And the thunder rolls

Warning: Gets very AU very fast.

* Lung *

"-and I don't care if they're kids. Kill 'em. If you shoot 'em once, shoot 'em again to be sure. Especially the girl!"

"(Excuse me, Lung-san. Isn't killing kids against the Unwritten Rules?)"

Lung blinked. Someone was speaking Japanese and using the most polite forms? Not something he heard every day anymore. "Show yourself!"

A flyer in a red and yellow costume, lightning bolt emblem on their chest, lowered herself into the light. Straight black hair and the eyes looked Asiatic, but other features looked a mix.

"A new cape? And you seek to face me in your first fight? Such arrogance!" declared Lung.

New cape apparently decided to switch to English for the benefit of his men. "My pardon, Lung-san. It is indeed my premiere and I merely seek clarification on such things. Surely one of your power and prestige is knowledgeable and therefore an authority in matters of this subject."

"You speak prettily," acknowledged Lung. Privately he wondered why his power was already reacting to the presence of the woman as he was already enlarging. "Know that power allows one to bypass such rules, to make one's own laws. Power is freedom, the more power you have the more options you have to choose. Now I have spent enough time with a new cape. Fight and die, or scurry away and live knowing that you faced Lung and lived - which is more than many may say."

"Ah, Lung-san, I acknowledge your greatness and power. Still I -" (BAM! Ping!)

Everyone, from the new cape to Lung to the assembled gangers, all looked to the one guy in the crowd who had shot at the new cape.

The new cape sighed. "Apparently the choice is now out of our collective hands, Lung-san. My name is Emissary. Let us champion our respective causes."

* Tattletale *

"Why aren't we running?" hissed Regent.

"Because the Boss is going to want details on this new cape," hissed back Tattletale. "Who is actually wearing a cape."

(WHAM!) went a pressure wave that actually produced a visible shockwave from the disturbed air.

"Alexandria type and high-end," hissed back Regent as soon as he could hear again. "That's enough detail."

Tattletale peeked over the ledge and saw all the flattened gang-members, that Lung was picking himself up out of a now-ruined building, and the girl in question had lightning arcing between her hands.

Yeah, Alexandria-type with lightning powers. That was good enough for now.

Though "Emissary" was an odd name. Indication that she represented some other group or individual, either a hero or villain.

Whatever, that was enough to give their boss and placate him for now.

* Armsmaster *

The fight had been rather obvious. Lung had gotten to the point where he had wings and had been approaching Endbringer-size.

He was still lying defeated in the ruin of one building.

A woman was floating there above a cratered street. "Ah. Armsmaster. It is good to see the legal authorities arrive, if a bit late. Good evening to you."

"Are you responsible for... this?" asked Armsmaster, his scanning software getting repeated error-messages from the woman. Eighteen or so? Adult. Little lightning bolts arcing along her body particularly on the lightning bolt symbol on her chest. Alexandria-package with lightning powers?

"I'm afraid so, I tried stalling him and this gang when they were talking about killing children," said the new cape. "I am Emissary. You, of course, need no introduction."

"'Emissary'?" asked Armsmaster. "Are you associated with Accord then?"

"No, I represent entirely different individuals," acknowledged Emissary. "I thought they were called something else?"

His halberd clicked and clacked into place as he readied for a fight. "Hero or villain?"

"I myself am a hero. As to those I represent? That's a bit more tricky," said Emissary.

"Who then?" asked Armsmaster, still in a ready-stance.

The woman turned and lightning struck one of the nearby walls, moving in a controlled manner. Armsmaster cocked an eyebrow as he realized the crawling lightning was writing.

Solomon - wisdom.

Hercules - strength.

Atlas - stamina.

Zeus - power.

Achilles - will.

Mercury - speed.

"You've got Greek gods with their original names, their Roman names, and Solomon from Judeo-Christian myths all mixed up," noted Armsmaster aloud.

