Chapter 7

The Grimoire, in it's infinite generosity, had bestowed upon me two powers this time around. One was useful from a vaguely tactical point of view. I almost dropped it until the greater implications hit me.

Scrying Pool (Sailor Moon, 600 cp): This is a dark pool, upon which no ripples disturb it. It seems bottomless in it's darkness, until you gaze within the depths. This pool will allow you to watch your enemies, and anyone else you wish to keep an eye on within the peace of your own base of operations. But you may also curse your enemies through this pool if you wish, or speak with your minions in distant dimensions or worlds. It is difficult to jam the scrying magics of this pool, but it is possible to do so.

You may so see very faint visions of the future, but you will have to figure out the specifics yourself, as voices and specific identities will not be easily identifiable.

CP Total: 1300 - 600 = 700 remaining.

The ability to keep an eye on my enemies, like say… Coil? Or even better, use it against the Endbringers, the Nine or other threats that needed tracking. The more I thought about it, the more I decided it was a good idea.

The next power completely blew me away and I needed no consideration, I just grabbed it.

Magitech Wizard (Dog Days, 600 cp): You are able to easily combine magic and technology, letting you make things like radio antennae and signal boosters that rely on magic. Maybe you could replace ammunition with bolts of magic. With this you can replicate the effects of technology with magic, and it will likely be less complex too. This isn't a one way process however, you may also replicate the effects of magic with technology. This will be much more complex than the alternative however.
CP Total: 700-600= 100 remaining

Imagery was shoved into my head, technical knowledge and the ability to essentially turn magic itself into a power source for mundane technology. I imagined it might also come in handy with tinker-tech as well. Even better though, was if I invested enough time into it, I could turn my magical abilities into technology. Not impressive sounding at first, until I considered that I basically had a watered down version of wavelength manipulation, teleportation, and the potential to punch basically anything into bits. I was so excited at the prospect, that I'd rudely run away from Miss Militia and straight to Armsmaster.

He wasn't as enthusiastic about having another Tinker around as I might have thought he'd be, which I chalked up to his ambitious nature. Hopefully he wouldn't hold it against me once I proved I wasn't out to upstage him.

Once my first creation was proudly presented, having been crafted with some of his help, Armsmaster regarded it thoughtfully. "It has potential. However, you don't appear to fugue the same way most Tinkers do, which helps you be more precise, but also hinders your building speed. As for what you've built…"

It was a tiny walkie-talkie that looked utterly mundane, except for the glowing battery that was drawing upon the ambient mana of the air to power the thing.

"Again, potential, at least when it comes to the power source, though the actual technology doesn't appear to be all that special."

"That's just a proof of concept, that I can draw upon…" How to phrase it so that I don't sound crazy… "Extra-dimensional energy sources. Or something. To be honest, I don't really know how I built it, I just did."

Armsmaster grunted in acknowledgement and continued to examine it. "Anything else? Some Tinkers report having blueprints appear in their mind's eye."

"I think that I could maybe create technology that emulates my other powers," I mused. "But I have a feeling it would be a lot more resource intensive and complex. This was somewhat easy, but something like that…"

"It might not be worth pursuing in the end," Armsmaster informed me bluntly.

I blinked in surprise. "But sir I-"

"Do you know what makes Tinkers so dangerous?" He cut me off abruptly.

I pressed my lips together and thought about it for a moment. "You guys are incredibly versatile. With enough time and preparation, you can do almost anything."

"Exactly. With time and preparation, we can build technology to accomplish almost anything, fill nearly any role on the battlefield," Armsmaster agreed. "But you're already a powerful Trump. You can already do that."

My face fell as I began to think that I wasted my points, but Armsmaster continued. "I'm not saying that your technology wouldn't be a worthwhile investment, quite the contrary, especially if you can replicate your healing power. But right now, we need a new hero to shore up our defenses and frankly at this point in your development and training, we'd be better off training you with the powers you already possess. You don't want to spread yourself too thin, you need a solid foundation first before you throw yourself into the field. Putting money into a newly discovered Tinker ability would take too long to see a return on such an investment." He gave one of those small, barely there smiles that I was beginning to suspect were more genuine than his warm, but practiced looking ones. "That being said, I'll see about getting you a small work area and stipend for materials. Not what a full Tinker might have, but enough to get you started and something to experiment with only when you have sufficient free time."

