̬͓̯̲̭̣̝̥̘̟̞̦̫ͤ̓̆̐̉̌ͧ̋̒̔͐̂̉͡9̬̮͈͚̭͍͇̺̞̟͈͆̈ͬ̈́̊̽ͮ̀̓͜ͅͅ

̴͔̳̭̟̥̞̣̙̦̜̭͎̝̬͖͚̰̒͒ͥ̿̃̐ͯ̂̅͌͋̔̽̓̀̀͝͡ͅ 9̴̸̸͎̦̦͍̳̹̪̥̬͈̹̹̹̜̘̪̲̝͂ͬ̏ͮ͊̓̀̚

9̡̥͉͇̼̩̳̞̱̩̯̼̜͔̥͔̗͔̽ͦ̽ͣ̐͗̎ͮ̈̂̊͗̓̚̚͜͢͞ͅͅ

̵̴̛̪̬̝̱̟̪͓̲̊͂ͦͧ̏ͧ̒ͣ̄ͪ̊̊ͤ̇̒̂͂̾͜͟ 9̵̸̥̲̭̩̥͎̤̩̝͚̣̝͓̍͂͐̋͒͠9̷̷̫̙̦̗̮̟̻̈́͋ͣ̆̿͛͛ͯ͆̇̐ͬ͐̇͗ͪ̚͠

͇͖̙̩͔̦̣̻͂́̔̔ͮ̎ͬ̀9̵̶͕̺̥̣͓̭̯̓͊͑ͮͫ̏͒̇͒͒ͬͭͥͥͫ̽̈́͐9͙͕̟̭̟ͬ̈́͊̒̔̄̒̀ͥ͂ͣͫ̌͂ͩ̈́́̚͟9̴̵̡̫̬͈̖̮̜̰͈͖̝͙̹̥̝̯̳͓͎̝̣͈̳̠͇͖̩̊͗̄́ͥ̃̋̊̌̏̓͆̊̑̎̇ͬͩ͋ͦ̒͋ͤ͗̏̔̆ͩ̅̇̓́̚͘͘͡͡ͅͅͅ 9ͭ͛̒̄̋ͧͭ͑̈̂͌̍̊̉͒͒͘͏̮͖̭̺͎̯̺̜̰9̵̖͇̼͕̤͕̏͆ͪ̀̐́̂͊̇̓͊̏̇̿͆ͣ͢ͅ9̧̧̢͓̞̮̳̮̭̒̊ͩ͋̆̆͒̃͆̂̇̅ͤ̏͑ͮ͐9̡̠̤̹̬̱͖͚̯̪̩̬̹͔͛͂͆ͩ̓͊̄ͨͪ̆̉͌̿̕͘͢͝ͅ9̷̷̷̝͚̺̜͔͕̏͊̇͛͛ͭ̾͒̀

̛͙̼̗̤̮̼͙̗̮̱̳͕̥͈̣̘̜ͭ̉ͬͦ̾́̉́̚͡͝9̸̻̠̘̖̜̰̺͎̺̠̖̣͛ͮ͋̌́͝͠9ͬ̋ͤͦ̉͏̶̸̢̞̼̭̼̤͍̲9̯̥͙͉̟͔̦͙̦̥̪̰̜̺̃́͋ͫ̒̓͋͋ͪ̐̈́ͥ̒̓̓̐͑ͨ̚͠ͅ9̩̖͎͎̘̟͓̮͖͕͍̗͚̖̀ͫͪ̌͒̋̋ͣ͑̊ͤ́͘

̡̜̼͈̲͇̬̜̬̝̲̙͓̝̬̰̬̱̓̀̐ͨ̈ͬ̊ͬ̐̊̈ͨͯ̄͗̓̓̈̕͢͞9̸͈̤̼̥̫̳̪̟͚̞͍͕͔̫͓̮̯̞̠ͭ̋̽͒̒̿͆͜9̛̛͖̥̦̳͇͙͍̭̝͇̪̫̆̒̀̅̓́̍͛̅ͭ͋ͥ̄̈ͩ͆̚̚9̡̝̖̜̫̥͉̻̘̜͇̙̗͂̒͒ͬ͐̚͡

̧̟̯͔̖͇̳͕̮͉̰̻̗ͧͦ̅̐̉ͧͫͮ͑̓̉́͘9͔̱͔͎̲̲͈̙̹ͩ̉ͣ̒͠͞9̐ͪ̽̅͛̐͘͏͔̜̗̤̭̘̲̪̘́

̷̸̛̯̯̞̭ͮ͂̄̓́̌͒͜9̡̢̛̲̺̣̜͓̻͇̮̟̺͉̤̹ͤͯ̊̒͊̅͊̎̓́͊̈́̒̅̈͞

And then Amy, along with the world, watched as a monster turned to worthless dust, scattered to the winds in just a few mere moments.

Last edited: Sep 30, 2016

371

KindaApatheticButNice

Sep 25, 2016

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KindaApatheticButNice

KindaApatheticButNice

Everything is dumb, but still important

Oct 5, 2016

#510

3.3

Exhaustion... no, crippling wariness, was what I felt, along with a heavy feeling that was like my insides being constantly rearranged. Maybe that was worry? A part of it, certainly. And it seemed to be all-consuming, gluttonously clawing up from the bottom of my guts, slowly and rougly, grabbing and squeezing at my heart, worming into my lungs, and then doing that again with a second wave on top of the first. It was kinda maddening.

Crack

Hmm... chocolate was getting old for now, it was not enough to distract me. Well, there should be some pie left in the fridge. Wonder if Chara or Missy made it? Maybe both? It was getting hard to tell lately. Wonder if Chara was a good teacher, or Missy a good learner? Maybe both? Such exciting mysteries... hmm, mmm ,hmm... I don't seem to be good at humming, can't get the tone right... and Chara makes it look so easy. Wonder if my partner actually practises their singing... another mystery, yay!

Oh, I can help you with that too. Just don't destroy your vocal cords llike you did with the kitchen.

At least my impression of them was on point... nah, partner would come up with something smarter to tease me with, or something far more childish.

I completely ignored Gallant's attempt at being comforting with my nonsensical thoughts as I walked to the kitchen part of the room. Rude, perhaps, but I have been ruder before, as he wasn't even likely to remain real for long. So for iterations like these, he might as well not be human. Screw you, not-Gallant, go take your... compassion somewhere else, I... I can't bear it right now.

Oh, such a shame. No pie at all. Was I too optimistic? Or did someone else eat it after the last time I checked? Heh...hehehehe...

My disappointment mounting, I slammed the fridge closed, startling the only other Ward to remain here with me, and dashed back towards the couch, ending the sprint with a... seven out of ten leap that left me lying face down, with my hood somehow back on my head.

