dr doc Chapter 1: Dr, a x-overs fanfic

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

Gathering Ingredients: 1.1 - [NEXT]

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If I had remembered what I had seen during my Trigger Event, I would have described it as both the most beautiful thing I had ever seen and the saddest.

I saw two beings swimming through space. Outlined by hundreds of stars, they circled around one another in an intricate, ever-evolving dance. It was beautiful in a way that I couldn't understand and yet—

Slowly, ever so slowly, the two beings fragmented. They began to shed small fragments of themselves, some as large as a city or entire worlds, that fell through space. Some of them burned up in the process, but the majority of them continued to travel.

Then, as if from nowhere, a third being appeared. It slammed into one of the other two as they began to uncoil. Hundreds—millions—of shards burst from the impact before the third withdrew and moved away.

So. Many. Shards.

XxX-=-XxX

I woke up to the slow, rhythmic beeping of a heart monitor. Slowly, I opened my eyes and looked around. I saw the heart monitor, the IV dripping a steady dose of painkillers into my own—

'Why am I in the hospital?' I wondered.

Looking back, I tried to remember how I had gotten here. I had a brief feeling of something, but the memory slipped away the harder I tried to grasp it. Soon enough, I gave up on it and moved on.

I remembered eating breakfast with Dad, getting on the bus, going to school. The others had been looking at me strangely, but I had ignored them. I had been more focused on what Emma, Sophia, and Madison might have cooked up over break. Maybe I should have paid more attention…?

Then, I finally remembered. The locker.

It had been horrible. Beyond anything that I had thought that the Terrible Trio would do. And they had just left me there to rot—

I fell back against the bed as a sudden rush of information hit me. Building components, a lengthy list of materials, a complicated yet relatively easy list of steps, an estimate of the time it would take. It came together to form into a picture of a creature I couldn't identify yet I somehow knew would be able to do what I wanted it do to; to rot anything that it touched.

What was going on?! How did I know that?

"Ms. Hebert, you need to calm down!"

Calm down? It happened again.

"… down! Hurting—"

Building components, a lengthy list of materials, a number of steps, and an estimate of the time it would take to bring my creation to life. It would produce a creature capable of making people relax after they were hit by its energy beam.

Someone grabbed me. "Nurse… sedative!"

Sedative… 'Sleep?' A number of building components, a list of materials, a number of steps, and an estimate of the time it would take. It would produce a creature capable of making everyone within range of itself fall asleep after it made a specific sound.

I felt a small pinprick. My world slowly fell away, followed by an increasingly quiet list of things that would allow me to create a creature capable of producing darkness.

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Gathering Ingredients: 1.1 - [NEXT]

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Gathering Ingredients: 1.2 - [NEXT]

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I woke up for a moment to the television playing a jingle. A vision of a small green creature that could crawl up and turn it off flashed through my head. I shut my eyes and drifted off. Waking up for a moment or two to hear a commercial jingle or the buzz of the air conditioner or see new creatures. A being designed to generate soapy water, another that would repeat anything I said a thousand times louder, a third to paint the room using bits of... snot. Very colorful, water resistant snot.

At some point, I began to wake up for longer and longer periods of time. I was mostly alone during these moments though, occasionally I would catch a glimpse of a nurse or hear people talking in hushed tones.

Then, whatever medicine they had used on me seemed to wear off. I opened my eyes and quickly found out that I wasn't alone this time. Sometime during those brief, hazy periods, Dad had arrived and had taken up the seat next to me. He looked like he had been crying recently.

Oh, Dad…

If only this hadn't happened. For a moment, I was once again subject to a sudden flood of information—components, materials, steps, time—that I tried to ignore. It frustrated me that I couldn't which only made me feel worse when Dad turned to face me. I could almost imagine what he would say and it made me feel guilty.

I hadn't told Dad about the Terrible Trio. He had figured out something was up four months into their campaign, but I had refused to talk about it. I had told him that it wasn't anything bad, that they had stopped, that things were getting better. I just hadn't had the heart to tell him.

Really, if the school wasn't going to do anything about their rampant bullying—even when it was right under their noses—what could we do? I couldn't make them stop and Dad wouldn't be able to either. So, I had just kept my head down and endured it.

"… You could have told me that the bullying was still going on," Dad began to say. "I didn't know about—about Emma but I could have done something. I could have."

I froze. Dad knew; knew about Emma. But, how? I hadn't told him anything… Had someone that had seen Sophia push me into my locker come forward? If so, who? There were a few people who weren't on the trio's bandwagon, but they wouldn't take a chance that the trio would turn on them.

"The police stopped by while you were asleep. They thought that they might find something in your room or on your computer that could give them clues as to who did this to you. I gave them permission."

Oh, god. The logbook.

"They found your journal and those messages on your computer. Taylor…" I wasn't looking at him, but I could hear the tears in his voice. "Why didn't you just tell me?"

I felt him grab my hand and looked up at him. I saw his face and the damn burst. "I'm sorry, Dad! I just didn't w-want to worry you a-and I didn't w-want to worry you a-and I'm so s-sorry I didn't t-tell you."

Dad wrapped his arms around my back and held me as I cried. "It's okay." He told me, "It's okay, Taylor. It's okay."

It wasn't okay, but maybe it could be.

XxX-=-XxX

Once I was able to get control of myself again, Dad and I had talked about what was going to happen next.

The police would want to ask me some questions about the locker and the things I had written down in the logbook. Dad assured me that he would be with me every step of the way and, if I didn't want to talk to them, he would make them leave.

"You need to feel comfortable." Dad had said, "Even if you don't want to talk about what happened now, you can always tell them later."

Dad had also told me that I would probably have to stay in the hospital a few more days. My time in the locker had left me with a few minor infections that the doctors wanted to clear up. My mind had surged with the information on how to create a creature that could heal, but I tried to ignore it.

Even if what I was experiencing wasn't some sort of hallucination—which I still believed—I didn't have any of the materials I would need to create one of those creatures. A small, traitorous part of my mind suggested that information was confirmation I had somehow acquired superpowers which I disregarded.

It would be great if I had somehow become a cape, but I didn't think I could handle anything else at the moment.

"Taylor." Dad gently shook my shoulder, getting my attention. "You zoned out there for a moment, kiddo. Are you okay?"

"… Just thinking." I mumbled.

Dad looked like he was going to say something before we heard someone knock at the door. Glancing towards the open doorway, we saw two men wearing trench coats standing there.

"Hello Mr. Hebert, Ms. Hebert. I'm Detective Manson and this is Detective Hurst." Said the twentyish brunette and showed us her BBPD badge before putting it away. She glanced at Dad, "Would you mind if we asked your daughter some questions about what happened, Mr. Hebert?"

"As long as it's okay with Taylor."

I really didn't want to talk right now. But, either way, someone would be asking me questions. Was it bad that I didn't want to answer Dad's questions? "… I guess."

"Thank you, Ms. Hebert." Detective Hurst said. "We would first like to ask you if you can remember what happened to you…"

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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The PRT was responsible for handling cases where parahumans were involved, and these days, it seemed like everything and everyone was touched in some way by them. Every time the other precincts had the slightest excuse, they would claim that it was the PRT's responsibility.

If they had no excuse at all, they would claim it was a joint responsibility. Until she read over the cases in question and either signed off on them or refused them, the job was in her hands. As far as the ones passing the buck were concerned, it was out of their hands.

It was more than Emily Piggot could handle at times. She delegated where and when she could, but too much of the responsibility was hers and hers alone.

This was especially true in Shadow Stalker's case. Emily had agreed to allow her to join the Wards as a probationary member as part of her parole. She didn't like the girl—thought that the girl's actions were reprehensible—but she couldn't afford for Stalker to become a villain.

The Wards may not have appreciated Shadow Stalker's attitude, but that didn't matter when the city's hero-villain ratio was so imbalanced.

"I should have suspected that you would do something like this, but I had thought that your time in the Wards could rehabilitate you. I see now that I was mistaken. You aren't going to change." Emily stated before she threw the BBPD files at Shadow Stalker. "Do you have any idea of what you have done? Do you?! Answer me when I am talking to you, Stalker!"

"So, what. They can't prove—" Shadow Stalker began to say.

"Wrong. If this goes to court, they have enough evidence to bury us." Emily interrupted. "And that is without even mentioning the locker incident. How long do you think it will take for someone that saw what happened to come forward? You might think they won't turn against you and your so-called friends, but you can't be sure of that. Especially if this goes to court."

Shadow Stalker didn't say anything.

Emily pinched the bridge of her nose. "… If it didn't expose your identity, I would gladly allow the Heberts to sue you and see you reap what you have sown. But, I can't take that risk. Someone would notice the similarities between your identities and the PRT would suffer catastrophic PR backlash."

"… Just shut them up."

"Do you think it will be that easy, Stalker? No, I can't force them to keep quiet. All that I can do is offer them incentives and hope that will be enough to buy their silence." Emily said before looking back up at girl. "As for now, you will be restricted to base until I can deal with the Heberts."

"You can't do that!" Shadow Stalker protested.

"Yes, I can. And I intend to do more. By the time I'm done with you, Stalker, you'll wish I had sent you to juvenile detention ."

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Gathering Ingredients: 1x (Interlude: Emily Piggot) - [NEXT]

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Gathering Ingredients: 1.3 - [NEXT]

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I should have known that I wouldn't be able to hide what was happening to me from Dad. He hadn't brought it up after the detectives had finished questioning me so, for a moment, I had thought that he had forgotten about it. He hadn't.

Dad broached the subject again a couple of hours later, after I had finished eating. He had to gently shake me because I had been distracted by an increasingly familiar flood of knowledge. This time it was about a small, gray creature that would apparently be able to create highly delicious food in a matter of moments.

'What did he say?' A bright orange being with a purple nose and rounded ears, designed to annoy by recording, replaying, and looping random sounds it heard flashed through my mind.

"You keep zoning out, kiddo. I know you may not talk about what's going on, but I'm here for you." Dad assured me. He squeezed my hand, "I will always be here."

I wavered for a moment. It would be nice to talk to someone about what was happening and how it felt, but I didn't want to sound crazy. "I-I think something happened, Dad." I admitted, looking away. "In there. I can't—I can't stop seeing all of this information and I don't know what to do. I can't control it and it just keeps coming back whenever I think of something."

"… Information?"

"It comes and I just know what I would need to build, things I would need, and what I would have to do in order to create animals. But they aren't like anything I've ever seen and they can do whatever I'm thinking of." I explained. It actually felt good, to just talk about it. "I was thinking about a creature that could make really good food faster than anyone and one that would record and replay sounds it heard."

"Oh, Taylor."

Before I knew what was happening, I felt myself pulled into another hug. He rubbed my back and told me that everything was going to be alright. He told me that he was going to help me as best he could and that we would get through this.

"No matter what you may be thinking right now, you're not crazy. It must seem so overwhelming right now, but it'll get better." Dad said. "We'll talk to the Protectorate or New Wave—they'll know someone that will be able to help you."

Dad thought that I was a cape. As Dad talked about it and what we could do, I slowly began to relax. It made sense when I heard Dad talking about it. I wasn't crazy; I had superpowers. A weird, overwhelming power but a power nonetheless.

I could be a hero.

XxX-=-XxX

It was sometime around 4:00 when the PRT showed up.

I was surprised as I hadn't thought that Dad had called them yet. Looking at him, however, I saw that he looked as surprised as I felt. 'If he didn't call them, why is the PRT here?' A small, somewhat fat being with the ability to sneak into enemy headquarters and discover all of their secrets.

I shook my head and tried to focus on what was going on.

"I don't mean to be rude Ms. Piggot, but why are you here?" Dad asked with a frown.

Director Piggot looked uncomfortable. "During the course of the BBPD's investigation, they discovered that one of those responsible for what happened to your daughter was a parahuman. More specifically, a member of the Wards."

I had to be hearing things. It didn't make sense. There was no way one of them could be a Ward. Not with how they acted. But my mind latched onto the idea and was already comparing them to pictures of the Wards I had seen on PHO.

It wasn't hard to figure out who it might be. There were only two girl Wards—Vista and Shadow Stalker. I knew Vista was too young to be a member of the trio. But Shadow Stalker was about the right age. And there was only one member of the trio that resembled Shadow Stalker.

'Sophia.'

"You have got to be fucking kidding me." Dad all-but snared, "One of the girls that has been tormenting my daughter for the past year—the one that shoved her into that locker—is a Ward?! How could you people not have noticed that?!"

"The PRT has neither the resources nor the inclination to micromanage our Ward's private life. We depended on school officials to monitor and discipline their students just like you do, Mr. Hebert." Director Piggot said. "You have my personal word, there will be changes both in the Wards and at Winslow High."

It all made sense now. Why Winslow had never done anything. How the teachers saw what was happening but didn't say anything. They had allowed the trio to get away with it because one of them was a Ward.

"Unfortunately, I will have to ask you to not press charges against them." Director Piggot held up a hand, stalling Dad's outburst. "I know what was done to your daughter is unforgivable, but if you press charges against them you will expose the Ward's identity."

"So you just want me to allow those girls to get off without even a slap on the wrist?" Dad demanded.

Director Piggot shook her head. "No, I don't expect you to do that. I will personally make sure that those responsible are punished and that something like this doesn't happen again. I can also offer you a substantial settlement which would include the option to transfer to another school."

'Hush money.' A large, mustard green being with small beady eyes. It would have the ability to memorize anything it saw and then created an unlimited number of two-dimensional copies.

"Taylor?"

I blinked and found Dad looking at me. "What?"

"What do you think?" Dad asked.

"… I just want them to leave me alone."

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Gathering Ingredients: 1.4 - [NEXT]

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It was only after Director Piggot had left that I remembered that Dad and I had missed our chance to talk to her about my power. Only, now I wasn't so sure if I wanted to talk to the PRT about it anymore.

Director Piggot had given us her word that there would be changes in the Wards and at Winslow High, but I wasn't going to hold my breath. A small, red elephant-like creature. It would have the ability to create massive wind blasts by vacuuming vast amounts of air and blowing it out with enormous force.

I cracked a smile as I imagined the trio being blown away by the creature. That would be amazing. It was only too bad that I wouldn't be able to do that without being labeled a villain.

Which reminded me… what would I need to create these creatures again? My mind was promptly flooded with information—a list of building components, tools, materials, steps—that made me reel. That was a lot of stuff.

How was I supposed to afford all of that? 'I don't think I have the money to pay for even half of that!' A large, mustard green being with small beady eyes. It would have the ability to memorize anything it saw and then created an unlimited number of two-dimensional copies.

'No, that would be illegal. I need—'

A small purple creature designed to change the size of objects. A small red blob-like creature designed to change the creatures into other creatures. A small dinosaur-like creature designed to clone whatever it touched. A small golden-yellow raccoon-like creature designed to clone organisms. A purple—

"… Taylor? Taylor, are you alright?" I felt a rapid series of taps on my cheek. He sighed my eyes fluttered open. Putting an arm around my shoulder he helped me sit up, "What happened? Do I need to call the hospital?"

My head pounded. A purple creature- I bit down on that. How did I end up on the floor? And did my arm feel heavier? I looked down at my arm and saw… 'What is that thing?'

It looked like some messed-up hybrid of a syringe and a gun with a small tank on top. I looked closer and, inside the thing, I saw a small amount of blood.

"Taylor? Can you hear me kiddo?"

"… Yeah." I said, but continued to stare at the thing in my hands. Had I made this? If so, why? And where did that blood come from? It was—my genetic information, the required basis of all the creatures I could create. "Huh…"

"What's going on, Taylor?"

I twirled the syringe-gun in my hands. Absently, I noted a small spot of blood on my arm. "I think I built this. I was just thinking about what I would need in order to build the creatures I keep thinking of and I built this. It's a—a tissue extractor."

I caught a whiff of tuna, he must have been eating. "C'mon, kiddo. Let's go get you cleaned up." He said as he gently pried the tissue extractor from my fingers and tossed it to the side. "We can talk about your new tool later."

"Alright."

XxX-=-XxX

"Taylor… I don't think you should try using your power without someone else around." Dad said as he finished tying a bandage around my arm. Seeing that I was about to say something, he held up his hand. "No. Listen to me. When you get those—those bursts, you zone out and its hard to get your attention. And you just told me that you didn't know you had just built that thing."

The tissue extractor wasn't anything dangerous. It was just something that would allow me to collect the materials I would need for my creatures.

"Next time, it may not be something as simple or harmless as that tool. Now, I'm not saying that you can't try to build things or use your power, but… someone else needs to be there." Dad continued. Then, more softly, "You need someone to make sure you stay safe, kiddo."

When said like that, it did make sense. Dad only wanted to make sure I didn't accidentally hurt myself and, if I did, that someone would be there. "I'll try, Dad."

Dad didn't look happy, but nodded nonetheless. He squeezed my hand and I smiled. And the back of my mind, I began to wonder if I could create something to help dad.

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Gathering Ingredients: 1.5 - [NEXT]

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I needed to create one of my creatures but lacked the resources. The next day I tore apart most of our house's small electronics—the blender, the toaster, my hair dryer and my alarm clock, before Dad ruled the computer and TV off limits—but the junk I yanked off the circuit boards wasn't enough.

The small amount I had saved I spent on a soldering iron and more scrap. Still, I had no luck. None of the things I had taken apart had any of the more-crucial materials I would need. I could probably work around it and make something similar out of a few parts, but they would be massively inferior to the real things.

I had a power. I could be a hero. I should be changing the world instead of trying to assemble second rate equipment out of third rate parts!

Maybe if we had the money to buy some of the things we needed, I wouldn't be so frustrated. We just didn't have the money. Director Piggot had said that we would get some sort of settlement, but who knew when that was coming or how much the PRT would even give us.

I tried hard to hide my irritation from Dad, but he knew me too well. It helped that he had been watching me ever since we had gotten back home.

Finally, Dad seemed to have had enough. After dinner, he called me into the living room and told me to take a seat.

"Taylor, I've been thinking about what I want to do with the settlement. We should put the money away for your college so that you don't have to take out any loans," Dad began before he sighed. "Now, I'm not saying that isn't still going to happen, but… I thought about it and I'm willing to let you use it."

What?

"I just can't stand seeing you so unhappy. I've watched you wander around the house, looking for things to take apart, and that—that look on your face when you didn't find whatever you were looking for. And I can't stand it."

I couldn't speak past the sudden lump in my throat. I had known that my Dad cared about me, but things had been so distant between us ever since Mom had died. The gulf only widened after the trio started bullying me.

But Dad was making the attempt. He had been ever since he had found out what happened. I wouldn't say that it was perfect, but that insurmountable distance between us didn't seem so large anymore.

"T-Thank you, Dad." I whispered.

Dad pulled me close and wrapped his arms around me. "Like I told you back in the hospital, we will get through this. Together. And if that means spending a little money to make sure that you're happy, so be it."

XxX-=-XxX

After our little heart-to-heart last night, Dad and I had stayed up for a couple more hours and talked. It wasn't about anything that important, but it felt nice. I woke up with an extra bounce in my step and thought about making Dad breakfast-in-bed.

'Pancakes or waffles?' A small, grey experiment with a spatula-like tail and a chef's hat designed to make irresistibly delicious meals in a matter of moments.

Only, when I finally got out of the shower, I smelled something cooking. Dad stole my idea. He must have gotten up pretty early if the platter of pancakes, the scrambled eggs, and the bacon he was pulling out of the oven were any indication.

"Good morning, kiddo. I hope you slept well." Dad said with a smile. "Take a seat; breakfast will be ready in a few moments."

"Thank you, Dad."

"I think we should talk about your schooling options. That woman said that she could arrange for you to be transferred." Dad pulled out some plates and took a seat at the table. Scooping up some food, he continued. "Do you have any preferences?"

"… I would like to go to Arcadia High."

Dad nodded. "When that woman contacts us again, I'll talk to her about it. If she can't get you in there, I was thinking that you could transfer over to Immaculata. Now, would you like some eggs or pancakes to go with that bacon?"

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Threadmarks Gathering Ingredients: 1.6

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I was putting away the dishes when the phone rang. Dad hurried into the living room to get the phone, but I didn't really pay attention. It was probably the Dockworkers Association or one of Dad's friends.

"That was the PRT." Dad told me as came back. I almost dropped the plate I was holding. "It seems that they have some paperwork they want us to sign."

The settlement. "Okay."

"Why don't you go get your coat while I finish up here?" Dad suggested.

I nodded and handed Dad the dish towel before heading upstairs. I honestly didn't know what to feel regarding the situation. Honestly, though, I just wanted to get all of this over with.

It took us around half an hour to get to the PRT building and then another twenty minutes before we were led into a room. Director Piggot was already there alongside two PRT agents. When we sat down, Director Piggot handed Dad a small stack of papers.

"It is a standard non-disclosure agreement. If you sign this, then you are agreeing to keep quiet about Shadow Stalker's identity." Director Piggot said. "You may feel free to read through it though I have taken the liberty of outlining the areas you will need to sign."

Dad took a minute to read through them before he nodded. Director Piggot handed him a pen and he began to sign, offering me it when it came time for me to sign. I wrote as quickly as I could before handing Dad the papers who then handed them over to Director Piggot.

The Director looked through the papers for a moment. She then slid them into a manila folder before removing a check which she handed to Dad.

Leaving the building, Dad reached down for my hand and squeezed. I tried to give him a reassuring look, but my heart wasn't in it. He seemed to understand and didn't say anything for a while. We stopped at the bank to deposit the check and then drove over to the nearest electronics store.

In the end, it had taken us nearly four hours and three different electronics store to get the bare minimum of what I needed. Dad winced when he went over the receipt at the first store. Walking out of the second store he had a pained expression, and he outright vetoed a fourth store. Most of what Dad had allowed me to use was already gone, but it was worth it.

I was ready to start building once we got home, but Dad convinced me to eat something. I choked down a sandwich to make him happy and dove into the mound of bags and boxes. For the rest of the day I built. Around midnight Dad insisted that I go to bed. I couldn't sleep and snuck downstairs three hours later. Dad wasn't amused when he woke at six.

It may have seemed complicated, but it was actually pretty easy. It was almost like second-nature now. It probably would have been a little alarming if it wasn't so cool. I stopped only when the parts ran out. It annoyed me a little bit, but that faded quickly when I realized that I had just built everything I needed. Well, not everything—just the basics. And 'basics' included: a large, oven-sized machine, a small containment module, and a brand new laptop.

"Am I going have to start making you take breaks, kiddo?" Dad asked as I plugged the extension cord into the wall. "The doctors said that you shouldn't tire yourself out and you look pretty tired."

I tapped the machine's screen and smiled when it lit up. "I have been resting. Just, you know, when I haven't been working. Breakfast, that was a break, it's in the name." I plugged in the wires in front of my machine to my laptop, watching as a new screen popped up. "I have to do this. If only to prove that I can actually do this, you know?"

"I know that you can do this." Dad reassured me. "You can do anything that you put your mind to. Just don't push yourself too hard."

"Thanks, Dad, I'm almost done."

I grabbed the tissue extractor from off the floor and pointed its tip at the small funnel at the top of my machine. I pulled the trigger and watched as it released my blood into the machine. Stepping back and over to the computer I typed in a few commands.

My finger hovered over the enter key. "You should put on your goggles now, Dad," I said pressing down. The machine slowly whirled to life. "It's about to get very bright in here!"

"Taylor, you didn't say—"

Whatever Dad was going to say was interrupted when my machine activated in a burst of white light. It was bearable with my goggles on, but I think I heard Dad swear before he managed to slip his goggles on.

Next time, I would have to warn him sooner. But that was only a minor concern. What I was really focused on was my machine and the fact that it seemed to be working. It was working.

I couldn't actually see it working at this stage, but it was. All that I had to do now was monitor my creature as my machine worked and follow the procedure. And once that was done, I would have created my very first creature.

XxX-=-XxX

Two large, dark eyes slowly blinked open.

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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Dinner was Sloppy Joes. I was using the last of my bun to wipe the plate clean when I heard the most unusual sound, somewhere between a sigh and a coo. For a moment, I thought it to be a figment of my imagination. Then, I heard it again alongside a light scratching.

"Taylor…" Dad breathed, "Taylor, turn around."

I turned around and promptly fell in love. There, inside the containment module, was a small blue creature with a hairless tail and gigantic, puppy dog eyes. I had left the table and was halfway into the living room before I knew it.

"H-Hello, Experiment 001." I whispered as I crouched down before the containment module. Experiment 001 shrunk back, "No, you don't have to be afraid. It's okay, I won't hurt you. I would never hurt you."

He licked his large, orange nose. Taking that as a sign I unlatched the lid on the containment module. "Come here, Experiment 001," I said sticking one arm into the module.

Slowly, ever so slowly, Experiment 001 crawled up my arm. I had to stifle a laugh at the fuzzy feeling of his nose as he sniffed my ear, tail wrapping around my arm. Experiment 001 seemed to pick up on my amusement, however, as he looked up at me with a confused expression and coo-sighed.

Then, Experiment 001's stomach growled. He whipped his head about and I laughed. "Come on, Experiment 001; let's go get you something to eat."

I walked back into the kitchen and grabbed a bowl. Experiment 001 quirked his head when we got near the Sloppy Joes, but I gently told him no and he seemed to understand. I didn't know if he could eat meat, so I just scooped up some of the sauce and grabbed a bun.

Done, I leaned down and placed the bowl on the floor. I gently coaxed Experiment 001 off and he looked at me before sniffing the bowl. His small tongue peeked out and took a taste which he seemed to like.

Experiment 001 then did the most peculiar thing. He picked up the bun in one of his front paws—well, hands I suppose—dipped it into the sauce, and then ran his tongue along the bun wiping it clean of sauce. Experiment 001 then carefully replaced the bun, arranging the bowl so it was exactly like I had given it to him.

"… Please tell me you didn't create a double-dipper, Taylor." Dad groaned.

I just smiled.

XxX-=-XxX

The idea for Experiment 002 came to me later. I had created Experiment 001—or Doubledip, as Dad called him—just to prove that I could. In hindsight, I could have been more specific when thinking about a "simple" creature I could create with what I had.

'Can I create an experiment that could help Dad?' I wondered.

The answer, I found out, was yes.

A green anteater-like experiment designed to clean. A tan, gourd shaped experiment designed to pop popcorn. A fast-talking, pink experiment designed able to sell anything to anyone. A teal, doll-like experiment able to release a high-pitched shriek. What looked like an experiment wearing a tuxedo designed to force people to be polite. A small, black experiment with multiple arms designed to give the most amazing massages—

I shook my head. That wouldn't work; I would need to be specific. What could I create to help Dad? We really didn't need help around the house.

Then it hit me. 'The ferry.'

Dad had been trying to get funding to repair and run the ferry. I wouldn't create an experiment to produce counterfeit cash, but maybe I could make one that could fix the ferry.

A small orange crab-like experiment designed to destroy machinery by going inside and cutting the mechanism and electrical wiring. It wasn't ideal, but before I could dismiss it, I saw a list of steps that would allow me to modify its design into what I wanted.

"Would you like to help make another experiment, Experiment 001?" I asked, leaning down and offering him my arm. He quickly climbed up and settled himself on my shoulders, tickling my neck as he sniffed at my hair. "Alright! Let's do this."

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#10

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Gathering Ingredients: 1.8 – [NEXT]

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It took Experiment 001 and me five hours to finish the template for Experiment 002. The modifications to Experiment 002's design only took around five minutes; the rest of the time was spent condensing all the information I could find on the internet into Experiment 002's pre-program.

After all, even if I modified Experiment 002's design, all of those modifications would be useless if he didn't possess the knowledge of how to use them. I couldn't give Experiment 002 the experience of a professional mechanic, but I could give him basic mechanical knowledge. The rest he'd have to learn on the job.

Experiment 001 had fallen asleep half-way into the process. I was a little disappointed, but I couldn't stay mad at him. Stupid puppy dog eyes. Still, before I started Experiment 002's creation, I woke him up.

"Ooo?"

"You can go back to sleep in a minute," I told him gently. "I just wanted you to be awake so you would know that I was making another Experiment. By the time you wake up again, you'll have a new friend."

Experiment 001 yawned. I started the program and the incubator gave its flash of light before settling down into a low, comforting whirl.

XxX-=-XxX

I woke up to a tapping sound. Groaning, I muttered something incomprehensible and rolled over. The sound, however, was persistent. I tried to ignore it though it proved to be an impossible task.

"Fine… I'll get up. Just cut it out…" I grumbled.

Yawning, I opened heavy eyes. It took me a couple of moments to realize that I was lying on the living room floor, five feet away from my machine. Experiment 001 was lightly snoring on the couch and for a moment I was jealous.

How come Experiment 001 got to sleep in? How come Experiment 001 got the couch?

Tap. Tap. Tap. Tap.

I rolled over to face the noise but found my frustration fading almost immediately. Inside of the containment module stood Experiment 002. A small red-orange crab with four claws, four legs—eight limbs, so more spider than crab—dark blue eyes, and two small antennae on his cute little head.

And he was tapping on the glass.

"I'm sorry, Experiment 002." I apologized as I moved to open the hatch, "I should've tried to stay awake longer so—"

Experiment 002 rushed out of the containment module. Quick as a flash, he scurried out of the living room and towards the kitchen.

"Experiment 002? Wait!" I called after him, "I'm sorry! I didn't mean to leave you in there, I swear!"

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#11

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Gathering Ingredients: 1.9 – [NEXT]

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I raced after Experiment 002, scrambling into the kitchen to find the crab-like creature playing with the new toaster. He sat on the counter and was using his claws to pull the lever down and then watching as it sprung right back up. I turned back to the living room, then back to the counter. The toaster was a straight shot from the containment unit.

"Experiment 002?" I asked.

Experiment 002 turned towards me before he turned back and grabbed the toaster. "Halal!" He held it out to me, "Halal!"

Experiment 002 then placed the toaster back on the counter and pushed down the lever. He looked back before he released it, to make sure that I was watching, and released it with another small exclamation.

"You really seem to like that, don't you?" I asked and Experiment 002 nodded. "Do you want to see something special, Experiment 002?"

Experiment 002 nodded rapidly. I walked over to the cupboard to get a couple pieces of bread, and heard him scurry down from the counter and follow me. To climb back up the counter he used the tips of his claws to latch onto the edge of the cupboards, and then simply walked up as if he were on the floor. A quick check verified that Experiment 002 hadn't even scratched the varnish.

I held the bread out and let Experiment 002 sniff before placing them into the toaster. He jumped back and began to circle the toaster after I pressed the lever and the insides began to glow.

"Halal?" Experiment 002 murmured. He touched the toaster with a claw before pulling it back. He tried that a couple of more times before the toast popped out and he jumped back, "Ooo! Halal!"

"Would you like to try some, Experiment 002?" I asked.

"Ih!"

Smiling, I broke up the toast into more manageable pieces and then handed Experiment 002 one. In his excitement, he grabbed it so hard that the toast broke apart. He looked down at his claw as if it had betrayed him and then looked away.

"Don't get upset, Experiment 002. I'm not mad at you." I said and offered him another piece. "Just don't squeeze it that hard."

Experiment 002 hesitated for a moment. Slowly, he closed his claw around the piece of toast. I could almost hear his relief when he didn't crush it again. Then, he took a small bite.

"Ooo. Halal morcheeba!" Experiment 002 exclaimed.

I felt something scratch my leg and looked down to see Experiment 001 staring at me. Or, more specifically, the pieces of toast I was holding.

"Achi-baba, halal!" Experiment 002 called, waving at Experiment 001 with a free claw. "Halal morcheeba."

I handed Experiment 001 his own piece.

XxX-=-XxX

When Dad finally came down, I was showing Experiment 001 and Experiment 002 how to use the microwave. I finished my explanation up by warning the two experiments to never use the microwave without my permission and to never, never climb inside of it.

"… I need coffee." Dad muttered.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Achi-Baba - Friend

Halal - Toaster

Ih - Yes

Morcheeba - Very Nice

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Gathering Ingredients: 1.10 – [NEXT]

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"I know that you only made him because you wanted to help me—and I appreciate that—but you agreed not to do anything without me here, Taylor," Dad said, frowning. "What if something had happened?"

"Nothing would have happened, Dad. Experiment 002 was a little more complicated from Experiment 001, but he wouldn't have attacked me."

"How do I know that the next experiment will be as harmless as these ones?" Dad asked and gestured at my experiments. Experiment 002 was sticking his claw in the new blender while Experiment 001 was looking at the coffee pot.

I quickly scooped up Experiment 001. I would never allow him even the slightest taste of that disgusting, addictive sludge. I made him a nice cup of tea instead. His eyes followed my hand dipping the tea bag in and out of the water.

"Taylor, I'm not trying to be the bad guy here. I just want to make sure that you're safe," Dad admitted. "I don't think I would be able to bear it if something bad happened to you."

That made me pause. Dad was just concerned about me. I knew that my experiments wouldn't hurt me, but Dad didn't. Maybe I could show him?

"… If you wanted, I could upload all of the information I have on my experiments to my laptop. It would probably take a long time, but you would get to see that they don't mean much harm," I said.

"You can do that?"

XxX-=-XxX

It took me the better part of an hour to upload the information to my laptop. I would have finished sooner, but I hadn't wanted to just clump all of that information together. Instead, I had created a digital journal and gave each experiment its own entry.

Experiment 001 and Experiment 002's entries were full; experiment number, basic description, noted behavior, known abilities, and a link to their templates. All 627 other entries, however, were more bare-bones.

When I turned around to Dad, I found him staring at me. "Is something wrong?"

"No, nothing's wrong." Dad said, "I guess I was just a little surprised to see how fast you can work, kiddo."

What was he talking about? I wasn't working that fast. It was probably just because he hadn't seen me work before. Yes, that was it. Nodding to myself, I motioned for Dad to come over.

"I suppose you can call this a digital encyclopedia. It will provide you with everything you need to know about my experiments and how they work." I explained before I brought up a random entry.

"You can make a creature that can turn everything into ham?"

I nodded. "I can make an experiment for practically anything that I would need. Some of them are a little silly, but…"

Experiment 001 sigh-cooed and I smiled down at him. My power may have said that he was just designed to double-dip things, but I disagreed. Experiment 001 was much more than a simple double-dipper.

"I think I understand." He patted me on the shoulder before Experiment 002 fell from the ceiling and landed on his lap. "You did that on purpose, didn't you short stuff?"

"Ih!" Experiment 002 agreed.

Dad sighed.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#13

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Gathering Ingredients: 1x (Interlude: 001 and 002) – [NEXT]

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{Experiment 001}

I wake up to the most amazing smell. What is that smell? I don't know, but I don't have to. All I have to do is get to that incredible smell. Only I can't reach the smell. I am trapped in something. An invisible surface wraps around me. I scratch at the sides of the Thing, but my claws don't even leave a mark.

Two beings sit at the table. They can help me! I call for them and watch as the larger one turns towards me. The larger one mutters something incomprehensible and then the smaller one turns.

'Porma.'

I am ashamed to admit it, but I'm scared of my porma. I shrink away from her when she crouches before the mean Thing. But Porma doesn't care. She reassures me, comforts me, tells me that everything will be alright.

Porma will never hurt me.

So when Porma opens the Thing and calls me, I approach Porma. I climb up her arm, careful not use my claws, and sniff her. I take in her scent and commit it to memory—if Porma goes missing, I will find her.

I hear a weird noise that startles me. I look around to try and find the noise, but can't find it. I resolve to find out the source of the noise... later.

Porma takes me to the other room. I try to get closer to that amazing smell, but she tells me not too. I obey. Though it isn't fair. Can't Porma see that I want the smell?

I should have trusted my porma more. She sets up a bowl of the smell for me! I sniff it for a moment and then stick my tongue out. The smell tastes amazing!

… But there is something missing.

I realize what that is when I spot the "bun". I grab the bun in my hands, dip it in the sauce, lick it clean, and put the bun back where it belongs. There! It's perfect.

The larger being grumbles something and Porma laughs. I love the sound of her laughter.

XxX-=-XxX

{Experiment 002}

I don't know when I woke up. Everything was big and dark and there was so much stuff. It's lucky that I was inside that cylinder, or I probably would have gone crazy and hurt myself trying to learn about everything.

As it is, it had taken me a long time to calm myself down. I managed it by fixating on the shiny machine on the counter in the other room. I couldn't wait to learn what that did!

I'm let out of the cylinder. Good. The machine awaits. I hear something calling for me, but ignore it in favor of the machine. I climb the cabinets and reach the machine in record time.

I hear someone call my name and turn around. It's Porma! I grab the machine and lift it up to show her what I had discovered.

Then Porma asks me if I had wanted to see something special. Intriguing, what will Porma consider special?

It turns out that Porma already knew about the machine. It's a "toaster" and makes "toast." I'm a little disappointed, Porma already knows everything. But the disappointment fades when she gives me a piece of toast. And then I broke it. I had broken Porma's gift!

Porma tells me that she isn't mad. I look up and see Porma offering me another piece. Taking it into my claw gently, I slowly bring it up to my mouth because it smelled so good. It tasted wonderful!

I hear someone come into the room and see someone else. Calling out to him, I show him what I'm holding and he seems to perk up. Then Porma hands him some of my toast!

Another, larger being enters the room. I wave at him too and he grumbles something. Oh well, if he doesn't like it, the more for us.

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[PREV] – Gathering Ingredients: 1x (Interlude: 001 and 002) – [NEXT]

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#14

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Gathering Ingredients: 1.11– [NEXT]

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I hadn't understood the meaning of the word "complicated" before Experiment 003 . My last two experiments were simplicity itself compared to Experiment 003. It took me twelve hours just to finalize his design template.

I then spent three hours condensing the all the information Experiment 003 would require. After that I discovered that I out of nitrogen. And then once we got back I had to spend an hour disassembling my incubator to refill the nitrogen tank because I hadn't installed an easy access panel. Another half hour fixed that oversight.

That had just been the prep-work. In all actuality, it would take five days of constant supervision before Experiment 003 was ready.

Five days where I constantly worried after Dad. I knew he couldn't stay in the house forever because of his job, but I didn't want him to go. Especially after Uber & Leet's most recent stunt.

That was why I decided to create Experiment 003; to protect Dad. I knew that he was pretty tough, but that wouldn't mean anything if he was confronted by a cape. And with the Docks the way that they were…

XxX-=-XxX

Dad thought I was working too hard and wanted me to take a break. I could do that later. I just needed to be there for Experiment 003 when he woke up. I hadn't been there for Experiment 001 or Experiment 002, but I could be there for Experiment 003.

It was worth it when I saw Experiment 003 slide into the containment module. He looked like Experiment 001 except bright red and taller, sleeker, buffer with yellow-tipped antennae.

"Ooo." Experiment 001 put a paw on the module and lightly scratched it. He quirked his head when Experiment 003 didn't do anything and then glanced at me. "Porma?"

"It's alright, Experiment 001. Experiment 003 is just sleeping."

I was actually a little nervous. What if Experiment 003 didn't like me? I knew that was ridiculous, but I couldn't get rid of the thought.

Experiment 003 stirred slowly within the containment module. I held my breath as he slowly opened his eyes and looked around the area blearily.

"H-Hello, Experiment 003." I greeted the newest member of my family.

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[PREV] – Gathering Ingredients: 1.11– [NEXT]

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#15

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Preparing Mixture: 2.1– [NEXT]

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I would have preferred not to step foot inside Winslow High School ever again. Unfortunately, if I wanted to transfer from Winslow High School to Arcadia High School, I would need to get signatures from my teachers and a few other staff members. That meant that, like it or not, I had to go back.

Still, that didn't mean that I would be there the whole day. It wouldn't take more than an hour or so to get all of the signatures I needed. In fact, I could probably get it done while everyone else was still eating lunch.

I still don't know how they found out though, somehow, my experiments had learned of my plans. Experiment 003 even confronted me about it; insisting that I bring him along so that he could protect me. I had managed to convince him that it would be suspicious if I showed up with a 'red koala' and, for a moment, I'd thought I'd won.

I hadn't.

Experiment 003 had then gone on to suggest I bring Experiment 001 or Experiment 002 with me. They were small enough to hide in my backpack, he said. And then he'd brought out the big guns; Experiment 001.

My resistance crumbled the moment that I saw Experiment 001's puppy-dog eyes. "Alright." I sighed, "I'll take Experiment 001."

XxX=-=XxX

Unfortunately, Dad couldn't come with me. He had managed to get a meeting with Mayor Christner a few days ago to talk about the ferry and he didn't dare to try canceling it. I didn't think that Mayor Christner would take too kindly to such a thing especially after all of the effort that Dad had put into arranging it.

I was happy that Dad was at least able to drop me off at Winslow. If I had taken the bus, then I would've probably gotten to Winslow after lunch. And, while the trio couldn't really do anything to me during class, I didn't want to tempt fate.

For a few moments, I stood in the parking lot and simply stared at Winslow. When I felt ready, I walked straight to the office to get the paperwork I needed.

'Lunch ends in one hour and four minutes.' I thought. 'Plenty of time to get this done.'

Mr. Stevens smiled as he handed over the paperwork. "It seems that you got the transfer you wanted. Good luck, Ms. Hebert."

XxX=-=XxX

"Ooo." Experiment 001 coo-sighed as he poked his head out from my hoodie before he looked around. "Porma?"

I shushed him. "I just need to get a couple more signatures and then we can leave." I felt him shift underneath my hoodie and sighed; Experiment 001 was starting to get restless. I couldn't really blame him considering just long he had been there. "Just a few more minutes—"

"Wow. You're actually talking to yourself."

I stopped walking.

"I thought that you were pathetic before, but I think you've managed to reach an entirely new level now. Then again… maybe it's an improvement to how you used to be." The voice mocked.

"… Hello Emma."

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#16

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Preparing Mixture: 2.2– [NEXT]

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Of course something like this would happen. I should have known that something like this would happen. What were the chances that one of them would find me in the hallway during lunch? For me: one hundred percent. 'I hate my life.'

"You should just have stayed gone."

I finally turned around to look at her. Emma looked different. Maybe it was the bags that hung underneath her eyes, the way she carried herself, or the way she seemed smaller.

Honestly, though, I didn't care.

"It's a good thing that I won't be coming back, then." I said with a small shrug. Emma looked taken back, as if expecting me to say something else, before she noticed the papers I was holding. "I would like to say that this has been nice, but—"

I don't really know what set Emma off. Perhaps it was because I wasn't responding to her taunts as she had come to expect me to. Or maybe it was the knowledge that I could be transferring out of Winslow. I didn't really know. All that I did know was that, before I could finish speaking, Emma had grabbed the front of my hoodie and all-but threw me at a nearby locker.

I thought I might have heard Experiment 001 squeak in distress, but I was too stunned to really notice. 'When did Emma get so violent?'

"You took everything from me!" Emma suddenly shouted. She grabbed me again before slamming me against the locker again and again. "Why couldn't you just have—?!"

Experiment 001 had had enough. He quickly crawled out from underneath my hoodie before he launched himself towards Emma's face. "Naga! Naga kweesta Porma!"

Emma shrieked and let go of me to shield herself her face with her arms. I slumped against the locker and, for a few moments, could only watch dazedly as Emma tried to defend herself against Experiment 001. He avoided her flailing limbs and climbed up her back until he reached her head. Experiment 001 reared back, mouth open wide, and then gave her the mother of all wet willies.

"Eeww!"

It was almost funny to see the way that Emma's eyes widened in disgust before trying to get Experiment 001 off of her. She ended up trying to dislodge him by ramming nearby lockers. Only, Experiment 001 scurried over her shoulders and onto her front and then batted at her hands with a drool-covered paw.

I didn't know how to feel. On one hand, I was happy that Emma seemed to be experiencing at least some of what she had done to me. Only, I was also a little sickened with myself over feeling that way. Unlike Emma, I wasn't a bully. I didn't want to be a bully.

"Stop it." I said and Experiment 001 stopped. I ignored Emma's look and instead focused on Experiment 001. "She's had enough, Experiment 001. Let's—Let's just go."

"Ih, Porma."

XxX=-=XxX

Experiment 001 had revealed himself to Emma, but I didn't think she would tell anyone. If she had any pride left, she would never admit that she had been taken down by an enraged bundle of fur and a couple of wet willies.

"Porma… oketaka?

I nodded. "I'm fine, Experiment 001. A little shaken up, but fine."

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Kweesta - Destroy

Naga - No

Oketakta - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Preparing Mixture: 2.3– [NEXT]

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'I should have made sure she won't talk about Experiment 001.' I thought as I climbed onto the bus and took a seat, frowning. 'After what happened, I don't think she would tell anybody, but I can't be sure. She could do it just to spite me.'

It worried me. Experiment 001 had only gone after Emma because she had been hurting me. While Experiment 001 had at best given her a few scratches and a few wet willies, it was still serious. If Emma decided that she would tell somebody and went to the PRT, then things would go from bad to worse.

The PRT wouldn't see that Experiment 001 had acted to defend me. No, all they would see was that Experiment 001 had attacked someone. That I had created and then brought to a school something that I couldn't control. I didn't want to think about what would happen after that.

Even though I didn't want to think about it, I could imagine what would happen. The PRT would take Experiment 001 away from me. It was likely that they would even try to take Experiment 002, Experiment 003 and all of my equipment away as well. And once the PRT had them…

I couldn't risk losing them. 'How do I stop her from talking?'

A small, pink, sheep-like experiment designed to turn anything that its powder touched into infants. A large, dark-blue, porcupine-like experiment to remove ninety-nine percent of a person's intelligence after it pricked them with its quills. A pink, humming bird-like experiment designed to peck someone and make them fall in love with the next person they saw. A black, penguin-like experiment designed to release a powder that made anyone it touched too polite to fight back—

'No. Those are too obvious.' I thought. If I used any of them on Emma, then I would be outing myself. I needed something more subtle, something that wouldn't lead to me outing myself.

Only… did I really want to create an experiment just to make sure that Emma wouldn't talk? I didn't even know if Emma would talk about it, considering what had happened.

'I don't know what to do…' I thought.

I stepped off the bus and made my way back home. Once there, I quickly let myself into the house before moving towards the living room. There I found Experiment 002 scrolling through the opened Experiment Encyclopedia on my laptop. Hearing me, he turned away from the screen and smiled when he noticed me.

"Porma!"

Experiment 002 then got up and ran at me before grabbing at the hem of my pants. I tried to act interested in what he was trying to tell me, but I couldn't. The very sight of Experiment 002 reminded me of the fact that Experiment 001 wouldn't be the only one taken away should Emma talk to the PRT.

I hated her. I hated her more than I had ever hated anyone in my entire life. It was because of her that Experiment 001 had taken action into his own hands and attacked her to defend me. Now, she possessed the knowledge that threatened to destroy my family.

"… Porma?" Experiment 002 asked, tugging at my pants. I took a seat on the floor and sat him in my lap before I began to stroke his little antennae. He turned a little to give me an uncertain, concerned expression.

"Porma… oketaka?"

"Naga." Experiment 001 hissed as he climbed out of my hoodie, fur bristling. "Kaphong kweesta Porma.!"

"Kaphong?"

I needed to make sure Emma didn't talk, but in a way that couldn't be traced back to me. And, there, on the screen was the entry of an experiment that would be perfect for the job.

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Kaphong - Monster

Kweesta - Destroy

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Preparing Mixture: 2.4 – [NEXT]

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'… Dad will understand why I made this one.' I told myself, 'He knows how much my experiments mean to me and how much it would hurt if something happened to them. And… it's not like it would actually hurt her…'

Experiment 004 had the potential to remove an individual's I created Experiment 004, then it could simply remove the memory of our confrontation from Emma's mind. And, after that, I wouldn't have to worry about her talking to the PRT. I wouldn't have to worry that the PRT would find out and comet to take away my experiments.

If I went through with this, I would have to come up with a really good explanation to Dad. This would be the second time I would create an experiment when he wasn't around to make sure I'd be safe. At the very least, he would be very angry when he found out the future Experiment 004.

On the bright side, I had discovered something new about my power.

I had known that, when I thought about something, my power would supply me with a list of experiments that had an ability that could do what I wanted or something close to that. Ordinarily, it brought forward all of the experiments that could do that though I could increasingly narrow it down by thinking more specifically.

Before I had thought about creating Experiment 004, I thought that the information my power provided me was unorganized. Only, that wasn't true. The information was organized by complexity.

I was snapped out of my thoughts when I caught the sound of the lock turning. 'What the crap?!' I thought, rushing to close the Experiment Encyclopedia.'Dad should still be at his meeting with Mayor Christner!'

I was just about to finish closing out of the Experiment Encyclopedia when a red-furred paw placed itself on top of my hand, stopping me. "Soka, Porma."

XxX=-=XxX

"Did you even think about what you were about to do?!"

I had thought that Dad would understand, but he hadn't. After Experiment 003 had shown him Experiment 004's half-finished design template, he had looked ready to explode. I had feared that he would yell at me then and there, but he had turned around and walked outside.

When Dad finally came back, I knew that he was still angry. He told me to sit down and began pacing the living room. Still, while he was angry at me, he didn't actually yell at me. He just raised his voice a bit.

"Well? Did you!?"

That still didn't make it hurt any less. "I-I just wanted to make sure that Emma didn't tell anyone about Experiment 001." I murmured into my lap. "The PRT would have taken him away from me if she did. And I just—I just couldn't handle it. So, I—"

"—You decided to design an experiment that could have erased all of her memories." Dad interrupted. "Did you even think of calling me to see if we could figure out something we could do instead? No, you didn't." He pinched the bridge of his nose. "… Do you know how much trouble you could have landed yourself in?"

"W-What?"

"If the PRT found out that you were planning to use that experiment on Emma, they would arrest you. "Planned Assault with a Parahuman Power". And then, while you couldn't do anything, the PRT would have come here to take all of your experiments."

I froze in my seat. Dad—Dad was right. If I had made Experiment 004 and the PRT found out what he could do and what I wanted to use him for, they probably would have arrested me. I wouldn't have been able to protect my experiments from the PRT and they would be taken away.

'Oh, God... What was I thinking?' I felt sick.

"I see that you're starting to understand now. We'll need to talk about how dangerous your experiments are and what you are not allowed to do. For now, however, I want you to go to your room and think about what you've done." Dad looked like he might have said something else, but bit his tongue. "Just—Just head upstairs. We'll talk later, after I've calmed down.

I went.

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

Soka - Sorry

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Preparing Mixture: 2x (Interlude: 003)

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#19

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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"H-Hello, Experiment 003."

I didn't immediately realize that the voice was actually talking to me. I thought that the voice must've been talking to somebody else. Looking around, however, I didn't see the other person that the voice could've been talking to.

The voice was talking to me.

I finally turned in the direction of the voice and froze. There, just behind the glass cylinder that I was in, was my porma. I didn't know how I knew that it was Porma, but I did.

It took me a couple of moments to realize that Porma was waiting for me to say something. I recalled what Porma said to me and tried to repeat it, "H-Hello."

Porma looked surprised and I felt ashamed. Was I not supposed to have said that? I was about to try and apologize to Porma, but she told me that it was alright. That I just surprised her.

Then Porma opened the hatch, "Why don't you come out, Experiment 003? I haven't been the only one waiting for you."

Someone else was waiting for me? Curious as to who it could be, I crawled out of the cylinder and then an orange blur grabbed onto my arm.

"Tookah Achi-baba!" After it stopped moving it stopped being a blur. Now it was a four-legged creature with four arms tipped with claws. I looked down at myself, two legs and two arms. I looked at Porma, two legs and two arms. This creature was weird. "Meega Ex-per-i-ment 002!"

Experiment 002 then tugged at my arm and I looked at Porma for assistance. Porma merely smiled and scratched the ears of something blue before Experiment 002 pulled me away.

I quickly learned that Experiment 002 liked "machines." He showed off different machines that he had already examined and told me all about them—warning me about the "dangers of the microwave"—before he began to tell me about all the things he wanted to learn about.

It was more than I could handle. I didn't want to hurt Experiment 002's feelings, though, so I just nodded and pretended to understand.

Eventually Experiment 002 ran out of things to tell me about and led me back to Porma. She had fallen asleep on the "couch" with that blue bundle of fur still on her lap.

"Ex-per-i-ment 001!" Experiment 002 called and the bundle sat up. He then turned back to me, "Ex-per-i-ment 001 hakkiahth Porma make."

Oh. Experiment 001 looked at me then and I began to feel a little nervous. What if he didn't like me? He could tell Porma and then Porma might not like me either.

"Naga keweesta Porma?" Experiment 001 asked bluntly.

"Ih." I agreed. There was no way that I'd hurt Porma! "Naga keweesta Porma."

Experiment 001 nodded and laid his head back down.

"Ex-per-i-ment 003 did g-good!" Experiment 002 cheered.

XxX-=-XxX

I later learned that Porma designed Experiment 001, Experiment 002, and me with a purpose in mind. Porma created Experiment 001 to be a double-dipper, Experiment 002 to fix machines, and me to protect people.

More specifically, I had been designed to protect Porma's "Dad". That meant I was to stay with him while he went outside and make sure he stayed safe. And if anyone tried to hurt him, I was to stall them until he got to safety.

I hadn't realized that meant I would be away from Porma. Still, I couldn't just go to her and tell her that I didn't want to leave her. That would make Porma think I couldn't fulfill my purpose.

So, reluctantly, I left with Porma's Dad the next day. He was meeting "the mayor" about the "ferry" that I vaguely remembered Experiment 002 telling me about.

Porma's Dad had been worried that people would feel nervous when they saw me, but I couldn't understand why. I looked just like a "dog" when I retracted my antennae and walked on all fours. Porma told me that if anyone asked I was to say, "Bark. Bark."

The meeting with the mayor didn't last long. Porma's Dad talked about the possibility of getting someone to repair the ferry which the mayor had seemed interested in. He didn't seemed that interested, though, when Porma's Dad had talked about "renovation costs."

Shortly afterwards, we left the mayor. Porma's Dad grumbled something about the mayor that I thought was naughty.

I had been really excited to see Porma after that. Only, after Porma's Dad had opened the door, I entered and saw that Porma was working on something. Something naughty.

Porma tried to close the "laptop" but I stopped her. "Sorry, Porma."

I may have been designed to protect Porma's Dad, but I had to protect Porma too. Even from herself.

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Achi-Baba - Friend

Hakkiah - One or First

Ih - Yes

Kweesta - Destroy

Meega - Me

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

Tookah - Hi or Hello

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Preparing Mixture: 2.5

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#20

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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How could I have been so stupid?

I had wanted to create Experiment 004 to prevent Emma from talking to the PRT about Experiment 001, but I hadn't thought about it much beyond that. If Emma did tell the PRT and the PRT had come, they would have found me in the midst of creating a memory-erasing experiment. I would still be able to tell them that Experiment 001 had acted to defend me, but they wouldn't believe me.

And, after that, everything that Dad had warned me about would happen. The PRT would arrest me for Planned Assault with a Parahuman Power and then they would come for my experiments, my family.

I didn't know what the PRT would do to my experiments, but I could guess. The PRT would attempt to learn what they could about my experiments. And if the PRT couldn't find that information through simple observation…

"… Porma?"

I couldn't bear to look at them. How could I, now? If I had gone through with my plan to create that memory-erasing experiment and the PRT found out… I had failed my experiments. I had failed as their Porma.

I felt something brush against my palm and, looking down, I saw Experiment 001. "Porma…" Experiment 001 grabbed my hand with his paws, licked it, and then patted it a few times. "Th-here, t-there, Porma."

I choked back a sob before pulling Experiment 001 close to my chest. I hugged him tightly, breathing in his unique scent, and reminded myself that he was still there. Experiment 001 made a questioning sound, but I only held him tighter.

Experiment 002 pulled at my pants. "Porma s-sad? H-Help Porma?"

I loosened my grasp around Experiment 001 long enough to pull Experiment 002 into my arms as well. I looked at their small, concerned faces. Just thinking about what might have happened to them… it was enough to bring me to tears.

Slowly, I began to rock back and forth as I held onto my experiments. No, they weren't just experiments; they were more than that. They were my children. And I had—I had almost…

"I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I'm sorry… I'm so s-sorry…"

"Ex-per-i-ment 002 tay Porma. N-No feel s-sad."

"Ih. No f-feel s-sad, Porma."

I didn't deserve them. I tried to tell them that I didn't deserve them, but they wouldn't listen. And then I felt another, extra pair of small arms wrap around me.

"Meega soka, Porma…"

I broke.

XxX=-=XxX

Sometime after my breakdown, I fell asleep. I woke up to discover that I was still surrounded by my experiments—my children—though someone had removed my glasses and thrown a blanket over us.

Dad.

I should have called him, but I hadn't. Instead, he had to talk in after what must've been a frustrating meeting with Mayor Christner to find out what I had been trying to do. Disobeying him. Again.

I needed to apologize to him.

And hearing Experiment 001—no, Doubledip. I may not agree with the names that Dad gave them but he saw them as individuals and gave them names to reflect that. I couldn't refer to them just by their experiment numbers. They were better than that, they deserved better than that. Hearing Doubledip coo-sigh, I realized that I needed to make things right with them.

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Meega - Me

Porma - Mom or Mother

Soka - Sorry

Tay - Love

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Preparing Mixture: 2.6

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#21

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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It took me a little while to extract myself from the bed. I had been afraid that Experiment—that Doubledip would wake up when I slipped my arm free, but he merely snuggled the pillow I'd switched with and rolled over.

For a moment, I hesitated. I knew that I should go find Dad and apologize so we could talk about what we were going to do. I was just a little nervous. Maybe I could talk to him later?

I thought about it for a moment before shaking my head. No, it was better that I do this now. If I didn't do it now then Doubledip, Shortstuff, and Ace could overhear Dad and I having an argument. I didn't think that we would argue, but couldn't guarantee it.

'They've been through enough today.' I thought, glancing at their sleeping forms once more before leaving the room.

Dad was in the living room browsing through my Experiment Encyclopedia. He would occasionally stop at an entry and jot something down on the paper beside him. It looked like a list.

"… Dad?"

"Why don't you come take a seat?" Dad absently patted the couch cushion next him. "I'll be done in a few minutes."

That didn't sound ominous. Not at all. "What are you doing?"

"I realized that, while I can't stop you from making any experiments, I can talk to you about those you shouldn't create," Dad said and picked up the list. "For example, I absolutely forbid you from creating an experiment that will knock our planet out of orbit."

It wasn't like I would have made that experiment anyway. Not unless I had to.

"You also can't make the experiment with acidic saliva, the one that can erase memories, the one that can turn into a killer forest, the one designed to drill holes through planets, the one that can turn into a fu- freaking black hole of all things…"

Dad had been working on this for a while. I wanted to defend some of the experiments that he listed—they could be used for good—but I didn't want to upset him. Not now.

Finally, Dad set the list down. "Now, I'm not saying that you can't create more experiments, just that you can't make any of the ones on this list. Do you understand?"

I nodded. "I do."

"You are also not to create more experiments than we can care for." Dad said and held up a hand when I tried to say something. "We can take care of Doubledip, Shortstuff, and Ace but, beyond that, we don't have much money."

"What about—"

"No. I was fine with using some of the settlement to get you some of the things you needed, but I don't want you spending it all, Taylor." Dad interrupted me.

"… Alright."

"We also need to talk about your options." Dad sighed, "You know as well that I do that, eventually, word of your experiments will get out. It was a miracle that everybody thought Ace was a regular dog."

This could be bad. "What do you mean?"

"We need to meet to someone in, as you young folks would say, 'the biz,'" Dad even made air quotes, so embarrassing. I was glad that I hadn't woken Doubledip; I wouldn't have wanted him to see that. "We're going to talk with the Protectorate or New Wave."

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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"I don't think that we should talk to the Protectorate. After what happened with Sophia, I just—I don't think I could trust them, you know?" I admitted after a moment. "And after what almost happened with Emma... I don't think they would be able to trust me either."

Dad sighed. "I thought you would say something like that. Alright. I guess I'll go make some calls and see if I can arrange a meeting with New Wave."

… What. I had thought that Dad at least try to get me to reconsider talking to the Protectorate. So why hadn't he?

"Porma!"

I looked at Dad and back up the stairs where I could hear Doubledip calling for me. "I'll be back in a minute."

Taking the stairs two at a time, I found Doubledip looking around the room frantically. He spotted me before I could say anything and instantly launched himself at me. He wrapped his arms around my legs and sniffled.

"Oh, Doubledip…"

It took a few minutes to calm Doubledip down. He woke up sometime after I left the room and was worried that something had happened to me. Even after I reassured him he wouldn't let go of my leg.

Shortstuff and Ace watched from the bed. Rather than let them come to their own conclusions, I explained things to all of them. Ace was excited at the idea of meeting real, live superheroes, while Shortstuff seemed more interested in my alarm clock, and Doubledip just clung to my pant leg.

"Why don't we do something fun?" I cleverly changed topics. "I think I could find a game we could play. Or I could get some paper and we could draw."

