Chapter 11: Settling In/Unsettling Discoveries
A somber air fills the Yuki Onna over the next few days. Amidst the wakes held for heroes months before the official funerals, personnel deal with all loose ends and arrangements. Of utmost priority is the press. They must buy the cover story. The government helps. Together, they sanitize evidence, create new policies, and coach witnesses to rant and rave about the monster they fought and the old-world civilian they rescued.
Consequences for failing to pull the wool over the public's eyes need not be discussed. The truth cannot get out. It simply will not.
When the official press briefings finally come, the personnel celebrate a successful spin. The faithful among them pray to their fallen comrades for forgiveness, but the image of those heroes is too useful to be sullied by a miserable death. The tale is like an old-world superhero movie—the only casualties are the mooks and soldiers. The heroes survive in good health. The monster is slayed. It is the most rabid tabloids and talk shows that speak of conspiracy and superweapons, next to stories of ancient aliens and pyramids.
It is acceptable.
The day after the briefings, the major newspaper headlines are as the government wanted:
"Daring rescue! Famous old world scientist saved!"
"Discovery of facility ends in triumph and tragedy!"
Several personnel create a collection of outrageous articles. The conspirators crack jokes over how accurate the conspiracy theorists are.
"Government cock up costs countless lives!"
"Crazed bioweapons scientist captured in raid!"
"Superweapon in the shape of a man unleashed upon the world—The Ten Best Stocks To Bet On!"
Even with this shocking news, life does not stand still in Japan.
"Broken window epidemic continues with no end in sight."
But when the stars come out in the sky and on TV, most of the country is captivated with the developing story. Stations play and analyze the briefing:
"...A deadly facility found by Matagi who did the right thing to report it. The place was filled with hostile creatures and we had to destroy it after saving the sole survivor.
"The scientist is currently under protection. More details will be given as the days go on. There will be no interviews until after his full recovery and acclimation to the new world. But however, he is in good health and thankful for the hospitality of the Japanese Government.
"…Yes, you guessed correctly Lin. The government has asked our top heroes to lend their efforts in protecting this scientist. But fear not for their safety. We hope the bodyguard duty is as cushy as a macaque bathing in the hot spring."
One such station is a fringe network, whose wide-eyed host pauses the spokeswoman and adds his own commentary:
"My oh my, don't I just feel reassured. You, my smart viewer, can rest easy knowing the government always tells the truth. Is the crime rate over 6 percent? Well, you're just imagining things. But what she won't imagine is the sponsor of this segment: the latest line of penis enhancing pills from XHero. Guaranteed to grow your hero over 6 inches."
Soon, people will move on. There's always something happening in this post-Quirk world of theirs.
At a special government retreat on Honshu, Alex savors the new mundanity of his life. He's far from prying eyes. He has no threats to fight. There's nothing to do. Out of boredom, he's flipped through various newspapers; the government doesn't trust him with internet access.
Far from the boundless optimism of the 90's, technology in the future has largely stayed the same or regressed. There's no flying cars much to his disappointment. Most of the great innovations are in supporting equipment for heroes. The average person's quality of life has stagnated, with corporations and small businesses alike preferring to avoid risk. The instability to society by quirks is to blame. These days, the market disruptors are the Matagi who scavenge the past. Which used to be his present.
Alex doesn't want to think about that. He collects a variety of papers instead. His favorites are the lurid, inaccurate headlines and tabloids. There's something amusing about heroes receiving the Peter Parker treatment: much like the comics of the past, nothing a hero does is ever good enough for everyone. Humans are still humans.
Even his ever-present guards are criticized. But unlike Spiderman, the number one and number two heroes in Japan have full-staffed PR teams.
Sitting in a chair on the front porch, Alex's enhanced hearing nonetheless picks up the conversation in the kitchen. Endeavour leads the discussion about their home prefectures and crime rates. Unknown heroes and villains are name-dropped. Schadenfreude grows in Alex with each fight mentioned. He can't help it. He likes listening to bad guys getting their ass kicked like his old Saturday morning cartoons.
