Taylor and Her Heroic Friends[Worm/FSN] – Chapter 1
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And so another day comes to an end in this shitty place. Taylor thought as she walked through the deen of trash that was Winslow Highschool. Though thankfully, it had become a little more bearable the last month. Though that was only after she had experienced the worst day in her life. The day her mother died being a closed second.
She still hated the bugs, and enclosed spaces. But she was dealing with that. But thankfully, she had gotten something out of her ordeal, like everyone else who experienced something absolutely traumatizing.
Powers.
Taylor Hebert was now a Parahuman.
And she loved it, she loved her power as it no longer made her alone. She no longer needed Emma. She now had tons of friends and people who were willing to teach her. They had shown her reality and crushed whatever hopeful desire she had about Emma becoming a good person again.
Her power had connected her to a place called the Throne of Heroes, a place that existed outside of space and time that housed the souls of legends as a reward for their deeds. She could connect to each individual and borrow their form and powers in various stages by drawing bits of them into her. And by doing so, Taylor could also communicate with the 'Hero' and be advised by them.
And out of all of them, Taylor had to admit that Medea was her favorite, for the Witch of Betrayal and her had a lot in common with one another. They had especially found commonality in being betrayed by the person they trusted the most. Though then she had asked Jason had admitted he had fucked up in regards to handling her, then Aphrodite had dumped her on him.
And it was thanks to Medea that Taylor now had a much better school life as she had been able to create, what was basically an Anti-bullying Amulet that kept the trio of her back and their minions.
And she had also used Medea's abilities to hypnotize Emma to finally figure what her fucking deal was. Which was what had destroyed any vestiges of hope she had in Emma of turning out okay. Honestly, after she had basically mind controlled it out of her, Taylor could only feel disgusted, while the event she had suffered was traumatizing for a girl such as Emma. It did not excuse her current actions, and Medea had agreed with that. So she had just whipped the encounter from the red head's mind and tried to ignore her obnoxious existence, but that proved to be a tricky thing.
With her and Sophia trying and failing to hurt her, oh, and speaking of Sophia, she was one that had saved Emma and was Shadow Stalker. One of the newest members of the Wards.
And Taylor was sure if she reported her, she would be punished or something like that. But she honestly couldn't give less of a fuck about Sophia and her bullshit. She was an irrelevant nobody who would never amount to anything. At least those were the words Medea had to say about Sophia.
Taylor boarded the bus, flashing her pass to the driver as she took her seat as she smiled at the thought of coming and finally finishing the project she had going in her Workshop.
The ride was ten minutes long as usual and exited the bus a few meters away from her home.
Her keys clanged as she took them out, and Taylor unlocked the door and entered the home she had lived in her entire life, and one she hoped to continue to live in for half a dozen years more.
Taylor walked into the kitchen after hanging her jacket and her bag to grab a snack, before she down to the basement where she had set up her hidden Workshop where her dad wouldn't be able to find it. But after this, Taylor would have to tell him as the results of her project would make it obvious she had powers.
But she didn't really care about having a secret identity as no one would be able to harm her to due being basically Eidolon. She had taken enough precautions so that no one would be able to hurt her dad or the house. The place able to turn into a super Endbringer Shelter due to the various Casters she had used to reinforce the place with Bounded Field, but not too many, or else the overlays would cause weird side effects.
Taylor looked at the fridge and saw that a new note had been placed on it.
Taylor Kurt invited me to watch some games after work, so I will be home tomorrow evening, there are leftovers, and a pizza in the freezer -Dad.
"Well, that makes this a lot easier," Taylor said to herself with a smile as she also took a marker and crossed out February 26.
Taylor went downstairs the Bounded Fields recognizing her spiritual composition and allowing her entrance to the True Basement that she had created. A Temple meant to facilitate the creations of magical items and the growing of magical reagents to be used in potions.
And as she entered her little haven, Taylor reached out to a certain Witch and connected with her, and went into the Include State.
[Good day Taylor, are you ready to finish what you started?]
"I am Circe," Taylor responded as she went about to brew the potion using the ingredients she had painstakingly grown over the last month.
[That is good, but do remember that there is no going back once you drink that, it will be a transformation that cannot be undone.]
"I know, but you know I need this, or else I won't be able to use your powers fully," Taylor responded as she cut the roots and flowers. For after fully realizing what her powers were, Taylor had encountered a significant problem. That being her own body, it was incapable of handling the power she was channeling through it. While she seemingly had the energy to direct it, the Casters theorizing that it was due to the Counterforce providing the necessary power, but they weren't sure. Her power came in three stages, Connection, Include, and Install. With each stage, she incorporated more and more of a Heroic Spirits' Saint Graph into her body. But with Install is where stuff went wrong as she could barely maintain it for a minute using most Heroes. Only those that were Writers, and Musicians being installable for longer than a minute. And that was a problem as she needed that stage to fight the villains of this world. For Connection allowed only for talking and Include, only gave basic abilities to use and minor appearance changes.
