(Author's note: Shorter chapter this week. I needed to cut a planned preamble due to limited writing time. The preamble will be included in next weeks chapter, a long awaited interlude set outside of Brockton Bay.)

65 Summit Aftermath

The movie wasn't particularly long, even without the effects of time acceleration being considered. Less than a minute of real time to finish the complete run, with a bit more time for discussion and reactions. Reactions that could be classified as 'mixed'. Tybalt absolutely loved it, and Tetra got caught up in his enthusiasm. For me and Aisha there was an element of nostalgia, but it was definitely less of a success with the rest of the group.

Fleet and Matrix seemed more focused on the scenery than the characters. It may have been their first introduction to cartoons, so without the lovingly detailed renditions of London's streets that were surprisingly accurate to a specific time period I doubt they would have found anything to enjoy.

Well, maybe not. Fleet did seem at least moderately engaged by the Skimbleshanks song, but I was willing to bet that was more about the subject matter than anything else. He seemed quite interested in the concept of a railway cat, if nothing else.

For Garment, it had been interesting seeing her reaction. It was a film with excellent art direction and a style of its own, but minimal use of fashion. Clothing was used to accent certain characters, but otherwise was completely absent. I think she enjoyed the aesthetics of it, but didn't launch into a blitz of inspiration.

Survey was less entertained. Even monitoring the reactions of the rest of the group only carried her so far as she tried to make sense of what passed for the movie's story. After getting fed up with that she actually started launching into musical analysis, something I could actually keep up with now, even if I didn't know all the terminology, benefits of my last Unnatural Skill. That kept her engaged for the rest of the movie, even if it took an unexpected direction.

"So did you build Survey with a voice like that, or did she practice on her own?" Aisha asked me as we made our way from the interface thrones.

I smiled and shook my head. "I built the best body I could so, you know, it can handle singing. I didn't really expect her to be into it."

"Given the lack of a coherent plot, the musical structure was the most promising source of analysis." Survey stated, though there was a slight hum to her words.

"Yeah, totally just analyzing things. That's why you were singing along." Aisha said with a grin.

"I was testing the range of simulated vocal chords. And Apeiron was supportive of my efforts." Survey shot back.

"Yeah, I heard." She grinned at me. "We've got to get you two to karaoke at some point."

"While that would normally be regarded as an unproductive endeavor, the presence of multiple music-based skills could justify its inclusion in the training regime." Survey pointed out.

I fell back as their banter continued. Fleet had vanished towards the vehicle bays after the movie finished, taking Tybalt with him. The Matrix was staying with the computer core for a chance to monitor the spiritron computing experiments while Tetra was walking with Garment. She looked up at me as I matched pace with them.

"I liked the movie." She said silently. "Even if I can't sing like that." She was still maintaining infrared contact with the Workshop systems, but wasn't just echoing her speech anymore. I could sense Survey dividing her focus, meaning there was probably a private conversation or argument about the movie happening between them.

"I'm glad you liked it. It was one of my favorites when I was a kid." I said, earning an intrigued look from Tetra and a similar gesture from Garment. Before they could follow up on that I spotted my duplicates waiting for us in the entryway.

"Ah. This a sendoff, or are you kicking me out?" Aisha asked.

"First one." One of the duplicates quipped. "You're always welcome here, considering we can't seem to keep you out." Aisha gave him a sour look that quickly cracked into a smile.

"Thank you for your help at the summit." I said. "Having everyone there meant a lot." Aisha grinned and brushed a lock of hair over her ear. "But seriously, you should get back to your dad."

"Really, he's fine." Aisha said. "And I've stayed out before. If you need me, or there's more prep or training…"

"No, we can pick that up tomorrow." I assured her. "Also, you should take some time at home. It's going to be a hectic week, so spending some time with your family when you can is a good idea." Additionally, I didn't want Aisha to become disconnected from her father and brother. I knew how easy it was to get lost in this kind of work. My own social links were more limited than hers, but I worked to maintain them as much as I could. I at least needed to look out for her in the same way.

"On that note, here." The second duplicate presented Aisha with a plain Tupperware box.

"What's this?" She asked, taking the plastic container.

"Support for your cover story." He explained. Aisha raised an eyebrow and he continued. "You said you were having dinner at a friend's house, right? Well, that friend is sending dessert home to share with your father."

Aisha peeled back the container and looked inside. "Are those carrot cake?" She asked.

"Carrot cake cupcakes. Suitably generic Easter dessert that could be sent home with someone." The duplicate explained proudly. Each cupcake had a little carrot made of icing on top. There was an artificialness to the design, but more like it had been industrially produced than sculpted by a master artisan.

"Right…" Aisha said uneasily. "Um, these aren't like, elven super food with crazy magic or whatever, right? Like everything else you make?"

"Yeah." The duplicate said guiltily. "They would have been, but we didn't make them. They were printed out by some of the Matrix's old nanobots. Still good quality, but good by the standards of store-bought cake, which is the impression we were going for. Not any magic stuff. Since Daedalus' Student it's kind of hard to keep a lid on that stuff."

"It's really that bad?" Aisha asked me.

I shrugged. "It was one of the big ones. Same level as what let me make divine objects. It's really easy to take things too far, and there's no easy way of turning it off. Best I can do is kind of phone in the work and hope I don't overshoot with any aspect of the final product."

Aisha nodded, then gave me a concerned look. "Wait, didn't you give a bottle of liquor to the bartender? Is there going to be a problem with that?"

"Not with that one." I said. "I bottled it this morning, but it was from a batch from before Daedalus' Student."

"It's from testing out our Noble Phantasm." The first duplicate explained. "You can age whiskey really easily with it. I mean, it's still master crafted and elven enhanced and hit with a pile of quality buffs, but it's still whiskey, not the crazy elixirs that happen with Daedalus' Student."

"But you were okay handing out something like that?" She asked. I just shrugged.

