Interludes: Piggot, Coil, Armsmaster

Emily Piggot, Director of the Parahuman Response Team ENE, let out a sigh and wished she could still drink. She tapped the hand written paper file that contained all their information on the new cape known as Magus, having kept all the actual serious information off of her computer in case the young man's precognitive knowledge of Coil proved to be true and he really was that snake Calvert. Potentially unlimited growth, knowledge of future events and secret identities… Piggot was immensely grateful that Magus appeared to both be genuinely interested in being a hero and also exceedingly naive. He could have easily pushed harder on the contract thing, but had folded upon her first sign of doubt and potential refusal.

Or maybe I'm just confusing naivete with genuine moral fiber.

Piggot dismissed the notion. She'd seen enough of human nature and parahumans as whole to know that no one was that good natured. He had to have some kind of angle or he was just an idiot. She reviewed the file, noting the number of possible trigger points. Dead parents and grandparents, distant family, assaulted by neo-Nazi sympathizers… Piggot was glad he hadn't gone on some kind of rampage, forcing the PRT to bring him in as a loose cannon. That he instead came to the Protectorate as soon as possible… Well, Piggot was willing to use a weapon that offered itself to her.

Piggot punched in a number on her desk phone, as well as an extra code that enabled all the tinker-tech countermeasures her line had built in. "Armsmaster. Has the evaluation finished."

"Yes Director." Armsmaster replied in the distracted tone that said he was working on a project while talking to her. Probably maintenance if he wasn't in a fugue. "Would you like me to forward it to you?"

"We're still rooting out potential bugs that have been placed in our network. Give it to me verbally."

"Very well." She heard tools being set aside. "Striker 3, Mover 2, Shaker 3."

"Upgrade that to Shaker 4 with a Blaster sub-rating. He was able to effectively 'kill' a target dummy with a single snap of his fingers," Piggot ordered.

"He amplified the sound to lethal levels?"

"Exactly. If this is just him after less than a week… we need counter measures in place to contain him if he goes rogue." Piggot wasn't an optimist, never had been. A parahuman as powerful as Magus wouldn't, couldn't remain as cooperative and level-headed forever. He'd demand more, try to get away with things, skirt the law. That's just how they were.

"He hasn't displayed any Brute abilities yet. Simple containment foam will keep him in place. I'm more concerned with the fact that any gangbanger with a gun could potentially cut him down." Armsmaster let out a sigh and Piggot heard more shifting metal over the line. "Assume and treat him like an enemy and he very well might become one."

"It's not assuming he's an enemy, it's called a contingency. We have one for everyone."

Armsmaster hummed thoughtfully, neither agreeing or disagreeing. "When the Founders first appeared, before they were ever the Protectorate or the Triumvirate, they had immense power at their fingertips. The government gave them a chance and now America has three of the most powerful parahumans in the world on it's roster."

"Speak plainly."

"Just because someone has awesome power or the potential for it, doesn't mean we need to immediately jump to worst case scenarios."

Piggot rubbed her forehead and let out a weary sigh. "You aren't wrong, but it's my job to plan for worst case scenarios. We both know there are things in this world that could easily twist Magus."

The Slaughterhouse Nine. The Simurgh. Heartbreaker. The Fallen. All had turned heroes into monsters.

"I'll write up a list of potential plans," Armsmaster agreed reluctantly, mostly Piggot knew, because having an extra cape with high potential would have been a good mark on his record. "Let us hope they never have to be used."

"Do it," Piggot confirmed. "In the meantime, do you believe he's holding anything back from us?"

There was a pause across the line. "My lie detection software is still in the trial phase, but as far as it was able to tell, he was being truthful about wanting to be a hero and work with the Protectorate. The parts about his precognitive knowledge registered as only partially true."

"Could he be a mole?"

"I do not believe so. Just preliminary digging into the information he gave us suggests it's viable, though we'll need more evidence before actual action can be taken. It's more like he was embellishing the truth when it came to his 'visions'. As I said though, my software is still only in it's infancy and on the important notes, Magus was clean." Another pause as Armsmaster considered something else. "I also believe he might be sandbagging."

Piggot snorted. "Most of you capes do, but why hide it from us?"

"Perhaps fear of being treated differently. Not enough control over hidden abilities. Too dangerous to actually use. Worry about Coil, it could be for any number of reasons. I'll have to speak to him about not holding back when the next Endbringer attack arrives."
"When is the next one due?" Piggot asked, already dreading the answer.