Shortstuff shook his head. "C-cook!"

"I think we should do something that everyone likes." There was no way I would ever allow Shortstuff to cook by himself in the kitchen. He would probably take apart the oven and start a fire. I felt Doubledip tug at my pants and looked down to receive a face full of puppy-dog eyes. "You want to cook too, Doubledip?"

"Ih, Porma."

"What about you, Ace?" I asked. Surely, he wouldn't want to cook too.

He looked contemplative for a moment before jumping to his feet, hands on his hips, and with a decisive nod, "Yes."

Damn. Somehow, I just knew that this was going to end badly.

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Preparing Mixture: 2.8

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#23

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I chose to teach Doubledip, Shortstuff, and Ace how to make tacos. Tacos, I thought, were easy to make and wouldn't give the experiments a chance to hurt themselves. Or, in Shortstuff's case, a chance to take something apart.

The only safe way to leave Shortstuff unsupervised so far was to lock him in a room with plenty of items to disassemble. A lawnmower, CRT monitor, and Rubik's Cube had kept him occupied the last time we were out of the house.

By the time I got back he reassembled the lawnmower and CRT monitor, solved the Rubik's Cube, and broke out of the room. We were lucky that he had decided to explore my Experiment Encyclopedia rather than examine anything else.

Doubledip, Shortstuff, and Ace had each been given a single, specific task. I had Ace brown the ground beef, Shortstuff grate some cheese, and Doubledip help me prepare a small side salad.

'I should never have left Shortstuff alone.'

Shortstuff apparently had the idea to build something that would help him grate faster. While I chopped up some lettuce, he brought out the toaster. I only knew that something was wrong when I smelt burnt rubber.

"U-uh oh," Shortstuff said.

I turned and saw him proudly toasting the cheese grater. The toaster vibrated on the counter, a black plume of smoke reaching the ceiling. "Hit the deck!" I shouted, grabbing Doubledip and pulling him with me under the table. Ace took one look, grabbed his sibling, and dropped to the floor just as the toaster exploded.

Then the fire alarm went off.

Dad rushed into the room a few moments later. He looked around a moment before he saw us hiding underneath the table. He looked back at the mess our countertop had been and looked back at us.

"Who's responsible for this mess?" Dad asked.

"… I asked Shortstuff to grate some cheese for the tacos." I said, pretending that I didn't notice the wounded look my pint-sized experiment sent in me. "He used the toaster."

Dad sighed. "Stay right there. I'll clean this mess up."

"No, Dad." I sighed. "Learning to clean up is a very important lesson too. We'll clean up, won't we?" I looked expectantly at the trio. They all eagerly nodded and Dad reluctantly acquiesced.

I put Shortstuff in charge of cleaning the soot off the ceiling, since he could walk up there; Ace had to gather up all the broken metal and glass, because he didn't have to worry about being cut; and Doubledip threw away the ruined food, without tasting. I observed and made sure there were no more shenanigans.

After the kitchen met his standards Dad banned the trio from trying to cook anything else. Lunch would have to come from elsewhere as there would be no more cooking in that kitchen. Not until it finished airing out at least. Dad ordered some pizza making Doubledip and Ace perk up.

"Thanks, Dad." I said before I saw Shortstuff trying to sneak off. "Oh no you don't. You're not getting off that easily."

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Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Preparing Mixture: 2.9

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#24

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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Shortstuff was officially grounded. He had been forbidden to go anywhere near anything vaguely mechanical or with a power cord. If Shortstuff wanted to learn more about machinery, then he would have to use the internet.

I just hoped the internet was ready for Shortstuff.

"Doubledip, do not put that pizza back in the box. Either eat it or put it on a plate," I ordered watching my first experiment until he reluctantly moved away from the pizza box. "Thank you."

Doubledip grabbed a paper plate and placed his drool-covered food on it before walking over to me. I gently turned him down when he presented me with it. Even if he gave me those damn puppy-dog eyes, I would not eat something that he drooled on. Again.

I smiled when Doubledip settled next to me before taking a look around. Shortstuff was still poking at his piece of pizza morosely, but Ace had almost finished his fifth slice of pizza. I was about to turn away when I noticed him pick up a can of soda.

'Where did he get that?' Quickly grabbing the soda and holding it out of his reach, I checked the top. Still sealed. 'That's a relief.'

"I'm sorry Ace, but you can't drink this." I showed the can to the others, "None of you can drink this. Okay?"

"Why?" Ace asked.

"It's bad for you." An image of Ace, tongue hanging out, bouncing around the room flashed through my head. "Very bad."

Ace didn't look like he understood, but nodded anyway. I smiled at him before turning around and walking into the kitchen. There, I spotted the six-pack of soda on the table. I looked around for a minute before hiding all of the soda in the crock-pot.

Crisis averted.

Later Dad asked me about that. "How bad is it for them? Like dogs and chocolate?"

"It wouldn't hurt him per se, but it's addictive," I said with a sigh. "They'll get addicted to anything with a high concentration of caffeine. And that would be very, very bad."

"Oh." Dad threw away all the soda in the house and put his coffee and my non-herbal tea in a locked cabinet after that.

XxX-=-XxX

I brought out art supplies after lunch. They weren't interested in drawing earlier, but I hoped that had changed. There wasn't much else that we could do right now and I was loathe to introduce them to television.

Who knew what kind of ideas they would get?

I handed everybody a small stack of papers, some colored pencils, and an eraser. There was some grumbling involved, but they got into it eventually.

Shortstuff was, undoubtedly, the best artist. Of course, if anyone asked, I loved all their art equally. I thought Shortstuff's claws would make drawing difficult, but it hadn't been a problem. Shortstuff just grabbed a pencil with two of his claws and then made a mark on his paper, took a small step and made another mark. Each line made separately but combining into a giant robot towering over the city battling flying figures. The calculations on the side were a little worrying though.

Doubledip had made something nice, I think it was supposed to be a frightened Emma, but then ruined it by licking the paper a couple of times. And Ace's drawing showed all of us eating a picnic, while wearing masks and capes on top of a skyscraper. It used perspective very well.

Personally, I had just started sketching. I didn't really pay attention to what I was doing—more concerned with watching over my experiments—though, by the end of it, I drew them. It wasn't as great as Shortstuff's picture, I doubted that I'd ever be that good, but I liked it.

"Ooh! L-looks nice!" Shortstuff said. I spun around, trying to see where he was, but he took that opportunity to grab my paper and run over to the others. "D-double-d-dip! A-Ace! Porma m-made!"

Ace smiled at me. "It's Butifa, Porma."

"Ih! Butifa!" Doubledip agreed.

I smiled.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Butifa - Beauitful

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Preparing Mixture: 2.10

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#25

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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Whoever Dad called after lunch worked fast. Or was well connected. How else would they be able to arrange a meeting with New Wave so quickly? And on such short notice.

And now there was no time. I had too much to prepare. Just to start, I needed proof of my abilities so I had to take pictures of my equipment and then brief my experiments. Ground rules were set and watchful eye established. They were not going to get into any more mischief, not now.

That wasn't even mentioning the question of costume or no costume. I didn't even have a costume! It was maddening.

'It would help if they gave me some damn time to prepare!' I thought throwing another hoodie onto the growing pile. 'Maybe I could have convinced Dad and we could have gotten something, but no, I'm going to show up looking like a ragamuffin fashion disaster explosion of insanity!'

Doubledip and Shortstuff were at least having a blast. I don't know exactly what game they were playing though it involved making miniature forts out of my discarded clothing. I heard Shortstuff yell something that sounded suspiciously like "banzai", but ignored it. I had more pressing concerns on my mind right now.

The best I had was a Hawaiian shirt I vaguely remembered Dad giving me. I still don't know what made him decide to purchase the thing, but nobody would connect me and my hoodies with something so... bright.

"Wow." Dad peeked around the doorjamb. "It looks like a tornado swept through here."

"I'll clean up later," I grumbled. "I just need to find something to wear. New Wave may be about public accountability and all that jazz, but I don't want anyone figuring out who they're meeting. And I can't find anything."

"Would this help?" I looked up to see Dad holding what looked like a dark purple ski-mask. He shifted uncomfortably. "… I found it in some of your mother's old things upstairs."

"I'll try it on," I said grabbing the Hawaiian t-shirt—it was better than nothing—and taking the ski-mask from Dad. "Be out in a minute."

I may not have liked the Hawaiian t-shirt, but it somehow worked with the balaclava. For once, my railroad thin frame was working to my advantage; in this getup, it would be hard to tell if I was a boy or a girl.

'I wonder if we can stop to get a mask.' The balaclava covered my hair, but left my face exposed. "Do we have enough time to get a mask?"

"We do," Dad said.

Nice. I made sure that the balaclava was in place before opening the door. "What do you think, Dad? Is it okay?"

He tugged at the balaclava making sure it covered as much skin as possible. "It's fine, but I see what you meant about the mask."

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Threadmarks Preparing Mixture: 2.11

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#26

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Preparing Mixture: 2.11 – [NEXT]

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The mask Dad picked out wasn't that bad, but I would have chosen something a little more simple. I couldn't complain, however, since it covered my eyes and nose. I just had to make a small hole there and another... there. Now my glasses could sit on top of the mask without sliding off. Still, I was a little uncomfortable that there were four slightly yellow eyes emblazoned on its surface.

Shortstuff made a square shape with his claws and looked through it for a moment. "Butifa!" He exclaimed before he gave me his version of a thumb's up. "Porma l-look g-g-good."

"Really?" I asked.

Shortstuff nodded fervently. Doubledip looked at me for a moment and then pressed a drool-covered hand onto my shirt like it was a badge of honor. He stepped back and admired his work before he also nodded his approval.

Ace thought differently. "Cape?" Shortstuff thwacked the back of his head and waved a claw in his face. I pretended not to notice. Finally Ace sighed. "No cape."

I was unconvinced, but I wasn't feeling so bad about it anymore. In fact, if anyone asked I could just tell them that my mask been inspired by my experiments. After all, even if I hadn't created any four-eyed experiments yet, I could.

Dad and I would meet New Wave at Brandish's workplace. I was a little surprised but, then again, New Wave had to have somewhere they could meet with people. They couldn't meet people at their home. After what happened with Fleur, New Wave had moved to a gated community, where exactly in the community wasn't publicly available, even on the internet.

I made sure that Doubledip and Shortstuff were comfortable within my backpack before telling Dad I was ready. I went in first with Ace following on my heels. I didn't care what Dad said, Ace made a very good dog. Dad agreed to come in after ten minutes. My watch said he only waited seven.

It felt a little weird sitting there dressed as I was, alone, Dad on the other side of the room. That one guy in the suit just wouldn't stop staring at me. Starting to feel a little self-conscious, I adjusted my mask and tried to ignore him. 'Why won't he stop staring at me?'

I was starting to think about sending Doubledip over and seeing how he liked it when people stared at him, when the receptionist's phone finally rang.

"Mr. Kordeliski," Dad stood, "and, erm, scientist," the receptionist looked at me, "Mrs. Dallon is expecting you in the conference room on the second floor, room A-113."

"Thank you," I nodded at her. "Come on, Ace."

I rubbed my arm anxiously. There was no backing out now; Dad and I were actually going to talk to New Wave. From the way that Dad tried to reassure me on the elevator, he could see that I was nervous. Which meant Brandish would see I was nervous.

'What have I gotten myself into?' It would have been so much easier if we had more time to prepare. I hadn't even come up with a name for myself. 'Oh, god.'

Finally, we entered the conference room and I was surprised to see that Brandish, Lady Photon, Laserdream, Glory Girl, and Panacea sitting at the table. I felt the urge to turn around and run away and tried, unsuccessfully, to squash that emotion.

"Hello, Mr. Hebert." Brandish said before giving me the once-over. "I suppose this is the Tinker your friend told us about?"

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[PREV] – Preparing Mixture: 2.11 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Butifa - Beautiful

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#27

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.1 – [NEXT]

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"If I understand what you mean by 'Tinker' then yes, she is the one." Dad said and I caught Glory Girl rolling her eyes. "I just didn't think that Mark would be able to arrange a meeting with your group so quickly."

Brandish nodded. "In normal situations, it would take a couple of days to arrange something. This situation, however, is anything but normal."

"How so?" I squeaked. Then again, in a deeper voice, "How so?"

"Unattached Tinkers are usually sought out by various groups hoping to gain access to the technology that only they can create." Lady Photon said, "It is very unlikely that, once the news of a Tinker gets out, they remain independent for long."

Great. Way to inspire confidence there, Photon Mom.

"Isn't there something that we could do?" Dad asked.

"That is why we wanted to talk to you, Mr. Hebert. From what we understand about your friend's-" was it really that obvious? At least she didn't do air quotes, "abilities. She seems to specialize in the creation of artificial life forms." Photon Mom said with a significant look towards Ace, "We're curious about their capabilities."

Ace cleared his throat. "Bark. Bark."

Huh, that only made them look more suspicious. 'Weird.'

Dad looked towards me and I realized that he wanted me to answer this one. I shouldn't blame him—I hadn't really told him—but I still felt a little betrayed.

"I c-can pretty much d-design an experiment to do anything," I admitted after a moment. "You can probably name anything and I could design an experiment that can do it."

"Could you make an experiment that flies?" Glory Girl asked.

"Yes. I can make around seventy-six experiments with an ability that would allow them to fly."

I could actually make a few more than that, but Dad wouldn't want me to bring up the 'forbidden experiments.'

Laserdream looked like she wanted to say something, but Glory Girl beat her to the punch. "How about one with super-strength?"

"Yes. There are-"

"One with super-speed?"

I was starting to get a little annoyed. "Yes. I-"

"Find car keys?"

"Yes." Glory Girl opened her mouth to interrupt me again, but stopped when Panacea laid a hand on her shoulder. "One specifically designed to find items, and seven with abilities that would also allow them to find your car keys."

Glory Girl glanced at Panacea, then waved for her to go ahead, sighing and looking away.

'What's that about?'

Panacea leaned forward. "Could you design a creature that heals people?"

I had to think about that for a moment. Could I make an experiment to heal people? "Yes, I can." But only if I modified its design. "It would enter a patient's body to encourage cellular division and destroy any foreign bodies."

"Do you think you could make it?" Panacea asked.

That certainly got a reaction.

Laserdream shifted and shared a look with Lady Photon. On the other side of the table Glory Girl appeared stunned, she sat still looking at Panacea, a smile tugging at the edge of her mouth. I panned over to Brandish and, for a moment, thought I saw her eyes narrow. I must have imagined it, though, as I blinked and she was smiling.

I looked at Dad for a moment, seeking his approval, and he nodded. I smiled. "Yes, I think I can do that."

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.1 – [NEXT]

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#28

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.2 – [NEXT]

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I was happy to answer Panacea's question, though it had served to open what had felt like an endless number of other questions. It eventually evolved into a lecture about my experiments, their capabilities, and how I created them.

I let Doubledip and Shortstuff out of my backpack and my three experiments also watched the presentation. Well, Shortstuff watched and took notes, Doubledip cleaned between his toes and Ace went around the table asking for autographs. The amused heroes happily obliged him.

I was happy New Wave seemed interested though I didn't tell them everything. It wasn't that I didn't like New Wave. From what I had seen of them so far, they seemed pretty nice, if a little strange with the way they kept giving each other meaningful looks. That did not mean, however, that I would tell strangers everything about my experiments.

After all the questions from Brandish's "Can they breed?" to Laserdream's "If you could make a woodchuck that could chuck, how much wood would it chuck if it chucked wood at all?" were answered, Brandish requested Panacea be allowed to use her power on them. I thought that Panacea was only able to heal, but the brunette healer told me she could also sense a patient's biology.

I agreed. I couldn't see why not. Really, Panacea would only verify what I already told them about my experiments.

I did not expect for Panacea to stumble backwards after brushing against Ace. Glory Girl rose from her seat and flew over the table to Panacea, glaring at Ace the fluorescent lights outlining a snarl. I took a step back, reaching for Shortstuff and Doubledip. Ace stuck his chest out and raised his fists. 'Not good.'

"Victoria, down!" Lady Photon barked.

Glory Girl's head shifted and the snarl disappeared. She was only concerned for her sister, like any good person would be. "You okay, Ames?"

"It's okay." She rubbed her forehead. "I'm fine." She said after another moment. "It just surprised me. I don't think that I've ever seen something as complex as that before. I mean… wow. Just wow."

The meeting quickly ended after that. Brandish gave Dad a business card and told him to call soon to arrange another meeting. Dad said that we would and we left, juggling our exit times, me sneaking into the car and pulling off my mask before sliding up the seat. Stupid comic books always made it look so easy, just find a phone booth and switch identities. 'I don't think I've ever seen a phone booth in real life.'

"I think that went well," Dad said pulling away.

I nodded pulling Doubledip and Shortstuff back out of my backpack. On the drive home I thought about what Panacea had asked me. She wanted an experiment that could heal people. I had agreed at the time because it seemed like a good idea, but now I thought that I was beginning to understand why New Wave had reacted so strongly.

Panacea actually asked for help. Panacea asked me for help. I didn't think that someone like Panacea would need help. But, then again, it must have been a lot of work to do what she did. And she couldn't just take a break while patients continued pouring in.

I just didn't know how much help the experiment I described to her would provide. It would reduce her workload, but not by much. Still, the experiment would help her. And Dad even gave me permission…

I would not, however, allow my experiment to overwork itself. I'd make sure it had time to unwind and simply enjoy itself.

"Do you guys want to help Porma design another experiment?" I asked my experiments. Doubledip nodded, Shortstuff started to bounce, and Ace snapped off a quick salute. "Then let's get to work!"

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.2 – [NEXT]

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#29

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.3 – [NEXT]

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It took longer to finish the modifications to Experiment 004 than for the incubation to finish, a nice, novel experience. Previously the time it took for the experiment to incubate greatly exceeded the time it took for me to make the modifications. I doubted that would happen again, there wasn't another experiment quite like Experiment 004. Well, there would never be another experiment like Doubledip, Shortstuff or Ace either, but Experiment 004 was wholly unique.

A giant, single-celled organism, Experiment 004 would still have all of the basic functions of my other experiments—locomotion, communication, mischief—though he might be more comfortable inside rather than outside of someone.

I heard my machine start to power down and watched as Experiment 004 was gently pulled out into the containment module. Doubledip and Shortstuff 'oohed' and 'ahhed' though Ace looked vaguely uncomfortable.

Personally, I thought Experiment 004 looked adorable. His pale green-gray outer body contained a white inner body dotted with pink-purple organelles. And his black eyes, round nose, and wide mouth gave him the cutest face.

"Ooo." Doubledip tapped on the containment module.

I hushed him. "You all know how scary it was when you woke up for the first time. Give Experiment 004 some space and time to deal with everything."

Experiment 004 looked around the containment module slowly. He then turned himself towards us before he tilted his face, looking curious. "… Porma."

"Hello, Experiment 004."

XxX-=-XxX

It was quite interesting to watch Experiment 004 eat.

He absorbed food in a manner akin to phagocytosis. Sticking a piece of bread in his mouth Experiment 004 waited patiently twiddling his antennae, his vesicles wrapping around the bread before dragging it down towards his lysosome. From there, the digestive enzymes within the lysosome began to break the food down.

I didn't understand why Dad looked a little green. It was a perfectly normal bodily process.

He pushed away his plate. "I don't think I needed to see that, Doc."

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.3 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#30

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3x (Interlude: 004) – [NEXT]

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The words will always escape me when I try to describe my birth. It was like someone without a baquaa suddenly having to bliznak. I felt every piece of my body, that bit digested food, that bit made my outer membrane sticky, and that bit folded those bits into a subspace flap.

All of my organelles called out for attention, my outer membrane squeezing comfortably against a smooth surface, forcing me into being an extruded circle. I kept it that way. Inner body changes first, outer body changes later.

It was almost too much to bear. Acidity, sodium, membrane permeability—one by one, I slowly regulated myself.

Distantly, I felt something vibrate along my membrane. I tried not to move. I just dealt with one flood of information. I didn't think I would be able to deal with another. Eventually, however, I realized that I wouldn't be able to learn about the vibration without moving.

Slowly, reluctantly, my cilia rotated me. I was surprised to see four things there. I didn't know who they were, but the larger one I recognized somehow. I racked my limited memory to try and remember who she was.

A faint wisp of something. It was at the tip of my tongue. I could almost remember. She was, "… Porma."

"Hello Experiment 004." Porma grinned.

XxX-=-XxX

After introducing me to Porma's Dad—he named me Doc, because I'm supposed to fix people!—Porma told me to "go play" with the others. I didn't want to leave her though I also didn't want to disobey her. Eventually, Shortstuff decided for me and grabbed my "hand" before pulling me away.

"D-Doc not t-tell Porma!" Shortstuff insisted once we had climbed to the second floor. I dragged my focus away from how the carpet tickled my membrane to focus on what he was saying. "Porma h-help ex-per-i-ments, ex-per-i-ments h-help Porma!"

Help Porma? "Ashi?"

"Ex-per-i-ments clean u-up!" Shortstuff proclaimed before he pushed open the door behind him, "S-shorts-stuff brought D-Doc!"

"Ih!" Doubledip cheered.

I looked at the bundles of extra skins lying around the room. I could increase my acidity and dissolve them all, but no, that probably wasn't what Shortstuff meant by "cleaning". Doubledip and Ace ran around the room hiding all of the skins, that must be what Shortstuff wanted.

"D-Doc help?" Shortstuff asked me.

"Ih." I would do anything to help Porma.

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3x (Interlude: 004) – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ashi - How

Baquaa - Toilet

Bliznak - Poop

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#31

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.4 – [NEXT]

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I dreaded the mess I would find inside my room. I promised Dad I'd clean up before we left for the meeting with New Wave. Only Panacea distracted me with her request. Then I had to show Doc around, and then Dad asked me to help him with a few things in the kitchen.

Considering all that happened over the last few days—Shortstuff nearly burning down said kitchen—I felt obligated to help him.

Now I was exhausted. I just wanted to make sure that my experiments were alright and then hit the hay. I couldn't do that, however, until I cleaned my room.

'Why couldn't I have created a cleaning experiment?' I thought irritably. My power unhelpfully provided a list of possible experiments. '… Shut up.'

Reaching the top of the stairs, I hesitated going into my room. How bad was the mess again? I couldn't quite remember…

"Shh!"

I blinked. 'What are they doing in my room?' So help me, if they made more forts out of my clothes, someone was going to get in trouble. I swung open the door, "Alright, what's going—"

It was spotless. For a brief moment, I thought I was hallucinating. I rubbed my eyes but what I was seeing was real. Someone cleaned my room. Or, more specifically, a particular group of somebodies...

"Ta-da!"

My eyes started to burn and I had to blink away the tears. When was the last time that someone—aside from Dad—did something nice for me?

"Porma help Ex-per-i-ments. Ex-per-i-ments help Porma." Shortstuff declared as he and the other experiments wrapped their arms around my legs. "Ex-per-i-ments love Porma."

"I love you, too. All of you." I bent down and gathered them together in my arms, squeezing tight, "Thank you."

The next day I find out that, while my experiments had cleaned up, they didn't know where anything went. Under the bed, behind the dresser, inside the air vent, I would still be finding clothes and random things in unlikely places for the next week.

XxX-=-XxX

"I think we should move your equipment down to the basement," said Dad, handing me another bowl to dry. "I didn't say anything, but I don't think you want someone stumbling on it if they came over."

I debated whether or not I should ask Dad just who he thought would come over. Kurt and Lacey were the only people that came around, and even that was rare.

I didn't really blame them. Dad and I lived in a house in a bad neighborhood near the Docks. There were worse places, but those places were within walking distance. People didn't dawdle here and they definitely didn't go out after dark. At least not unless they were part of a gang.

Instead I just offered a noncommittal: "It'll probably take a while."

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.4 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

43XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.5 – [NEXT]

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Cleaning out the basement took less time than expected. Before the accident, Mom used to be something of a pack rat. She gradually filled with boxes of items picked up from garage sales and flea markets and stacked magazines until they lined the walls. What should have taken days took mere hours thanks to the efforts of my experiments.

Shortstuff and Doubledip gathered up the stacks of old magazines and passed them to Doc who dissolved them. A fan kept the build up of carbon dioxide in the basement to reasonable levels and Doc stored any harmful chemicals to flush later.

Meanwhile I sorted through the old boxes and Ace carried out anything deemed junk. Dad stood in the corner and rode herd on my experiments, making sure no one became too enthusiastic.

After clearing the basement it took another two hours disassemble my equipment. But the actual moving only took five minutes, thanks to Ace lending his super strength. Reassembly would have to wait for a while, my experiments deserved a reward for working hard all morning.

I shooed out the little helpers with the promise of a moving-in coconut cake, and gave my new lab a quick once over. 'Not bad. Needs a few frothing beakers and one of those climbing lightning things. Maybe Shortstuff can make one.'

The basement was a little cramped, but would do for now. It was larger than the living room at least, and that filled me with ideas—there were a few machines that would allow me to create some of my more exotic experiments, if I could find the parts.

Not enough space, however, to build the supercomputer I wanted. I sighed. 'At this rate I'll have to convert a warehouse. There are a ton of abandoned warehouses, right?'

But setting up my own base would take time, and a lot of money. The point defense systems alone would cost more than everything I'd created put together. At this point, I probably wouldn't be able to even start unless there were well-paying jobs somewhere for fifteen year-olds—unlikely—or I set up some kind of service.

'Maybe I should ask New Wave about it when we talk to them again.' New Wave had more experience than me, and would probably have tons of ideas. 'Yeah…'

"Porma!"

"I'm coming!" I called as I climbed the stairs. Doubledip and Shortstuff waited for me at the top. They pulled me towards the kitchen, questioning me about coconut cake and what it tasted like. 'That's right. They haven't really had anything like this before.'

I just hoped that the sugar wouldn't make them too hyper. Dad would tear out his little remaining hair if they started literally bouncing off the walls.

"C-cocon-nut cake good?" Shortstuff asked.

"I think you'll like it," I said.

My experiments were extremely fond of coconut cake. After tasting a bite of their first slice they promptly devoured their plates and turned towards the remaining cake. I actually had to step in and stop them fighting over it.

Strangely, aside from that, the cake didn't set off the worst sugar-rush in history. It actually seemed to do the opposite; making my experiments sigh happily once the cake ran out and settle down.

'… We need to buy more coconut cake.'

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.5 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.6 – [NEXT]

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The next meeting with New Wave happened two days after my first meeting and the day after I had moved my lab down to the basement. It was at the same place—the same room even—although Photon Mom and Laserdream weren't present.

I didn't feel that bothered by their absence. They were probably busy with something else. So that left me with Brandish, Glory Girl, and Panacea.

"I would like to introduce you guys to Doc." I lifted Doc out of my backpack so he could wave at everyone. He was so adorable. "Once he enters someone's body, he can encourage cellular division to speed up the healing process and attack any foreign bodies that might hinder it."

"How does this experiment enter someone's body?" Brandish asked.

It was a good thing that Doc and I tested that out yesterday. Otherwise, I probably wouldn't have been able to answer her. "Doc enters a body by entering the bloodstream after shrinking down the size of an average human cell. He can—"

"Has it occurred to you that your experiment could kill people by returning to his current size while he was inside their bodies?" Brandish interrupted.

I froze. 'Why she would ask me something like that? Hasn't she heard what I said? Doc is designed to heal people, not hurt them.' I felt Doc shrink back from the accusation. I hugged him and his antennae wrapped around my arm to return the hug.

As calmly as possible I explained, "Doc would never do that to someone. He was designed to heal people, not to hurt them! How could you even think that he would do something like that?"

Considering that I wanted to yell at her for upsetting Doc, I thought I did a good job.

"So, there are no safeguards in this experiment's design that would prevent him from doing something like what I just described?" Brandish asked before holding up a hand to stall another outburst. "How could you create something that you can't control?"

"I would never do that to my experiments." I said grabbing my backpack and holding it open for Doc. He shook in my arms and I had to carefully pry off his antennae as he didn't want to let go of his Porma. "I'm leaving."

Panacea stood. "Wait!"

A part of me felt bad that she and her sister had to sit through what just happened, but I was going to stay here if they talked about my experiments that way. "Sorry. Have to go."

Dad placed a hand on my shoulder. "Hold on, let's hear her out."

"I know that what my—what Brandish said was unfair and that it upset you, but she's only concerned. She doesn't know your experiments as well as you do." said Panacea, "She's just worried about something going wrong."

I considered Panacea for a moment. Put that way, it made sense, but: "I will never control my experiments the way she implied. Would you want to have someone mess with your brain? Remove your free will?"

Brandish drummed a finger against the table, "What do you suggest we do? I'm not willing to allow your experiment to go inside people if he can choose to harm them."

"I'll monitor him." Panacea offered.

Glory Girl nodded. "Yeah. If anything goes wrong, then Ames'll be able to fix it like that," she said snapping her fingers.

"That would be... acceptable." Brandish looked at me. "Are you fine with that?" I nodded. "Good. Now, I think we can all agree on a short recess to clear our heads before continuing."

I was just glad to get out of there.

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.6 – [NEXT]

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.7 – [NEXT]

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Dad wasn't happy with the way that I'd handled things back there, but he didn't say anything and I was grateful for that. He gave me a strained smile and draping an arm over my shoulder and gave a squeeze.

'I shouldn't have yelled at her.' I sighed. I saw how her words had affected Doc and it infuriated me. And then she had the nerve to imply that I was the one in the wrong because I didn't install 'safeguards'.

'She didn't mean it. At least not like that.'

I hoped I hadn't ruined our relationship with New Wave.

"Are you guys okay?"

I turned around to see Glory Girl and Panacea standing in the hallway, looking uncomfortable. "I'm fine." I sighed, "I didn't expect that to happen."

"Sorry about that. Mom is always worrying about what might happen," Glory Girl said. "She didn't mean to offend you. Is it possible that, you know, you'll stay?"

She was so contrite. It really hadn't been her fault, but here she was trying to apologize to me. "Yeah, I'll stay."

Glory Girl beamed. "Thank goodness! I didn't want to have to tell Crystal that you wouldn't be working with us—she was really excited about a new recruit. And Dad and Uncle Neil got really interested when we told them what you could do."

'Everyone is interested in me!' I tried not to grin like an idiot. She was just so perky and happy that it spread around the room. Even Doc relaxed. "Really?" I asked.

"Of course! They were talking about all kinds of things that they could do." Glory Girl said. "They had a lot of questions they wanted to ask and really wanted to come, but Uncle Neil had work and Dad had things."

We chatted over minutiae for the rest of the break. I didn't know what to talk about. I couldn't talk about my transfer to Arcadia, though they probably already knew my identity. I did tell the story of how Shortstuff almost burned down the kitchen. That seemed to go over well. What did teenagers talk about anyway?

We headed back to the conference room together. I was a little surprised to see Flashbang arrived sometime during our break, but maybe I shouldn't be. Flashbang probably finished whatever he was doing and came to support his wife.

"I'd like to apologize for my earlier behavior." Brandish began after we sat down. "I should have been more understanding of your feelings regarding the experiments. I expect better from myself and I'm sorry for losing my temper."

"I'm sorry, Brandish." I said, looking down at my lap. "I shouldn't have yelled at you, even if I was angry."

Flashbang straightened up and rested his forearms on the table. "Now that, that bit of unpleasantness is over, I think we should move on."

Brandish nodded at her husband, then looked at me, "The original reason you wanted to meet with us was to talk about your options."

I nodded.

"We talked it over these past few days and, while we would love to have you on our team, I don't think that you want to 'give up the mask,'" She began.

"I don't feel comfortable with the idea right now," I said. "Maybe I could think about it in the future, but, right now? I live right next to the docks."

"I understand, but it does make things a little more difficult." Brandish drummed her fingers against the table. "At best, we could help you set up as an independent hero. If you ever wanted to 'give up the mask', we'd be happy to talk to you about joining New Wave."

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.7 – [NEXT]

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.8 – [NEXT]

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"The last time we met, Lady Photon said that it would be difficult for someone like my friend to stay independent for long." Dad crossed his arms. "I doubt that things have changed that much then. So, if I may ask, why are you recommending that she become one now?"

"When Lady Photon told you that, New Wave didn't have a sufficient understanding of your friend's powers nor those possessed by her experiments." Brandish said and glanced at Doc. "I know it won't be easy, but if she doesn't want to join the Protectorate and she doesn't feel comfortable in joining New Wave, there aren't a lot of other options."

I spoke up. "I do want to join New Wave. But my family wouldn't be safe if I unmasked."

"We founded New Wave with the goal of being accountable. Not just to the courts, but to the public." Brandish shook her head. "With everything we've sacrificed, we can't stop now."

Across the table Panacea looked constipated and Glory Girl shifted in her seat. I changed topics, "What do you mean when you say New Wave can help me set up as an independent hero. What does that mean exactly?"

"In addition to what Panacea has offered, New Wave is willing to help if you ever need backup. We can help train you and your experiments, take you out on patrol, and introduce you to other independent capes," Brandish said.

Well, that was more than I expected. And less than I wanted.

"We would also like to see if you would be open to creating some of your experiments for us," said Flashbang.

I looked to the head of the table, expecting to see Brandish disagreeing with her husband. Only, she appeared to be fine with the situation. It was a little off-putting considering the earlier 'discussion' we had.

Finally, I looked back at Flashbang. "What kind of experiments?"

"You said that you could create an experiment for anything." Flashbang said, "Do you think you could create an experiment to detain criminals?"

"Just a second." I quickly grabbed my backpack and took out my laptop. I opened the Experiment Encyclopedia before typing in a few words. Finally, I selected one of the seven entries before turning the laptop towards Flashbang and Brandish. "See?"

The screen displayed an entry from my power's third series' of experiments. It had the ability to shoot a glue that instantly hardened upon contact. Once dry the glue would become an elastic, indestructible mass. I wasn't sure how it compared to containment foam, but it would probably be close.

'I wonder if I could get some containment foam.' I thought before shaking my head. The PRT would never let some stranger near the stuff. Of course there were always souvenir collectors, I'd have to check eBay.

"Interesting," Flashbang mused. He slid the laptop around the table and everyone mechanically nodded. "Do you have anything else?"

I went back a page and selected another of the seven. An experiment from my power's fourth series, through some cosmic irony it looked similar to a sheep and forced everyone into a deep sleep after hearing its bleat. I wasn't sure if it would work on particularly strong-willed people though I knew for a fact that it only had a temporary effect on my experiments.

I was about to show him but then remembered the state of my lab. I groaned. "I'm sorry, but there aren't any others. Not right now." I sighed, "I could create that other experiment, but I don't have all of the equipment I'd need to create the others."

"What makes them so different?" asked Glory Girl.

"My power organizes my experiments into seven different series based on complexity," I began to explain. "I can create practically any experiment from my first three series, but that's only if I have enough materials. I don't have the set-up or materials I need to create fourth series experiments."

"How much would these materials cost?" Flashbang asked.

Wait, what?

Brandish looked as shocked as I felt. Flashbang just squeezed her hand. "I'm willing to offer you a loan so that you could buy all of the materials you need."

"How would she pay such a loan back?" Dad asked.

"I wouldn't expect the loan to be paid back in monetary terms, Mr. Hebert, more of an exchange of favors," Flashbang said. "I want your friend to be able to create useful experiments. I would ask that she create some experiments for New Wave, this glue one and possibly the other one she wanted to make." I pushed the laptop over to him. "Sleep inducing? Yes, that would be very useful."

"I think I can do that."

Dad wasn't convinced. "Who would own-"

"Not own," I cut in. "They're not property."

"Have custody of these new experiments?"

"The Tinker will of course keep her creations. She's quite possibly the only one who can look after them," Flashbang answered easily. "But I would ask is that, if they agreed to, they would help New Wave."

"Oh, one last thing." I held a pen and piece of paper out to Flashbang. "Could I get an autograph? Ace is collecting them."

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.8 – [NEXT]

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Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#36

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.9 – [NEXT]

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We walked through the door to find all my experiments in the living room. Doubledip was curled on the couch sleeping. Shortstuff sat on the coffee table sketching, Kurt's old, busted typewriter repaired next to the couch. Ace rushed around the room, arms held out in front with a blanket tied around his neck. I had barely lowered my backpack to the ground for Doc to climb out, when Ace spotted me.

"Porma!" I knelt down so Ace could hug me properly.

"Having fun playing superhero, Ace?" He nodded eagerly and I laughed as I let go. Shortstuff came up next and presented me with pictures of all the things he'd drawn. "… You're not allowed to build a giant robot."

"Porma naga meega el kiyotay," Shortstuff pouted.

"Don't you give me that, young man. You can build a giant robot when you're responsible enough to take care of a giant robot. Now let's see what else you drew. Wow, these are really good!"

I wasn't just saying it; I meant it. If Shortstuff ever tired of repairing things, he could make a decent career as an artist.

By that time, the commotion had woken up Doubledip. He crawled up onto my shoulder after our hug and snuffled at my hair. I laughed again and he chattered at me, telling me everything I missed.

It was good to be home.

XxX=-=XxX

'I'll pay Dad back for the babysitting later,' I thought as I put the finishing touches on my experiment's surprise. I hadn't heard anything that made me think they had been rambunctious, but that could be because I had been so focused on what I was doing.

Stepping out into the hallway, I didn't see anything wrong. Everything was in its place and—yes, there weren't any dirty footprints on the ceiling. I went downstairs and did a double take.

"Hi Porma!" Ace waved at me from where he was dusting the television. "We make butifa for you and Porma's Dad!"

I looked towards where Doubledip and Doc were polishing the coffee table, to where Shortstuff seemed to be repairing our DVD Player, and then at Dad. 'At least I don't have to pay him back.'

"What?" He asked a touch defensively. "I just said that we should pick up a bit."

"I was just surprised." I said before raising my voice a little bit. "Do you guys want to take a break? I have something for you."

"Sure!"

"Ih!"

"Y-Yes!

"Ih!"

"C'mon." I left the room and they followed me eagerly. I made sure not to say a word despite them repeatedly questioning me. I just put a finger to my lips and winked, that excited them all the more. Stepping into my room I gestured at what I had been working on. 'I hope they like it.'

It had occurred to me that my experiments needed their own beds. I didn't mind if they slept in my bed or not, but I wanted them to have options. So I used some of the boxes from the basement and refurbished them as best I could.

Each bed—except Doc's—I lined with a soft material, one pillow, and a blanket. I'd put little wings and a cone on each of them so they looked like rocketships. The blankets gave me the most trouble. I had to go to the store and find a blanket for each experiment.

A bright blue blanket covered with small swirls for Doubledip, a black one covered with an assortment of white stars for Shortstuff, and a blanket with picture of Alexandria against a blue sky for Ace. Doc's bed was a repurposed containment module painted green, giving him a smooth surface to rest on, with a blanket with blue trim.

It wasn't much, but my experiments loved it. They climbed around the beds shouting their pleasure, and Doubledip gave his an inaugural nap.

Though at bedtime they still crawled up under my comforter and snuggled with me.

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.9 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Butifa - Beautiful

El Kiyotay - Good Idea

Ih - Yes

Meega - Me

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dec 26, 2014

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#37

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.10 – [NEXT]

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I wanted to stay home, but time and its inexorable march conspired to ruin my life. Today I would start at Arcadia High. If someone asked me a couple of weeks ago if I wanted to go to Arcadia High, I would have given a definitive 'yes'. Things changed. My experiments needed me, and though I was happy that I'd be attending Arcadia, I would have to leave my experiments behind.

Letting an experiment stay in my backpack for an hour was one thing, but an entire day would be horrible. And even if I could, I wouldn't. School would bore my experiments within minutes and their methods of relieving boredom tended to be... boisterous. Better to leave them at home where they could amuse themselves.

That didn't make it any easier when it was time to go.

"Porma!" Doubledip cried, "Naga goobaja!"

Shortstuff nodded emphatically. "Porma s-stay!"

"I'm sorry, but I can't. I have to go to school." I said. "I won't be gone forever. I'll be back in a few hours."

"N-no go." Shortstuff pleaded.

"I have to. Now Ace is in charge, got it? You all have to do what he says."

I finally managed to pry them off. Leaving, I felt like the worst person in the world. Doc was so upset he didn't even come down to say goodbye.

XxX=-=XxX

Arcadia High looked amazing. I saw the school a few times on pamphlets, but now I realized that they did the school a disservice. It was so pristine.

The front gates looked brand new. I marveled over its lack of cracks and painted-on graffiti. How had the school managed to keep it so clean? Eventually I managed to drag my attention away from the gate and actually entered the school's courtyard.

I couldn't believe it. The grass was well-trimmed, the garbage cans were empty, and not a speck of paint in sight. The school even stationed people to monitor the courtyard. 'The trio wouldn't last a day in here…'

"Hey!"

I turned around and saw Glory Girl—Victoria Dallon—waving at me. I panicked. 'Why is she waving at me? Does she recognize me?' No, that was impossible. She had only seen me while in costume. 'Does her power let her recognize people she's met? She's coming closer. Oh, god.'

"You a new transfer?" Victoria said, "You're looking at everything like a hillbilly in New York."

Oh. That would explain things. I couldn't help but feel a little embarrassed. "Yeah. It's just so different. I didn't think Arcadia would be this nice."

She nodded thoughtfully, "Where you from?"

"Winslow."

"Is it true that the teacher's hand out switchblades on the first day?"

"Only if you don't bring your own," I replied.

"What about the guy who lit up a joint-"

"And the teacher asked him if he brought enough for everyone? He did."

Victoria laughed and stuck out a hand. "Victoria."

I shook. "Taylor."

"Want me to show you around our fair school?" I kind of wanted to say no. I didn't want to do something that could reveal my identity. She saw my hesitation. "It'll be really fun—more than if you asked someone else to show you around." Victoria winked at me, "I can even introduce you to some of my friends, too. That way you'll have someone to show you around if I get called away of something."

I couldn't deny her now. And, really, what was the harm in it? "Alright."

Victoria grinned. "Great! I can't wait to get started."

Victoria was a great guide. She led me to the office so I could check in and get my schedule before starting the tour. She talked about the classes, her impressions of the teachers, and the extracurricular activities Arcadia High offered.

She even suggested that I try joining the basketball team, I brushed her off saying that I was too clumsy. I couldn't join a club of course, it would keep me away from my experiments.

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.10 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Goobaja - Go

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dec 26, 2014

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#38

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.11 – [NEXT]

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Victoria ended the tour back at the school's courtyard. I was going to ask why, but she walked off towards a small group of people hanging near a bench. I didn't know whether to follow her or not, so I stayed until she waved me over.

"Guys, this is Taylor. She just transferred," Victoria said before turning to me. "Taylor, these are my friends. My sister Amy, Jessica, Sam, my boyfriend Dean, Liz, Emily…" She continued to list everyone present. I mechanically waved at each one. There was no way I'd ever remember all these names.

"So, where are you transferring from?" The second introduced after Panacea—Jessica—asked.

"Winslow."

"Trust me." Victoria said before anyone could ask, "All the rumors are true."

The one introduced right after Panacea—Sam—looked at me. "You have my sympathies."

XxX=-=XxX

I knew my power allowed me to comprehend my experiment's biology. I just hadn't understood that this knowledge would also cover things like, say, high school biology.

If I didn't have powers, I would have spent at least a week trying to catch up with the rest of the class. It barely took me a couple of moments to realize what Ms. Simmons was talking about and understand it.

For the first couple of minutes, it was kind of fun. It was interesting to compare the differences in human biology and my experiments' biology. 'We don't have a squeedily spooch? How bizarre…'

By the end of the period I decided the lecture was simplified to the point of banality. I spent most of the class correcting the textbook.

Unfortunately, the rest of my classes weren't that easy. My grade level at Winslow was studying US History this year rather than the World History like at Arcadia, I had to catch up on The Grapes of Wrath, and start a big project Mr. Welsh assigned last week in Computer Applications. And the less said about P.E. the better.

'I really need to start running or something.' I thought.

I almost didn't notice it happening. Unless I somehow gained another power, my stamina was returning at an unnatural rate. And there was only one explanation for that.

"When we get home, you are so much trouble, Doc." I muttered.

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.11 – [NEXT]

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#39

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.12 – [NEXT]

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I arrived home to discover my experiments tearing up the house. Literally. I walked in to find Shortstuff removing a section of the wall and Ace lifting up floorboards. After corralling them into the kitchen, it hadn't taken Ace that long to confess. They were searching for Doc.

Ace had noticed that Doc was missing soon after I left. He thought that Doc must be hiding in a corner pouting, but grew concerned after the first hour. When calling for Doc failed he ordered Doubledip and Shortstuff to help him look. When that proved fruitless they began a more in depth search.

I just thanked my lucky stars they hadn't decided Doc might've gone outside.

"It's okay. I'm not mad at you." I told my experiments, "You were just worried about Doc. You guys might have been a little… overzealous, but I think we can clean this all up. Somehow."

Ace lowered his head. "No find Doc. Meega naga watcher."

"Ace, that isn't your fault. You see, Doc decided that he didn't want to listen when I said you couldn't come with me." I said. "Isn't that right, Doc?"

I heard Shortstuff gasp. "Aka tiki baba," He hopped from foot to foot jabbing at my feet where a spider-sized Doc was ballooning to his original size at a rapid pace.

"Bad Doc!"

Doc lowered his head. "Meega soka."

"I know that you wanted to make sure I'd be okay, but you didn't listen to me. I told you to stay here with the others. If you had your siblings wouldn't have made a mess looking for you." I began in as stern a voice as I could muster. "Right now, I want you to go to my room and think about what you did."

"N-no pun-nish?" Shortstuff asked.

Doubledip looked at me through half-lidded eyes. "Doc naga."

"I didn't say that. He is still in a lot of trouble, but I need to think of a suitable punishment for him." I said looking at Doc and pointing at the staircase. "Now, go!"

The cleanup gave me plenty of time to think about Doc's punishment. Luckily, the damage they inflicted was easily repairable. A bit of spackle and a little paint covered up most of the damage. I didn't want to see Dad's face if he walked in to find that my experiments had destroyed more of the house.

There weren't a lot of ways to punish Doc. I thought about forbidding him from having any coconut cake for a week, though that punishment seemed a little light. On the other hand, what Doc had done hadn't hurt anyone and he did it because he was worried about me.

To be honest, he was probably beating himself up over what he had done. His siblings would also be unhappy with him for a while.

"Porma?"

I kneeled down next to his bed. "Hey, Doc." He gave me a watery smile and I pulled him into my arms. "You know your siblings really worried about you."

"I-Ih. Meega soka Porma."

"I know you are, Doc. You just wanted to make sure I was okay. Still, when I tell you to do something, you need to listen to me, okay?"

"Ih."

"Good. Now, I've thought about it for a while and I've decided on your punishment." I said and waited until he nodded. "For one week you aren't allowed to have any coconut cake or watch TV."

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[PREV] – Setting Up: 3.12 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Aki Tiki Baba - There it is or It's over there

Ih - Yes

Meega - Me

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

Soka - Sorry

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Dec 26, 2014

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#40

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.1 – [NEXT]

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Dad and I had a brief meeting with New Wave Saturday morning. During the meeting, I gave them a more in-depth explanation of the experiments that I would be creating and how their unique physiologies would grant them the ability to use their powers.

After the meeting, Dad and I went back home where we prepared and then ate lunch with my experiments. I then helped Dad clean up and put away the dishes before turning on The Little Mermaid for my experiments.

I said a quick goodbye to my experiments before Dad and I left the house once again. I waited in the car while he withdrew some money from the account New Wave had set up for us at the Brockton Bay Central Bank. We then spent a few hours driving around town to various electronics stores to get what I needed.

After Dad and I got home, he helped my move my purchases to the basement. I would spent the rest of the day in there, building the two new machines I would need to create the experiments New Wave wanted and connecting them to my current setup.

It didn't look pretty, but it would work.

I connected my laptop to the system, brought up my Experiment Encyclopedia, and got to work. It took an hour to complete both of the design templates for the two new experiments. It would have taken longer, but I only had to make a few changes to the designs my power supplied me with.

Once I finished the design templates, I thought about whether or not I should go get my other experiments. I didn't know if they would want to come down and watch Experiment 005's progress. I mean, while I thought it was exciting, I didn't think they would. Then again; how would I know if they would want to watch Experiment 005's creation process? They had never seen another experiment's birth before.

Eventually, I decided that I would go upstairs and get them. I needn't have worried about whether or not they would want to come as, the moment I told them what was going on, they abandoned their game to surround me. I waved at a bemused-looking Dad before I led them into the basement.

"Ready, guys?" I asked once everyone had settled down.

"Ih!"

Smiling, I typed in a few commands on my laptop before pressing 'ENTER'. I heard a faint hum as my machine slowly came to life before the genetic sample I had placed into the top of the machine was drained into it. I stepped back from my laptop and looked back at my experiments and found my smile growing at the awed expressions on their faces.

XxX=-=XxX

Experiment 005 entered the world at 7:30 AM the next day.

Despite Dad's protests, I had camped down in the basements with a pitcher of strong tea and an old sleeping bad. My experiments had followed my lead; bringing down their own blankets, pillows, and a few board games. For a while, we played Sorry and Monopoly until my experiments grew too tired to continue.

Then, despite their protests, I sent my experiments off to bed. I made sure that they were all asleep before I turned back towards my machines to monitor them and the slow and steady process that was bringing Experiment 005 to life.

Experiment 005 turned out to be a small, yellow rabbit-like creature with pinkish-red eyes, a dark yellow nose, and stubby arms and legs. His two antennae twitched on the top of his head, moving towards any sound.

I let Experiment 005 get his bearings before I spoke up. "Hello, Experiment 005."

"Porma?" Experiment 005 asked.

"Yes." I agreed and Experiment 005 smiled happily. "We'll have to be quiet since your siblings are sleeping right now, but they'll be so excited when they wake up and discover you."

"Oketaka, Porma." Experiment 005 said.

I smiled at him before I opened up the hatch to the containment pod and helped Experiment 005 climb out of it. His eyes widened when he noticed his siblings sleeping, but kept quiet as I had asked him to. He pointed at them with his antennae and back at himself, looking a little confused.

"Yes. They may not look like you, but those are your siblings." I told him in a near-whisper. "They're Doubledip, Shortstuff, Ace, and Doc."

"Ex-per-i-ment f-five?"

I winced. "I'm sorry, but I haven't been able to think of a name for you yet."

I ignored the fact that, so far, Dad had been naming my experiments. He had just said the first thing that had come to his mind. It wasn't like I could just think of a name and Experiment 005 would like it. For all that my power had given me, it had not given me the ability to think of a name I thought that my experiments would like.

Case in point, the names I was thinking about for Experiment 005 were all variations of what he had been designed to do.

"L-link?" Experiment 005 asked and I panicked. Had I really just been thinking out loud? Oh, god. He probably hated it and would hate me for not being smart enough— "Link! L-link!"

"Alright... Link."

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[PREV] – Running: 4.1 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#41

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.2 – [NEXT]

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I was in the middle of a game of Rummy with Link when I noticed Doubledip getting up. After discarding a three of hearts, I watched Doubledip yawn widely and the smack his lips. He looked around blearily for a moment before he spotted me, crawled over, and then curled up on my lap.

"Porma..." Doubledip murmured in greeting before he closed his eyes again.

I smiled down at my first experiment even as Link looked at him. Link seemed to wait for Doubledip to do something else though eventually he gave up and turned back towards our game. He then grabbed my three of hearts and laid it next to a four and a five of hearts he placed on the floor.

'... And now he's beating me.' I thought before I picked up his discarded seven of spades. Hopefully, a five or an eight of spades would show up soon.

Shortstuff was the next of my experiments to wake up with a sleepy "Ahua shalom bye". Noticing us, he then scurried over where I greeted and then dealt him into the game. I didn't have to wait long for Shortstuff to notice Link's presence as, a few minutes later, he squinted his eyes at Link.

"A-Ace?" Shortstuff asked.

Link shook his head. "Naga Ace. Meega Link."

"Naga Ace." Shortstuff repeated, nodding. He looked back at his cards before he actually registered what Link had said. His head snapped back up and he looked at Link again. "Naga Ace?" When Link nodded, he turned towards me with wide eyes. "Porma! Naga Ace!"

"It's okay, Shortstuff. I know that isn't Ace." I said before I gestured towards Link. "This is your new sibling, Shortstuff. His name is Link. Shortstuff, Link. Link, Shortstuff."

"L-Link?" Shortstuff asked.

"Ih, meega Link." Link said before laying his cards down. He then demonstrated his power, and the source of his name, by firing a stream of light-blue glue at a far corner of the basement. "Hassin?"

"Ooh! N-nice!" Shortstuff said.

"Naga…" Doubledip groaned, covering his ears with his paws. "Meega fooboo."

Shortstuff scurried over and nudged Doubledip. "Naga, D-doubled-dip! Naga fooboo!" He kept tapping until, finally, Doubledip groaned before slapping away his claws with a saliva-covered palm. Even then, Shortstuff wasn't deterred. "Doubledip, u-up!"

"Meega kweesta Shortstuff." Doubledip muttered.

"No, Doubledip." I scolded Doubledip before I turned towards Shortstuff, "Why don't you go wake up the others and tell them the news? Doubledip's a little tired."

"O-Okay, Porma!" Shortstuff agreed.

I watched Shortstuff run off before turning my attention back to Doubledip. Already, Doubledip was falling back to sleep.

'He must be really tired.' I thought, frowning . 'I'll need to make sure that he goes to bed earlier…'

Hearing Shortstuff scurry back, I watched him grab Link's arms before pulling Link off towards a drowsy-looking Ace and Doc. Ace perked up at the sight of Link and listened intently as Shortstuff explained everything he knew about the new experiment while Doc just grumbled and went back to sleep.

'… Maybe I shouldn't have kept them all up so late last night.'

If I ever did something like last night again, I would have to make sure that they all got to bed at a reasonable hour. And now I was starting to sound like Dad. Strangely, I didn't mind the comparison. Still…

'I wonder how long it will take them to notice that the incubator is still on.' I thought with a glance towards my machine. By the looks of things, it would only take another hour or so before Experiment 006 finished.

XxX=-=XxX

A few hours after Experiment 006 was born and named 'Drowsy', Dad came down to check on us. I waved from where I was playing King's Corner with Doubledip and Shortstuff.

"What are they playing?" Dad asked with a look at the miniature fortress that my experiments had created from a bunch of empty boxes and Link's glue.

"They're playing Castle." I said.

Of course, it was more of a 'rescue the princess' than 'castle'. After all, normal games of castle didn't involve two 'knights' trying to defeat a 'dragon' in an effort to reclaim the 'princess'. Also, in normal games of castle, the players didn't normally all possess some sort of power.

Still, I hadn't expected their game to have lasted as long as it had. I had believed that the combination of Ace and Link would be able to defeat Doc quickly and then move on to 'rescue' Drowsy. Only, Doc had proven himself to be a formidable foe to the two 'knights'.

Doc appeared to be unstoppable. Whenever Ace or Link attempted to climb the fortress, Doc would form tentacles to knock them down. When Ace or Link attempted to charge through the front 'gate', Link would spread his membrane over the entrance to form an impenetrable wall that the 'knights' bounced off of.

I couldn't really see Drowsy inside the fortress, but I imagined that he was having a good time. Like Doubledip, Drowsy had a laid-back and sleepy demeanor though, if possible, he appeared to be even lazier than Doubledip was. And, knowing that, I could definitely see him having a good nap while he waited for the 'knights' to beat the 'dragon' and rescue him.

"I didn't know Doc could do that." Dad said as Doc absorbed the now-hardened projectiles that Link had tried to knock him off with and then hurled them back towards Ace and Link. "… How can he do that?"

I picked up another card. "Doc is anchoring himself to Link's goop, and that stops him from being knocked off. He's also increased the stickiness of his membrane so he can absorb the projectiles and, if I'm reading this right, is manipulating his internal dimensions, like when he shrinks himself, to fire them back." Damn, I couldn't make a move. I was going to lose again, making the score 11-0 in the experiment's favor. Maybe Yahtzee? "It's really fascinating."

"… Yeah."

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[PREV] – Running: 4.2 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Fooboo - Tired or Sleepy

Hassin - See?

Ih - Yes

Kweesta - Destroy

Meega - Me

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4x (Interlude: 005 & 006) - [NEXT]

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{Experiment 005}

The first thing that I became aware of was a slow, fading hum. I didn't know what it was or what had created the noise, but I found myself more fascinated with it then fearful.

Eventually, however, the sound faded entirely. I found myself disappointed and even a little afraid because that sound had become my entire world. What was I to do without it? It was with great relief that I slowly became able to hear other sounds. A faint, near rhythmic beat followed a soft noise that accompanied what I later learned to be my breathing.

They were sounds that I was creating. I didn't know how I was creating them, but I was. And, unlike that first fascinating sound, these sounds would never leave me. It was nice, reassuring.

And, slowly, I was able to pick out even more sounds. There was a fast click-clack, a sound similar to the second sound I was making, and a distant, muffled chorus of bruwahs and mee-mee-mee-mee's. They weren't as special as my own sounds, but I found myself growing to love them as well.

I opened my eyes. Admittedly, I hadn't wanted to open my eyes at first. I had been afraid that, if I opened my eyes, then the sounds that I had come to cherish would dissipate. And if those sounds—my sounds—faded then I didn't know what I would do. Only, despite my fear, I was also curious as to see what made those sounds. I was curious to see me.

It was beautiful. There were so many shapes and colors that it was almost overwhelming. I looked down at myself and found myself staring at thin, extremely pale yellow skin covering my stomach surrounded by a brighter yellow skin. And my second sound… it accompanied the steady rise and fall of my chest. My first sound… I touched the center of my chest and I could feel it.

"Hello, Experiment 005."

I whipped my head around at the sound of the soft voice and found myself looking at another thing. The figure was tall and thin with long, curly black fur on her head, round-rimmed glasses, and a wide mouth stretched into a small smile. She wore things over her skin—a "t-shirt" and "jeans"—which confused me.

And, while I didn't know who this figure was, I found her familiar. I wracked my brain for a clue as to why the figure would be so familiar, but I couldn't seem to find it. It bugged me because it felt like I should know who she was. I looked up at her face and something seemed to click into place.

"Porma?" I asked.

"Yes." The figure—Porma—said. "We'll have to be quiet since your siblings are sleeping right now, but they'll be so excited when they wake up and discover you."

I didn't really understand what Porma meant by "siblings", but I didn't say anything about it. Porma would tell me what "siblings" were later. Right now, though, I just had to listen to what Porma said and be quiet. "Oketaka, Porma."

Porma smiled at me and I found that I liked it when she smiled at me. It made the place my first sound came from feel warm and nice. I watched her fumble with something before a new whoosh-ing sound came into existence as she opened the hatch to my pod. She then reached in, grabbed my hand, and helped me climb out of the pod.

It was then that I discovered the source of the bruwahs and mee-mee-mee-mee's—four small figures that were entangled in four different blankets. Were they the "siblings" that Porma had told me about? I looked up at Porma and used an antenna to point at them before I pointed it back at myself.

"Yes. They may not look like you, but those are your siblings." Porma said before she pointed at them herself. "They're Doubledip, Shortstuff, Ace, and Doc."

Those sounded like nice names. It was at that moment where I wondered what my name was. Porma had called me something, hadn't she? "Ex-per-i-ment f-five?"

"I'm sorry, but I haven't been able to think of a name for you yet." Porma said uncomfortably.

So 'Experiment Five' wasn't my name? Then why had Porma called me that? And if I wasn't 'Experiment Five', then who was? It was so confusing…

"What should I name you?" Porma murmured to herself. "What would Experiment 005 like? Tie, Bond, Shackle, Contain, Link…"

I liked the last one. "L-Link." I said, testing it. I liked how I said it. "Link! L-Link!"

"Alright… Link."

XxX=-=XxX

{Experiment 006}

The first thing that I became aware of were the voices. I didn't know what they were or what they were talking about exactly, but from what I was able to overhear, they seemed excited about something.

Admittedly, I was curious about exactly what had excited those voices. What could it be? I almost wanted to do something to make them aware of me so I could ask them, but I also didn't want to. What if something bad happened because I did something wrong? I didn't want to cause any trouble…

Slowly, I peeked open my eyes. I had just wanted a brief glimpse at the voices—a chance to see what created them and why the voices were so excited. But, once I opened my eyes, I found that I couldn't look away. Sight, I then learned, was a wonderful thing.

Once I was able to calm myself down—reminding myself that I couldn't do anything to upset the voices—I turned my head slightly and got my first glimpse at the owners of the voices. Five small two or four-legged creatures of varying appearances surrounding a tall figure with long, black hair near a rounded, thin little machine.

"Ex-per-i-ment 006 aw-wake?" The small, orange, four-legged creature asked. It turned its head in my direction before looking back at the tall figure again, troubled. "Ex-per-i-ment 006 wake Porma? W-Why not w-wake?"