Alex snorts after one particularly embarrassing defeat, grabbing his guards attention. Speaking loudly, he says, "If there's one thing I can't believe, it's how much the future resembles the comics I grew out of before I was eleven." Not because Alex considered himself too mature for them. But between food and comics, food always won out. "You all have so many powers and geniuses, but not much has changed the surface of what I remember. It's the same old problems to progress. If I was a more shameless man," which Alex is, "I'd even say the hero industry, and quirks in general, cause a brain drain from other fields. Who needs to push the boundaries of human knowledge when you can push your own body and immediately become stronger?"
Too lazy to turn around, Alex creates a pair of eyes on the back of his head. All Might looks contemplative, but Endeavor shows offense. Alex smiles slightly.
Endeavour says, voice measured, "The Hero industry is a well-oiled and time tested machine that's nothing like the comics and movies in your time. We have procedures; law and order. So what if we do not spend all our time researching for the average citizen? It's not our responsibility. We create the environment to make slow and steady progress possible. Inviting widespread Quirk usage, even in technological or exception cases, invites too much chaos. Society needs us. I know you are ignorant, but we've had enough on our plates keeping everything stable. The status quo is not something to discard, when what comes next may very well be worse—like those warlord days of our past."
There's a moment of silence.
"In my experience," All Might says, "there aren't a great quantity of Quirks suited to advancing civilization. And even less people suited for them." His usual persona is muted. "Power corrupts. There are enough young punks running through the streets with dangerous Quirks. No need to encourage it."
Mercer rolls all four of his eyes. "You're missing my point. You don't need a Quirk suited to advancing civilization. But even so, there's no need for people to use superpowers, is there? Like being born with great power doesn't confer responsibility."
Perhaps the same applies to himself. Mercer isn't a hypocrite. He thinks for a second. He's kind of glad there's no responsibilities fit for a superweapon out there, like world-ending threats or wars. If he was only a killing machine, he'd feel a lack of purpose, but he is so much more than that. What good is a warrior with no world ending threats or wars on the horizon?
Being on this long term project was getting to All Might. He was patrolling less and engaged in long periods of guarding/babysitting duties. He was fielding nonstop questions and being engaged personally about his own views and politics. The difference between Mercer and the reporters he dealt with on a daily basis was that at least with reporters, a pithy one-liner, smile, and leap could solve any PR situation or uncomfortable questions. Whereas here, he was often cooped up with the man. Enji had the privilege of being able to step out more to visit his family.
Which often meant it was just Mercer and a disguised Toshinori out and about at the government retreat for families and high clearance personnel.
Mercer, on educating himself of the history of the last few centuries, took umbrage at the history written about time periods he personally lived through. He pointed out inaccuracies to Toshinori and Todoroki, the former with rapt attention, the latter with an indifference that came from primarily concerned with the present and future.
The retreat's residents were vaguely aware of who Mercer was, but their discretion and disinterest was understandable. They were all government employees or families of them. Mercer was just another oddity.
Integrating Mercer into this micro society was almost too easy. He drank in information like a vampire, mimicking customs and culture like he was already here for a lifetime. Mercer seemed to read the room accurately with the interactions with the families on personnel in the retreat. Almost like he could sniff out emotions.
Yagi would have been unsettled if he was a normal person. Him or Mercer. Considering his circumstances, the enigma that was Mercer was unsurprising at this point.
It was just another one of his seemingly infinite skills and strengths.
When they ran him through various Quirk examinations, the results were nothing short of amazing and terrifying in their implications.
By every classification and charting, his rating across every metric was staggering.
The first issue of course, was that Mercer defied the modern Quirk classifications to an absurd extent. He defied the paradigm which had evolved for centuries after Quirk Emergence. The only thing comparable to Mercer was the newest generation of Metahumans born recently. Even if he didn't have a Quirk, it was useful to model in lieu of a few existing data could express Emitter, Transformational and Mutation type qualities.