So the solution was simple. It was to make Taylor's body be able to handle the strain, and that was to transform into a body from the Age of Gods. As there, it was still a mystery compared to now where the Human Body put defined limits on what was possible unless you were a Brute Type Parahuman.
The intellectuals had no idea how they came about would only know if they were able to dissect a Parahuman to find out. And Taylor had put her foot down on that, for she didn't want to do live experiments on people, not even Emma. She wasn't a member of the Slaughter House Nine, even if several Heroic Spirits would not be out of place amongst the group of psychotic killers. But Taylor tended to stay away from them.
[I know that too Taylor, these Endbringers from what we've gleaned from your mind you need some of the stronger heroes like Heracles. Jut be aware of the consequences of your actions.]
"I am Circe, but I am rather excited about this," She responded. For Taylor didn't really like what her current body looked like, even more so now than before. As the few times, she had installed, she had experienced what it meant to look beautiful, to be the prettiest girl, and even looking like a woman. Even just Including made a difference in her face shifting it closer to what Circe looked like, and it was mesmerizing.
And Taylor wanted to look that constantly.
And that would be fixed with the potion.
It took about an hour to finely brew the potion as it needed to be done correctly, or else Taylor would end up growing a second head or something like that.
Taylor disconnected from Circe and stripped out of her clothes, leaving her naked in the middle of her Workshop. For she didn't want to accidentally tear them apart.
"Well, down it goes," Taylor muttered as she looked at the puke green liquid that filled the slightly warm Florence Flask.
She put it to her lips and drank the entire thing as fast as possible. "Urgh, fuck taste a shit as Circe said it would, and here comes the falling unconscious part," Taylor said to herself as her vision started to darken. She quickly moved the couch she had down here and laid down before darkness overtook her vision.
And so over the next long hours, Taylor's transformed into the pinnacle that could only come about in the Age of Gods.
Taylor's body grew in length, reaching an even six-foot, her muscles expanding and strengthing becoming something that took Olympic Athletes years to achieve, also gaining a six-pack that would attract the eyes of any that looked.
The changes continued until Taylor woke up early that morning, her head groggy and filled with cobwebs as she tried to remember what had happened. But thankfully, her confusion did not last long as she looked around the Workshop and remembered what she had done.
"Wow!" Taylor stated in wonder as she looked at herself in a full-body mirror, and she saw breasts, actual breasts on her chest. And not those barely-there A-Cups that were surpassed in size by some boy's pecs. These were proper breasts, big, soft, and capped… No, they weren't capped by nippled. Her areola's had swallowed them up, and they had become inverted.
So fucking sexy. Taylor thought as she looked at her changed body, while her Boudica sized breasts were pure perfection, they paled a bit compared to her muscular body. Taylor just felt so strong like she could run a marathon and deadlift a car. And the. Came her hips, that had widened to give her that hourglass look. And her ass was a sculpted masterpiece that tantalizingly jiggled when she moved. And her legs were just like her arms, made of lean muscles and thighs that people on various forums would probably say they wanted to be crushed by.
Taylor continued to admire her naked body, making stretches in front of the off the mirror, and was about to test a function of her new body when she heard her stomach let out a loud rumble.
"Fun can wait until later," Taylor muttered as she went over to the wardrobe where her new formfitting clothes were waiting for her. Arachne had been so helpful in that regard, but she couldn't really do anything else, decides weave, and make clothes. Very fast and very well, but nothing else.
Taylor hummed happily as she went through the ridge, her tight jeans hugging her ass and her t-shirt doing the same to her breasts. Showing off every single curve that her body now possessed, there had been nothing to confirm before, and that was why she had covered herself in baggy clothing that made her look like even more of a dude.
But no more, she would be confident her new idealized body as there was nothing to be ashamed about anymore. Those conversations she had with the various female Heroic Spirits had helped her self-image. But it was this new form of her that just seemed to cement those lessons.
After twenty minutes of preparations, Taylor sat down on the sofa and placed her dinner slash breakfast on the table her, new body demanding a large amount of food to be consumed to replenish the energy she had spent forming her new body.
She reached for the remote and turned on the tv wanting to kill the silence with some basic entertainment while she ate and adjusted to her new body. Taylor found it rather sensitive, especially her breasts, as they grinded against the fabric of her shirt. It made her brand new nether regions heat up pleasantly, in a way that was different from the usually heated lust that sometimes permeated her groin.
Maybe she had talked too much with Medb about feminine issues.
But she would have to masturbate later as doing it in the living room was not cash money at all.
Though Taylor would have to put off her sexual relief for much later as the channel changed to emergency broadcasts saying that the Simurgh was on a descent towards Canberra, Australia. Taylor almost choked on her food as she tried to force down her throat.