"Sure." I said with a grin. "Everything I've been doing to stay off the radar kind of went out the window tonight. Besides, people already either know or suspect what I'm capable of, I just haven't been taking any action." It was a step towards greater agency, something important for the purposes of breaking doormat behavior, taking pride in my work, and embracing spiral energy. Stressing over every possible repercussion that releasing a bottle of whiskey into the world would cause was kind of blind to the impact I'd already had. I'd been trying to keep a lid on every possible vector, every fault that could be traced back to me. Well, that ship had sailed. It was past the point where I could leave the table. My only choice was to see the game through.

"What are they even going to do with it?" Aisha asked.

"Whatever they want." I said. "Maybe drink it, or sell it, or keep it for special occasions? If it shows up on the market it will at least give me an idea of what my work will sell for."

"Smart. So, it's just good liquor, no super magic?" She asked.

"Well, the bottle's divine, so they won't need to worry about it breaking or spilling or anything. I kept it mostly normal when I made it, and it doesn't have any dangerous features." I shrugged again. "Honestly, I've got enough on my plate right now. If a bottle of whiskey turns out to be the tipping point for this entire situation then managing it was probably a lost cause to begin with."

"I guess." She agreed, then glanced between me, my duplicates, Tetra, Garment, and Survey. "So, tomorrow? What's the plan?"

I took a breath. "Well, things are probably going to be stable, at least for a little while."

"It is unlikely that either the Merchants or Empire will attempt open hostilities given the risk of violating the agreed neutral territory or restrictions on impairing the recovery efforts." Survey explained. "Other forces may attempt to covertly subvert the terms, but will likely only do so when it is strongly to their advantage. Open conflict with the Teeth is a possibility, but it is unlikely to occur while the group is consolidating their forces and adapting to new surroundings."

"Which means we have a bit of time to prepare." I explained. "We can continue your alchemy training, and branch out into some more sciences, depending on what you want to focus on." Aisha's eyes gleamed at that. "I also want to get you some actual combat training. Tybalt's better at that than me, so I'll get him to set up a schedule." Aisha's watch beeped as Fleet transmitted a message. I smiled as I registered it through my own implant.

"Fleet's reminding me of my stated commitment to the Iota vehicle." Aisha said, reading her watch's display. Recognition hit and she looked up at me with bright eyes. "Moondance?"

I sighed. "Please, come up with a name that's not a trademark violation." I begged. "But yes, if you're going to use one of the wishes you need to learn to ride, at the very least. Tybalt should be able to cover that as well."

There was a rumble that spread through the Workshop as the Personal Reality constellation made a connection to a cluster of motes. Two of the motes were secured, expending the reach I had accumulated so far.

"What was that?" Aisha asked.

"New item, same source as the storage space from earlier." I explained. I pulled up a holographic display, showing the expanded space from the perspective of Survey's drones as they documented the area and the impact its appearance had on the rest of the workshop.

"A garage?" She asked.

I nodded. "Dedicated garage, in the same vein as my metal shop and the other workshops that were added. Forty bays for cars or other vehicles. There's a size limit, so it can't take the jet or mechs. Better link with the Garage Door opener, so it will be easier to deploy a vehicle. Also came with a second item. Fueling station that can handle any type of fuel, even stuff for spacecraft or magitech constructs."

Aisha nodded. "Wow. So, you have an infinite amount of whatever you can run an engine off?"

"No." I said flatly. "Limitation built into the system. Fuel only works in vehicles. Take it out and try to run something else from it and you'll have a mess."

She scrunched her nose. "Do I even want to know how that works?"

"The principle behind the effect has no clear cause or source. This is consistent with several expressions of Apeiron's power and granted items. Effect remains fixed, with no identifiable link to cause. It is most frustrating." Survey noted sharply.

I extended sympathy towards Survey through my implant as I turned to Aisha. "Out of everything I need to cover from recent powers, that's a fairly minor one."

"Right, all that other tech stuff." She said, closing the Tupperware container. "I should get going then."

"See you tomorrow for training?" I asked.

She grinned. "Just try to stop me." I saw her out of the workshop to Garment's studio where she slipped out the back. Between her power and her armor, I didn't need to worry about her getting home safe. It was good that she would be able to spend some time with her father on Easter.

The thought brough my mind back to my own family situation, and not in a pleasant way. There were going to be consequences for skipping out on Easter dinner. It had been the right decision, and I wasn't responsible for how my family reacted to it, but it was hard to break away from the feelings of guilt. There was a persistent sense that I was causing trouble for everyone around me. Even with everything I had done and all the powers reinforcing my outlook, I couldn't completely break away from those kinds of thoughts.

The thoughts, the feelings, they were still there, but I didn't need to let them rule me. It was hard to go against the natural reactions of your own mind, and doubly hard when you had been taught that doing so was wrong, selfish, or inconsiderate. But I had other reactions now. The reassurance of my passenger, the growing promise of spiral energy, the way pride resonated with my Mantra arts, the steady progress towards Mental Fortress and away from doormat behavior, and even the magic of runes, fueled by suffering and resonating with both my current and past family situation.

Honestly, that last point probably helped more than the others combined. It was one thing to know that there was support for you to move on and good things waiting for you. It was another entirely to be able to look at your past and have a divine mandate say 'Yes, it actually was that bad'. Everything that had been diminished or dismissed through my life, everything that I had been told was unimportant or only a problem in my own mind, it burned as a source of fuel for my rune craft. Being able to clearly see the past changed the way you looked at the future.

I took a breath before returning to the workshop. Survey was the only one waiting for me, though she had changed out of her cape costume and returned to the more professional wear Garment had outfitted her with. Well, less changed and more manifested one set of clothes in place of another. Given the size of the subspace pocket she had access to from the cybertonium in her body I was betting her entire wardrobe had been stored in there, along with supporting equipment and anything else she felt might be useful.

As I entered she stepped forward and calmly delivered a report. "The duplicates have departed to commence their twenty percent time. Garment is attempting to find something from the Resplendent Wardrobe appropriate for Tetra, and Fleet and Tybalt are arranging plans for a miniature railway."

I blinked. "Okay, taking that one at a time, Garment?"