"If they were so easy to predict, we'd be mustered and ready. Best guess is within February or early March," he said with some annoyance. "Was there anything else you needed, Director?"

"No, thank you, Armsmaster. I'll expect the report delivered on my desk by Friday."

"I'll add it to my tasklist. Armsmaster out."

The hero cut the connection, probably already getting back to work. For all his flaws, Piggot couldn't fault his work ethic a single bit. Eyeing the stack of paperwork that came with hiring a new hero, Piggot sighed and resigned herself to another long night at the office.

Thomas Calvert was not having nearly so mundane an evening. Sequestered within his primary base of operations, the villain known as Coil paced at his desk occasionally stopping to type another note on his computer.

Magus. A new piece on the board. Already fast tracked into the Protectorate. Versatile and charming in a pedantic 'loveable idiot' sort of way, at least that was how he presented himself according to what Coil was able to glean through his bugs and moles.

He was also a massive pain in the ass.

A private conversation with Piggot. No digital trail for Coil to access. And suddenly, Thomas Calvert in his supposed 'safe' timeline gets randomly ambushed and thrown into Master-Stranger quarantine. It was lucky that he had chosen not to go into work in his other timeline. The perks of being a contractor rather than an actual employee. He had remained in quarantine like a good little soldier until Magus had just appeared in a blur of darkness, eyes burning with hate. He ignored all of Calvert's pleas and attempts to reason and then done… something and Coil's other timeline had become a mess of confused sensory inputs and overwhelming agony as if his nerve endings were melting. There was only one logical conclusion: Magus knew his identity.

And so Coil would know his. One way or another.

Coil gritted his teeth at the memory of pain and split time.

In his new throwaway timeline, he summoned his Tattletale to his lair to answer some questions. Once she had arrived, he sat her in a seat opposite of his desk and tossed a file down in front of her.

"I need everything you can get from this file."

Like an obedient employee and nervous at being in the center of his power, Tattletale looked through it, eyes occasionally widening or dilating as her power helped fill in gaps or gave her information.

In what he had deemed his 'primary' timeline, Coil called Tattletale. "Tattletale, I'm emailing you a file. Tell me what you can get from it."

"Sure bossman," she said flippantly, the sound of clicking and typing filtering over the line.

"This is… kind of scary. He's displaying powers from one day to the next as if he's… spontaneously gaining new ones." Tattletale actually looked frightened for once.

"Damn, this guy is some kind of bullshit. We sure this isn't Eidolon just going street level for shits and giggles? One day he's doing super jumps, then during his testing he's doing healing and sonic manipulation? Gotta be a Trump of some kind or just the mother of all grab-bags." Tattletale sounded impressed.

"I can assure you that it isn't Eidolon," Coil said confidently, typing some new notes into his computer. "His location is accounted for. You haven't happened to run into any new capes during your little tours around the city, have you?"

"You haven't happened to learn of any new triggers during your little tours of the city, have you?"

A beat of hesitation. So subtle that he almost missed it. "No."

"Nope," she replied without hesitating.

Coil stood suddenly, drew a pistol from beneath his desk, and shot Tattletale in the shoulder, knocking her from her seat.

"AH! What the fuck!?""Do not lie to me!" Coil hissed, stalking around the desk and seating himself in the chair she'd previously occupied, gun pointed in her direction. "A cape like this does not just appear from thin air!""Are you certain, Tattletale? Parahumans like this do not just fall out of trees."

"I-I," Tattletale's eyes were wide, panicked, blood seeping from beneath her hand that was clasped to her wound.

Coil cocked the gun for effect and then shot her in the leg.

"FUCK!" Her screams were oh so pleasing, much better than the smug contempt it usually held. "Just some nobody at a cafe, but he was a minor Thinker at best, not like me!""Hmmm, well I did run into a minor Thinker. Nothing like yours truly, but he pegged me as a parahuman pretty quick. He's kind of new to the city though, so my identity is safe."

"What was his name?" Coil snarled, driving a thumb into the open gunshot wound in her thigh.

"AHHHH! M-Mak. Asian guy, early twenties, glasses.""Very well. If you run into him again, perhaps see about tapping him as a potential resource."

"Geeze boss, whoring me out now?" Tattletale asked teasingly.