Ouch, my nose hurts.

"Listen, Taylor... trying to ignore what's bothering you... like this, won't be helpful."

Just shut up, what do you know?

"I mean, I and the others know how it feels to be sidelined like this, and it's undoubtedly worse for you... huh? That's not what you are upset about? Still... you can talk at me. I heard it helps."

That line... so he borrowed that from his girlfriend... probably called her here too, like before... damn you, stop trying to be helpful. Hanging with Victoria won't fix anything, not this time.

I laugh-screamed into the pillow as I grrabbed at my mask which I left on the coffee table in front of the couch. Somehow, even without seeing it myself, having a comical smile in front of my face helped me at remaining composed and shrugging things off with a laugh.

"You... you're right! That pale feathery bitch wrecking a capital doesn't bother me much, not on it's own. And sure... I cried and angsted about it at first, but I'm over it right now! Just like I'm over... the previous issue."

I wasn't sure what I was aiming for with that, maybe a reassurance for both me and him, but I completely failed to keep my tone steady and unbothered as I shakily brought myself into a sitting position, probably making myself look even more defeated.

Damn it, I don't want to talk, or even think about.

"I... uh... have flowers to tend to!" As he processed the sudden change of subject, I got off the couch and walked away with uneven, hurried steps.

Yes flowers, how could I forget? And some are so fragile, especially the ones I like to keep, it wouldn't do to neglect them. No, not at all. That would be so irresponsible, yes, certainly.

Past the gate, take a right, a left, left again... why is everything so blurry?

Wonder why partner likes gardening at all, when they can somehow make fields bloom just by walking around. Nostalgia again? Was that too the hobby of someone they once knew? Funny how they do something so sweet with no real feelings of sentimentality.

The elevator! Up, up, up... my head is pounding, as if about to pop!

Hmm, I think I'm getting too accustomed to their messed up sense of humor...heh... it's so pretty whenever they do the blooming thing! Golden flowers everywhere! Our favourites! Still so fucked up on their end too, surrounding themselves with the reminders of their painful suicide, but that's just classic Chara!

Now out, right, some stairs, door, and... fresh air, I'm outside.

Maybe I should try gorging on buttercups as well, see if I would love those flowers more afterwards! Not sure if it applies here, but what was it they said? Oh, right. Pain is more fun together!

I breathed heavily, slightly staggering as I barely stood, looking up at the moon. The sight of the clouds gently moving with the breeze against the pure-white orb, and the cold biting at my face calming me down somewhat, if only for a few moments.

I took my mask off again, I still wasn't sure how it even stayed on, maybe I should ask Arms... hah... hahahahahahaha!

I wiped my face off of tears, and tried to keep my breathing steady, but I couldn't get rid of the unbearably heavy feeling nesting in my chest.

I wanted to distract myself, take a look at the garden I and the others cared for, or just sit on a bench to rest, anything so I wouldn't have to worry for a bit, I was even willing to count the total number of petals here!

But I couldn't move, kept trying to breathe properly, and stood there swaying with a slouch instead, and only moved again to put my mask back on when I heard Gallant coming up to the roof, standing patiently behind me, waiting.

"What actually bothers me... what actually bothers me..." Why was my voice so shaky? Why did I feel like choking?

I tried to chuckle, but instead, sighed heavily in frustration as I shook my head. Then turned around, concentrated, and continued in a much more composed, calm, manner.

"What actually bothers me is all of our Protectorate dying horribly. And it' my fault."

My fault... like with Mom... Emma was right, I ruin everything...

Should have tried harder to convince Armsmaster... why couldn't he understand with those lie detectors of his? What I told him was no 'thinker interference', that was his whole team getting wiped out because I somehow managed to make that monster's post-cognition go off.

I let myself physically collapse again, holding my head between my hands.

Gone... they might be gone forever. Not coming back, none.

Assault fooling around much to Battery's chagrin, the duo a comforting and familiar presence no matter the situation was.

Dauntless trying to be the hero everyone hoped him to be despite the diminishing returns he showed and the uncertainties born from that. Accepting to shoulder the crushing expectation of facing an Endbringer at least to a standstill nontheless, getting hopeful himself... I could emphatise.

No last words, no good byes, the ones they loved will be so confused... all because of me.

Velocity... learning languages, wanting to travel and see the world. Such interesting desires, so human, and so surprisingly fun to share.

And I still thought Triumph was yet to leave our team sometimes...

All their skills, all their knowledge, all their feelings... useless, meaningless. The Simurgh will end them.

I remember Miss Militia somehow dragging Armsmaster all the way here to eat with us at the caffeteria. And I could see him trying to be friendly, however rigid and clueless without his interface... Colin actually choked on his coffee when Missy accidentally called Hannah 'mom'.

No more memories to make, they won't be there to see the next day, or the one after, or the one afer...

I was sobbing, almost choking now as I struggled to breathe, eyes teary again... maybe I could go all the way back and... never associate with anyone who might end up near an Endbringer... but... I couldn't do it, even if my partner accepted. Because...

I... I don't...

...so selfish. The world would surely be a better place with them alive instead of with me around.

I rose and stumbled away from the other Ward when he came close. Then feeling the whole sky trying to suffocate me, took off my mask and threw it away deliriously.

I don't want to...

I could save them, make sure that the Simurgh didn't have any reason to target them, so why didn't I?

"I don't want to let go."

I let out pathetically, face a reddened and runny mess as I met Dean's eyes for the first time today. Hoping... needing him to tell me... convince me that somehow there was still a good reason not to give up on everything I had, to not give away all my friends.

"Look... they are not dead yet, " He paused, thinking. "-and you said that your friend went out there to help earlier. Besides, it's the Simurgh, so maybe there was some thinker interference? You said your power was malfunctioning earlier, right?"

I felt like screaming, but sobbed even more instead, sinking to the ground again.

That was the same line of thinking that led Armsmaster to decide on going in the first place.

And Chara... had me skipping randomly in the last hour or so for a while now... they promised that they would handle it but... I just couldn't see anything coming off of it.It was an Endbringer we were talking about! They were known for crushing every single hope that dared to appear, why would it be different with me? Worse yet, it was...

Oh god... it was the Simurgh.

"Shit, I made it worse, damn it I knew I should have waited for..."

I didn't hear him anymore. The pounding in my head and chest too loud.

It was the Simurgh, a thinker, a precog of an incomprehensible magnitude. What if... what if she could remember the Loads, what if she could somehow... was... was that the reason there weren't any loads for a while?

No, no, no, no... what was I thinking, sending them off like that?!

Suddenly, I was shaking, I couldn't breathe, I couldn't think, I felt like passing out as my vision started to darken around the edges...