"Garment has located appropriately sized and styled outfits for each member of the Celestial Forge, in her opinion of the appropriate styles of the members of the Celestial Forge." There was a hint of pride in Survey's voice as she said the name of our team. "The esoteric designs of the clothing provided options that were deemed acceptable for the Matrix's consolidated form, and they have agreed to trial Garment's selections." I raised an eyebrow at that. "While selections have been made for the rest of the group, Garment is attempting to locate the ideal match for Tetra's nature, personality, and the body shape of her zoanthrope form."

"Right." I said. "Um, of the outfits she has selected for me, how many of them have shirts?"

"Thirty two percent of the options Garment deemed appropriate contain some form of chest covering." Survey informed me. I gave her a flat look, not liking the technical terminology used.

"And how many would be classified as 'shirts'?" I asked.

"Given the stylistic variation between modern sensibilities and the origin point of the Resplendent Wardrobe, exact parallels to the modern definition of 'shirt' are not generally applicable." I leveled my gaze at her and she continued. "It could be said that approximately twelve percent of the selected outfits meet that definition."

I shook my head. Garment had found a backdoor to making Barbarian Chic work, and was apparently running with it. The design sensibilites of whatever world had produced the Resplendent Wardrobe were a bit much, so I didn't see them being integrated into my cape outfit, but Garment was certainly keen to run with it as much as she could. Given that this was potentially an entire world worth of fashion I could understand her excitement, even if I wasn't thrilled about how many shirtless outfits she would be pushing on me. Given what mantra training could do for the body, that was probably a common aesthetic in that universe, though it was considerably out of place by most modern sensibilities.

"Okay, moving on, miniature railway?" I asked while drawing up reports from the Workshop's systems through my neural implant. Survey provided the relevant data while also giving a verbal presentation.

"Following the depiction seen in the movie, Fleet expressed interest in adding a set of locomotives to his trial vehicles. Tybalt also wished to support the project and has inquired if 'railway cat' is an official designation."

I smiled at that as I reviewed the plans. My duplicates were already helping to put them in place. A tiny railroad seemed a little pedestrian, even if the scale was larger than what you saw in a traditional home set. Gauge 3 by the standards of model trains, or 1:22, in line with the rest of Fleet's tiny vehicles.

Fleet's influence came through in the nuances of the project. Most model railroads or miniature trains were display pieces focused on historic accuracy. You didn't see a lot of high-speed rail or maglev trains in the model railway community. I also got the impression Fleet was doing something of a trial for a planned overhaul of the modern railway system. I mean, it was in line with the types of projects he sought out, but really I hadn't seen it coming.

"Tybalt expressed disappointment that the trains would be too small for him to ride, but Fleet was adamant that the scale remain consistent with the rest of his trial vehicles." Survey continued. "Tetra also expressed interest in railway lines that would be able to transport her while in zoanthrope form, despite the presence of more efficient inter-workshop transport options, including linked gates and direct teleportation options."

An adorable image of Tybalt or Tetra napping on top of the carriages or engine of larger one eighth scale trains as they chugged along flashed into my brain. Then I remembered the class of rail system Fleet was leaning towards and the speeds it would attain. This was going to be less the sleep time kitty choo choo and more a cat version of Space Mountain with fewer safety measures. Not that the prospective riders really needed them, but the point stood.

"I'm sure they can work it out. I take it my duplicates decided to help with the project?" Workshop spanning model railway was very much in line with the kind of projects that came out of 20% time.

"One of them is. The other wished to meet with you regarding the results of evaluations of sensor data from the summit." Survey stated.

I nodded seriously. "Did you pick up something from one of the people there that needs our attention?" I asked. People weren't exactly flashing their powers around, but it was the best opportunity to scan parahumans that I'd had so far. As long as I didn't violate the unwritten rules, and I was very clear about that with Survey, we were free to scan and assess anything that was publicly displayed.

"While several expressions of powers and technology warrant further examination, this primarily deals with the response to Victor's arrival." She said.

"What, did something happen?" I asked. "I thought our exposure was minimal."

"That was indeed the case, but there was a marked anomaly." Survey pulled up records of the exchange, including holographic scans of the room. A perfect recreation of every detail of the summit at Survey's disposal. I'm not sure if there were actually any policies against recording the event, but considering how Fleet, Survey, and the Matrix stored data there wasn't much difference between them observing something and them recording it. Actually, with what I was capable of with respect to memory reading and extraction there wasn't much difference between anyone viewing or recording something. I could get exact records either way.

"What happened?" I asked, reviewing both the presented data and the information that had already been processed by my duplicates. They had been working on something during the summit, but hadn't put it forward until now.

"Only yourself, Tybalt, and Aisha proved to be valid targets for Victor's power. The combination of magical wards with diverted attention heavily diminished the effect, but you were the only one who exhibited periods of complete immunity." I watched her display of the effect I had been actively ignoring at the time. The mapped trail representing Victor's power sputtered out shortly after it formed, with only weak expressions of the power connecting for short periods during the standoff.

This wasn't the simplified assessment that Survey had shown off at the summit. It had a full breakdown of the power's effect, including dimensional mapping and analysis of energy types that most people didn't even have words for. Some of this was the product of Fleet's scans of Passenger Space. They were still prepping for a major expedition, but preliminary sensor sweeps and analysis of their early ventures with the first passenger were already yielding results in terms of understanding the exact mechanics behind parahuman abilities. The result was an incredibly comprehensive breakdown of Victor's ability, and specifically the way it just cut out, not like it was disrupted, but like it suddenly had nothing to target.

I turned to Survey. "Do they know what caused this?" I asked. I was still digging through the data. It was heavy on analysis, but without any definite conclusions.

"There is a promising theory that is being pursued." Survey explained. "Specifically, your reserves of Aura reduced slightly with each expression of the effect."

I blinked in surprise as the Magic constellation missed a connection, then shifted my attention back to the data. I hadn't paid much attention to the scanners monitoring my reserves of Aura. It had been a key feature of the Scroll that came with that power, but it had never really been an issue for me. I suppose if you were using it as your primary source of combat strength and protection then it would be necessary to carefully monitor your reserves.