"Not what I meant, Tattletale," Coil sighed. He shot her again in a kneecap for her impudence. "Put together a dossier when you have the chance. Even a minor cape can prove to tip the scales. Perhaps he could even join the Undersiders."

"He'd replace Grue as our den mother within the week. Didn't even need my power to figure out that he's kind of a softy."

"What else?!"

"Nothing I swear! I only met him a couple of times and he never used any powers that I could see!" Her eyes tearing from the pain, she looked at Coil pleadingly. "P-Please boss, you really don't gotta do this.""There are consequences to lying, my Tattletale," Coil said softly, almost like a parent to their child, before standing and shooting her twice in the head. He then emptied the rest of the magazine into her chest and kicked the corpse's ribs until they cracked and shattered and his foot went numb before ending the timeline."Another guiding hand to stabilize things might be welcome. Speak to him, Tattletale, feel out his position and gather intelligence. In the meantime, I'll gather more information on this new 'Magus' and send it to you for further analysis."

"You got it bossman."

Tattletale hung up and Coil gritted his teeth at the powerplay, small as it was. He regretted closing his throwaway then. It wouldn't do for his men to see him kicking his desk like a child. Not to mention it was far too expensive to damage so casually.

Coil split time again and called for his Tattletale.
-+-+-+-

Colin Wallis was a man who prided himself on his path in life. Joining the Protectorate at a young age, before it had even been established as a major faction and enjoying the benefits of such loyalty, being a Tinker and one of the most successful ones in the United States at that, leading an entire Protectorate team in the defense of a densely cape populated city. He had stood against villains on uncountable occasions and even against the city killing monstrosities known as Endbringers.

Which was why he was so frustrated at the appearance of Magus.

Truthfully, he had little to nothing against the young man as of yet. He had been polite, eager to please, and mostly honest, if a bit evasive. The fact that he'd immediately joined the Protectorate (if he was being sincere) was a huge mark in his favor, unlike one of his colleagues.

No, what was frustrating about Magus was the versatility of his powers and the potential for further rapid growth. Already he was a decent Mover and Striker, a potent combination, and every day his abilities only seemed to grow. For Colin, a man who had to labor for hours to eke out even the simplest of inventions and go through further review before even being allowed to employ said technology? It was irritating to the extreme.

Still, Magus was a new hero who seemed earnest. Colin would do his best to mentor the man in his free time, though he would leave the majority of his field education to Hannah. Colin wasn't the best with people and if he spent too long around the new hero, his projected outer shell that he tried to use when on camera would eventually falter.

Colin didn't want to see that spark of admiration in the young hero's eyes flicker out when he inevitably clashed with Colin's brusque nature.

But the chance to nurture a hero who might eventually take on Colin's job once he was promoted to somewhere else? Well, it would speak well on his record if he left behind a stable team. Shawn was obviously being groomed for the role and while Colin loathed the lack of action on his fellow hero's behalf, he couldn't see any other viable candidates.

Until now.

It was still early days, but if molded properly, Magus could be a fitting legacy to leave Brockton Bay.

Colin was so distracted by his own thoughts and tinkering that he barely noticed as Hannah slipped inside his workshop. He was only alerted thanks to the faintest hiss of air and the distinctive smell of military soap that she tended to use.

She waited respectfully as Colin set his tools to the side and then pushed his goggles up onto his forehead. "What is it?"

Hannah gave him a patient smile, the kind born of long hours spent working together. She didn't take offense at his blunt nature, which he appreciated. Too many people took it personally when it was just for the sake of efficiency. "The Director has called a meeting to discuss the information that Magus gave us on Coil, as well as Magus himself."

Colin let out a huff of exasperation. Meetings. His presence would be a waste of time as he already knew the information being presented and he doubted anyone on the team would be able to offer any new insight. His time would be better spent on the nano-thorn project or his prediction software.

"Part of being the team leader is accepting the responsibility that the position holds," Hannah reminded him, as if reading his thoughts. "The others need to see you there, need to know that you're one of us."

"I doubt any of them really look at it that way," Colin grunted, removing the goggles and donning a simple mask. His armor's power supply was a constant problem that he was working on improving, so it wasn't efficient to always be wearing the stuff when not on patrol. Instead he had a bodysuit in silver and blue that served to mark him as Armsmaster out of armor and hid his identity. He noted the small patches burned fabric from where sparks had landed and debated changing, but decided against it. Let them all know and see that he had been in the middle of important work and was still making time for pedantic things like team meetings.