9̴̦̣̝̠͈̣̱͓̰̯̟̥̘̲̳͍͌̄͛ͥ͂̀́́

̴͎̦͓̰͇̗͎̟̣͉̳̞̮͖͌ͫͪͥ̑́̆͐̏̄ͪ͝ 9̧̳̤̻̗̩̙̣̙̱͚̜̺͈͎͙̮̜̜͂́̅̄͂͋̓ͥ̽̋͋̃̀͡9̸͈͍͙͎̺͖̞̭̣̪̼̘̻ͤ͐ͫ̐ͬ͟9̬̻̺̱̦̖͍̘̒͌̃ͣ͗̓ͨ̌̿ͩ͟͠

̢̡̡̛̤̰͇̝͇̱̩̯̳͈̼͎̫̫̮͈̥̩̓ͩ̀͂ͦͮ͡ 9̢̯̹̖̮̗̬̳̒̍ͨ̐ͫ͋̂̑̇̑̀̀͜͡9̷̝̗̳̿͒̒̔̋̓͛͐ͯ̉́ͅ9̻͇͎͎̖͉̞̜̰̗̻̳͈̘̹̤ͣ̈ͧ̉̓̆̐ͨͯ͒̒͢͠9̗̰̤̳̹̼̖̓̽̓̎̃͆͗̅͑̇̈́̇ͥͤ̋ͬ́́͞

̢͕̭̖̩̩͈̪͎̜̙̼̗̙͙̝̒̈́̊ͣͩ͛̓̀͛̽̚͝ 9ͬͩ̋ͣ͊̿̀ͦ̔͊̒ͦ͗͠͏̥̜̩͙͔̞̮̰̞̯͖̬̗9̷̴̵̜̞̹̠͙̘̹̲̟̗̜̯̻͚ͥ͂̈͌̾͋͒̿̎ͬ͂ͣ̐ͬ͜9̵̢̨̹̼̻̘̻͂ͬ͑ͮ̋ͬ́͝ͅ

̴͔̳̭̟̥̞̣̙̦̜̭͎̝̬͖͚̰̒͒ͥ̿̃̐ͯ̂̅͌͋̔̽̓̀̀͝͡ͅ 9̴̸̸͎̦̦͍̳̹̪̥̬͈̹̹̹̜̘̪̲̝͂ͬ̏ͮ͊̓̀̚

9̡̥͉͇̼̩̳̞̱̩̯̼̜͔̥͔̗͔̽ͦ̽ͣ̐͗̎ͮ̈̂̊͗̓̚̚͜͢͞ͅͅ

̵̴̛̪̬̝̱̟̪͓̲̊͂ͦͧ̏ͧ̒ͣ̄ͪ̊̊ͤ̇̒̂͂̾͜͟ 9̵̸̥̲̭̩̥͎̤̩̝͚̣̝͓̍͂͐̋͒͠9̷̷̫̙̦̗̮̟̻̈́͋ͣ̆̿͛͛ͯ͆̇̐ͬ͐̇͗ͪ̚͠

͇͖̙̩͔̦̣̻͂́̔̔ͮ̎ͬ̀ 9̵̶͕̺̥̣͓̭̯̓͊͑ͮͫ̏͒̇͒͒ͬͭͥͥͫ̽̈́͐9͙͕̟̭̟ͬ̈́͊̒̔̄̒̀ͥ͂ͣͫ̌͂ͩ̈́́̚͟9̴̵̡̫̬͈̖̮̜̰͈͖̝͙̹̥̝̯̳͓͎̝̣͈̳̠͇͖̩̊͗̄́ͥ̃̋̊̌̏̓͆̊̑̎̇ͬͩ͋ͦ̒͋ͤ͗̏̔̆ͩ̅̇̓́̚͘͘͡͡ͅͅͅ9̯̥͙͉̟͔̦͙̦̥̪̰̜̺̃́͋ͫ̒̓͋͋ͪ̐̈́ͥ̒̓̓̐͑ͨ̚͠ͅ9̩̖͎͎̘̟͓̮͖͕͍̗͚̖̀ͫͪ̌͒̋̋ͣ͑̊ͤ́͘

̡̜̼͈̲͇̬̜̬̝̲̙͓̝̬̰̬̱̓̀̐ͨ̈ͬ̊ͬ̐̊̈ͨͯ̄͗̓̓̈̕͢͞9̸͈̤̼̥̫̳̪̟͚̞͍͕͔̫͓̮̯̞̠ͭ̋̽͒̒̿͆͜9̛̛͖̥̦̳͇͙͍̭̝͇̪̫̆̒̀̅̓́̍͛̅ͭ͋ͥ̄̈ͩ͆̚̚9̡̝̖̜̫̥͉̻̘̜͇̙̗͂̒͒ͬ͐̚͡

̧̟̯͔̖͇̳͕̮͉̰̻̗ͧͦ̅̐̉ͧͫͮ͑̓̉́͘9͔̱͔͎̲̲͈̙̹ͩ̉ͣ̒͠͞9̐ͪ̽̅͛̐͘͏͔̜̗̤̭̘̲̪̘́

̷̸̛̯̯̞̭ͮ͂̄̓́̌͒͜9̡̢̛̲̺̣̜͓̻͇̮̟̺͉̤̹ͤͯ̊̒͊̅͊̎̓́͊̈́̒̅̈͞

9̴̦̣̝̠͈̣̱͓̰̯̟̥̘̲̳͍͌̄͛ͥ͂̀́́

̴͎̦͓̰͇̗͎̟̣͉̳̞̮͖͌ͫͪͥ̑́̆͐̏̄ͪ͝ 9̧̳̤̻̗̩̙̣̙̱͚̜̺͈͎͙̮̜̜͂́̅̄͂͋̓ͥ̽̋͋̃̀͡9̸͈͍͙͎̺͖̞̭̣̪̼̘̻ͤ͐ͫ̐ͬ͟9̬̻̺̱̦̖͍̘̒͌̃ͣ͗̓ͨ̌̿ͩ͟͠

̢̡̡̛̤̰͇̝͇̱̩̯̳͈̼͎̫̫̮͈̥̩̓ͩ̀͂ͦͮ͡

9̢̯̹̖̮̗̬̳̒̍ͨ̐ͫ͋̂̑̇̑̀̀͜͡9̷̝̗̳̿͒̒̔̋̓͛͐ͯ̉́ͅ9̻͇͎͎̖͉̞̜̰̗̻̳͈̘̹̤ͣ̈ͧ̉̓̆̐ͨͯ͒̒͢͠9̗̰̤̳̹̼̖̓̽̓̎̃͆͗̅͑̇̈́̇ͥͤ̋ͬ́́͞

