Current Energy: 21
Friday, January 7th, 2011
PRT Headquarters, Brockton Bay
You hold your smile for a few seconds more, and then are surprised to find Taylor dashing towards the device the voice in the ceiling had previously indicated. For all the world the device looks to you like a metal circle in the ground and another metal circle in the ceiling. If you weren't fairly certain your Master could survive it, you would be worried about what looks like an obvious trap. As it is, your hand shifts slightly towards your sword - just in case you have to fight your way out of the building after this.
"This is our standard device for determining the average Brute rating of any given Parahuman. It might seem silly given your Master power, but we are required to test everyone on it at least once, just for completion's sake." The voice says in an almost bored tone.
You share a look with your Master that quickly morphs into a smirk as she realizes that they were assuming she was weak and her faces falls into a flat but determined expression while she patiently waits for the examiner to continue.
"The device will slowly release weight onto you until we determine that you can no longer hold it up. It might seem as though you could be crushed, but there are safety measures in place to ensure that doesn't happen."
"So I just...?" Taylor asks the ceiling, cautiously lifting her hands into the air as though to catch an invisible ball.
"That will do yes. Begining test in three... two... one..." The examiner calls out.
And then, with a dull clunk, the entire disk of metal crashes down towards your Master with the blinding fury of a freight train in motion.
"Shit!" You hear over the intercom, immediately followed by several white-robed technicians sprinting out of a hitherto hidden room while another one frantically calls for help over there cellphone nearby.
You snort at their apparent panic, keeping your eyes firmly locked on your Master as the blue glare of her Spirit blasts forth. She stands beneath the metal construction with obvious strain on her face as she rises from one knee to a crouched position. There is a light growling noise coming from her, as though she is unsure how to vocalize her current feelings, and her face is a scarlet red of distress as she focuses on applying all of her now considerable strength to holding the device up.
The only reason the techs haven't noticed is that you're using your own spirit to shield them from the oppressive effect your Master would otherwise be having on her surroundings.
"Want some help?" You ask blithely, finally drawing the technician's attention to the fact that your Master is not, in fact, a smear on the floor of the room.
"I've...got this..." She strains out, pushing herself up another inch but faltering slightly as her balance shifts.
"How- isn't she a Master?" One of the nearby lab techs whispers.
"A Brute Master? Fuuuuun." The other hisses back in a deadpan voice. You don't quite fully grasp what they mean by that, but at the very least one thing is clear.
They are properly in awe of your Master. And really, isn't that all that matters?
"Oi." You call out to the two techs who jolt as you draw their attention, clearly having forgotten your presence.
"A-ah. Yes?" One of them answers hesitantly after sharing a brief look with his colleague.
"Is there anything on top of us?" You ask, judging your Master to be at about the limits of her current endurance. Something to work on later you guess.
Weirdly, your Master starts struggling even harder as you think that.
"Uh." The tech you're talking to answers unintelligibly.
"Some offices? Why does that-" Another begins to ask, but you've stopped paying attention to him already. Instead, you stride over to the device your Master is labouring under, crack your knuckles, and firmly grasp the edges of the disk.
Then you heave with all the force you can generate while still severely limiting how much Spiritual Pressure you put into your surroundings. You're still the only thing stopping most of these guys from keeling over in your Master's presence after all.
Two things happen at once.
One, the metal disk slams into the ceiling with enough force to deform it - the ceiling, not the disk - and two, alarms begin to blare all around you.
The alarms continue to blare as you reach forward and grab Taylor by the collar, yanking her slightly backward as the deformed mechanism in the roof ceases to be able to hold up its own weight, and falls to the ground with a loud metallic ringing that makes your teeth ache.
"...ow." Your Master finally says, shaking free of your grip and rubbing at her arms limply.
"Work through the pain. S'good practice." You counsel, idly thinking back to the sheer number of times this Emulation has deliberately allowed itself to sustain life-threatening injury before even attempting to fight back. You would prefer if your Master didn't adopt the behaviour, but you can see other - much more reasonable - situations where the skill might come in handy.