The Lindahl-Linnaeus test was a broad spectrum test devised by the country of Sweden during the Quirk Emergence. Its original function was to gauge the usefulness of quirks in military and civilian action. Like the infamous IQ tests used by American in World War 1, they were meant for practical, mainly military purposes. Its range of scores helped determine how best to utilize metahuman citizens during the various Quirk Wars. Many nations soon followed, its widespread usage going far outside its scope, creating controversy on the bias of the tester/country, and didn't the fact that it didn't account for the uniqueness of quirks as they evolved.
Its categories slightly vary from nation to nation, but the six main points and their 3 subcategories mostly stayed the same.
There was first and foremost, the Destructive Potential. Its subcategories as followed were:
1. The Quirk's ability to modify a given set of materials.
2. The Quirk's ability to affect living targets.
3. Collateral damage as a byproduct of the Quirk's function
Speed which tested:
1. How quickly a Quirk could activate/perform/transform.
2. Refraction speed, how quickly a Quirk could be used in succession.
3. Maximum speed a Quirk/its usage could go.
Range which tested:
The farthest distance a Quirk can be used.
The farthest target the Quirk can affect/hit.
Axis of usage on the y/x-axis coordinates.
Stamina which tested:
1. How long a Quirk can be used.
2. How many times a Quirk can be used.
3. Durability of power. (When used, how long does the power persist?)
Precision which tested:
1. Accuracy over distance.
2. Control over time.
3. Tolerance of power towards user
And then of course, came the mostly hotly and intensely debated category. Developmental Potential. Its controversy stemmed from how culturally or politically biased it was, from the tester or country. Category Six was the kneecapper for many potential heroes or civilians seeking approval for their work Quirk licenses. In order as followed was:
1. The upper ceiling of power.
2. Direct applicability. (like housing/dam making)
3. Liabilities/threat to social order.
Essentially everything and the kitchen sink. Best Jeanist was famous for his criticisms of the test and in particular, the dreaded "Six restricts" rhyme. Best Jeanist had talked in many interviews over the years how much Category Six almost kneecapped his career before it even started. Work studies often judged students on their Lindahl-Linnaeus tests. Jeanist was passed over many times before finally securing his internship and proving to the world his skill and determination. It was a popular subject for school children to debate in class around the world, as it directly affected them. It was fodder for entertainment and controversy. Despite that, it was a testament to its strength and durability that much of the world followed it to today with little alteration from the baseline.
Someone like Endeavor scored high, only with his stamina lowering his near perfect scores. All Might truly justified category #6, his power seemingly growing year to year with no upper ceiling in sight or lack of applicability in any conflict or catastrophe. He, of course, had some of the highest scores known in the world. Stars and Stripe's LL score is classified beyond belief.
Alex Mercer's score was absurd, much like the man himself. Obviously with his performance during the fight being a good example of going all out, the formalized tests proved it even further. Not being starved or damaged allowed Doctor Mercer to showcase feats and flexibility that would have been the envy of any Hero agency.
Of the five first categories, Mercer showcased the kind of results you saw in the top twenty, if not ten of any country with a Hero ranking system. But it was the sixth category that elevated Mercer as a living bomb to fear and control by any means necessary. According to his own words, there was no upper ceiling or end to his adaptation. He created mimic chemical compounds or even everyday items using his own biology. Anything nature could do, Alex Mercer could do faster and stronger.
By that same category, Mercer's liabilities and threats to social order, especially highlighted in the unfortunate bloodshed, required them to make contingencies for the worst possible outcomes.
Yagi, on his break, passed a compound where the children of select officials were starting their first LL tests of their lives. They were carefree and playful.
He was reminded of Mercer's secret LL tests, and the extraordinary results. These kids were probably closer in their scores to Mercer than the majority of his own generation.
Todoroki fell in next to him, matching stride and step.
Yagi broke the silence first. "Alex continues to surprise everyone. His LL scores caught everyone off guard, and we're being asked to advise and weigh in on an all-hands meeting."
The enormous LL scores required an emergency, for your eyes only type cabinet meeting. They not only needed to discuss the implications, but special authorization. A list of need to know people and which protocols of authorizations can be adapted or reused. They had to classify from now on anything related to Mercer. The only exception obviously would be his work in the field or lab.
"You've been talking with Mercer more than I have. What's your read on him?" His tone was curt and to the point.