"That was the way it was presented to me, so that's how I presented it here," stated Emissary.

Armsmaster hmphed. It was more efficient to just say "Alexandria package with lightning" and be done with it. Also, another crazy cape who apparently thought they had a better handle on powers than people who'd had skin in the game for years.

"As I said. This is how it was presented to me," said Emissary, making a swipe motion with her hands and obliterating the writing without destroying the wall.

"There is a fair amount of collateral damage," said Armsmaster, the halberd making a gesture to indicate the smashed-up buildings. He dropped the ready-stance though he continued to be wary about the new cape.

"I was fighting Lung. Which was NOT on my planned activities for the night," stated Emissary. "One reason I focus on rescue work instead of fighting capes."

"What WERE your plans then?" asked Armsmaster, thinking this was a good judge of whether they were actually a hero or not.

"Mainly over the past few weeks I've been getting the hang of my abilities," said Emissary. "That storm surge down in Orlando? I can make sandbags really really fast. The Hoover Dam getting cracked in a fight between Mindfog and Demolition? Yeah I'm the one who shored it up. The permanent repairs can be made by people who have the appropriate licenses. The supply trucks that couldn't get through in the Phillipines? Easy enough to go there and move them across the floods. The forest fire near San Diego? Lifting tanks of water and drowning the fire - easy for me."

"You're the 'Red Streak'?" asked Armsmaster.

"That's what they called me and is one reason I was planning on being less secretive, I really don't like that name," said the cape, making a face.

"Understandable," agreed Armsmaster. The press could be quite annoying, some of the nicknames he'd gotten over the years had been particularly undignified. "Which brings us to the next question."

"Which is?" asked Emissary.

"Who gets the credit for Lung?" asked Armsmaster, preparing to tell the new cape about the dangers to her involved in such a big opening move.

Emissary cocked her head and blinked at him for moment. "Uhm. Tell you what. If it's important to you. You do the paperwork, you get the lion's share. Just mention me as an allied hero who is NOT named the 'Red Streak' and we're good?"

"Good, and you should consider joining the Protectorate. If not, at least wear a mask," answered Armsmaster, feeling a bit more relaxed at the other being less interested in making a name for herself. Just not wanting to be labeled "The Red Streak" and he could hardly blame her for that.

"Lots of government oversight, which is not always a good thing," said Emissary. "So 'no thank you' on the Protectorate though I'd consider an affiliate if you've got such a thing. As to the lack of a mask - I have that covered."

Armsmaster nodded, and added a Changer-1 to the rating he was compiling in his head. "I'll keep that in mind then."

* Taylor PoV *

"Shazam," I said and lightning flared.

Then it was back to being Taylor Hebert. Not Emissary, the representitive of the gods and their champions.

The look of my alter ego had been chosen to be significantly different from Taylor Hebert because of the whole secret identity thing. Instead my other form had a mix of Japanese and Hindi and European features. Green colored eyes with the Han look to their shape, thick black hair evocative of Indian ethnicity, and other little details that had come out surprisingly attractive.

That I gave myself slightly bigger boobs than either Emma or Madison when deciding on my hero form - well, appearance made for first impressions and first impressions lingered. You didn't need Solomon's wisdom for that, all you had to do was look at how the press handled existing capes. A first impression that was significantly different from being Taylor Hebert and as an attractive adult woman meant anyone looking for Emissary's secret identity was going to pass up stick-thin Taylor Hebert.

But yeah, wanting to have bigger boobs than Emma's or Madison's? Well, that form had super-strength so back problems weren't a particular concern.

I was also older as Emissary because I was sick and tired of teen drama. Got enough of that as Taylor after all.

Back home quickly, noting while passing the hallway mirror that while Taylor Hebert and Emissary were different - some things carried over. All the exercise I got flexing and doing things in Emissary form was shrinking the frog gut. I wasn't going to complain about THAT.