"Experiment 006 should be awake by now…" The tall, dark-haired figure muttered before typing something on her machine. "There's nothing to suggest anything is wrong with Experiment 006… He should be awake." She glanced towards him again, "So, why… Why isn't he awake yet?"

"M-Maybe not enough s-sleep?"

"I don't think so, Ace. Each of you 'sleeps' around the same amount of time after you exit the incubator before you wake up." The tall figure said. "Experiment 006 should have woken up by now, but…"

'Experiment 006'? Who was 'Experiment 006'? And why did those creatures and that figure keep looking in my direction? Could it be…? Maybe I was Experiment 006. And, if I was Experiment 006, then the reason that they were sounding so worried was because I hadn't done anything to let them know I was awake.

So I did the only thing I could do; I yawned.

"What the—?" The tall figure began only to be interrupted by the small orange creature.

"Ex-per-i-ment 006 is a-awake now, Porma!" The four-legged being exclaimed, beaming. "Ex-per-i-ment 006 was j-just sleepy!"

"No, d-drowsy."

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[PREV] – Running: 4x (Interlude: 005 & 006) - [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#43

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.3 – [NEXT]

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The next meeting with New Wave was postponed until the following Saturday. The meeting had originally been scheduled for Tuesday afternoon, but New Wave canceled in light of the Empire Eighty-Eight's recent actions.

From what I had been able to gather from the news and the forums on PHO, the Empire had struck out at the Azn Bad Boys in an attempt to seize portions of the Asian gang's territory. The following days saw to a reemergence of the old, bloody war between the two gangs. New Wave had assisted the local Protectorate team in trying to minimize property damage and civilian casualties, but hadn't been able to do much.

I also learned about the apparent battle between Lady Photon and Manpower against Hookwolf and Rune on PHO. I was happy to learn that there had been no serious injuries though disappointed to discover that Hookwolf and Rune had managed to escape.

Amy and Victoria were at school on Wednesday, but distant. There wasn't much that I could do or say to them as Taylor Hebert, so I gave them their space.

It had been difficult to keep my experiments out of it. New Wave had asked me to create Link and Drowsy to help them out with their duties, but I hadn't wanted to send them out just yet. I was just grateful that New Wave seemed to agree with me although I knew that, some day, they would ask for Link and Drowsy's help.

As it was, I only managed to help my experiments safe and the house from exploding by working with Ace and Drowsy.

I had asked Ace and Drowsy to watch over their siblings and keep them calm while I was at school. I suspected that Ace did the majority of the work though Ace always told me that Drowsy pulled his own weight. When I got home, I relieved Ace and Drowsy of their duties and then distracted my experiments with various board games, arts and crafts, and a few one-on-one cooking lessons.

Brockton Bay was extremely lucky that Lung hadn't gotten involved with the ongoing battle between the Empire and the Azn Bad Boys. If Lung involved himself, things would get really ugly really fast. After all, nobody could really stop Lung; if he went on a rampage…

Luckily, though, things had seemed to have cooled down by Saturday. There were still the occasional reports of battles between the Empire and the Azn Bad Boys, but nothing as bad as the fights that had broken out on the first night.

'I should ask New Wave if they can get me profiles on known members of the Empire and the Azn Bad Boys.' I thought as I got ready to leave. 'If they can do that, I'd learn a lot. Maybe I could even train Link and Drowsy on what to do if they encountered specific people within those gangs…'

"Porma?"

Hearing that voice, I turned around and found Ace looking up at me with a hopeful expression. "I'm sorry, Ace." I said, already knowing what he wanted to ask. "You can't come this time." His face and ears fell which made me feel a little guilty. "I'm sorry, Ace. I just need you to stay here and make sure your siblings stay safe."

"L-Link and Drowsy go." Ace argued in a petulant tone, crossing his arms.

"Link and Drowsy are only going because New Wave wants them to come. And since I'm leaving the house, I need somebody really strong to make sure that Doubledip and Shortstuff don't get into any trouble."

"Doc defend." Ace said before he pointed at himself. "Meega go, protect Porma and Porma's Dad."

I opened my mouth to say something, but found that I couldn't exactly argue with him. After seeing just what Doc was capable of, I had to admit that he would be able to defend the house if something happened. I was just so used to leaving Ace at home to watch over his siblings and make sure everyone would be safe. But if Doc could defend the house…

"Alright, Ace." I said. "You can come. But only if Doc doesn't mind."

Ace beamed.

XxX=-=XxX

Ms. Johnson, the receptionist, informed us that New Wave was ready for us the moment that we entered the lobby. I found myself grateful for that. I didn't mind waiting, but I found the constant stares and looks we received to be a little uncomfortable. So, up the elevator we went before we walked the remaining distance to an increasingly familiar boardroom.

"I'm glad that you two were able to make it." Lady Photon greeted us as we took our seats. Then, after Dad and I responded in kind, the superheroine glanced behind me and towards my small entourage. "I take it those are the two experiments that Flashbang asked about?"

"Yes." I said, nodding. "Their names are Link—" Link waved. "—and Drowsy." Drowsy yawned. "Of course, you have already met Ace."

Lady Photon smiled. "Indeed."

"I hate to interrupt, but I think that we should cut to the case." Brandish said before steepling her fingers. "In light of recent circumstances, New Wave would like to request the aid of your experiments."

I faced my experiments and waited for their response. Ace nodded eagerly, Link grinned, and Drowsy nodded tiredly. So, they were all aboard.

"Alright. They've all agreed to help." I said as I turned back towards Brandish. "What do we do now?"

"Now, we talk to the PRT." Brandish said.

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[PREV] – Running: 4.3 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Meega - Me

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#44

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.4 – [NEXT]

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I could have sworn that I had misheard what Brandish had said. She wanted to talk to the PRT? But, why? Why would we need to talk to the PRT?

"Unfortunately, the PRT has become wary of a Bio-Tinker's creations since the NIlbog Incident. If we don't talk to them before your experiments begin to assist New Wave, then the PRT would assume the worse. By talking to the PRT now, we can alleviate any concerns the PRT might have about your experiments and make them understand that they are nothing like Nilbog's creations."

I bit my lip. It made sense hearing Brandish explain it, but I was still nervous. 'What if the PRT knows that Doubledip attacked Emma?' I asked myself. 'He didn't hurt her and he only did it because she was hurting me, but I—I don't know…'

"I would also like to recommend Lady Photon or myself accompanying your friend to the PRT." Brandish said after turning to look at Dad. "I don't think you would want them to learn of the true nature of your relationship which would undoubtedly happen if you accompanied her. Also, if either Lady Photon accompany your friend, we would make sure that the PRT don't go too far."

Dad looked at me. Slowly, I nodded.

I didn't want to talk to the PRT, but I would do it if I had to. If only to make sure that Dad's own concerns were relieved and that my experiments would be okay.

"I think that will be fine." Dad said. "We really appreciate what you all of you guys are doing for us."

XxX=-=XxX

The building that housed the local PRT didn't really stand out. The exterior of the building was all windows with only the shield logo bearing the letters 'P.R.T' setting it apart from the other buildings in downtown Brockton Bay.

The inside of the building was a little bit better. It had posters placed around the room depicting the current members of the Brockton Bay Protectorate and Wards teams. Also, there was a gift shop sporting a selection of action figures, posters, video games and clothing also based on the local heroes.

What was most surprising about the PRT Building, however, was the fact that the people inside of it didn't seem to pay Lady Photon or I that much attention. I noticed a few people staring, saw a few kids pointing at my experiments before calling them cute, but nothing that made me uncomfortable.

I wondered about it for a moment and then felt like slapping myself about the head. Of course the people here were used to seeing superheroes here—the Brockton Bay Wards' Headquarters was in the building.

It was a short five minutes after we had arrived when a PRT officer entered the lobby and made a beeline towards us. I followed Lady Photon's example and stood up just as the PRT officer came to a stop before us. He asked us to accompany him and we followed, going up the elevator to the second floor. The PRT officer left us in a small waiting room, told us that someone would meet us soon, and then left.

After the PRT officer left, I let Drowsy climb up into my lap where he then curled up with a yawn. I smiled at my sleepy experiment before turning to see Ace and Link in the middle of a game of rock-paper-scissors. I watched them for a few minutes, wondering where they had learned some of the games they were playing. The Internet, maybe?

Lady Photon gave my shoulder a gentle squeeze. "I know that you must be feeling a little nervous right now, but you'll be fine. You will have to answer a few questions and sign some paperwork though it isn't anything mayor. You'll be fine."

"Y-Yeah."

It was at point the door to the room opened. The man that stepped in was of average height with short brown hair, brown eyes, and a well tailored suit. He placed a briefcase down on the table before taking a seat.

"Good afternoon, Lady Photon." The brown-haired man said. "I have heard that you have come in today to help this young parahuman out."

Lady Photon nodded. "Yes, I did. You see, my friend is a Bio-Tinker who has decided to go independent. We were hoping to talk to you about the nature of her experiments and any concerns that the PRT may have regarding them."

"I can see why you would want to do that." The man said before he turned towards me. "Now, where are my manners? Please forgive me for not introducing myself earlier. I am the PRT East-North-East's Deputy Director, James Renick."

"Hello, Mr. Renick. I'm—" Belatedly, I realized that I still hadn't come up with a name to call myself yet. I had to give him something, anything. I racked my brain for a moment before saying the first thing that came to mind. "—Jookiba. Dr. Jookiba."

I was worried that the Deputy Director would say something, but he didn't. Instead, the Deputy Director smiled at me. "It's nice to meet you, Dr. Jookiba." He said before glancing towards Drowsy. "I take it that your Tinker specialty is the creation of artificial life forms?

"Yes."

"Alright. Now, if it is okay with you, I would like to ask you a few questions regarding the nature of your power and about the life forms you have created." Deputy Director Renick said.

I glanced at Lady Photon only to turn back towards Deputy Director Renick when she nodded. "I can do that. What do you want to know about them?

Deputy Director Renick smiled and opened his briefcase.

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[PREV] – Running: 4.4 – [NEXT]

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#45

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.5 – [NEXT]

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I spent the next half an hour answering Deputy Director Renick's questions. In all actuality, it wasn't as bad as I had thought it would be. I had thought that Deputy Director Renick would know about what happened between Emma and Doubledip, but if he knew he didn't feel the need to mention it.

It was after I had finished answering Deputy Director Renick's questions about Drowsy that he seemed to have exhausted his list of questions. He wrote down a few more notes on his notepad before clicking his pen closed.

"Thank you for putting up with my curiosity, Dr. Jookiba." Deputy Director Renick said.

"It's fine."

"There are a few more things that I would like to go over however." Deputy Director Renick said before he pulled out a short stack of paperwork from his briefcase. "I would like to see if you are amendable to following these guidelines."

I glanced at Lady Photon, but she just gestured back at the papers. I stared at her for a couple more moments before I took Deputy Director Renick's paperwork and began to read.

The list of guidelines that Deputy Director Renick wanted me to follow weren't too restrictive. All that they wanted me to do was to inform the PRT whenever I created a new experiment and tell them about its function, get PRT approval before I made anything that could breed, make nothing capable of creating a new disease and/or plague, and get independent oversight before I did any operations on human beings.

So, all in all, not as bad as I might have suspected it would be.

"I think I can agree to follow these guidelines." I said before I took Deputy Director Renick's offered pen and then signed the documents. I then handed him back his pen before passing him the small stack of paperwork.

"Excellent." Deputy Director Renick said, smiling. He placed the paperwork in his briefcase before turning his attention back to me. "The last thing that I would like to request of you is that you come in one day so that the PRT can get an accurate reading on your experiments' capabilities."

"I'm sorry Mr. Renick, but I don't feel comfortable with that." I said.

"That's perfectly fine, Dr. Jookiba. It was only a suggestion." Deputy Director Renick said as he shut his briefcase before standing up. "Would you mind if I escorted you two out of the building. Just to make sure that you don't get lost, of course."

Lady Photon nodded. "That would be kind of you, Deputy Director."

Deputy Director Renick simply smiled before leading us out. I had been a little afraid that he would've tried asking me a few more questions about what I hadn't told him, but he didn't. He supplied us with a few pieces of trivia that the tour guides wouldn't be aware of and even signed a scrap of paper for Ace.

XxX=-=XxX

I was a little surprised to find Dad and Brandish still inside the boardroom when Lady Photon and I got back. I had thought that one of Mrs. Dallon's employers would have asked her to leave and/or relocate to another room, but it seemed that they hadn't.

'Did Brandish say something to them…?' I wondered. It was possible. But, if she had said something to her bosses, then what had she said to them? And when had Flashbang arrived?

"I assume that everything went well?" Brandish asked after Lady Photon and I took sat down.

"Yes. Deputy Director Renick questioned Dr. Jookiba about her powers and her experiments before he handed her a document depicting the guidelines that the PRT wanted her to adhere to." Lady Photon said before she passed the documents in question over to her sister. "What do you think?"

"… I'm a little concerned about this clause stating that she would agree to inform the PRT about any new experiment, but it does seem reasonable." Brandish said after a moment. Then, after giving it another read-through, she said: "I think you got a reasonable deal, Dr. Jookiba."

"What do we do now?" I asked.

"I think that we should discuss Link and Drowsy's patrol schedules." Flashbang said. "We'll also need to talk about how we can arrange to transport your experiments back to you without people getting suspicious."

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#46

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.6 – [NEXT]

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I was glad when the meeting finally ended. I wanted to be there, but there was only so much information I could take in at one time. I was still trying to process everything that New Wave had told me.

Even so, I couldn't complain. New Wave was thorough in their explanation and were amenable to my suggestions. The only thing I wasn't happy about was the fact some of the patrols that my experiments would be in took place past their bedtime.

'How am I going to convince the others to go to bed?'

New Wave agreed to pick up and drop off my experiments near the Dockworker's Association. It was a little risky though I doubted that Dad's coworkers would notice a few stray animals. Even if they did, it wasn't like they would think anything of them.

I don't remember how we ended up talking about my future plans. I found myself telling them about Shortstuff and how I wanted him to eventually fix the ferry. I let Dad take over then and simply listened as he gave them a brief run-down of his plan for the ferry and how it could help Brockton Bay.

New Wave then volunteered to patrol the area near the ferry once people began to work on refurbishing it. It surprised Dad and I couldn't really blame him. After being turned down so many times, he'd probably thought that New Wave would turn him down as well. That they hadn't and that they had actually agreed with him must've been quite the shock.

That, however, required Shortstuff be able to fix the ferry. I knew Shortstuff could do it, but not yet. He needed time to hone his skill before he could tackle as large and complicated as the ferry.

I, in turn, was surprised when New Wave asked if I had any plans for the Ship Graveyard. It hadn't really occurred to me that my experiments could do something about that area. I told them I hadn't though, instead of looking disappointed, they only nodded.

New Wave then hashed out the beginnings of a plan with us. If Dad could get the Dockworker's Association onboard, they would help out by using their powers to begin cleaning up the Ship Graveyard when they had the time. They requested I create an experiment to help them, but 'only if I wanted to'.

It was a little surreal. And for the first time, I could almost imagine what it would be like if we managed to actually do these things.

It was a nice thought.

XxX=-=XxX

We arrived home to find my experiments watching The Parent Trap. It was cute to see how engrossed they seemed to be with the movie although it made me suspicious.

'I hope that they're not thinking of setting me up with someone…' Best to distract them now and hope they forget they ever watched the movie. "Who wants pizza and coconut cake?"

"Porma!"

I found myself surrounded by a trio of experiments looking for hugs and asking how my day went. Doubledip climbed up my leg and I stumbled, accidentally flinging our coconut cake forward. I heard Doubledip and Doc gasp before Shortstuff rushed forward.

With a jump, Shortstuff caught the coconut cake box with his claws before it could hit the ground. "C-cocon-nut c-cake!" He declared, holding the box above his head like a trophy. "Coc-con-nut cake!"

I clapped. "Thank you, Shortstuff. You saved the day. I'll take just take that back now."

"Naga. Meega soka, Porma." Before I could demand he give me back the cake he turned and scurried up the stairs, holding the cake above his head and cackling like a cheesy cartoon villain. "Morcheeka cake!"

Uh, oh. This could be bad—

"Naga!" Doc said, "Mockeecha cake!"

"Mockeecha!"

I couldn't stop them. Doubledip jumped off of my leg and onto Doc's head just as my single-celled experiment used his unique biology to slingshot himself up the stairs. I heard various crashing sounds as Doubledip and Doc pursued Shortstuff.

Going up after them, I saw Shortstuff run around the corner with the cake. Doc was laid out on the ground, rubbing his head as Doubledip scrambled after the cake-stealer. And—was that my hairdryer Shortstuff had been holding?

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Translations - Tantalog to English

Meega - Me

Mockeecha - My or Mine

Naga - No

Porma - Mother or Mom

Soka - Sorry

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#47

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.7 – [NEXT]

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I found them in the bathroom. Shortstuff was standing protectively over the coconut cake while using a luffa to fend off Doubledip. I wondered where Doc was before catching sight of his membrane going down the sink.

'… He's going through the pipes.' I realized. It seemed a little extreme, but maybe I was underestimating how much my experiments loved coconut cake.

Shortstuff threw the luffa at Doubledip before grabbing a bottle of shampoo with a spare claw. Doubledip froze when he saw the tip pointed at him and I tried not to smile. It seemed that Shortstuff had found out that Doubledip didn't like baths.

"Mockeecha cake!" Shortstuff proclaimed.

Doubledip grumbled, but backed away. I was about to step in when I saw a thin tentacle emerge from the bathtub's facet. It whipped around at lightning speed, knocking the shampoo bottle out of Shortstuff's claw before he could react. Doc fully emerged with a cry of 'Goobaja!' as Shortstuff scrambled for something he could use.

As Doc knocked Shortstuff further into the bathtub, Doubledip seized his chance and rushed forward. He grabbed the cake and turned to run. I felt a little bad for taking the coconut cake from him though, really, I had let this go on long enough.

"Thank you, Doubledip." I said. Turning, I watched Shortstuff squirt Shampoo into Doc's eyes before whacking him over the head with the bottle. I coughed and they froze. Slowly, they turned towards me. "I think that's quite enough, guys."

"Ih, Porma."

"If any of you want any coconut cake, you better clean up the mess you made." I continued, "You better hurry too as your other siblings are hungry; if you're not quick enough, the coconut cake could be gone before you come downstairs."

Of course, I wouldn't allow that to happen. Even if the others did get into the coconut cake before they were done cleaning up, I would save them a piece or two.

XxX=-=XxX

I wanted to just relax and be with my experiments, but it wasn't to be. Drowsy and Link's first patrol with New Wave would start the next day. And suddenly I couldn't find it in myself to relax. There was simply so much to do.

I had to make sure that they understood what they would be doing, they remembered where they were supposed to wait, and that they memorized the profiles New Wave had given us. I was half-tempted to send Doc with them so that he could heal them, but eventually decided against it.

It was maddening. Now that everything was happening, I was having second thoughts. What if something went wrong or if they got hurt? New Wave had said that they didn't expect to encounter anyone, but that didn't help.

Dad sat me down. "I know that you're worried about them, but you're making yourself sick." He said. "You need to try and calm down."

"I can't." I shook my head. "I just—I just keep thinking 'what if'. What if they go out tomorrow and get hurt or if they get separated or get lost or—or worse." I didn't even want to think of that. "I—I just… I couldn't live with myself if something happened to them."

"… You really care about them that much?" Dad asked.

What kind of question was that? "Of course I do! How could you even ask me something like that?! You've been here—you know how much I care for them!" I was reminded of a previous meeting with New Wave. I had dismissed it when Dad had said 'own', but… "Is that what you think of them? As animals?"

"No, I—"

I wasn't having any of it. Before he could stop me, I stormed off. I ignored his calls to come back and instead went to my room where my experiments were helping Link and Drowsy prepare for their patrol. I stood there for a moment before the tears came.

"Porma?"

"Porma s-sad?"

"Porma!"

Within moments, I was surrounded by my experiments. They tried asking me what was wrong and why I was sad, but I just shook my head. I couldn't tell them. I could never tell them.

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[PREV] – Running: 4.7 – [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih- Yes

Mockeecha- My or Mine

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.8 – [NEXT]

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I hadn't said anything to my experiments. I knew that they wanted to know what had made me upset so that they could try to help me, but I hadn't wanted to say anything. It would have crushed them to learn that their 'Porma's Dad' could think of them as animals.

I could understand why people who hadn't met them would compare them to animals. Unfortunately, my experiments tended to bear resemblance to certain animals. Still, anyone who had met and had spent time with them should have realized that they weren't animals. They couldn't be more human if they had tried.

That was probably why it had hurt so much when I had realized Dad might think that way. He was the only other person to have spent as much time with my experiments as I did. After all of that time he had spent with them, how could he still think of them as animals?

I knew that I would have to talk to him. I was lucky that he had decided to leave me alone after our 'talk' instead of coming after me. He'd probably thought that we could talk in the morning. Only, I planned to leave before he got up.

It had actually been pretty easy. I woke up early and got ready. I debated over whether or not I should wear my costume before deciding to just wear the mask. It wasn't much, but it would protect my identity if anyone saw past my hoodie while I was out.

Once I felt ready, I woke up Drowsy and Link. I got them a quick bite to eat and then—then we were off.

XxX=-=XxX

It was a little surreal. I had never just gone out with my experiments. I had taken them places before, but they had to hide most of the time. They might have seen a few streets and a building or two, but nothing else.

'I have to figure out a way to show them more.' I thought as Link whipped his head about, trying to see everything at once. Drowsy yawned, but I could tell that he was interested. 'But how…?'

My power supplied me with a few possible solutions. A tan rabbit-like experiment that could become invisible. A green gecko-like experiment that could muffle sounds. A red blob-like experiment that could change the appearance of anyone he touched. A—

All of those were good ideas though I wouldn't be able to create any of them. I simply didn't have the materials or the machines I would need to create them. And it wasn't like I could simply buy the materials either as they weren't available here.

A chocolate-colored lizard-like experiment that could turn things into chocolate. A tall, green experiment designed to bring future technology into the present. A red koala-like experiment that built technology that didn't work. A blue koala-like experiment designed to make broken technology work. A—

I felt myself bump into someone before I tripped. I managed to regain my balance before I could actually fall, but it was close. Link and Drowsy were instantly by my side, asking if I was okay. I reassured them as best I could before turning around to see who I had bumped into.

It was a blonde-haired girl with a squarish, blunt-featured face and blue eyes. She was wearing a hoodie with a picture of a dog on it, a plaid skirt, and black boots.

I would've sworn that I had seen her before—maybe a profile pic on the PHO forums?—but I couldn't be sure. "I'm sorry," I said. "I should've paid more attention to where I was going."

"Hmph." The girl said. She hadn't turned away from checking on her own animal which I was surprised to find was missing an eye. Finally, she nodded to herself and turned only to see that I was till there. "You haven't left yet?"

"I just wanted to apologize—" I tried, but she was already walking away. 'She must be in a hurry or something.'

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#49

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Running: 4.9 – [NEXT]

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I was a little annoyed. I knew that girl must've been in a hurry, but did she have to blow me off like that? I had just been trying to apologize for bumping into her—something she hadn't even bothered to do.

It wasn't worth starting anything over though. Like her, I had somewhere to be. I spared her retreating form one last glance before telling Link and Drowsy that we needed to get going again. They still looked concerned, but didn't say anything.

I distracted myself by thinking about the experiments my power had recommended. It hadn't occurred to me that I could make an experiment that could help me get the materials I needed. Granted, the majority of the experiments had given me were resource-intensive, but there were a couple that weren't.

'I could probably modify that experiments' design—changing it from turning everything into chocolate to choosing what it turned things into.' It would take a lot of work, but it was possible.

"Porma okay?" Link asked.

"I'm fine." I said. "I was just thinking about an experiment I could create to help me get some of the materials I need."

"Tell?"

"You guys really want to know?" I asked, surprised. I was even more surprised when he and Drowsy nodded, motioning for me to go on. "Well, alright. I was thinking that I could modify an experiment from the first series so that she could turn one object into another. It would help me a lot in getting some materials I don't have."

I spent the rest of the time it took us get to the Dockworkers' Association talking about what I wanted to do. I would've thought that they would've been able to keep up with me, but they did. Link and Drowsy then went on to surprise me even further by pointing out a couple of things I had missed.

It was nice.

XxX=-=XxX

Photon Mom and Manpower arrived at the Dockworkers' Association at 7:30 sharp. If they were surprised to see me instead of Dad, they didn't say anything about it.

"You remember when to come back?" Manpower asked and I nodded. "Good. Well, we best be off."

"Bye Porma!"

I did my best to smile. "I'll see you two later. Just—just try not to get in any trouble, alright?"

It was all that I could say, as weak as it was. I didn't want to sound weak in front of New Wave. And, really, they had more important things to do than talking to me.

"Ih."

"Ih, Porma."

I then watched as they took off to start their patrol. I watched them until they became distant specs and stared in their direction when I couldn't see them anymore.

Finally, I sighed. There was nothing else that I could do. I knew that I would continue to worry about them, but I had to believe, as hard as it was, that they would be okay.

I was about to leave when I heard someone scream. Whirling around, I caught a glimpse of some woman being pulled into an alley across the street.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#50

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I hesitated. I knew that I should do something, but I wasn't that strong or fast. I didn't even have a power that would give me an advantage if things escalated. I heard the woman start screaming again only, this time, I didn't hesitate in running towards it.

It wasn't a pretty. There were two guys holding the woman I'd seen against the wall. She was struggling, but it only seemed to amuse them. Then the one who wasn't holding the woman saw me.

"Get lost, kid." He said.

I knew that I wasn't in the best of shape or strong or fast or smart. I knew that I didn't have any combat-related ability. I knew that I would most likely lose if I tried to help that woman. But I also knew that I couldn't let these men do what they were planning.

So, I picked up a trashcan lid. It wouldn't help me much if they had guns, but it would provide me some protection. I then rushed forward as the guy opened his mouth. He stepped back to avoid my lunge before reaching down for his belt.

'He has a gun.' I thought.

I didn't really think about it. All that I knew was that I couldn't let him get to his weapon. He was out of my reach though, so I wouldn't be able to hit him before he grabbed his weapon and shot me.

Without really thinking about it, I twisted my weapon and hurled it at his legs. And it actually worked. I might not be strong, but the trashcan lid was metal and getting hit with metal hurt. Well, it did unless you were a 'Brute' or something.

"You bitch!"

I ran forward to grab at his arm, preventing him from grabbing his weapon. He scowled before he brought his fist around and I saw stars. He hit me again and I fell back, hitting something hard before I fell.

I thought I heard one of the guys curse, but I couldn't be sure. I did hear someone running away.

XxX=-=XxX

I woke up to a slow, rhythmic beeping. It was so annoying. I tried to ignore it, but it was persistent and much more patient than I was. If this was some sort of prank by my experiments, they were going to be so grounded.

"Taylor? Are you awake?"

It was Dad. He sounded concerned about something, but there wasn't anything wrong. Was there? Maybe he was just annoyed at that beeping too. What was that anyway?

'Only one way to find out.' I thought and opened my eyes. I saw him leaning over the side of the bed I was in and—was that a heart monitor? '… I'm in the hospital.'

"You are awake." Dad breathed.

What happened? I couldn't remember much beyond getting hit by that guy. I had the vague impression of people shouting and a crack, but nothing else. I tried to ask him, but I couldn't get the words out.

Dad handed me a glass of water. I took a small drink and it helped. "What—what happened?"

"You don't remember?" Dad asked. I shook my head and he looked conflicted. Whatever had happened must've been bad. "… Do you remember what you were doing before you fell asleep?"

I nodded. "I was trying to help someone."

"You did." Dad swallowed. "I got there to see one of the men pull out his gun. He—He shot you, kiddo."

Oh. Well, that certainly explained the crack I'd heard.

"Doc saved your life. If he hadn't been there…" Dad shook his head. How had I not noticed how red his eyes were before? "I couldn't take it if something happened to you. Promise me you won't do something like that again."

"I promise."

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#51

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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Dr. Qwemp hadn't wanted to release me. It had actually taken a while to convince him to let me go as there wasn't actually anything wrong with me. He had been a little curious as to how my injuries had healed so quickly since the last time he had checked in on me. He had ultimately assumed that Panacea had checked in on me and I didn't correct him.

I just didn't want to spend time explaining things to him. All I wanted to do was go home, make sure that my experiments were doing alright, and try to forget the fact that I'd been shot.

I couldn't remember being shot—couldn't even see where I had been shot—but I believed Dad. There was no way to fake the emotion I'd heard in his voice or the way he had looked at me.

The fact of it was that I could've died back there. I would have died if Dad hadn't decided to try and catch me by the Dockworkers' Association so that we could talk. And if Doc hadn't been with him, I could've bled out before help arrived.

It scared me. I had been so worried that something might happen to my experiments that I hadn't even considered something happening to me. I hadn't even thought about what putting myself in danger like that could lead too.

I may have superpowers, but I wasn't a hero. Not yet.

"… You know, I don't think of your experiments as animals."

I looked away from the window to see Dad looking at me. I was a little confused as to why he'd bring this up in the car before it clicked. I had only left early with Link and Drowsy because I had been angry and hurt at what he might've thought about my experiments.

"Really?"

He nodded. "Yes. You didn't give me time to explain myself before you stormed off. I said what I did because I didn't know you cared so much about them. I mean, it's obvious that you care for them, but I didn't know how much."

"I don't think I could love them anymore if I tried." I found myself saying. "I know it may seem strange or a little crazy, but they're more than just experiments." I looked away. "They were created from my blood, my DNA. They may look different, but…"

"They're your kids."

I nodded. "I was worrying so much because I was concerned that something might happen to them. That they would get hurt or lost or something worse." I closed my eyes. "I just didn't expect for something to happen to me."

Dad squeezed my hand. "It wasn't your fault, kiddo. You saw someone in trouble and did your best to save her. The only ones to blame for that situation are the men that started it." His voice softened. "As for everything else? I won't say that I really get it, but I understand where you're coming from. And I have to say… I think you're a great mom."

XxX=-=XxX

I was practically swarmed by my experiments when Dad and I finally got home. I tried to tell them that I was fine, but they weren't having anything of it.

"Porma g-got hurt!"

"Rest, Porma!"

Eventually, they brought out their trump card; Drowsy. One moment, I was trying to explain to them that they didn't have to worry about me and that I was fine. The next, Drowsy yawned and I started feeling sleepy. I was asleep before my head hit the pillows.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

#52

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I woke up to someone squirting water in my face. Spluttering, I moved my arms up to defend myself against the spray moments before it stopped. What the hell was that about? Taking off my glasses, I dried my face with a towel someone handed me before using it to wipe off my glasses.

After I put my glasses back on, I found myself staring. Dad was sitting in the middle of the couch, surrounded by my experiments. It took me back because they usually didn't look that serious.

'What could they have wanted with my laptop?' I wondered after seeing it on the coffee table. Nobody said anything for a few moments. "… What's going on? And why did someone spray water in my face?"

Then, I remembered. Drowsy was capable of putting anyone within range of him asleep with a certain sound. In order to awaken those people, however, the victim of his ability would need to get wet. More specifically, they would need to be squirted in the face.

'That's right. Drowsy put me to sleep earlier so I'd 'rest'.' I thought with a frown. I would need to have words with him later; he shouldn't be using his ability unless he absolutely had to.

"While you were asleep, I talked with your experiments." Dad began. "They were concerned about you and what happened to you. Moreover, they were concerned that you were alone when this happened."

I looked around and didn't see anything in my experiments' faces that would disagree with what Dad was saying. Still, it had to be more than that. But, what?

"Your experiments want you to create another experiment; one to protect you." Dad said and I blinked. I opened my mouth to say something, but he held up his hand. "I talked with them about this and found that I agreed with the points that they raised. You do need someone to protect you."

"… What?"

"So far, you have created experiments to help other people. You made Shortstuff and Ace so that they could help me, you made Doc to help Panacea, and you made Link and Drowsy to help New Wave." Dad said with a small nod towards each of my experiments. "What they want—what I want—is for you to create an experiment to protect you."

I could see where they were coming from, but… "I don't need a bodyguard. I don't really leave the house except to go to school and I doubt that Arcadia would allow me to bring an experiment there." I argued. "And even if they did, it would reveal that I was actually Dr. Jookiba."

"About that…" Dad hesitated. "When I found you yesterday, your mask had come off." I froze. "I don't know if those bastards saw your face, but…"

There was a chance they had seen my face. If they had, they could identity me. They could even be spreading the word about me now, telling their buddies what I looked like and about my mask. It wouldn't take people long after that to connect me to the figure that had gone with Photon Mom to meet the PRT.

No wonder my experiments wanted me to create someone to protect me. I remembered what had happened to Fleur of New Wave and how she had been killed. This—this was a nightmare.

"What do we do?" I asked.

"The first thing that we do is get you creating an experiment that will protect you." Dad said and gestured towards my laptop. "I'll be plenty safe with Ace around to protect me."

"O-Okay. And after that?"

"After that, we contact New Wave." Dad said. "I didn't want you to join them because that would mean revealing your identity and potentially putting yourself in harms way. But if those bastards did see your face, it would be best to talk to them about what protection they could provide you if you joined."

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#53

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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It hadn't taken more than twenty minutes to determine which experiment I would make. I would have been done sooner, but I had trouble deciding between two different experiments. Eventually, I asked Dad and my other experiments about it and they chose for me.

Then, I went down to the basement. I spent the next hour building Experiment 007's template before going on to make sure we had all of the materials I needed to create him. Luckily, we did. I used the tissue extractor to get a sample of my blood and started my machine.

New Wave had once asked me about my machine. What did it do? How did it work? It was actually pretty simple.

The machine used ultraviolet radiation to mutate the genetic base—my blood—and then accelerate the growth of those mutated cells. I had been required to be there when my machine was active because there was a chance that I would need to stop the machine and/or make sure that no unplanned mutations happened.

Of course, that was before New Wave had come in. The two additional machines I had built had been made to refine the process as well as hold a multitude of advanced compounds that my more advanced experiments required. I still had to stay awake and make sure that a rogue mutation didn't ruin all of my hard work, but they didn't happen as often as before.

In the future, I wouldn't even have to consciously monitor my machine. I would build a system capable of locating rogue mutations and either freeze the developing experiment or getting rid of the mutations.

Of course, for some strange reason, my machine would only accept my DNA. I had tried to use Dad's DNA when he had volunteered—not wanting me to keep drawing blood from myself—but it didn't take. My machine had refused to even start up. Cleaning that out had been fun. Not.

The only real problem came from the constant maintenance my machines required. Parts would break, a few wires or panels would need to be replaced, or it would blow a fuse. I could deal with the issues, but it was annoying at the best of times and often made me want to tear my hair out.

It was worth it, though. No matter how frustrating it could be, these machines were what had brought my experiments to life. For that, I would gladly spend the rest of my life repairing every little glitch and/or malfunction, even if I didn't use them anymore.

I glanced towards the screen in the middle of my machine. Already, I could see a small, growing cluster of cells floating within the amniotic fluid. I would probably even get to see what Experiment 007 look like in about half an hour.

If everything went according to plan, I wouldn't have to interfere until the three hour mark. There, I would upload the knowledge of Tantalog. I didn't know how I knew my experiments' language was called that or how I understood them, but I wasn't going to complain.

Hearing a creak, I turned to see Dad at the top of the staircase. He was holding a plate full of what appeared to be cheese sandwiches. "I thought you might get hungry, so I decided to bring you something to eat."

"Thanks, Dad." I said. Curious, I then asked: "What are the others doing?"

"They're coming." Dad assured me, "They just couldn't decide on what snacks and games they wanted to bring down here."

I cracked a smile. "I guess we're having another camping trip then."

"Yeah." Dad agreed. "I might stay around—make sure your experiments aren't giving you too much trouble."

"I would love that."

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#54

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I watched with baited breath as the amniotic fluid was drained from my machine. Slowly, Experiment 007 lowered to the floor inside my machine as the ultraviolet light dried his skin. Once he was completely dry, small panels at the bottom of my machine opened into a conveyer belt to move him into the containment module.

Experiment 007 was beautiful. He was a large, dark blue porcupine-like experiment with white-tipped spines on his tail, back, front legs and head, a red hose, black claws, and a long tail.

It would only be a matter of moments before Experiment 007 woke up. His siblings crowded around me—wanting to see their newest brother—but I told them to move back. There was some grumbling involved though they did as I asked and for that I was grateful.

Experiment 007 slowly opened his eyes. His nose quivered as he took in the smells within the containment module before he sneezed. He looked so surprised at what he had done that I almost started to laugh. It was just so cute.

It seemed that Experiment 007 must have heard me as he then whipped his head in my direction. He looked confused for a moment before his eyes widened in realization. "Porma."

"Hello." I smiled, "Would you like to come out and meet your brothers?"

Experiment 007 nodded and I opened the containment module. I helped him climb out of it and set him down before his eyes widened and he took a couple of steps backward. "P-Porma."

"It's okay. You don't have to be afraid." I reassured only for Experiment 007 to shake his head. "Okay. I'm not going to force you, but… would you mind if they introduced themselves?" He hesitated for a couple of moments before he gave a slow nod. I turned towards his siblings, "Well?"

Shortstuff was the first to step forward. "Meega Shortstuff!" He said with a beam. "W-welcome!"

"Meega Link." Link put his hand over his chest, "Hope we be friends."

"Meega Ace." Ace said before he assumed the classic 'Superman Pose'. "Meega protect Porma's Dad. Protect everyone."

Drowsy yawned. "Meega Drowsy."

"I-I'm Doc!" Doc said with a wave. "I h-heal people!"

"Doubledip."

Experiment 007 looked at them for a couple of moments before turning back towards me with a questioning look on his face. "Meega…?"

"You're name is Spike." I said. It was a little simple, but the name fit. And from how he brightened after I told him his name, he seemed to like it. "Welcome to the family."

Spike beamed. "Meega Spike!"

"S-spike want to p-play?" Shortstuff asked, brandishing my Monopoly game. "Shorts-stuff teach Sp-pike how to play!"

Spike turned towards me, unsure. I gave him what I hoped was a reassuring smile and gently pushed him towards his brothers. "Go on, Spike. Have fun." I said. "I'll be here if anything happens."

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Meega - Me

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#55

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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The first thing that I became aware of the smell. At the time, I didn't know what it was. All that I knew was that it lingered heavily in the air and, when I breathed through my nose, I picked up a pungent sweet smell. I didn't have anything that I could compare it to at the time though, in the future, I would say that it almost smelled like pineapples.

Eventually, I decided that I wanted to see the source of the smell. I hadn't been able to feel anything aside from the smoothness underneath my body and that had a different scent. I had considered that the sweet scent might have been my scent, but it wasn't. I could smell the scent on me though it wasn't my true scent.

The moment that I opened my eyes, I was suddenly awash in a dizzying myriad of colors and shapes. I tensed a little bit and felt my quills stand up, but slowly relaxed when nothing happened. I breathed through my nose again and, unprepared for the first scent's sharp aroma, I sneezed.

It shocked me. I didn't know that scents could do that—catch me off guard and make me sneeze. And, if scents could do that, what else could they do…? I didn't get much of a chance to see what else I could do with them, however, as my ears caught a muffled laughing sound.

Turning to face the noise, I found myself starting at a tall figure with long, curly, dark hair and white skin. She was wearing something strange over her eyes and strange coverings—what I would later learn to be "clothes" over her body and her feet. And while I should have been scared of her, I wasn't.

"Porma." I realized.

"Hello." Porma said and then smiled at me. I found myself liking that smile. "Would you like to come out and meet your brothers?"

What were 'brothers'? I hesitated, wondering if I should ask Porma what they were, before deciding not to. Porma wouldn't let anything hurt me; surely, if she was mentioning them, these "brothers" wouldn't hurt me.

I nodded and Porma smiled again before she opened the door to the smooth object I was inside and helped me climb out. It was there that I spotted a large group of other things and I shrank back. "P-Porma…"

"It's okay. You don't have to be afraid." Porma said.

I knew that I should listen to Porma, trust that those things wouldn't hurt me, but I couldn't. What if they tried to hurt me or Porma?

"Okay. I'm not going to force you, but… would you mind if they introduced themselves?" Porma asked. I didn't want to, but I heard the disappointment in her voice. I was disappointing Porma. Slowly, hesitantly, I nodded and felt a little bit better when Porma smiled again. "Well…?"

The small four-legged and four-armed, blue-eyed creature was the first to step forward. "Meega Shortstuff!" It said, pointing itself, with a wide grin. "W-Welcome!"

The next creature, a yellow two-legged and two-armed being, didn't move. "Meega Link." It said before it put one of its hands on its chest. "Hope we be friends."

'Friends'? What were 'friends'?

"Meega Ace." A red two-legged and two-armed creature with a blue nose said. It puffed out its chest a little bit before putting its hands just above its legs. It actually looked a little funny. "Meega protect Porma's Dad. Protect everyone."

The next to speak up was a whitish-gray creature with two legs and two arms. "Meega Drowsy."

"I-I'm Doc!" A strange pale-green creature said, waving. "I h-heal people!"

The last to speak up was a dark-blue creature with two legs, two arms, and a red nose. "Doubledip." It said simply before it licked a patch of its fur.

I looked towards them all for a moment. They hadn't actually said anything about me. All that they had done was introduce myself. So, maybe they weren't going to attack me or Porma?

Maybe I should try to introduce myself to them? It was the least I could do… "Meega…" It was then that I remembered that, unlike them, I didn't seem to have a name.

"Your name is Spike." Porma said before giving me another smile. "Welcome to the family."

"Meega Spike!" I announced.

"S-spike want to p-play?" Shortstuff asked before he showed off a strange, rectangular box. "Shorts-stuff teach Sp-pike how to play!"

I looked turned towards Porma then, unsure if I should go with Shortstuff. What if Porma needed me? Only, she gave me a warm smile before leaning down and gently pushed me towards the others.

"Go on, Spike." Porma said. "Have fun. I'll be right here if anything happens."

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Meega - Me

Porma - Mom or Mother

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#56

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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It was shortly after I had gotten into the car that I started feeling a little anxious. I knew that my options were limited, but I was unsure if this was the best course of action. Those two thugs might have seen my face, but if they hadn't then I would be revealing my identity for no reason.

I remembered what happened to Fleur. She had been killed in her civilian identity during a home invasion by a member of the Empire Eighty-Eight. Her death had led hr boyfriend, Lightstar, to leave New Wave as well as stalled the New Wave movement.

If I joined New Wave, I would be putting myself in the same danger. Not only that, I would also be putting my Dad and my experiments' lives in danger. I had the utmost faith in my experiments' abilities though I couldn't be sure that, one day, someone would manage to work around them to get at us.

Still, my options were limited. I couldn't join the local Wards team because I didn't trust the Protectorate. I could continue on as an 'independent hero', but that wouldn't offer Dad any protection if those guys knew who I was.

New Wave was my best option. I would have to reveal my identity, but I would gain the backing of New Wave. There was still a high chance that someone could try to attack us though, after what happened to the guy that killed Fleur, people would be wary of striking against New Wave like that again.

In addition, I could probably help New Wave as well. I couldn't go out and fight crime like they did, but I could create experiments that, if they agreed, could help them.

"We're here." Dad said as we pulled into the small parking lot.

I was just happy to see that I couldn't see Mr. Barnes' car. Dad and I had been extremely lucky to not run into the man considering that he worked here. How long that luck would last was anyone's guess. I just knew that it wouldn't be pretty if we met up with him again.

"You alright, kiddo?" Dad asked.

"Y-Yeah."

Dad squeezed my hand. "It's okay to be a little nervous. God knows that I am," He admitted before taking a deep breath. "Just know that I'm behind you a hundred percent."

"Meega too!"

"Ih!"

I turned around to see Link, Drowsy, Ace and Spike giving me encouraging looks from the backseat. Slowly, I felt myself nod. I could do this.

XxX=-=XxX

"I would like to apologize to you, Dr. Jookiba." Photon Mom said and I blinked. What did she have to be sorry about? "If we had been more vigilant, then you wouldn't have had to face those two men by yourself."

What?

Photon Mom looked away. "According to what Mr. Herbert told us, you encountered those men only a few minutes after we left. Perhaps if we had stayed, we could've caught those men in the act and prevented them from hurting you."

"You don't have to apologize. I should've left after you guys did, but I stayed. I knew that it would be a bad idea to go after them, but I did. If anyone is at fault for what happened, it's me." I admitted. "So, you don't need to apologize."

"… Thank you, Dr. Jookiba." Photon Mom managed.

Brandish frowned. "If you didn't come here to talk about that, then what did you want to talk about?"

"Well, I wanted to ask if I could still—if I could still join New Wave." I admitted, looking down at my lap. "There is a chance that one of those people saw my face after they shot me."

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Meega - Me

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#57

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I could've heard a pin drop in the silence that followed. I missed the way Brandish's expression hardened before her sister laid a hand on her shoulder. She let out a deep breath and, when I looked up again, she had already schooled her features into a calm, professional mask.

Photon Mom turned towards us. "I believe I speak for the both of us when I say that New Wave would be honored if you decided to join us, Dr. Jookiba. Only, are you absolutely sure that you want to?" She hesitated. "You do have other options available to you."

"Yes, I'm sure." I said.

Photon Mom stared at me. I would be surprised as well if I were in her position. After all, New Wave hadn't had a new recruit in over ten years. With what happened to Fleur and how Lightstar left, I doubted that they had ever expected for anyone to want to join them.

"… Very well, then." Photon Mom managed after a couple of moments. "I would like to be the first to welcome you to New Wave, Dr. Jookiba."

"It's Taylor. Taylor Hebert."

Photon Mom smiled. "Alright then, Miss Hebert."

Dad and I were then given a brief run through of New Wave and what we could expect. I still felt a little nervous about my decision though it didn't seem like it would be that bad. I was more concerned about the prospect of talking to the press.

Photon Mom assured me that it wouldn't be that big of an event. It would include a few members of the press who would ask a few questions. So, nothing compared to the media circus that happened whenever a new member of the Wards and/or Protectorate was revealed to the public.

At some point, I would also be required to be fitted for a suit of my own. Even if I wasn't going to be a front-line fighter, Brandish and Photon Mom wanted to make sure that I had adequate protection.

I also considered making something for my experiments to wear. Nothing fancy, but something that they'd like and that would show that they too were members of New Wave. Perhaps a white sash or a small white cape emblazoned with a yellow 'NW'? It was something to consider.

I did, however, have to tell them what happened with Emma and Doubledip. New Wave was all about full accountability, so it would look really bad if someone—Emma—brought that up and they were caught off-guard.

Brandish's lips thinned. "I wish you would have told us about this sooner, Miss Hebert. As it is, however, you could argue that Emma instigated the conflict and that your experiment only acted in order to protect you from further harm." She eyed me coolly. "You're very lucky that Miss Barnes didn't go straight to the PRT."

I just nodded. I wanted to defend Doubledip, but Brandish was right. We had been really lucky that Emma hadn't decided to go to the PRT. If she had, I probably wouldn't be having this conversation right now.

"I expect that you will make sure that your experiments don't repeat such behavior in the future, Miss Hebert."

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#58

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I hadn't wanted to go to that first meeting. I had been curious about why a new cape would want to meet with New Wave, but it hadn't seemed that important. I had been more concerned about how many of us were going to meet up with this new cape. Surely, a meeting wouldn't require that over half of New Wave be present,

I just hadn't known what her power was. Even when she told us, I thought that it didn't sound that impressive. So when she had said that she could create a creature that could do anything I thought of, I just had to test her. I had gotten into it, I admit, and would've kept asking her if Ames hadn't stepped in.

Ames had then gone on to ask if Dr. Jookiba could create an experiment that could heal. I was surprised when she had persisted, asking the other cape if she would do it. I should've known that Ames was overworking herself.

Shortly afterward, Mom, Aunt Sarah, and Crystal had begun questioning Dr. Jookiba themselves. I hadn't really paid attention, more focused on making sure that Ames was okay and that she knew I supported her. It probably hadn't been easy for her to ask for help like that.

Mom had then asked if Ames could take a look at one of Dr. Jookiba's experiments. Dr. Jookiba had agreed and sent her red creature over to Ames. Ames' eyes widened when she touched it before she had taken a couple of steps backwards.

I hadn't even known that I had risen from my seat until Aunt Sarah told me to sit down. I had just been so angry and had wanted to make sure that Dr. Jookiba and her creature understand that hurting Ames was a bad idea. Only, Ames hadn't been hurt.

Later, Ames would tell me that the creature's biology had overwhelmed her. Apparently, it was the most advanced biology she had ever 'seen' in her life. Just thinking about it gave Ames an enormous headache. Asking her about the creature's powers had only made Ames' headache worse, preventing her from thinking straight.

By the time the next meeting had rolled around, I had realized exactly why everyone had been so excited. Dr. Jookiba might not have had a strong power, but she could create an experiment that could do anything.

Then, Mom and Dr. Jookiba had gotten into an argument. I had been too shocked to say anything at the time. If Ames hadn't stood up, then Dr. Jookiba would have walked out and we would've lost that opportunity forever. Only, she had stood up. She had been the one to calm everyone down and, later, help me reassure Dr. Jookiba in the hallway.

Ames had really saved the day.

It was a few days later when I met Dr. Jookiba. Well, her civilian identity anyway. I hadn't known who she was at the time, but I was glad that I had helped her. Taylor was a little shy, but she was a good person. Now, I couldn't imagine what it would be like if Taylor wasn't there.

That's why I had been so shocked when I had heard about what had happened to Taylor. She had been shot. She would have died on the spot if it wasn't for her healing experiment.

It had seemed all-too familiar to what happened to Fleur. How some no-name E88 goon thought that breaking into her home and murdering her would earn him points. I had wanted to go after the bastard myself at the time though Kaiser had gotten to him before I could.

When I heard the news, I had wanted to hunt down those two men and I wanted to break them. I was tired of people striking against my family and my friends. I had thought that, after I had made an example out of those two bastards, no one would dare to touch those I cared about.

Only, Ames had stopped me. She had talked me down and convinced me that people were already looking into what happened. It would be better if I didn't go off and get myself into trouble. I had still gone out, but to the Ship Graveyard where I proceeded to take out my aggression on everything I could see.

There, I made myself a promise. As long as I could help it, I would never allow something like that to happen to someone I cared about again.

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#59

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I needed to tell Victoria and Amy. They might already know that I was Dr. Jookiba as it would've been easy for them to figure it out, but I felt like I needed to tell them myself. It was weird. I actually felt more nervous at the prospect of telling them than I did about outing myself to the public.

I had been prepared to tell them before classes started. I would have enough time to take them to a secluded spot, tell them, and then talk about anything they might want to ask.

Only, I had forgotten that they might already know and that they might be aware of what happened to me. I had barely entered the school's courtyard before I found myself the recipient of a tight hug from Victoria.

"I'm so glad that you're alright, Taylor. I wanted to come bye earlier to make sure that you were okay, but Ames said it might look suspicious. And I couldn't go by your house either since I don't know where it is—you'll have to tell me later—and then you missed school on Monday and Mom wouldn't let me come to the meeting…"

I could barely keep up with her. A small, detached part of me realized that Victoria and Amy had known. They had probably known since I had introduced myself to Victoria's friends. The larger part of me was more focused on how upset Victoria appeared and touched at her concern.

"I'm sorry, Victoria. I should've called you earlier. I just got involved in—in my 'work'. I thought about calling you, but I didn't think you knew what happened. I'll make sure to call if something like that happens again."

Victoria shook her head. "You don't have to apologize to me, Taylor. Just—just make sure you call next time. And make sure that you don't go out there by yourself. If you want to do something like that, you need to make sure you have someone there to watch your back."

"I will." I promised. I didn't think I would ever do something like that again. At least, I wouldn't as long as I didn't have to do it.

"… Are you guys okay?"

I looked away to see the rest of Victoria's friends standing a couple of feet away from us. From their expressions, I could tell that they were worried about what was going on.

"Y-Yeah." Victoria lied.

"I have something to tell you guys." I said. There was no way that they believed that Victoria was okay. And, really, it would be better to tell them than to let Victoria try to make something up. "But not here. Let's go somewhere more private."

"This better be good." Sam muttered.

XxX=-=XxX

"… You're a cape?"

I nodded. "I'm a Bio-Tinker." Seeing the confused look on Sam and Jessica's faces, I decided to elaborate. "Tinkers are capes with an advanced grasp of science and the ability to build technology years ahead of their time. Bio-Tinkers are just Tinkers that specialize in something related to biology."

"Oh." Jessica said.

"… What is your specialty?" Sam asked.

"I specialize in the creation of technology that allows me to create artificial life-forms." I answered shrugging, "I can create an experiment to do anything you might think about."

Victoria threw her arm around my shoulder. "Trust me when I tell you guys that she can do it. She even created an experiment to help Ames heal people."

"Really?"

"Yeah." I frowned. "The only reason why Doc hasn't started helping out is because of some paperwork. It should be done soon, but…"

"You should see some of her other experiments. She's created one that can put people to sleep—by yawning of all things—and one that shoots this really sticky, glue-like stuff." Victoria revealed with a wide, excited grin. "They're awesome."

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#60

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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"Do you think that we could come over sometime, Taylor?"

I had been prepared for Jessica to continue asking me about my experiments. So, hearing her ask me that, it caught me off-guard. How long had it been since someone had asked me if they could come over?

Jessica shifted. "It doesn't have to be today, Taylor. And it's not because I just want to see your experiments. I've wanted to ask to come over for a while, but I didn't know if you would feel up to it." She looked away. "If you don't feel comfortable, we could always do it another time."

"Its—Its fine." I managed. "You guys can come over if you want."

"Really?" Jessica asked.

"… Yeah. If you guys want to come over today, I'll just have to call my Dad so he knows that you'll be there." Hopefully, my experiments hadn't decided to destroy the house. "That is, if you want to come over today."

"Of course we want to come over!" Victoria said. "Not only will we get to see your experiments, we might get to see your secret laboratory."

"It's not a secret."

Victoria pretended that she hadn't heard me. "Just imagine all of the cool things we'll see down there. It'll be awesome!" She turned. "Do you want to come, Ames? I know that you said you wanted to get a few more hours in at the hospital, but…"

"I think I can spare a few minutes." Amy said. I wasn't the only one surprised to hear that if the others' shell-shocked expressions meant anything. "… What?"

"Nothing. I'm just glad that you're going to come with us!"

XxX=-=XxX

I should have called. Perhaps if I had called, my experiments would have had time to clean up. As it was, they were trying to clean the gray gunk off of the ceiling when we came in. 'Why is it gray? Did they get into the food coloring or something? '

"T-this isn't l-look like, Porma!" Shortstuff said. He was on the ceiling, trying to chip away at the gunk with a spatula. "M-make grilled c-cheeses, b-blender ex-explode!"

"… You used the blender to make grilled cheese?" I really needed to teach my experiments how to cook. Or make an experiment that could cook.

"Ih."

I was about to lay into him when I heard someone giggle from behind me. Turning around, I saw that Jessica was doing her best not to laugh. "What's so funny?"

"N-nothing." She lied.

"Ooo?" Hearing her, Doubledip opened his eyes. He yawned from his position next to Drowsy before glancing at our guests. "Porma?"

"I brought home some friends. They're—" I began to say.

I was interrupted by the sound of something crashing in the other room. Whipping my head around, I saw that the gunk was now on the floor. A dazed-looking Shortstuff was sprawled a few feet away from it while, on top of the gunk, sat a satisfied-looking Doc.

How had he…?

I heard something start up before seeing Link hurry into the kitchen with Dad's chainsaw. "I thought Dad put away his tools! Wait, Link! Stop!"

Jessica burst out laughing.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#61

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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In the end, it had taken ten minutes to clean up. I had been worried about what we would do with the gray gunk though Doc had taken care of it. And by 'taking care of it', I mean that he ate it. I still didn't understand why everyone looked so green when he ate, but had pulled our guests away nonetheless.

To distract them from what Doc had been doing, I started to introduce my guests to my other experiments.

"This is Doubledip," I said and Doubledip gave a brief wave before settling down in my lap. "He is the first experiment I created and, like his name implies, likes to double-dip his food." I ignored Jessica's face. "Also, don't be alarmed if attempts to place a hand on your shirt. It's just his form of approval."

"Sounds cool." Sam said.

I smiled. "I'm glad you think so. Now, Shortstuff is next—"

"Porma!" Shortstuff interrupted me. "Can I d-do?"

I shouldn't have looked down. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have seen him giving me the most adorable expression; twisting his arms behind his back cutely as he eyed me with puppy-dog eyes. It was too much for me and, while concerned at what he might say, I nodded. Shortstuff cheered.

"I am Shorts-stuff! Ex-per-i-ment 002!" He proclaimed, "Porma m-made me to f-fix things!" He looked at the ground. "Some-sometimes it not go well, b-but Porma helps and t-teaches S-shortstuff better!"

'Shortstuff…' I had to do some careful maneuvering so as to not wake up Doubledip, but I was able to grab my second experiment. I smiled down at him before kissing the top of his head. "And you are a great student, Shortstuff."

Sam pretended to gag while Jessica 'aww'-ed.

"M-moving on…" I managed, "Ace isn't here right now though you might meet him if Dad gets home early. And you guys have already met Doc. Link is next." I waited to see if Link wanted to introduce himself, but continued when it became obvious that he wasn't going to. "He is designed to shoot a sticky, glue-like substance that hardens into an indestructible substance. There is a way to get it off, though."

"And that one?" Jessica pointed.

"That's Drowsy. He is designed to make those who hear him bleat fall asleep. As a result of this, however, he is always sleepy and often takes naps when he can." I answered.

Drowsy smiled at me before he yawned and closed his eyes. Link patted him on the back for a few moments before a light, gentle snoring could be heard. The others may have taken that as proof that Drowsy was asleep, but I knew him better than that.

'He just wants them to think he's asleep.' I thought. 'That way, they won't pay him that much attention. And if something goes wrong, he'll be one of the first to respond.'

Sam's eyes widened a second before Jessica gasped. I wasn't able to ask them what was wrong. I was more distracted by the feeling of Spike's quills brushing against my leg. I looked down to see him looking up at me pleadingly.

"Alright, Spike." I said, patting the spot beside me. He jumped up next to me and then curled up. I turned back to my guests and noticed their stares. "… What? It's just Spike."

"I thought he was a porcupine." Jessica admitted.

"Spike may look like a porcupine, but he's not. Spike doesn't nearly have as much quills as a regular porcupine. And even if you did get pricked by one of his quills, it wouldn't hurt that much." I said.

"Oh."

Sam looked interested now. "What did you design him for?"

"Spike is able to coat his quills with a compound that, after it enters the bloodstream, makes the person act silly for a few hours." No need to tell them that 'silliness' was actually a result of the person losing 99% of their intelligence.

Slowly, Victoria smiled. I could almost see what she was planning. She then glanced over at Amy who was looking at Spike with an unreadable expression on her face. "Oh, Spike~"

"Ih?"

"I think Amy would like a special hug~"

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma- Mother or MomXXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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If I had known the full breadth of Amy's power, I would've done my best to keep her away from Spike. Even without that knowledge, I had still tried to keep them apart. It would have been different if Amy had wanted to receive a 'special hug', but she didn't.

As it was, I hadn't been able to stop Spike in time. Victoria had made sure that Amy wouldn't be able to get away and, within moments of being pricked, Amy stopped resisting. Slowly, her eyes drooped and she smiled.

I didn't know how Amy would feel when she 'woke up' though I could guess. She would likely be furious at Victoria for all-but forcing her to 'take a break'. She would also probably be embarrassed by how she had acted under the influence of Spike's compound.

"How do you feel?" Victoria asked.

Amy titled her head and, for a moment, actually looked like she was considering the question. She stood and rushed towards the kitchen before wrapping her arms around a bloated Doc. It was interesting to see that she didn't back away from Doc like she had Ace.

'Is it because of the compound?' I wondered. I didn't think too much on it though as I was more focused on how Amy was acting. She snuggled deeper into Doc's side, giggling. "Amy…?"

"Crusts are cool." Amy said. She then proceeded to blow a raspberry at Victoria before turning away from her sister. "You can't have any of my pancakes! I already ate them all."

"Pancakes?" Victoria asked.

Amy didn't answer. Instead, she abandoned Doc and further entered the kitchen. Grabbing a spatula, she started to bang it against the counter. I didn't see how it would be funny though Amy apparently found it hilarious. Bursting out laughing, she dropped the tool and stumbled backwards. She caught herself on the counter, still laughing.

'Oh, god.' I covered my face. I had known that Spike's compound would remove 99% of a target's intelligence—making them act silly—but I hadn't thought that those affected would act like this. 'It's like she's drunk!'