Marching toward the conference room with Hannah following close behind, Colin became Armsmaster and with the simple pulling up of a bandanna, she became Miss Militia. Once arriving in the conference room that had been designated, Armsmaster was surprised to see not just the Protectorate, but also all of the Wards present. On the large monitor at the head of the table, Director Piggot stared down the two technically separate teams of capes.

"Good morning to you all," Piggot began, which somewhat startled Colin. It seemed he'd worked through the night again. "As some of you may recall, Velocity, Aegis, Kid Win, and Gallant responded to an incident involving the criminals Uber and Leet on Thursday. They were assisted by a new independent hero who asked to be called 'Magus'." Piggot projected an image taken from a PRT trooper's vest cam onto her screen, showing the costumed hero. "Magus demonstrated Mover and Striker based abilities, however after expressing an interest in joining the Protectorate and going through power testing, it has been established that that is not all of Magus' capabilities. For instance, the costume you see him wearing here is not actually real, it is an illusion that he is creating by distorting the light around himself. He possesses a similar control over sound as well, able to distort his voice and alter the sounds that people hear."

Clockblocker let out a low whistle. "That's a lot of powers. Grab-bag?"

Piggot glared sternly at the time stopper for the interruption, but nodded. "Of a sort. Armsmaster, if you would?"

Armsmaster turned and met everyone's gaze one by one. "Magus is a Trump of near limitless potential. He is like Dauntless where he gains 'charges' which seem to come to him at an unknown rate, but he can then use those charges to 'purchase' abilities that his power offers him."

Silence. Then clamoring as everyone began to speak up and ask questions.

"If he's really that powerful, why is he joining us?"

"Is he actually a new cape?"

"Dauntless, when the hell did you and Eidolon hook up?"

"How many powers does he already have?"

"Is he planning on joining the Endbringer fights?"

The deluge of questions washed over Armsmaster until Piggot slammed a fist onto her desk, the sudden impact drawing everyone's attention back to her.

"We don't have all the answers yet. While Magus is certain these powers are permanent, he has possessed them for less than a week. They can still be temporary for all that we know. However, from our initial meeting it appears that while not a Brockton Bay native, Magus has a strong desire to be a hero and work with us. With some of the powers at his disposal, he could have easily turned to the private sector or gone the independent route, but he chose to join us." Piggot glared hard at the assembled heroes. "He also knows all of your identities and pointed us at a very large potential leak, a villain that also may know your real names and faces, so I expect you all to at least be professional."

That shut everyone up for a while, until Kid Win meekly raised a hand. Piggot gave him a nod, so the young Tinker sat up a bit straighter and spoke. "Director, how does he know all of that?"

"One of his first powers was a precognitive vision. Only the one and he's already changing things by the sound of it, but the information he gained has already helped us rat out three moles and potentially a supervillain trying to pose as a PRT contractor, though that still has yet to come to a full conclusion," Piggot explained. "For now though, we have some temporary regulations in place to try and prevent the aforementioned supervillain, Coil, from gaining any additional information on us. From now on, all Wards when dealing with PRT agents and troopers, must always be paired up. Furthermore, if you are ever approached by just one PRT employee, assume that they are compromised and act accordingly, as I will be instituting a similar measure with the general staff. We can't let ourselves fall into paranoia, but make no mistake, until Coil is thrown into a cell, we are vulnerable thanks to his power, a potent Thinker ability that shall remain classified at this time." Piggot rubbed at her temples. "That will be all. Thank you all for your attendance today. Dismissed." Piggot cut the connection.

Silence stretched as the Protectorate and Wards ENE absorbed the information. Then Assault in his usual irreverent way, clapped his hands together excitedly. "Well, not even officially announced and he's already causing the brass a headache. Can't wait to meet the guy!"

Armsmaster had to stifle the urge to groan in irritation. If there was one thing he wanted to prevent, it was Magus taking after Assault of all people.

A/N: I hope y'all like my way of writing certain characters. I'm trying to be a little more fair to Coil in this fic as opposed to my last one where he got absolutely stomped and didn't matter. Trying to make Armsmaster seem human while still extremely flawed. Gonna be on a cruise next week, but I should still be able to put out a chapter on Friday or Saturday.