̢͕̭̖̩̩͈̪͎̜̙̼̗̙͙̝̒̈́̊ͣͩ͛̓̀͛̽̚͝ 9ͬͩ̋ͣ͊̿̀ͦ̔͊̒ͦ͗͠͏̥̜̩͙͔̞̮̰̞̯͖̬̗9̷̴̵̜̞̹̠͙̘̹̲̟̗̜̯̻͚ͥ͂̈͌̾͋͒̿̎ͬ͂ͣ̐ͬ͜9̵̢̨̹̼̻̘̻͂ͬ͑ͮ̋ͬ́͝ͅ9̡̟̜͍̜̗̬̗̐̋̌͒̃ͧͮͥ̎ͅ9̢̜̦͈̜͉̱̥̘̥͔͇͔͎̞̝̩̩͆̿ͯ́

̶̷̬̹͙̗̺̖ͨͩ̿̏̐̒ͩ͟

9̡̺͖̫͈͌̐́ͮ̆9̶̡̧͖͙͔̝̗͔̒͗̈͐̓̋́̈́̎̽̇̓͋ͤ

9̬̮͈͚̭͍͇̺̞̟͈͆̈ͬ̈́̊̽ͮ̀̓͜ͅͅ

9̸̶͒͐͒̅̚͏̷̬͚̗̙͟ͅ

̴͔̳̭̟̥̞̣̙̦̜̭͎̝̬͖͚̰̒͒ͥ̿̃̐ͯ̂̅͌͋̔̽̓̀̀͝͡ͅ 9̴̸̸͎̦̦͍̳̹̪̥̬͈̹̹̹̜̘̪̲̝͂ͬ̏ͮ͊̓̀̚

9̡̥͉͇̼̩̳̞̱̩̯̼̜͔̥͔̗͔̽ͦ̽ͣ̐͗̎ͮ̈̂̊͗̓̚̚͜͢͞ͅͅ

̵̴̛̪̬̝̱̟̪͓̲̊͂ͦͧ̏ͧ̒ͣ̄ͪ̊̊ͤ̇̒̂͂̾͜͟ 9̵̸̥̲̭̩̥͎̤̩̝͚̣̝͓̍͂͐̋͒͠9̷̷̫̙̦̗̮̟̻̈́͋ͣ̆̿͛͛ͯ͆̇̐ͬ͐̇͗ͪ̚͠

͇͖̙̩͔̦̣̻͂́̔̔ͮ̎ͬ̀9̵̶͕̺̥̣͓̭̯̓͊͑ͮͫ̏͒̇͒͒ͬͭͥͥͫ̽̈́͐9͙͕̟̭̟ͬ̈́͊̒̔̄̒̀ͥ͂ͣͫ̌͂ͩ̈́́̚͟9̴̷̸̡̛̫̬͈̖̮̜̰͈͖̯̯̞̭̊͗̄́ͥ̃̋̊̌̏̓͆̊̑̎̇ͬͩͮ͂̄̓́̌͒̚͘͜͡ͅ9̡̢̛̲̺̣̜͓̻͇̮̟̺͉̤̹ͤͯ̊̒͊̅͊̎̓́͊̈́̒̅̈͞

9̴̦̣̝̠͈̣̱͓̰̯̟̥̘̲̳͍͌̄͛ͥ͂̀́́

̴͎̦͓̰͇̗͎̟̣͉̳̞̮͖͌ͫͪͥ̑́̆͐̏̄ͪ͝ 9̧̳̤̻̗̩̙̣̙̱͚̜̺͈͎͙̮̜̜͂́̅̄͂͋̓ͥ̽̋͋̃̀͡9̸͈͍͙͎̺͖̞̭̣̪̼̘̻ͤ͐ͫ̐ͬ͟9̬̻̺̱̦̖͍̘̒͌̃ͣ͗̓ͨ̌̿ͩ͟͠

̢̡̡̛̤̰͇̝͇̱̩̯̳͈̼͎̫̫̮͈̥̩̓ͩ̀͂ͦͮ͡ 9̢̯̹̖̮̗̬̳̒̍ͨ̐ͫ͋̂̑̇̑̀̀͜͡9̷̝̗̳̿͒̒̔̋̓͛͐ͯ̉́ͅ

9̻͇͎͎̖͉̞̜̰̗̻̳͈̘̹̤ͣ̈ͧ̉̓̆̐ͨͯ͒̒͢͠9̗̰̤̳̹̼̖̓̽̓̎̃͆͗̅͑̇̈́̇ͥͤ̋ͬ́́͞

̢͕̭̖̩̩͈̪͎̜̙̼̗̙͙̝̒̈́̊ͣͩ͛̓̀͛̽̚͝ 9ͬͩ̋ͣ͊̿̀ͦ̔͊̒ͦ͗͠͏̥̜̩͙͔̞̮̰̞̯͖̬̗9̷̴̵̜̞̹̠͙̘̹̲̟̗̜̯̻͚ͥ͂̈͌̾͋͒̿̎ͬ͂ͣ̐ͬ͜9̵̢̨̹̼̻̘̻͂ͬ͑ͮ̋ͬ́͝ͅ9̡̟̜͍̜̗̬̗̐̋̌͒̃ͧͮͥ̎ͅ9̢̜̦͈̜͉̱̥̘̥͔͇͔͎̞̝̩̩͆̿ͯ́

̶̷̬̹͙̗̺̖ͨͩ̿̏̐̒ͩ͟ 9̡̺͖̫͈͌̐́ͮ̆9̶̡̧͖͙͔̝̗͔̒͗̈͐̓̋́̈́̎̽̇̓͋ͤ

9̡̪̥͚̹̥̼̺̳̬̠̟̐ͣ̏͋̓ͬ̂͋̎̍ͣ͆ͫ̑ͣͣ̓͆́9̴̗͓̹͍͈̩̘̺̩̒͛̌͑̑ͯ̓͐̓̑ͭ̍̌͒̇͐̓́̕

9̨̧̛̮̘͈̟͔̯̻̻̳̳͓̤͔́́ͥͪ̆͗̂ͤ͑̑ͭ̂̚9̵̝͚̬͓̯̲̭̣̝̥̘̟̞̦̫ͤ̓̆̐̉̌ͧ̋̒̔͐̂̉͡9̬̮͈͚̭͍͇̺̞̟͈͆̈ͬ̈́̊̽ͮ̀̓ͣ̇̄͂̊̈́͆̔͒͑̿̎͜ͅͅ9̪̖̬̲̠̮̲͖̫̙͚͉̪̥̰̠̠̔͌ͨ̏̕͟͞͞