Old wizard in some multiversal nexus wizard tower thing saying I had lessons in magic after getting the hang of my base abilities - so I was going to be an amazing hero.

"Taylor?" asked Dad. Who was sitting on the couch. Who was looking my way as I tried to sneak up the stairs.

Oh crap. Too bad I didn't have the Solomon-wisdom thing carrying over.

"So," said Dad as I sat down.

"Yeah," I replied. Stupid. The awkward silence. Again. Everything had changed. Nothing had changed.

"You've been sneaking out at night," said Dad.

"Yeah. Mainly to avoid this," I acknowledged. Which sounded pretty lame but was at least honest.

"Yeah," said Dad.

"You could just talk about this, you know."

Dad jumped in his chair, but to be honest so did I.

The wizard was there, sitting in the dining room chair, staff resting against the table. Drinking a beer.

"I thought you didn't leave the Rock of Eternity," I said accusingly.

Wizard guy passed his hand through the table. "Image projection. I'm still there. You'll forgive me if I occasionally check up on my student, I hope. I'm sufficiently old and experienced enough to want to be sure I made the right choice of person to carry on a legacy of great power. Mister Hebert, you're in charge of hiring at your union. You understand being responsible for others, correct?"

"You're attending night school?" asked Dad, sounding very very uncertain.

"Yes, in a manner of speaking," said the wizard. "Taylor. Speak my name. Show him. He is your father, don't cut him out of what will be an important part of your life. Mister Hebert, trust Taylor. She has the chance to do much good in the world and beyond. So far she has done quite admirably."

"Won't the lightning damage the room?" I asked him.

"Only if you want it to," said the wizard, who then shrugged. "It's magic after all. Intent does play a part in it."

I stood up, because wizard's words to the contrary I didn't completely trust it wouldn't scorch the furniture. Took a deep breath to center myself a bit, then spoke. "Shazam!"

Lightning answered.

Then I sat back down again, though now I was bigger and in costume. Funny. I go down to Dallas and help clear a traffic backup from ice on the roads by moving multiton vehicles and clear a path for the first responders. I go to the Philippines or Florida to help with flood control, or build a framework to buttress a dam and I have no problem with nervousness. Sitting down with my Dad to discuss my extracurricular studies and activities - major butterflies in the stomach area.

"You're a cape," noted my Dad.

"She was my choice of champion here. She has held up against great pressure, she has a good heart, she wants to be a hero, and she is a Chosen of Destiny," said the wizard. "That said, I'm not a big believer in some of Destiny's choices. Listen but verify. You know how it is."

"So..." Dad glanced at the old guy at the table, then me, then back, then back to me. He swallowed. "So... cape. What can you do?"

"Wizard?" I asked.

"She is a representitive of gods and the champions of gods, I chose those six because of my name," said the wizard with a shrug. "My name, Shazam, was the easiest thing to link to. I'm old, sometimes you have to go the easy way. Symbolism and mnemonics are also a part of magic."

"Gods? Champions?" asked Dad.

The staff came down again. The names and meanings appeared as they had previously before Armsmaster except this time it was a sort of hologram and they were in color.

"Speed... the Red Streak?" asked Dad.

"You know about that?" I asked.

"I do occasionally listen to the news," stated Dad, sounding slightly miffed. Which was better than the usual numb.

"Daniel Hebert. You have neglected your daughter and now you're considering banning her from going out and fighting for the very values you and your wife impressed on her growing up," said the wizard. "Yet I can understand wanting to keep your daughter safe. I can understand wanting to reconnect with the only family you have. So I extend an offer to you as well."

"I don't think I can put on spandex and go superheroing," said Dad.

"Wasn't offering that," said Shazam before he pulled a canned drink out of nowhere and did a long pull on it. "How about this? I grant you some magic. A primer, I think. Divination and communication magic. You don't have enough internal power to do much, but it would allow you to know where she is and how much danger she's in when you cast the appropriate spells."