Toshinori thought about it for a moment. "He reminds me of you, Endeavor."
Todoroki gave him an unimpressed look.
"Mercer cares more about getting important work done fast than he is about looking good."
Of course, he was All Might. He could get it done and look good while doing it too.
Todoroki and Toshinori joined the emergency discussion concerning Doctor Mercer's LL scores. They both wore business suits, with Enji having his reading glasses on. Everyone was already deep into their own stubborn was few if any types of consensus occurring. Finally, the director of this facility turned to them. Noriko Yume looked exhausted, having run herself ragged since Alex arrived here.
"Thank you both for coming. I understand this assignment is most unorthodox, and we deeply appreciate your efforts so far. With these scores, we're trying to determine the best steps forward."
Todoroki frowned, a constant companion to his face. "What do you mean about that? Shouldn't we be keeping an eye on him in our facilities?"
The director winced, and Todoroki became resigned to the nonsense he was about to hear.
"My superiors and their superiors want to do something with him. We cannot unfortunately leave him idle, consuming time and money. We must convert Alex Mercer to outside for the greater good of Japan. You two, as his constant companions, know him better than anyone else. Your input carries much weight."
What really carried weight was the stares from all corners of the room. They were being peered at, ironically, like how much of the people they saved, desperate and relieved that they were there.
Toshinori stepped forward. "With Mercer's deep sense of responsibility and the power he wields, I could easily see him rocket up to the top twenty of the country easily, hero-wise. Alex seems to recognize and appreciate the work I and Enji do. Even beyond that, his actions against his own government show he truly cares for the people."
When you're a hammer, everything looks like a nail. When you're a saw, everything needs to be cut. That could describe Yagi to a tee, from the beginning of his powers to today. For him, everything was tied to heroism. Could this person have the potential to become a great hero? Nurture it, sponsor it, show them the way. Even staying within gray lines, All Might never forgot what was really black and white.
But Enji had a life outside being a hero, a mostly normal childhood. If Yagi was wholly focused on heroing, Enji was closer to being a swiss army knife in his thinking.
"That wouldn't work, All Might. You and I saw Mercer in action, and it's what he does that shows his truest self. He is a man accustomed to violence. We've talked to him, yes, and have seen the greater whole of his being. But never discount what his violence says. When he fights, he fights to end conflicts as soon as possible with the greatest amount of death. He does not, and in my opinion, cannot pull his punches. That says to me that his temperament is like that of a warrior. Warriors do not keep societies peaceful, we keep warriors to fight the battles against other warriors. Mercer is suited for war, not peace."
A contemplative silence settled after he ended. A man in glasses, Akira Kenji, voiced his own idea, tapping his pen in a rapid tap.
"Didn't Mister Mercer say he was a scientist? We should ask him what exactly he was a scientist of. Who knows what kind of old world knowledge he has? If we can determine his skills and research areas, we can qualify him and put him to work. This ingratiates himself with us, and will pay off in the years to come."
Director Noriko was pleased. "This sounds like the ideal course of action. Having read his file, I have no idea how much scrutiny he could take if his file tried to explain his "quirk" as a Hero anyways."
It was decided.
To certify him as a genetics scientist, they threw all tests, practical and written, at him.
Perfect marks.
Someone had an idea of working him through degree certifications. They had to stop on account of him needing to have some papers published first.
They then just started to throw in everything for certification. Geology, general surgery, astronomy, physics and more. Even a carpenter certification test. Nothing but excellence across the board. Alex Mercer could do anything, which gave the government officials in charge of him sighs of relief and excitement for what he could offer to Japan. Interdisciplinary occupations and cooperation between different fields were notoriously almost impossible to have. What advancements could have occurred if so many people from so many professions and knowledge bases could come together and combine forces?
Now, they had Mercer.
Walking in the park, parents and their children were picnicking there.
Looking at them, Alex was reminded of how long its been since hes seen his own sister. She was beyond dust now.
Enji was looking at him oddly. Alex realized he had silent tears running down his face. He didn't even realize he could still cry.