̴͔̳̭̟̥̞̣̙̦̜̭͎̝̬͖͚̰̒͒ͥ̿̃̐ͯ̂̅͌͋̔̽̓̀̀͝͡ͅ9̴̸̸̡͎̦̦͍̳̹̪̥̬͈̹̹̹̜̘̪̲̜̼͈̲͇̬̜̬̝̲̙͓̝̬̰̬̱͂ͬ̏ͮ͊̓̀̓̀̐ͨ̈ͬ̊ͬ̐̊̈ͨͯ̄͗̓̓̈̚̕͢͞9̸͈̤̼̥̫̳̪̟͚̞͍͕͔̫͓̮̯̞̠ͭ̋̽͒̒̿͆͜9̛̛͖̥̦̳͇͙͍̭̝͇̪̫̆̒̀̅̓́̍͛̅ͭ͋ͥ̄̈ͩ͆̚̚9̡̝̖̜̫̥͉̻̘̜͇̙̗͂̒͒ͬ͐̚͡

̧̟̯͔̖͇̳͕̮͉̰̻̗ͧͦ̅̐̉ͧͫͮ͑̓̉́͘9͔̱͔͎̲̲͈̙̹ͩ̉ͣ̒͠͞9̐ͪ̽̅͛̐͘͏͔̜̗̤̭̘̲̪̘́

̷̸̛̯̯̞̭ͮ͂̄̓́̌͒͜9̡̢̛̲̺̣̜͓̻͇̮̟̺͉̤̹ͤͯ̊̒͊̅͊̎̓́͊̈́̒̅̈͞

9̴̦̣̝̠͈̣̱͓̰̯̟̥̘̲̳͍͌̄͛ͥ͂̀́́

̴͎̦͓̰͇̗͎̟̣͉̳̞̮͖͌ͫͪͥ̑́̆͐̏̄ͪ͝ 9̧̳̤̻̗̩̙̣̙̱͚̜̺͈͎͙̮̜̜͂́̅̄͂͋̓ͥ̽̋͋̃̀͡9̸͈͍͙͎̺͖̞̭̣̪̼̘̻ͤ͐ͫ̐ͬ͟9̬̻̺̱̦̖͍̘̒͌̃ͣ͗̓ͨ̌̿ͩ͟͠

̢̡̡̛̤̰͇̝͇̱̩̯̳͈̼͎̫̫̮͈̥̩̓ͩ̀͂ͦͮ͡ 9̢̯̹̖̮̗̬̳̒̍ͨ̐ͫ͋̂̑̇̑̀̀͜͡9̷̝̗̳̿͒̒̔̋̓͛͐ͯ̉́ͅ9̻͇͎͎̖͉̞̜̰̗̻̳͈̘̹̤ͣ̈ͧ̉̓̆̐ͨͯ͒̒͢͠9̗̰̤̳̹̼̖̓̽̓̎̃͆͗̅͑̇̈́̇ͥͤ̋ͬ́́͞

̢͕̭̖̩̩͈̪͎̜̙̼̗̙͙̝̒̈́̊ͣͩ͛̓̀͛̽̚͝ 9ͬͩ̋ͣ͊̿̀ͦ̔͊̒ͦ͗͠͏̥̜̩͙͔̞̮̰̞̯͖̬̗9̷̴̵̜̞̹̠͙̘̹̲̟̗̜̯̻͚ͥ͂̈͌̾͋͒̿̎ͬ͂ͣ̐ͬ͜9̵̢̨̹̼̻̘̻͂ͬ͑ͮ̋ͬ́͝ͅ9̡̟̜͍̜̗̬̗̐̋̌͒̃ͧͮͥ̎ͅ9̢̜̦͈̜͉̱̥̘̥͔͇͔͎̞̝̩̩͆̿ͯ́

̶̷̬̹͙̗̺̖ͨͩ̿̏̐̒ͩ͟ 9̡̺͖̫͈͌̐́ͮ̆9̶̡̧͖͙͔̝̗͔̒͗̈͐̓̋́̈́̎̽̇̓͋ͤ9̡̪̥͚̹̥̼̺̳̬̠̟̐ͣ̏͋̓ͬ̂͋̎̍ͣ͆ͫ̑ͣͣ̓͆́9̴̗͓̹͍͈̩̘̺̩̒͛̌͑̑ͯ̓͐̓̑ͭ̍̌͒̇͐̓́̕9̨̧̛̮̘͈̟͔̯̻̻̳̳͓̤͔́́ͥͪ̆͗̂ͤ͑̑ͭ̂̚9̵̝͚̬͓̯̲̭̣̝̥̘̟̞̦̫ͤ̓̆̐̉̌ͧ̋̒̔͐̂̉͡9̬̮͈͚̭͍͇̺̞̟͈͆̈ͬ̈́̊̽ͮ̀̓͜ͅͅ

̴͔̳̭̟̥̞̣̙̦̜̭͎̝̬͖͚̰̒͒ͥ̿̃̐ͯ̂̅͌͋̔̽̓̀̀͝͡ͅ 9̴̸̸͎̦̦͍̳̹̪̥̬͈̹̹̹̜̘̪̲̝͂ͬ̏ͮ͊̓̀̚

9̡̥͉͇̼̩̳̞̱̩̯̼̜͔̥͔̗͔̽ͦ̽ͣ̐͗̎ͮ̈̂̊͗̓̚̚͜͢͞ͅͅ

̵̴̛̪̬̝̱̟̪͓̲̊͂ͦͧ̏ͧ̒ͣ̄ͪ̊̊ͤ̇̒̂͂̾͜͟ 9̵̸̥̲̭̩̥͎̤̩̝͚̣̝͓̍͂͐̋͒͠9̷̷̫̙̦̗̮̟̻̈́͋ͣ̆̿͛͛ͯ͆̇̐ͬ͐̇͗ͪ̚͠

͇͖̙̩͔̦̣̻͂́̔̔ͮ̎ͬ̀9̵̶͕̺̥̣͓̭̯̓͊͑ͮͫ̏͒̇͒͒ͬͭͥͥͫ̽̈́͐9͙͕̟̭̟ͬ̈́͊̒̔̄̒̀ͥ͂ͣͫ̌͂ͩ̈́́̚͟9̴̵̡̫̬͈̖̮̜̰͈͖̝͙̹̥̝̯̳͓͎̝̣͈̳̠͇͖̩̊͗̄́ͥ̃̋̊̌̏̓͆̊̑̎̇ͬͩ͋ͦ̒͋ͤ͗̏̔̆ͩ̅̇̓́̚͘͘͡͡ͅͅͅ 9ͭ͛̒̄̋ͧͭ͑̈̂͌̍̊̉͒͒͘͏̮͖̭̺͎̯̺̜̰9̵̖͇̼͕̤͕̏͆ͪ̀̐́̂͊̇̓͊̏̇̿͆ͣ͢ͅ9̧̧̢͓̞̮̳̮̭̒̊ͩ͋̆̆͒̃͆̂̇̅ͤ̏͑ͮ͐9̡̠̤̹̬̱͖͚̯̪̩̬̹͔͛͂͆ͩ̓͊̄ͨͪ̆̉͌̿̕͘͢͝ͅ9̷̷̷̝͚̺̜͔͕̏͊̇͛͛ͭ̾͒̀

