January 24th, 2011 Underground Tunnels, Vale, Remnant, 5:00 PM EST- SP:148,300

When I came back to consciousness, everything was on fire. Not the soothing kind of fire I was usually on that patched me up, but smoky, messy, disgusting fire. It was so jarring I almost didn't notice the black haired form draped over me, shaking. I sat up with a groan, elbows behind me, and glanced down at Blake as her head snapped up.

Her eyes, usually so expertly lined with eye shadow, were smudged like a racoon, and her face was lined with smears and dirt. "Simon!" she shouted desperately, throwing herself at me again.

"Whoa there," I said with a laugh. "I know I'm handsome, but you don't need to cry about it."

She smacked me in the chest. "I thought you DIED, you ass!" she hissed angrily. "I thought I was going to die, and then I wasn't and that thing grabbed you and the SOUNDS you made when it caught you…" her cat ears pinned to her skull, she shuddered, wrapping her arms around herself.

Leaning up, I wrapped my arms around her, pulling her against me. "I'm fine, kitten," I murmured. "And so are you. And so is…actually no, I don't think anything else is fine. Jesus how much Dust did I USE?"

"That's what you did?" came an astonished voice from behind me. I turned to find Yang leaning against a wall looking amused but incredulous. "You set off a DUST BOMB?"

"Indigestion," I said dryly. "The grimm's one weakness."

She rolled her eyes. "I don't know why I'm surprised. In your first sparring match you let Pyrrha stab you in the throat." I had to hold back from making a dirty joke about stabbing her in the throat, but I managed. I was clearly growing as a person.

Still, glancing around, I had to wince. There was a lot of damage. I didn't really feel responsible, considering I'd apparently killed a VERY large grimm, but I was pretty sure lots of people were dead. To my surprise, everyone seemed mostly used to it. I guess when you lived in a death world where humanity was confined to small enclaves, a fraction of which could be wiped out at any time, mortality on a small scale stopped phasing you.

"So…you know you're naked right?"" Yang said after a minute. "Also kudos Blakey. I knew you were getting pounded, but taking that monster might be more dangerous than fighting a grimm. I thought I was the tough one." Her eyes scanned my body, and Blake glowered at her partner, parking her voluminous booty on my lap to hide my nudity. I couldn't say I disliked the instinct.

But all good things must end, with a sigh I called for Lucky. My cat appeared nearby, and he dropped my book and the cube into my hands. I subvocalized a quick description of my mithril shirt and the suit I'd worn to the dance as I tapped the cube, using it as a cover to get my clothes out, then got dressed quickly, pocketing both. Helping Blake up, I turned to Yang. "You guys heard anything from Beacon? With the tower coming down like that I imagine shit must be in chaos."

Amber was under that place, but I trusted CInder wasn't stupid enough to blow the foundation of the tower and kill her in the process. Too much risk the maiden would be thinking of someone else at the moment of her death.

Gathering up the others, we returned to Beacon. When we arrived, I was shocked to find the place mostly untouched. I'd expected carnage and bodies everywhere, but when we reached the hole in the ground leading down to the basement sublevel where Amber was being kept, I realized exactly why that hadn't happened.

Pyrrha was leaned against the wall, damaged but alive. Jaune was checking her injuries, fussing over the damage. Ozpin…was dead.

Honestly, I hadn't known the guy for more than a day, but I wasn't surprised. Not because I thought he was weak, but because based on the fucking monstrous amount of power I knew he had, the only way he would have lost in the original timeline was on purpose. I was positive he'd taken a dive so he could body jump and lie low, and it looked like the same had happened here.

"Pyrrha!" Ruby shouted in panic, vanishing and appearing next to the redhead. "What happened, are you ok?"

Pyrrha told us the story. Ozpin had snagged her up and told her to become the maiden, she'd agreed, and right as it finished, Cinder had shown up. Unfortunately for Cinder, she'd been heavily injured because Vagabond was a nutcase and had blown himself up to keep her from getting to the CCT.

With the spartan at peak form and having access to her new half maiden powers, and Cinder mangled from the explosion, Pyrrha had actually managed to drive her off rather than getting killed.

Ruby, listening to the story, was standing to one side, staring in horror at Ozpin's body. I couldn't exactly tell them it would be ok, so I just let her process.

Goodwitch showed up not long after, and used her telekinesis to carry Ozpin away. Before leaving, she asked the others (barring Pyrrha who was wounded) to help defend the city. The panic had brought grimm in droves. The hunters had been prepared for it, considering the obvious appearance of the scorpion, but it was taking time to push the waves back.