"Twinkle, Twinkle, little bat…~"

XxX=-=XxX

Dad and Ace arrived sometime around 5:00. I hadn't really paid attention to the time after Spike had gotten Amy and then the trying hour that had followed.

Luckily, we had eventually managed to catch Amy. At the moment, she was wrapped up in a thick blanket that she couldn't seem to figure out how to get out of. I would occasionally hear her say something ridiculous.

I mean, it was obvious that Amy cared for Victoria. It didn't need to be said. Even if Amy had been adopted, it was obvious that they loved each other. It wasn't like it was a secret or anything.

"… What's going on here?" Dad asked.

"Victoria thought that it'd be a good idea to get Spike to hug Amy." I muttered before adjusting my ice pack. If I learned anything, it was that Amy had a mean punch. "It should wear off soon. Hopefully."

"Jessica groaned. "Hopefully?"

"This is the first time that someone has been pricked by Spike." I said before raising my voice, "Which is why I told you that it would be a bad idea, Victoria!"

"I didn't know it would be this bad!"

Dad kneeled down next to me. I obligingly moved the ice pack away before I saw his eyes widen. "Are you alright, kiddo?"

"Yeah. Amy'll probably fix it once she realizes what she did." I said. Even if she didn't, I could deal with it. It wasn't as if that punch had broken my jaw. "It's just a little sore…"

XxX=-=XxX

I had thought that Amy would be mad when she 'woke up', but I had underestimated her reaction. I had never seen her so angry before. I'd seen her get annoyed or irritated, but never this angry. And I had never seen her get mad at Victoria before. It felt a little surreal.

"I said that I was sorry." Victoria grumbled.

Amy shot her a scathing look. "I told you that I didn't want to get a 'special hug'. When I say that I don't want to do something, I need you to actually listen to me. I get that you want to 'help' me, but I need you to respect the decisions I make."

"But—"

"I don't want to hear it." Amy snapped. Her eyes narrowed. "And don't you dare try to use your aura to make me change my mind."

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#63

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I didn't know what to do. I couldn't think of anything that would break the awkward silence that had descended following Amy and Victoria's departure. And from the looks on Sam and Jessica's faces, they didn't know how to break it either.

Luckily, it wasn't just us in the house.

"Porma! Porma!"

Turning, I spotted Shortstuff rushing down the hallway with Link and Ace. In his claws was a hodgepodge amalgamation of plastic odds and ends stuck together by Link's glue. I tried to understand what it was, but I couldn't.

'What is that ?'

"Shorts-stuff, Link, and A-Ace make!" Shortstuff proclaimed as he stopped before us. "M-make to h-help Porma!"

I smiled. "That was nice of you. Thank you." I took the item from Shortstuff and turned it around in my hand, trying to understand how it worked. It was a little odd, but now that I looked at it… "Is it supposed to release something?"

Shortstuff nodded eagerly while Link just smiled. Ace made a little shooing motion, telling me to get on with it. I turned back towards Sam and Jessica to find them giving me equally encouraging , only one way to find out.

I pulled back what used to be a toaster lever and let it go.

In the next moment, something red rocketed out of the top of my experiments' creation only to splatter against the ceiling. I looked up and saw what looked to be a tomato before the remainder of said fruit fell onto my face. Yes, it was definitely a tomato.

Sam burst out laughing. Jessica tried to shush her, but I could hear laughter in her voice. 'Traitors.'

Ace handed me a towel that he had been hiding behind his back and I took it from him. Cleaning up my face, I missed Doc moving towards the bits of tomato still stuck on the ceiling. By the time that I finished, he was moving away from a clean patch of the ceiling.

"It s-stores item f-for Porma!" Shortstuff continued on as if nothing had happened. "L-lever makes i-it come out faster."

That certainly explained why the tomato had come out like that. The lever released the object, but it also controlled how fast that object came out. I pulled the lever down barely a centimeter and let it go. I had to strain my ears to hear the faint 'spring' the item made.

"This is pretty cool." I said, turning it over yet again. I would have to ask them later how they had done this and how it worked. I could've just used the solvent to Link's glue, but that would've ruined the item. And I couldn't do that considering how much hard work must've gone into this project. "What's the size limit of the item you can put in here?"

"Ex-per-i-ment!" Shortstuff replied, beaming.

I looked at the item before looking back at Shortstuff. I could see that it could hold Doc—if he shrunk himself small enough—and maybe even Shortstuff and Doubledip, but it would be uncomfortable. It was only when Shortstuff started pulling me towards the kitchen that I realized he wasn't talking about himself or his siblings.

"Alright, then." I said, "Let's see what this thing can do."

The next half in hour was spent testing the item. It became obvious early-on that it couldn't hold anything bigger than a coffee pot, but that didn't matter. By then, everyone was having fun sticking random objects inside the item and 'testing' it.

After that, however, Sam and Jessica had to leave. I was sad to see them go so soon though they promised that they'd come over again 'real soon'.

I couldn't wait.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#64

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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It had been difficult deciding who Experiment 008 would be. Before I had been shot, I had wanted to create a modified version of a first series experiment that could turn anything she touched into whatever she wanted. I still wanted to create her though I had realized I didn't have to create her right now.

So, if not her, who would I create? Even restricted to the first four series, I still had over two hundred possible experiments. I hadn't been able to decide.

I had eventually decided that I wanted to create an experiment that would watch over its siblings. It wasn't that I didn't trust them, but they often made got themselves into trouble or made a mess if left unsupervised. Dad and I couldn't be there all the time.

I pointedly did not think about the other reason that I wanted to create a 'babysitter' experiment. Still, I couldn't deny the fact that I would feel better if there was someone that would watch over my experiments if I was gone.

My power had given me five chooses. A small light blue koala-like experiment designed to hypnotize. An enormous dark-green crab-like experiment designed to capture and hold unruly experiments. A black-and-white penguin-like experiment designed to make people too polite to fight. A teal experiment designed to ruin enemy plans. A yellow and purple caterpillar-like experiment designed to make everyone obey the person wearing him.

From there, I had worked through them. I dismissed both hypnotizing and mind-control experiments. Then, I dismissed the crab-like experiments. 'Looking' at the two choices left, I had decided to go with the penguin-like experiment.

It wasn't a perfect fit, but he could do what I wanted.

I still felt guilty that I would be creating him to be a glorified babysitter. Still, I needed someone to watch over my experiments. And it wasn't like he couldn't do anything else or quit if he got tired of it.

So, on Friday afternoon, I had uploaded his modified template and started my machine. I had spent the majority of the time before his birth beating myself up for my choice and wondering if I was doing the right thing.

Was I?

XxX=-=XxX

Experiment 008 was a black and white penguin-like experiment with short ears, a brown nose, three black spines on his back, a yellow marking that looked suspiciously like a tie, and yellow spots near his hands.

For a couple of moments, Experiment 008 didn't do anything. He then rose from the floor of the containment module, sliding his hands behind his back, and looked around. When he spotted me, his eyes widened before he gave a slight bow. "Porma."

"Hello, Experiment 008." I opened the hatch. I just hoped that he didn't pick up on my apprehension. Luckily, it seemed that he hadn't. Or, if he had, he wasn't going to mention it. "How are you feeling?"

"Jhua, Porma." Experiment 008 said.

I had to admit that I was a little worried about his behavior. Not that it was bad—because it wasn't—but that he was acting in a way that I had never seen from his siblings. He didn't seem all that interested in the things around him or even slightly curious.

'What do I do?'

Experiment 008 stopped at the bottom of the staircase. I went to ask him what was wrong, but stopped as he gave another bow and waved at the stairs. "Chunga Bey, Porma."

"T-Thank you, Experiment 008." I said. "You're very polite."

Experiment 008 smiled. "Takka, Porma."

It was only when Experiment 008 and I had reached the top of the stairs that I saw him react. He glanced around the kitchen with a look that made me wish I had done the dishes. He even went as far as to wipe a paw on the countertop.

"Naga, naga, naga." Experiment 008 said with a shake of his head. "Ex-per-i-ment 008 fix."

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Chunga Bey - You First

Jhua - Good

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#65

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Retracing: 5.11– [NEXT]

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It hadn't taken long to understand what Experiment 008 had meant. I had told him that he didn't need to 'fix' anything though he just shaken his head. He had then told me that he did—that he wanted to—before he marched towards the sink.

"You don't have to do that, Experiment 008. I can clean up later." I said. In response, he pulled on our seldom-used rubber gloves and turned the faucet. I decided to try something different. "Wouldn't you like to meet your siblings, Experiment 008? You wouldn't want to keep them waiting, would you?"

Experiment 008 paused. For a moment, he looked like he was actually considering it. I was a little disappointed when he resumed his work, scrubbing at the dishes before lowering them into the soapy water. He finished with the last dish before surprising me as he turned off the facet and put the gloves away.

"Ex-per-i-ment nu pujee?" Experiment 008 said and I nodded. He thought it over himself for a couple more moments before nodding to himself and then looking up at me. "S-siblings?"

I smiled. "This way, Experiment 008."

Hopefully, his siblings would be able to distract him while I clean up. I felt bad about tricking him like this, but I didn't want him to start working so soon after his birth. And if they kept Experiment 008 busy long enough, I could probably stop him from 'fixing' anything until tomorrow morning.

XxX=-=XxX

I shouldn't have underestimated Alfred. I had been able to convince him to go to bed with his siblings though he must've woken up before anyone else or just been pretending to be asleep. From the amount of work he must have put into things, I was going to go with the latter.

Alfred hadn't just cleaned the kitchen. It seemed that after he had started cleaning, he hadn't been able to stop. Or maybe he had but he just hadn't been able to accept the state the rest of the house was in. Whatever his reason, he had started to clean the rest of the house once he was done with the kitchen.

It felt surreal. I hadn't seen the house looking so clean since—since Mom had died. Dad and I weren't slobs by any means, but hadn't put as much work into the house as we had when Mom was still around. It was only now, looking at what Alfred had done, that I realized how bad we had let things get.

"Porma like?" Alfred asked.

I knelt down and wrapped my arms around him. "Y-You did a good job, Alfred. Thank you for doing this. I really, really appreciate it."

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Nu Pujee - No Clean

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#66

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Retracing: 5x (Interlude: 008) - [NEXT]

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I don't remember that much about the time I became aware of myself. I had a faint recollection of a sweet-smelling, liquid warmth and the fear I had felt when that warmth drained away. I remember the terror I felt as I was pulled away from the warmth that lingered and into a cool, smooth space.

I felt something within my chest begin to burn and I breathed. In that instant, I caught the aroma of the warmth that still lingered on my fur and the myriad of smells that lingered in the air. The scents were somewhat similar to my own faint scent and, in a way, it comforted me.

If those smells were anything to go by, then I wasn't the first to have woken up within this smooth expanse. I didn't know what might have happened to those others, but they had at least moved. They had left the smooth expanse. And, if that was any indication, then so would I.

I composed myself as best as I was able to; I stood up, straightened my back, and slid my hands behind my back. Then, I opened my eyes and nearly gasped at the numerous shapes and colors I could now see.

I didn't have the words to articulate just how beautiful it was.

It was then, as I was looking around, that I spotted another living being. It was a tall, thin being with pale skin and long dark, curly hair that reached her shoulders. There were strange coverings—clothes—over her body and a baffling contraption over her eyes. I didn't know this person, but I did.

The moment I remembered just who she was, I gave her a small bow and said her name: "Porma."

"Hello Experiment 008." Porma said, smiling, before she opened the translucent doorway that separated us.

Porma reached an arm into the air above the smooth expanse, clearly intending for me to grab her hand, and I did. I wordlessly marveled over the new texture, the warmth, and then the cool, gritty feeling of the floor. It was wonderful.

"How are you feeling?" Porma asked.

For a moment, I considered telling Porma about all of these new sensations and feelings I was experiencing before I decided against it. Porma would already know about those things. And, while I knew that Porma would always be there for me, I didn't want to annoy her by talking about things she already knew.

"Jhua, Porma." I said instead.

I saw Porma nod to herself, but she didn't say anything else. I knew that it was somewhat immature of me, but I walked around a little bit to see if the floor's texture would change. I was slightly disappointed when it didn't though perhaps that was because the floor looked the same. Maybe a thing could only have one texture…

I stopped at the base of what I would later learn to be the stairs before glancing back at Porma. I saw her looking at me and then at the stairs before she opened her mouth. It was a little rude of me, but I gave her another bow and spoke before she could. "Chunga Bey, Porma."

"T-Thank you, Experiment 008." Porma said. "You're very polite."

'Polite'? Was being 'polite' a good thing? Well, if Porma had called me it, it had to be… right? "Takka, Porma."

Porma smiled at me again before she moved. I followed after her as we made our way upwards, marveling over the rough texture of the wood underneath my feet, before we entered another room. It was smaller than the first space, but brighter and filled with a variety of objects I had no knowledge of.

What I did know, however, was that it was dirt. Very, very dirty. I wiped a hand across one of the countertops, pulled it back, and found myself actually getting a little angry.

"Naga, naga, naga." I nearly growled. "Ex-per-i-ment 008 fix."

I didn't care how long it would take, how much effort I had to put into it, or if I got dirty myself in the process. All that mattered was cleaning up that dirt, unacceptable mess that dared to exist where Porma lived. Porma tried to stop me, saying that I didn't need to anything, but I shook my head and marched towards the sink.

I didn't know what it was, but it seemed to be the dirtiest thing in the room. If I could fix that—if I could clean those rounded "plates" and that "silverware"—then I wouldn't have to do it later.

"You don't have to do that, Experiment 008. I can clean up later." Porma said as I put on a strange pair of yellow coverings. "Wouldn't you like to meet your siblings, Experiment 008? You wouldn't want to keep them waiting, would you?"

'Siblings'? I paused, considering the word and what Porma had said. If these 'siblings' were people like Porma, then it would be rude to keep them waiting…

"Ex-per-i-ment nu pujee?" I asked, turning around to face Porma. I frowned when Porma nodded before thinking it over for a little while longer. It wouldn't hurt. And I could always come back to clean up later… "S-siblings?"

Porma smiled. "This way, Experiment 008."

I pulled off the yellow coverings and set them down before walking after Porma. She led me into the hallway and then up another staircase where I picked up a number of voices talking about something. The siblings, perhaps?

I got my first glimpse of the siblings when Porma opened the door to another room. My earlier anger returned as I saw the mess inside the room and I realized that the siblings were responsible. The siblings were the mess-makers; the ones responsible for the unacceptable mess in the other room and now this room.

"H-Hi!"

"Hi Ex-per-i-ment 008!"

The yellow sibling patted the mess next to him. "Want p-play Forts?"

No, I most certainly did not. Didn't the siblings see the mess they had created? I looked up at Porma, but she gestured for me to go in. I hesitated for a moment before I realized that Porma probably wanted me to clean up the siblings' mess.

"Oketaka, Porma." I said.

It was only twenty minutes later, after the battle between myself and the siblings, that I realized my mistake. Porma actually hadn't wanted me to clean up the siblings' mess; she had wanted me to join them. I also learned that the siblings didn't really appreciate me trying to clean up their mess while they were still playing.

I probably would have stayed angry at the siblings for not letting me clean up, but they wouldn't leave me alone. I even began to feel a little bad after they told me that they would clean up their 'forts' after their game. And there I had been… trying to clean up their 'forts' and ruin their fun.

"S-siblings hate Ex-per-i-ment 008 n-now…" I murmured.

"Naga!"

I looked up to find the red sibling—Ace—staring back at me with an emotion I couldn't recognize. "Ex-per-i-ments no h-hate Alfred!" He said. "Alfred new, n-not know better. Ex-per-i-ments not t-tell Alfred about Forts; Alfred n-not know that we f-fix later. So, ex-per-i-ments not h-hate Alfred. Alfred, sibling."

"A-Alfred?" I asked.

Ace nodded. "Ih, Alfred. Porma's D-Dad tell ex-per-i-ments of great c-cleaner named A-Alfred. Other Alf-fred have clothes like y-you and clean like y-you. Name i-in honor of A-Alfred."

"Oh." That was really nice of them. "T-Thank you."

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Naga - No

Nu Pujee - No Clean

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#67

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Retracing: 5.12– [NEXT]

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I was pulling the bacon out of the oven when I heard someone come down the stairs. Setting the pan onto the counter, I then checked on the scrambled eggs. Seeing that they were almost done, I went to the refrigerator and grabbed some shredded cheese and sprinkled some over the eggs.

"Did you do this, kiddo?"

I shook my head. "No, Alfred did. He told me that he didn't go to sleep last night; only pretending to until we were asleep before coming out to clean." I turned off the heat and moved the eggs over to another burner. "It's a little strange, isn't it?""

"… Yeah, it is." Dad agreed before he went over to make himself some coffee. "Where is Alfred, anyway?"

"I convinced him to let me make breakfast while he watched over his brothers for me." I said. It hadn't been easy to talk him into it, but I had worn him down. It helped that, even if he wasn't going to admit it, he was exhausted from all the work he'd done. "Hopefully, he'll get some rest after breakfast."

And if Alfred didn't want to rest then I would use my secret weapon. I felt a little bad about the thought of using Drowsy to make him sleep, but Alfred needed to sleep.

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as Dad poured himself a cup and take a sip. He smiled and looked like he was about to say something when the phone rang.

"I'll get it." He said as he went over and picked up the phone. "… Hello. What news? Really…? That's great! I'll be sure to tell her later. Yes, I'll ask her."

XxX=-=XxX

"Doc heal! Doc heal! Doc heal!" Doc cheered once we had told him, smiling so wide I feared he'd cut himself in two. "Doc heal to-day! Doc heal to-day!"

The phone call that Dad had gotten earlier was from New Wave. Apparently, Doc's paperwork had finally gone through. I would still have to sign a few forms once we got to the hospital though, otherwise, Doc would be able to heal anyone that agreed to it.

I was felt a little sour about how Panacea would have to 'supervise' Doc, but that was okay. Hopefully, people would soon realize that Doc didn't need supervision and would allow him to heal by himself. Still, that was only a minor concern.

"Hajmha Sihkism, D-Doc!" Shortstuff said.

"Ih." Ace agreed. "Heegata no Feebee, Doc."

Drowsy just patted Doc on the arm and smiled. Doc returned the gesture by hugging his younger sibling and spinning them around, laughing at the expression that formed on Drowsy's face. Spike joined in the hug once Doc had finally slowed down. Soon, all of my experiments were hugging Doc and wishing him well.

"You're going to be great, Doc." I said as I joined the hug. "You'll prove to them just how special and amazing you really are."

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Hajmha Sihkism - Enthusiastic response

Heegata no Feebee - Don't give up or You can do it

Ih - Yes

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#68

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.1 - [NEXT]

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If things had gone according to plan, I would've signed the last of Doc's paperwork, left him with Panacea, and pick him up at three o'clock. Only, Panacea had been in the middle of a healing when we arrived. I hadn't the heart to leave Doc waiting for her by myself, so I stayed.

I could have left once Panacea finished, but I couldn't. I knew that she would take excellent care of Doc though a part of me hadn't wanted to leave him. Instead, I had offered to come along and help her watch Doc.

Panacea had been surprised, but she had eventually agreed. She then informed me that I wasn't to touch, modify, or do anything to any of the patients. Once I agreed, Panacea nodded and then resumed her rounds.

It was surreal. I quickly learned that the time she spent healing a patient depended on how severe their illness was; lasting anywhere from one minute to ten. I started losing count of the number of people she healed and gave up on trying to remember every illness that she had cured.

The only downside was that the patients were wary of Doc. They had signed consent forms to allow a parahuman to heal them, but that didn't seem to include Doc. Only a small handful of patients had agreed to allow Doc to work on them. And that was only because Panacea was busy healing their roommate or because they simply didn't care.

It was infuriating. Doc had been so excited about finally being allowed to heal and these people wouldn't give him a chance. Sure, Doc's method of healing might have been different from Panacea, but did it really matter?

Healing was healing, after all.

In the end, only six patients consented to allow Doc heal them. I could see that Doc was upset, but there wasn't much that I could do.

"Tomorrow will be better." I tried.

Doc didn't look away from the floor. Was he crying? I felt a sudden, irrational urge to track down all of those people that hadn't wanted Doc's help and make them understand. Doc only wanted to help them.

I picked him up and he buried his head in my shoulder. "It's okay, Doc. It's okay. It'll get better, I'm sure. They were just—just surprised, is all. I'm sure that you'll be healing as much as Panacea is in no time."

"R-really, P-porma?"

"Yeah. The people here just haven't heard about someone as special and amazing as you are, Doc. Once they hear about everything you've done, I bet that you'll have to beat them off with a stick or something." I just hoped what I was saying was true. If it wasn't… "Hey, what do you say that we go get something to eat before we head home?"

"C-cocon-nut c-cake?" Doc asked.

I nodded. "Yes, we can get some coconut cake. And maybe we can even get a little ice cream—you deserve it after all the hard work you put in today. And it'll be just for you, Doc."

"O-okay, Porma."

Heaven help the next person that made one of my children feel like this.

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[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.1 - [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#69

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.2 - [NEXT]

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It wasn't until Doc and I arrived at Baskin Robins that I realized he hadn't actually had ice cream before. What if I got him a scoop of something he didn't like? I eventually decided to get him small scoops of Mint Chocolate Chip, Daiquiri Ice, and Nutty Coconut Ice.

Surprisingly, Doc liked the Daiquiri Ice more than he had the Nutty Coconut Ice. I bought him another, bigger scoop of ice cream and let myself relax as he began to enjoy himself.

'I have to remember to take the others out for ice cream sometime. It'll be interesting to see what they like…'

Out of the corner of my eye, I watched as a small family walked in. I heard the sharp breaths they took in when they spotted us. Staring at Doc. I shot them an ugly look and the couple turned away. The child, however, kept pointing at Doc and asking his parents about him until his mother told him to stop. He stopped talking, but his eyes remained glued on Doc's form.

"Porma." Doc said. "Doc done."

I almost laughed at the sight of his face. He had gotten Daiquiri Ice all over his face. I grabbed a napkin and pulled him close, wiping the ice cream off his face. Once I was finished, I picked him up with one hand while using the other to pick up our bag of trash.

"Coconut cake?" Doc asked.

"Yes, we're going to get some coconut cake." I said before heading out. I felt the eye of every patron follow us and felt like turning around and telling them off. Honestly, people saw capes all the time! You would think that people would get used to it. "Maybe we'll even get two cakes. What do you think about that, Doc?"

"Coconut cake!"

XxX=-=XxX

In the end, I ended up getting two coconut cakes and a dozen small cartons of assorted ice cream flavors. I had felt guilty about not allowing my children to try ice cream before. I would admit that I had gone a little overboard, but it didn't really matter.

It turned out a good thing, however, as they all had a different flavor they liked. Doubledip liked Vanilla, Shortstuff liked Wild 'n Reckless, Ace liked Rocky Road, Link liked Peanut Butter 'n Chocolate, Drowsy liked French Vanilla, Spike liked Pink Bubblegum, and Alfred liked Pralines 'n Cream.

I didn't know if it was possible to hold so much ice cream cartons in the freezer. I mean, we could but then the freezer would be full of ice cream and nothing else. Dad would never allow it.

"Doc d-did good t-today?" Shortstuff asked.

I froze. Of course they would ask Doc about what happened today. And why wouldn't they? Everyone had believed that Doc would've had a great day.

Doc shook his head. "Naga."

"Naga?"

"Gaba, Doc?"

"Guys, maybe we could talk about this later—"

"—No one w-wanted Doc's help!" Doc burst out, sounding close to tears again. "N-nobody t-trusted Doc! No one l-liked Doc!"

"Gaba?!"

Oh dear. This wasn't going to end well at all.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Gaba - What?

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#70

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.3 - [NEXT]

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"I know that you're all a little upset, but that doesn't mean we should hold it against them." I placated. "They don't know Doc as well as we do and they're nervous because he's just started healing."

"Porma t-talk about D-Doc?" Shortstuff asked.

Link perked up. "Ih! Porma talk to them, make everything better!"

I was touched at Link's belief in me. At the same time, however, I felt horrible that I wouldn't be able to live up to such faith. "It's not that simple."

"Why?"

"It's just—I can't make people want to do something that they don't want to do. I can talk to them and tell them about Doc, but it then becomes their choice." I admitted in a quiet voice. "I hate that they can't see how special and amazing Doc is, but I can't make them decide to let Doc heal them."

A small, traitorous part of my mind whispered that I could. Not personally though I could create an experiment that could do it for me. After all, there were plenty of experiments that could either hypnotize or temporarily take control of another person. Twenty-five, to be exact.

It was hard not to give in. It would have been easy to make one of those experiments. And, once I had created it, I could make people want Doc's healing. I could make them stop looking at my children as if they were monsters. It was so tempting, but I couldn't do it.

If I made one of those experiments, I would prove that they were right in looking at my children that way. I would also alienate everyone that might have come around to see things from my point of view.

"Oh."

That didn't make it any easier when I saw my children's' faces fall. It pulled at my heartstrings and made me feel like the worst parent in the world. I was a bad Porma.

Ace stepped forward. "No."

"What?"

"If Porma can't make it better by herself, we can help her!" Ace declared. "We can tell those people that they're wrong! And we can proof it!" He gestured at Link and Drowsy, "We can make them see that Doc is as good as Link and Drowsy. And we can make them see that they should've listened to Porma!"

"H-how?" Doubledip asked.

Ace spread his arms out wide. "We help! Link and Drowsy help New Wave! Shortstuff fix! Ace and Spike protect Porma and Porma's Dad! Doubledip and Alfred protect house!" Slowly, the others began to nod. "And Porma will help us to, figure out new things we can do! And then nobody think bad of us!"

"Ih!" Link agreed.

Shortstuff pumped a claw. "Y-yeah!"

"Ih!"

Drowsy yawned, "… Ih."

"Y-yes." Alfred said.

I didn't know what to say. Somehow, Ace had turned the situation around. No, he had done more than that—he had inspired them, given his siblings what he believed was something that they could achieve. And I believed him. We could do this!

"For Doc!"

"Ih!"

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[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.3 - [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

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#71

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.4 - [NEXT]

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I should have known that something like this would've happened. I could probably have prevented it too if I hadn't been so eager. I was just lucky that I hadn't actually started to create an experiment before I noticed that my machine had broken down again.

I didn't even want to think about what might have happened if I did. It made me shudder just thinking about it.

I was grateful that the problem wasn't something I couldn't fix. It would take me a while to do, yes, but I could fix the problem. If I worked on it, I could probably finish fixing it in an hour or two. So, theoretically, I could still create the experiment that I had wanted to create.

Of course, that made me wonder if I should. I could create the experiment before I started school tomorrow, but I wouldn't be able to stay and get her settled in. And that wasn't even mentioning how tired I would be if I did it and then went to school.

I'd crash in first period.

I would have preferred to just skip school altogether. It would have been so much easier if I could just focus on my children and helping them fulfill Ace's plan. The problem was that Dad would never allow it even if he did understand.

Still, it wasn't as if I couldn't create the experiment before I went to school. Sure, I'd be tired, but I could do it. I could leave Alfred in charge—have him show his newest sibling around and get her settled in. And once I got home, I could answer any questions she might have.

It was tempting. Ultimately, however, I decided against it. Perhaps I was being too possessive, but I didn't want to do that. I wanted to be there for my newest child and make sure she felt safe and comfortable.

Really, it had actually become something of a routine. And, despite how attractive the thought of having Alfred deal with it, I wasn't going to break that routine. Not yet, at least.

I would just have to wait until next weekend. Then, I would be able to create her and show her around. And maybe I'd even be able to convince her brothers to help me prepare something of a birthday party for her. Or maybe just a combined birthday party for all of my children.

I hummed as I started to solder two small circuit boards together. 'That's not a bad idea. Still, it's not like we don't have the money to give them their own birthday parties. And if we did lump their birthday together, I'd have to make sure that they wouldn't feel upset about it.'

That reminded me; I'd have to set aside some money for the upcoming Easter. It wasn't as big as Christmas though I could imagine that my kids would have a blast trying to track down the eggs I would hide. I would also need to set aside some money for their Christmas presents, too.

'I wonder what else I could do…' I mused as I replaced the burnt out circuit board with the one I'd made. 'Maybe I could get them library cards? Or maybe I could even try to build something. I bet that they'd love their own personal computers…'

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.5 - [NEXT]

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Feeling something tug at my leg, I turned away from my English homework only to see Doubledip. I could tell that he wanted something from the look on his face, but he didn't want to cuddle. I offered to get him something to eat or to turn on a movie for him though he shook his head.

I started to feel concerned. "Are you okay, Doubledip?" He hesitated for a moment before slowly shaking his head. "What's the matter?"

"Meega w-want to h-help p-prot-tect house." Doubledip said haltingly. "Meega… naga p-protect h-house."

For a couple of moments, I couldn't wrap my mind around it. Doubledip was perhaps one of if not the most languid of my children. I didn't hold it against him, but it was unusual for him to want to do anything. Still, with everything that had been going on recently, Doubledip must have felt that he wasn't doing his part.

Truly, it seemed like Ace had given Doubledip the task of 'protecting the house' because he didn't know what else Doubledip could do. And if he had left Doubledip out, that would have only made my eldest feel left out and without anything to do.

Still… "What do you mean, Doubledip?"

"Meega naga h-help." Doubledip looked away, "Meega naga p-protect house. Naga… special."

Oh. So that was what this was about. I should have realized that this would've come up sooner or later. "Of course you are special, Doubledip."

"Naga."

"You are special, Doubledip. You might not be able to do the things that your siblings do, but that doesn't make you any less special or unique." I picked him up and brought him up to my shoulder before patting his back. "You are special, Doubledip. Never doubt that."

Doubledip sniffled.

I shushed him. "You are your own person, Doubledip. Who else would give me the best cuddles? And who would get the biggest slice of coconut cake because he claimed it first?"

Slowly, Doubledip nodded. It took a little longer to fully calm Doubledip. And if he stayed close to me the rest of the night, well, that really didn't matter.

XxX=-=XxX

I looked at my newest machine. It had taken me a couple of days to create it though, really, I didn't mind. It had kept my mind off of my desire to create another experiment and made me feel like I was doing something useful. I doubted that I would use it that much, but that didn't matter.

Doubledip felt like he wasn't special. Although I had tried to convince him that he was, he didn't believe me. I had tried everything I could think to make him see himself from my perspective though he couldn't. He didn't say much, but I could see how down and depressed he was.

Eventually, I caved.

I quickly learned that I could not modify my children after they were born. At least, not to the extent that Doubledip wanted. I could create a machine that would allow me to enhance certain features, but that was it. And I was glad that it didn't. I didn't want to modify my children. In their own way, they were perfect. The only reason I was even considering this was because of how unhappy Doubledip was.

That brought up the question of what to 'tweak'.

I considered the possibility of changing the properties of his saliva—make it acidic or somewhat glue-like—but discarded it. Dad would never allow Doubledip to have acidic saliva and Doubledip wouldn't be able to eat with glue-like saliva.

Eventually, I decided that I would enhance Doubledip's senses. It wasn't something that I couldn't do and I couldn't think of any reason why anyone would object. And Doubledip would be happy because he would 'finally have something that made him special'.

I still felt bad about doing it though, when I saw the expression on Doubledip's face, it didn't seem that horrible. I just wished that he would've been able to see how special he was before the 'tweak'.

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.5 - [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Meega - Me

Naga - No

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#73

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.6 - [NEXT]

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I received a package early on Thursday morning. At first, I was a little confused as to why someone would send me something before I spotted the label. It depicted the name of the manufacturing company that Brandish and Lady Photon had told me about during my fitting. So, that could only mean one thing; the package held my new costume.

It didn't take long to get everyone else up. I could've opened it by myself, but it didn't feel right. After all, I had only made it this far because everyone had helped me.

The costume itself consisted of a white bodysuit with purple trim, white vest, white shin-guards, and a heavy white trench coat with a purple flower emblazoned on the back.

All in all, it was very bright and a little heavy. I could still move around in it though it reminded me that I really needed to start working out or something. "What do you guys think?"

"Butifa, Porma."

"Ih, Butifa."

Shortstuff gave me a claws up. "L-looks g-good!"

The only voice I didn't hear from was Doubledip. I turned towards him to find him scrutinizing me from his spot on the couch. Then, without warning, he leapt from the couch and rushed towards me. Before anyone could do anything, he had climbed up my leg and spat on the vest, near my heart.

"Oketaka." Doubledip said after he had scurried back to the couch. "Meega f-find Porma if l-lost. M-make s-sure that meega f-find her."

It was a little surprisingly. I knew that Doubledip had started to mark his things with his saliva, but I didn't know that he could track them. Was it because of the recent tweak to his senses? If so, was it because he could now identify individual smells or because he could somehow sense where his saliva was?

"El Kiyotay, Doubled-dip!" Shortstuff said.

Link gave him a thumbs up. "Ih!"

"Good i-idea."

Doubledip beamed. I could only imagine how he was feeling. After all, this was what he wanted. Not only did he now have something that set him apart from his siblings, he had just impressed his siblings with it.

"Well done, Doubledip." I congratulated him. If possible, his smile got wider. "Now, I'm going to change again. When I get back, how about we have some leftover coconut cake and ice cream to celebrate?"

"Ih!"

"Y-Yes!

"Oketaka!"

"Ih!"

Saying that I would only be a minute, I went upstairs to change. I only made it halfway up the stairs before something knocked at the door. And by 'knock' I mean, knocked down.

"Porma!"

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[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.6 - [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Butifa - Beautiful

El Kiyotay - Good Idea

Ih - Yes

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#74

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.7 - [NEXT]

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I hadn't really considered the possibility of someone attacking me at my house. Aside from meeting with New Wave and my recent trips to the hospital with Doc, I hadn't really gone out as Dr. Jookiba. And after what had happened to the person who had killed Fleur, I didn't think that someone would try attacking another cape in their home.

'I guess they didn't get the memo…'

I could hear the fight even from upstairs. I felt bad about leaving my children to deal with the intruders, but I didn't know how to fight. The closest thing that I had was that contraption that Shortstuff, Link, and Ace had made for me.

I grabbed it. Even if I could only realistically launch object at whoever was attacking, I could at least contribute to what was happening. Maybe I'd get lucky shot and knock the person unconscious. It wasn't impossible; hit the right place at the right angle with enough speed—

Something shifted. I didn't know how but, suddenly, I was in the hallway. I turned around and caught sight of someone tall wearing a black suit, a red mask, and a top hat. "That's an interesting thing you have there, doctor."

I felt cold. There, sitting in the man's hands, was the device I had been holding. I dropped the cloth that had replaced it and took a step back, wary.

"You know, this doesn't have to be difficult. We only need you and one of your experiments for a little while." The man said.

"Y-You could've tried contacting me some other way."

"It's not that easy. You see, we couldn't talk to you at the hospital. And we certainly couldn't talk to you while you were with New Wave. I'll admit that we've been a little… overzealous… but we do require your assistance." The man lifted the contraption, pointing it at me. "Why don't you come quietly? It'll be easier if you do."

There was no way that I'd go with him.

I turned to run only to find myself standing back in my room. I stumbled and fell to the ground as the man tsked before he pulled back the lever on the device. I heard the sound as it unloaded before I felt something sharp stab into my side.

I moved my hand over the wound and pulled it to find my shaking fingers covered in blood. 'Oh, god. Oh, god. Ohgodohgodohgod...'

The man crouched down next to me. "Don't worry, doctor. We'll patch that right up." My vision began to fade to black. "After all, your creatures will only cooperate with us if we keep you alive."

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[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.7 - [NEXT]

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#75

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.8 - [NEXT]

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I couldn't remember what I had been doing before I had fainted. I could remember doing something in the living room and then changing into what I was wearing, but nothing after that. I had tried to remember what happened though all I got for my trouble was a jumbled mess of sight and sound I couldn't make head or tails of.

It was all I could do to avoid having a panic attack. Whatever had happened—whoever had taken me—had left me inside a small, locked room that reminded eerily me of the locker.

'Breathe, Taylor. Breathe.' I told myself. This wasn't the locker. It wasn't dark, cramped, or filled to the brim with biological waste. In fact, if it wasn't for the door being locked, I would've thought that it was a nice room. 'Breathe… 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10.'

Slowly, ever so slowly, I calmed down. I wasn't in any means fine with the situation, but I could deal with it. At least for a little while. I just needed to distract myself, to continue avoid thinking about what was going on.

Putting my ear to the door, I was able to make out hushed voices. I strained my ears in an attempt to hear what they were talking about, but I wasn't able to gather much. Just something about 'Noelle' and 'Time'.

What were they talking about? And why had they taken me? I was about to risk trying to get their attention when I heard a wet, plopping sound before the voices ceased talking. "H-Hello?"

No response.

I glanced around for something to defend myself with. Really, that should have been my first priority. But… there wasn't anything. Not really. The closest thing to a weapon I had was a drawer that I pulled out from the nightstand.

There came a sudden clamor. I didn't understand what was going on, only that the voices were agitated. From the sound of it… were they fighting someone? But, who?

"Meega… kweesta!"

Why did that sound so familiar? It took a moment for my mind to catch up; of course! That was Tantalog. Which meant that the people fighting the voices were my experiments, my children. They had come for me. But, how had they found the people that had kidnapped me?

"Just stay down!"

Something crashed against a wall. Then I heard the sound of what sounded like some sort of motor. A brief snippet of memory flowed forward, reminding me of how Link had brought out our chainsaw to get 'grilled cheese' off the ceiling. "You better not hurt yourself."

"They're… strong!"

"Too… of them!"

Someone screamed. Moments later, I heard something splat against the wall and a body hit the floor. Silence descended, I heard the tell-tale sound of footsteps. "Maka maka."

Was that Doubledip? "I'm in here! Doubledip! I'm in here!"

The footsteps quickened until they reached the outside of the room. The door groaned underneath the first punch and I stepped away from the doorway. That proved to be a good thing as the third punch ripped the door from its hinges and sent it hurtling at the small closet.

"Porma!" Doubledip cried, rushing towards me. I picked him up and squeezed him tight and had to fight back my own tears as he buried his head into my shoulder. "Porma," He breathed. "Porma, f-found y-you."

"Y-Yes, yes y-you did. I'm so p-proud of you."

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[PREV] – Staring Up: 6.8 - [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Kweesta - Destroy

Maka Maka - Hurry

Meega - Me

Meega Nala Kweesta - I want to destroy

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#76

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.9 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

It hadn't taken the PRT ten minutes to arrive on the scene. I would have preferred to have left though the PRT would have questions about what had happened. And New Wave was all about full accountability, right?

So, I spent five minutes answering their questions. Admittedly, I didn't know much. I just knew that the 'Travelers' had broken into my house, kidnapped me after I passed out, and that I woke up inside a dark room before being rescued by my children.

That did not, however, mean that I got off lightly. I was asked to translate for my children. It burned at me though I had to admit that the PRT officer had a point. Not everyone could understand Tantalog and it wasn't like all of my children spoke English.

In doing so, I learned more about what happened.

XxX=-=XxX

(Doubledip)

It wasn't supposed to happen. Porma had just told us that we would have coconut cake and ice cream to celebrate her getting her custom. I liked that we would be getting that, but I wouldn't have minded if we didn't have any. After all, I was still basking in the glow of everyone congratulating me.

Then, it all went wrong.

The door was ripped off its hinges and sent flying towards the staircase. Without thinking about it, I rushed towards it—Porma was going up the staircase. I had to protect her.

I was kicked by something that knocked the wind out of me before I was sent flying backwards. I crashed into the coffee table as my siblings rushed forward, confronting the intruders. I was still a little dazed from the impact, but I could see some kind of gorilla-like creature rush towards Link and Drowsy.

"N-Naga!"

I wasn't able to stop it in time. Ace crashed into me when I tried to get up, throwing us further into the room. I could only watch as the gorilla swung at Drowsy as he opened his mouth. And Drowsy fell.

Red tinted my vision. I felt something hot inside of my chest; something that demanded that I hurt that gorilla for hurting Drowsy. I launched myself at it against Ace's wishes, scratching at its hard skin as Link scrambled away. Only, the gorilla saw that and grabbed me in a crushing grip.

Link, who had been about to fire at the gorilla, stopped. I wanted to scream at him—tell him to fire anyway. It didn't matter what happened to me; we had to take these intruders out. But, he didn't. And so he fell as well when the gorilla used me to hit him over the head.

Spike slammed into the couch, dazed. Shortstuff jumped from the ceiling, attacking the kicker with furious swipes of his claws as Ace rushed towards me and the gorilla. "N-Naga! H-h-help S-Short—!"

The gorilla squeezed and, suddenly, I couldn't breathe.

Alfred—looking furious—started to raise his hands.

"Ah, ah, ah. You wouldn't want to do that, now would you?" The gorilla's grip eased a little, enough to allow me to turn me head and freeze.

'Porma.' A man held her in his arms with a knife to her throat. And there was something sticking out of her side, surrounded by blood. "Porma! Porma! Naga!"

"Yes. I don't really know how much you freaks care about this girl, but I can guess. If you want her to live, you will stand down. Now."

'Naga, naga, naga, naga, naga.' This couldn't be happening. This—this must be one of those 'nightmares' that Porma told us about. But, if it was… why did it hurt? The man demanded Doc come with them. I could only watch as Doc obeyed, wishing I could do something to stop what was happening. "Naga…"

The man and the kicker man left. The gorilla disappeared, leaving me to fall to the ground.

"PORMA!"

XxX=-=XxX

(Doc)

I was scared. I didn't know what to do—what could I do? If I tried to stop whatever was happening, then that man would hurt Porma. And they wouldn't let me heal her either!

"You'll get to heal her later. First, we have another 'patient' for you, Doc." The top hat-wearing man said. "Someone who is in desperate need of your help."

I wanted to yell at the man. To tell him that the only one I would heal would be Porma. But then the knife pressed closer to the skin of Porma's neck. I had saved Porma when that bad man had shot her, but I didn't know if I could save her if he cut her there. So I stayed quiet.

"Good. Now, will you heal our friend?"

Mutely, I nodded. I thought about somehow messing their 'friend' up. It would be so, so easy to do once I was inside his/her body. But if I did something to their 'friend', then they would do something to Porma. And even if I did manage to hurt their 'friend' and Porma wasn't hurt, Porma would never look the same way at me again.

"… Ih."

"Good."

The kicker man led us into the house. There, I saw my supposed 'patient'. I almost recoiled at the sight of her; while her torso was undeniably humanoid, her lower body was not. 'What happened to her?'

"Heal her and you get your precious 'Porma' back, Doc." The top-hat wearing man said before he shrugged. "Otherwise, she might not live too much longer."

I couldn't allow that to happen. So, nodding, I raced towards my 'patient' even as I began to shrink. I slipped in-between her skin cells and entered her bloodstream.

It—It was wrong. Wrong on a level I had never experienced before. For a couple of moments, I wondered if I would be able to fix what was wrong with her. Could I do it? I had to do it.

I got to work.

XxX=-=XxX

(Link)

I didn't know what I would do when we found the people who had kidnapped our Porma. I wanted to say that I wouldn't hurt them, but I didn't know if I could. Those men had kidnapped Porma, hurt Drowsy and Ace and Spike, took Doc, and had made Doubledip cry.

It had pulled at something I didn't know I had when I woke up to see the pure anguish on my oldest sibling's face. Everyone had tried to help him, but no one knew what to do or what to say. Porma would have, if she had been there, but she hadn't been.

Eventually, Doubledip calmed down enough to remember what he had done. What we had all congratulated him on doing before everything had went south.

It hadn't taken more than two minutes after that for us to begin tracking her. We all followed behind Doubledip who was single-mindedly following the scent of his saliva. If we hadn't stopped him a couple of times, he probably would've been run over at least five times.

Then, we arrived. Ace ripped the door off his hinges as the rest of us rushed inside. Doubledip launched himself at the top hat-wearing man's face, a raging patch of fur with claws. I stuck a girl to the wall with my glue as the kicker kicked Drowsy through a wall and outside. In retaliation, Spike unleashed a wave of his quills at the man.

The kicker might have gotten away if not for his scratched-up friend throwing Doubledip away. He tripped on Doubledip and, seizing the chance, I glued him to the wall as well. I then found myself on the other side of the room, next to the woman I'd glued, as Alfred stepped forward.

Out of Alfred's fingers emerged a fine, glittering yellow dust. It coated the top hat-wearing man and the second girl, forcing them to relax as their eyes became half-lidded.

That left one more man and another girl. We turned on them, furious and all-but begging them to give us an excuse. Sadly, they surrendered instead of trying to fight. I glued them to the wall next to the first girl.

Then, Doubledip came down. But he wasn't alone. "Porma!" The side of her costume was red and she was shaking as she cried, but it was our Porma.

Normally, we wouldn't be able to all hug her at once, but we somehow managed. "Porma. Porma. Porma. S-safe, now."

XxX=-=XxX

(Taylor)

"Thank you for your cooperation, ma'am." The PRT officer said. "We might need to contact you again to clarify a few things for us, but I think we've gotten enough." He hesitated. "If you want, we could give you a lift home?"

I shook my head. "I-I don't think so." I didn't want to be anywhere near the Travelers. And, really, I didn't want anyone else to know where I lived. "I'll just take a bus or something."

It would be hard considering that all of my children were present, but we'd manage. Somehow. If nothing else, I could ask New Wave to help us. I probably should call them—and Dad too—considering what had happened.

I just hoped they wouldn't be too angry at me. I didn't think I could take that right now.

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.9 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Naga - No

Porma - Mom or Mother

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#77

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6x (Interlude: Sarah Pelham) - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

In the beginning, I hadn't known what to think about Ms. Hebert. It had been easy to realize that she had some issue with the Protectorate though, even then, it had been a shock when she had approached us. The last time a new parahuman had gotten into contact with New Wave was a couple of days before Fleur had been murdered.

I whole-heartedly believed in the idea behind New Wave, but even I could admit that the New Wave movement had died after Fleur's death. That Donny had left as he did had rubbed salt in the wound and made the situation worse.

So, it had been surprising when, eight years later, Ms. Hebert had become an affiliate of New Wave. She was rightfully concerned about exposing her civilian identity and the potential consequences.

Shortly afterward, Ms. Hebert had created Doc. She had been under no obligation to create an experiment to help Amy, but she had. And if she had been able, I knew that she would have allowed Doc to start helping Amy at the hospital that very day.

Then, Ms. Hebert had made a deal with Mark. In exchange for financial aid, Ms. Hebert would create two experiments that could help New Wave. It had been surprising not because of how much he offered her, but because of the fact that he had taken the initiative.

Something about Ms. Hebert had seemed to affect Mark. Inspired him, even. He slowly become more involved with the day-to-day operations of New Wave, offering his input where he had been silent before, and generally having infrequent 'bad days'. It was amazing.

Then Ms. Hebert had been shot. I couldn't express how guilty I'd felt when I heard the news. If we had just made sure that nothing was going on, Ms. Hebert wouldn't have had tried to save that woman's life. And she wouldn't have come so close to death.

Victoria had been on the warpath. It was only Amy that prevented her from attempting to hunt down those two men and beat them bloody for what they had done. Judging from how much damage she had done to select boats in the Boat Graveyard, it was a good thing she hadn't. If she had then she would probably have been arrested and put on trial for homicide.

I hadn't expected Ms. Hebert to remain after what had happened. Only, she didn't seem to mind what my carelessness had allowed to pass. She had even forgiven me.

More to the point, Ms. Hebert had asked to join New Wave. She had been worried that those men had seen her face and could point her out if she ever decided to go public. I had felt even more guilty hearing that though Ms. Hebert hadn't seemed to mind.

To make it up to her, I had thrown myself into helping her prepare. I had been reminded of when I had taught Crystal and Eric of what it meant to be apart of New Wave. And, strangely, I found that I didn't mind the comparison.

Ms. Hebert—Taylor—had become more than just an associate; she'd become a teammate, family.

So when Mr. Hebert had called me after coming home to find his living room in ruins and Taylor gone, it hadn't taken long before New Wave was out looking for her. And we were out for blood.

This was the second time that one of us had been threatened. The second time that someone had broken into one of our houses. Only, this time it seemed that whoever had broken into Taylor's home had kidnapped Taylor and her experiments.

XxX=-=XxX

It had taken awhile before things had calmed down. After Amy had finished checking up on Taylor, Victoria had managed to get her to tell us what had happened.

"So, they kidnapped you because they wanted Doc to heal their friend?" Victoria asked.

Taylor nodded. "Y-yeah. I told the guy—Trickster—that he could have just asked, but… he didn't think that we would've healed her. I tried to run, b-but he used his power and shot me."

I didn't miss how Taylor's hand reflexively went to the site of her former wound. She relaxed slightly though not by much. I'd have to make sure to let Mr. Hebert know what to watch for.

"You don't have to worry about them anymore, Taylor. Not only will they have the Protectorate after them for what they did, they'll have us to deal with too." Eric said before he mock-shuddered. "Just imagine the look on their faces when Aunt Carol gets done with them."

"What?"

Crystal smiled. "You didn't think that we would let them go so easily, did you? Even if we can't do anything to them, that doesn't mean that Aunt Carol can't. She's out for blood now."

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[PREV] – Starting Up: 6x (Interlude: Sarah Pelham) - [NEXT]

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

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#78

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.10- [NEXT]

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I couldn't seem to find the strength to move. I had known that my children's fight against the Travelers had destroyed a lot of stuff, but I hadn't thought of how much.

The living room was in ruins. All of the furniture had either been smashed or broken, the windows shattered, while the walls and floor were covered in an assortment of cracks and small craters. Here and there, I could see places where the carpet had been torn up or ripped during the battle.

Even though I wanted to look away, I couldn't. I could only stare at the destruction. I could almost see what had happened here and how hard my children had fought to defend themselves against the intruders.

'… How are they ever going to feel safe here again?' I asked myself. Honestly, I didn't think that I would feel safe here ever again. Not after that safety had been breached, after hearing that battle, after being stabbed in my bedroom… 'I—I have to be strong. For them.'

It was hard. For a moment, I was actually glad that they weren't here with me. If only for a few moments, I could let my guard down and try to come to grip with what happened.

Unlike when I had been shot, I could remember what it had felt like to be stabbed. I could remember the face of my attacker and remembered how powerless I had felt when it had happened. How—How as I supposed to protect myself if something like that happened again?

How could I protect my children if I couldn't protect myself?

My power offered me no answers. It only gave me possible children that I could create that would protect me. But, I didn't want that. I needed something else.

There was something. I stumbled, grabbing onto a nearby wall as pain exploded behind my eyes. I could almost feel the idea slipping away, but held onto it. I needed this—this thing. If it could help me protect myself, protect my children, then I needed it. And I would be damned before I allowed it to slip back into obscurity.

The edges of my vision slowly darkened. I grit my teeth and pushed on, mentally shoving away the increasingly frantic bursts of possible experiments from my power. And I grabbed it.

It was—it was beautiful. A device so simple that even a child could craft it—if they knew how—with materials that I could get if I made a certain experiment. And then I'd have what I wanted.

'Wait… T-There's more?' What was that strange coppery taste? 'It's not just a g-gun… it's more… How—how much stuff is in here?'

"… Taylor?'

"Porma?!"

I turned sluggishly and smiled at everyone's concerned faces. "I did it. I found a way—I can m-make something so that I can protect m-myself… protect e-everybody…"

Why was it getting so dark?

I could see Dad mouth something, feel as he pulled me up, and how my children rushed forward. The expressions on their faces were a little worrying, but I could find out why they were so concerned later. I just needed to sleep right now.

XxX=-=XxX

I dreamed.

I dreamed of technology untold. I was caught within a stream of information moving so fast that I could barely see it yet I understood. There was so much—too much—things I could make. If I could even build a quarter of these things…

I dreamed of space. Of countless stars, planets, moons, and comets. Of alien species too numerous to count, of tongues that no human could ever hope to speak. I could see the beginnings of Tantalog and how different species had inspired the genetic experiments'—my children—creation…

It's too much!

I dreamed of a bright blue and green world. It was so similar to Earth Bet and yet different. I glimpsed countless numbers of humans, scattered populations of aliens, and the genetic experiments. Of learning from them and their creator…

What—what is this? I don't—

I dreamed of consuming that world. Of how the genetic experiments had resisted—wounded me—and how close to victory they had been. Of moving away to search for another, less dangerous world. Of the T̅̃̿̈́͏̧̝͎̺̟͕h̨̡̤͇͎̮̘̺͓̦̠̫̯̱̣̣̜̪ͪ̋͒̑͑͘ͅͅͅį̷̹̲͙̳̠̲͕̀̃̉̔͒ͥ̈̎̇͛ͯ̓͒̍n̴͖̤͍̝̦͔̲͑͒͂̈̋̆ͧ̔̅͐̅͗ͣ̏̚̚͘͘̕͢k̳̲̗̭͈̋͌ͤ̈ͩ̾̂͒̋ͥ̔͑̓͞͠e͆͋̒͂̂͑͑ͪ͌̒̅͛͊͑͂҉̞̖̖̯̪̗͎̥̩̰̳r̷̴̞͍̘̞͚͎͉̖͎̪͚̟ͦ̋̑͂̄̈͆ͤ̄͗ͦ̅ͣ̋͠ͅand the W̢̢̨̠͇͔̣̤̻͊̋ͨ̆́͆ͦ̾͛̒́̈ͮͫͣ͝à̶̡̢̱͍̤̺͙̪͈̳̘̱͕̜̉̋͗̋̐ͯͯͧ͜ř̷̢̹̞̫͙̝̖̰̮̱̰̹ͨͯ̓̽͑͋ͮ̇̀͒̏͜͡ŗ̧̦̻̹̪̲̥̫̥͇̪͔͉̰̘̰̭̅ͮ̔̓̅ͯ͑̔ͣͨ͘͢͞iͫ̓ͩ̐ͭͫͫ́̽͛͑͏͎̜̪̱̲̺̱̙̖̙̲̟͖͢͜͡͠o̷̡̥͍̪̮̦̠̼͇̙͂̓̃̊͑ͦ͗͊́͢͡ͅr̴̶̷̨̨̞͔͖̱̺̖̯̱̱͖̖͎͛̔͒̉̀ͪͧ͊͂̍͂͌͒ͧ̾͌̇ͫ and how I'd crashed, sharing S̷̶͉͎̰̹͍̰̜̭̬͈ͭͪ͂͐̉ͯ͛͌̋ͣͪ̎̊̓ͥ̚̚̕͜ḩ̴̵̷̲̞̪̫̹͚̖͈͎̫̯̥̠̥̠͎̩̙̰́̆͊͒̄̊̽̐͋̂ͦͦͩ̕a̋̾̏́͊҉̷̺̠͙̙͇̗͕̲̺̩̹͇̲̮r̷̵̡̆̇̍͆͆͑̈͌͛̇̊̏̐̍͌ͭͫ́̎͠͏̜̦̮̬̭̬d̘̺͇̣̟͇͚͎̰̼̫̼͓̘̯̖͍́̈͑͊̄̎ͨ̉̑̓̃̕s̡̻̹͕͇̳̺̯̦̫̗̟̙̞͒̃̐́ͧ̕ͅ with the T̅̃̿̈́͏̧̝͎̺̟͕h̨̡̤͇͎̮̘̺͓̦̠̫̯̱̣̣̜̪ͪ̋͒̑͑͘ͅͅͅį̷̹̲͙̳̠̲͕̀̃̉̔͒ͥ̈̎̇͛ͯ̓͒̍n̴͖̤͍̝̦͔̲͑͒͂̈̋̆ͧ̔̅͐̅͗ͣ̏̚̚͘͘̕͢k̳̲̗̭͈̋͌ͤ̈ͩ̾̂͒̋ͥ̔͑̓͞͠e͆͋̒͂̂͑͑ͪ͌̒̅͛͊͑͂҉̞̖̖̯̪̗͎̥̩̰̳r̷̴̞͍̘̞͚͎͉̖͎̪͚̟ͦ̋̑͂̄̈͆ͤ̄͗ͦ̅ͣ̋͠ͅ as I traveled…

No—this can't-this can't be true. I wouldn't—I would never hurt my children. This—this isn't me. I would never—What are those things?!

I dreamed of flying, waiting. Of being directed towards a human 'girl' inside a 'locker' who wished for nothing more than to have friends. Of supplying her with the information on how to make friends. It would be interesting to see what those genetic experiments could do as allies as opposed to enemies…

O-Oh, God. This—this can't be real, right?

I dreamed of the end. Of theW̢̢̨̠͇͔̣̤̻͊̋ͨ̆́͆ͦ̾͛̒́̈ͮͫͣ͝à̶̡̢̱͍̤̺͙̪͈̳̘̱͕̜̉̋͗̋̐ͯͯͧ͜ř̷̢̹̞̫͙̝̖̰̮̱̰̹ͨͯ̓̽͑͋ͮ̇̀͒̏͜͡ŗ̧̦̻̹̪̲̥̫̥͇̪͔͉̰̘̰̭̅ͮ̔̓̅ͯ͑̔ͣͨ͘͢͞iͫ̓ͩ̐ͭͫͫ́̽͛͑͏͎̜̪̱̲̺̱̙̖̙̲̟͖͢͜͡͠o̷̡̥͍̪̮̦̠̼͇̙͂̓̃̊͑ͦ͗͊́͢͡ͅr̴̶̷̨̨̞͔͖̱̺̖̯̱̱͖̖͎͛̔͒̉̀ͪͧ͊͂̍͂͌͒ͧ̾͌̇ͫ.

O-Oh, God. Oh, G-God. I—I have to tell somebody! This—this is horrible! I h-have to t-tell someone—a-anyone…

L̶͍̫͔̖̹̪̞̟͕̣̮̻̤̹̑̒ͪͣ̎̎ͮ͐̈ͤ͂̊͌̾̑ͯ͢eͬ̋ͤͥ̾̽ͧͣͣͣͦͦͪ͠͏̙͉̬̩́͠ͅt̶̶̛̟̹̘͉̰̱͍̽̋̆ͨͤ͟ͅ'̧̛̱͚͍̭̫͓̫̘̻̻͔ͥ͂ͦ̃̍̅͘͞͞ş̷̷̨͈͚̯̰͍̲̣̝̟̻̮̰̰̤̱̬͉̞͉̙̺̭̤̳̳̍̿̑ͨ̌ͪͫ̀̿͗ͤ͊̅̄͑ͥͭ́̈̈ͣͪͣ̓ͤ̕͞S̔̓ͤ̔̃͏̧̰̤̰̗̪̠̺͇͎͖ȩ̢̗̬̱̖̯̗͎̜̞͙̩̤̯̯ͨ̽́ͨ̓ͫ̉ͫ̎ͣ̍͢ē̴̗̪̰͇̲̥̺̳͙̼̘̟͇̯̫̳ͣ̈́͐̃ͥ̽̀̌̽̍ͥ̒ͧͯͥ̐͌̍̎̄̌̓̑̆͛̂ͤͩ̄ͨ̒̀̽͘͝͠ͅ͏̯̖͍͙̺̹̠̹͇Ẉ̵̷̝̭̞͇̘͉̟̬̘͇̙̦̱ͥ͋͛̑ͦ̔͐̌̿͂͌̈́͋͘͟͜ḩ̤̭̞̥̔͛̄̔̀͟͠ą̷̐ͥ̄͑̀҉͏̭̙̘̘̤̹̻̘̦ţ̠̭̳̜͙̤͇̘̰̤͕̘̳̻̜̹͚̋ͧ͌̏͒͋̌̌ͥͭͧ̔̉̉̀̏̋̌͑͊̌̉̈̒̋̀̚͜Y̦̬͓̪͚̮̦̿̽̑̐͆̽͊̿̅͒̈͒̀͊̏̅̂ͥ͂́͢ͅo̢͒͛̔̉̉͆ͤ̈́̆͒ͥ͝͠͏̙̬̭̻͔̲̼ṷ̸̷̸̡͉̬̟̘̣̮̝̤̖̪̤̘̣͇̞̟̮͕̫͇͇̰̼͕̳̞̤̘͎̂͋̅͋̔ͦ̋̿̆̄̅̋̃̍͋̕͜͞C̛̓ͫ̽͂̊̇͂͏̟͎͓͚͙͟a̶͈̞̫͎͕̲̻͉͇̣̟̺̫̖͗̽̋̈́ͧ͂ͥ̎̄̔͆̓́̕ͅn̷̛̩͈̫͚̬̖̙̱̗̻̗͖̯̻̙͖̣̼̪̮͙̞͊̏̍͛͋ͤͮ̇̑ͩ̋̃́̍̈ͣ̾ͮͣ̍ͧ͊̔͞͡͝D̷̢͙͈͉̰̗̹͉̝̘̜̈ͣ͛̋͘ȯ̧̧̮̝̹̰̥͉̰̲̩͕̘͔̭̮̼ͬ̓̍̑̇͒̀͐̔ͪͪͮ̚͠͝,̶̶̸̡̧̼̙̞̘͓͖̲̘̘̲͓͖͙̭̙̣̙̥̫̻̟͓̮͚͇̹̩ͤͤ̒̈̉ͤ̒͊͑͗ͪ̾ͮ̎̎ͬ̀͊̾̀̚͘͡T̵̑̂̓͊̎ͮ̈́͋̍ͥ̚͞͏̴̭͇̣̜̹̣͈ȁ̢̅ͬ̾͞͏͏̱̖̯̗͎ͅỹ̴͔̳̤̳͉̝̜̭͚̤̟̫̟͔̰͐̂̊ͬ͂ͭ̈́ͬ̾ͨ̆̓̃͝͞ͅl̹̬̹̦̮̦ͭ̍̉ͣ̒̉̀̀̚̕͠͡ͅͅŏ͊̓̃̉҉͈̱͔͚͜͟ͅr̡̢ͯ̌ͥ̉̄̐̓̇̍ͦ͗ͤ̊͒̿͢͟͏͎͕̝̟̜̣͇͔͓̫͕͉̬͚̮̳̙̫̹̬̯͋̋ͣ̾̀̈́ͥ̉̄͘͝͞H̷̨̡̙̜͔͓̰̻͓̤͉̬͔ͨ̉̇ͥͧ͒͌́́̐̌̈́͗̈̀e̸̢̛̹̩̣̪̰͚̙̤͇̣̠̭̲̞̜̘̬͕ͯͮͧ̒̅ͥͮͥ͒ͯ͆̕͟b̵̲̺̮͖̠̖̪̭̮̮̙̯̪̥́̆ͫ̽̏̽̂̾ͮͭ̏͑ͦ͟͢͞eͯ̌ͭͬ̐̾ͪ́̄̾̔̈́͌͛̆̿͆ͨ͘҉̭̗̬͎̯ŗ̧̥͈̯̩͕̹͇̮̯͈̰̘̙̱͔͈̈̂̒ͪ̎͋̑͂͒ͭ͛ͥ͌̆ͥ͗͒͘t̶̡ͧͪ́̋ͭ͊̚҉҉͇͖̠̫͉̻͉̩̦̭͙ͅ

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[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.10- [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Starting Up: 6.11

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#79

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.11- [NEXT]

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I had often wondered about the power I had. I had been grateful to have such a power—to have any power, really—though I only understood a few things about it. A lot of the experiments within each 'library' seemed superfluous or designed to do something ridiculous such as popping popcorn or poking holes in objects.