̛͙̼̗̤̮̼͙̗̮̱̳͕̥͈̣̘̜ͭ̉ͬͦ̾́̉́̚͡͝9̸̻̠̘̖̜̰̺͎̺̠̖̣͛ͮ͋̌́͝͠9ͬ̋ͤͦ̉͏̶̸̢̞̼̭̼̤͍̲9̯̥͙͉̟͔̦͙̦̥̪̰̜̺̃́͋ͫ̒̓͋͋ͪ̐̈́ͥ̒̓̓̐͑ͨ̚͠ͅ9̩̖͎͎̘̟͓̮͖͕͍̗͚̖̀ͫͪ̌͒̋̋ͣ͑̊ͤ́͘

̡̜̼͈̲͇̬̜̬̝̲̙͓̝̬̰̬̱̓̀̐ͨ̈ͬ̊ͬ̐̊̈ͨͯ̄͗̓̓̈̕͢͞9̸͈̤̼̥̫̳̪̟͚̞͍͕͔̫͓̮̯̞̠ͭ̋̽͒̒̿͆͜9̛̛͖̥̦̳͇͙͍̭̝͇̪̫̆̒̀̅̓́̍͛̅ͭ͋ͥ̄̈ͩ͆̚̚9̡̝̖̜̫̥͉̻̘̜͇̙̗͂̒͒ͬ͐̚͡

̧̟̯͔̖͇̳͕̮͉̰̻̗ͧͦ̅̐̉ͧͫͮ͑̓̉́͘9͔̱͔͎̲̲͈̙̹ͩ̉ͣ̒͠͞9̐ͪ̽̅͛̐͘͏͔̜̗̤̭̘̲̪̘́

̷̸̛̯̯̞̭ͮ͂̄̓́̌͒͜9̡̢̛̲̺̣̜͓̻͇̮̟̺͉̤̹ͤͯ̊̒͊̅͊̎̓́͊̈́̒̅̈͞

...doubled over heaving at the nauseating echoes of the repeated sensation. Barely conscious, but probably from other reasons.

Like with my partner and my emotions, I could also faintly feel what they were feeling, which was a very limited and dim spectrum, and also when they were using their 'magic'... faintly, and that if I was paying attention. Which begged the question;

Chara... what in the actual hell was that?

Post-Endbringer discussions with Doctor Mother were not unusual, but usually happened at least six hours later, not right after, and definetly not with capes still in transit heading to the battle that was already over.

"I think I got too used to the 'Victories' being pyrrhic and undecisive." Eidolon... David grumbled uncertainly under the shadow of his hood, forebodingly gazing at the mask he held in his hands.

"Do any of you know what actually happened? I was fighting... and then she just crumbled down to dust in less than a blink." He asked at the four other occupants of the room;

The Doctor, her uncharasterictically lost-looking assistant, Rebecca, and the similarly busy accountant. He could also feel the curious presence of the ghostly Custodian with a thinker power he unconsciously drew on, but she wasn't likely to take part in the discussion.

"I saw it..." Rebecca finally looked up from her business laptop. The death of an Endbringer requiring much work from the Chief-Director to maintain order. "...and what I have seen makes this 'Victory' personally hard to celebrate."

The Simurgh was surrouned by floating debris, it's contents making the display look like an artistic commentary on urban environments... and their hazards to health. With gasoline being used like napalm , various cables either electrocuting or choking those with not enough durability, the gathered glass, arranged in dizzying shapes somehow magnifying the sunlight to a degree which made some areas unbearable to stand in, and so much more, with way worse impossible machinations still in the making, to forever scar the humanity.

Worse, Alexandria could tell that the angelic monster was practically mocking them, like always, making all who attacked dance to her tune.

She inwardly scoffed at the poorly worded thought, before checking the timer on her armband -as even she sometimes lost the track of time in the heat of battle- then dived back in, and managed to slam into the statuesque face of the thing right in the nose as it was reeling from the brilliant emerald blast which signified Eidolon's return to the fray.

The deceptively serene expression didn't even budge, as her target smoothly moved with the impact, and Alexandria retreated swiftly, while Eidolon took the charge once more along with Legend. So the dance continued uninterrupted despite their efforts, further into the areas of the city yet to be evacuated.

Then, as she turned to look at the situation one last time before letting the next wave of capes take her place... she saw it.

A small, pitch-black distortion in the air, the size of a tennis ball, right behind and slightly above the left shoulder of their enemy who was floating utterly still, gathering even more weapons and tools with their offense slowing down

It looked both like a graphical glitch and a window broken through. She immediately recognised it as the work of a particuarly troubling cape, having seen the effect before, and was momentarily surprised at feeling an irrational urge to warn the alarmingly unsuspecting Endbringer.

'What? You thought humanity's continued existence rested on your shoulders? Well, you were wrong, aren't you relieved? Or do you regret all of your sins even more?'

She shook off the other surfacing unpleasant memories, briefly lamenting her inability to forget, and observed.

Thin, small fingers came out of the crack in reality, and casually grabbed at the dimensionless darkness, pushing it away slightly to let some light through, opening the 'door'.

And then, faster than most would notice, an arm lunged out from beyond, holding... a hard to look at thing shaped like a knife, and disappeared just as quickly after performing one, simple, swipe.

The Simurgh flinched, as if in confusion, and for the first time, her song got cut off, shortly after, disappeared forever.

But as the Endbringer fell and scattered to the winds, Alexandria heard 'the scream' in her head again, and for once, it formed into words.

'AN ANOMALY'

"So you heard it too... good to know I'm not going crazy. But did anybody else hear it?" David asked, still with that unwelcoming air around him.

"Doesn't seem to be the case. The capes who fought are already celebrating the news online, but none of them have mentioned hearing any messages. Legend didn't ask about such either. Which means that the Simurgh knew... of our conspiracy, and possibly his distance from it."

Rebecca let that sit for a bit, the implication of even being in an empty parallel world not keeping them out of the Endbringers' reach.

Not that their confidence on that front wasn't already shaken recently.

"An anomaly... that implies something from outside the cycle, or a rogue Agent of an unheard degree. That's... concerning. Rebecca, are you sure of who you saw?" The Doctor inquired, thoughtful, her even tone reassuring within the storm of unexpected developments.

The other woman nodded, her displeasure with the fact evident.

"I still have perfect memory, and it could fit." They first assumed that what they were dealing with was something akin to Glaistig Uaine, a trump who could take and maybe even grant powers, who also acquired an equelivant to Contessa's Agent, who up until now avoided any notice. Which was an unlikely and troubling combination to begin with. And got even less likely to be true after today; they were not completely sure of what role the Endbringers played in the Cycle, but they were not supposed to be able to get destroyed, not so easily.