That was presumably the case in the universe that power had originated from, but with my combination of abilities Aura was never more than a supplemental tool. One more line of defense or source of physical enhancement. I dipped into it so sparingly that there was almost no chance of it hitting the red, and the impact of losing my reserves would be minimal.

"That doesn't make sense." I said, pouring over the scans. "Aura is capable of physical protection, but it can't repel magical or parahuman effects. And the power isn't being repelled, it's just dropping off. There's no interaction at all. It's like someone was flicking a light switch on and off."

Survey nodded along with my assessment. "The duplicates investigated the effect. They had a theory that was largely confirmed by Tybalt." Right, because Aura was effectively a weapon, and he understood weapons on an instinctive level. "They had requested that you meet them in the Upper Arena for a demonstration."

The Upper Arena was the site of my first elemental weapon duel against my duplicates, back when my elemental weapons were merely dangerous rather than devastating. More recent fights happened outside the volcano as a matter of necessity. The fully charged Mantic circuits might be able to reform my base and the hand-crafted corridors and equipment could stand up to nearly any punishment, but neither of those features were things I wanted to put to the test. Plus, most of my elemental weapons post-Infusionist were overkill in an enclosed area. Okay, they were overkill in general, but when you were literally filling all available space with the element in question it wasn't so much a fight as an energy-based shoving match.

Tybalt was waiting for me with one of my duplicates when Survey and I arrived. "Survey said you had an idea of what this was about?" I asked as we stood in the center of the cavernous space.

The duplicate nodded. "Tip was from personal biometric scanners." He said, pulling up the information on a holographic display. It was something I hadn't even thought to check, but my duplicates working with Survey had been able to pick it out.

"Magic?" I asked.

"Sort of magic." My duplicate said. "Kind of magic adjacent, or a semblance of magic." He pulled up more information. "Whatever it is, it's fueled by spiritual energy, drawing from Aura directly, not our mana reserves. The actual structure and effect of the 'Semblance' is tied to the expression of Aura."

I checked the data. "This is normal? Like a normal expression of how Aura works? That would mean…" I turned to Tybalt who was smiling a smug kitty smile. "You knew about this?"

He quickly let out a series of meows, explaining how his awareness of the effect progressed. I nodded. It was like my own understanding of technology. If you showed me a new piece of technology my technokinesis would be able to pick its functions apart, but I couldn't tell you about technology I'd never encountered. Tybalt could understand the functions of Aura when he started using Aura, but not from just being exposed to the idea of Aura.

"So, what's exactly happening here?" I asked, reviewing the information again.

"It might be easier to demonstrate this." He said. "Weirdly, we think you might actually be better at this than us."

"Really? I thought you guys were better with Aura?"

"Sort of, but this is a special case." He explained. "We tried it out, but it's kind of hard for us to manage it."

I glanced between him, Tybalt, and Survey who was carefully observing the proceedings. "Alright, what do I have to do?"

"Just pretend I'm Victor. Ignore me like you did at the bar." He said.

"That's it?" My duplicate shrugged. "Alright."

Actively trying to ignore something is almost an oxymoron. Thinking about how you're trying not to think about something is the kind of circular process that can drive you nuts. Fortunately, there were easier ways to deal with that kind of thing. I didn't have any kind of profound mental discipline, baring the occasional snippets that came from powers. I wasn't trying to accomplish this through brute force of will or careful management of my mind. I just slotted my duplicate into the category of things I didn't want to think about.

Given how many things related to the duplication process still bothered me, it wasn't that difficult. I didn't like thinking about their casual approach to mortality, or what their more carefree mentalities said about my own mental state. I didn't like the idea that I was bringing beings into existence, only for them to effectively die, leaving only a soul imprint, and even then only a tiny one and only recently.

With all of that mustered I could turn my head away and decide that no, I wasn't going to be dealing with all that right now. After a few seconds Survey nodded at me and spoke up. "That should be an adequate demonstration."

"What should be?" I asked, before turning back to my duplicate. He was holding a red glowing blade in his hand and grinning slightly. I noticed a bloom of heat from behind me and turned to see a scorched and desolate stretch of stone, slowly healing itself from the effect of the mantic circuits. "What the hell?"

"You're going to want to watch the replay on this." My duplicate assured me.

In the recording I could see myself take a moment to process things, then turn away from my duplicate. Like with the recordings from Somer's Rock it wasn't just visual information, but a complete sensor suite. The moment I turned my head away the effect manifested. Invisible to anyone who didn't have magical sensors, but undeniable. It was like the outline of a single spell drawn in a medium that shouldn't be able to support magic, but there was no denying the result. My Aura had created a semblance of magic, and the instant my duplicated confirmed it he sprang into action.

Weapons manifested around him, drawn from mana, demon energy, Digistruct formations, or pulled straight from the reserves of my weapons swapping power. An entire arsenal of death launched itself at me, and passed through without effect.

Now, most of that wouldn't have been able to affect me in the first place. My defenses were already ridiculous and had been effectively doubled by Fashion Nonvictim. I might have been focused on the implications of Mental Fortress, but the base ability of that power still allowed a single piece of armor to count as an entire suit. It stacked completely with my Fashion reinforcement, so there wasn't much that I couldn't tank.

Still, an assault like that I would have at least noticed. It would have knocked me back or broken my footing, possibly literally given what it was doing to the ground under my feet. Instead, nothing happened. Well, nothing happened to me. The arena was still worked over like it owed my duplicate money, but I was completely untouched.

"What exactly happened there?" I asked, reviewing the footage again.

"Okay, we picked most of this apart in the Magic Lab and confirmed some of the key details with Tybalt." He meowed helpfully.

"Thank you." My duplicate said to him before continuing. "From what we can tell, this semblance of magic is a kind of limited power that can be manifested through Aura. It's limited in scope, but can still be useful. Actually, it's like it's designed to be useful."

"But what is it actually doing?" I asked, drawing up the records from earlier tests.

"Well, if we ignore someone, or possibly something, the targeting limitations aren't totally clear at the moment, there's a kind of selective shift away from them, and only them." He explained.