Now, I understood why. These 'libraries' were filled with the knowledge that thing had learned from the experiments' creator before it had turned on him.

I had always found it weird that I had chosen to be called 'Dr. Jookiba'. It wasn't until now that I realized that the name fit because it was also the name of the person who had originally created my children. A heavy-set, four-eyed alien named Jumba Jookiba.

I had actually started comparing myself to what I—to what that thing—knew of him. We had both created 'illegal' genetic experiments and had both set out to help people. Only, I had set out to try and help Brockton Bay get better while he had set out to help his partner overthrow the 'Galactic Alliance'.

There was also a difference in the way we cared for the experiments. He hadn't spent as much time around them as I had and hadn't really thought about why he shouldn't create a specific experiment. I had spent pretty much all of my free time around my children.

I felt my heart ache for Jumba's experiments. For so long, they hadn't had anyone to turn to or a place that they could call home. If it wasn't for that girl than they probably wouldn't have ever found either of those things. And after finding that and starting to feel safe and happy, that was ripped out from underneath them by that thing.

And from what I had learned from that thing, the same thing could happen to my children. That it would happen unless I did something.

That thing had actually taunted me; asking what I could do to stop the inevitable. Honestly, I didn't know if I could stop what was going to happen. But I could at least try to stop it.

Ć̷̢͖̣͚̳̘̀̑̆͒̚͠h̛̜̼̙͕̼͒͐͛̽ͤa̡̬̩̠̓͌̾ͥͫ̅͒̀l̛͕̗̝̉͡͡l͕̪̒͛͟e̗͇̝ͤ̽ͫͯ̀n̴͎̂̑̈́͑̅̍ͯͦ̾͘ǧ̄͒͗̓̎̓҉̵̝̪̙̦͓e̡̧̡̫̠͚͖̩̠͕̬̞̐͋A̸̢͙͖̗̩̱̝ͣ̊͐ͮͦ͒̆c̹͔̙͒̊̾ͬͯ͗ͩ͜c̵̶̯̳̙̲̗͔͆͋͋͛́̿ͮͩ̚ȩ̶͇͇̱̗̣̤̃ͣ͗ͥ̽ͥ̏ͥ͞p͋̇̚҉̷͈̘̼̖̹͍t̤͇͎ͬ̎͐̋̊͡ȩ̸̠̂̓̇ͨͧ͝d

͓̙̤̯͉͇ͫ̑ͫ͛͟͟ͅͅ

Oh, shit. It could hear my—

XxX=-=XxX

I woke up practically drenched in sweat. It felt like my heart was trying to beat its way out of my chest and it hurt. I felt someone grab my hand and whisper sweet nothings into my ear, telling me that everything was going to be alright.

Slowly, ever so slowly, my breaths evened out and my heart calmed. Someone pressed something blessedly cold on my forehead and I relaxed even further.

"How are you feeling, kiddo?"

Dad. I blinked open my eyes to find him hovering over me with a worried expression on his face. How was I supposed to tell him—tell anyone—what I had seen? They'd call me crazy and lock me up in some psych ward. But Dad wouldn't think I was crazy… right?

I hesitated for a few moments before I told him. How I had felt standing in the entryway, chasing down that errant thought, and everything that happened afterwards. It felt—it felt good.

It wasn't until I heard a hesitant "Porma" that I realized that my children were in the room. And, judging from their expressions, they had heard everything.

'What kind of parent am I?' I thought, ashamed and disgusted with myself. I should have made sure that they weren't in the room. They hadn't needed to hear that.

Doubledip climbed onto my bed and made me look at him. "D-Doubled-dip help Porma. B-beat b-bad thing."

"Y-Yeah! T-together, we can d-do it!" Shortstuff agreed.

"Superheroes s-save the day! Ace help too!"

Doc nodded. "Doc heal h-hurt!"

"Link help Porma!" Link declared, "Glue bad thing so it c-can't move!"

Drowsy gave me a thumbs up.

"Meega help P-Porma! N-nobody ever h-hurt her again! N-not even bad t-thing!" Spike said, empathizing his point by making his quills stand out.

Doubledip hopped onto my bedframe, "T-together f-fight b-bad t-thing!"

"Ih!"

"Tog-gether w-win!" Doubledip continued passionately. "F-fight b-bad thing, w-win! F-For Porma! For E-Earth B-Bet! And f-for the o-others!"

"Ih!"

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[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.11- [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Starting Up: 6.12

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#80

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.12- [NEXT]

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I could have spent days down in my laboratory. Now that I was aware of what might happen in the future, I didn't want to sit still. If I could be doing something—anything—that would even marginally mitigate that outcome, I had to at least try to do it.

Perhaps, if I had enough materials, I could devote my time to designing and creating experiments. I could drop out of school and get my General Educational Diploma. Dad wouldn't like it, but he hadn't seen what monsters like that thing were capable of.

Unfortunately, I would need to create—recreate?—Jumba's Experiment 052 before I could really start working. I shelved that experiment for now, though, because of a more pressing concern.

I needed Jumba's Experiment 120. It had been one of the first that thing had struck down and that was because its ability interfered with its power to see a clear path to victory over that Earth. I didn't know if the Warrior had a similar power, but it was best to hedge my bets. And, this time, the Warrior wouldn't be aware of who was interfering with its ability.

Experiment 120 was but one of the experiments I would need to create to defeat the Warrior. All of those experiments that thing had targeted because it was afraid of their ability was another experiment that could potentially hurt and/or destroy the Warrior.

Was it ironic that the majority of those experiments were apart of Dad's 'forbidden' list of experiments? Maybe.

I just—I couldn't stop right now. If I stopped now, then I would have to deal with the situation. That I was using a part of my children's—Jumab's experiments—murderer in order to create them. That the once untouchable and good hero known as Scion was actually a planet-eating monster. That people had only gained powers as a part of some sick, twisted cycle that would end with the Warrior and the Thinker consuming the world.

So, I worked. I created the template for Experiment 009 and set my machine to creating him. I gathered parts and started to assemble inferior though workable versions of a 'plasma gun'. I created two machines; one to create and capture plasma and the other to use that plasma to craft ammo for the plasma gun.

Once that was over, I set about creating some of the other ammo that Jumba had created. He had really been a genius to invent and design so much technology. If only he had used his intellect for something other than evil.

'He was, in the end.'

I shook off the thought. Don't think about, don't think about it, don't think about it. I didn't even know Jumba—only of what that thing had seen and learned from him. But, I felt like I did. I was using his knowledge—his inventions—to create things.

'I wonder if you would be proud of me, Jumba…' I thought as I closed the top of the latest, pink, ammo canister. 'I'm doing my best. I just—I'm sorry, Jumba.'

I knew him. I had never met him before and yet, I knew him. I had seen the family he had created and how much they loved one another. And I had seen it when that thing had started killing them off one-by-one before it claimed his life as well.

The best thing that I could do for Jumba was make sure that something like that never happened again. To prevent my world from suffering the same fate his had. Still, even that felt empty. I just didn't know what else to do.

I didn't want to think about the Warrior. A part of me was still reeling from everything I had learned. It couldn't believe that Scion—the 'Original Parahuman'—could be what that thing's memory painted it out to be. Only, the resemblance between that thing's avatar and Scion was unmistakable. And I—I needed to do something about it.

It was ridiculous, but I felt alone. I felt better knowing that my children were going to help, but they hadn't seen what I had. Nor did I ever want them seeing that. And with the way Dad had looked after I told him… I continued working.

Honestly, the plasma guns would have little to no effect on the Warrior. They hadn't on that thing. But maybe they would help other people against other things that they couldn't normally overcome? Like the E88 or ABB or the Merchants. Maybe even against threats like the Slaughterhouse Nine or the Three Blasphemies.

Would Miss Militia like them? Maybe. Maybe she would even be able to create them after I explained things to her—as far as I knew, she could create any weapon she'd seen before. Armsmaster would be interested, I thought…

That is, if any of them would believe me. I could maybe convince New Wave, but I had no idea if the PRT or the Protectorate would believe me. If they didn't, they would call me crazy.

I set down my soldering iron for a moment before I felt a hand on my shoulder, stopping me. I turned bleary eyes to see my dad standing behind me with an unreadable expression on his face.

"… How can I help?"

Something caught in my throat. He wanted to help? Dumbly, I nodded and pointed over towards the plasma gun and the line of ammo I made. "C-Could you make sure they fire okay?"

I was afraid of what he would say. That he would want to do something more productive or that he could object to seeing Experiment 009 growing within my machine. Hadn't he once told me that I shouldn't create more experiments than we could afford? How long had it been since I had passed that line and he just hadn't said anything? Why hadn't he said anything?

Only, he didn't say anything. He simply nodded and moved over towards the plasma gun. He spared a brief glance at Experiment 009, then me, before picking up the weapon and screwing in the first ammo canister. It sealed with a click.

"… The plasma should burn the wall, but it won't do more than that. It was made so that it would stun enemies instead of killing them long enough for Galactic Alliance soldiers to secure them." I explained. "The other colors represent a different kind of ammo, but designed for the same purpose."

Dad squared his shoulders, grabbed the gun in a two-handed grip, and aimed at spot on the wall. He fired the weapon and the 'bullet' took the form as a green fireball that slammed against the wall. Like I said, it left a faint burn mark behind.

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[PREV] – Starting Up: 6.12- [NEXT]

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Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#81

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6x (Interlude: PHO) - [NEXT]

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Topic: New BB Cape

In: Boards ►Places ► America ► Brockton Bay ► Capes

Blaze_er2000 (Original Poster)

Replied on February 15, 2011:

Hey guys. I just wanted to start this up so that we could talk about what we know of Brockton Bay's newest cape. If you don't know what I'm talking about, here's a link.

►LiterarySmith

Replied on February 15, 2011:

That is some outfit he/she is wearing. I mean, who wears stuff like that?

►Rev

Replied on February 15, 2011:

LiterarySmith, maybe she couldn't afford something better. Not all capes have the money to buy quality gear or can build themselves a super suit. And I don't think its as bad as you're making it out to be. It's a little strange, but… somehow, it works.

Anyone know what her power is yet?

►XxX_Seer_XxX

Replied on February 15, 2011:

I think it has to do something with those things following him/her (link). I'm guessing that they're some sort of projection, so maybe he/she is some sort of Master/Breaker?

►Tommy23P

Replied on February 15, 2011:

No, those can't be projections. You can see here that they don't have to be with him/her. I'm thinking that he/she created those things. Definitely a Tinker of some sort.

►LiterarySmith

Replied on February 15, 2011:

A Tinker? I think I could see it. Still, if she's a Tinker, then why hasn't she built herself some gear? He/she can't expect to go out looking like that. It wouldn't even protect her from the Merchants and that is saying something.

►Blaz_er2000

Replied on February 15, 2011:

LiterarySmith: Not all capes have to go out, you know. I'm not saying that he/she won't, but he/she will probably take on a less-involved role if he/she does. I'm just interested to see what those things she has with her can do. I mean, besides from making me want to cuddle them.

►SteeveMC-59

Replied on February 15, 2011:

That's not important, guys! Do you see that building he/she just went into? That's the law firm Brandish works at!

►Tommy23P

Replied on February 15, 2011:

Really?

►XxX_Jiminy436

Replied on February 15, 2011:

Steeve's right!

►591034

Replied on February 15, 2011:

Why is he/she going there?

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, - 15

Topic: New Wave XXII

In: Boards ► Places ► America ► Brockton Bay ► Teams ► Heroes

BBWatcher (Original Poster)

Replied on February 27, 2011:

New Wave is an independent team of heroes operating in Brockton Bay. Once the Brockton Bay Brigade, they became New Wave when they decided to 'give up the mask' and accept full responsibility for all past, present, and future actions. The movement behind the group, dubbed the 'New Wave' movement, died when Fleur was killed in her own home and Lightstar left the group.

New Wave consists of:

Brandish:

· White bodysuit with orange trim.

· Hard light weaponry, hard light defense.

Flashbang:

· White bodysuit with green trim.

· Creates explosive/concussive spheres of light.

Glory Girl:

· White dress, capes, and boots with gold trim.

· Standard Alexandria Package and aura.

Panacea:

· White robe with a red healer's cross.

· Healing.

Lady Photon/Photon Mom:

· White bodysuit with purple/indigo trim.

· Flight, hard light beams, and forcefields.

Manpower:

· White bodysuit with yellow trim.

· Electromagnetic augmentation; increased strength and speed.

Laserdream:

· White bodysuit with pink/magenta trim.

· Flight, hard light beams, and forcefields.

Shielder:

· White bodysuit with blue trim.

· Flight, hard light beams, and forcefields.

Now, however, they seem to have accepted a new member:

Dr. Jookiba.

· Four-eyed mask, purple balaclava, and Hawaiian t-shirt.

· Construction/creation of creatures with varied abilities.

Edit:

Dr. Jookiba's creations:

Ace:

· Red, dog creature.

· Unknown.

Link:

· Yellow, rabbit-like creature.

· Fires sticky, glue-like substance.

Drowsy:

· White sheep-like creature.

· Instant sleep.

Doc:

· Gray/green creature.

· Healing.

Doppler2190

Replied on February 27, 2011:

I still can't believe that Dr. Jookiba is going to join New Wave. I mean… why? Doesn't she care that this could put her family at risk? Just look at what happened to Fleur.

591034

Replied on February 27, 2011:

Doppler2190: I don't think New Wave would allow something like that to happen again. I also don't believe that anyone would be that stupid to try a stunt like that again after what happened to the last person.

►Tommy23P

Replied on February 27, 2011:

BBWatcher: You forgot to add the creatures that are working with New Wave:

Ace:

· Red, dog creature.

· Unknown.

Link:

· Yellow, rabbit-like creature.

· Fires sticky, glue-like substance.

Drowsy:

· White sheep-like creature.

· Instant sleep.

Doc:

· Gray/green creature.

· Healing.

►XxedXx00

Replied on February 27, 2011:

Why aren't you guys freaking out?! Dr. Jookiba is like Nilbog! Do you remember what he did?! If people don't put a stop to her now, then she could end up turning Brockton Bay into Ellisburg 2.0! I say we Birdcage her now, before she can create more of those abominations!

{This User has received an infraction for: Unwarranted Personal Attack(s)}

►Ze5tsu

Replied on February 27, 2011:

XxedXx00: What are you talking about? Dr. Jookiba is nothing like Nilbog!

►Tin_Mother (Mod)

Replied on February 27, 2011:

XxedXx00: Your post is not acceptable. I can understand that some might be weary of Dr. Jookiba's apparent power, but she has done nothing wrong.

►Pie259

Replied on February 27, 2011:

I'm not saying that I agree all the way with XxedXx00, but you gotta admit that Dr. Jookiba shares some similarities with Nilbog. I mean, what is to stop her from creating an army of those creatures? Not saying that she would, but...

I'm just worried about waking up to find that she's created more than 50 of those creatures.

►Laserdream (Verified Cape)

Replied on February 27, 2011:

It seems that Tin_Mother beat me to the punch. Still, I feel the need to clear some things up. Having met Dr. Jookiba, I can honestly say that she is nothing like Nilbog. She is a strong, kind person who only wants to help people. If she had some form of combat power, she'd be out on the streets fighting with us. As she doesn't, however, she contributes by allowing her experiments—Link and Drowsy—to help us out on patrols while Doc has started to help Panacea at the hospital.

►Glory Girl (Verified Cape)

Replied on February 27, 2011:

Yeah. Dr. Jookiba is a good person. Helped me out a lot.

►Yue47:

Replied on February 27. 2011:

Glory Girl: Do tell. Please?

►XxedXx00

Replied on February 27, 2011

I'm out of here. But don't come crying to me when this situation blows up in everyone's faces.

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, - 48

Topic: Travelers Busted!

In: Boards ► Places ► America ► Teams ►The Travelers

All_Seeing_Eye (Original Poster)

Replied on March 6, 2011:

It seems that the Travelers' days are over. Having come to Brockton Bay, they seem to have learned and then staged a kidnapping of Dr. Jookiba. Details are scare—and the PRT is tight-lipped—but it seems as if Dr. Jookiba was able to escape and defeat them with the aid of her experiments.

What awaits our traveling friends next?

►0xoX_Jason

Replied on March 6, 2011:

To think that I used to think they were cool. I mean, they did some pretty bad stuff, but kidnapping another cape? Jeeze. I hope that they've got some good lawyers.

►Piece_of_the_Puzz8le

Replied on March 6, 2011:

Yeah. I heard from a friend that Brandish might get involved; they'll need a damn good lawyer if they want to have a hope of beat her.

►591034

Replied on March 6, 2011:

Yeah. Still, I'm a little confused as to why they did this? They've been wandering around the countryside ever since they first appeared? Why head to Brockton Bay? Why kidnap Dr. Jookiba? Hopefully we'll learn more about what's going on.

►Clockblocker (Verified Cape)

Replied on March 6, 2011:

I don't think you guys want to know. It seems like the reason the Travelers were moving was because of this one cape they had. She couldn't controlled her powers and caused a couple of incidents. *Shudders*

►Piece_of_the_Puzz8le

Replied on March 6, 2011:

Holy...! I can't believe it! The Travelers were responsible for that?!

►0xoX_Jason

Replied on March 6, 2011:

0-0

No wonder they wanted Dr. Jookiba's healing creature! I mean, jeeze... That is some scary stuff. How did nobody connect the dots before now?

►Clockblocker (Verified Cape)

Replied on March 6, 2011:

Yeah. I just hope that what Doc did to her sticks. If it doesn't...

►591034

Replied on March 6, 2011:

Clockblocker: I think we can all agree that it would be better if the healing stuck. I wouldn't want anything bad to happen now, when things have started to settle down.

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, - 19

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Starting Up: 6x (Interlude: PHO) - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

33XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.1 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"Taylor."

I looked up from my sketch of an anti-gravity engine to see Dad standing over me. I opened my mouth to ask if he needed something else to do when he gestured at something behind me. Turning, I saw that Experiment 009 was being pulled into the containment module.

Oh. Had I really been working that long?

Abandoning the anti-gravity engine for now, I got up and approached the containment module with Dad. Had Dad been there when my children came into the world? He had. Only, he didn't usually come with me when I first greeted my children. It was both comforting and a little disquieting.

Experiment 009 was a small, teal creature with a wide mouth, white underbelly, small tail, black markings running down his back, and three prehensile tentacles on each side of his head.

I was already running through some possible names. Part of me wanted to name him Snafu because of his ability though the rest of me didn't feel comfortable with that. So, something similar then? 'Jumble, Mess, Tangle, Muddle…'

Dad looked like he wanted to say something, but held his tongue. I stared at him for a couple of moments before turning back to the containment module when I heard something.

Experiment 009 looked around blearily as his tentacles tapped the side of the module again, confused.

"Hello, Muddle." I greeted him.

Muddle turned towards me and his eyes narrowed. He rubbed at his eyes with a spare tentacle, blinked, and stared as a grin slowly formed on his face. "P-Porma."

I opened the containment module and beckoned him forward. He hesitated for a moment before he lifted himself off the floor with his tentacles and walked towards me. He stopped at the hatch of the containment module, looking a little scared, and I told him that it was okay.

"O-Oketaka, Porma."

Muddle stepped out of the containment module and looked around. His eyes widened at the sight of Dad and would have retreated back into the module if I hadn't picked him up first. "It's okay, Muddle. That's just my Dad, your Grandpa. He won't hurt you."

"… Oketaka."

"You also have some siblings. They don't know about you yet, but they'll be so happy to meet you. They might seem a little scary too, but I promise you they won't hurt you." I continued. "Nobody here would ever hurt you purposefully."

"O-Oketake, Porma." Muddle whispered.

"We don't have to meet them yet, Muddle. We can stay down here for a while. I have a lot of things that I need to do and, if you want, you could help me." I said.

"I-Ih."

I smiled down at Muddle moments before hearing someone open the door to the basement.

"Porma! Ex-per-i-ments c-clean living r-room! P-Put t-trash outs-side!" Muddle buried his head into my shirt. "Alfred s-said to g-get w-wind-dow glass! And f-furni-iture! Porma…?

"Hi Shortstuff." I said after he had climbed down the staircase. "Sorry I didn't answer you. You see… I'm just a little busy with your new sibling. Shortstuff, this is Muddle. Muddle, Shortstuff."

"H-Hi, Mud-dle!"

Muddle lifted his head and peaked out, retreating quickly when Shortstuff waved at him. Slowly, when nothing happened, he repeated the motion and then hesitantly waved back at Shortstuff. Shortstuff beamed.

"Shorts-stuff fix things!" Shortstuff proclaimed proudly, "H-Helped fix T-T.V.! Couldn-n't fix o-other stuff, b-but S-Shortstuff fixes mech—mechanical s-stuff. What M-Muddle do, Porma?"

"Well, if Muddle knows that someone is planning something, he can either ruin it or turn it to his advantage." And, just because I couldn't resist: "I think you and the others will have a hard time trying to beat him in Monopoly or Clue."

"Oo." Shortstuff breathed, looking impressed.

Muddle blinked. "M-Monophe? C-Clwe?"

"Can S-Shortstuff sh-how Mud-dle, Porma?" Shortstuff begged, "P-Please?"

"That depends on Muddle." I said, "Would you like to go with Shortstuff and play some games, Muddle? It'll be more fun then spending time helping me." When he nodded, I put him down. Shortstuff grabbed Muddle's hand and, in the next moment, was leading his youngest sibling up the stairs. "Have fun!"

"W-We'll be b-back later, Porma!" Shortstuff said before they vanished from view. Still, I heard him call: "Ex-per-i-ments m-meet Muddle! Porma m-made Mud-dle!"

I turned to go back to work, but Dad placed a hand on my shoulder. "I think you should take a break, kiddo." He held up his hand, "I know why you're doing this, Taylor, but it—it can wait. If only for a couple of hours. Besides, don't you want to be there in case one of them needs you?"

I wanted to scream at him. Hadn't he heard what I told him? Heard about the Warrior and what it would do? If someone didn't stop it, then—then everything would be gone.

"I won't say that I understand what you saw, but I do believe in you kiddo. I will help you in any way that I can and that includes telling you that you need to stop. You need to take some time and relax—to try and start dealing with everything that's happened to you. Please, if not for me, then for them."

Something caught in my throat.

"They need you now, more than ever. If you seclude yourself in this basement, then who will take care of them? Who will make sure that they've eaten or tuck them in at night? Who will be there to reassure Doc when he comes home upset or when Doubledip is feeling inadequate? You are their mother, Taylor, and they need you."

I shook my head. I tried to tell myself that they would be fine, but it was a lie. And if I were honest with myself… I needed them as much as they needed me. I didn't deserve them, but I needed them. And they needed me too.

Dad pulled me into a hug. "We'll get people to understand, Taylor. I swear that we will. You won't have to carry this burden by yourself."

"They'll—they'll think I-I'm crazy." I whispered.

"It doesn't matter. I won't allow you to do this by yourself." Dad said, "Even if your children and I help you, you will still need help. And we will get you that help."

If only for that moment, I allowed myself to believe that. I started to tell him everything. I told him how what I had seen had frightened me, how much it had hurt seeing what could've been my children die one by one, and everything else.

It felt liberating. I couldn't bring myself to believe that 'everything would be alright' but I could believe that I didn't have to do this by myself. And with that, I didn't feel so alone anymore.

XXXXXXXXXX

(Danny Hebert)

I hadn't exactly lied when I had told Taylor that I would see about calling someone to see about getting some window panes to replace the ones the Travelers had broken. I was going to, but I would also be calling somebody else.

"Hello?"

"Hello, Mrs. Pelham." I said, "I'm sorry to disturb you, but I needed to talk to somebody. Before you ask, it's not about Taylor. At least… Not exactly."

"What do you mean?"

I rubbed my eyes. "Taylor had a bit of a—a fit earlier. I don't know what she was doing, but it had something to do with her power. She passed out, but she wasn't—wasn't sleeping. She was crying and screaming and there wasn't anything I could do to help her. I had Doc check on her, but nothing was wrong with her physically."

"What happened? Is Taylor alright?"

"Physically, she's fine. Mentally… not so much. She saw something during that fit. At first, I didn't really believe her. I thought that it could be a hallucination or a fever dream, but it—it wasn't. The emotion in her voice… that look in her eyes… it wasn't something that she would've just made up."

"What did she see?"

"You won't believe it." I warned her. But she didn't say anything and I eventually answered her anyway. "According to Taylor, she saw how she came to receive her powers." A sharp intake of breath. "I know. But, it's nothing like anyone could imagine. Powers—they're not a gift. They're fucking parasites…"

"… I think I should come over."

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Building: 7.1 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Building: 7.2

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#83

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.2 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

When Dad and I finally went upstairs, it was to find Muddle hesitantly shaking Spike's hand. I counted heads and realized that Shortstuff was missing. Before I could ask where he had gone off to, he rushed back into the room holding Clue above his head.

"P-Play! Show M-Muddle c-can do!" Shortstuff declared before he noticed me. An antenna-to-antenna grin spilt his face. "H-Hi Porma! Play with ex-per-i-ments t-too?"

I nodded and Shortstuff beamed. Within moments, I found myself sitting down on the living room floor as Link helped Shortstuff set the game up. Alfred 'tsk'-ed about the worn state of the cards and started to get up, but Ace stopped him. Drowsy settled down a few feet away and began to snooze.

Doc and Doubledip settled down on either side of me while Spike re-entered the room with the cards and a sealed, yellow packet. Setting them down, he then had us choose who we wanted to be. Then, the game begun.

For a while, my children simply waited for Muddle to show them what he could do. Only, he didn't. Or, at least, not that they could see. He sat next to Spike, often asking his older sibling questions about the game and what he could and couldn't do.

Eventually, Muddle spoke. "M-Miss R-Red. P-ip-pe. H-Ha-all."

Ace froze. He looked down at his notepad before looking back up at Muddle. When Spike confirmed that Muddle was right, Ace's ears dropped.

"How?" Doc asked.

"I'll explain. You see, if Muddle knows what is going on, then he can disrupt 'enemy' plans or turn them to his advantage." I pointed at Spike, "He used Spike to learn about the game—the rules, the number of players, the number of weapons, the number of rooms—and made you lower your guards when he didn't do anything."

"B-But how Muddle k-know?" Link asked.

I smiled. "If I had to guess, then Muddle figured it out early into the game. He was looking around at the time and probably spied on your notepads that you were using. He only said it now because Ace had just figured it out—foiling Ace's 'plan'."

"Oo."

"Mud-ddle i-is sneak-ky!" Shortstuff said.

Muddle blushed and covered his face with his hands a few tentacles. Doubledip and Doc cooed at the sight before Spike patted Muddle on the back. Alfred rose gracefully and started cleaning up the game while Ace sulked. Link just smiled.

I was about get up and head towards the kitchen when Muddle suddenly perked up. He lowered his arms and glanced out the window, tilting his head to the side. "'Arasit?"

"What?"

"'Arasit." Muddle repeated before he turned towards me, "Porma, 'arasit?"

I took me a moment to understand what Muddle was asking about. Not 'arasit'; 'parasite'. But why would Muddle be asking about parasites? "Where did you hear about that, Muddle?"

"'Grandpa'." Muddle said.

Muddle had heard Dad talking about parasites? '… He wouldn't.' Hadn't he gone outside to call someone about getting some window panes? I was so stupid. 'Why would he care about the windows after what I told him? Of course he would be calling someone!'

It made sense. Hadn't Dad said that he wouldn't allow me to carry this burden on my own—that he'd try to get help? He did. I just hadn't thought that he would've called someone so soon and without telling me…

"Porma?"

"I think we should play another game." I stood up. "What do you guys think about making some forts? You guys can show Muddle how it's done while I'll go see if I can find him a bed and a blanket."

"Porma no make forts?"

I shook my head. "Not right now. I have to get Muddle his stuff and maybe make some dinner. I bet you guys are really hungry…" I plastered a smile on my face. "Why don't you go get started? If you don't start now, you won't have time to finish making your forts before dinner."

That was a lie. It wouldn't take them more than a few minutes to make their forts. I was just hoping that they would start playing instead of coming down to check on me. They didn't need to be walking into an argument after the long, stressful day that they'd had.

"C-Coconut cake?"

"Unfortunately, we don't have any more coconut cake." I said. "I'll have to buy some when we go to the store next time. But we do have ice cream. If you guys are good, you can have some ice cream for desert."

"Ih!"

"Ice c-cream!"

"Weam?"

I made a shooing motion and off they went. I waited until Drowsy had climbed up the stairs before I allowed myself to breathe again. I glanced at the new front door that Victoria and Dad had put on before turning around.

I was still mad—furious—that he called someone without asking me, but I couldn't do anything about it. I would just have to wait and see who he called. Until that happened, however, I had things to do. I needed to find a box and a blanket for Muddle and I had to make dinner.

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Building: 7.2 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Building: 7x (Interlude: 009)

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#84

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7x (Interlude: 009) - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

The first thing I became aware of was the feeling of the ground beneath me. It was cool to the touch and smooth in a way that I had never experienced before. I breathed in and caught the scent of something sharp and sweet that seemed to linger on and around me. It was interesting, but not as interesting as the feeling of the ground I laid on.

It was only after I opened my eyes to further examine the ground that my fascination turned to terror. I wasn't lying on some strange ground; I was lying in the middle of a cylindrical container in a dimly-lit room.

I reached out with my tentacles, searching for a way out, and discovered two possible exits. The first was a seamless circular doorway made out of a metal that my tentacles failed to open or work around. The second exit was a small, rectangular hatch directly in front of me though it too proved impossible for my tentacles to breach.

'Trapped. No escape.'

I don't know why, but the thought of being trapped within this cylinder was absolutely terrifying. It outshone my earlier terror by several magnitudes as I now knew that there was nothing I could do to escape. I was at the mercy of whatever had created me and placed me inside of the cylinder.

'What want?'

If I knew what the person that had captured me wanted, maybe I could work out a plan. I could pretend to be obedient and follow the person's directions until a time that I could escape.

It was about that time when I heard someone approach. "Hello, Muddle."

I turned towards the voice before my eyes narrowed at the sight of the person. I rubbed my eyes with a tentacle to make sure that I wasn't seeing things and I wasn't. Instead of the kidnapper I had been expecting to see, I saw her. "P-Porma."

I didn't need to fear Porma. And why should I? Porma would never hurt me. At least, not intentionally. Porma probably hadn't even thought that I would've been so scared to wake up in the cylinder. Should-Should I tell her? No. I wouldn't want to hurt Porma's feelings…

Porma opened the cylinder's hatch and I felt an overwhelming sense of relief. Now that that hatch was open, I wasn't trapped anymore. And, as long as that hatch stayed open, I had over twenty ways in which I could escape.

Porma made a gesture, silently asking me if to exit the cylinder. And, as weird as it sounded, I hesitated. I didn't know what was out there, beyond the cylinder. Would anything try to hurt me? Trap me? There could be, but… Porma would protect me, right?

I lifted myself off the floor with my tentacles and 'walked' over to the edge of the hatch. I looked around the area one more time and gathered my courage. It was only after Porma told me that it would be okay, that I would be safe, that I felt ready.

"O-Oketaka, Porma." I murmured before stepping out.

The moment that I left the cylinder altogether, the number of ways that I could avoid capture increased dramatically. As long as I knew what was going on, I could avoid being captured and trapped again.

I looked around and froze at the sight of the other person. He might have looked like Porma, but there was something about him… Without thinking about it, I had turned back towards the cylinder and made as if to go back inside of it. I would have trapped myself if it wasn't for Porma picking me up before I could.

"Its okay, Muddle. That's just my Dad, your Grandpa." Porma said in a reassuring voice. "He won't hurt you."

'Grandpa'? "… Oketaka."

"You also have some siblings. They don't know about you yet, but they'll be so happy to meet you." Porma said. "They might seem a little scary too, but I promise you they won't hurt you. Nobody here would ever hurt you purposefully."

More people? 'Siblings'? I didn't know if I could handle more people right now. But I trusted Porma. She wouldn't try to hurt or lie to me. "O-Oketaka Porma."

Porma seemed to pick up on my hesitance. She brought me closer to her chest and gave me a gentle squeeze—a 'hug'—and then spoke in a low voice so 'Grandpa' couldn't hear.

"We don't have to meet them yet, Muddle. We can stay down here for a while. I have a lot of things that I need to do and, if you want, you could help me." Porma said.

That sounded good. "I-Ih."

Of course that had to be the moment when I heard one of the 'siblings' voices. At the sound of it, I buried my head in Porma's chest and hoped that the 'sibling' wouldn't notice me.

"Porma! Ex-per-i-ments c-clean living r-room! P-Put t-trash outs-side! Alfred s-said to g-get w-wind-dow glass! And f-furni-iture! Porma…?"

"Hi Shortstuff." Porma said kindly. "Sorry I didn't answer you. You see… I'm just a little busy with your new sibling. Shortstuff, this is Muddle. Muddle, Shortstuff."

Didn't Porma know that I didn't want the 'sibling' to notice me? Hadn't Porma just told me that I didn't have to meet them…? 'She not promise one 'sibling'.' I thought.

"H-Hi Mud-dle!"

And maybe—maybe I could just see what these siblings looked like; see if they looked like they would harm me? The sibling didn't sound like he would… I peaked my head out and then buried it again after the orange, four-legged 'sibling' waved at me. I was afraid that he would've done something to me and, eventually, I peaked out to see him smiling up at me.

Hesitantly, I waved back. The orange sibling beamed.

"Shorts-stuff fix things!" The orange sibling proclaimed in a proud voice. "H-Helped fix T-T.V.! Couldn-n't fix o-other stuff, b-but S-Shortstuff fixes mech—mechanical s-stuff. What M-Muddle do, Porma?"

"Well, if Muddle knows that someone is planning something, he can either ruin it or turn it to his advantage." Porma said. "I think you and the others will have a hard time trying to beat him in Monopoly or Clue."

"Oo."

I could do that…? I would have questioned it if anyone but Porma had said it, but it was Porma who had said it. I didn't know if it was related or not, but it could explain all of those ways I knew how to avoid capture. But, still, something nagged at me.

"M-Monophe? C-Clwe?"

I shouldn't have said that. If I hadn't, then Shortstuff wouldn't have asked Porma if he could show me how to play those games and I could have stayed with Porma. I might not have wanted to leave Porma though, after being dragged upstairs and introduced to everyone, I was almost glad that Shortstuff had.

'Shortstuff help Mud-dle. Mud-dle help Shortstuff.'

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Building: 7x (Interlude: 009) - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translations: Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Dec 26, 2014

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Threadmarks Building: 7.3

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#85

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.3 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Eventually, I had decided to make spaghetti and meatballs. It wasn't that hard to make and while it would take some time for me to make enough for everyone, it was worth it. To think that my children had never had spaghetti and meatballs before.

I would, of course, have to teach them how to eat spaghetti. I didn't want them to make a mess, especially after how hard Alfred had worked to clean up the house. And if they did make a mess, I would be the one cleaning things up.

Experiment 010 was brought to mind. Absently, I began to think of how I could improve upon his design. I would have thought that there wasn't that much though there actually was. Experiment 010 could be greatly improved by comparing his design to that of one of the six-series experiments…

'I would also need to adjust his programming.' I mused as I put the spaghetti in the strainer. I waited for a moment before picking it up and putting the noodles back into the pot. 'The first bit I should change should be how he classifies things as 'dirty'; it wouldn't do to have him attempt to 'sterilize' things that he shouldn't…'

Slowly, I stirred the sauce and watched as it covered the noodles. It gave me an idea; why not modify how Experiment 010's energy beam worked? I would have to lower the intensity of it though it would give him a greater range. And with greater range, he would be able to clean and/or sterilize things much more quickly.

The timer went off, bringing me back to reality. I stumbled and would have fallen if I hadn't grabbed onto the counter, leaning on it as I gathered my strength.

I hadn't experienced something this bad since I had been in the hospital. Nowadays, I could mostly 'tune out' whatever my power supplied me unless I was actively looking for something to create. But that—that felt different.

'What was that?' I thought.

"Are you alright?"

I looked up to find that Dad had entered the kitchen and was now looking at me concernedly. "I—I don't know… Something strange just happened. It was almost like after I first woke up…"

"Did you see something else?" Dad asked.

"No." I shook my head. "I mean, not more than I usually do when I think about an experiment. But, it was different. I don't know how to describe it…" I frowned, racking my mind for words I could compare it to. "It was intense. Not stronger, but more consuming…"

"Is there anything I can do for you? Anything that you might think would help?"

Instantly, I felt bad. I had been so mad with him earlier after Muddle had told me he'd overheard Dad talking to someone over the phone. Only, he had been talking to someone because he wanted to help me. And now, even after everything that had happened today, he was still trying to help me.

Slowly, I nodded. "Yeah. If I start to space out like that again, could you tell me?"

"Of course I can, kiddo." Dad agreed and I nodded again. He hesitated. "… Do you feel up for visitors right now?"

"I guess. Why?"

Dad sighed. "Taylor… I didn't just call somebody about the windows. I also called New Wave." He shuffled, guilty. "I talked with Mrs. Pelham and told her a little bit of what you told me. Maybe she could offer you some advice after we explain things to her?"

"What did you tell her?" I asked.

"I didn't tell her much. I know that I should have told you what I was doing, but I didn't want to disturb you. Not when you were just starting to have fun…" Dad said, "And I just—I just needed someone to talk to about this fucking mess."

'Oh, Dad…' "It's okay." I said and attempted to smile as he looked at me. "I mean, we were going to tell New Wave about it eventually, right?"

"Yeah."

XxX=-=XxX

"I couldn't stand it. I felt so—so powerless just standing there, looking at everything that the Travelers destroyed. I just wanted something that I could make that would allow me to protect myself—protect them. And I when my power offered me something and it started to slip away, I pursued it."

Dad looked at the floor. "By the time that we found her, she was bleeding heavily from her nose. Doc fixed what he could, but he couldn't help her against what she saw."

Mrs. Pelham frowned. "What did you see, Taylor?" When I hesitated, she added: "You don't have to tell me if you don't want to."

"No—No, it's alright. I don't like talking about it, but people have the right to know what's going on. You deserve to know what's going on." I took a deep breath. "I know where powers come from; where my power comes from."

"You should first know that the Corona Pollentia isn't natural. I don't know how it's created—if its before or after a trigger event—but it isn't a 'mutation' like a lot of people believe. It's like a wireless transceiver, receiving information from something like a giant supercomputer. And these supercomputers—these 'Shards—are the ones responsible for powers. They allow us to use their powers, but only so they can watch what we do with them and learn."

"Why?" Mrs. Pelham asked, looking troubled. "If what you're saying is true—if these 'Shards' actually do exist—why would they want to learn from us? What do they want?"

"It has something to do with what they think of as the 'Cycle'. They will approach a world, carefully select what Shards to give out and when and to what person, and then observe. When the Cycle is complete, they will appear and kill any remaining threats to themselves before they take back their Shards. And once they do that, they will consume that world before they move on to the next."

Mrs. Pelham was quiet for a few moments. "… Can you prove this?"

"I can't." I said, frowning. "Even if I tell you everything I learned about those things, I don't have any real proof. I could tell you how my power has changed after what I saw, show you some of the things I built, but you might not believe me. You would probably think that I had been lying to New Wave about my powers and that I could always make that stuff."

Mrs. Pelham glanced at Dad. "You believe her?"

"Yes, I do. It's hard to believe, but… it explains a lot of things. It explains Scion and how, after he appeared, capes began to show up." Dad said.

"You said you knew where your power—your 'Shard' comes from." Mrs. Pelham said. "Can you tell me?"

"It was created on another Earth. Every single one of the experiments I'm able to create existed on that world—created by an alien named Dr. Jumba Jookiba." I smiled humorlessly. "It's ironic, isn't it? When I was thinking of a name to call myself, that was the first thing that popped into my head…"

"Taylor…"

I sighed. "The creator of my Shard learned everything from Jumba. He didn't mind telling what he thought was another alien about his work though, in the end, it proved to be their world's downfall." I clenched my fists. "That thing used its knowledge of Jumba's experiments to take out the ones that may have harmed or derailed its plans one-by-one. And after that… it continued to do so until Jumba figured it out. And then they fought. Jumba lost. Everyone on that Earth died."

"Taylor, you don't have too—" Dad tried.

"—No, I have to finish this." I interrupted him before taking a deep breath. "Afterwards, it created my Shard using all of the knowledge it had obtained and left to find someplace to heal. You see, even though they lost, Jumba and his experiments almost defeated that thing." I shrugged, "After that… it crashed into two other of its species and the Shard was lost. Now, it's connected to me…"

Mrs. Pelham was quiet for a couple of minutes. I didn't blame her. After everything that I had just told her, she would need time to process it. That she was actually thinking about it made me hope that she might actually believe me, but I wasn't going to hold my breath.

"… I'm not going to say that I believe you 100 percent, but I'm willing to trust you on this." Mrs. Pelham said, looking up and looking me in the eye.

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#86

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I didn't expect Mrs. Pelham to believe me. I wanted her to believe me—believe that I was telling her the truth—but I thought that she wouldn't. After all, I hadn't been able to offer her much proof. I had told her about how my Tinker power had changed though, as I had told her, she could have chosen to believe that I had always been capable of that.

Mrs. Pelham, however, had chosen to believe in me. It was true that she didn't fully believe what I told her, but she was willing to believe that I was telling the truth.

It was soon after that that Mrs. Pelham began asking me questions about what I'd seen. I had only given her a basic run-down during my explanation and, understandably, she wanted to know more. So, I told her.

I told her about the Destroyer. I told her of its human avatar, and how it had slowly integrated itself into that Earth's society. How it had approached Jumba after hearing about his experiments, learning from him, and then using that information against the Kweltikwanian.

I had then told her about the experiments that the Destroyer had been wary of:

Experiment 029

Experiment 120

Experiment 267

Experiment 272

Experiment 303

Experiment 383

Experiment 426

Experiment 606

Experiment 607

I told her how this had almost led to the Destroyer's defeat. I didn't know how Jumba had figured it out though he had realized the reason he had targeted those experiments was because of their abilities. Or, more specifically, their ability to affect the mind or to affect space and/or other dimensions.

It had allowed Jumba to develop a weapon that had actually hurt the Destroyer. Unfortunately, as the Destroyer had never studied it, it didn't know how to make that weapon; I couldn't reproduce it.

"I don't know how the Warrior and the Thinker differ from the Destroyer, but I think that they would be wary of the experiments the Destroyer was." I said. "And, unlike it, they don't know about those experiments."

"So, you plan to use those experiments against the 'Warrior' and the 'Thinker'?" Mrs. Pelham asked.

"… It won't be enough." I said, looking away. "Even if they can find where the Warrior and the Thinker are hiding their real bodies, it would take more firepower than they have available in order to get rid of them."

That was without even mentioning the possibility that the Warrior and the Thinker might be approaching the situation in a different way. After all, unlike the Destroyer, the Warrior and the Thinker weren't alone. And who was to say that they wouldn't figure out what was going on?

Even now, the Warrior or the Thinker could be figuring out what was happening. The Warrior might not have been able to act without going against its façade as a Hero, but nobody knew about the Thinker.

"… I created Muddle because I didn't want the Warrior or the Thinker to figure out what was happening. To disrupt any power they might have to see how they could defeat us… and to buy some time."

It was time that I really needed. Time to convince people I was telling the truth, to get them on board a plan to defeat the Warrior and the Thinker. To get them to help me prepare to fight against them—to discover a way to beat them.

Mrs. Pelham frowned. "I can see—"

Someone knocked at the door.

"Are we expecting someone?"

Dad shook his head, glancing towards the front door. "No. I didn't call anyone else…"

There were two raps at the door.

Mrs. Pelham stood. "I'll answer the door. Stay here," She told us before moving towards the door. She opened it to reveal a woman dressed in a suit that looked to have been tailored for her. "Can I—"

"I'm here to discuss something with Mr. Hebert and his daughter." The woman said. "I believe that it has something to do with the 'Thinker', as Ms. Hebert calls it?"

"… You know about that?"

"How?"

"I know about the 'Thinker' because I was present when it was trying to manifest a human avatar. I am also responsible for helping the one that eliminated the 'Thinker' before it finished." The woman said. "Now, would you allow me to come inside? I have a few things that I would like to talk about with you."

"… Okay." Dad allowed, "But only if you tell us who you are and how you knew about this."

"Of course. You may call me Contessa." The woman said paused, considering something. "I knew what was going on because I inherited one of the 'Destroyer's' Shards. When I think of a goal, it plots out the path that allows me to accomplish it."

"That doesn't explain how you knew about us."

"It does, actually. I became aware of your daughter the moment that she had that vision. I would have contacted you sooner, but I had to wait until she would feel comfortable enough to listen to what I have to say."

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#87

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.5 - [NEXT]

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"I believe that, before I tell you about the Thinker, I should tell you about my power. Whenever I think about a specific goal, it supplies me with a list of steps that I need to fulfill in order to accomplish that goal."

I didn't know what to say. I mean, what could I say? If what Contessa had just revealed was true then my actions—Muddle's birth—could interfere with her abilities. I could apologize, but…

If Contessa decided to go after Muddle for interfering with her ability, then she would have to go through me. I would die before I allowed anyone to go after my children for something that they hadn't purposefully done.

"You needn't worry yourself, Ms. Hebert. I have no intention of harming anyone here; as I said earlier, I came here to talk to you about the Thinker and the Warrior." Contessa said in a reassuring manner.

"And that would be?"

"The Thinker is no longer a threat." Contessa admitted.

I could've heard a pin drop in the silence that followed that statement. The Thinker wasn't a threat anymore? But, how? It should have been nearly impossible to hurt, let alone kill, one of those things.

"My power allowed me to find the Thinker on May 28th, 1980 after it had crashed into a remote mountainside. It was in the midst of crafting a humanoid avatar for itself though, admittedly, it hadn't gotten far. Before I could finish it, it modified my ability to render it and its kind invisible to my power. I still managed to incapacitate it, but I lost the ability to find a path that would allow me to deal with its partner; the Warrior."

… That certainly explained why no one had ever seen the Thinker. Contessa had killed it.

"In order to combat the Warrior, I have spent the last few decades gathering resources and assembling an organization that works behind the scenes. It was our plan to someday confront the Warrior and eliminate it before it could attempt to 'end the cycle', but we have held back. You see, if we went through with it and we weren't able to eliminate the Warrior, it would destroy us."

I felt some weight lift off my shoulders. I had been thinking that I was alone in knowing about what I had seen. In reality, there was actually an organization of people who knew and had been plotting how to kill the Warrior. I wasn't alone.

The only problem was that, without Contessa's power, her group hadn't figured out a way to destroy the Warrior. And if that was true… it made sense why Contessa would approach us. She would want to let us know that we weren't alone and that her group was working on a way to defeat the Warrior. She would also probably would us to keep quiet, but that was a given.

"What are we supposed to do?" Mrs. Pelham asked.

"Nothing. If all goes well, then you won't have to do anything."

"I thought you just said that your group hadn't figured out a way to—to kill him? Now you're sounding like you actually have a plan. What gives?" Dad asked.

"I do have a plan, Mr. Hebert. It is also the other reason that I decided to approach you." Contessa admitted. "I noticed a dramatic reduction in the number of steps and did some investigation as to what might have changed. I discovered that one of your daughter's artificial life-forms was responsible for this; 'Doc'."

"... Doc?

"Yes. I have come to believe that he may be able to remove the restrictions that the Thinker placed upon my ability."

Was that even possible? I wasn't so sure. I mean, I knew that Doc had managed to help that girl, Noelle, but… could he really have messed with her power? And, even if he could, what was to say that he could do what Contessa was asking of him.

Contessa took a breath. "I'll admit that I didn't know if something like that would work. It was only I received word about what your artificial life-form was able to do for Ms. Meinhardt that I realized that it was possible. It was undeniable proof that your creation can affect and perhaps even modify a parahumans' Shard."

"How so?" Dad asked. "I mean, from what I heard, it sounds like Doc just healed that girl."

"Ms. Meinhardt can be likened to a Case 53. Even if she had been healed by Panacea, she would slowly revert back into what she was before the healing." Contessa said. "I don't know what your creation did, but it 'fixed' her Shard. Ms. Meinhardt will never become what she was before."

My heart went out towards the Travelers. I still hated them for what they had done, but if what Contessa was saying was true, they hadn't had a lot of options. They could have asked, but…

"If Doc is capable of 'fixing' Shards, then he might be able of removing the Thinker's restrictions on my power. If that is the case, then I will be able to find a path that would enable my organization to eliminate the Warrior." Contessa said. "You wouldn't have to be involved after that point unless you wanted to help."

I didn't know what to say. So, I did the only thing that I could do; I nodded.

Contessa smiled. "Thank you, Ms. Hebert."

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#88

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I opened my door to a scene that wouldn't have looked out of place in some medieval storybook. It seemed that sometime after I had sent my children upstairs to build forts, they had decided to use those forts as their own personal castles. Now, those tiny kingdoms were at war with each other.

Even as I stood there, Link launched a few 'cannonballs' at the wall of quills protecting Spike's domain before ducking inside his fort to avoid the return fire. Ace stared in the direction of a content Doc who burped out the tip of what looked like a paper sword while, in the corner, Drowsy was talking to Manners about a possible alliance. Shortstuff was working with Muddle near the closet, cobbling together something that looked suspiciously like a miniature catapult.

I wondered where Doubledip was before I heard him yell and watched as he dived towards Link's fort. Link startled but was unable to do anything before his older sibling crashed into his base that fell atop them. Spike shot another few quills at the box and then, satisfied Link wouldn't be a problem anymore, retreated into his own base.

Then, Doubledip climbed out from the ruins of Link's fort and spotted me. "Porma!"

"Having fun?" I asked.

"Ih."

"Din-ner t-time?" Shortstuff asked.

I shook my head. "I know you all are probably really hungry—and I promise you that we'll all sit down to eat something really soon—but dinner will have to wait. You see, there is someone downstairs that would like Doc help to help her."

"Gaba?"

"Ih! Ih! Ih! Porma and Ace r-right! D-Doc help!" Shortstuff cheered, "Someo-one ask Doc h-help!"

Drowsy smiled.

Ace abandoned his new paper sword and stood up. "Goobaja, ex-per-i-ments! Be there f-for Doc!"

"Ih!"

"Graazi."

"Ih!"

"Goobaja!"

I took a step back to avoid having my legs run into by Shortstuff before the rest of my children followed. Soon enough, I heard them thundering down the stairs in their haste to see the person that had asked for Doc's help. I was about to leave as well before I noticed that Doc hadn't gone with his siblings.

"Are you alright, Doc?" I asked.

Doc looked up at me. "She r-really ask Doc help? Not l-like—like bad man?"

"No, she isn't. Contessa is nothing like the Travelers." I assured him, "And she did ask if you could help her. You don't have to help her if you don't want to Doc, but it would be a big help if you could."

"R-Really?" Doc asked.

I nodded. "Yes."

Doc didn't say anything for a few moments before he finally nodded. I smiled at him and scooped him into my arms where he then snuggled against my chest. I kissed him on the forehead and thanked him for being willing to do this.

And, with that, I walked out of my room and descended the staircase. It took but a moment to reach the living room where I discovered that my children were sitting in a loose oval around Contessa. If Contessa realized the meaning behind the arrangement, she didn't mention it and I was grateful for that.

"H-Her?" Doc asked.

"Yes." I said. "Her name is Contessa and she needs your help, Doc."

Doc nodded before motioning for me to put him down. Once I did so, I watched as he approached Contessa who extended her hand. He grabbed it and then began to shrink. Within moments, he was gone.

Five minutes passed before I noticed a spec on Contessa's hand. It started growing at a rapid pace, jumping off Contessa when it became larger than an apple, and the resolved itself into Doc. He looked a little pale and more than a touch exhausted, but happy.

"Doc m-made you all b-better." Doc said with a wide grin. "N-No more c-cold or t-t—t-tumor."

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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"T-Tumor took longest for D-Doc to fix," Doc began. "It w-was inside and o-outside of the C-Cor—Corona P-Pollentia. Had t-to sep-er-ate it and e-erase tumor before f-fixing the C-Corona P-Po—Pollentia." He looked down. "M-May have h-headaches u-until C-Corona fully f-fix. Doc s-sorry that n-not fix it all."

I was a little surprised to hear him admit that. It just didn't seem possible that Doc wouldn't be able to heal something. He had been able to heal me from what would have been a fatal gunshot wound, had fully healed those few patients that had allowed him to treat them, and had even healed Noelle and, according to Contessa, fixed her Corona Pollentia.

So, how could Doc not have been able to fully heal Contessa's Corona Pollentia?

Then again, this was different than those other instances. Hadn't Doc said that the tumor had spread to both the inside and the outside of Contessa's Corona Pollentia? He had managed to somehow separate the tumor from the Corona Pollentia and then begin trying to heal the damage, but…

Doc didn't know that much or have that much experience in dealing with a cape's Corona Pollentia. I didn't know how he had managed to fix Noelle's Corona Pollentia, but it must've been something that he how to deal with. Contessa's Corona Pollentia, on the other hand, wasn't something that he knew how to fix.

So, Doc had done what he could. He had eradicated the tumor and then set out to fix the damage the tumor had caused Contessa's Corona Pollentia. After he had done what he could, he had simply left it alone, not wanting to risk hurting Contessa by making a mistake.

"You don't have to be sorry, Doc." I said reassuringly, "You did your best and that's all that matters."

"D-Doc did good!" Shortstuff exclaimed happily, giving his younger brother two claws up. "And Doc h-help with head-aches t-too if t-they hurt!"

"Doc will get better with practice." Alfred said.

Link grinned. "Y-Yeah! Tons m-more people will w-want Doc's help! They s-see that Doc not s-so bad!"

"Doc show everyone." Ace agreed.

I smiled as Doc blushed before watching as he ducked his head and murmured something I couldn't quite hear. Of course, that didn't stop the rest of my children from hearing what he had said and acting in my steed. They told him that he had done something special and that he was amazing.

"I would have to agree with your siblings." Contessa said which made Doc look up. "If it wasn't for you, then I would've had to deal with that tumor for the rest of my life. If the price to pay for its removal is a few measly headaches, then so be it."

Doc frowned. "B-But hurt?"

"I doubt that these headaches will hurt much." Contessa leaned forward. "If the headaches do hurt, I promise that I will come back and ask you for your help in dealing with them. Is that alright with you?"

"… O-Okay." Doc said.

"Excellent." Contessa said, smiling.

For a brief moment, I wondered if Contessa could actually use her power. I mean, how else would she have been able to deal with Doc the way she had? But, no. I sincerely doubted that, even with Doc's healing, Contessa would be able to use it. After all, Muddle was still here and I had 'seen' what Muddle's counterpart had done to the Destroyer's, now Contessa's, Shard. Maybe she was just good with kids.

"If there is nothing else…?" Contessa paused, waiting for someone to ask her something. When no questions were forthcoming, the suited woman nodded. "Alright. I suppose that I will be off then."

"N-Not stay?" Doc asked.

Contessa looked apologetic. "I'm afraid that I was only able to clear my schedule for a brief house call after I heard about you. Usually, I'm pretty busy." And about to get a lot busier. "But, like I said, I'll come back if I feel any pain."

Contessa then said goodbye to each of my children before standing up. Dad and Mrs. Pelham rose as well, with Mrs. Pelham citing the need to get home and explain things to her husband, while Dad escorted them out.

… Of course, I didn't get off so easily. I spent the next five minutes answering my children's questions about Contessa and why Mrs. Pelham had been there. I felt bad about not telling them everything or the real reason both women had came, but they didn't need to know.

At least, they didn't need to know now. Not while there was a chance that they wouldn't have to get involved in fighting against the 'bad thing' I had told them about. And, in my book, that was a very good thing.

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I didn't sleep well that night. I kept having nightmares about the Destroyer, of Jumba Jookiba, and of his experiments. It was too easy to imagine my own children in the place that his experiments had been. A part of me pointed out that they would be in the same position if Contessa couldn't deal with the Warrior, but I tried not thinking about that.

Eventually, I ended up curling near my children's beds. I just needed to look at them and see the gentle rise and fall of their small chests as they slept. It was almost hypnotizing in a way and, soon enough, I found myself relaxing and slipping away into a doze.

I woke up an hour or so later. My first instinct was to simply close my eyes and go back to sleep. It seemed like a good idea, but an insistent tapping prevented me from doing so. Groaning, I opened my eyes in time to see Link and Drowsy place a food-laden tray in front of me.

"Morning Porma!" Link said, grinning. "Alfred help ex-per-i-ments make break-kfast for Porma."

I stared at them for a couple of moments before I was able to comprehend just what was going on. My children had made me breakfast and brought it up to me—breakfast in bed. Or, rather, 'breakfast on the floor'.

"… Thank you." I said, touched. I sat up and pulled the tray closer to myself. I took a bite of the scrambled eggs and, for the second time, wondered where Alfred had learned to cook so well. And the bacon… "This is really good," I said moments before I scarfed down the remaining four pieces. "How did you get everything to taste so good?"

Link beamed. "The int-ternet!"

"Muddle find recipe and Alfred helped make." Drowsy added before he curled up inside his bed.

"Where is everyone else?" I asked.

"Ex-per-i-ments do 'rock, p-paper, scissors' to d-decide who give Porma break-kfast." Link said and then frowned, "Spike and Ace almost w-win, but Link and D-Drowsy beat them! They down—downstairs."

I didn't know whether to laugh or to shake my head. Trust my children to turn something like 'breakfast into bed' into some sort of competition. "You know, you didn't have to do that. You could've all brought it upstairs and given it to me."

"Oh."

"I'm not mad or anything." I said after seeing how Link's face fell. "I would just like to thank all of you since you all made it. And maybe ask if I could get some more."

"Oketaka!"

It didn't take Link to get the others. I took notice of the dried yoke covering Shortstuff, the greasy streak on Spike's forehead, and a suspicious coating of flour that covered Doubledip and Muddle. They were adorable.

"Ex-per-i-ments make breakfast for Porma." Shortstuff said as a rather ruffled-looking Alfred handed me another plate of food. "Porma's D-Dad say Porma n-need en-er-gy for school!"

'… That's right. It's Friday.' I thought. It was kind of funny to think how much had happened yesterday. For a moment, I wondered if Dad would let me skip. Then again, if he had told Shortstuff that I'd need energy, it was doubtful. "What time is it?"

"Eight forty-two." Ace said.

If I didn't hurry, then I was going to be late.