"But the questions of why the Simurgh... notified me, along with David, and why the Anomaly went after her are still unanswered. The former being a final manipulation is also a probability."

So many possibilities, so many risks, so much uncertainty. At least before, there was a visible, if treatorous path leading to Scion, but now... 'the Anomaly' was certainly an apt name, especially with the true one... seemingly unsafe to use.

Dean sighed and pulled out his phone. She told him not to call Vicky, but... Taylor didn't seem to know what was best for her right now.

"Hello, Dean~"

He smiled at her voice despite not being in the best of moods himself.

"Hi Vicky, sorry for coming to you like this again, but Taylor is handling missing the Endbringer battle... way worse than I expected, and-"

"Oh, I figured she would be like that, kinda feeling the same here, honestly. How bad? Is it worse than... you know, that time..."

He was about to say 'way more upset and irritable but also worried', but then noticed her shoving a whole bar of chocolate into her mouth, then chewing agressivily, thinking that it was a more adequette summary of the situation, he answered as such.

"What? Actually ate all the chocolate?! But she rarely even..."

"Yeah, I know, she usually 'dreams' about eating, but she told something about her powers not working properly earlier... which is worrying, so help me? It's not getting better..."

And now she was loudly telling Chris to take his blaster into his workshop before it started to fall apart and to leave her alone... he had to assume that the tinker was somewhere in the hearing distance, as he was nowhere in sight.

"Powers acting off? That's weird... Uh, what about Chara, they usually cheer her up just by being around!"

Dean frowned at the name.

Chara was... an unsettling presence, and seemed to be bothe aware of, and pleased by the fact. With the severely inconsistent appearance where they chose a random age along with maybe a gender, only recognisable by a few never-changing features and sometimes the color-scheme of their clothing. Even then they... apparently didn't bother to look completely human, much too obviously. Not even breathing, for example.

His friends got used to it, and he did too, to some degree... would even call them occasionally pleasant to look at... if they pretended to be a statue or a painting. But the empath also saw more than what met the eye.

To him, Chara was also either a hazy aura perfectly mirroring Taylor's, which might explain them referring to each other as partners, or a void that sometimes resonated with an emotion that... could've been an analogue to a dark pleasure. Like a very extreme, and literally-taken sociopath.

That would've been fine too... if they weren't apparently airborne.

Still, Taylor appeared to have some sort of genuine friendship with them, and were closer to her than anybody else.

"No, they are away." At Canberra, according to Taylor. He decided to not question how, like with most things incolving the duo.

"Gone as well? Okay, I'm coming! Better than pacing around in my home anyway..."

He turned off the phone after she hung up, then walked away from the console to talk with the girl who was obviously troubled even without a thinker power to see her desperately trying to keep herself distracted.

She ignored him as she approached the fridge, then ran away from back to the couch after violently slamming it closed.

"Listen, Taylor... trying to ignore what's bothering you... like this, won't be helpful." He started, when she proceeded to lay there motionlessly after landing face-first.

She seemed frustrated at the attempt.

It was really disheatrening to see an effectively invincible and one of the most looked up to heroes being so... down at the bottom.

"Just shut up, what do you know?"

He paused when he heard her mumble into the cushions, almost taking a step away.

It was true, he didn't really know much, having had a rich family, a good school where he was popular and had friends, a relatively straight-forward career as a beloved hero... he never went through the stuff that she did, if even half the stuff what they were told when getting briefed about the 'delicate' situation with Shadow Stalker was true.

Where I was told to shut up about a serious hospitalisation, maybe even a trigger event, I could have prevented... but now I should at least try to help, better than forever regretting my inaction, not again.

"I mean, I and the others know how it feels to be sidelined like this, and it's undoubtedly worse for you..." He paused, decoding her reaction as dismissal. "Huh? That's not what you are upset about? Still... you can talk at me. I heard it helps."

That was the advice he gave to his girlfriend about her sister, it seemed to have made things better, if only for a while. Amy tended to default back to her usual statei no matter what moved the healer in the first place, it unfortunately seemed. But that was a completely different problem.

He got momentarily disheartened when the only response he got was the muffled, incoherent screaming.

"You... you're right!" Dreamer started, after putting on her mask and rising from the prone position. "That pale feathery bitch wrecking a capital doesn't bother me much, not on it's own. And sure... I cried and angsted about it at first, but I'm over it right now! Just like I'm over... the previous issue."

So what has her so... worried? There has to be more.

Then, whatever little confidence she managed to gather broke, and she visibly trembled with a resurfacing wave of... fear?

He had never seen her actually afraid before.

"I... uh... have flowers to tend to!"

Is...is something horrible going to happen?

He thought as the girl hastily walked away, and considered if some time alone would actually do her good.

But decided to offer his assistance one last time before Vicky took over. He might have been a good pick for a therapist because of his power, but his girlfriend could move people in a way only a few could.

...granted, the last time they got moving it might have gone a bit too far, especially with the whole thing streamed live and elevated to a memetic status. It was the most popular Uber & Leet stream to date, actually, also their last, ironically.

He chuckled as he recalled some of the reactions it got from the PHO, but then stopped and headed towards the elevator, once again reminded of the sheer contrast the hero showed to herself from back then.

Gallant found her standing in the middle of the garden, standing wit her back turned, looking up towards the moon as if it was the only thing keeping her lucid.

"What actually bothers me... what actually bothers me..."

Her words died out, swallowed by the fear... and guilt still coursing through her, their influence paralysing.

Then she let out a deep sigh, almost a shout, momentarily putting away her feelings, turned around, and continued with a fake tone of perfect serenity.

"What actually bothers me is all of our Protectorate dying horribly. And it' my fault."

For a moment, there was silence, only disturbed by the winds rustling the leaves of the garden surrounding them.

Then she lovered her head, trying to keep herself together, staggered, collapsed as if a puppet with it's stings cut. Then cried with sobs shaking her whole body as another feeling resurfaced, and joined the violent storm inside her at a prospect her thoughts led to.

Dean was confused, lost on what to do with his friend, who was usually always in control of herself, being in such turmoil.

I should be able to... do something. Why can't I help... Damn it, so useless. Do I just tell her it's not her fault? She seems to have strongly convinced herself against that.

He hated seeing people who hurt in some way or another, and often went out of his way to help. Usually a simple compliment or a few words of support did the job, but... this was way too intense for those to work.

Nontheless, he tried to approach the quivering girl, feeling a bit numb both from her alarmingly uncharacteristic behavior and the troubling prophecy.