For she needed to get dress and get moving, for there was no better time to make her debut than now by killing one of the Endbringers. And even if she wasn't ready, she would have gone for not doing so would go against what she had been taught by her new heroic friends.
For even if somewhere villains, they were all united under the banner of protecting humanity.
Taylor went back down into her Workshop and changed out of her casual clothes and into her costume, which was just her own rendition of the Celtic bodysuit, with a half-mask like one Scathach possessed. Though hers was more black and grey than dark purple colors. As to why she had chosen that outfit specifically to base her outfit on? Taylor really didn't know, it just fit her aesthetic the most. And for some reason, it just kinda felt nostalgic to look at, like she had worn something similar ones.
Her suit clung to her curves, as it was a perfect fit, though sadly she would have to admire her form later, right now she had to get to Canberra as fast as possible.
And that was a bit of a problem as Canberra was about ten thousand miles from her current and she needed to make the trip in about ten minutes.
While many Caster's were capable of teleportation, it was usually limited to a specific area. Still, thankfully the answer came fast to her. And it wasn't Achilles, for while he was fast and his Noble Phantasm made him faster, his kind of speed was not one that was needed and his chariot was a bit to slow.
"Install," Taylor spoke, and her form changed, going from her new sexy form to a different kind of beautiful. Her hair became blond and eyes a pale purple, and her breasts and height shrunk as well.
[We shall lend you our power human, you better be grateful.]
[Ah, don't be like that brother Taylor needs our help to save people.]
[Yes, and that is why we shall accept it corpse as a sacrifice to our glory.]
Taylor laughed internally at the Divine Twins banter, as she made her way outside. The Heroic Spirit, known as Dioscuri, was made up of two people Castor and Pollux. And with their power, she would make her way to Canberra in record time.
"Dioscures Tyndaridae: Hymn of the Twin Gods," Taylor muttered as she activated the multipurpose Noble Phantasm that, with the release of the True Name, she would be able to access the Divine Authorities that they once possessed.
One of which allowed for high-speed movement beyond even that of light; of course, she didn't need to go that fast. But it allowed her to move faster than most Servants.
Taylor took a single step, and she became a bullet of light that razed across America and the ocean; it gave Taylor a sense of absolute freedom that she rarely experienced. It all came quickly to an end as she came to a stop on a rooftop.
"Wow, this place is rather pretty," Taylor stated as a matter of fact as she looked at Australia's Capital. Yeah, Canberra was a beautiful place, but it was also in the middle of a mass panic as people tried to escape before the Simurgh arrived. Cars were being, and people were screaming on the street.
[How terrible, the mere thought of this Simurgh of arriving is driving these people mad.] Pollux commented. And Taylor had to agree with the Saber. But thankfully, it seemed that she had arrived before the Angel of Fear had, which meant she had time to recover a bit.
She disengaged the Install and bade the twins goodbye for now with Castor remind her to murder the Simurgh in their name.
"Now, where is the meet up for the fight?" Taylor asked herself as she tried to the most obvious spot.
"That would be the Airport ma'am," A voice spoke up from behind her, and Taylor turned around to see Legend himself hanging in the air. Taylor's mind blanked for a few seconds as she tried to comprehend the member of the Triumvirate before her.
"Ah, thank you, Sir," Taylor slowly responded as her mind rebooted, as she tried not to squeal. For despite the discipline that had been beaten into her head. Praxis was a lot harder than practice.
"Your welcome though going by your accent, you're not a local Cape?" He asked.
"Yeah, I'm from Brockton Bay Sir, I saw the warning on TV, and I ran here as quickly as I could," She answered hastily as she began to run towards the airport where the meet up was.
"You ran?" He asked.
"Yeah, one of my powers allows me to move at near light speed, so getting here was pretty easy," She answered.
"Powers? So you're a grab bag or a Trump then?" The New York hero asked.
"Yeah, I don't mean to brag, but my power is similar to Eidolon, but I can only use one at a time. And I have a reserve of energy that needs to be recharged before I can use a power. I've used about a fifth getting here," Taylor explained. And it was the explanation that most of the science-oriented heroes had suggested for her to use. As it was the most straightforward explanation for what she could do.
"I see then, glad that someone of your power has decided to become a hero, though if someone of your power existed, I'm sure you would have passed my desk. Is this your?" Legend began to ask, and Taylor answered immediately.
"Yep, this is my debut, spend the last month and a half preparing," Taylor answered truthfully as they arrived at the airport. And there Taylor could see a bunch of Parahuman's standing around some going up to a Dragon Suit and taking something it was giving them.
"Well, hopefully, you survive," Legend responded as he flew away to do leader stuff.
Well, that was a depressing way to say goodbye. Taylor thought as she did like the other and went over to the Dragon Suit.