"They can't touch us, and we can't touch them." I said, checking earlier results. The 'touch them' part was a bit nebulous. I knew the mindset I needed to hold for this to work. Intentionally attacking someone would break the effect, but it wasn't even possible to catch them with a stray round or area of effect.

"Providing we keep ignoring them." My duplicate continued. "The amount of Aura the effect consumed is based on how much is being negated, the level of interaction, and all that. Still much less than actually stopping attacks just using Aura, and a lot more effective."

"Right." I nodded. "But why is it connected to ignoring something?" I asked.

It was possibly the least useful trigger for what was honestly a fantastic ability. If I had known about this sooner and had it during the ABB's attack… Well, it might not have stopped March's ambush. There was just too much power and range there. It was designed to power through magical defenses. It would have let me ignore Oni Lee when he interrupted my fight with Lung. If I hadn't had to deal with that barrage of attacks I could have stopped Lung before he hit a critical point in size and strength.

Even if it didn't actually help me defeat any individual opponent, just being able to put off the problem until I could handle it was a huge advantage. It was something that seemed right, almost natural, even despite the awkward way of use.

"That goes back to Aura." My duplicate explained. "The expression aspect. We kind of suspected, but Tybalt was able to confirm for us." The Felyne was looking particularly smug at that moment.

"It's based on self-expression?" I asked. That didn't really seem right.

My duplicate shook his head. "More based on how you approach difficult situations, what your strategies for dealing with things are. How you cope."

I blinked in surprise. That was a bit on the nose, but nothing about this power had been exactly subtle. That should have been clear when my primary weapon was named 'Trauma'. A defensive power based on how I handled those situations, and it was based on ignoring problems.

"Avoidance." I said, and my duplicate nodded. It wasn't just a description of the act that triggered the Semblance, it went further than that. Something about that word resonated with me. My Semblance was Avoidance, the ability to ignore a problem until I could deal with it.

"You said you had a harder time with this?" I asked while also scanning through my duplicates' experiments with the semblance. It took them longer to activate it, and it was harder for them to maintain the effect. It flickered in and out more than mine had the first time I used it and they generally seemed less comfortable with the effect.

"Yeah." He nodded. "Um, we think it's kind of the opposite effect from what makes Aura easier for us to use."

"Oh." I said. Of course. They didn't have my coping strategies, or didn't need them. My tendency to ignore things wasn't exactly helpful, but I was definitely proficient at it. It was easier to decide to deal with something at an ambiguous later point, but if you only had hours to live it was probably a lot more difficult to keep 'later' in mind.

I paused as the Forge failed to connect to a large mote from the Alchemy constellation, then turned to Tybalt. "Wait, if you understand all of this, do you have a Semblance as well?"

He grinned widely and flourished his spear before leaping into the air. It seemed like an aimless pounce until a bright orange construct materialized in front of him. Tybalt spun to kick off the manifested platform, changing direction and pouncing again. He moved with incredible freedom, pulling energy constructs out of thin air using nothing but his aura. The walls, platforms and barriers he created hung in place, translucent panels of energy suspended in midair.

It looked like a game, and probably would have come across as such had Tybalt not been brandishing a spear and moving with deadly precision. Whatever his Semblance was, it let him expand his mobility while controlling the battlefield. With even casual attention to their placement the panels would be a nightmare to navigate. I didn't know how sturdy they were, but even a brief delay on the opponent's part would be enough to swing the direction of a fight.

Tybalt landed in front of us and flourished his spear. With a tap to the ground the panels shattered and dissolved into fading motes of orange light. He looked up at us with a grin and spoke two words in his best attempt at English.

"Waaarrrr Gaaammmmesss." It was a bit drawn out, but he managed the pronunciation admirably. Much better than Aisha's last attempt at speaking Felyne.

War Games. The name of his Semblance, just like Avoidance was the name of mine. I had the ability to ignore my problems. He had the ability to navigate a situation and turn it into something that was as much an amusement as a fight. Weirdly, despite what those Semblances supposedly said about each of us, I didn't mind. Avoidance was my semblance. It was part of me, an expression of what I had gone through and how I survived some of the less pleasant parts of my life. The strategy itself wasn't that helpful anymore, but the Semblance it had inspired was incredible, or at least had the potential to be.

I felt a wry smile cross my lips as I turned towards my duplicate. "Can I say I'm a little pissed we managed to get a near perfect defense only after our conventional resistances are so extreme that practically nothing could get through?"

"I know what you mean." He said. "If it's any consolation, it might not have been able to stop March, but it should work against any of Bakuda's bombs, and probably Damsel of Distress as well."

"Really?" I asked. Survey took the opportunity to step forward.

"Based on a comprehensive analysis of all data available on the effects of Ashley Stillons' power it appears to be a variable composite of gravitational, energy, and spatial effects. While a full assessment is not possible based on the quality of the available data, modeling suggests the vast majority, if not all, of the blast effects would be unable to function through your Semblance. The remaining energy would be unlikely to cause serious damage, given the defenses already in place, and would provide ample time for activation of the displacement field."

My duplicate nodded. "So, proof against anything normal, with annihilators being hit or miss, which is to be expected given the whole 'all or nothing' aspect or them."

I nodded, taking a moment to process the information. "This is huge." I said to myself. "I had no idea Aura could manifest like this. If we're stepping up everyone's Aura training tomorrow we need to be ready for this."

"Yeah, we'll have to brief Aisha before we start. Make sure we're up front with what's coming, rather than dumping a surprise like this on her."

"Yeah, that would be quite a shock." I froze as a thought hit me. "Fuck."

"What?" My duplicate asked as Tybalt and Survey gave me inquisitive looks.

"I need to call Chen."

I elected to place the call from the privacy of my office. The room had escaped any aggressive remodeling from my duplicates, though the furniture and accoutrements had been upgraded several times over. The same effect played out in the other converted apartment that served as my bedroom. There were a cluster of other accommodations in the house provided by Hidden Hideaway that felt like I should formally assign to people. It had kind of slipped, given that Tybalt and I were the only ones who actually slept and Tybalt seemed to take the cat stance on claiming any warm flat surface as a temporary bed.