I perked up at the well reasoned explanation and the promise of a way to at least get started with the new ability. I apologized for interrupting his tinkering which earned me a grunt and hand wave before I was kicked out of the lab and back to a training Miss Militia.

"Sorry about, ma'am," I said sheepishly as I threw a few punches at a freestanding bag. "I got a new power and was excited to show Armsmaster…"

Miss Militia waved off my apology. "I've worked with Colin long enough to be used to quick departures like that. You were more polite about it." She watched as I threw a few more punches, then sighed and walked over. "You're doing that wrong."

I paused in my motions. "Sorry, I've never really been much of a fighter."

"Nothing to apologize for. There's nothing wrong with being peaceful when the time calls for it, but you're going to be out in the field, fighting criminals and villains who knows
what else. It's important you learn how to do it right. Here, copy my stance." I did and she eyed me a bit before moving a bit too close into my personal space and began making small tweaks to my posture. "Widen your legs a bit. Left foot back a bit. Right handed I assume. So when you punch, put your hips and back into it, your full weight. Alright." She nodded her approval. "Punch the bag now, hard as you can."

I did as she instructed and felt power flare to life within me as I lashed out, the strange 'Hero Punch!' doing it's thing and causing a small shockwave as I struck true, the bag rippling before ripping off it's chain and soaring across the room and slam against the wall.

MM looked at it wide eyed before sighing. "Right, you're a Striker, I should have told you to be more careful. Was that an involuntary effect?"

"Sort of. It scales off of my determination and what I want it to do. Like… I could kill someone with a punch like that, but only if I really wanted it to, I could just as easily hit them hard enough to send them flying, but not break anything." I gave a helpless shrug. "Powers are weird. And I was just getting really into the whole 'punch' thing."

"Well you're a better student than some," MM muttered under her breath. "Alright, keep practicing punches like that, but without your Striker ability. Seems like a good chance to learn some control too."

Under her watchful eye I kept up simply throwing a good punch, this time consciously holding back 'Hero Punch!' as best as I could. Some of the punches still rattled the bag a little harder than I thought they should have, but I avoided any other instances of throwing one across the room.

MM eventually had to leave to attend to her other duties, but she gave me her work number so that we could arrange to meet again, with a promise to teach me some actual hand to hand combat skills and how to shoot a gun. I continued practicing my punches in the way she had shown me, intent on getting it right. I got a bit bored while doing that and made a mental note to pick up some earbuds when I had a chance. Repetitive tasks are made a lot more bearable when you have something else to focus your mind on. I continued practicing well into the night, though I switched between hand to hand skills and weights to improve my conditioning, and then finally decided to call it when I dropped a weight midway through a set. Despite my healing magecraft soothing my muscles and essentially speeding up the rate at which I was getting stronger, it wasn't a complete fix and my body couldn't take the strain indefinitely.

After notifying Console that I was departing, I walked through the shadows and back into my room at the Overlook, pausing as I took note of the large basin of water that was now present. I looked into it's black depths and focused on one name: Thomas Calvert.

The pool showed me a tall, thin black man in his forties or so, going about with an almost mechanical look in his eyes, as if moving on auto-pilot. He was typing on a computer, the hood of his costume pulled down, but still ready to be donned if necessary. I guess even Coil couldn't keep the mask on 24/7. I could tell from his surroundings that he must have been in his main base of operations, but I didn't actually know where that was, just that it was underground and large enough to house Echidna. I chewed the inside of my cheek as I debated trying to use some sort of long range curse on him, but while I had a solid foundation in thaumaturgy now, it wasn't exactly as precise and powerful as something like that would require.

I made a mental note to practice that skill later, then dispelled the image of Calvert and focused on another name: Jack Slash. The handsome serial killer appeared in the water, driving an R.V of all things and consulting a map. A blonde girl that could only be Bonesaw was sitting in the passenger seat, pointing out little dots on said map. I focused mentally and tried my best to zoom in on the map to at least get a sense of the state they were in. Iowa if I wasn't mistaken.