"'Magic'?" asked Dad.

"Some wise person once said that 'magic is simply doing something the other guy doesn't know how to do'," commented Shazam. "This is Taylor's hero's journey, she has to walk it herself. However there is no reason that she must walk the whole of it on her own."

* Armsmaster *

"Evidence of the typical Alexandria-package, though certainly in the upper percentile," summed up Armsmaster, replaying sections of his recordings taken from his encounter with the new cape. "If she is indeed the 'Red Streak' as she claimed - then she has a significant Mover rating. Analysis of the crater she made in the road indicates she hit it with a palmstrike, utilizing an extremely high strength rating."

"How high?" asked Director Piggot.

"Tests were inconclusive," said Armsmaster. "More interesting was that she apparently had done this specifically to generate a shockwave to knock out the various ABB members without causing significant injuries or further damage to the surrounding buildings other than two broken windows."

"So not only high strength but high control or a Shaker effect," said Director Piggot with a nod. "While I find a new and powerful cape in my city to be of great concern, that this particular one exhibits a desire not to cause collateral damage is at least a plus in her favor. A pity she couldn't keep to that, but she was fighting Lung so just minimizing the environmental damage is a good intent. Put the word out to keep an eye on this cape, suggest but don't push joining the Protectorate."

Miss Militia stirred and pursed her lips.

"Not pressing it because this cape apparently has been active for over a month without approaching any of the authorities and operating under everyone's radar for the most part. This indicates she might have issues with authority or has some other reason she hasn't come forward." Director Piggot sat back in her chair with a momentary flinch of pain. "If we don't press and maintain friendly relations, so much the better. See if we can't get her as an affiliate as she suggested. Make sure she knows the rules and that some countries have a 'no outside interference' policy regarding parahumans. Let her know about the rules of cape conflict."

"And her delusions of 'gods'?" asked Armsmaster.

"Sounds like some religion, which I am not getting involved in unless she makes it a problem," said Director Piggot. "Freedom of religion is a thing."

* Coil *

The report on Emissary was interesting, forwarded to his Thomas Calvert e-mail as a situation update. High-level Alexandria package with lightning generation. Who was apparently the 'Red Streak' seen in several locations worldwide, which indicated either teleportation or a very high flight speed. As in supersonic and above Mach 4 at least and able to reach the altitudes that would be fatal to an unprotected human, this indicated by the lack of sonic booms.

Very high strength, very high control of that strength - not something seen normally in new triggers. Given examples like Glory Girl - something that required a learning curve.

When the report was added to what his Tattletale had given him - someone who had been operating as a cape for some time and had sufficient discretion to keep to a low presence. A useful quality.

He'd have to have someone check for potential Trigger Events in the news. Minimum of four months to learn that level of control and be able to maintain that during combat. The notes from researchers in parahuman studies indicated that Brute-types were usually from physical threats or damage, so something along that line.

Once he had the identity, he could find the levers to get control over this new resource.

He always won, after all.

* Danny PoV *

The projection guy was a fake wizard like Myrddin. Parahuman abilities might be BS as far as making sense went, but actual magic?

Speak his name and gain powers because the guy had connections with actual gods? Yeah, right.

"Shazam," said Taylor, becoming Emissary, who gave him a nod and a brief smile and then was gone in a blur of motion.

Yeah, right. Like just saying a nonsense word would have any effect. "Shazam."

(BOOM!)

A literal floating mirror appearing with a Saint Elmo's fire sort of effect. Okay.

"Show me Taylor," was the most obvious response. The reflection shifted to show Taylor in the red costume with the little white and gold cape fluttering behind her, soaring over the clouds which were lit from above by the moonlight.

There was an instruction manual on the table that had appeared when the mirror had.

Time to get reading.

A/N: I'm pretty sure someone's done this. I just haven't seen it yet. This is how I'd see it going.