"Get powers and somehow manage to summon a jock," Taylor grumbles lamely, apparently much less bothered by the loud noises and people surrounding you then she would otherwise be now that she is aware that she can lift-
You curse as you realize that you'll probably never know since you broke the machine.
"Unknown Parahuman!" You hear yelled at you from behind, and turn to find dozens of black clothed officers with the letters PRT stencilled on their vests pointing guns at you.
You have to resist the urge to pinch the bridge of your nose in annoyance.
You are torn between exiting the building through the nearest wall and well... doing nothing since your Master - for some god awful reason - is deeply invested in these people liking her.
'Nothing' wins out when Armsmaster shows up to de-escalate things, quickly leading you away to yet another testing facility. Or... another part of the same facility. You can't really tell. You got lost somewhere after the first turn in this place.
That's half the reason you've been treating all the walls as exits after all.
"Now, if you will, please use your Master ability on the volunteer," Armsmaster says, pointing at a sealed room on the other side of a large glass wall making up one face of the room itself.
You are in a long hallway that Armsmaster claims is the 'Master Stranger Containment Area', which is lined entirely by these see through cells, almost all of which are empty save for the one you are currently in front of. Inside of it is a man wearing simple fatigues with the letters PRT stencilled on them, and a grim expression on his face as he stands at attention.
"I...what?" Taylor asks in confusion.
"Your Master ability. The one you used to commandeer this man - whom I should add, you will be required to release if you wish to maintain good standing as a Hero." Armsmaster explains with a slightly pinched tone to his voice. The guy has always seemed sort of uptight, but apparently something about your Master being a high-level Brute bothered him greatly.
Probably just stewing in his own weakness you figure. Not actually your problem as long as he keeps it to himself.
"I... don't have... Emmy?" Taylor tries, eventually turning to you for help.
"I told Assault already. I. Am. A. Projection. I was born when Nexus got her powers. I randomly shuffle personalities and powers. I'm M.E. Multiversal Emulator! I swear I told you guys this." You explain, slightly annoyed.
"You have a physical body and display visible signs of life." Armsmaster spits back immediately.
"I'm Emulating them!" You spit back.
"I really don't have whatever power you want me to use on him though." Taylor points out, gesturing at the guy in the room who - due to being able to see you but not hear you - tenses visibly as though awaiting something horrible. Something which - because your Master absolutely can't just take control of everyone in her range - never comes.
Armsmaster looks at your Master as she speaks and - possibly because of the clear sincerity and innocence inherent to your perfect amazing Master - appears to finally grasp, fully and completely, that yes, you are in fact speaking the truth.
Or he's using a power or something. Hell if you know what the moron has squirrelled away in his helmet.
"...You're a projection." He says finally.
"Yuuuup." You say, stretching the word out.
"With a mind of your own." He continues, turning his head to stare at you, his helmet now clearly doing something as he stares.
"He- he's sentient! He even has a soul! I... think." Taylor jumps in, glancing at you surreptitiously as she speaks. Despite the fact that you really don't care about your status in the eyes of the law, your Master seems weirdly adamant that you be seen as your own person by everyone who encounters you.
She also seems to think that since you are using the power of a soul that you have a soul, which... is a philosophical conundrum that you would prefer not to think overmuch about since you are in fact only emulating a soul.
It is admittedly kind of nice that she cares that much about you though.
Armsmaster for his part has clearly been thinking while his helmet analyzes you, finally turning back to your Master with an almost sour look on what is visible of his face.
"Since this portion of the testing is obviously moot, and our normal facility appears to be suffering from some... technical difficulties... would you like to meet the Wards?" He asks, pointedly not mentioned the malfunction that would have almost certainly been lethal to your Master if she had the powers they obviously thought she did.
Something to think on later you guess.
As it is, your Master is frowning slightly, clearly unsure of how to answer the question. She turns towards you, clearly seeking your input, and Armsmaster glances at you minutely as if confused that she's even bothering to address you.