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I quickly finished eating the rest of my breakfast before asking the kids to head downstairs so that I could get ready for school. Once they had left, I stood and moved to the closet where I grabbed a fresh change of clothes. I would have liked to have been able to shower before I left, but I knew that I didn't have time for one. I barely had the time to put on some deodorant, change, and brush my hair.

Finished, I grabbed my backpack and slung it over my shoulder as I made my way out of the room. I discovered the kids waiting for me at the bottom of the staircase.

"Ex-per-i-ments make l-lunch for Porma." Spike said as he handed over the paper bag he had been holding. "Hope Porma l-like."

I couldn't believe it. Not only had my children woken up early to make me breakfast in bed, they had also made me a sacked lunch to take to school. "T-Thank you guys," I said. "I really appreciate it."

"Ex-per-i-ments help Porma." Spike said.

Shortstuff nodded fervently. "Y-Yes! Do best to h-help Porma!"

I smiled at them all before I pulled each of them into a short, warm hug and kissed each of them on the forehead. I told them to be good, asked them not to make a mess they couldn't clean up, and told them that Ace, Alfred, and Doubledip would be in charge while I was at school.

"Make sure that you listen to them, alright?" I said.

"W-Will Porma!"

"Bye!"

"Have g-good day!"

"Miss y-you already, Porma!"

I gave them all one last bittersweet smile before I left. I would have preferred to just stay at home and spend time with them—especially after everything that had happened yesterday—but I couldn't. I felt a little better knowing that they would be safe. And I felt a little safer myself after I realized that Doc had stowed away inside my body again.

I would have to have another talk with Doc about it, but I appreciated the concern.

Of course, I also appreciated it when I saw the bus that would take me to school leaving the bus stop. To my chagrin, even though I had told myself that I would start running, I hadn't. Without Doc's assistance, I wouldn't have been able to run after the bus until someone spotted me chasing after it and informed the bus driver. As it was, I was panting pretty heavily by the time that the bus topped and the doors opened.

"Thanks, Doc." I murmured as I stepped onto the bus.

The bus driver took one look at me before he sighed. "Next time, make sure that you're at the stop on time. I do have placed to be, you know."

XxX=-=XxX

If I had to guess, then I'd say that it had been Victoria that told Sam and Jessica what had happened yesterday. I could easily imagine her telling them after they heard about it on the news and called her, looking for answers.

It made me wonder if Sam or Jessica had called me. But, knowing them, they would have tried to call me. I hadn't heard anything though I hadn't exactly been in the mood to talk to anyone. And if they had called when Dad and I were in the basement…

I was actually a little surprised that Sam and Jessica knew something that I hadn't been aware of. Namely, the relentless city-wide search that New Wave had participated in after they had learned of my kidnapping. I had known that New Wave had looked for me, but I hadn't really known they had gone that far. That they would go that far for me.

I mean, I was technically a part of New Wave, but my membership wasn't official yet. And I wasn't family.

"You are family, Taylor." Victoria insisted after I had asked her about it. "You might not be related to us by blood, but that doesn't matter. Do you think that we think Amy is anything less than a part of our family because she was adopted? No, we don't. You might not have grown up or been adopted into our family, but we still consider you to be a part of that. And family looks after one another."

I didn't know what to say. I had known that Victoria considered me to be one of her friends, but to consider me to be a part of her family... "T-Thank you."

"You don't have to thank me, Taylor. Like I said, family looks after one another."

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[PREV] – Building: 7.9 - [NEXT]

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Translations: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.10 - [NEXT]

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"Muddle?"

I started at the question before looking up to meet a confused-looking Jessica. I looked around only to see equally confused expressions on Sam, Victoria, and Amy's faces and wondered about that. I had told them about Muddle, hadn't I? Only, looking back on what I had told them, I realized that I actually hadn't told them about Muddle.

No wonder they looked confused. I would be to if one of them started talking about someone I didn't know. Considering what had happened last night, they were all probably wondering how or when I'd met Muddle.

"Sorry, guys. I should've realized that I hadn't told you about Muddle yet…" I apologized before pausing as I thought about what I should told them.

How should I explain why I had created Muddle? It wasn't like I wanted to tell them about what I'd seen during that 'vision' or the near-obsession I'd fallen into shortly after.

"I created Muddle last night. After what happened yesterday, I wanted to make it so that—so that something like that wouldn't ever happen again. And, well, I thought that Muddle would be able to prevent something like that from happening."

It was a reasonable explanation. After all, Muddle would try to prevent someone from trying to kidnap me like the Travelers had. The moment that he found out that something was going on, he'd do his best to make sure that they didn't succeed.

"What does Muddle do?" Sam asked.

"If Muddle knows that someone is planning something, he can disrupt their plans or turn them to his advantage." I explaining before, seeing the confusion still present on their faces, I decided to give an example. "Last night during a game of Clue, Muddle used Spike to learn how to play the game and didn't do anything. After a while, the others playing lowered their guards since they believed that Muddle wouldn't do anything with so much scrutiny… only for Muddle to end the game moments before Ace would have."

"So, Muddle was targeting Ace?" Jessica asked.

Sam shook her head. "It doesn't sound like something someone with Muddle's ability would do. I don't think that Muddle would have targeted Ace. He probably decided to ruin Ace's plan after he realized Ace was the closest to winning. If anyone else had been in Ace's position, I think Muddle would have done the same thing." She shrugged. "At least… that's what I think."

"It's possible." I allowed before I took a bite out of my sandwich. "I wouldn't put it past Muddle. While Muddle is normally very shy and hesitant in doing things, he is sneaky. If you didn't know his ability, then you wouldn't even suspect he was doing something."

"Well, you know what they say; 'watch out for the quiet ones'." Sam said.

"Does that mean we should also watch Amy?" Jessica joked.

I caught a brief, uncomfortable look pass over Amy's face before she looked down and muttered something underneath her breath. I didn't quite catch it though Jessica did. Jessica patted Amy on the shoulder, telling her that she did an amazing job at the hospitals she volunteered at, which Sam confirmed.

It was odd, however, that Victoria hadn't said something as well. Turning towards Victoria, I saw her looking back at me with a sad, quiet understanding. She gave my hand a reassuring squeeze before plastering a smile on her face as the others turned around.

"What's wrong?" Sam asked.

"Nothing's wrong, Sam." Victoria denied. "I was just thinking about what Taylor said about Muddle. Everybody is going to have to watch out for him if Muddle decides he wants to help New Wave. He'd make sure that nobody would ever get away from us ever again! I bet that Muddle would even allow us to catch those 'Undersiders' I've heard Mom and Dad talking about…"

"You really think so?"

"Yeah!" Victoria said. "I think Muddle could be a total game-changer."

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[PREV] – Building: 7.10 - [NEXT]

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#93

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7x (Interlude: James Renick) – [NEXT]

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→DR. JOOKIBA; TAYLOR ANNE HEBERT

Disposition: Hero

Classification: Tinker 2

Last Known Location: Brockton Bay

Dr. Jookiba triggered in the aftermath of a lengthy bullying campaign led by Emma Barnes, Sophia Hess, and Madison Clements at Winslow High. It is suspected that Dr. Jookiba triggered after being trapped within her locker or sometime during her subsequent hospitalization.

Dr. Jookiba has admitted to possess the ability to create artificial life forms. These life forms' unique physiology enables them to utilize a specific power though all display similar traits; the ability to climb walls, a heightened intelligence, and durability comparable to a Brute.

Known creations include:

"Doubledip": A life form designed to double-dip foods.

"Shortstuff": A life form designed to repair machines. Dr. Jookiba and New Wave have requested to utilize Brockton Bay's junkyard to train this life form's ability.

"Ace": A life form designed to protect Dr. Jookiba's father—Danny James Hebert. Known abilities include: super strength, enhanced durability, and a supposed "warm breath".

"Doc": A life form designed to heal a subject from within their bodies. Dr. Jookiba and New Wave requested that "Doc" be allowed to help Panacea at the hospital. During the Traveler's kidnapping of Dr. Jookiba, it was revealed that "Doc" can somehow "heal" Case 53s.

"Link": A life form designed to create and then unleash a material similar to containment foam. One of the two life forms that regularly works with New Wave.

"Drowsy": A life form designed to unleash a specific sound that renders anyone that hears it unconscious. The only way to wake those that "Drowsy" put to sleep is by spraying water in his/her face.

"Spike": A life form designed to cause enemies to become "silly" for a set period. It is suspected that this is done through some chemical that "Spike" coats his quills with.

"Alfred": A life form capable of producing a "polite powder". Master/Stranger protocols have been approved should "Alfred" enter the field.

I stared at the screen for a few moments before I finally turned away. 'What am I supposed to do now?'

I hadn't thought much about it when Director Piggot had given me the responsibility in dealing with Dr. Jookiba. Admittedly, I had been somewhat excited. I had thought that it would be my chance to prove myself to Director Piggot; to show her I was capable of doing more than the tasks that she had previously assigned me.

Now, I was starting to regret accepting the assignment.

Dr. Jookiba seemed to be a good person that just wanted to help people with her creations, but it seemed that she didn't know when to stop. Nor did the young woman seem to realize what her creations could actually do if they decided to stop obeying her orders and do what they wanted.

To that end, I had worked with Miss Militia and Armsmaster in trying to develop a plan to deal with Dr. Jookiba's creations. We gave each of Dr. Jookiba's experiments their own rating, developed countermeasures to their known abilities, and worked out how the PRT could deal with them if they ever went rogue.

The recent news from Dr. Jookiba had put all of that effort to waste. After all, what use were plans against a life form capable of figuring out and then ruining enemy plans?

I could understand the reason why Dr. Jookiba had created this new life form, but that didn't mean that I liked it. 'If that girl had just contacted someone about what she was doing…' I sighed.

I did not look forward to my meeting with Director Piggot and her reaction. Director Piggot had given me the task of looking after Dr. Jookiba because she trusted that I could deal with. Once she learned about Dr. Jookiba's recent actions, however, she would at best question everything I had done regarding the young Tinker and give the task of dealing with her to someone else. At worst, Director Piggot could fire me and deal with the situation herself.

That would be bad. Very, very bad. I understood the reason why Director Piggot disliked parahumans with the ability to create artificial life, but that attitude wouldn't help anyone in this situation. If Dr. Jookiba or her experiments felt like they were being threatened by the Director…

'… What a mess.' I thought before slowly, reluctantly, adding "Muddle's" information to the page before me. There, I hesitated for a moment, wondering if I should actually send it to Director Piggot, before closing my eyes. 'Best to get it over with, James…'

"Are you alright, James?" A familiar voice questioned. "You seem a little distressed."

I turned around to see an old friend. He was as thin as a rail with pale skin, dark eyeshaows that spoke of little sleep, short brown hair, and brown eyes. "It's nothing, Mr. Calvert." I said. "Just a little trouble with a local parahuman."

"Maybe I can help?"

"… You want to help?" I asked.

Thomas shrugged. "I don't see why I shouldn't help you. Besides, I think it will be interesting to learn about the parahuman causing someone like you so much trouble."

"Alright… Have you heard about Dr. Jookiba?"

"Dr. Jookiba…?"

XxX=-=XxX

"Brockton Bay General Hospital recently contacted us about a new, possible parahuman. According to the hospital, the person—a James Kipton—has displayed an unusually fast recovery time. I have reviewed the files that the hospital sent over and found myself agreeing with them; I believe that Mr. Kipton is a parahuman."

I frowned. "Do we know what Mr. Kipton's power is?"

"I suspect that Mr. Kipton might be a Brute or a Changer based upon the hospital records. Further details regarding his powers will have to come from him or his parents, however." Director Piggot said before looking at me. "Please arrange a meeting with the Kiptons."

"Yes, Director Piggot."

Director Piggot moved on. "I would also like to address the recent kidnapping of Dr. Jookiba by the Travelers. More specifically, the apparent "healing" of Ms. Noelle Meindhart."

"Has something happened to the girl?"

"No. However, that is what's worrying me. According to the information we were able to obtain from Ms. Meindhart and her teammates, her power slowly transformed her into a form akin to what we have observed of Case 53s. As you know, however, all previous attempts to return a Case 53 to a normal appearance have failed."

"… You're saying that Ms. Meindhart hasn't returned to her former appearance?"

I nodded. "Exactly. Whatever it was that Dr. Jookiba's healing experiment did to Ms. Meindhart, it has returned her to the state before her powers activated. Careful study of Ms. Meindhart also revealed that, while she still possesses powers, the form in which her power takes is completely different."

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[PREV] – Building: 7x (Interlude: James Renick) – [NEXT]

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Threadmarks Building: 7.11

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#94

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.11 – [NEXT]

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The ferry had been one of the first things to go after the city's trade business dried up. The city didn't have the money to repair the mechanical issues that prevented the ferry from running and decided to leave it alone until they did. Only, once the city had recovered enough to pay for those repairs, the city decided not to.

The decision boiled down to the Docks.

With the ferry gone, the Docks had been cut off from the rest of the city, unless someone was willing to drive an extra half an hour to an hour to get there. Slowly, addicts and gangsters had moved into the area and taken over. So, when the city looked into the possibility of repairing the ferry, they had chosen not to because it would 'give 'them' easy access to the rest of the city.'

Dad, on the other hand, believed that the ferry would greatly help Brockton Bay. If it were to start running again, new jobs would be created, people in low-income neighborhoods would have more access to the rest of the city, and the low-class, high-class, no-middle-class dynamic of Brockton Bay would finally smooth out.

Shortstuff had been originally been created to repair the ferry. Of course, neither Dad nor I had wanted Shortstuff to even attempt to fix it until he had proved that he could.

It had taken a long time, but Shortstuff was finally ready. I was still a little hesitant in allowing him to try fixing the ferry though I couldn't deny that he should be able to do it. After all, what were the ferry's problems compared to the ones Shortstuff had proven he could fix?

Shortstuff had been ecstatic when we had told him. He had all-but forced me to change into my Dr. Jookiba outfit before attempting to lead Spike and I out of the house. Dad and I had been able to convince him to wait until later, but it was close.

The moment that we had arrived at the building containing the ferry, Shortstuff had taken off towards the ferry. I had only managed to see him finish climbing onto the ferry before he slipped into it through an open doorway.

"… I had no idea that Shortstuff was that fast." Lady Photon said.

I stared at the doorway Shortstuff had gone through for a moment. "Neither did I. I've seen Shortstuff run before, but that—that was something else." I looked at the older superheroine. "Do you mind if I go in to check on him?"

"It shouldn't be a problem, Doctor." Lady Photon said after a moment of consideration. "Just made sure that you don't break anything."

"I won't."

And, with that said, I moved to go search for Shortstuff. It would take nearly an hour before I would find him near the engine, wrench in hand and practically covered in oil.

"O-Oh! Hi, Porma! Sh-hortstuff c-close fix f-ferry!" Shortstuff said with an antennae-to-antennae grin. "J-just need f-fix few more t-things, then S-Shorts-stuff done! Short-tstuff—"

Whatever Shortstuff would have said next was lost within a loud near deafening boom. I grabbed onto the wall as the ferry rocked from the force of whatever had just happened before I grabbed Shortstuff.

"Porma… f-fix ferry?"

I shook my head. "No. Whatever that was, it didn't sound good. And I'm not going to allow you to get hurt because you wanted to finish repairing the ferry."

"... Oketaka, Porma." Shortstuff murmured.

I was about to say something else when I heard another, softer boom. The ground shook underneath my feet and I fell over, banging my hip against my holstered plasma gun. "Ow..."

"Porma?!"

"It's fine, Shortstuff. I'm okay." I said after a moment before I pushed myself up off the floor. Shortstuff said something, but I didn't pay it much attention. I was more focused on the brief glimpse I'd seen through the window. "What the crap are they doing here?!"

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[PREV] – Building: 7.11 – [NEXT]

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Oketaka - Okay

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#95

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.12 – [NEXT]

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I had known something was wrong, but I hadn't expected just who was responsible for it. I had been kind of expecting that either the Azn Bad Boys or the Empire decided to intervene. Maybe even Faultline's Crew. What I did not expect to see were the Merchants.

The Merchants were a group of addicts and drug dealers operating somewhere in or around the Docks. Despite having four capes leading the group, people didn't really consider them much of a threat.

I thought that it was just a matter of perspective. The Azn Bad Boys had the near unstoppable Lung and the suicide bomber Oni Lee. The Empire had a lengthy roster of capes. And the Merchants… their capes had some pretty cool powers, but the owners of said powers didn't use them as well as they could. It probably didn't help that they were usually stoned out of their minds.

That was why it was so surprising seeing them here. Not only because they were amongst the last group I would expect to see, but because I thought that they would be too stoned to do anything this early in the morning.

Yet, here they were. And, surprisingly, they were actually doing pretty good.

Squealer had brought along a few tank/motorcycle abominations and an augmented bus. And she was using her personal mount to blast through Lady Photon's forcefields and keep her moving. Skidmark was helping her, creating fields that tripped Lady Photon or sent her careening into a nearby wall.

As for Spike… he was busy trying to fend off the goons that Skidmark and Squealer had brought with them. It was working although it was obvious that Spike was beginning to get a little tired. I also didn't like the looks on the faces of the downed Merchants.

I fingered my plasma gun.

"Porma…"

"Shortstuff, I want you to listen very carefully. I need you to find a working phone and get some help." I said before I set him down. "Now, go!"

"B-But Porma… W-What Porma d-do?"

"I'm going to see if I can help." I said. Shortstuff opened his mouth to say something, but it was lost in the 'boom'. I turned and saw Lady Photon be flung into a nearby wall. The cannon on Squealer's mount smoked. "Go!"

Shortstuff hesitated for a moment before he nodded reluctantly. I pulled out my plasma gun as the cannon swung towards Lady Photon's unmoving form. I took aim and fired twice.

Glass exploded outwards as the first plasma bolt broke through before flying towards Squealer's cannon. The plasma bolts collided with it resulting in another booming noise as the cannon was caught within a small explosion.

I started running. 'Need to get some distance. I don't know what that cannon is made of, but it's probably resilient enough—'

I heard something scream through the air before the ferry shook. The space behind me exploded and I barely managed to catch myself before I fell. I started running again the moment I heard Squealer shout something before she sent another round towards me.

Only, she seemed to know where I was going and had aimed there instead of at me directly. I ended up being slammed against the wall from the impact. And it hurt.

"You think that I'd let some little shit like you interfere in our business!?" Squealer shouted from outside as I saw her cannon begin to glow. "Think again, reject!"

I lifted my plasma gun with a shaking hand and fired. '… The outside of your cannon may be strong enough to withstand Galactic Alliance plasma bolts, but what about the inside?'

Five plasma bolts flew towards Squealer's mount. Three of the bolts were off course, hitting the cannon's outer shell and almost hitting Squealer. The fourth bolt hit the edge of the cannon. And the fifth… it flew directly into the cannon as Squealer recoiled.

There was a shout, a sudden flash of light, and then the cannon exploded. I smiled to myself only for my eyes to widen in alarm when something rocketed out of the smoke towards me.

I forced my body to move, all-but crawling away as fast as I could. The stone bench Skidmark had launched towards me smashed against the wall and only just avoided crushing my leg beneath it. I spared a glance upward and felt my blood freeze at the wide field Skidmark had created. At the assortment of rubble he was now launching towards me.

"Porma!"

The world went white.

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[PREV] – Building: 7.12 – [NEXT]

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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Threadmarks Building: 7.13

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Dec 26, 2014

#96

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Building: 7.13 – [NEXT]

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I don't really know what happened. I had been staring at the incoming barrage of rubble with a dawning horror—knowing that I would be unable to get away in time—before someone had called my name. I had then been blinded by an intense flash of white light and hit by something that threw me backwards, into a nearby wall.

I wasn't sure, but I might have blacked out there for a moment. I came too near the bottom of the stone bench that Skidmark had hurled at me earlier. I could hear people shouting though I was only able to pick out a few words.

"Who…?!"

"… should never…!"

"Ear… mother…!"

I knew that I should have been able to recognize the voices, but I couldn't. It was hard to try thinking right now—feeling as if someone had stuffed all the space in my brain with a thick, fuzzy blanket. Yet, I knew that I should know those voices. I should know who they were, what they wanted, but I didn't.

"… Por… naga!"

"You… for…"

"… us…?!"

Whatever it was, it couldn't be good. After all, when were things ever good when people were shouting amidst frequent loud, booming sounds? 'Not sounds…' I thought slowly. 'Those're… explosions…'

"Porma…" That voice was strangely familiar. Did I know it? "Naga… detaka! Yuuga… S-Shorts-stuff naga…! Porma… naga detaka. Peligiba, Porma."

'Wait… I know that voice.' He was—He was… 'Shortstuff.'

Shortstuff; my Experiment 002 and Jumba Jookiba's Experiment 297. He was the second experiment I had created, my second child. He was small and bubbly and a little mischievous and liked coconut cake and fixing things.

'But why… why does he sound so sad?'

I cracked open bleary eyes to find an orange-red blur kneeling next to my chest. Shortstuff. I couldn't see his face too clearly, but he seemed to be crying.

'Why are you crying, Shortstuff?' I wondered.

I couldn't remember Shortstuff crying before. Actually… I couldn't remember any of my children crying before. So, what could have happened that would have made one of them cry? To make Shortstuff cry?

I tried to move only to hiss in pain as various aches and pains made themselves known over my body. And it hurt. 'Oh, God… What—What was that? Why does it—Why does it hurt so much?!'

"… Porma?" Shortstuff whispered.

"I'm—I'm fine, Shortstuff…" I managed to mumble, "What's going… on?"

Shortstuff didn't answer. Instead, he practically flung himself at me before wrapping his short little arms around my chest and burying his head into my chest. I tried not to show him just how much that hurt and, instead, tried to focus on what he was saying.

"Porma naga detaka! Porma oketaka! S-Shortstuff –was s-so wor-ried! Shorts-stuff s-saw Porma h-hurt and—and Shortstuff t-tried wa-ake up, b-but Porma w-wouldn't w-wake!"

It was starting to come back to me now. But… what had caused that bright light? Or, more to the point, who had caused that light?

I would have liked to think that it had been Lady Photon, Laserdream, or Flashbang that had caused that light… but the voice I'd heard didn't match any of them. So, that rules out New Wave. For a moment, I thought that it might have been Purity… but the voice I'd heard was distinctly male.

Still, I could worry about that later. Right now, I had a near-hysterical Shortstuff clinging to my chest. "H-Hey. It's alright, Shortstuff. I'll be fine… It probably won't take more than a minute for Doc to fix me up."

"Porma s-so still… Shorts-stuff worried t-that Porma… that Porma…"

"It's okay, Shortstuff. I know that you were scared, but I'm fine. I'm okay, see?" I said as I forced myself to sit up before I wrapped my arms around Shortstuff. "I'm all in one piece. You don't have to be sad."

But Shortstuff was hearing anything anymore. He just buried his head deeper into my chest, holding onto me with all his might. "Porma… naga detaka. Naga detaka."

"Porma!"

"Are you alright, Miss Jookiba?" A voice called as Spike rushed forward, nearly doubling me over. I looked up to find myself staring at man with sandy-blonde hair, brown eyes, and a simple t-shirt and jeans. "You look pretty banged up."

"I'm okay. But… who are you?" Why did he seem so familiar?

An emotion I couldn't quite identify flickered across his face. "… I should've known that someone your age wouldn't recognize me," He muttered to himself. "I'm Donny Sullivian, but you might know be by another name; Lightstar."

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[PREV] – Building: 7.13 – [NEXT]

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Translation: Tantalog to English

Detaka – Die/Begone

Naga – No

Oketaka – Okay

Peligiba - Please

Porma - Mom or Mother

Yuuga - You

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#99

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Expansion: 8.1 – [NEXT]

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I still didn't know how I should feel about Lightstar or his sudden return to Brockton Bay.

On the one hand, I felt grateful towards Lightstar. Lightstar had saved my life. If he hadn't come back to Brockton Bay and been near the Docks, he wouldn't have heard the commotion and decided to get involved. And if he hadn't gotten involved, then I would've been crushed underneath that rubble Skidmark had launched at me.

Lightstar had then stepped in to battle Skidmark and Squealer. In the course of that conflict, he had destroyed three of Squealer's mounts and then forced them to flee. Then, he had helped an exhausted Spike deal with the remnants of Skidmark and Squealer's underlings.

So, not only had he saved my life, he had driven off Skidmark and Squealer and helped Spike. And by doing that, he had helped the BBPD get thirty five addicts and drug-dealers off the streets.

On the other hand, I hated how Lightstar's reappearance had divided New Wave. Lady Photon and Manpower had been willing to give Lightstar a chance to explain himself though Brandish stubbornly refused to have anything to do with her former teammate. And, while Flashbang seemed to side more with Lady Photon, he supported his wife.

Laserdream, Shielder, Glory Girl, Panacea and I were caught in the crossfire. I was lucky, in a way; I didn't live with them. I felt bad for thinking like that when I saw the bags underneath their eyes or heard about the latest argument, but…

Sam, Jessica, and I did our best to make sure that Victoria and Amy were doing okay. We couldn't do much, but making sure that they had fun and were able to relax, if only for a little while? We could do that.

Increasingly often, Doc would hitchhike in my body before he hid himself in Amy's backpack. He would stay with Amy and do his best to help her heal more patients as she started to go to the hospitals earlier and for longer periods of time.

Spike, Link, and Drowsy would accompany me as I actually went on a few patrols with Victoria around the city. And, most of the times, we ended up in the Boat Graveyard where Victoria would take out her anger on the boats.

"... Why did he have to come back?" Glory Girl asked one night as she stared at the wall of new dents that she had made on a rusted hull. "Why couldn't he have just stayed away?"

"I don't know." I said.

Glory Girl's fists tightened. "That's all that anyone says now, isn't it; "I don't know." I'm so sick of hearing that. I'm so sick of listening to everyone fight all of the time. And I'm sick of being sick."

"I don't know what to say." I said and pushed the bangs out of my eyes. "We don't know what happened back then. We know that he left the team after Fleur died and that he left the city soon after. And we know that he's come back. But, we don't know anything else."

While Laserdream and Shielder might have remembered what happened back then, they didn't know either. Whatever had happened back then, their parents had shielded them from it. Now, though, I wished that they hadn't. Maybe then we'd actually know the reason that Lightstar's reappearance had divided the team.

"Someone has to know."

I looked at her. "Do you think that your mom would tell us if we asked her?"

"… No." Victoria admitted after a few moments. "I actually tried asking her about it a few times, but she wouldn't tell me. She would always change the subject or find something else to do. And when I kept at it… she yelled at me, telling me that I wouldn't understand. But, understand what? What happened back then to make Mom so angry?"

"Unfortunately, it doesn't look like anyone's going to tell us." I said.

Something must have occurred to Victoria then. Her shoulders straightened and her aura ramped up—just enough for me to notice.

"Glory—"

"I know someone that can tell us." Glory Girl turned around, determined. "Are you up for a house call, Doctor?"

"… I guess."

"Good. We're going to pay Lightstar a visit."

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter. I'm sorry for the delay in getting it out—things have been a little hectic at home the last week. One of my parakeets died, a bus driver started to drive when my sister hadn't gotten her seat—leaving her with a sprained arm—and my mother had to go to the hospital.

I would like to thank my wonderful Beta Writers—Zooboss, PseudoSim, and FrostyWolf for all of their help. Without them, I would've put up a completely different version of this chapter none of us would have liked or have been satisfied with. So, thank them if you liked this chapter.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jan 10, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jan 19, 2015

#107

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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If someone had asked me what I thought about Victoria Dallon, I would have told them that she was a good friend. I would have said that she was kind, smart, and extremely loyal to her family and friends. I would have said that she was a good heroine if a little overzealous at times.

I would also tell them that Victoria Dallon was extremely stubborn. Once she got an idea into her head, it was all-but impossible to change her mind. And, often, that stubbornness was a double-edged sword.

I tried to talk Victoria out of it. Only, she grew increasingly convinced that we should track down and get some answers from Lightstar. It would allow us to figure out what happened back then, she said. And, if we knew what happened back then, couldn't we try to do something to fix what was happening now?

I thought about asking Link, Drowsy, or Spike to try subduing her, but I doubted it would work. Link or Drowsy might have been able to stop her though it wasn't a guarantee as I didn't know if her abilities would negate theirs. And Spike… his quills wouldn't be able to pierce through Victoria's skintight forcefield to inject her with his compound.

Eventually, I caved. I wanted to know what had happened back then. I wanted to know what Lightstar had done, the reason he had left New Wave and then Brockton Bay. The reason that he had decided to return now of all times.

"… Alright."

"Let's go, then!" Victoria said before she made her way towards the exit of the Graveyard.

I shared a look with my children and then got up to follow after her. Obediently, my children followed. Together, we took to the streets. Like Lady Photon, Glory Girl couldn't fly with me and three additional passengers, so we walked.

Of course… we didn't have much of a plan. Neither Victoria nor I knew where Lightstar was staying. We both assumed and hoped that he was staying at a hotel, but he could have been staying with an old friend or even have rented an apartment to stay in for the duration of his stay.

And, after leaving the third hotel with no luck, we ran into another problem: Über and Leet robbing a nearby jewelry store.

Über and Leet were a pair of villains with a video game theme. Every escapade, they picked a different video game or video game series and designed their costumes and crimes around it.

Once, they had dressed up as characters from Mario and broke into the mint to steal 'coins.' Another time, they had chosen Grand Theft Auto and driven around the city in a souped up car, ripping off the Azn Bad Boys and beating up hookers.

Today, Über and Leet's chosen game was Sonic the Hedgehog. Über was dressed up as Sonic with a blue bodysuit, a spiky blue helmet, white gloves, and red shoes outfitted with some kind of Tinkertech. Leet was dressed up as Tails with an orange bodysuit, an orange helmet topped with fox ears, and two spinning tails connected to an orange backpack.

"We don't have time for this." Victoria muttered angrily, hands clenching as she glared at Über and Leet. "Why'd they have to show up now?"

"It has been a while since they tried to pull something." I said.

"You watch their shows?"

"I watched a few of their episodes before I got my powers." I admitted as I unholstered my plasma guns. "But that doesn't really matter now, does it?"

"Naga, Porma." Link said.

"… We'll talk about it later, I guess." Victoria said. I felt her aura wash over me as she floated upwards, making me feel just a little bit more confident. "Right now… we need to teach those two losers a lesson."

"Ih, G-Glory." Link said.

Spike straightened. "Accata."

Drowsy yawned.

Victoria—Glory Girl—flashed us a vicious grin before she launched herself forward, toward the distant figures of Über and Leet. Spike, Link, Drowsy and I followed afterwards.

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Translation: From Tantalog to English

Accata – Alright/Clear

Ih – Yes

Naga – No

Porma – Mother or Mom

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed! If you did, thank Dr. Taylor Jookiba's three wonderful Beta Readers: Zooboss, PsuedoSim and Frosty Wolf!

Also, the person who guesses what the "Expansion" Arc is about gets a virtual Shortstuff plushy. You know you want it.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jan 19, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jan 20, 2015

#112

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Expansion: 8.3 – [NEXT]

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By the time that we made it inside Pearl, Glory Girl had already engaged Über and Leet. The floor was riddled with gleaming glass shards and discarded gems. The Pearl's staff cowered behind one display, hands over their heads and ears.

There was a brief whump as something Leet had thrown hit Glory Girl and exploded. Über jumped up into the air, grabbed his legs, and then somehow began to spin. Moments afterward, he burst forward to strike Glory Girl just as she exited the small cloud of smoke Leet's bomb had created.

The attack actually managed to send Glory Girl flying backwards where she collided with a display case. If not for the forcefield over her skin, she would have been really hurt. As it was… the attack only seemed to have ticked her off more.

Moments after Glory Girl launched herself back into the fray, my children joined them.

Über managed to duck under the punch Glory Girl had aimed at his jaw, rolled into a ball, spun for a moment, and knocked Glory Girl's feet out from under her. As Glory Girl fell, Leet hurled a series of bird-like bombs at Drowsy while he moved, keeping just out of reach of Link's glue and Spike's quills.

'How are they doing this?' I wondered as I took up position next to a trashed display case.

It was a reasonable question; despite having powers, Über and Leet were considered something of a joke. They had been beaten by pretty much everybody—heroes and villains alike. Now, though… What had changed with Über and Leet?

Glory Girl attempted to get back up but, halfway, Über slammed into her back. She fell forwards and Über spun forwards before turning around and racing at Drowsy.

The impact sent Drowsy flying backwards, through a window, and out into the street. Spike and Link turned as Über spun towards them only for one of Leet's bombs to land in-between them. It detonated, sending them flying in separate directions.

"Grab the Emerald—!" Leet began.

Glory Girl stood up and Leet choked. I felt a sudden, exhilarating, near overwhelming surge of confidence. What did we have to fear, really? Über and Leet might have learned a few new tricks, but that didn't change who they were. And, compared to everyone we had on our side, what did they have?

Glory Girl looked upwards towards Leet's frozen form, tensed, and then flew towards him like a bullet. She hit him like a freight train, shoving him into a wall so hard that it cratered. He struggled against her grip, but she was much stronger than he was.

I spotted Über out of the corner of my eye, charging up a spin, and shot at him. The plasma bolts rocketed towards him, but too late. He used a half-crushed display case as a ramp upwards and then soared at Glory Girl's back.

"Glory—" I tried to warn.

Glory Girl whirled around, hitting Über in the side to send him hurtling in another direction. There was another crash as he fell, but it didn't seem to bother him. He merely charged again and charged forward again. Only, he wasn't aiming at Glory Girl.

I fired my plasma guns again, but he swerved around the bolts. Something tugged at the back of my trench coat and yanked me backwards. I would've thought it had been Glory Girl, but I saw that she was still busy with Leet.

"Naga hurt Porma!" Link shouted.

Spike began to unleash volley after volley of his quills at Über, similarly enraged. Über retreated from the spray, changing courses, before racing towards us again. Link sprayed the area in front of us, raising a thick wall of glue. Über smashed into it and the glue bulged towards us as he tried to break through.

Then, like a rock fired by a slingshot, Über was sent backwards. He crashed through the wall of the store and into the ally beyond. Spike rushed after, peppering the hole with more of his quills.

I managed to get to my feet when something exploded again. Whirling, I saw Glory Girl drop Leet before she staggered back. I shot at Leet as he made to shove another bomb in Glory Girl's face, but he seemed to see the bolts coming. He flung a bomb in my direction before taking to the air.

"It's getting too hot here, Über!" Leet shouted as he dodged a burst of Link's glue, "We need to bail!"

"… Alright. You know what to do!"

"I won't let you get away!" Glory Girl said, grabbing Leet's foot. "You two won't—!"

Leet pulled a small, blue, teardrop-shaped bomb out of his backpack and into Glory Girl's face. When it exploded, it unleashed a thick blue liquid that formed tentacles that then wrapped around her face. Crying out, Glory Girl released Leet and fell back, clawing at the thing on her face.

Leet threw another teardrop-shaped bomb at us only for Link to raise another wall of glue. I saw the tips of the tentacles as the wrapped around the wall only for them to then shoot out at Link and I.

"Watch out!"

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Translation: From Tantalog to English

Naga – No

Porma – Mother or Mom

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jan 20, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jan 21, 2015

#117

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Expansion: 8.4 – [NEXT]

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I quickly pushed Link out of the way of the incoming tentacles before I dove towards a display case. Or, at least, I tried to. Something wet wrapped around my leg and pulled me backwards. Someone shouted before the tentacle's hold loosened and I was allowed to fall onto the ground.

Scrambling onto my knees, I saw Spike unleash another volley at the tentacles. The quills that were able to hit the tentacles cut through them, dropping them to the floor, only to reform moments later.

I took aim and started firing, joining Spike in a near-constant barrage to keep the tentacles at bay. 'What the hell are these things?!' Surely, something like this couldn't come from a children's game! Well… 'Don't think about it. Just keep shooting!'

Slowly, Spike and I managed to push the blue mass back towards the wall Link had created. Link then stepped up, firing twin streams that hit the mass and slowly enveloped it. It tried to escape, but Spike and I made sure to blast off away strands that managed to get out.

Finally, Link stopped. We waited with baited breaths for the tentacles to find a way to break out, but it was not to be. It was trapped, now.

"Thank goodness." I muttered.

There was a flash of blue overhead and I turned. At the sight of that familiar mass, I tensed and raised my plasma guns again. Only… the mass didn't attack. It hit the wall, fell to the ground, and stayed there. Link buried it underneath his glue.

"You okay over there, Doctor?" Glory Girl shouted from the other side of Link's wall. "I can get that thing off of you and your experiments if you need help."

"… N-No. We're okay." I said.

"Ih."

Glory Girl flew around the wall. I was happy to note that she didn't seem to even have a single hair out of place considering the thing that had attacked her face, but she didn't seem to care. She looked around before letting out an annoyed puff of air.

"They got away, didn't they?" She asked.

"Naga."

Turning around, I saw Drowsy sitting on the sidewalk outside of the store. He cracked a smile when he noticed I was looking at him before he yawned. I felt a smile of my own form on my face too when I caught sight the still forms of Über and Leet laying next to him.

"D-Drowsy r-rock!"

"Ih!"

"… You captured them?" Glory Girl asked, stunned.

Drowsy nodded sleepily. "B-Bad no see Drowsy when Ba-ad go outside. Drowsy yawn, put t-them to sleep before they can get away."

"You're amazing, Drowsy."

XXXXXXXXXX

It took the PRT ten minutes to arrive after Glory Girl called them. Officer Robertson took our statements while Officer Wilkins and Officer Yuurei loaded up Über and Leet onto the van.

"… You'll find two masses of what appears to be liquid underneath Link's glue. Be careful after you remove the glue, however, as it might try to attack you." I said.

"Do you think its Tinkertech?" Officer Robertson asked.

"Yes. I think it might be some sort of living chemical compound. I'm not really sure, though; I didn't get a good look at the things." I said.

"Alright." Officer Robertson took a few notes on his notepad before looking up at me again, "Is there anything else you would like to tell me?"

"No, that's it. I—"

Glory Girl grabbed my shoulder. "Doctor, we need to go."

"… What?"

"Panacea just called me from the hospital. Someone came in today asking about Doc and if he'd be willing to heal somebody."

That was great news! "What's the problem?"

"She's a Case 53."

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Translation: From Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Naga – No

Porma – Mother or Mom

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~! Rapid-fire updates for the win!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jan 21, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jan 22, 2015

#121

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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Unlike the few other 'Case 53s' that I had met, I could remember.

I could remember my family, the small hut made out of orange clay brick against the gray mountains, the green-blue grass and ocean. I remembered that horrible, black storm—the arcing, yellow thunder and the pale, pale faces of my parents. I remembered the resounding boom, the door being thrown open, and being grabbed.

I could remember that place. I remembered the confusion, the fear, and the pain. I remembered how they had unraveled me until I could barely be called a human anymore. I remembered the room they had put me in, the tests they had administered, the room they had put me inside—

I could remember the way the building shook, the sound of people and monsters screaming, and the horrible wail that rose above everything else. I remembered how I had managed to break out, working out how to move amongst an alien landscape as a multitude of colors exploded in the air. I remembered running.

Sometimes, I wished that I couldn't remember. Maybe it would have been better if I hadn't. I wouldn't have been constantly, mercilessly taunted by the fact that someone had turned me into a monster.

I had been so angry, then. Anything that my tentacles had been able to wrap around, I had crushed. There didn't seem to be anything that I couldn't break.

And, then, I had discovered another downside. I could direct my tentacles, but I couldn't fully control them. And the more upset I got… the less control over them I had.

By the time that the PRT had managed to catch me, I was grateful. I didn't want to hurt anyone or anything else. I didn't want to remember all of their faces and the desperation I had felt as I tried to force my tentacles to let them go. I had just wanted it to be over.

Only, the PRT spared me—sent me to a 'Parahuman Asylum' on the 'East Coast'. I was put in another room where doctors wearing specialized suits talked to me and told me about the world. They had given me books to write in, paper to draw on, and introduced me to the Internet.

Whenever I needed an escape from my life, I went onto the Internet. I did anything and everything that I could to distract myself. And, though the doctors said it wasn't healthy, I kept an eye on Parahumans Online—searching for a hint of a cure or a release.

For years, I had found nothing. But now…

'Calm down.' I told myself as my tentacles began to tighten around the computer terminal. 'Remember the breathing exercises Dr. Yamada taught you…'

In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out.

Something creaked.

'H-Have to focus on the exercises. Have to focus on the exercises.' In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. '… O-Okay, okay… Breathe, Sveta.'

I took a deep breath and opened my eyes. I was met with the familiar PHO screen, but a different thread than I had clicked on at random.

Topic: Travelers Busted!

In: Boards ► Places ► America ► Teams ►The Travelers

"Sveta?"

I turned at the sound of the voice to see Dr. Yamada stepping into the room in one of those special suits. My body moved on its own, two tentacles reaching out to grab onto her before pulling me towards her. Quickly, my tentacles began to wrap around the suit and squeeze.

'Breath.' In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out. In. Out.

"What's wrong, Sveta? You seem a little more… agitated than usual."

"Dr. Yamada… I-I found something online…" I admitted. "I know—I know you keep saying that I shouldn't keep getting my h-hopes up, but I—I found something… Maybe even… a cure."

"Sveta…"

"Dr. Yamada, I-I know it sounds crazy, but I'm… I'm telling the truth. I found something on Parahumans Online… somebody like me was… was cured. There were even pictures."

"Oh?"

I nodded. "Yes. They're not fake either—Clockblocker posted them. And if it's real, then I—then I…" Something got caught in my 'throat'. I swallowed heavily, "Maybe I… maybe I could be cured, too."

"I can look into it if you want me too, Sveta."

"Really?" I asked.

"Of course."

XXXXXXXXXX

And, one week later, Dr. Yamada and I headed off towards Brockton Bay. I had to stay within a Tinkertech sphere so that I wouldn't break anything, but I didn't mind. It was a small price to pay if this actually worked out.

'… Maybe—Maybe I'll be cured.' I thought longingly. 'Maybe I'll finally be… be human again.'

I could only hope.

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!XXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Expansion: 8.5 – [NEXT]

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I hadn't expected something like this to happen. At least, not so soon. I had thought that there would be more time until people began to realize that what Doc had done wasn't a joke. I had thought there would have been more questions, more demands for an explanation. But, it had happened.

Someone—one Dr. Jessica Yamada—had shown up at the Brockton Bay General Hospital, asking for Doc. She wanted him to look at one of her patients—a girl named Sveta— and see if he would be able to heal her as he had healed Noelle.

Doc agreed.

When I arrived at the hospital, the receptionist directed me to a room on the first floor. She must have called ahead as, when I approached, the two PRT officers guarding the door let me through. I nodded at them and stepped into the room beyond.

In it, I discovered six more PRT officers standing around the room. They were all equipped with Containment Foam sprayers that were held at the ready, aimed at the Tinkertech sphere sitting atop a small table. I also spotted Miss Militia and Armsmaster as well as a woman I didn't recognize. Dr. Yamada, I presumed.

'… What's with all the security?' I wondered. 'Is it because of the girl—Sveta?'

But, why? Why would one Case 53 require such security?

"Porma!" Doc exclaimed, rushing at me. I kneeled down and wrapped my arms around him as he did the same. "Ashi Salaam, Porma?"

"I'm okay, Doc. Just a little banged up—I'll tell you about it later. How are you doing?"

"Meega oketaka, Porma." Doc said before he dropped his arms. He gestured towards the Tinkertech sphere. "Meega h-help TaaksiSarri."

"… She's inside that?" I asked.

I didn't know what kind of Tinkertech had gone into making that thing, but unless it was something that allowed for the manipulation of space… no normal human would fit inside. Of course, who was to say that the Case 53 looked like a human anymore?

"Yes." The unfamiliar woman—Dr. Yamada—stepped forwards. "Like many other so-called 'Case 53s', Sveta possesses a unique physiology. Unlike other 'Case 53s', however, Sveta is unable to control herself. Her limbs act on their own, wrapping around and then constricting around any and everything and then crushing them. That sphere was designed to allow Sveta to be brought to new locations without risk of her limbs acting against her will and harming anyone."

I didn't know what to say. What Dr. Yamada said that—that was horrible. I couldn't even imagine what that poor girl must have gone through. Hopefully, Doc would be able to help her.

Still, while I hated to ask… "Can Doc get to her without fully opening the sphere?" I looked away, "I don't—I don't have anything against her, but… what you said…"

"It's alright, I understand." That wasn't Dr. Yamada's voice. I turned and found myself staring at the sphere. Sveta. Had she—had she heard? "I wouldn't want something like that to happen either. Dr. Yamada?"

"From what I understand about Doc's abilities, he should be able to reach Sveta through the vents within the sphere." Dr. Yamada said.

"What'll happen if it does work?" I asked. "I doubt that somebody will fit inside that thing."

Armsmaster stepped forward. "Once we have received confirmation that your experiment is actually healing her, I will disable the device. It will fall apart as she grows. If she looks like she might attack, she will be buried under containment foam."

"… I see."

Doc smiled at me one more time before he moved towards Sveta. There, he whispered something I couldn't quite catch before he touched the edge of the sphere and began shrinking. Within moments, he disappeared through the vents of the sphere.

I don't know how much time I spent staring at that sphere, waiting for a sign that something was happening. I almost jumped when the sphere began to bulge and Sveta shouted.

"It's—It's working! It's working!"

Armsmaster barked out a command and the PRT officers raised their sprayers. I watched as the sphere slowly came apart like a flower. I spotted the growing, writhing mass that was Sveta and actually took a step backwards.

Sveta leaned forward as something translucent receded into her head before it was pushed downwards. Down, past her neck and into the beginnings of a torso where the bulge then seemed to separate before the new bulges spread out. Tentacles making up her arms and legs come together, shifting and changing, until they were no longer tentacles but actual arms and legs. Pale brown hair grew on top of her head to cascade down her back.

Sveta fell off the table and onto the ground. She didn't seem to mind at all or, perhaps, she didn't notice. Shakily, Sveta brought up her arms so that she could see them and tried wriggling her fingers. And, when she found out that she could, she started to cry.

"I-It worked. It w-worked. O-Oh, thank G-God it worked…"

Dr. Yamada approached Sveta before kneeling down in front of her and brushing the hair out of her face. Sveta looked up through teary eyes as Dr. Yamada draped a hospital gown over her to protect her modesty. Then, she brought Sveta close and hugged her—telling her that everything would be alright.

I felt someone tug my trench coat and looked down to see Doc staring up at me.

"Meega do g-good, Porma?" Doc asked.

"Yes." I said as I watched Sveta slowly, awkwardly, brought her arms up and around Dr. Yamada to hug her. Even that movement seemed to amaze her. "Yes, you did Doc."

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Translation: From Tantalog to English

Ashi Salaam – How are you?

Oketaka - Okay

Porma – Mother or Mom

Sarri – Girl

Taaksi - Capsule

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jan 22, 2015

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jan 24, 2015

#134

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Expansion: 8.6 – [NEXT]

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If I had thought the news had spread quickly before, it was nothing compared to how fast it was spreading now. It spread like raging wildfire, consuming everything in its path until there was nothing else left. Soon, it began to seem like it was all that people could talk about.

People talked about it in school between and sometimes even during classes. The radio and various news stations discussed it. It was talked about over the phone and over emails. And that wasn't even mentioning the ongoing discussions happening over various news sites and online forums.

New Wave was all-but drowning underneath the sudden deluge of phone calls, letters, and email. It was all anyone could do to keep on top of it and even that seemed difficult at times.

Often, I found myself wondering how they did it. I couldn't keep up with the constant stream of emails, the near-endless calls, and the nonstop questions. I had even considered unplugging my computer more than a few times.

And, if that wasn't enough, then there was also the matter of the press. No matter what I did, no matter how many of their questions I answered, the followed after me, trying to get me to answer their questions. And they just kept coming back.

I don't know what might have happened if I didn't have my children's support. Whenever I would start to feel overwhelmed, they would distract me—asking me to play a board game, help them draw, teach them yet another cooking recipe. And, sometimes, they would even help me down in the basement.

I couldn't deny, however, that this whole mess seemed to have a positive effect on Doc. He went to the hospital each day to greet his newest patients before he began the arduous process of healing them. And, when he came home, he regaled us with what he had learned about them.

It was humbling to hear what they had gone through.

Case 53s were different from normal parahumans. They appeared in random places all across the world, bereft of their memories and often possessing monstrous forms.

In North America, the PRT and the Protectorate had done their best to help the Case 53s. The PRT supplied them with new identities, shelter, clothes, and food. And, if the Case 53 wanted to, they could join the Protectorate or the Wards and be given training in their abilities alongside a substantial salary.

Still, despite everything that the PRT and the Protectorate had done for the Case 53s, they hadn't been able to really change their circumstances. They had been unable to restore the memories that had been stolen from the Case 53s and had been unable to develop a permanent cure which would return a Case 53 back to their former, more human appearance.

So, really, it wasn't that surprising that people were so caught up in this. Doc had done what many people had theorized impossible—he freely gave Case 53s the chance to return to their former appearance.

It was true that their powers were affected during the process, but not by much. The Case 53s would still have the same general power though a different way to use it.

And the Case 53s were grateful. I received dozens of thankful emails, letters, and small gifts for Doc. I noticed that Doc had seemed to have gained a near constant protective detail. Sometimes, I would even notice that I had a tail or two of my own.

And then, three weeks after Doc had begun healing Case 53s in earnest, a former Case 53 approached New Wave.

XXXXXXXXXX

The former Case 53 was a tall, broad-shouldered man with ink-black hair and honey-colored eyes. He wore a white polo shirt with a brown tie, black jacket, black slacks, and shiny black shoes.

"Gerald Louanne." The man introduced himself, shaking Lady Photon's hand. "It's a pleasure to meet you, ma'am. I've heard a lot of good things about you and your team."

"Thank you, Mr. Louanne. I think I remember hearing about you." Lady Photon thought about it for a moment. "If I remember correctly, you helped take down Horde in Cape May. Very impressive."

Gerald smiled. "Thank you, ma'am. But, to be honest, I didn't really do that much—I just stalled him long enough for the local Protectorate team to arrive."

"I wouldn't sell yourself so short, Mr. Louanne."

"… Thank you." Gerald said after a moment. He looked as if he wanted to say something else, but didn't. At least… not for a few moments. "I have a question for you, ma'am."

"Yes?"

Gerald looked her in the eye. "I was going to ask you if I could join New Wave."

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed.

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Coshiua

Jan 24, 2015

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Feb 4, 2015

#141

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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Of all the things that I had thought Mr. Louanne would ask, I hadn't expected him to ask that. I hadn't thought that other capes would be interested in joining New Wave. What New Wave stood for was admirable, but not a lot of people wanted to "give up the mask" after they had heard about what happened to Fleur.

If I hadn't been so distrustful of the Protectorate after learning that Sophia was a Ward, I might have considered joining the Wards. And, if I hadn't been so terrified of what those two thugs might do, I would have stayed as an independent affiliate instead of actually joining New Wave.

Still, I didn't actually regret joining New Wave. I had gained a team of strong, able-minded people that had done their best to help me and a bunch of new friends that had slowly drawn me out of my shell. And they actually liked me.

What I was most appreciative of, however, was the fact that New Wave hadn't asked me to do anything I wasn't comfortable with. New Wave hadn't asked if I could create more "Experiments" for them after I had created Link and Drowsy. And I was so, so grateful for that.

In hindsight, I probably should have realized that someone might approach New Wave after I did. I just hadn't expected it. I mean, he had a lot of other options.

"Can I ask why you want to join New Wave, Mr. Louanne?"

I looked up to find Lady Photon staring at Mr. Louanne with an unreadable expression on her face. Had she—Had she been expecting something like this to happen?

"I want to join New Wave because I want to make a difference. I know that there are a lot of other teams out there, but this team is special. You don't hide behind masks or make excuses—you take full accountability for everything that you do. People know New Wave. They can trust that this team will continue to stand by the ideals it was founded upon no matter what because they've seen you do it."

"You could have put the mask on or hung up your capes, but you didn't. You stuck to your guns and kept working despite everything that the world had to throw at you. And that—that is something that I can respect, something that I admire, and something I would like to get behind."

"Thank you for answering my question, Mr. Louanne. It was certainly enlightening." Lady Photon said before Mr. Louanne ducked his head, seemingly embarrassed. She sighed. "Unfortunately, I can't give you an answer to your question right now."

Wait, what?

"I will need to bring this matter up with my teammates. I'm sure that they would welcome another addition on the team, but it would be best to get their opinions on the situation before I make any final decisions. I hope you can understand, Mr. Louanne."

Mr. Louanne frowned. "I understand, ma'am."

Lady Photon opened her mouth to say something, closed it, and then looked down at the table. Mr. Louanne stared at her for a moment before he stood up, stiffly thanked Lady Photon for hearing him out, and left without another word.

XXXXXXXXXX

"… Why did you say that to Mr. Louanne?"

Lady Photon sighed. "As much as I may have wanted to tell Mr. Louanne that he could join New Wave, I don't want anyone to join New Wave right now. I wouldn't want him to enter a potentially hostile environment."

"What do you mean?"

"I think you know exactly what I mean, Taylor." Lady Photon said. "It may seem like I have reconciled with my sister, but that isn't true. If I had allowed Mr. Louanne to join New Wave, then he would soon find himself forced to 'take sides'. It could also potentially worsen the situation."

I didn't know what to say. I just could believe it: Lady Photon and Brandish were still fighting about Lightstar? But, why? Shouldn't they have been able to talk things through by now? Apparently not.

I could only imagine what it must have been like for the others. I had thought that I had had it bad, but I hadn't also had to deal with the fact that my parents were fighting with my aunt and uncle. I hadn't had to put on a mask and pretend that everything was normal when it wasn't.

And it hurt. It hurt knowing what Victoria, Amy, Crystal, and Eric must have been going through. It hurt because, even with this going on, they hadn't told me anything. 'They didn't want to add onto what was going on…'

I remembered the bags underneath Victoria's and Amy's eyes. I remembered how Amy had started to spend more and more hours at the hospital and how Victoria had raged, taking out her frustration on boats. And I remembered how I had agreed to help Victoria track down Lightstar and get some answers from him.

I hadn't helped her. I had got so overwhelmed with everything going on that I had forgotten about it. I was—I was a horrible friend.

"… What did Lightstar do to you guys?" It took me a moment to realize that I had actually said that. "What could he have done that was so bad that it would make everyone start fighting when he came back? What—What could have been so bad as to make you fight your sister for weeks because of him?"

"Taylor—"

I didn't want to hear it. I didn't want to hear her make up more excuses to evade the subject. Not when—not when it was slowly tearing everyone apart. "I just want to know what he did. I want to know the reason that you're fighting with your sister about him! What did he do?! And why are none of you willing to talk about it?!

"It's not your problem—"

I slammed my hands down on the table. "It's not just me who feels this way! Everyone else does too! Haven't you noticed the bags underneath everyone's eyes? Or how Amy is spending more and more time at the hospital and Vicky is spending more time patrolling or beating up boats?! They're doing it because they can't stand what's going on and they don't know how to deal with what's going on! And don't tell me you haven't noticed something similar happening with Eric and Crystal!"

"So, tell me! If not for me, tell me for them! Tell me so I can tell them the reason that their family is tearing itself apart. Maybe then—Maybe then we could do something about it. Just… Please, just tell me what he did."

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

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Feb 4, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Feb 14, 2015

#146

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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When Mom and Dad told me that I would be a big brother, I didn't know how to feel. Even though a few friends had older brothers, I didn't understand what being a big brother meant.

The moment that I laid eyes on Carol in the hospital, I knew. Big brothers were meant to be there for their younger siblings and protect them. As I stared at her little, scrunched-up face I had promised myself that I would be the best big brother ever.

I did everything in my power to live up to that promise. Mom and Dad soon discovered that they didn't need to ask me to help them with Carol as I would gladly volunteer. Whenever Carol needed something, I would be there to help and assist her.

It got a little more difficult after Sarah entered the picture, but it wasn't unmanageable. I was sad to discover that my friends didn't really understand me though I found it didn't matter. All that seemed to matter was keeping the promise I had made: being the best big brother I could.

I was content.

Unfortunately, it could not last forever.

One summer day, Mom took us to a local park to play. Carol and Sarah had rushed to the jungle gym to play while I had stood by and watched. Then, Mark Samuels had waved me over and Mom had waved me off, saying that she had everything in hand. I had reluctantly headed off to play a game of soccer. It was during that game when it happened.

There was a loud sound not unlike a thunderclap before people started to panic. I whirled around towards the noise and saw people running in every direction. And then I saw it—some strange man forcing a screaming, crying Carol into the back of his van.

I—I hadn't been able to get there in time. I would run after him for as long as I was able, tears in my eyes as I screamed my sisters' names.

I can't remember much of the months that followed their kidnapping. Even now, I can only remember bits and pieces of it: a few, scant meetings with the police, overheard arguments between Mom and Dad, a few fights I had started, and a deep self-hatred.

I hated myself for breaking my promise, for not being there when Carol and Sarah had needed me. I had been right there! If I had just stayed with them…! If I had just been a little faster or a little stronger…! But… I hadn't been. I hadn't been there for them.

It all came together one November afternoon. I had left school after a horrible day only to be cornered by a few older students that wanted to settle the score. I hadn't stood a chance against all of them—within short order, they had caught me and started to beat me up.

I don't remember much of what happened next. I had just wanted them to stop, to go away, and then they did. Something bright flashed before they were all blasted backwards. When they got up, they ran.

And, suddenly, I was a parahuman: a 'cape'. I found myself capable of forming spheres of varying heights that I could control and detonate them either concussively or explosively. The spheres weren't that fast, but that didn't really matter considering how fast and how large I could make them.

It was shortly after that when a miracle occurred. Dad came to take me out of school early before he told me—the police had found Sarah and Carol. They had been found!

I wouldn't find out what had happened to them much later. I wouldn't know that they had been kept in a dark, dingy basement for months with little food and water. And I wouldn't know just how they had managed to escape until much, much later.

It was only after Dad and I arrived that I realized that things would be different. And how could they not? It—It just hurt seeing how much Carol had withdrawn herself and how untrusting she had become. It hurt to see Sarah flinch whenever she saw someone bigger than herself, knowing just why she was suddenly afraid of the dark.

It would take a long time before things started to get better. I found that I had to prove myself to my sisters—prove that I wouldn't hurt them, that I could be trusted, and that they could trust me. It would take a long time to do that and even longer for Carol and Sarah to finally open up.

One day, Carol and Sarah told me that they had powers. Carol had the ability to create weapons and shields out of light and turn into a bouncing sphere of hard light that made her effectively invulnerable. Sarah had the ability to fly, create hard light laser beams, and force fields. In return, I had revealed my ability to them.

I hadn't known how they would take the news, but I had learned that it was best to be as open with them as I possibly could. Even so, I had thought that they would be upset that I hadn't told them earlier.

Carol and Sarah had been a little upset, but they understood. And that understanding, if anything, only seemed to draw us closer together.

In time, Carol and Sarah would come to desire to do something with their powers. To take after the example of the Triumvirate and actually do some good. I wasn't too keen on the idea, but I went along with it if only to be there for my sisters and make sure that they would be okay. And, together, we became the Three Lights: Brandish, Photon, and Lightstar.

The Three Lights became one of Brockton Bay's first superhero teams. The group became known for our homemade costumes and our various 'heroics'. The Three Lights stopped various muggings, small-time robberies, and even helped the BBPD dismantle a drug ring or two.

While we may have clashed with other, villainous parahumans we did our best to avoid Butcher's Teeth, Allfather's Empire Eighty-Eight and the Marquis' Marche. It wasn't that we didn't want to do something about the gangs, but that we didn't have the manpower to take them on.

It would be a year after the Three Lights were born that the Daring Duo would approach us. The Duo would ask us to form a new team with them in the hopes of confronting the gangs. We were hesitant at first, but eventually decided to go for it.

And, with that, Brockton Bay Brigade was born.

The Brockton Bay Brigade would do more than the Three Lights and the Daring Duo could ever hope to do separately. We stopped more crime and actually took the fight to the gangs.

… Then, the Slaughterhouse Nine arrived. They decimated the Teeth, the Empire Eighty-Eight, the Patrollers, and three of Marquis' lieutenants. They killed Wrinkle, Bluestreak, Jumper, and Granite. They also nearly killed all of us on the Brigade.

The remainder of the Teeth fled from the city while Empire Eighty-Eight would call for their help abroad. The result would be a long, bloody gang war as the Marche fought the Empire Eighty-Eight in hopes of seizing more territory. Other, smaller gangs came and went.

The government would soon open up PRT Department Thirty-Two with its own Protectorate branch, but the heroes would be severely outnumbered. We did our best to assist the few Protectorate heroes, but it never seemed enough.