Okay, now I was stalling. Aisha had thankfully given Chen a scroll when she met with him. It let me confirm he actually made it to his family, or at least to the same state as his family, which was as good as confirmation. Now I was calling on Sunday night to warn him about the superpowers my duplicate had experimentally given him.

I took a breath. It was easy to get caught up in horrible predictions of how things would end in disaster, but I though back to the man I had met at the storage yard, who had organized a hoard of near panicked civilians with bombs in their heads. Who had taken the last spot in line, putting others before himself. Who had been recaptured by the ABB but endured long enough for my duplicate to rescue and outfit him.

I still wasn't thrilled about the coming conversation, but I was actually looking forward to seeing Chen again. He was one of the few people who had a name to his face. The rest of the conscripts had been too shellshocked or intimidated to share much. I recognized their situation, who was there alone or with loved ones, and that had an impact, but Chen was the only one who had really spoken with me. That meant something.

I put those concerns out of my mind and called up a display screen. Through the Workshop systems I accessed the scroll Aisha had issued to Chen and placed the call.

It rang. Then it rang again. And it rang some more.

I found myself mentally checking the time. It was Sunday night, but not that late. I could pinpoint the location of the scroll from its signal and then… what? Magical Scrying? Teleportation? Remote hologram projection? Honestly I was spoiled for choice, but most of those choices were terrible ideas. The fact that I was even considering them for fractions of a second was a sign I needed to make sure I stayed away from 3am thinking.

Finally, the call connected. There was a fumbling motion that shifted the video feed beyond the camera's capacity to correct it. Someone unfamiliar with how the device was opened. The motion settled and the reason for that became clear. Instead of Chen the image settled on a shot of a Chinese girl in her early teens.

"Hello?" I said cautiously.

I was in the same costume I had worn to Somer's Rock, so I could actually express through my mostly exposed face. The advantage of costumes built with a multitude of quality and comfort powers is they were actually rather easy to wear. I could honestly have slept in my cape outfit, armor plates and all, so there was no real drive to change as soon as I got back to the Workshop.

"Uh, hi?" She said in a high voice. "Are you Apeiron?" There was a flash as she seemed to rapidly reevaluate the question but realized she couldn't take it back.

"I am. I was trying to reach Chen…?"

"That's my dad!" She said excitedly. "Thank you for saving him. He told us everything when he got here. I can't believe you did all that for us. Thank you so much." She petered out again before experimentally trying again. "Um, I'm Jun?"

"It's nice to meet you Jun." I said, leaning hard on my powers to avoid showing a shred of awkwardness. "I need to speak to your father about something. Could you get him for me?"

She suddenly looked nervous, her eyes darting to the side. "Um, is it something bad? I mean, are we in any danger?"

Because of course that's where someone's mind would go if I called them out of the blue. "It's not anything bad, but I need to talk with him as soon as possible."

"Right now?" She asked, glancing away again.

"Is something wrong?" I asked.

"NO!" She said sharply. "Um, it's just, it's Sunday night, and my aunt Li is out, and it was the first time since we got here, and…" She realized she was babbling and swallowed. "Um, I'll go get them."

Them?

She set the scroll down and hurried out of the room. The video feed showed a nicely appointed suburban living room with just a hint of clutter. Through the scroll's audio pickup I could hear stairs being climbed and someone knocking on a door. There was a pause, then murmured conversation. I may have been having a 'private' conversation, but that was mostly for the sake of appearances. Survey was still monitoring everything and offered to provide audio enhancement of the distant discussion. I waved her off, but knew she was probably doing it anyway for her own records and analysis.

There was the sound of someone frantically descending stairs, followed by a jostling as someone picked up the scroll. It was Chen, dressed in the Goku uniform that my duplicate had made for him.

Well, the lower half of the Goku uniform. And it was a testament to the effects of even emulated life fibers that Chen was sporting a six pack like an Olympic athlete. He looked both relieved and embarrassed to see me. In the background I saw a woman descend the stairs wearing the jacket of Chen's costume and apparently nothing else.

"Apeiron." Chen said, awkwardly shifting the video frame as he spoke. "I am sorry that I almost missed your call. I was just…" He trailed off. From the reaction of his daughter and the condition I found him and his presumed wife it was clear what he had been doing.

That was an aspect of life fiber use I had honestly never considered.

"Oh, this is my wife, Mei." He angled the phone towards her and she walked forward, completely unphased by the current situation.

"Apeiron, thank you for everything that you did for my husband." She said sincerely, appearing completely natural while wearing what I was willing to bet was nothing but the golden jacket.

Huh, The Flock's Fleece really did ensure clothing I made always fit perfectly. Also, the effect of life fibers clearly wasn't limited to Chen.

"I was happy to help, ma'am. Chen is an extraordinary man, and he made a real difference last Saturday." I replied.

"Jun, come down here and introduce yourself properly." Mei called up the stairs where Jun was radiating levels of embarrassment I could feel vicariously.

"That's no problem, she was quite helpful." I interceded on her behalf. I tried to imagine my own parents in this situation and felt my brain white out for an instant. "I apologize for calling so late. I just need to speak with Chen for a moment, and then you can get back to your evening."

"Of course, anything you need. Come on Jun." The woman climbed the stairs and disappeared into the upper level of the house with her daughter slinking behind her.

I took a moment to consider where to go from here as the Knowledge constellation missed a connection. I smiled as I decided to take the most natural route.

"I'm glad you made it back to your family." I said earnestly.

A wave of tension seemed to flow off him as he nodded. I wondered if I should ask if he'd prefer to get a shirt, but decided not to sidetrack things.

"So am I." He glanced back. "Well, maybe not for my sister-in-law…"

"Aunt Li?" I asked.

He nodded. "History there, but at least Mei and Jun were safe. I'm glad I got back to them."

"I'm sorry for interrupting your time with them, but there's something I needed to talk to you about." I said seriously.

"What is it?" He asked, leaning forward.

"It's about Aura." I took a breath. "That was something of a new power, even for me. There were aspects of it that I didn't know about. Unlocking it was one of those, but there were more."

I could see his tension return. "What is it? Is something wrong?"