Todoroki gestured towards an empty bench, and they both sat, watching precious moments flint by. He broke the silence first.
"You know I've got a family. What you don't know is I nearly ruined them. Several years ago, I lost my eldest son to my own failings. I nearly lost my wife to grief, and my children were like strangers to me. I stood on a precipice. As a professional Hero, it's all too easy to ignore your feelings or precious people in service to society. But as a husband and father, you are a personal hero to your family. And to fail them is to fail the most important thing in society. Families are our foundations, and how could I serve the people when I can't help my own family?" Todoroki looked awkward. Mercer could barely imagine Enji with a family, looking as every bit driven as Yagi. He continued after a pause.
"I had to change my relationship with my family. I had to mend bridges, and even if they wouldn't forgive me, atleast I stopped the bleeding. I made sure all my children were trained in Quirk safety. My wife and I went to therapy. I had to admit to some unsavory things about myself." Enji smiled the most genuine smile Mercer had ever seen since entering this brave new world. "Rei makes sure I don't go overboard. She is my guardian and my rock. In my worst moments, I'm not the father or husband I wanted to be. But she reminds me the path goes both ways. I can always find myself back home."
After hearing all of that, how could Alex not reciprocate?
He leaned back, looking at a mother playing with her son and younger daughter.
"My dad was never in the picture. My mother found herself between bottles or men. The only person I ever gave a shit about was my sister. We were tough kids in foster care. But after I became an adult, I left her. Got an education, a dream career, even someone I loved. But none of it lasted as long as the bond between me and Dana. Now in this fucked up future, I have no family, no connections, no real past anymore. All I have left to me are the legacies I'll make in the future."
Enji puts a warm hand on his shoulder. "I'll help you see to it."
With the expanded freedoms Mercer had, he had a set free time given until the labs were up and running. Eventually, they were going to relocate him to Wakō, in the Saitama Prefecture. That was going to be his home for the foreseeable future. And its main attraction?
The longest lasting modern lab known as Riken, having existed before the 21st century. It was in fact, Japan's first scientific institute founded in 1917. It ushered in Japan's first formal generation of scientists, endured World War Two, and all the subsequent chaos of the centuries to come. It had everything and the kitchen sink. Riken conducted research in virtually every area of science, including physics, chemistry, biology, genomics, medical science, engineering, high-performance computing and computational science, and ranging from basic research to practical applications. It was also, naturally, the hub of many new and radical Quirk sciences, its prestigious alumni winning many Nobel Prizes over the years for their groundbreaking work. The history of Quirk Emergence was a story of the loss of knowledge and brain power. Even in "relatively" peaceful Japan, the chain of knowledge was broken. The world's scientists and fields relied on an unbroken continuity of knowledge from the foremost in their field. Researchers often took on college students or grads, both parties benefiting from this symbiosis. What happens when the master blacksmith has no students, and with his knowledge, takes all of it with him to the underworld? With the killing Mercer did and the world wide chaos overall, entire research fields were extinguished or choked out. A small part of Mercer was the very people whose science fields he helped extinguish..
Virtually all fields of science were akin to a single, small nation. Almost everyone in their respective fields knew their country's colleagues or foreign peers. The same tragedy repeated over the centuries. The bright lights of intellect being isolated, dying, or choosing another field. For what did a dying nation need with physics scientists? This and more led to the brain drain that stymied the march of progress. Were it not for Quirks, would Mars and the Moon be colonized or even terraformed? The world never knew and didn't care to as the wounds healed, stability inched up, and they settled into a murky new world.
Riken was always entirely funded by the Japanese government, one of the few bright spots throughout the turmoil of the past. It was this edge that allowed them to rise above the disorder of bygone times and secure its place in the world order.
He felt like this was a new beginning. No longer boxed into Gentek's direction, Mercer felt like this was the dream his progenitor would have wanted had Blackwatch not existed.
Mercer had no belief in gods or divinity, but he made a prayer anyway. One dedicated to all the brave soldiers who stood with him at Iwa Valley.
"I've decided that I want a normal life. The world is lessened when we insist on using powers. Humanity made it this far without these Quirks or my abilities."