The Nine were a problem and one that I more or less never wanted to tangle with, but I had little choice in the matter. They were too dangerous to just let around unchecked and I didn't give a single shit about the justification that they left triggers in their wake, more fodder for Scion. They ruined countless lives with their murder sprees, including the original Mak's. I logged onto PHO under a separate account from my main one and posted a new thread titled 'Slaughterhouse Nine Location'. I put down the timestamp and the rough location as well as their heading along with a promise for more details once I had them.

I mentally debated trying to locate Scion, but there wasn't exactly anything I could do to him through the pool and I had a feeling trying to spy on him would result in some kind of bad things happening. I instead focused on the Endbringers, in the order of their appearance. Behemoth appeared to be just chilling in the Earth's mantle, dormant and saving power. As far as I could tell, Leviathan was resting on the ocean floor, but the Simurgh… she was doing something, her wings were constantly moving and weaving and there was some kind of device in her hands. Far more activity than the other two.

I felt a chill down my spine. Hadn't she attacked in January? I looked it up and cursed loudly. The last attack had been Leviathan, meaning her or Behemoth was up next and Canberra in Australia hadn't been touched yet. Had I changed something or did I simply have the dates wrong in my head?

I fidgeted, tapping the sides of the scrying pool rapidly. Did I tell the Protectorate ahead of time, give them some kind of warning? Or would that change the actions of the Endbringers?

Holding back when you believe yourself to be stepping into the lion's den or on day to day patrols is one thing, the Endbringers or similar S-class threats are entirely different.

Miss Militia's words from earlier in the day echoed back to me. If they learned I had any kind of information on the Endbringers and didn't share it, it would destroy any kind of trust that I was trying to build.

I booted up my laptop, punched in my newly minted credentials that HR had given me and emailed Armsmaster and the Director.

To: e_piggot , c_wallis
Subject: Endbringer Attacks 2011
Message: Magus here. My precognitive vision upon first triggering was not the most reliable, but it did contain some information on the Endbringers. Expect at least three Endbringer attacks this year, one from Simurgh sometime in the next month in Canberra, Australia, one from Leviathan in May, here in Brockton Bay, and one from Behemoth in July, in the city of New Delhi, exact dates unknown. If these attacks do not occur, it is because the mere knowledge of them has affected their pattern in some way as the Simurgh is a powerful precog herself. All three Endbringers are facsimiles, their bodies artificially created to serve as a shell for a large central core (exact location unknown), but the core itself is essentially the only thing that matters, all other damage is cosmetic at best. I apologize if any of this information is incorrect, but I hope some of it may lead to the reduction of casualties in the near future.
-Magus

I eyed the email, decided 'screw it' and then hit send.

Less than five minutes later my PRT issued phone was ringing. "Magus here."

"You can see Endbringers and it took you this long to tell us?" Colin all but growled over the line.

"Saw. I saw a potential future in which they attacked the locations I gave you, but please understand the information from my vision was… a mess." More like I hadn't paid attention to specifics because my dumb ass didn't think it was too important. "I also manifested a clairvoyant ability minutes ago and I immediately used it to get eyes on Coil, the Slaughterhouse Nine, and the Endbringers. Of the three, The Simurgh appears the most active, supporting my vision."

He was silent and I heard the clacking of a keyboard. "You posted the Nine's general location on PHO?"

"Seemed like a good way of warning people. It's limited clairvoyance, I can't exactly use it to pinpoint locations other than their immediate surroundings, but Jack Slash was driving and consulting a map of Iowa so…"

"Good call. But why didn't you alert us instead?" He challenged.

I grimaced. "Frankly sir, I don't trust that the brass wouldn't keep the information to themselves and let a town or two be sacrificed in some effort to set up a trap. Not to mention that Jack Slash is nearly impossible to kill face to face with a parahuman."

That made him pause. "Explain."

"Jack Slash doesn't just possess a Blaster ability, he has an innate Thinker power that gives him extremely good gut feelings when fighting other parahumans and instinctively lets him fight and manipulate them with his words. It's how he's been able to hold the Nine together despite their violent and vicious nature. The best way to kill Slash would be a trained sniper with a .50 cal rifle, but with Bonesaw around, I don't know if that would be enough anymore." I summarized.

Colin let out a long breath. "Your mere existence generates paperwork," he muttered.

"Sorry sir…"

"No, don't. I understand that the time immediately following a trigger event is a confusing and emotionally difficult period. You must be sorting through a lot of information. Start writing it down and send me anything relevant if it stands out. Now excuse me, I need to go make some calls and determine the validity and usability of your information."