"No." I said as directly as I could. "From what I originally understood, Aura could provide a kind of physical barrier to damage, enhanced healing, physical enhancement, and a kind of danger sense."

Chen nodded along. "Mei looked things up after I got back. Brute, mover, and thinker powers, but she's not sure where they'd be rated." He paused. "You said that's what you originally understood?"

"Yes. There's more. I just was able to put it together, but Aura can manifest into a kind of semblance of another effect." I said. "Kind of a single purpose superpower, unique to each person."

Chen's eyes widened. "Do these just show up?"

"To the best of my knowledge. I don't have a large sample size at the moment, but they seem to have some connection to how you approach conflict. So far I've seen defensive abilities and the equivalent of shaker powers. I don't know what you could end up with, but I didn't want you to be taken by surprise."

"Ah. Thank you for that." He cracked a smile. "I honestly didn't expect that you'd call me to break the news that the superpower you gave me came with more superpowers."

"Only one more, as far as I can tell." I said. "And it wasn't exactly me."

"I know." He said quietly. "I haven't mentioned that, even to Mei. If you're keeping it quiet…"

I nodded. "Thank you for that. Have you been having any other problems? Anything I can help with?"

"You've done more than enough. Thank you, for everything, and for letting me know about this." He said.

"If you find out what your Semblance is…"

"I'll let you know right away." He promised. "But going forward, is there anything…" He petered out before rallying. "What I mean is, with everything you've done, is there anything that you need? From me?"

I shook my head. "There was a meeting recently. The city's not settled yet, but we've probably contained the worst of things for a while. I just want you to stay safe and look after your family."

He smiled. "I can promise you that. But all of this, the suit, the weapons, the powers, what do you want done with it?"

I shrugged. "Whatever you want." I saw the stunned look on his face. "They're yours, no strings attached." I smiled. "Honestly, I trust you with them more than I would most people." Including the Undersiders.

"That's it? I can do whatever?" He asked.

"I'm not policing you. I'd appreciate it if you stayed in touch, and give me a heads up if you decide to join the Protectorate or anything like that." The idea didn't seem to overly appeal to the man. "Other than that, I'm just glad you're safe."

"So am I." He said with a heavy voice.

I nodded. "Well, I'll let you get back to your evening." His face flushed slightly and he glanced towards the stairs. "Call me if anything happens, and stay safe."

"We will. Thank you Apeiron." Chen ended the call and I leaned back in my chair, staring at the ceiling. The flood of embarrassment and awkwardness that my powers had prevented from coming to the surface was still roiling around, but I pushed past it.

Chen was safe. His family was safe. He wasn't going to be taken by surprise by the expression of a semblance. I may have called at a bad time and interrupted… that, but setting that aside, he was okay. My actions had saved one person, one family. They had probably saved more than that, but this was one I got to see come back together. That made a difference.

With that I could bury the awkwardness, push past the embarrassment, and move on with my work. We had a respite before things hit a critical point again. Everyone was recovering, or at least recovering more than I was. Local groups had to deal with the aftermath of the attacks while newcomers had to get set up in a broken city. I could turn things around in three days, but most people would need at least a week to get some semblance of normality back.

Which was probably why March had pushed so hard. I wasn't the only one driving the situation in the city. The harder she pushed the less time anyone had to respond. If she was up against anyone but me it could have been a disaster, or at least significantly more of a disaster.

I met Survey outside my office where she gave me a reassuring smile. "It is good to see that Chen is enjoying his time with his family."

I gave her a serious look to see if there was any intentional double meaning there, but I couldn't find anything but complete earnestness. "Yes, it is." I replied. "Are there any other projects my duplicates started juggling during the summit that I need to deal with?"

"There were several points of development, primarily in response to recently acquired abilities." She replied crisply.

I wasn't sure if she didn't pick up on the sarcasm, or decided to ignore it in favor of presenting more data. I gestured to her and she continued, relaying data to my implant as she spoke.

"Several areas of magic are believed to strongly synergize with Unnatural Skill: Music. There seems to be some fundamental connection to magicka manipulation, but that will take some time to fully explore. Precision of speech and timing afforded by the power serves to enhance verbal casting and chants. Additionally, it appears that the performance of magical circuits can be enhanced through a magic based tuning process. Preliminary trials were conducted on the duplicates, though it is recommended that more extensive experimentation be conducted before any permanent modifications to your own circuits is attempted."

Meaning my duplicates would be throwing themselves on that sword towards the end of their durations until we got it right. Still, it could be a significant project. "That could make a big difference in Tetra's ability to use magecraft." I suggested.

Survey nodded. "It is not clear the level of enhancement possible, but when facilitated with enhancement abilities and focus equipment it is likely that a significant improvement can be seen."

"What about the Mantra technology?" I asked.

"Full integration has been completed in the Laboratorium. There has also been a formal request for your presence at a consecration ceremony, at your earliest convenience." Survey explained as we walked. I checked the reports myself and nodded.

The skulls took to worship like they'd been born to it. More than that, it was like they'd been born to it, then excelled at it, then been modified to be able to continue it indefinitely. I was still uncomfortable with the idea of harnessing worship, no matter how powerful it was, but integrating this technology into the Laboratorium seemed like a lateral move at most.

The systems of that place also seemed to be able to tell the difference between human and alien technology with mind boggling precision. I could only discern the difference thanks to my powers, but the Laboratorium was able to look at Mantra's theotech and immediately tell that it was the work of humans and thus acceptable. Even the machine spirits had accepted the presence of Mantra transmitters being installed, and they were basically stubbornness personified.

"We can head there now." I said as I mentally sorted more reports. "What about the Matrix? Are they planning for the fifth generation of nanobots?" I linked to the Matrix as I asked my question and found them sorting through the updated technical database as they monitored the prototype spiritron computers.

Surprisingly they weren't in a mad dash of updates to the last generation. 'Given the improvements to design facilitated by recently acquired powers, and potential improvements, a finalization of the design process is recommended prior to mass production, in order to avoid substandard construction.' They transmitted.