She got back up and staggered away the moment he took his first step, barely staying balanced as she looked at him with the eerie painted smile that currently did not fitat all.

As if reading his thoughts, she ripped the mask of and threw it away, as if the thing wasn't letting her breathe. He found it harder to meet her actual expression.

"I don't want to let go." She said, quiet and desperately pleading. Asking for something he couldn't give.

Earlier, she felt guilt and a worry that was also fear, but now... whatever 'letting go' meant she was absoulutely terrified of the prospect. And finally wording it didn't seem to have helped.

"Look... they are not dead yet, " He paused, thinking. "-and you said that your friend went out there to help earlier. Besides, it's the Simurgh, so maybe there was some thinker interference? You said your power was malfunctioning earlier, right?"

Dean tried, stepping closer as she seemed to be lost in her thoughts again, his words apparently having pushed her deeper inside as she sunk to the ground once again.

Then whatever realization he led her to caused something like a panic attack.

"Shit, I made it worse, damn it I knew I should have waited for Vicky." He swore and moved to keep his friend from falling to the ground, throughoutly out of it.

"Taylor, Taylor... look at me!"

I don't know how to deal with this.

For a few moments, he was left there awkwardly holding her as Taylor looked blankly ahead still breathing heavily, then she flinched as if punched in the gut, and fainted.

At least she seems to be more at ease now.

He was calling for medical help, after setting the girl down to a more comfortable position on a nearby bench, but was interrupted when-

"Hmm, this looks scandallous, a rich boy sitting with an unconscious girl under the night. I'm tempted to try causing needless drama by getting your girlfriend up here. Also, what did I miss?"

Startled, he dropped his phone and almost smacked Taylor by accident before spotting the third person occupying the bench, leaving the girl between them.

"She... uh... fainted from stress. I'm... not really sure about what the correct medical term would be."

He answered, awkwardly with him holding his breath as much as possible, trying to ignore the... buttercup-scented dust slowly surrounding him. Normally unnoticable, from what he could gather, but to his special vision, it was identical to the 'body' sitting near him, causing rather... disturbing illusions, and implications about inhaling it.

"Stress? Ouch, maybe I should have came back sooner then. Oh well, let's let her sleep until the others come back, so she wakes up to even more good news."

They didn't seem to be... no, straight up weren't overly concerned. Appearing to be way more interested in absently poking at... the blue glow that hovered above their hands, illuminating them as they looked at it as if a kid with a brand-new toy.

"What... what is that?" He asked, momentarily mesmerised by the... ethereal spark.

"Oh, this? Just a thing I have to hold on to for a week."They glanced at him with a wry, conspiratory half-smirk, bringing the entrancing thing closer to him from in front of the still-unconscious Taylor. "Pretty, isn't it? Like a star. I'm in a good mood, so wanna hold it? You can feel it beating. Here!"

"Wait, hold on-"

Despite his protests, he ended up with the oddly familiar-feeling light floating between his hands, unsurely holding it like an immeasurably precious, yet fragile thing, as if shielding an ember from the cold night.

He could indeed feel it beating, like a living thing, yet not physically, and could swear he saw a faint heart-shape, as a neon trail, when he looked closer at the beautiful deep light, no, the perfect union of practically infinite lights. And it contained... so much! He could stare at it for hours before gettin bored.

For some reason, he felt nostalgiacally juvenile, like a small child truly looking at a starry night sky for the first time, and wondering about what else could be out there.

Wait, where did Taylor-

"Seven."

Dean felt every single hair on his body stand when he heard them whispering right into his ear from behind.

"Please don't do that." He muttered uselessly.

"Just seven human souls and you could become a god." They pulled away from their leaning and continued with their usual tone and volume, as they walked around the bench. "Just seven, and one could erase even the Endbringers from existence with ridiculous ease. Isn't that just maddeningly ridiculous enough to be funny?"

Human souls? Ridiculous ease? What are they on about? He thought, trying to not get unnerved.

"Good thing that humans can't even see these things before they disappear, let alone be able to absorb and claim them at all. Just imagine the chaos! All because these precious things can't stay right where they belong to..."

Then they snatched the thing from him, and slowly swallowed it, as if savoring wine, still completely ignoring the concept of personal space and not breaking eye-contact even for a moment.

"Tastes like nothing. Not sure what I expected." Then shrugged and turned to leave, picking up the previously discarded mask along the way.

Dean let go of the breath he was holding as their presence receded.

"Oh, and you better check out the PHO. I was serious about the good news, the whole world is freaking out."

Vertigo, darkness, and... soft, mumbly singing?

"I remembeeer~ how it felt to love and live and breathe, now I can't even hate or grieve, but I remembeeer~"

Why did everything inside me feel horrible?

"Wish I could somehow forget, since I won't ever get them back, my existence drives me mad, stuck here foreveeer~"

It smells... sterile. The infirmary? I... did I pass out?

"And I still don't understand, why my sins crawl on my back as if they matteeer~ not like I can care anymore, about those I loved before, but I remembeeer~"

Still confused and not completely lucid, I decided to start humming along.

"-us playing in the mud, heirs to all the wishes made for a life above that rock, then I ate those buttercups, to fall down choking on blood, all their hopes turned to despair, all because of my fail, and then I spent years six feet undeeer~ so when I woke up to see wha-... oh, you're awake! Good, it was starting to get depressing."

First I looked around groggily, then after a few moments of thinking, shot up fast enough to leave myself reeling. Feeling disproportionate amounts of relief when I noticed that I was still in my new costume.

"Ow... everything is spinning." I mumbled, and took the mask Chara was offering, feeling a bit more whole, then looked around more consciously, but not before having to fight off the urge to scream incoherently in relief and hug them with what little dignity I had left.

I recognised this as the PRT's infirmary, with a few other overly white beds and curtains following mine and some medicine cabinets and equipment across from me lining the wall, so no weirdness there, and there weren't any tubes or stuff going through me like before... which made this way more pleasant and way less PTSD inducing.

Then I noticed a nurse coming through the door with a clipboard. The young woman stopped and gave my partner an unsure glance, to which they responded with a smile and a wave, before moving on to my side with a surrendering sigh, seemingly in a too good mood to be worried about unpermitted visitors.

"Uhh... so am I okay?" I asked, stalling.

"Yes, you should be physically fine, if a bit disoriented for at most a few days. You should be able to leave with no issues once you sign a few things. But I must suggest you taking this to your therapist... teens fainting from panic is a problem." She added, after I looked at her blankly enough for my confusion to be evident through my mask.

"Um, so are the..." I felt my head pounding and throat drying again as I tried to ask the questions I dreaded, making me pause to steel myself.

Is everything alright? Please, oh please tell me that everything is alright.

Last edited: Oct 5, 2016

322

KindaApatheticButNice

Oct 5, 2016

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