A new hero—Fleur—would approach and later join the Brigade. I fell in love with her—her obvious intelligence, the way she laughed, the way she would do anything for the people she cared about, her inability to master a remote.

I had never agreed with the idea behind the New Wave Movement. It was good in theory, but who knew what would happen if someone actually went through with it? I had argued against, but…

And then the worst happened. At the height of New Wave's popularity, a gangster had broken into my house and murdered Fleur.

I had raged against the rest of the team—blaming them for Fleur's death. They were the ones who had pushed for the Brigade to reveal our identities, to discard the safety that separate identities provided. I had shouted until my voice was hoarse and my eyes were dry.

I hadn't noticed that I had made Sarah cry until it was too late. Carol had laid into me then before demanding that I leave.

"I—I should have never trusted you!"

It was then that I realized my mistake. I tried to apologize—to say that I didn't mean it—but Carol wouldn't listen. She shot me one last heartbreakingly betrayed look before she took Sarah away. Manpower then kindly asked me to leave and I did.

I had hoped to make it up to Carol and Sarah, but nothing came of it. Carol refused to have anything to do with me and absolutely forbid me from trying to go see Sarah. We had another argument where Carol yelled at me—telling me to just leave her and the others alone.

… I did. Hurt and angry and ashamed, I resigned from New Wave before packing my bags. I left Brockton Bay and headed north. But no matter how far away I would go, I would always keep an eye on my sisters.

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed

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Coshiua

Feb 14, 2015

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Feb 17, 2015

#153

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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"… To say that I was surprised to see Donny standing there is an understatement. I could hardly believe that it was him: that he had come back. Once I calmed down, I asked him why and he told me everything. It was then that I realized that I hadn't been told everything that had happened back then. He didn't leave because he didn't want to have anything to do with us anymore: he left because Carol asked him too. After that, I left to go talk to Carol…"

Lady Photon looked down at the table. "I thought that Carol had recovered from what happened. Only, she never truly recovered from it: she just grew more adept in pretending that she has. And when I told her that Donny had come back…"

"What happened?"

But, Lady Photon shook her head. "I never wanted to start something like this. Carol just doesn't want to listen to anybody. I've tried getting through to her, to try to talk things out with her, but…"

'I think I'm starting to understand…' I had thought that this fight was about Lightstar, but it wasn't just about him. It was about the rest of New Wave too.

If what Lady Photon had told me was true, Brandish hadn't just 'asked' Lightstar to leave. She had kept things from the rest of her team—allowed them to believe that Lightstar had left because he didn't want to have anything to do with them anymore. And when Lady Photon tried to talk to her about it…

I didn't know much about the 'trauma' that Lady Photon and Brandish went through, but Brandish needed help. She needed help to get over what happened and just let it go.

The problem was that I didn't know how to get Brandish the help she needed. She would have to admit to herself that there was a problem and that she wanted to get help. And, from what Lady Photon had said, neither of those things seemed very likely.

What chance did I have to convince Brandish she needed help when even Lady Photon couldn't?

'Maybe… Maybe we could try talking to her?' Lady Photon said that she tried talking to Brandish, but… Maybe it just wasn't enough. 'Maybe she just needs to hear it from someone else's perspective. Someone not involved in what's going on.'

Still, if what Lady Photon had said was true, it couldn't be just anybody. Brandish would never admit anything or listen to a stranger. The problem was that I didn't know if Brandish had friends outside of New Wave to who she would listen. But… who was to say that Brandish would listen to them?

The only person that Brandish seemed willing to listen to was Lady Photon. Yet, Lady Photon had admitted that she hadn't been able to get through to her sister. And with tensions this high…

"Taylor?"

"… I think I might have an idea." It would be really tricky, and it might not work, but it was worth a try. "You know about Alfred, right…?"

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It hadn't taken Lady Photon more than five minutes to retrieve Alfred. I spent the next few minutes telling him about the plan and what role he would play in it before asking him if he would mind. Thankfully, Alfred told me that he didn't mind helping out.

Smiling, I had pulled him into a hug. It was shortly after that, when I was asking Alfred how his day had been going so far, that Flashbang and Brandish arrived.

Immediately, Brandish moved towards Lady Photon. She then proceeded to ask Lady Photon about the sudden summons before Lady Photon told her that it was for an emergency meeting of New Wave. I didn't hear much more of their conversation when I saw Flashbang approach Alfred.

"My name is Alfred." Alfred said. "What is your name?"

Flashbang smiled. "It's nice to meet you, Alfred. My real name is Mark Dallon, but people call me 'Flashbang' when I wear this uniform."

"Oh. It is like Porma."

"Yes. Only I have a different ability…"

I turned away in time to notice Manpower enter the room. He looked around before heading over to where Lady Photon and Brandish were. He had barely got there when Brandish moved away—pulling Flashbang away from his conversation with Alfred before they both took their seats.

Manpower talked with Lady Photon for a moment before they too took their seats.

"Before I call this meeting to order, I would like to talk to everyone about the possibility of using Alfred's talent." Lady Photon said, "I know that some of us may not feel comfortable using it, but I feel like it could be used to minimize arguments."

"And if we don't want to use his talent?"

Lady Photon smiled wanly. "If none of us are comfortable with using Alfred's talent, then we won't use it. I just thought that using his talent would allow us to avoid any potential arguments and get straight to the point. We do, after all, have a lot to discuss."

"…"

Flashbang squeezed Brandish's hand reassuringly. "I think it is a good idea. With everything that's been going on recently… I think using Alfred's talent would allow us to keep our heads."

Brandish didn't say anything for a few moments. She merely looked around the room, staring at and seeming to search everyone's faces, before her eyes landed on Lady Photon. The two sisters stared at one another for what seemed like an eternity.

"… If that is what you think is best."

Lady Photon smiled.

Alfred stepped forward. He unclasped his hands from behind his back and then made a grand, sweeping gesture. Glittering, pale-yellow powder poured out from the tips of his fingers to encompass the entire room.

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Translation – Tantalog to English

Porma: Mom or Mother.

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Feb 17, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Mar 10, 2015

#155

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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I knew a fair deal about the 'politeness powder' that Alfred could create. If asked about it, I could point out the organs that allowed him to create it and explain how those organs worked together to create the powder. I could also explain what it was supposed to do, what portions of a person's brain it targeted, and how long it lasted.

I could not, however, explain how it felt to be effected by the 'politeness powder'. In truth, I hadn't actually seen Alfred use his 'politeness powder' before.

I had heard that Alfred had used it against the Travelers when he and the rest of my children had come to rescue me, but... I hadn't particularly cared about it back then. All I had cared about back then was getting out of their and getting home.

... I had to admit that it was interesting. I watched Alfred as he created it before I followed the glittering powder as it spread throughout the room.

Manpower was the first to be affected. I watched as his shoulders loosened, his forehead relaxed, and the faint hostility vanished from his eyes. His mouth opened: "Oh," He breathed. "This is wonderful..."

Brandish turned towards Manpower before she stiffened. She remained still for a long, pregnant moment. Then, she too fell under the sway of the 'politeness powder'.

I didn't have time to feel more than a vague feeling of triumph before my vision became filled with a glittering, yellow cloud. 'This is it. I wonder what it—'

I could feel the tension leave my body, my muscles relaxing, as the powder took effect. And it felt—It felt good. It was like I had just left the spa after an extended stay: I felt happy and totally, utterly relaxed.

"Whoa."

Brandish glanced at Lady Photon. "I thought you said that it would 'allow us to keep our heads'. This doesn't seem anything like that..."

"It is different from what I imagined." Lady Photon agreed. "I didn't expect to feel like this... I can't say I mind it though. I hadn't even noticed how tense I was." She smiled at Brandish. "I imagine you're feeling a little better, too."

"... Yes."

"I don't mean to interrupt, but... shouldn't we be talking about what you called us here for, Lady Photon?" Flashbang asked with a faint frown.

"Yes, we should." Lady Photon straightened. "I called this meeting to discuss what has been happening with New Wave recently and how we might move forward."

"Oh?"

Lady Photon nodded. "Yes. Just this morning, Dr. Jookiba and I were approached by a former Case 53 who expressed interest in joining New Wave. We will need to discuss if New Wave is still open to receiving new members and, if so, how we incorporate them into the team..."

XxX=-=XxX

"The second issue happens to deal with a former member of New Wave: Lightstar. I know that everyone is still a little confused or angry at Lightstar, but we should at least be willing to hear him out."

"What do you mean?" Brandish's eyes began to narrow. "I thought that we had already talked about that."

"I know that you are angry at him for what he did, but it wasn't his fault. Not entirely. He was grieving and he lashed out, like we lashed out. And when he realized what he had done... when he realized how much he had hurt us... what you asked him to do... he left."

"He should have stayed gone." Brandish said.

"I'm not asking you to forgive him, Brandish. I'm not asking you to trust him. I just want the chance to reconnect with him... the chance to bring him back into my family and allow him to get to know his niece and nephew. I'm not saying that you have to do the same, but... I would appreciate it if you didn't try and stop me from trying. And I would really appreciate it you stopped fighting me on this."

Brandish stared at Lady Photon for a few moments in a sort of shock. She looked almost hurt for a moment before she gave a tight-lipped smile.

"I... understand. If that's what you really want, then who am I to stand in your way?" Brandish stood from the table. "I can respect your wishes, Sarah. I can even stand aside and let you do what you want - no matter how much I might disagree with it."

Then, Brandish was gone.

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed the chapter.

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Mar 10, 2015

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Mar 24, 2015

#160

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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It had been three weeks since Brandish had told Lady Photon that she wouldn't stand in her way anymore. And as much as I should've been happy to hear that - to know that the fighting would finally stop - I wasn't.

Brandish hadn't left New Wave, but it was almost like she had. Nobody really saw her anymore and, even when they did, they would only see her for a minute or two before she left. If Link and Drowsy were to be believed, then Brandish had even stopped going on patrol. Or, at least, she had stopped patrolling with us.

I had asked Amy and Victoria if they knew what she was doing, but they didn't really know either. All that they really knew was that she was spending more and more time at work.

It wouldn't be a week after that that I would find out what Brandish had been working on. She had been talking to the P.R.T. about the Travelers all the while building a case against them.

I still didn't know what Brandish had said to or promised the P.R.T., but I knew what she had managed to get out of them: a set date for the Travelers' trial. The Travelers would be tried on the fifth of April. And, depending on the severity of their other crimes and the court's ruling, they could find themselves in line for the Birdcage.

While I was happy to hear that and take comfort in the fact that justice would finally be done, I also felt a little hurt. I hadn't been told about the trial or what I would need to do by Brandish - no, I had been told by the prosecutor that Brandish had given over the case to.

And that was just Brandish.

Lady Photon had thrown herself into her work. While Lady Photon had always been the official leader of New Wave, she and Brandish had actually shared the position. And now that Brandish was all-but gone... Lady Photon had to take over her sister's portion of the work.

I was of half-mind regarding Lady Photon's decision to allow new capes into New Wave. I could understand why she did it, but it didn't feel right. Not right now.

That didn't mean that I didn't like Jacinta, Hart, and Tobiah. I did like them. I didn't know them that well, but they seemed to be pretty decent people that genuinely wanted to help. I just - I just didn't understand why Lady Photon would want to allow them into New Wave right now, considering her earlier rejection of Mr. Louanne.

Yet things progressed. Manpower took over the training of Jacinta, Hart, and Tobiah - helping them learn to control or use their powers better, training them in hand-to-hand combat, and etc. And after he called me in to help him, I had found myself joining them.

'"I should have started training you the moment after you joined New Wave. You may not have a power that allows you to be a frontline fighter, but that doesn't mean you should be defenseless."'

If there was anything to be happy about in this situation, it was that training. I hated Manpower for putting me through it, but I was also grateful for it.

Bit by bit, I was improving. I was slowly finding myself less exhausted with the exercises Manpower put us through. I was still the worst at hand-to-hand combat, but I was becoming doing better at target practice.

I couldn't really hit ten out of ten every time, but I could hit enough. And with each day that passed, I grew that little bit better at it - that little bit more confident in my skills.

I felt good. Like, the next time I went out on patrol, I would be able to do more than sit back and let my teammate handle the situation. I wouldn't just take potshots when I had the chance - no, I could actually contribute something.

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you enjoyed!

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Mar 24, 2015

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An Autistic Kyogre~!

Apr 14, 2015

#162

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

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My first patrol with Tobiah—"Haunt"—was a rather enlightening experience. While I had known that Tobiah was a Stranger, I hadn't really known what his power was or what that entailed. I had been training alongside him under Manpower, but I hadn't really paid him that much attention. And that was exactly the problem.

The moment that Haunt left a person's field of vision, his power would make them forget about him. It didn't matter if someone had been talking with him, fighting him, or anything else. As soon as he left a person's field of vision, they would forget everything about him.

Before I had left to go on and patrol with Haunt, Manpower had instructed me to keep Haunt in my field of vision—to let him set the pace and lag slightly behind. It was good advice, but even then, I still lost track of Haunt more times then I would care to admit.

I also learned about the potential for friendly fire. While Haunt's power made people forget him when they weren't looking at him, it didn't make him invulnerable. He could still be struck by a glancing blow or attack—even from his own allies.

The communicators that Shortstuff created helped a little bit. Haunt would use them to tell us where he was: where to try avoid firing. It didn't always work, but... It was a start.

XxX=-=XxX

"You really should pay more attention."

My eyes widened and then narrowed before I whirled around—pulling out and aiming my plasma gun at the voice as I slid into the stance Manpower had taught me. I found my gun pointing towards a tall, broad-shouldered male a few years older than me with shaggy, dark blonde hair and blue eyes. He was wearing a ragged, gray cloak over a white bodysuit with gray trim.

"... Haunt." It was all starting to come back to me now. Manpower hadn't sent me out to patrol Downtown alone—he'd sent me with Haunt. "... How did I lose track of you? I thought I was paying attention..."

Haunt frowned. "I think it was somewhere around 104th Street."

Slowly, I nodded. It was still coming back to me, but I thought that I remembered 104th Street. There had been a robbery—no, a mugging and then an attempted carjacking. I had called it in an then decided to use the blue ammunition to stop the car the thieves stole before they could really take off. And Haunt... Haunt had been the one to disable the thieves after they tried to flee.

"... It was after the BBPD showed up." I muttered, putting away my plasma gun. "You had just finished giving your statement and then Officer Lenn called me. I turned..."

"Like I said, you need to pay more attention." Haunt said.

I frowned. "I was doing a pretty good job this time. I didn't lose track of you when we were patrolling or when we were fighting those guys. And I just turned away for a moment... if you had stayed still, I would have seen and remembered you."

"That's not how it works." Haunt said before he turned away. "Try not to lose sight of me this time. Okay, Doctor?"

"... Okay."

Haunt nodded once before he started walking. Having little other choice, I trotted after him—making sure to keep my eyes on him at all times. 'We really need to figure out something better...'

XxX=-=XxX

Once Haunt and I finished our patrol, Manpower took us aside to debrief us. He was especially interested in the attempted carjacking and looked pleased when we told him that nothing had been broken and/or destroyed. The only real "damage" had been my blue ammunition—which I had cleaned up before Haunt and I had met with the police.

Ten minutes later, we were released. Haunt and I separated, then—Haunt heading upstairs towards his temporary living quarters while I collected my children from around what was becoming New Wave H.Q.

Only... I wouldn't be taking them home.

"Porma oketaka?"

I attempted to smile. "You don't need to worry, Link. I'm going to be okay—and so will you and your siblings."

I had to remind myself that I was doing the right thing. I had to remind myself that I wasn't abandoning them. We had talked about this... We had been planning for this... Yet...

Link grabbed my right hand. "Oketaka, Porma. Be oketaka."

"Y-Yes." Drowsy yawned, "Oketaka..."

"N-Nothing change, Porma."

I wanted to argue, to point out that things would change. We would still see each other, but we wouldn't see each other as much as we had before. We wouldn't be as together as we had been before.

I didn't say anything.

As much as I might have wanted to say something, I couldn't. This was the best thing I could do for our family. It would make sure that they were taken care of... without actually taking them away from me.

We stopped. "Porma?"

I wiped at my eyes and plastered a smile on my face. "We're—We're here. Ace, Doc, Link, Drowsy..." I swallowed past a sudden lump in my throat. "This... This is going to be your new home."

"A-Apartments!"

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[PREV] - Expansion: 8.11- [NEXT]

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes.

Porma - Mom or Mother.

Oketaka - Okay.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~! If you did, be sure to thank Zooboss and Frosty Wolf!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Apr 14, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Apr 24, 2015

#165

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Expansion: 8.12 - [NEXT]

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Bayside Apartments had been built in the 1950s on the outskirts on what would come to be known as the Boardwalk. It was a beautiful complex constructed out of brick and mortar with a black roof and large windows that allowed residents a great view of the Bay. As such, it had been a fairly popular, somewhat expensive, apartment complex.

… At least, it had been popular before the late 1980s and 1990s. The transition of the Lord's Port into the Boat Graveyard had ruined that once magnificent view while the resulting gang war had sent many residents running for the hills. And with the price to rent a Bayside apartment… no one had filled the vacancies.

I had come across Bayside Apartments when I had been searching for a place my children could live. It had been a little run down and worn from the lack of proper maintenance, but I had liked it. And so had my children.

Acquiring the deed for the Bayside Apartments had been a long, arduous process. The renovations to the Bayside Apartments had seemed to take even longer—a constant stream of repairs that had eaten away at all of my remaining money.

Still, looking at it now, I couldn't tell myself that I had made a bad decision.

The Bayside Apartments had been returned to its former glory. It stood at four stories tall with a touched-up exterior and large, gleaming windows depicting the furnished rooms within.

Walking along the pathway into the building, I stepped into the remodeled lobby. There was a long counter by one wall, hosting a computer and a telephone, while a large family portrait rested above. Across from the counter lay a number small couches and bookshelves full of books and games. And, on the far wall, the gleaming doors to both an elevator and a staircase stood.

I found myself being led up those stairs by my children to the first floor.

There were several rooms empty on the first floor, but Rooms 100, 101 and 102 had been claimed. There were a number of boxes inside each room, full of all of the things belonging to the future owner.

I allowed myself to be pulled into each room where I then slowly, mechanically, began to help my children find places to put their stuff. It was hard—harder than I ever would have imagined it would be—but I didn't say anything because I didn't want them to worry about me more than they already were.

From time to time, I would come across something that I hadn't known my children had kept. I found that old drawing I had made and forgotten about, a small red cape, pages full of salvaged coconut cake stickers, candid photos and a plastic grenade.

Frowning, I took the plastic grenade in hand. 'I haven't seen this in a long time…'

I hadn't thought that Link and Drowsy would have kept this, but I really should have. It had been a sort of trophy—allowing them to remember something that they had done and the person they had helped put away…

Approximately a month after I had joined New Wave, Laserdream and Shielder had come across an ongoing fight between the Empire Eighty-Eight and the Azn Bad Boys downtown. Oni Lee had been present—using his power to teleport into the enemy ranks, teleport to a new location and leave his clones behind to become suicide bombers.

Laserdream had called it in—requesting backup—before she and her brother had joined the battle. She had gone after Oni Lee directly while Shielder had focused on creating forcefields around Oni Lee's clone. It had worked for a while, even allowing the Empire to retreat with their tails tucked in-between their legs, but not forever.

Oni Lee might have killed Shielder if Flashbang, Link, and Drowsy hadn't arrived when they had. Flashbang had forced Oni Lee to teleport even as Link hit and then pulled Shielder away with his glue. Oni Lee had attacked the group with a swarm of clones before Drowsy had opened his mouth and yawned.

Everyone that had been within earshot of Drowsy's yawn immediately collapsed, falling asleep before they could even realize what was going on. When the B.B.P.D. and the P.R.T. arrived, they arrested fourteen gangsters and Oni Lee.

And, afterwards, Shielder had bought the plastic grenade for Link and Drowsy to remind them of their accomplishment. Needless to say… I hadn't been very happy with Shielder for a while.

"Porma oketaka?"

I turned around to find Link and Drowsy standing side-by-side, looking at me concernedly. "… I'm okay. I was just remembering something…" I showed them the plastic grenade. "Remember this?"

"Y-Yes." Link said. "It Gre-Grenade."

"Oni Lee…" Drowsy yawned.

"I still can't believe you guys did that." I said before I looked at the plastic grenade. "It seems like that happened such a long time ago, now…."

"Porma…."

"Yes?"

"N-Nothing change, Porma." Link said earnestly. "Ex-per-i-ments move ap-apartments… but ex-per-i-ments love Porma. Ex-per-i-ments be there f-for Porma. Porma be t-there for ex-per-i-ments. Noth-Nothing change."

I needed to believe that.

XxX=-=XxX

"Tienet, Porma?"

I turned towards the sound to find Muddle standing next to Doubledip before my machine, staring at a sleeping form within a familiar pod. The rest of my children were scattered about—close to me and the machine, but not too close—doing their best to pretend that they weren't paying attention.

"Yes. She will be my tenth child." I said with a small smile.

"D-Do?" Muddle asked.

I took a sip of my drink. "She will have the ability to change objects beneath a certain weight into another object. She won't be able to change the form of the object, but rather what the object is made of." Then, seeing his confused look, I decided to explain. "For example... she should be capable of changing this porcelain mug into a plastic mug."

"Ooh!"

"It is an interesting ability, isn't it?" I said before I placed my mug down. Should I tell them? "If she wanted too, she could probably change an object into coconut cake. But only if she wanted too."

"Bootifa!"

"Y-Yeah!"

"C-Coconut c-cake!"

"Smish."

I turned around. "I don't want to hear any of you pressuring her to make something into something else. Is that clear?"

"Ih, Porma."

"Y-Yes, Porma."

"Ih."

I stared at them all for a few more moments before I nodded. "That's good..."

I was about to say something else when I heard a faint tapping sound coming from behind me. Turning around, I found myself staring into the dark eyes of my newest child. She had short, chocolate-brown fur with a round, pink nose, short pink hair and blocky pink markings running down her back and tail. A pair of buckteeth jutted out from her upper lip, black eyes locked onto me with a dawning familiarity.

"Por... Porma..." She managed after a moment. "Porma."

I smiled and went to open the hatch to let her out, but I was too slow. By the time that I had made it halfway to the hatch, my newest child had pressed her hand against the glass and changed it. The glass bulged when she walked into it, straining to keep itself together, before it tore like paper... because she had changed it into paper.

"Porma." She repeated once she had reached me. "Porma... bootifa."

"Thank you... Mute."

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[PREV] - Expansion: 8.12 - [NEXT]

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Translation – Tantalog to English

Bootifa – Beautiful or Cool.

Ih – Yes.

Porma – Mother or Mom.

Oketaka – Okay.

Soka – Sorry.

Smish – I understand or I got it.

Tienet – Ten.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys liked it!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Apr 24, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

May 19, 2015

#189

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Expansion: 8x (Interlude: 010) - [NEXT]

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If I pushed myself to remember, I could almost remember what it had been like before I woke up for the first time. I could recall snippets in which I had heard an odd humming, smelled something both warm and sweet and felt like I was wrapped in something warm.

The first thing that I truly remembered, however, was the feeling of the surface that I woke up on. It was a hard, unyielding surface that was smooth to the touch. It seemed to stretch out from beneath me to all directions around me: no matter where I moved, I was greeted by the feeling of that surface.

Eventually, I began to want to know more about the surface. I wanted to know why it was so different than I seemed to be. I wanted to know why it was hard instead of soft, smooth instead of fuzzy and cool instead of warm.

I wanted to know what the surface was. I wanted to know what it was made of.

AL (Aluminum) :: CU (Copper) :: Sn (Tin) ::

I started at the sudden influx of information before I found myself falling onto the surface. I found myself suddenly understanding just what aluminum, copper and tin were and how much of those three substances composed the surface.

The surface was made out of exactly 46.23% Aluminum, 12.50% Copper and 41.27% Tin.

I spent several moments trying not to panic. I didn't know where all of that information, that sudden understanding, had come from but it scared me.

I just didn't understand. What happened? Where had all of that information and that understanding come from? And why? What had prompted it? Had I done something? '... Think.'

I hadn't done anything before it had happened. I had just been thinking about the surface: I had wanted to know why it was so different than me. I had wanted to know what it was made of.

AL (Aluminum) :: CU (Copper) :: Sn (Tin) ::

I flinched, instinctively curling myself up into a ball, before I slowly relaxed. It was better this time. It wasn't nearly as overwhelming as it had been before. And, now, I understood what had prompted it.

'Think about it then know about it.' Thinking about it that way... it didn't seem as scary as it had seemed before. Slowly, I uncurled myself.

'What else...?'

I found myself starting to want to know more. I knew about the surface, knew what it was made of and knew about the things that made it up. But, were there other things? Were there other things, made of different things? There had to be more.

"... she wanted too, she could probably change an object into coconut cake. But only if she wanted too."

I started at the sudden sound and curled back into myself. What—What was that?!

"Bootifa!"

"Y-Yeah!"

"C-Coconut c-cake!"

"Smish."

There were more of those things? Just how many were there?!

"I don't want to hear any of you pressuring her to make something into something else. Is that clear?"

"Ih, Porma."

"Y-Yes, Porma."

'No hurt.' It was surprising, but it seemed like those voices weren't going to try hurting me. They hadn't even seemed to notice that I was awake.

Slowly, ever so slowly, I began to relax.

Something that the voices said stuck out at me. "Porma". It sounded somehow familiar and like I should know what it meant. But, I didn't know what it meant. What was a Porma?

I decided to take a risk. I uncurled and turned myself in the direction the voices were coming from. The darkness I had grown used to changed, brightening into a dark black-brown. I recoiled and took a step back before the world changed.

The dark black-brown lifted. I was suddenly bombarded with what seemed to be hundreds if not thousands of colors and blurry, indistinct shapes. It was—It was beautiful.

'Other things.' There were so many things I wanted to know about now. I wanted to know about those thin black things hanging from the sky, the smooth gray forming the edge of the world, the gigantic silver-gray-black thing next to where I was... 'Find out. Find out what—'

"That's good..."

I looked towards the place where the voice had come from and stopped in my tracks. I found that it knew that voice belong to and who that person was. That was—That was… "Por… Porma. Porma."

She was Porma.

I tried to move closer to her, but ended up walking into a barrier. It didn't have any color of its own, almost appearing as if it wasn't there at all, but it was. It was made out of:

Silicon Dioxide (SiO2) :: Sodium Oxide (Na20) :: Sodium Carbonate (Na2C03) :: Calcium Oxide (CaO) ::

It was wrong. It was wrong that there was a barrier between Porma and I. I needed to get through the barrier: to break through it somehow so that I could reach Porma. I didn't need Silicon Dioxide-Sodium Oxide-Sodium Carbonate-Calcium Oxide. I needed something that I could break through.

I needed—

Cellulose (C6H10O5) ::

—I needed Cellulose. I needed the barrier to become Cellulose. If it were Cellulose, then I would be able to break through it so I could reach Porma.

'Change. Change, Cellulose.' I thought towards the barrier. There was a sudden tingle before I felt something happened. I pressed my paw against the barrier, but it wasn't Silicon Dioxide-Sodium Oxide-Sodium Carbonate-Calcium Oxide anymore. It was—

Cellulose (C6H10O5) ::

I nodded to myself before I began to move towards Porma. The Silicon Dioxide-Sodium Oxide-Sodium Carbonate-Calcium Oxide would have stopped me, prevented me from reaching Porma, but it wasn't Silicon Dioxide-Sodium Oxide-Sodium Carbonate-Calcium Oxide anymore. It was Cellulose.

The Cellulose bent around me as I moved, straining to hold me in and then tore. Moments afterward, I had reached Porma. "Porma. Porma… bootifa."

"Thank you… Mute."

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] - Expansion: 8x (Interlude: 010) - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation – Tantalog to English

Bootifa – Beautiful or Cool.

Ih – Yes.

Porma – Mom or Mother

Smish – I understand or I got it.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed it. XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] - Malware: 9.1 - [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"... it would haven taken twenty-three million dollars to clear the damaged ships and dispose of them—and that isn't even getting into how much it would have cost to refurbish the area and bring it up to modern standards. It was simply too expensive..."

I found my attention drifting away from Mayor Christner and towards the audience that sat before the large, makeshift stage that I was standing on. I spent a few moments watching the correspondents, even managing a brief smile when a cameraman turned his camera my way, before I looked over to someone fiddling with their phone.

After a few moments, however, the woman put away her phone. I looked around in an attempt to find someone else to watch, but didn't find anyone else. There were a few people that shifted in their seats, attempting to get more comfortable, but nothing truly interesting.

I tried not to sigh. 'I hope this doesn't take too much longer...'

I could understand why Mayor Christner had insisted on holding a press conference, but that didn't mean that I had to like it. I was still a little anxious to leave Mute alone—even if she wasn't technically "alone"—and I had grown increasingly tired of hearing Mayor Christner speak.

I didn't exactly like Mayor Christner. He hadn't been the only one to shoot down Dad's many proposals to get the ferry fixed and running again, but he had certainly played his part. He had allowed Shortstuff to try and fix the ferry, but he had also prevented Shortstuff from working on it again after the Merchants' attack.

The only reason that I was here was because I had to be.

"... a few words from Lady Photon!"

I looked up to watch Lady Photon start walking towards Mayor Christner. There were a few bright flashes as people took some pictures, but Lady Photon didn't seem to mind. She merely walked towards the podium and then gave Mayor Christner a brief, respectful nod. Mayor Christner smiled.

Lady Photon took a moment to adjust the microphone there before she looked up and out towards the crowd. "I will try to keep this as brief as possible."

I shifted on my feet.

"For over ten years, the Boat Graveyard has served as a constant, unforgettable reminder of the beginning of one of the darkest periods this city has suffered through. It was a reminder of the collapse of the local industry and the sudden, unexpected rise of gangs and gang-related crime. It was a reminder of those long, dark years the people of this city were forced to endure..."

I saw Mayor Christner look away.

"... this city survived. It slowly rebuilt itself from the ashes of its former self. It will never be the same as the old Brockton Bay, but if we all work on it, we can make it better than the old Brockton Bay. That is why New Wave came here today. It is our hope that we can continue to help make Brockton Bay better, for as long as we can..."

Cameras flashed.

Lady Photon turned away from the audience and gestured towards me. "To that end, Dr. Jookiba created a new Experiment. An Experiment that will remove that constant, unforgettable reminder and allow us to move forward towards a better, brighter Brockton Bay."

I soon found myself trying to blink the spots out of my vision. I then watched as Lady Photon turned away, stepped back and then gestured towards something in the distance.

The Boat Graveyard.

To be more specific, the S.S. Kelly-Anne. I heard more than a few startled gasps as the S.S. Kelly-Anne seemed to melt into the water. It started off slow at first, but seemed to increase in speed as time went on.

Like Lady Photon had said, one of my children were responsible for this: Mute. Even as I watched, Mute was using her ability to turn everything that made up the S.S. Kelly-Anne into water. That "melting" effect was merely the transformed portions of the boat running off to join the water below the boat.

Of course, it wouldn't always remain water. Once the Boat Graveyard had been cleared out, Mute would take time to transform the water back into the materials that had made up the boats. The materials wouldn't look the same—appearing more like a form of "hardened water" than anything else—but...

The only real concern was getting the material out of the water once Mute transformed it, as it would be difficult to see it. It wouldn't be impossible, but it would take some time to find and then transport the transformed material out of the water.

The last remnants of the S.S. Kelly-Anne drained into the water. A faint orange dot was seen moving around before the next boat, the S.S. Silverline, began to "melt" as well.

The audience's response was thunderous.

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[PREV] - Malware: 9.1 - [NEXT]

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A/N: Author's Note: The Boat Graveyard is soon to be history. Way to go, Mute!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

May 29, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jun 22, 2015

#196

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.2 – [NEXT]

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"... Accata." Mute lifted her hands, took a step backwards and stared at the block of material she had transformed. After finding nothing wrong with it, Mute turned away from it and towards a waiting team. "Accata. Akoota chi tay."

"Right away, Mute!"

Mute smiled at the man and moved away moments before the team descended on the block she had been working on. By the time that they had managed to load the block up onto the fork lift that would take it to the truck waiting nearby, Mute had reached and started to work on the next one.

"It's pretty amazing." I turned at the voice to find Jacinta standing behind me. The former Case 53 stared after Mute with a sort of quiet intensity. "I never thought that I would see something like this. I never even thought that it could be possible..."

I could understand. Like Lady Photon had said, the Boat Graveyard had been constant reminder of the "beginning of the dark times" that Brockton Bay had gone through. It had seemed like a permanent fixture that everybody knew about but didn't want to think about. A reminder that, despite how things had seemed to have improved, that Brockton Bay hadn't fully recovered.

It was a shock that see the Boat Graveyard decrease in size: to see the blocks of material Mute transformed pulled out of the water and put onto the backs of trucks. The Boat Graveyard was disappearing. In a few days, it would be completely gone.

"Yeah." I said.

Jacinta turned towards me. "You know, I didn't think that you would be able to top what you did. But, this...?" She swept a tanned arm around to encompass everything going on around us. She dropped her arm after a moment. "... What are you going to do next?"

"... I didn't do this, Jacinta: Mute did. I may have created Mute, but that doesn't mean I get to take credit for their actions." I pointed towards Mute as she began to work on a third block of material. "Mute is the one that you should be thanking, Jacinta. Mute is the one with the ability that allowed us to do this, not me. I only created her. Mute did the rest."

Jacinta was quiet.

I looked away. "There are a lot of things that my children can do. So many, many things. Things that I won't be able to do or things that I actually can't do. This is just one of those things..." I turned back to Jacinta. "If you want to know what's going to happen next, then you should ask them. They're the ones that are going to change the world."

"... What about you?"

"What am I going to do...?" I didn't even need to think about that. "I'm going to continue doing what I have been doing, Jacinta. I'm going to build a few new things that'll allow us to do more and to help more people. And I'm going to take care of my family and make sure that they know that I love them and that I have their backs."

"Porma!"

I turned away from Jacinta to find Mute waving me over. "I've got to go," I told Jacinta before I started moving towards Mute. "Duty calls."

XxX=-=XxX

"H-Here, Porma..."

I rolled backwards to find Shortstuff holding the tool I had sent him to get. Smiling, I thanked Shortstuff for getting it for me before I took it from him and rolled back underneath the vehicle I was working on. I made sure everything looked okay, double-checking it against what I knew it was supposed to look like, and then nodded to myself. Moments later, I was moving on to the next bit.

'This should be the last bit...' I thought as I welded the protective cover into place. Once I thought that I was done, I pulled away and looked over my work with a semi-critical eye. It looked away. "Alright. Could you go get Ace and Spike, Shortstuff?"

I could practically see the way Shortstuff bobbed his head up and down. "Y-Yes!"

I heard a steady click-clack-click as Shortstuff moved away before I heard him open a door. I just managed to roll myself out from under what I was working on when I heard Shortstuff call for his older and younger siblings.

'It won't take them long now...' I thought as I got up, grabbing a nearby towel which I rubbed my hands with. It didn't get everything off, but it got off enough. The rest of the grime I could deal with later, after everything was done. 'They're going to be so excited when it's done...'

It was only thanks to Mute that I had managed to actually build this thing. Without her help, I wouldn't have been able to get access to the materials that I needed in order to build it. I could have substituted some of the materials with regular Earth materials, but not all of them. And, even if I could substitute all the materials, I wouldn't.

I didn't want to be cheap. Not with this.

"Porma."

I turned away from the vehicle to find that Shortstuff had returned with Ace and Spike standing beside him. "I hope that I didn't interrupt anything, but I was wondering if I could get you two to help me with something real quick."

"I can h-help, Porma." Ace said.

Spike nodded.

I smiled. "Thank you..." I turned around and pointed to a nearby pile of spraypainted metal. "You see those panels? I need you to carry them over to the vehicle and hold them still while I attach them. Think you can do that?"

"Y-Yes!"

I clapped my hands. "Let's get to work!"

XxX=-=XxX

If Ace, Spike and Shortstuff hadn't helped me, it would have probably taken me a week to finish it. Maybe longer: I didn't really have anything that would have allowed me to lift, carry and hold all those panels in place. As it stood, it had taken all of us a little more than two hours to attach all of the outside panels.

"Bootifa..." Spike whispered.

Ace nodded. "Yes."

I smiled. "Want to take it for a ride?"

"Ih!"

"Yes!"

Shortstuff sprinted towards the vehicle. "S-Shot g-gun!"

Spike and Ace stared at Shortstuff for a moment before they raced after him. I laughed and followed after them at a more leisurely pace. By the time I was climbing the ladder into the purple Galactic Federation Police Cruiser, my children had all taken their seats. Spike was sitting in front seat: leaving Shortstuff and Ace to sit in the back, warily looking towards Spike's quills.

I knew that, if Spike didn't have that, Ace and Shortstuff would have kicked him out. As it was, they stayed back: afraid that they would be on the receiving end of one of those quills if they tried.

"G-Go, Porma!"

I closed the hatch before I turned the key to start the vehicle. "Alright." I hit the Auto-Pilot button. "Let's see what this thing can do!"

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.2 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Accata - Alright/Clear.

Akoota chi tay - Your turn.

Bootifa - Beautiful.

Porma - Mom or Mother.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I promised you an update, so here it is! Tell me what you guys think below.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jun 22, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jun 23, 2015

#200

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[NEXT] – Malware: 9.3 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"Eegalagoo!" Shortstuff exclaimed from the backseat where he was looking out the window. He was all-but bouncing in place, pressing his face against the glass as he took everything in. "Hajmha sihkism! Ace! Ace, l-look! It's Bootifa!"

Ace looked at Shortstuff for a moment, unsure, before he unclipped his seatbelt and walked over to Shortstuff. He stared out at the clear, blue sky for a moment, took a deep breath and then turned his gaze downwards.

"... Yes." Ace managed after a moment. "I-It is bootifa."

As Shortstuff started to point out a few landmarks to Ace, I brought my attention back to the front of the police cruiser. I spent a few moments checking over the various readings that were displayed on the dashboard and scratched out a few notes in a spare notepad. Once I was done with that, I turned towards Spike to see how he was doing.

Spike was looking out of the window like Shortstuff and Ace. He seemed enraptured with the almost picturesque view of the city below us: widened eyes roving over the sight and taking in everything.

"... Bootifa." Spike breathed.

"It is beautiful." I agreed.

I wasn't lying. Brockton Bay didn't come close to holding the title of "Most Beautiful City", but it was beautiful in its own way. Just looking down at it from this height was enough to leave me breathless. There were a few areas that looked like they needed help, but the city as a whole was beautiful.

"Porma..."

I turned back to Shortstuff. His earlier exuberance had all-but left him, leaving him to stare at something that I couldn't quite see with an unreadable expression on his face. "Are you okay? What's wrong?"

"M-Merchant." Shortstuff whispered.

I unclipped my seatbelt and moved to the back of the cruiser before I looked out the window. It took me a moment to see what Shortstuff had seen, but there was no doubt in my mind when I did. That monstrosity of a vehicle was undoubtedly Squealer's work. I couldn't exactly see what its driver was firing at, but that didn't really matter.

"Porma... Baaheth jihadi?"

"Yes." I answered as I moved back to the front of the cruiser. I grabbed onto the emergency cellphone that Dad had bought for me before I dialed a familiar number. It rang twice before the person on the other side picked up. "I don't have much time to explain. I finished the police cruiser and took it out... I know, but that's not important not now. Shortstuff spotted the Merchants... Yes. I don't know what they're doing, but it looks like Squealer is there... Alright. I'll try to stall them until you arrive."

I then passed on the phone to Shortstuff so that he could tell Manpower what he had seen and where he had seen it. I spent a moment going over what I had. I wasn't wearing my uniform, but I did have one plasma gun. Not to mention, I had the weapons that were apart of the police cruiser. I also had Spike, Shortstuff and Ace.

"Prepare yourselves." I said as I began to adjust the Auto-Pilot's programmed path. "This might get a little rough."

"Smish." Spike nodded.

"Okie-taka."

Shortstuff was quiet for a moment. Then: "Porma... Kata baka dooka?"

'... Shortstuff must still be angry at the Merchants for what happened.' I realized after a moment.

It was understandable. It was because of the Merchants' attack that Mayor Christner had stalled and then prevented Shortstuff from working on the ferry. He must blame them for what happened. And, now, Shortstuff must want payback.

That didn't mean that I had to like it. Shortstuff might be a right little nuisance on occasion, but he had never once been bad just to be bad. That he was actually asking if he could be destructive...

I didn't like it but I didn't have much of a choice. Not if I wanted to try and stall the Merchants until Manpower arrived with help. "... Yes." I said with some difficulty. "Yes, you can be destructive."

Shortstuff smiled. It wasn't a very friendly smile.

XXXXXXXXXX

[NEXT] – Malware: 9.3 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Baaheth jihadi - Fight

Bootifa - Cool/Good/Beautiful

Eegalagoo - Wow!

Ih - Yes

Hajmha sihkism - Enthusiasm

Kata baka dooka - May I be destructive?

Okie-taka - Alright/okay/okey-dokey (acknowledgement)

Smish - I understand/got it/understood

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I know that you guys are probably excited about the future Experiment Family/Merchants confrontation, but I hope you can see why I ended it there. Tell me what you guys think below.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jun 23, 2015

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Threadmarks Malware: 9x (Interlude: Sherrell Bailey)

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jun 24, 2015

#203

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9x (Interlude: Sherrell Bailey) – [NEXT]

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Sherrell Bailey pressed down on the twin buttons attached to the front of her steering wheel and was promptly rewarded by the muffled whump-whump-whump of the turrets mounted onto her vehicle. It took but a moment for a multitude of dark blue beams to appear on her screen and then race towards the target that she had locked onto. Circus.

Circus wore clown makeup and a jester's cap, with an orange and black skintight costume complete with coattails. She was in sharp contrast to the monstrous mount covered in bloodied, spiky armor that in no way resembled a dog.

Circus barked a command and her mount moved: bodily throwing itself out of the path of the dark blue light. She urged it to keep on moving as other turrets began to open fire: just barely managing to keep them both out of the path of the beams.

Sherrell scowled before she moved the wheel around until her system had locked onto Circus once more. Dark blue light streaked through the air, but Circus managed to get her mount to dodge and then start running towards Sherrell's vehicle. Circus kicked at the dog's side like one might a horse, leading it as it weaved in-between the beams. Sherrell readjusted again and fired.

It was with a dark pleasure that Sherrell watched as the dark blue beams slam into and tear into the dog. It had been a pain to piece together and then improve upon Lady Photon and Laserdream's lasers, but this made it feel worth it. Yet, even as the dark blue beams tore into it, the monstrous dog did not falter: it continued to charge towards her vehicle.

The dog crashed into the front of her vehicle like a battering ram: bloodied fangs and claws skittered across Sherrell's screen before she hit a button and the screen shifted. She fired at the dog to knock it away before she realized that it was lacking its rider. Looking around, it took her only a few moments to spot Circus as she dropped like an anvil.

"Shit. Shit. Shit." Sherrell cursed even as she aimed at Circus and fired in the blind hope of hitting her. Circus vanished her sledgehammer and then threw a handful of pellets at the top of her vehicle. A thick, dark smog quickly overtook Sherrell's screen before she heard a resounding crunch. "Shit!"

Sherrell hurriedly slid her chair over to another panel and pressed a few buttons. The image on the screen shifted to show the smog being blown away from her vehicle. Circus could be seen throwing a handful of knives into a turret before she jumped backwards and away as the turret exploded. Sherrell grit her teeth and moved, aiming her other turrets at Circus and firing once more.

Circus landed for a second before she springboarded up and away. I fired again and she tucked her head between her legs to assume a ball-like shape and then land in a roll, somehow managing to evade most of the dark blue beams. She had been clipped by one beam though it hadn't done more than tear off one of the bells from her jester's cap.

This was supposed to have been easy. The Protectorate were out of town for some big meeting: leaving the Wards and New Wave. All of the Wards should have been in school and it would have taken New Wave a while to get here after they learned what was going on. And with the Muffle Box, even that wouldn't have been a problem.

Unfortunately, the Undersiders seemed to have had the same idea. After that, one thing had led to another until the Undersiders had attacked Skids. Now, Skids was lost somewhere in Grue's darkness while Mush was dealing with Bitch and Tattletale. Regent had been taken out already, leaving Sherrell to take on Circus.

Sherrell would have preferred to fight Grue or Bitch. At least then she might be able to hit the fucker. But, no. She had to get stuck fighting a clown with fucking ridiculous reflexes, pyrokinesis and access to fucking hammerspace.

'Could this get any fucking worse?' Sherrell thought as Circus caused another of her turrets to explode with some sort of sticky pellet.

If Sherrell hadn't been paying attention, then she would have missed it. As it was, she only managed to catch it because Circus had moved in that direction to avoid the latest barrage of dark blue beams. She stopped for a moment, staring at what had appeared, before she moved to another section of her dashboard and began to work.

'I shouldn't have said fucking anything! Stupid!' Sherrell chided herself. But, what were the odds that a motherfucking spaceship would appear out of nowhere? Why had a fucking spaceship appeared out of nowhere?! She didn't need to deal with anything else right fucking now! "... Shit!"

Sherrell should have known. It was fucking New Wave. She didn't remember hearing about any Tinkers that might be capable of building a fucking spaceship, but that didn't matter. The fuckers had probably just not told anybody about him or her. It would make sense. Especially considering that it had just deposited those three mutants.

Dr. Jookiba.

Sherrell remembered Dr. Jookiba. The bitch had been there when she and Skids had went to get some parts for a new vehicle. She didn't know why the bitch had been there, only that she had appeared and tried to stop them. The bitch had even managed to blow up the cannon on the vehicle she had brought with her. A person never really forgot something like that.

Sherrell readjusted her aim and fired at the spaceship. The spaceship swerved out of the way, clipping the side of a nearby building, before it started to gain altitude. Several beams managed to hit it, but didn't do so much as burn the paint.

"Fuck!" Sherrell turned a crank and watched as her turrets began a continuous rate of fire. It would drain her vehicle's battery something fierce, but she needed it if she wanted a hope of keeping all of those cocksuckers away from her and her vehicle.

"... Meega naala kweesta!"

Sherrell didn't have time to do more than roll her eyes before something red and orange jumped onto her face. It rained down blow after blow on her head even as she tried to a hold on it: skittering away from her increasingly desperate hands whenever they got too close.

"Y-You..." The mutant raged. "You h-hurt Porma! Y-You hurt Porma!"

"Get off me! Get off, you fucking little shit!"

The mutant didn't listen. It continued to shout at her for hurting its "Porma" while raining blows on her head. Things had become a little blurry by the time that Sherrell managed to get it off and throw it away. It rolled with the impact, coming to stand on five(?) legs before it launched itself at her again. She barely managed to knock it away, towards her dashboard.

It was a mistake.

The mutant ripped into her dashboard like a hot knife through butter and entered it before she could do much more than yell at it. She moved to press a few buttons, but was forced away as the mutant cackled and her dashboard sparked. Smoke began to pour from where the mutant had entered the machine before there was a crunching sound.

Something grabbed onto her leg. 'The mutant!'

Sherrell was pulled out of her chair and onto the floor. "Y-You will n-not hurt Porma again." The mutant hissed as it released her leg, skittering away so she kicked the side of her dashboard instead of it. It appeared by her side, holding two sparking electrical cords. "Kanjijibe ziz-ziz."

"N-No."

"Ih."

And Sherrell screamed.

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[PREV] – Malware: 9x (Interlude: Sherrell Bailey) – [NEXT]

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes.

Meega nala kweesta - I want to destroy!

Kanjijibe ziz-ziz -Messing with Electricity/sparks.

Ziz-ziz - Electricity/sparks.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: ... Note to self: Avoid angering Shortstuff

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jun 24, 2015

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Threadmarks Malware: 9.4

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jun 27, 2015

#206

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.4 – [NEXT]

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"Akootah!"

Moments later Shortstuff's impassioned shout, he jumped out of the police cruiser and to the street below. Ace and Spike exchanged glances before they too jumped out of the cruiser. I watched them go for a moment before I hit the button that would close the hatch.

If I had been wearing my Dr. Jookiba uniform, I might have joined them. As I wasn't wearing my Dr. Jookiba uniform, however, I had decided to stay in the ship and provide Ace, Shortstuff and Spike long-range support. It wasn't ideal, but it would do until Manpower arrived with reinforcements.

Ace, Shortstuff, Spike and I just needed to stall until then.

The hatch had barely closed when an alert appeared on the screen on my dashboard. I looked up in time to see the turret-cannons mounted on top of Squealer's vehicle turn away from the black-and-orange figure mounted on top of a monstrous animal towards the police cruiser. I stared at it for several moments before I slammed the off-switch to the Auto-Pilot and grabbed the yoke.

I had altered the Auto-Pilot's route so that it would take me away from the street and into the air, but it wouldn't be fast enough to avoid being bombarded by Squealer's turret-cannons. I wasn't as near a good flyer as the Auto-Pilot was—and I had never actually flown something before—though I knew enough.

I still wasn't prepared for how difficult it would be though.

"Oh, God. Oh, God. Oh God. Oh, God!" An alert flashed on my screen and I pulled the yoke. The police cruiser swerved around a building, but it wasn't fast enough to completely avoid it. A number of bricks were knocked out of place as the wing of the cruiser clipped the side of building before they tumbled to the ground before. One of the bricks broke through a car's windshield. "Oh, God!"

Dark blue beams streaked through the air around the ship even as another alert appeared on the dashboard's screen. I pulled the yoke again, sending the cruiser spinning through the air, before I somehow managed to even things out. It took me a moment to get my bearings after that. And I pulled the yoke again, turning the cruiser away from a nearby billboard.

I hit the Auto-Pilot again and relaxed as it took control. The police cruiser stabilized before it turned around to get back on course.

Things had changed in the brief time I had been gone. Squealer was now using her vehicle to fire a continuous stream of dark blue energy toward the black-and-orange figure and her mount: while it didn't seem to be working, it was causing a lot of damage. About seventy feet away, Mush was staggering backwards from another monstrous beast. And, at the far end of the street, the cloud of darkness that I had noticed had grown considerably.

I spotted Spike emerge near Mush before he started to fire volley after volley of quills at him. The quills pierced into the shell of trash, but didn't seem to do much more than distract Mush. Which, considering how the beast then proceeded to tackle and pin Mush, wasn't actually that bad of a thing.

It was about that moment when smoke began to trickle out of Squealer's vehicle. And, suddenly, I knew where Shortstuff had gone. He might have been made to build things, but that didn't mean that he couldn't also destroy them.

'... Where's Ace?' I thought after a moment. It should have been easy to spot Ace considering his bright coloring, but I couldn't see him at all. 'Did he go inside that cloud...?'

It was possible. If Ace had chosen to inside the darkness, he had probably gone in to go after the one responsible for it. After all, even if regular people couldn't see in darkness, that didn't mean that my children couldn't.

My question was answered after I noticed the cloud begin to dissipate. As the cloud began to disappear, I was able to see Ace standing next to someone wearing motorcycle leathers and a helmet with a skull on it. Nearby, Skidmark lay on the ground seemingly unconscious.

XxX=-=XxX

It didn't take long after that for Manpower, Lady Photon, Laserdream and Shielder to arrive. They had helped secure Skidmark, Squealer and Mush as I "parked" the police cruiser before I opened the hatch and disembarked from it.

I could hear sirens in the distance. 'Someone called the P.R.T.'

I had barely moved ten feet away from the police cruiser before I felt someone grab my arm. I whirled around to come face-to-face with a domino mask and long blonde hair. She was wearing a skintight black and purple outfit similar to the one I had seen that other cape wearing, but with a stylized eye emblazoned on the chest.

"I wanted to thank you." The blonde said. "You really helped us out."

"I didn't do much."

The blonde shook her head. "You did more than enough. If it wasn't wore you and your children, then things would have gotten a lot uglier."

"I couldn't just sit there and do nothing." I said before I looked towards where my children were standing. "Besides, they did most of the work..."

The blonde stared at me for a moment before she slowly nodded. "I see." She was quiet for a moment. "If there is anything I can do for you... Actually, I think there is something I can do for you. Check your PHO when your get home."

And, then, she was gone.

XxX=-=XxX

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Private Message from Tt:

Tt: I think that you'll find this interesting, Doctor.

I stared at the screen for a couple of moments before I slowly moved my mouse over to the link and clicked it. The link opened up to an unfamiliar window displaying a live feed of an unfamiliar hallway. There were a number of incredibly small rooms evenly spaced out along the hall outfitted with small mats and strange machines in the corner.

I recognized the people within the cells. I would always recognize the people in those cells.

"... The Travelers." I whispered. And then I noticed it. "... No. That's—That's not possible." It couldn't be possible. It shouldn't have been possible. "There—There is no way that can be real!"

It couldn't be. But it was.

"How did the P.R.T. make an Experiment?!"

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[PREV] – Malware: 9.4 – [NEXT]

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Akootah - Let's dig/Let's go

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A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jun 27, 2015

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Threadmarks Malware: 9.5

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jun 29, 2015

#214

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.5 – [NEXT]

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It shouldn't have been possible for the P.R.T. to create an Experiment. I had talked to Deputy-Director Renick about the nature of my power when Lady Photon and I had met with him although I hadn't told him everything. I had only told him enough to give him a general understanding of my power and what I could do with it. The P.R.T. could've pieced together what I hadn't told him, but they still shouldn't have been able to do anything with that information.

So, how? How had the P.R.T. managed to create an Experiment?!

It shouldn't have been possible.

"Porma...?"

I whirled around to find Shortstuff and Doubledip standing a few feet behind me. Doubledip's gaze was blocked by the Sorry! box that Shortstuff had probably wheedled him into carrying, but Shortstuff—Shortstuff was staring at the computer screen with a growing horror. I stood up from my chair, blocking the screen, but the damage had already been done.

Shortstuff had seen the other Experiment. "W-Who? W-Who is t-that, Porma?"

"W-Who?" Doubledip repeated in an incredulous voice. He lowered the Sorry! box to the ground before pointing towards where I stood. "S-Shortstuff, Porma. Porma I-is who."

Shortstuff shook his head. "Naga. W-Who is n-not Porma. Who i-is another ex-per-i-ment. New ex-per-i-ment." He turned towards me. "W-Who is that, Porma? Why t-t-there?"

"N-New ex-per-i-ment?"

I lowered my head, ashamed. "I don't know." I could practically feel Shortstuff's incredulous stare. "I don't know. I just—I just followed a link that someone sent me and that screen appeared. I didn't know it would show me that. I don't know anything about that Experiment. I—I didn't make him."

"Porma makes ex-per-i-ments." Shortstuff said.

"I didn't make him, Shortstuff. I don't know what's going on, but I know that I didn't make him." I looked up to Shortstuff only to see that he had taken a step backwards. Something caught in my throat. "S-Shortstuff, you have to listen to me. I didn't make him. I didn't abandon him or give him to the P.R.T. I don't—I don't know who made him. Please. Please, believe me."

Shortstuff stared at me for a few moments before he forced himself to turn away. He then proceeded to run away: skittering over the floor and up the stairs before I could stop him. I called after him, begging him to come back, but he did not.

'... He doesn't believe me.' I thought as I stared at the staircase. It hurt, knowing that. It felt like someone had grabbed hold of my heart and had squeezed it to the point of crushing it. It hurt so much.

"Porma...?"

I didn't even realize that I was crying until Doubledip started to brush the tears off my face. I briefly wondered when I had fallen to the ground, but the thought was driven out of my mind when Doubledip wrapped his arms around me in a hug. "D-Doubledip..."

"Porma h-help S-Shortstuff understand." Doubledip said reassuringly. "T-Then Porma find o-out. Find out w-what not k-know. F-Find out... about n-new ex-per-i-ment."

That—That made sense. I might not have known how the P.R.T. had managed to create an Experiment, but I could find out. I would find out. And once I found out how they had managed to create him, I would make sure that they could never do it again.

XxX=-=XxX

"... How did you manage to get access to this footage?"

"Before I met up with you, one of the capes that the Merchants were fighting pulled me aside. She said that she wanted to thank me for what I did and then said that she could do something for me. She said to check PHO later and, when I got on, I found a link from "Tt"." I looked up towards Manpower's carefully blank face. "I don't know how she managed to hack into the P.R.T.'s security cameras, but... I know an Experiment when I see one. And that was an Experiment."

Manpower closed his eyes. "You are sure that you didn't create that Experiment?"

"Yes, I'm sure." I said. "I don't know how the P.R.T. managed to create an Experiment, but they did. They're keeping it inside of a cell next to the Travelers."

Manpower was quiet for a few moments. He took a deep breathe and then opened his eyes. "You are not to do anything until Lady Photon and I can verify this information."

"What? Manpower—"

"—If you try to do anything right now, the P.R.T. will ask you how you managed to learn about that Experiment. If they find out that you had access to their security footage, no matter how brief, then there will be consequences. It is best that you stay uninvolved until Lady Photon and I can verify everything that you've told me. After that, we can discuss how we are supposed to deal with the situation."

I looked away. As much as I wanted to argue with Manpower, he was right. If I went to the P.R.T. now, I wouldn't be able to pretend that everything was okay. I would give myself away, somehow.

"... Alright." I said at last.

"I know that it's hard right now, but we will get to the bottom of this situation." Manpower said reassuringly. "If the P.R.T. does have an Experiment, we will figure out how they managed to create it. We will find out their reasons for creating it."

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.5 – [NEXT]

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother.

Naga - No

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jun 29, 2015

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Threadmarks Malware: 9.6

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jul 5, 2015

#217

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.6 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"Porma?"

I stared at the Plasma Gun in my hands for a few moments before reluctantly setting it down on the table. Looking up, I found myself looking at the gathered faces of my children. I might have been worried about why all of them had come down to my laboratory or why all of them looked the way that they did, but I had expected this.

It was inevitable that my children would learn or somehow hear about the P.R.T.'s Experiment. I didn't want to tell them about him, but I didn't have much of a choice. I could choose not to tell them though that wouldn't do me any favors. If my children found out that I had known about the P.R.T.'s Experiment and didn't tell them, there would be consequences.

I remembered Shortstuff. 'There have already been too many consequences.'

"Porma?"

"I... have something to tell you. All of you." I said in a near-whisper, unable to meet their eyes. "I know its probably not something that you want to hear, but I have to tell you. I need to tell you..."

"S-Should get S-Shortstuff?" Doc asked.

I took a deep, steadying, breath before I slowly shook my head. "... No. Shortstuff—Shortstuff already knows what I'm about to tell you." Doubledip also knew about the P.R.T.'s Experiment, but he had come. I tried not to feel hurt. "It's... What I'm going to say is going to surprise you. It's going to seem impossible, as if it can't be true... but it is true."

I heard Alfred shuffle. "We will listen."

"Y-Yes." Link and then Mute agreed.

"Alright, then..." I took another deep breath. "I know that you think I am the only one that can make Experiments. I... I never corrected that because I also thought that. Only, that isn't... that isn't true."

"W-What?"

"Porma..."

I didn't speak for a few moments. "It isn't true. I don't know how, but someone managed to create another Experiment. It should have been impossible, but... but they did." I felt something rise in the back of my throat. "There—There is another Experiment out there. And I... I didn't create him."

I didn't dare look up to meet the faces of my children. I knew that it was cowardly, but I couldn't bear to see the expressions that would be crossing their faces as they put things together. I could hardly deal with the fact that Shortstuff didn't want anything to do with me anymore. It would destroy me if the rest of my children decided that they didn't believe me, too.

The scrape of claw against concrete made me aware of one of my children moving. I would have thought that the sound would move away, towards the stairway, but it didn't. If anything, the sound was drawing nearer to where I was standing.

I felt someone wrap furry arms around my leg. "B-Believe," Mute whispered. "Porma n-not l-lie."

"Yes. Porma always tell us the truth." Alfred stated from nearby.

Someone growled. Was that—Muddle? "F-Find out."

"Ih." Link agreed as he wrapped his arms around my other leg. "Find out. F-Figure out why."

A sudden weight made me aware of someone curling up on my shoes. Drowsy. "Porma... N-No feel sad." He yawned. "Help Porma find, f-figure out."

"Y-Yeah! Have l-lots of friends n-now!" Doc agreed enthusiastically. "F-Friends help if t-they know. Porma h-helped them, so t-they'll help Porma too! Then Porma w-won't have to be so sad."

"... We h-help Experiment too." Ace said after a long moment. "If Experiment in bad place, w-we help. It is still Experiment, like we Experiments." He made a fist and hit the palm of his other hand. "Experiments are family. Family sticks together."

I felt like I was about to cry. They believed me. They believed me.

"And n-nobody gets left behind."