"This armband will monitor your health and declare your status, and can be used to give vital information to other combatants. And with this being the Simurgh will tell you then you're within the range of her scream and then you need to leave to be unaffected," Dragon explained as she took the armband from the Tinker and put it on.
"Please register your name," Device spoke.
"Chaldea," Taylor responded with the name she had chosen to use as a hero. It was a thing she had been agonizing over as she had been unable to choose one. For there had been many that fit what she could do, but they all sounded so arrogant to use. But one night Da Vinci had told her a story of events that had happened on an entirely different earth, an entirely different timeline. Of an organization that was dedicated to protecting humanity and the future. Of a young man that commanded a legion of Servant to preserve human history. And so Taylor had chosen to use that name herself as Chaldea as an organization didn't seem to exist on her earth. And so she had decided to become the thing that defended humanity, and it's future. And it would all start today with the end of the Simurgh.
"Welcome Chaldea, please stand by for further instructions," The armband responded, and Taylor stood among the group of capes as Legend along with Alexandria and Eidolon stood on a quickly made stage. For while she had been put through six weeks of training, she would still fully admit that she was a rookie and didn't really know what to do in these kinds of situations. And so just followed the lead of everyone else.
And then Legend began to give his speech. "Thank you for standing here today in defense of Canberra, we're only able to prepare for out of the three Endbringers the Simurgh is the only one that can be seen coming," And so he continued to give the most depressing speech that Taylor had heard in her entire life. She had expected something rousing like out of independence day. But instead, she got pure hard facts and the knowledge that most of them were going to probably die, and that city was going to be turned into a quarantine zone. But that they were still going to fight for that was the right thing to do. At the very least, that bit was at least a little bit inspiring. Honestly, it was a huge difference from how he portrayed himself in public.
This made at least a little bit of sense, the people liked grand tales about heroes, and if the knew the real nitty-gritty. They might not be as supportive of them. But those kinds of thoughts contained a lot of what if's.
But finally, after the announcement thirty minutes ago, the Endbringer arrived.
The angelic-looking being descended slowly from the sky and into the city. And Taylor could tell she was mocking them all, like she was telling all of them that it could have arrived in the matter of seconds and had just chosen not to. The face bore no expression's, but it just gave off the same energy that Emma had. The Simurg wanted to crush them all in the most sadistic way possible.
And then she heard the Simurgh's song. It was like a pressure was put on her mind, and if she listened to it long enough, it would grind down her walls and break her until she was a shadow of her former self.
Yeah, like I am going to let that happen. Taylor thought to herself as her mind steeled. "Install," She spoke as she assumed a new form after leaving the airport and moved a bit closer to the angel of death.
[The universal genius is here to assist you, Taylor. I see that you fixed your body, and is this one of those Endbringer's you talked about?] Leonardo Da Vinci asked. Her female voice rung her head, which had been a surprise the first time she had heard it. But Taylor had quickly learned that was something the inventor just choose to sound like. For she had been born a man, and the same went for her body as she looked exactly like the Mona Lisa, but even better somehow.
"Yeah, it is. But I am going to need some data before I engage it." Taylor stated as she also noticed that the pressure was now gone from inside her head. Huh it seems the scream can't affect me while I have an install going at minimum.
[The you came to the right Heroic Spirit Taylor, my tools shall dissect this beast.]
Taylor smirked in response as she lifted her staff, which was a massive quantum computer that could analyze a great deal of data and be used as an offensive weapon in combination with her now mechanical hand.
"Commence scan," She muttered as the staff began to scan the Simurgh using various spells and sending the information directly to her brain.
"So the Simurgh seems to be like something close to a golem, no homonculus would be a better comparison here. Made from some sort of crystalline organic material, that is layered with each one becoming more durable."
[Yes, she seems to be using some sort of dimensional manipulation to increase durability to the point where it simulates the durability of a galaxy's worth of mass. Not there is that much mass. Quite interesting, but I can tell there is a core in the chest composed of a dense amount of Pseudo-Spiritrons. Yes, this Simurgh is most definitely an artificial creation.]
And that was why she had used Da Vinci as only she would have been able to divine and dissect information so quickly.
Taylor was about to announce her finding's to the others, not even two minutes into the fight, but she stopped as she noticed that the Simurgh had turned. She had turned around and was now looking directly at Taylor.
Did she notice us analyzing her? Taylor thought, and she got her answer as several tons of debris were hurled at her at supersonic velocity.
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A/N: The hopefully better version of An Essence of Silver and Steel. I am also announcing that it will be sometime before the next Story snippet as I have a large commission that needs to be made.
If you like this or any other of my stories, you can donate to my P A Treon. com (slash) StreamingViking and read commissioned stories. Along with voting for which story will be updated next via Polls. And chapters before they are released here. And a forum where updates a posted a link is on my profile page.