He hung up without another word and I sheepishly sat down.

Then I began to compile another email, this one detailing all the strengths and weaknesses of the Nine, including their as of yet unknown member, Cherish.

Tuesday, February 8, 2011

The next day started off normally as I sat at my now regular cafe and enjoyed a delightful breakfast sandwich and some coffee. While I had never been the most money focused person in the world, goddamn did it feel nice to have some again and not have to worry about rent or a car payment.

I was about halfway through the coffee when my morning went sideways, Lisa sliding into the seat across from me.

"Mak, what the fuck have you been doing?" She hissed quietly, a pleasant smile on her face, but her voice seething. "Coil is determined to find out any info on Magus and I was barely able to make him think that you're just some random Thinker I met on the street. What gives?"

I blinked in surprise and took another sip. "Well good morning to you too Lisa, its been a minute, how's everyone over at the loft doing?"

"I don't have time for games, Mak. Coil wants to recruit you to the Undersiders."

I chuckled. "Fun as that sounds, I'm a little old to be hanging around a bunch of teenagers."

"This is serious. You don't just say 'no' to Coil. He'll find your weak spot, what you desire and what you fear and use those things to control you. I only told him about you because I'm about 75% sure that he was torturing me in another timeline so I had to give him something." There was real fear in her eyes. "He's acting… weird. What did you do?"

"I outed him to the Protectorate of course," I said matter of factly, flagging down a barista and motioning toward Lisa. "My guess is that he was arrested rather quickly in one timeline, which he dropped in favor of going in as Coil."

"You idiot!" Lisa snapped, faux smile dropping and real rage dancing in her eyes. "You'll just so casually throw out the rules that keep the streets from running with blood?! He works with Thinkers on the regular, he has contingencies for shit like that!"

That made me pause. Who was the most likely suspect for outing Coil? Lisa. If Coil was suddenly captured and outed, it would make sense that he had some sort of deadman's switch set up with his mercs. Then if I found out… Coil wouldn't have come out of that timeline alive. I liked Lisa, she had spirit. If I got pissed over civilians just getting rattled a bit, how much more pissed would I be if someone I actually knew was murdered?

I really hoped that I never had to find out for sure.

"Well that explains how he knows about Magus already…" I murmured to myself.

"What was that?"

"Nothing, just thinking to myself. So did you come here just to tell me all that?"

Lisa huffed and glanced away, but perked up as the barista set a steaming cup down in front of her. "Basically." She took a measured sip and then continued. "Coil thinks that another Thinker, even a low level one like I convinced him you are, would be an effective way to help boost the Undersiders' effectiveness. We don't have a lot of raw power, but between me in the field and Coil feeding me instructions, things generally tend to work out fairly well."

"Huh, feels weird that he's trying to recruit me in one identity and learn more about the other one for killing or blackmail purposes," I mused. "So have you been able to get him anything?"

Lisa shot me one of her signature fox-like grins. "Just who do you think you're talking to? I can honestly say, being tortured or otherwise, that the file Coil put together basically told me nothing. It helps that your powers as they stand make you a pretty effective Changer/ Stranger. Even if it's just cosmetic, it throws off my power pretty well." She paused and eyed me warily. "It is just cosmetic, right?"

"For now," I agreed. Magecraft, if studied properly, could do some wild stuff.

The vague answer got me another grumble and glower, but that was silenced as the barista set a chocolate croissant in front of her. "Are they telepathic here or something…?"

"Nah, I'm just selectively manipulating sound to make them think they heard you order," I said casually. "It's on me today. Got my first paycheck and I am lovin' it."

"What a gentleman," Lisa drawled, but took a nibble and nodded appreciatively. "Treat all your dates this way?"

It was my turn to scowl at her. "You well know that I haven't been on a date in…" I did the math. "A damn long time."

"And now you've been on three," Lisa said teasingly. "Two people of moderate attractiveness, sharing a coffee, and- Ow!" She clutched her forehead where I'd flicked it. "You have unfairly long arms."

"You're just short," I said drolly. "A date would imply romantic interest, of which I know for a fact there is none here."

"You think I'm cute."