Honestly, it wasn't a bad approach. Given the impact of both Feel It Out and upgrades! Upgrades! UPGRADES! it was possible to improve anything both quickly and easily. A set of prototype nanobots had already been constructed using the skills and technology of my Miniaturization and Efficiency tinker power. They also had technology from Demigod Atelier added, and the full benefit of earlier nanotech abilities.

Each nanobot was miraculous in its design and craftsmanship, the peak of what I was capable of creating. But just by holding them, by extending my psychic awareness towards them, I could see the paths to improve on even the near perfection of that work. Through a rolling series of upgrades and psychically derived improvements the Matrix would be able to achieve a design that was leagues ahead of even my best work.

For that they were willing to stay at generation four a little while longer.

I nodded in approval as we began to approach the Laboratorium. "Anything else?" I asked.

"As a point of minor formality, it has been requested that you wear the recently provided robotic armor that was provided by ability 290-J-23-Null-Gamma." Survey explained. "The suit had been extensively upgraded with the full complement of technologies and craftsmanship available, a process that required extensive use of the Noble Phantasm 'Mystic Forge'."

I gave her a questioning look. "The skulls want me to wear it when I do this consecration thing?" I checked the reports myself, but they were quite clear on the matter.

"Given the combination of technologies and the workmanship present in the armor it is held in high esteem by both the skulls and the machine spirits. Additionally, a truncated explanation of the previous existence as a robotic entity while also being human had apparently produced several parallels to religious tenants and parables. I believe the suit is currently being regarded as a religious relic." She explained calmly.

I let out a slow breath and leaned back. So, not only had theotech been installed, not only did I have an active cult, not only did I need to participate in a religious ceremony, but I had to do it in the power armor equivalent of religious vestments.

I took a minute and actually read through the tenets of this faith that had sprung up. At first glance it wasn't that bad, basically a combination of a maintenance manual and a philosophy of self-improvement. The thing was, I was sure that it could be taken too far, and that the skulls would take it too far. I had access to three databases of technology from that universe. I knew what they were capable of putting into place.

Still, this wasn't that kind of religious furor, and would probably never be. It was too small a group, too contained with too little exposure to the outside world. I wasn't worried about the Laboratorium, I was worried about this kind of thinking spreading.

Normally, setting up Mantra collection was a laborious task. Standard Mantra transmitters were fifteen feet tall and only had a range of a mile and could only manage 10,000 Mantra sources. My own work exceeded that to a comical degree on almost every level. I could build transmitters so small they could barely be seen with capacity and range orders of magnitude greater than the base design. I could work faster and to a greater level of quality, covering the Earth in transmitters almost trivially.

The technology was the easy part. The cult was the part I didn't want to deal with. I think that was a problem that could be kicked down the road until I had at least dealt with the situations in Brockton Bay. Beyond that, well, who could know where things would stand. For the meantime I had over a hundred mantra sources that were happy to be included, provided I put on some fancy armor and walked around for a bit.

There was another rumble as the Toolkits constellation connected to the workshop mote again. This time it was an electronics workshop that was granted. Coming in as the fourth of the Workshops, after the metal, wood, and clothing shops, it not only arrived in better condition, but upgraded the quality of the ones before it. I could actually feel the burst of excitement from Garment through the Dragon's Pulse as the improvements rolled out in her Clothing Workshop.

I smiled and shook my head. "Alright, let's get this started."

With a force of will and a flash of light my armor manifested around me. Boots, greaves, chest plate, bracers, gauntlets, and helmet all instantly appeared, perfectly fitted and ready to use.

My duplicates had really gone to town on this suit. While the base model had no extraordinary features, it did take upgrades well, and that's just what they did. It was closer to wearing a mech, or several mechs stapled together, than a suit of armor. I smiled. People wondered why I didn't wear power armor. Part of the reason was unnecessity, the protection just wasn't needed, but part of it was the same pride and perfectionism that I'd been wrestling with from the start. If I built something, I wanted it to be made right. The best I could do, or at least something that could keep up with my best.

Now I had it. Terrifyingly powerful armor, possibly the most dangerous construction on the face of the earth, and I was wearing it to walk around and sprinkle oil on mechanical components. I felt kind of foolish, right until I opened the door and saw the skulls' reactions. Yeah, I could do this, and I could handle what was coming as well.

Jumpchain abilities this chapter:

Garage (Personal Reality) 200:

A garage for you to place into your vehicles, automatically adjusting to meet with their requirements. Any sort of land, air, or space based personal vehicles (up to the size of 12 meters long, 6 meters wide, and 4 meters tall). The Garage has room for up to 40 such vehicles, with every increase in your Starting Size also increasing the number of slots by a factor of 5. The Garage comes with its own entry room and a set of adaptors which can turn garage doors (even non-automatic ones) into Personal Reality Portals. These adaptors respond to the presence of a Key Holder and open the way into the parking area. If you also have the Pond, this installs a Marina which comes with special adaptors for boat slots. Boat slots do not worry about the draft or masts of the boats you part in them, only the distance from the waterline to the top of the primary hull. Each size increase of the total Personal Reality also increases the maximum size of each vehicle slot by a factor of 5 (60x30x20, 300x150x100, 1500x750x500, etc.). Alternatively, you can purchase a Garage Upgrade for 50WP, which boosts each slot by a factor of 10.

Fueling Station (Personal Reality) 200:

This Garage Upgrade has two levels. The first provides all your vehicles with any standard mundane fuel and costs 50 WP. The second level, which costs an additional 150 WP, will fuel any vehicle you have no matter how esoteric the fuel might be, although said fuel can be used only to fuel your vehicles. Attempts to use it for other means may have terrible consequences.

Workshop: Electronics (Personal Reality Supplement) 100:

Each purchase of this adds to your Personal Reality Workshop needed to perform specific type of craft, which is to be specified when purchase is made. It comes with a basic set of tools and supplies. Good for fixing or creating all sorts of things, although any complex parts or nonstandard supplies will have to be brought in from outside. Additional purchases can add different types of Workshops to your Personal Reality or expand existing ones. Anything built in one of those workshops is fiat backed to be restored to its original condition within 48 hours if damaged or destroyed.