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.6 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: Happy Fourth of July~!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jul 5, 2015

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Threadmarks Malware: 9x (Interlude: Jess Reynolds)

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jul 8, 2015

#224

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[NEXT] – Malware: 9x (Interlude: Jess Reynolds) – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"... apprehension of the majority of the Archer Bridge Merchants' leadership." The Channel Five anchorwoman reported over the image of Skidmark and Squealer being loaded into the back of a P.R.T. truck. Skidmark appeared to be shouting something, but the cameraman was too far away to catch it. "Trainwreck and Whirlygig are still at large although—"

Jess Reynolds heard a sudden crackle and turned her attention away from the television to see Skidmark convulsing on the floor within his own cell. "Serves you right, idiot." She muttered under her breath. "You're not getting out of that cell. None of us are..."

Miss Militia had called it "E-Type Containment Cell". Touch the door, make too much noise or using a parahuman power would cause the room to be flooded with a painful electrical charge. If a person was idiotic enough to try and push through that, then their cell would be flooded with P.R.T. containment foam.

It wasn't just their cells either. In the ceiling of the hallway were a number of the beach ball-sized tinkertech replicas that could be found in each and every one of their cells. If someone actually managed to escape, the P.R.T. could flood the hallway with an electric charge or bury them under a mountain of containment foam.

Jess wasn't stupid enough to attempt to do anything that would bring more attention to herself. She couldn't afford to, after what she had done. What she had allowed herself to be convinced to do.

If they all hadn't been so spooked about Noelle's latest incident, Coil would have been able to arrange a meeting with Dr. Jookiba on their behalf. Dr. Jookiba wouldn't have been thrilled, but Jess was of the mind that she would have at least heard them out. Only, they had been too scared and too impatient to wait for such a meeting.

She, Luke and Krouse had broken into Dr. Jookiba's home, fought her creations and kidnapped her. They had forced that little mutant to come with them and attempt to heal Noelle without thinking about the potential consequences. And they had thought that they could get away with it.

They hadn't.

The little mutant had somehow managed to heal Noelle, but they hadn't had much time to celebrate that. Barely twenty minutes later, they had been found and attacked by the rest of Dr. Jookiba's experiments. They had done their best to fight them off, but the mutants had the advantage of surprise and superior numbers.

Then, they had been handed over to the P.R.T.

If it hadn't been for Noelle, then Jess was sure that they all would have been tried and sentenced for their crimes. After learning about Noelle and her power, the P.R.T. had started to drag its feet. Jess couldn't count the number of times that the P.R.T. had taken Noelle away for a "demonstration".

Jess did, however, remember the day that Noelle came back with someone else.

From what she had been able to hear, whatever that little mutant had done to heal Noelle had altered her power. Noelle was still capable of creating clones, but the method she used to make them was as different as night was from day. Instead of having to eat someone, she would only need to touch them for a few moments so she could learn their D.N.A. From there, she could spawn a semi-autonomous clone of that person.

The clone that Noelle had brought with her looked like something that Dr. Jookiba could have made, but it didn't match any mutant that Jess had known about. It resembled some of them in places, but it didn't actually look like any of them.

At the thought of the clone, Jess turned away from Skidmark and towards the cell next to his. It was there that she saw the clone as it worked through one of the coloring books that the P.R.T. had given it.

It stood at about three and a half feet with short, pale greenish-yellow fur, a bulbous nose and small, dark eyes. Two long, silvery antennae flowed down from its head and over its arms and legs, stopping just above its small stub of a tail.

Jess honestly didn't know how she should feel regarding it. It was hard not to remember all of Noelle's other clones and the damage that they had caused: the things that they had needed to do to stop them. But, this wasn't one of those clones. It was different.

"Ooh!" It exclaimed, noticing her. It tripped over its antennae in its haste to get up and show off the page it had been working on. "C-C-Colored i-it..." It stammered, suddenly shy. "T-Think M-M-Mama like?"

"... Yeah. I think she'll like it." Jess found herself saying.

It beamed happily before it closed the book and carefully set it down on it thin, metal excuse for a bed. "M-Make M-M-Mama happy..."

... It almost seemed real.

XXXXXXXXXX

[NEXT] – Malware: 9x (Interlude: Jess Reynolds) – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jul 8, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Jul 19, 2015

#227

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.7 – [NEXT]

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"... As much as I know that you all want to help, I can't allow you too. At least, not yet." I looked away. "I know that it'll be hard, but... Until Manpower and Lady Photon can verify everything, we can't do anything. We'll have to pretend that everything is normal: pretend that we don't know anything about the P.R.T.'s Experiment."

"W-Why?" Link asked.

I sighed. "The reason that we have to wait until Manpower and Lady Photon verify the P.R.T.'s Experiments existence is because, by all rights, we shouldn't know about it. The only reason that we do know about it is because someone hacked into and linked me to one of the P.R.T.'s security feeds." I looked towards Link and the rest of my children and watched as understanding dawned. "... We have to pretend we don't know until we have some real evidence."

"Oh."

Ace crossed his arms. "What happen after?"

"... That's a really good question, Ace." I said after a moment. "To be honest... I don't know what's going to happen after that. It really depends on how the P.R.T. will react once we confront them with evidence of that Experiment's existence. It'll also depend on how that Experiment was made."

"H-Help Ex-per-i-ment?" Doc asked.

Mute stared up at me. "N-No o-one left b-behind."

"Yes," I confirmed. "No matter what happens, we will do our best to help that Experiment." I paused for a moment to look at them all. "Until that time, however, we have to pretend that we don't know anything about it."

"... Ih." Link reluctantly agreed.

Alfred bobbed his head. "Yes, Porma."

Muddle nodded his head, but he didn't say anything. He merely stared towards my computer with a distant look in his eyes, lost in his thoughts. He turned towards me after a moment and titled his head, appearing to consider something, before he turned and began walking away.

"Muddle..." I called.

"I-I know..." Muddle replied without turning around. "N-Not do a-anything b-bad. J-Just h-help, Porma."

Instead of reassuring me, Muddle's statement only made me worry more. What was he planning to do? He should know that if he did anything related to the P.R.T.'s Experiment, the P.R.T. would find out. When that happened...

"N-No worry..." Muddle said. "M-Muddle n-not hurt Ex-per-i-ment. Muddle h-help, get h-help."

XxX=-=XxX

EXPERIMENT ENCLYOPEDIA

{Prev} - Experiment 341 - {Next}

Experiment 341 is an illegal genetic experiment created by Dr. Jumba Jookiba. He was designed to transport himself and/or other beings to other places in an instant.

DESIGN TEMPLATE:

■ D.T.341:

MATERIALS:

■ M.341:

{Prev} - Experiment 341 - {Next}

"..." I looked up from the Experiment Encyclopedia before I turned towards Muddle. "... You knew that this would happen, didn't you? That Manpower and Lady Photon wouldn't find anything?"

Muddle nodded. "Y-Yes."

"How?"

"M-Muddle thought a-about plan, h-how P.R.T. r-ruin it. Muddle t-thought about h-how M-Muddle ruin i-it." Muddle readily admitted. He frowned. "P.R.T. not w-want N-New Wave know a-about Ex-per-i-ment. T-There l-lots of ways t-to make sure t-that New W-Wave not k-know... M-Make sure N-New Wave not ever f-find out..."

I leaned forward and listened as Muddle started to talk. He talked about how the P.R.T. might have hidden or concealed the P.R.T. Experiment. How the P.R.T. might have distracted Manpower and Lady Photon or made them forget that they had seen him.

Once Muddle had finished speaking, I stared at the wall for a couple of moments. "... Why didn't you tell me all of this earlier. If I knew this before, I could have told Manpower or Lady Photon—"

"N-No, Porma." Muddle said, shaking his head. "Went t-to plan."

"What?" I could have sworn that I had misheard him somehow. How had anything that had happened gone according to plan? "... What aren't you telling me, Muddle?"

"M-Man and Lady n-not meant to f-find out about Ex-per-i-ment. T-Too soon." Muddle said insistently. "N-Need more t-time. M-More visits, m-make t-this visit seem l-less odd. M-More natural. P.R.T. g-get used to it..." Something flickered in his eyes. "S-Something slip. P-People talk to M-Man or Lady... And then N-New Wave a-act like i-it first t-time w-we learned a-about Ex-per-i-ment."

I thought that I could see where this was going. "Still," I turned towards the Experiment Encyclopedia. "If that's your plan, then why did you want to show me this? It doesn't sound like someone like Experiment 341 will be needed..."

"L-Last resort." Muddle said.

"What?"

"I-If all fails, new Ex-per-i-ment will b-be last r-resort." Muddle said, turning his head to stare at my machine. "S-Secret. P.R.T. n-not know a-about it. P.R.T. n-not prepare f-for it, l-like it has other Ex-per-i-ments."

"... I see."

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[PREV] – Malware: 9.7 – [NEXT]

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother

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A/N: Author's Note: I'm still on vacation, but... my muse for this story wouldn't leave me alone. So, here it is. I hope that you guys have enjoyed it. If you have (or have spotted errors I could fix), please tell me in the comments below.

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Jul 19, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Aug 5, 2015

#228

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.8 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"Is something wrong, Taylor?"

I looked up from my chicken nuggets and green beans to discover that Jessica and Sam looking at me from across the table. I looked back down after a moment, wondering how I could answer that question, and sighed. "I'm just a little tired. I lost track of time last night and spent more time then I really needed to tinkering around in the lab... I didn't get to bed until late. Really late."

"Oh." Jessica said, sounding relieved. "I thought that it might've been something else..."

I shook my head. "I just went to bed late. Nothing to worry about." I forced a smile on my face. "I'll feel better once I manage to get some rest. You guys worry too much."

I hated lying to Sam and Jessica, but I had too. I couldn't tell them about what Tattletale had shown me or anything about the P.R.T.'s Experiment. It was better to let them believe that I had "lost track of time" and "gone to bed late".

It was close to the truth, anyway. I hadn't been getting that much sleep since I had learned about what was going on.

"It's hard not to worry. I couldn't even imagine doing half the things that you do." Jessica shook her head. "That's not even mentioning all of the things Vicky's told us she's gotten into. I could never do any of that."

Sam nodded.

"Did someone say my name?"

I turned to find that Victoria and Amy had finally made it through the lunch line and gotten their food. Victoria put her tray down on the able before she plopped down on an available spot on the bench next to me. Amy slid into her seat quietly.

"So," Victoria drew out the word. "What were you guys talking about?"

Jessica waved towards me. "We were talking about Taylor. She stayed up late last night "tinkering"."

"It's not that big of a deal..." I said and looked down. 'Why did you have to say that? You could've just let it drop...'

"I see..." Victoria turned towards me. "What were you working on that could've kept you up so late? It must be something big if you were willing to spend all night working on it."

"... It wasn't all night." I said.

"That's not an answer, Taylor. Won't you tell us what you we're working on?" Victoria wrapped an arm around my shoulder. "We won't tell anybody."

'I was talking with Muddle about the P.R.T. and the P.R.T.'s Experiment.' I could never tell Victoria that. I could never tell anybody. But maybe I could tell them part of the truth? "I was working on a new Experiment design."

"What kind of Experiment?" Victoria asked.

"... It's a surprise." I said. Looking up towards Victoria, I tried to look playful. "You'll just have to wait and see, like everybody else."

Victoria's expression turned pleading. "You can't give us just one hint?"

"You just don't know when to give up, do you?" Amy said, fondly.

"No, I do not ." Victoria admitted shamelessly. She quickly re-adopted her pleading expression. "Please, Taylor?"

"No." I said.

"Aw."

'Hopefully, you'll never find out.' I thought.

I didn't want to have to bring another Experiment into this world just to rescue the P.R.T.'s Experiment from the P.R.T.. I wouldn't say that I wouldn't love it and accept it wholeheartedly, but I didn't want to do it. It felt wrong. Even so, I was afraid that I would have to do it regardless of my feelings.

Victoria turned away with an exaggerated huff. "Fine, be that way. I just won't tell you my secret..."

"You have secrets?" Sam joked.

XxX=-=XxX

"Porma?"

I paused at the sound before I turned away from the Experiment Encyclopedia to find Link standing behind me. He looked somewhat uncertain of himself: his antennae were lowered and his head was bowed somewhat. Most telling, however, were his eyes.

"... What's wrong, Link?" I asked.

"Link is w-worried." Link admitted after a moment. He shifted on his feet. "Link k-knows that Porma said Ex-per-i-ments help P.R.T. Ex-per-i-ment... but how does Porma k-know? How does Porma know Ex-per-i-ments can h-help Ex-per-i-ment? Ex-per-i-ment not know Porma or Ex-per-i-ments. How... How does Porma know that Ex-per-i-ment want h-help?"

I looked at Link for a moment. "This has been bugging you for a while, hasn't it?"

"Ih." Link said, looking down.

"... I don't have all of the answers, Link." I admitted with a sigh. "I don't know if we can help that Experiment or if it even wants our help... but that doesn't mean we won't try to help it." I looked Link in the eyes. "What the P.R.T. are doing is wrong."

"Porma?"

"A child is the most precious gift of all. A lot of people would disagree with me, but... I believe that there is nothing more precious then a child." I frowned and turned away from Link. "That the P.R.T. brought that Experiment—that child—into this world, only to throw it into and expect it to live within a jail cell? That is not something that I will ever tolerate or forgive." I clenched my hands. "That the P.R.T. did so, somehow replicating my work, is even more unforgiveable."

I took a deep breath.

"The P.R.T. Experiment might not know that anything is wrong, but it doesn't deserve anything that the P.R.T. have given it. It deserves a place where it will be loved and cared for, a place where it can truly be itself." I looked at the Experiment Encyclopedia. "That place might not be with me, but I will do everything in my power to make sure it finds that place. Nobody gets left behind or forgotten."

"... Ih." Link said in agreement. "Nobody g-gets left behind. Or f-forgotten."

XxX=-=XxX

"I-It's time."

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[PREV] – Malware: 9.8 – [NEXT]

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes

Porma - Mom or Mother

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.9 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"... Porma... hapdelup, Porma... Porma..."

I groaned and rolled over in an attempt to escape the hand shaking me to no avail. When I managed to move out of the hands' range entirely, I heard them huff before their owner climbed onto the bed. I tried to tell the hands' owner to go away, to come back later, but it didn't work. The hands continued to shake my shoulder insistently: the call to get up never wavered.

Eventually, I was forced to relent. "... Alright." I thought I said, forcing myself into a sitting position. "Alright. I'm up. What's—" I yawned. "What's the matter...? Couldn't sleep?"

"N-No." Muddle? "Porma n-needs to come. I-It... It Shortstuff."

I rubbed my eyes. "Shortstuff can fix what he broke later..." I yawned again. "Really, you didn't need to wake me up..."

Muddle shook his head. "N-No, Porma. S-Shortstuff in t-trouble." He reached out to grab my hand and then started tugging it. "Porma n-needs come, n-now. H-Hurry."

I thought about telling Muddle that whatever Shortstuff could have done could wait until later, but stopped. Muddle wouldn't wake me up if something important wasn't going on. He wasn't like that. Doubledip, Shortstuff, Doc and Spike might wake me up if they needed something, but never Muddle. Whatever Muddle was worried about had to be something important then, didn't it?

It took a moment before I realized something. Muddle had mentioned that Shortstuff was in trouble.

I nearly fell out of bed when I moved to grab my glasses from my nightstand and get out of bed. The only reason that I didn't was because of Muddle: he caught me with his tentacles before I could fall, handed me my glasses and handed me my costume.

'This is serious...' I thought as I stripped and then changed into my costume.

Once I finished dressing, Muddle grabbed my hand and pulled. "H-Hurry!"

XxX=-=XxX

It wasn't five minutes after that that I learned what Shortstuff had done.

Shortstuff had decided to take matters into his own claws. He had waited until everyone was asleep and snuck out of the house. He had headed downtown to the P.R.T. Building whereupon he had broken into the building and hacked into their network. He had then managed to loop the security camera footage before he went down to the holding cells to free a particular inmate.

The P.R.T. Experiment.

It hadn't taken the P.R.T. more than a hour to realize something was wrong. Upon discovering the P.R.T. Experiment was missing, the P.R.T. had locked down and commenced a thorough search of the building.

Now, the P.R.T. were moving through the streets in search of a "dangerous criminal".

"This is a disaster..." Lady Photon murmured.

Manpower looked sharply at me. "I think I remember you telling us that your Experiments had agreed to follow the plan."

I winced at his tone before I looked down, ashamed. "Shortstuff—Shortstuff hasn't been the same since he found out about the P.R.T. Experiment. He refused to believe me when I told him that I didn't create him, that I didn't give him away to the P.R.T.." I wrapped my arms around myself. "I knew that Shortstuff was upset, but I didn't think he would do this. I thought that he understood..."

"Shortstuff c-confused." Muddle spoke up in a sad tone. "N-Not know how to u-understand. Porma makes Ex-per-i-ments. Porma is o-only one w-who should m-make Ex-per-i-ments. Shortstuff k-know Porma never d-do a-anything to hurt Ex-per-i-ments, but..."

That only made me feel worse. 'I should have done better. I should have tried to explain things to him better.' But, I hadn't. I had been too afraid of how Shortstuff would respond if I pushed him too much. I had been afraid of getting hurt.

Now, Shortstuff and the P.R.T. Experiment were on the run from the P.R.T.

"Great." Manpower sighed. "This is just great."

Shielder looked up. "What are we going to do about this?"

"There's not much we can do. Dr. Jookiba's Experiment has committed a serious crime." Manpower raised a hand. "He broke into a government institution, hacked into a government network and helped a prisoner to escape government custody. If we interfere..."

"... We have to do something." Shielder insisted. "We can't just leave them."

'... Ih. Nobody g-gets left behind. Or f-forgotten.'

Link had said that after I had told him that I would do anything in my power to help the P.R.T. Experiment. After I had said much of the same thing, that I wouldn't allow anybody to be left behind or forgotten.

Had I already gone back on my word?

'No.' I thought as I stood up. I looked around the room to Lady Photon, to Manpower, to Shielder. I looked to Muddle. He nodded at me. "I'm sorry..."

Manpower turned towards me too late.

I was already running out of the living room and into the hallway beyond. I thought that I heard Manpower call after me, heard him start to run, as I opened the door. I ran and Muddle joined me, frowning but resolute.

I had to find Shortstuff.

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.9 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Hapdelup - Up.

Porma - Mom or Mother.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: Here you guys go~!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Aug 9, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Aug 14, 2015

#233

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.x (Interlude: Shortstuff) – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Shortstuff handed Doubledip Sorry! and waited until he had gotten a firm hold of it before he smiled and nodded to himself. He turned around and then led his brother out of the living room and into the kitchen. He nodded to Alfred before he opened the door to the basement and helped Doubledip down the stairs.

'S-Shortstuff hope t-that Porma n-not too b-busy...' Shortstuff thought. He didn't think that his Porma would be busy, but he couldn't be too sure. It hadn't been long since he and his Porma had gotten home thought that didn't mean much. His Porma might have already started to design and build something or take apart and redesign something so that it would be better. 'Porma c-could be make n-new Ex-per-i-ment.'

Shortstuff thought that it might be a little too soon for his Porma to be making another Experiment, but he didn't really mind. If his Porma was creating a new Experiment, that just meant he had someone else to introduce himself to and get to know. If his Porma was creating an Experiment and that Experiment wasn't shy, he might even be able to get him or her to play Sorry! with them.

Shortstuff smiled and stepped off the last stair to enter the basement proper. He was only mildly disappointed to find that his Porma wasn't by the Experiment Creator. She was sitting in front of her laptop, watching something.

Shortstuff moved around to get a closer look, interested to see what his Porma could be watching, only to freeze when he managed to get a better look. Was that—? It was.

"Porma...?" Shortstuff turned to his Porma, confused. He didn't understand. "W-Who? W-Who is t-that, Porma?"

"W-Who? S-Shortstuff, Porma. Porma I-is who."

Shortstuff shook his head. "Naga. W-Who is n-not Porma. Who i-is another ex-per-i-ment. New ex-per-i-ment." An Experiment that he knew nothing about. An Experiment that his Porma had never told him about. An Experiment that was sitting within one of those cells he had seen on T.V. "W-Who is that, Porma? Why t-t-there?"

"N-New ex-per-i-ment?"

Shortstuff wanted to understand. He wanted his Porma to tell him that what he had seen was a mistake, that it wasn't real. His Porma had only created ten Experiments. Surely, he would have known if his Porma had created another Experiment. Right...?

His Porma lowered her head. "I don't know. I don't know. I just—I just followed a link that someone sent me and that screen appeared. I didn't know it would show me that. I don't know anything about that Experiment. I—I didn't make him."

That—That wasn't possible. His Porma was the only one who could make Experiments! His Porma had said that! "Porma makes ex-per-i-ments."

"I didn't make him, Shortstuff. I don't know what's going on, but I know that I didn't make him." His Porma looked up. There was something in his Porma's eyes, begging him to understand. "S-Shortstuff, you have to listen to me. I didn't make him. I didn't abandon him or give him to the P.R.T. I don't—I don't know who made him. Please. Please, believe me."

Shortstuff wanted to believe his Porma. He wanted to believe her, but he couldn't. His Porma was the only one that could make Experiments. His Porma had told them that she was the only one that could make Experiments. How—How could his Porma have not made that Experiment?

How could his Porma lie to him?

Shortstuff felt something get stuck in his throat and his vision blurred. He turned away before his Porma could see and started running away, unable to stand it anymore. He ran up the stairs, the kitchen, the hallway and up to the second floor. He ran to a closet where he hid himself inside.

It was there where Shortstuff finally allowed himself to cry. "P-P-Porma!"

XxX=-=XxX

Shortstuff didn't know what to do. He wanted to believe his Porma, but he found it difficult. His Porma had said that she hadn't made that other Experiment, that she would never give an Experiment to the P.R.T.. But, someone had made an Experiment. Someone had given it to the P.R.T.. If his Porma hadn't done it, then who could have?

'Porma w-would n-never...' Shortstuff thought, wrapping his claws around himself. 'P-Porma loves Ex-per-i-ments... Porma never lie to Ex-per-i-ments. But, Porma... Porma the only one that can make Ex-per-i-ments...'

His Porma was the only one that knew how to make Experiments. His Porma was the only one that could build the machines that were needed to bring an Experiment to life.

It wasn't like someone could just steal his Porma's power...

Shortstuff paused to consider that thought. Could it have been possible for someone to have stolen his Porma's power to make that Experiment? He didn't remember hearing about any power-stealers, but he might have just forgotten about them. There were a lot of new parahumans in Brockton Bay because of Doc.

'... Porma m-might not l-lie.'

If a power-stealer had stolen Porma's power and made that Experiment, then Porma hadn't lied when she had told him that she didn't make him. It didn't explain how the Experiment would have ended up with the P.R.T., but that could be explained too. The power-stealer could have given the Experiment he or she had made to the P.R.T.

Shortstuff's eyes narrowed in determination before he stood up. "F-Find out."

XxX=-=XxX

Shortstuff had learned about a number of parahumans that had powers that could steal his Porma's power, but had slowly written each of them off. He had learned that there weren't that many parahumans that could have stolen it. Those that could either didn't have a reason to steal his Porma's power, were too far away to steal it, or were imprisoned in somewhere called the "Birdcage".

Still, while the evidence suggested that his Porma had been the one to do it, Shortstuff didn't believe it. His Porma had told him that she hadn't done it and he believed her. He wanted to believe her.

It was for that reason that Shortstuff had decided to go to the P.R.T. Building. He knew that he wasn't supposed to, especially now, but he didn't feel like he had any other choice.

'F-Find Ex-per-i-ment, ask Ex-per-i-ment w-who m-make him.'

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.x (Interlude: Shortstuff) – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother.

Naga - No.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!

Last edited: Aug 17, 2015

Coshiua

Aug 14, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Aug 17, 2015

#235

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.10 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"Porma."

I stiffened at the tone present in Muddle's voice before I nodded shallowly. Muddle took a step forward to shield me from whoever may be watching: I took the chance to reach down and grasp the plasma gun holstered on my hip. He stepped aside as I rose to my feet and started to look around.

It didn't take more than a minute to find whoever had been watching Muddle and I. "... I should have known that it would be you."

"I've said it before and I'll say it again, Doctor. You need to pay more attention to your surroundings." Haunt stated as he stepped into view. He turned to look at Muddle. "I didn't think that your Experiment would be able to notice me. It must have something to do with his ability..." He turned away. "I'll have to remember that."

I raised the plasma gun. "If you're here to try and stop me, you might as well leave now. I'm not going back until I find Shortstuff."

It hadn't taken long for New Wave to begin looking for Muddle and I after we had run out. Muddle and I had managed to avoid them for the most part, but there had been more than a few close calls. In truth, I would have been caught already if not for Muddle and his ability.

I had been worried about Haunt, but it looked like I didn't have to. Muddle had just proven that he was able to notice Haunt. It was likely because Muddle's ability had allowed him to realize that Haunt would interfere, but that didn't matter. As long as Muddle could do that, Haunt wouldn't be able to pull off anything sneaky.

Haunt took a step backwards before he raised his hands in a warding gesture. "Easy there, Doctor. Easy. I didn't come here to start anything with you. Lady Photon just wanted me to try and find you to ask you to come and talk to her."

"I can't. I have to find Shortstuff before something happens to him." I said before I narrowed my eyes and gripped the plasma gun tighter. "You can either leave us alone and leave unharmed or we can leave you on the ground."

"... You'd actually shoot me?" Haunt asked.

I squashed the guilt that threatened to rise at the betrayed look on his face and hardened my heart. "I would. I'm not just going to let the P.R.T. have Shortstuff. He's my family, Haunt. I won't leave him behind."

"Doctor..." Haunt said.

I pulled the trigger. A burst of bright green light washed through the alleyway to smash against the ground at Haunt's feet. Smoke rose from the ground to swirl menacingly in front of his shocked face.

Haunt left.

'I'm so sorry, Haunt.' I thought as I turned around. I had rested for long enough. 'I have to find him. I just can't leave him...'

I looked down when I felt someone grab my hand to find Muddle had grabbed it. He directed a shaky smile at me and I felt something squeeze my heart at the sight. I swallowed before I forced a smile of my own on my face.

'Please, forgive me.'

Together, we resumed the search.

XxX=-=XxX

I stood on a rooftop overlooking downtown and watched as dawn broke across the water of the bay. It should have been a beautiful sight, but it wasn't. It was just a reminder of all the time that Muddle and I had spent searching. Searching for Shortstuff and the P.R.T. Experiment.

Muddle lay in the gravel behind me I didn't know how he had made it this far without a real break, but he had. Now, however, the lack of rest was beginning to catch up with him.

'... I have to find them.'

The problem was that I didn't know where Shortstuff could have taken the P.R.T. Experiment. I would have thought that he would head home or to the Bayside Apartments, but he must have realized that that would risk bringing the P.R.T. down on our heads. I had thought that he might have holed up in an abandoned warehouse or building, but he hadn't been in any that I had checked.

For all that I knew, the P.R.T. or Protectorate could have caught and apprehended them already. 'No.' I thought with a vehement shake of my head. 'I have to stay positive... I have to.'

The P.R.T. and Protectorate wouldn't still be combing the streets for Shortstuff and the P.R.T. Experiment if they had found them. So, the P.R.T. and Protectorate had to be still looking for them. Shortstuff and the P.R.T. Experiment were still out there somewhere.

For how much longer remained to be scene.

I turned around and felt even worse when I spotted Muddle. I pulled off my vest, picked up Muddle and wiped the few, stray bits of gravel off of him before I wrapped him in the vest. He yawned tiredly and rubbed his eyes, but I shushed him and told him go back to sleep.

"Porma..."

"You've done enough, Muddle." I whispered wetly. "Just sleep for now, okay? You've earned it."

Muddle yawned again before he slowly, slowly, closed his eyes. "O-Oketaka..."

He was asleep before I reached the stairs.

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.10 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Oketaka - Okay.

Porma - Mother or Mom.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed~!

Last edited: Aug 19, 2015

Coshiua

Aug 17, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Aug 19, 2015

#237

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.11 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

'... I shouldn't have gone this way.' I thought as I leaned against the wall next to the door I had come through minutes before. I kept my breathing to a minimum and tried not to move or make a sound that might give me away. 'If those two decide to look in here...'

If Muddle had been awake, this situation could have been avoided entirely. Muddle's ability would have let him know about the two P.R.T. troopers before they had arrived and given us time to get away. The problem was that Muddle wasn't awake. I had been able to avoid the P.R.T. troopers, but it hadn't been easy with the way that they were searching.

I could only hope that the P.R.T. troopers wouldn't notice anything was wrong. If the troopers didn't notice anything, then they would move on. I would eventually be able to sneak out and resume my search for Shortstuff and the P.R.T. Experiment. If the troopers did notice something, then they would come in. I might be able to fight them off, but the P.R.T. would find out that I was out as well.

I didn't think that the P.R.T. would my presence that well. Not right now, at least.

I heard one of the troopers say something before he approached. He brought up his flashlight and shown it thrown the window to illuminate the room that I was hiding in. The light moved across a couple of taped-up boxes, a dusty apron thrown over a chair and then a black spider winning a web. It lingered on the locked doorway leading deeper into the building before it pulled back.

Muddle shifted.

I heard footsteps before one of the troopers grabbed the door. "Miller! I have movement!"

'No.' I thought desperately. 'How could they have seen me?!'

I scooted further against the wall and reached for the plasma gun, but the door did not open. I heard footsteps racing away from the door before the light faded entirely and a second pair of footsteps joined the first.

'They're—They're leaving?' I thought somewhat disbelievingly. Then, I remembered what they had said. Miller's partner had seen something move. I looked at the door. '... I don't know who you are, but thank you.'

I moved out of the building, peaking my head around to make sure that the troopers were gone, before I took off in a sprint.

XxX=-=XxX

"Porma!"

I stiffened at the address before I quickly turned around. It was there that I found eight more of my children: Doubledip, Ace, Doc, Link, Drowsy, Alfred, Spike and Mute. "What—What are you doing here?"

"D-Doubledip told Ex-per-i-ments about S-Shortstuff." Doubledip said.

Link nodded. "Ex-per-i-ments k-know about S-Shortstuff and P.R.T. Ex-per-i-ment." He looked up at me with big, pink eyes. "Ex-per-i-ments k-know Porma look f-for Shortstuff and P.R.T. Ex-per-i-ment. Ex-per-i-ments decide t-to help."

"You guys..." I didn't know what to say. What could I say? "I... You didn't have to do this. You shouldn't have done this. If you get caught, then you'll all be in a lot of trouble."

Mute shook her head. "No care."

"Porma, Muddle, S-Shortstuff a-and P.R.T. Ex-per-i-ment a-are family." Ace said.

"Porma s-said that f-family is im-important." Link said before I could open my mouth. "Porma say t-that n-nobody l-left behind."

Spike looked up at me with a solemn expression. "Ex-per-i-ments not l-leave Porma b-behind."

"Ih!" Doc said with a nod. He glanced at Doubledip and then back at me. "Porma n-no think about l-leaving Ex-per-i-ments behind! D-Doubledip w-will find Porma even i-if Porma t-tries to h-hide!"

I opened my mouth before I really thought about what I was going to say. If Doubledip had marked my costume, then I wouldn't be able to leave them. I also couldn't force them to go back home either. "... You will all do exactly as I say."

"Ih!"

"Y-Yes, Porma!"

"Ih!"

"Yes!"

I couldn't help the smile that spread across my face.

XxX=-=XxX

"W-Why S-Shortstuff not h-hide at home?" Mute mentioned sometime later. "He n-never t-this good a-at hi-hide and s-seek."

Doc nodded. "S-Shortstuff g-good seeker, b-but not g-good hider. F-Finds one o-or two s-spot to h-hide, u-uses them w-when we k-know where h-he is."

"Y-Yeah..." Link murmured. "S-Shortstuff always h-hide in Porma room, w-with b-bluep-prints."

I looked back to tell them to quiet down when a thought suddenly struck me. 'No... It can't be that easy, can it?' I shifted Muddle to my other arm. "... You guys just gave me a good idea for where Shortstuff might have gone to."

"R-Really?"

"Yes." I said.

"Where? W-Where Shortstuff, Porma?"

"I think that he's at the ferry terminal. Come on!"

"Ih!"

"F-Follow Porma!"

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.11 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Ih - Yes.

Porma - Mom or Mother.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: Ta-da?

Last edited: Aug 19, 2015

Coshiua

Aug 19, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Aug 19, 2015

#239

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.12 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

I half-crouched in a shadowed alcove across the street from the ferry station and watched as P.R.T. troopers moved across the street. I pulled back as two troopers moved towards me before I leaned into the alcove and closed my eyes. I felt viscous liquid run over and across my skin like a snake, shifting agitatedly as the troopers moved through the alley.

I felt it finally settle after what felt like an eternity later. I opened my eyes again to peer through the liquid and saw the troopers on the other side of the alley, talking to another pair of troopers. The liquid shifted again as I turned back towards the ferry station, my destination set.

'Time to go.' I thought before I stepped out of the alley. I moved quickly across the street, slipping past a pair of troopers getting into a van, and finally made it to the ferry station. I stepped up the stairs onto the outdoor patio before I quietly opened the door leading inside. I saw a few P.R.T. troopers exiting the ferry with disappointed looks on their faces.

The liquid shifted agitatedly.

I watched another group of P.R.T. troopers disembark from the ferry before they shook their heads. One of the other troopers shook their head, barked a command and then started to move towards the doors leading to the street outside. The others followed soon after.

"... You can let go now." I whispered after a moment.

The liquid stilled for a moment, hesitating, before it began to flow downwards. It spread across the ground in ripples of greenish-gray liquid until, when the last of the liquid had left my body, it pulled itself away. It flowed towards a single point three feet away and then began to build itself up into a familiar figure.

Doc.

"... Doc w-will get o-others." Doc said after he had fully reformed. "Porma, find S-Shortstuff and P-P.R.T. Ex-per-i-ment?"

I nodded. "Yes, I will."

"B-Be back soon."

I approached the ferry.

XxX=-=XxX

I descended onto lower deck to the distant sound of running feet and a brief glimpse at something long and silvery. I stared forward a moment, almost hesitant to believe it, before I took off running. "... Shortstuff! Shortstuff, it's me! It's Porma!"

I rounded the corner to see a body covered in pale, greenish-yellow fur being pulled into a bathroom. I caught the door before it could fully swing shut to find Shortstuff pulling the P.R.T. Experiment toward one of the cubicles. He turned to say something to the P.R.T. Experiment, most likely to urge him to go faster, when he spotted me. He froze.

"P-Porma..."

"Shortstuff." I said breathlessly, tears prickling at the edge of my eyes. I stepped forward only for Shortstuff to step back: I felt my heart break. "Shortstuff... It's me. It's Porma..."

Shortstuff shook his head.

I swallowed painfully. "I know that you might not be happy with me right now, but you can trust me." Shortstuff looked up, eyes bright and scared and wet, and I felt my heart break even more. "Shortstuff..."

"P-P-Porma!" Shortstuff threw himself forward and I caught him. I wrapped my arms around him and brought him close to my chest as he started to cry. "S-Shortstuff n-never...! Shortstuff t-thought that P-Porma...!" I hushed him through my tears. "P-Porma!"

"I-It's okay. It's okay." I whispered wetly. "Porma's got you, Shortstuff. Porma's got you..."

"P-Porma..."

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.12 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Translation - Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I hope you guys enjoyed.

Last edited: Sep 9, 2015

Coshiua

Aug 19, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Sep 9, 2015

#243

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9x (Interlude: PHO) – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

Welcome to the Parahumans Online Boards!

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Topic: The Secret of the P.R.T. East-North-East

In: Boards ► News ► Events ► America ► Brockton Bay

►In_The_Know (Original Poster)

Posted on April 2, 2011:

At 5:30 P.M. yesterday afternoon, Dr. Jookiba of New Wave had a press conference about an "urgent matter". You can see the conference, and the P.R.T. East-North-East's secret, here.

(Showing Page 1 of 47)

►T

Replied on April 3, 2011:

... Wow.

►Xx_TheJourney_xX

Replied on April 3, 2011:

I can't-I can't believe this. Is this for real?!

►Floating_runes

Replied on April 3, 2011:

The P.R.T. have sunk to a whole new low.

►Perini

Replied on April 3, 2011:

Fuck the P.R.T.!

►Chariot (Unverified Cape)

Replied on April 3, 2011:

: I'm so sorry that you had to go through this.

►Dr. Jookiba (Verified Cape)

Replied on April 3, 2011:

Chariot: Thank you.

►BB_Brunette

Replied on April 3, 2011:

Dr. Jookiba: What are you going to do now? I know a lawyer that could help you sue the P.R.T...

►PoLeRiZeD

Replied on April 3, 2011:

Dr. Jookiba: Are you alright?

►Leo3nard

Replied on April 3, 2011:

Dr. Jookiba: How did you find out about this?

►Dr Jookiba (Verified Cape)

Replied on April 4, 2011:

BB_Brunette, PoLeRiZeD, Leo3nard:

I'm not sure what we're going to do right now. Thanks for the offer, though.

... We're getting better.

I don't think I should say...

►InvaderZee

Replied on April 4, 2011:

Dr. Jookiba: Stay strong and remember. We're with you.

]End of Page. 1, 2, 3

(Showing Page 19 of 59)

►Dr. Jookiba (Verified Cape)

Replied on April 10, 2011:

YueDreams: Unfortunately, it's true.

►YueDreams

Replied on April 10, 2011:

... I don't understand. How can they do this after what they did to you?

►BB_Brunnette

Replied on April 10, 2011:

I agree with Yue. It isn't fair what they're doing.

►Dr. Jookiba (Verified Cape)

Replied on April 10, 2011:

I have to take responsibility for what I did.

►PulpiE

Replied on April 11, 2011:

If anyone needs to take responsibility, it's the P.R.T.. What is to stop them from doing something like this again?

►Xx_xX

Replied on April 11, 2011:

There isn't much that we can do, PulpiE.

►DrME

Replied on April 11, 2011:

... This is so fucked up.

►Glory Girl (Verified Cape)

Replied on April 11, 2011:

DrME: You're telling me...

►ExperimentFaN

Replied on April 11, 2011:

I can't believe this.

►Win_Some_Lose_Some

Replied on April 11, 2011:

The P.R.T. needs can go die in a hole.

End of Page. 19, 20, 21

Topic: Director Piggot Resigns!

In: Boards ► News ► Events ► America ► Brockton Bay

►Auihsoc (Original Poster)

Posted on April 15, 2011:

At 12:00 P.M., Director Emily Piggot of the P.R.T. East-North-East held a conference to discuss the recent actions that the P.R.T. East-North-East has participated in and to offer her resignation. Here is a link to a Fox News recording and discussion of the conference. For those who are too lazy or don't have enough time to go through that, the following is a word-for-word quote of Director Piggot's resignation speech.

"In all of the decisions that I have made as the Director of the P.R.T. East-North-East, I have tried to do the best for Brockton Bay and the P.R.T. on a whole. I have felt it my duty to persevere and to make every possible effort to fulfill the duties and responsibilities of my position.

"In the last few days, however, it has become evident to me that I do not possess the necessary support to continue that effort. As long as there was that support, I felt strongly that it was necessary that I see my efforts through to their conclusion, that to do otherwise would be unfaithful to the purpose behind those efforts and set a dangerous precedent for the future.

"With the disappearance of that support, I now see that my efforts will be unfulfilled, and I believe there is no reason to prolong the process.

"Therefore, I will resign as the Director of the P.R.T. East-North-East effective noon tomorrow. Vice Director James Renick will be temporarily appointed Director of the P.R.T. East-North-East until a suitable replacement can be found..."

Click to expand...

(Showing Page 1 of 20)

►BBWatcher

Replied on April 15, 2011:

I might not agree with the recent actions that Ms. Piggot took, but I can understand them. To someone like Ms. Piggot, Dr. Jookiba is a constant presence and reminder of what she is rumored to have gone through at Ellisburg. Ms. Piggot could have gone about things differently though, while I know not everyone will agree with me, I think that they are somewhat warranted.

Dr. Jookiba has not shown any villainous tendencies, but you have to admit that she doesn't seem like she will stop creating Experiments anytime soon. Furthermore, who is to say that one of her Experiments won't go villain in the future?

►The_Runaway

Replied on April 15, 2011:

Goodbye, Director!

►WagTheDog

Replied on April 15, 2011:

Good riddance!

►IozU

Replied on April 15, 2011:

... I've heard about what Piggot has been doing, but is it true? I mean...

►InvaderZee

Replied on April 15, 2011:

BBWatcher said:

If any of the Experiments are going to go villain, then it'll be the Experiment that the P.R.T. created on Piggot's orders! They created it to study Experiments and, when not "studying" it, they kept it within a freaking holding cell! That you're trying to justify her actions speaks volumes about you and your character, BBWatcher.

►TommyBoy

Replied on April 15, 2011:

l have to side with InvaderZee here. What Piggot did is reprehensible and I'm glad that she's stepping down.

►BBWatcher

Replied on April 15, 2011:

InvaderZee said:

TommyBoy said:

l have to side with InvaderZee here. What Piggot did is reprehensible and I'm glad that she's stepping down.

I'm not saying that Ms. Piggot's actions weren't wrong. I'm just saying that I think that she was right to at least prepare for the possibility that Dr. Jookiba or one of her Experiments turned villain.

►Xx_xX

Replied on April 15, 2011:

Calm down, guys. All of you. This thread isn't about what Piggot did. This is supposed to be about discussing her resigning.

►Bubba_123

Replied on April 15, 2011:

[QUOTE="Xx_xX]Calm down, guys. All of you. This thread isn't about what Piggot did. This is supposed to be about discussing her resigning.[/QUOTE]

It's kind of hard not too, considering that she's resigning because of what she did...

End of Page. 1, 2, 3

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[PREV] – Malware: 9x (Interlude: PHO) – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: A short Interlude, but I hope you guys still enjoyed it~!

Last edited: Oct 5, 2015

Coshiua

Sep 9, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Oct 5, 2015

#248

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Malware: 9.13 – [NEXT]

XXXXXXXXXX

"All rise..."

I smoothened the crinkles in the long skirt that I had been given and then stood up as Judge Warren entered the room. He was an older man with thin wisps of silver hair raked over his head, wizened features carefully arranged into neutrality and an impeccable set of black robes. He sat down gingerly and then pulled out a spectacles before slipping them onto his face. He peered out into the courtroom—stopping briefly to stare at those arranged behind the prosecutor and defendants tables.

"Court is now in session; the honorable Judge Mathew Warren presiding."

I tried to ignore the fluttery, anxious, feeling in my chest and retook my seat to the left of Mr. Smith. Mrs. Dallon had recommended him to me shortly after the truth of the P.R.T. E.N.E. and the P.R.T.'s Experiment had come out. I didn't think that I could have gone through this process without Mr. Smith.

I had been arrested and then charged for "breaking and entering with a parahuman power" and "grand theft with a parahuman power". Shortstuff might have been the one that had broken into the P.R.T. Building and absconded with the P.R.T. Experiment, but the law did not view him or any of my children as humans and so could not try them. The P.R.T. E.N.E had charged me instead as I had created them with a parahuman power and, as such, I was ultimately responsible for their actions.

It had been brutal.

XxX=-=XxX

Judge Warren cleared his throat. I looked up from Ms. McKinney to find him now looking towards the jury. "Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, have you reached a verdict?"

"We have, your honor."

I swallowed against the suddenly dry feeling in my throat; the dread pooling in my stomach. Mr. Smith spared a moment to squeeze my hand in a reassuring fashion. It didn't.

"In the state of New Hampshire versus Taylor Anne Hebert, as to the count of breaking and entering with a parahuman ability, how do you find?"

"Not guilty, your honor."

I sagged in relief.

"In the state of New Hampshire versus Taylor Anne Hebert, as to the count of grant theft with a parahuman ability, how do you find?"

"Not guilty, your honor."

I felt that earlier dread dissipate entirely at the words before I let out a long, shaky breath I hadn't known that I had been holding. Mr. Smith muttered something to me that was lost in the cheers of the people sitting in the stands behind us.

"Order! Order...!" Judge Warren hit his desk with his gavel a few times until the crowd settled down. He turned towards the jury. "I would like to thank you all for your time and consideration of this case..."

XxX=-=XxX

I followed Mr. Smith out of courtroom three somewhat numbly. I barely noticed the flash of the cameras; the cameramen pointing their cameras at me; the reporters all talking at once, trying to get my attention so that I would answer their questions. Mr. Smith helped a great deal, placating them with a few short statements, and then walked me outside to where my family was waiting for me.

Dad. Doubledip. Shortstuff. Ace. Doc. Link. Drowsy. Spike. Alfred. Muddle. Mute. Firkin.

"Porma!"

I let Mr. Smith behind and walked as fast as I was able towards them as they moved towards me. I scooped up Muddle into my arms before Doubledip ran up my skirt and onto my shoulder. Spike and Mute rubbed at my legs as Link hugged one side and Shortstuff hugged the other. Alfred and Ace stood back, but I could see the relief in their eyes.

Firkin hung back uncertainly. He had been created by Noelle Meindhardt using Doc's DNA at the behest of the P.R.T. E.N.E.. He had seemed happy to learn that he had "cousins" and an "aunt", but he had often expressed how much he missed Noelle. I tried my best to make sure he felt loved and always made sure he felt welcome, but...

He didn't feel like he belonged.

I looked up after a moment to find him still standing there before I motioned him forward. He hung back for another few moments before slowly, almost reluctantly, approaching to join in the group hug.

'Finally...'

XxX=-=XxX

"... You're leaving New Wave."

I turned around to find Victoria standing in the doorway with an almost disbelieving expression on her face. I looked away from her after a moment and down towards the box of odds and ends I had been packing. "Yes," I admitted in a quiet voice. "Yes, I am."

"Why?"

"I need to leave."

Victoria frowned. "What?"

"... I know that no one would mind if I stayed on the team, but..." I couldn't help but remember the night that Shortstuff had gone after Firkin. I had actually made my decision to leave then, when I had decided to go after Shortstuff and Firkin. "I left New Wave the day that I ran out. This is just me making it official."

"You're sure?"

I nodded. "I'll still help out when and whenever I can though. I'm not about to leave you guys behind, even if I do leave the team."

I already had a lot of new ideas that I wanted to look into. I could already feel the itch to get back into the lab and start tinkering. I wanted to rebuild my plasma guns into something better; I wanted to fix a few errors that had popped with the galactic cruiser; and I wanted to work on more possible Experiment design templates.

I had ideas.

XXXXXXXXXX

[PREV] – Malware: 9.13 – [NEXT]

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Translation - Tantalog to English

Porma - Mom or Mother.

XXXXXXXXXX

A/N: Author's Note: I would first like to apologize for how late chapter is. I got wrapped up in Queen of the Shadowkhan before I left on a month-long trip to visit and help my grandmother out in Eastern Washington. I am still in Eastern Washington, but I finally had enough time (and inspiration) to finish this chapter.

I hope everyone enjoyed~!

Last edited: Oct 14, 2015

Coshiua

Oct 5, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Oct 14, 2015

#252

XXXXXXXXXX

Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Shut Down: E.1 – [NEXT]

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"Mama!"

Noelle Meindhart looked away from the window and towards the voice to see Firkin all-but run towards her. She felt something warm and bright bloom in her chest at the sight of him before she turned herself in her seat and opened her arms. Firkin reached her after a moment and wrapped his arms—as much as he was able to—around her midsection, burying his face in the cotton that made up her uniform. She closed her arms around him and relished in his warmth.

It was an action that Noelle had never thought that she would have been able to experience. She had been fighting a losing battle against herself; her body taking more and more control. She had been able to regain that control from time to time, but the effort had often left her irritable and more prone to do things she wouldn't have. If she had gotten too angry, she had found herself losing ground against it.

"M-Mama..." Firkin murmured.

Now, it was all different.

Doc had healed her where all other attempts had failed and had thus given her life back to her. She had been terrified that it would only be a temporary fix; that she would somehow begin to transition back to what she was; and of her own power. It had taken weeks before she had been able to except the possibility that it could be permanent, that she was safe.

Noelle reluctantly released Firkin and that almost physical awareness of him faded away into nothing. He moved to sit in the chair behind her as a stack of papers clacked against their table. She looked up to find Firkin's caretaker sitting across from her with a faint smile.

Taylor Hebert was skinny to the point of being scrawny with glasses and long, curly hair. She wore a white labcoat over a simple light-yellow shirt and a pair of fading jeans. Her fingers were callused from the work and there was a suspicious-looking edge of something underneath her fingernails.

By all rights, Taylor should have hated her. Krouse, Luke and Jess had broken into her home, kidnapped her and held her against her will to force one of her children to heal her. She hadn't known about Krouse's plan beforehand, but she to blame. She was also responsible for creating Firkin at the P.R.T.'s behest, something she hadn't known how Taylor would react to once she learned about him.

But... Taylor didn't hate her.

"Firkin made these for you." Taylor spread out the papers in the stack to reveal countless drawings done in crayon, pencil and marker. The pictures all depicted Firkin in some manner, either with her or with his "cousins". She tapped one depicting her sitting next to him on a beach. "He was really proud of this one."

Firkin lowered his head in an attempt hide his blush.

Noelle stared at the picture for a few moments before she abruptly turned and brought Firkin into another hug. "Thank you, Firkin..." Her voice was thick, wet. "I really—I really appreciate this. All of this."

"Firkin want Mama to have some pic-pictures." Firkin said, voice muffled. He pulled himself away and looked up at her face with wide, innocent eyes. "Mama can plan what do now, after—after Mama leaves!"

"That sounds like a good idea, Firkin..."

XxX=-=XxX

Firkin left a short while later—escorted out by an older man that resembled Taylor—which left Noelle sitting at the table with Taylor. She collected the pictures that Firkin had drawn for her and stacked them into a neat, orderly pile. She would have to give them to an officer to check, but she already had plans on where in her cell she would tape them.

"... How is Firkin doing, really?"

Taylor let out a long sigh. "I won't lie and tell you that everything has been fine, but it's starting to look like it will be. Firkin finally seems to realize that he can let his guard down around and trust us. He still doesn't really believe that he fits in or belongs, but he's getting there."

Noelle nodded and looked down at the stack of pictures. She was met with the sight of her sitting next to Firkin on a beach. Taylor and her children could be seen playing in the water, goofing off and having a great time. Picture-Firkin was holding her hand, looking at her with a wide, happy grin.

"What are we going to do then? After all of this is over and I finally get out of here?"

Taylor looked at the wall behind her, thinking it over. "Well... I do happen to have some vacancies in Bayside Apartments. If you want, you can move into one with Firkin..."

Noelle could hardly believe it.

"—I wouldn't really mind if you took more than one apartment, either. It's not like I really need all of those apartments right now. I might need more in the future, but that shouldn't affect you or Firkin." Taylor continued. She tilted her head. "Of course... It would also give me the opportunity to try out something." Her fingers twitched for a moment. "... I'll have to look into it... ... ... ... Noelle?"

"... You would do that for me?"

"Of course." Taylor said strongly. She laid her hand on top of Noelle's own and gripped it tightly. "You're family now, Noelle."

"You..." Noelle didn't know how she was supposed to respond to that. What she was supposed to say to that. "... Thank you," She said in a near whisper. "Thank you."

"Ohana means family and family means no one gets left behind. Or forgotten."

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[PREV] – Shut Down: E.1 – [NEXT]

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Coshiua

Oct 14, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Oct 18, 2015

#259

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Shut Down: E.2 – [NEXT]

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Carol Dallon pushed out from behind her desk and picked up the crate of paperwork marked '1979'. She placed it down in the corner of her office next to a stack of similar crates, on top of a crate marked '1978', and then picked up a crate marked '1980'. She lugged it back to her desk and set it down before she retook her seat.

She lifted the first file out of the crate, placed it face down on the scanner and pressed the button. It was the work of moment's for the scanner to create and bring up a graphic image of the file. She looked it over for a moment before she nodded once and saved it inside the new '1980' folder. She then lifted the scanner and out of the file before setting it down beside her.

It was almost meditative.

"Carol."

Carol looked up from her computer screen to find her sister in the doorway. She felt at once both relieved to see her and wary of her sudden appearance. It had been nearly a week since she had last seen her. It had not gone very well.

"... Sarah." Carol said after she had regained her composure. "I wasn't expecting you."

Sarah took in a breath and then lifted her eyes to meet Carol's. "I know." She looked towards the chairs seated in front of Carol's desk. "Is it alright if I come in? I would like to talk to you."

Carol didn't want to talk to her sister right now, but she wouldn't turn Sarah away. If Sarah actually wanted to talk to her, after all that had happened between them recently, then she wouldn't stop her. She gestured towards the open seats and then finished scanning the last file she had been working on.

"... I want to apologize."

Carol froze at the words before she looked up at Sarah. Sarah stared at her with an apologetic expression on her face. She felt something get stuck in her throat, but squashed the feeling. Now was not the time.

"Apologize?"

Sarah looked at her. "I wanted to apologize for not paying more attention to you and for not actually listening to you." She took a breath. "If I had, then I would have realized that you weren't "fine" after what happened all those years ago. But, I didn't. I pushed you and I kept pushing and pushing you. I forced you to do things that you aren't comfortable with, that you are still not comfortable with, and expected things to turn out alright. But, it wasn't. It hasn't been alright for a very long time."

It had been a long time. If Carol were to be truly and completely honest with herself, then things hadn't been alright since that man had bundled them into the back of his truck and kidnapped them. Time had allowed Sarah to overcome and move on from the ordeal, but it haunted Carol to this day.

"... It wasn't your fault." Carol said.

"It was my fault for not noticing." Sarah leaned forward in her chair and extended a hand. She rested it on top of Carol's own and gripped it tight. "And it is my fault for not doing more after I realized that you still needed help."

Carol bit back the retort with difficulty and instead took a deep, calming breath. "... You had a right to be angry at me after you found out what I did. You still do."

"I know." Sarah gripped her hand tighter. "I'm tired of feeling angry at you, Carol. I know that things between us have changed, that things can't go back to the way that they were, but I want to try to make things better. To be better than we were before all of this happened."

'I want that, too.'

"I know that it'll take time before things can be like that again, but I'm willing to work for it." Sarah took another breath and then looked up into Carol's eyes. "I'm willing to work on it with you if you are willing to work on it with me."

"... And Donny?"

"He wants this too." Sarah said.

Carol pulled back.

"I do want this."

Carol froze at the sound of that familiar voice, the emotion she could hear within it. It was only Sarah's hand that kept her from telling him to leave her office immediately; to tell him to go away because she didn't want to see him; to tell him to stay because he was here and she wanted to see him. Wanted so much to be able to actually trust him again, to bridge the chasm that existed between them, to finally have her older brother back.

"I..."

Carol looked at him for several long moments. If she looked past the years that had aged him, she could see him. She could see her older brother waiting for her; waiting for her to allow him to help her. He would leave if she told him to, but she didn't want that.

'Family means that no one gets left behind. Or forgotten.'

She swallowed past a sudden thickness in her throat. "I—" She blinked multiple times. "Yes. Yes."

"Yes?"

"I want—I want things to be better."

XxX=-=XxX

The Three Lights had finally been reunited.

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[PREV] – Shut Down: E.2 – [NEXT]

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Last edited: Nov 5, 2015

Coshiua

Oct 18, 2015

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Coshiua

An Autistic Kyogre~!

Nov 5, 2015

#269

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Dr. Taylor Jookiba

[PREV] – Shut Down: E.3

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I looked down through the lenses of the magnification visor I wore towards the mechanical waldo as it slowly, smoothly, ran along the circuit board she was working on it. I pulled back the mechanical waldo after it had finished fastening the last chip into place and spent a few moments overlooking it before I finally nodded.

'It's done.' I pulled off the magnification visor and set it down on a less-cluttered section of my workstation before I stood and stretched some. Once I was done with that, I carefully extracted the circuit board and carried it into the middle of the next room.

The room that I entered was perhaps fives times the size of the room that I had exited though most of the room was taken up by machines. The middle of the room was occupied by a massive tetradecagon built into the floor while the walls of the room were covered in a dense ring of rectangular machines that were made it work.

If Mute had not been able to create the materials that I needed, then I would never have been able to do all of this. Even then, it had taken a long time to turn those materials into the components that I would need to build the technology that now filled this room.

I pressed one of the small buttons on the nearest rectangular machine. The upper half of the tetradecagon found itself lifted upwards by four strong, mechanical arms and then held in place as I approached it. I set the circuit board down in the middle of the revealed space before I moved back to hit the same button. The mechanical arms lowered and the tetradecagon came together with a series of clicks.

I pressed another button and an audible electrical hum filled the air as all of the other machines in the room came to life. I waited until the tetradecagon had started to light up as well before I nodded to myself.

It was time.

I headed over to stand at a screen built into the tetradecagon as it came to life. It was the work of moments to open the Experiment Encyclopedia and then search for Experiment 341. Once Experiment 341's article had been found and brought up, I scrolled to the bottom of the screen and then clicked the box there to bring up Experiment 341's design template.

"... I hope this works."

I flipped the lever.

XxX=-=XxX

The lights flickered for several long moments before they finally stabilized. The pill-shaped container set into the middle of the top of the tetradecagon filled with a clear nutrient-rich solution as four metallic rods rose from around it. The tips of the rods sparked before they directed a sudden stream of electricity towards the container.

More than a few times, I had spent hours watching my children develop inside of the incubator. It had taken several long hours for my children to finish developing inside of it. I had thought it fast then though now, comparing it against the speed at which the tetradecagon worked, the incubator worked at a snail's pace.

"Whoa..."

The metallic rods fell back into the tetradecagon five minutes later. It was followed a moment later by the remaining liquid inside of the pill-shaped container being drained away via small holes, leaving my newest child alone.

He was a small light green, oddly lizard-like creature with a big head, a small nose, two short small ears and three antennae with dark-green tips. He also had four stubby legs and a long, lizard-like tail.

His counterpart had been Experiment 341—Wafty—an Experiment that had been designed to "transport anyone to other places in a second". I had thought about him more than a few times in the past months; Muddle had even suggested that I bring him to life. I had decided not to create him in the end, having not wanted to bring him to life for something that might not happen, but now...?

XxX=-=XxX

I looked up at the sudden sound of footsteps and turned only to find my newest child still sleeping within the pill-shaped container. The source of the sound became apparent a few moments later when Doubledip rushed around the edge of the tetradecagon.

"Doubledip." He stopped a foot in front of me and then held up his hands. Obligingly, I picked him up. "How did you get here? I thought I left you at home with Shortstuff, Alfred and Mute."

"Y-Yes." Doubledip said, nodding his head.

I didn't have time to ask him more about it. There came a series of thundering footsteps and I turned in time to see the rest of my children pour through the now-open door of my laboratory.

Shortstuff looked around and then pointed an accusing claw at Doubledip. "D-Doubledip was s-supposed to wait for other Ex-per-i-ments! Doubledip d-didn't wait!"

"Wanted t-to be first." Doubledip said without a hint of shame. "Am first."

"While that's true," I said before Shortstuff could say anything, "I doesn't explain why you're here."

"W-We knew that Porma would finish her lab today, so we wanted to be there." Ace said.

I looked towards him to find him standing by Mute and Spike who were, together, holding an enormous box across their backs. Link had bandoleers of fruit juice cartons attached to thin loops of blue glue. Muddle was holding a package of paper plates, plastic cutlery and an assortment of colorful party hats. And Alfred...

Alfred had already finished setting up a table and was just now setting a yellow tablecloth over it.

Shortstuff threw his arms into the air. "It s-surprise party for Porma and new Ex-per-i-ment!"

"You guys..." I didn't know what to say.

I stopped speaking at the sudden, almost familiar, sound of small claws tapping against glass. I turned to find that my newest child had finally woken up and was now looking towards the box that Alfred had just placed on the table. His small nose quivered before he pressed another paw against the glass of the pill-like container.

"... Porma."

"Hello... Transmit." I said tenderly. "There are a few people that I would like you to meet." I took my time and slowly pointed towards each of my other children (and Firkin) as I spoke their names, "Doubledip, Shortstuff, Ace, Doc, Link, Drowsy, Spike, Alfred, Muddle, Mute and Firkin. Firkin is your cousin, but the rest of them are your siblings."

Transmit looked down. "... Ohufi, s-sibl-lings."

"Ohufi!"

"Ohufi, T-Transmit!"

"Ohufi."

"Batookah, Transmit."

"Everyone has been waiting for you, Transmit." I said as mechanical arms lifted the pill-like container towards a far rack. He startled and then looked up just as I moved y hand towards the table now laden with cake and fruit juice cartons. "They put this all together for us."

"Ooh."

I put Doubledip down and picked Transmit up. "Now... why don't we try some coconut cake? I'm sure that you will really like it..."

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[PREV] – Shut Down: E.3

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Translations - Tantalog to English

Batookah - Formal greeting.

Ohufi - Casual greeting.

Porma - Mom or Mother.