"Like one of my dear baby sisters," I reached over and ruffled her hair, which made her flinch. Not the reaction I was going for, I was looking more for 'outraged' or 'annoyed'. "Stop trying to pull a Chris Hansen and tell me how the heist life is treating you." I paused. "Also there's someone I think you should meet, though it might sound a bit creepy/ invasive at first…"

"I'm listening…"

It was a good morning, spent with someone I'd consider a friend or at least a friendly acquaintance. Unfortunately, duty called. I had to excuse myself and get back to the old grind of training, training, training. More paperwork, more learning, little of it fun or entertaining. I got to spend some time doing practical training with Armsmaster and Miss Militia, though my actual meeting with the rest of the Protectorate was still being postponed pending my actual announcement.

The next few days were a cycle of that same routine, enough that my mind began to turn to jelly even as my body was beaten and battered, then healed so that it could be strengthened even further. Even within the week I began to see the fruits of my labor, my body stronger, my magic coming to me more quickly, spells becoming easier to cast. I made sure to keep an eye on Coil, still planning and seething within his underground compound, as well as Jack Slash and the Nine. I wasn't able to get their location every day, but when I could, I posted it as soon as possible and several small town residents had posted their appreciation at being able to evacuate in time. It felt rather good.
My healing was approved by the think-tank, but since I hadn't been technically announced yet, I was asked politely, though firmly by Director Piggot to refrain from sneaking out to the hospital. I only abided because she asked nicely and I wanted to help more people in the long run.

Between all of the training and practice I didn't see anymore of Lisa, Crystal, Amy, or Vicky or any of the Wards, but that was partially intentional while I was being prepared for my grand debut.

And before I knew it, it was finally time.

Friday, February 11, 2011

My hands were sweating and only partially because of the gloves I was wearing. My costume was draped over me perfectly, the proportions tailored immaculately. I had been informed by Armsmaster that it was made from a ballistic weave to give me some manner of armor and ensure I wasn't just gunned down by a random thug with a Glock. My own reinforcement magecraft helped in that regard too, giving me at least some peace of mind. Outside, on the front steps of the PRT headquarters, I could hear Director Piggot speaking to an assembled crowd of reporters, city officials, businessmen, and the crowd who had wandered in to see the introduction of the Protectorate's newest hero.

"Nervous?"

I almost jumped out of my skin as an unfamiliar hand clapped me on the back. I glanced over to see the red costume of Assault. "Oh uh… Assault, hi there, nice to meet ya, big fan," I blathered out.

"I'll take that as a yes." He chuckled and patted me on the back again. "You'll be fine, just answer the questions that the Director OK'd ahead of time and don't curse or scream at anyone. Easy as cake."

"Hm. Thanks. Hey, would you mind sparring with me sometime in the near future? I'm a Striker, like you, so I feel like it might be a good way for me to practice…"

"Sure, sure," Assault nodded agreeably. "I'll send you a text once this is all over and done with."

I squinted at him, suddenly feeling a bit curious. "Why are you here anyway?"

"Oh well when we do a big unveiling like this, the entire team shows up. Everyone else is making suitably dramatic entrances to the stage, but I thought I'd swing by and try and settle your nerves a bit." He shot me thumbs up. "I believe in you."

"Thanks man. We should grab a beer sometime, uh, if you're okay with me seeing your face and all-"

"Relax man, you're as tense as Armsy," Assault chuckled. "He already told us you know our . No harm, no foul. We don't choose our powers." He tilted his head and I heard some faint voices from his earpiece. "I gotta ready up for my own little appearance, but again, good luck. It was nice meeting you, Magus."

"Mak," I blurted out. "Please, it's just Mak."

He gave me another thumbs up. "Then it's Ethan to you when we're not in uniform. Break a leg, kid."

Kid? I'm probably older than your wife!

I muttered something uncharitable about old bastards, then my own earpiece crackled to life. "Magus, you're up in five."

"You got it," I replied and moved to my ready position.

It was looking like it was going to be a nice and productive day.

Then it all went to shit.

My earpiece crackled again, hissed with feedback, then a new voice spoke into my ear. "Do I have the pleasure of addressing Magus?"

I had never actually heard the voice, but I had a sinking feeling in my gut. "That would be me…" I answered slowly.

"Excellent. My name is Coil and I have a proposition for you."

A/N: FF really screwing with my formatting. I have no idea whats going on, hasn't been an issue in the past.