Blake begged off, letting the others go ahead and staying behind, leading me off to one side and sitting down on some rubble in an abandoned hallway exposed to the sky nearby. "What you said to me before the battle…"
"I meant it," I said bluntly. "I want you to come with me. I think you can help me with my mission back home. I have to warn you, I play both sides. The monsters I'm working against are colossal in scale, and morality isn't something I can afford. Most of my team are women and I'm having sex with several of them. I have a girlfriend, she doesn't know about my villain identity."

I laid it all out. I was tired, and sore, and really didn't feel like pulling off a machiavellian brainwashing campaign so I could keep having sex with this girl. I liked Blake, but if it was going to take that much work to get things done, I'd rather just leave her.

Her expression clouded. "I…I understand that," she said slowly. "If this was earlier hearing that might have made me compare you to Adam. On the surface it seems like the kind of logic he would use. But I almost died. I was about to be eaten and you literally took my place. And I know you're immortal, but that makes it WORSE. I heard what that thing did to you. Heard the bones cracking and the strangled screams. I'm going to have nightmares about that for years.

"You CARE," she said passionately. "About me. About what you're doing. You don't terrorize innocent people or kill out of sadism. Based on what little I heard, your 'villains' sound more like criminals, and honestly, my stance on legality is probably pretty clear by now. So yes, I want to come with you. I want to help save a world. And if I have to steal a few things to make it happen, I can handle that."

I beamed at her. More than just liking her, Blake was going to be useful. Not just the sex either. Blake was C-class because her semblance wasn't overtly powerful in combat, but she was also trained and experienced. Her skills could be built on with other augmentations, and I had a few in mind. Not to mention she would make expanding my pool of Aura users much easier and faster.

Pulling her into my lap, I mashed my lips to hers hungrily, hands unconsciously falling to grope that glorious peachy ass while we made out frantically. I think we might have ended up fucking right there if someone didn't clear their throat.

We looked up to see Goodwitch, who had apparently finished putting Ozpin…wherever, glaring at us reproachfully.

"Sorry," I said disingenuously. "She had something in her teeth."

Blake, not expecting the response, snorted and then dissolved into giggles, the tension finally catching up to her. Goodwitch just stared at us as my kitten collapsed against me, laughing uncontrollably, waiting for her to finish before saying solemnly. "So you're leaving."

Freezing, Blake's eyes widened in alarm, almost as if on reflex, before she took a deep breath and calmed down. "Yes," she said firmly. "I'm going to be leaving with Simon. Is that a problem?"

"Beacon is entirely voluntary," Goodwitch assured her. "You are free to leave at any time."
"You need to say goodbye to all your friends though," I stipulated sternly. "You'll definitely regret it if you just take off."

Blake hadn't bonded with Team RWBY quite the same with me here. The dance and Yang's story had been a big moment in the original timeline. In this one, she'd had me. I'd taken her mind off the fang, helped her get closure with Adam, saved her life from the scorpion. Sex aside, I'd done more for Blake than basically anyone in the world, and she'd gotten attached.

Still, she DID care about them. They'd been through at least some shit, and they'd been there in a hard time. I knew if she bailed she'd end up agonizing over leaving them in the lurch. Luckily in this timeline they were in a much better position. Yang had both arms, Beacon was still standing, Pyrrha was around.

This would be a sucky goodbye for some of them, but it was a "see you later" not a "you bitch I got amputated for you and then you abandoned us all". Admittedly, I also kind of wanted to leave the door open for a return visit, because I was still hoping to meet and then maybe "meat" Blake's mom. I'd been gone for long enough though, and I'd gotten a ton of points, so I was ready to go home and see my girls.

To my surprise, Blake nodded, eyes flashing minutely red for a second, and I realized that the connection to the Heart didn't require her to be actively using it. The courage boost was an all the time thing, which was good to know. Lucky's gems were quality shit.

I was also pretty sure they were supposed to contain trace amounts of magic harvested from concepts, and not made entirely of crystallized mana. Their effects were bound to be a little weird and kind of unpredictable at first, but worth it. I was still a bit sad I'd depleted my reserves of fire and lightning Dust so badly, and I couldn't make another Heart. But I could use the cube to merge the leftovers into weapons or something.

We ALSO had the mineheart for gravity Dust, which meant we had an unlimited supply if we could find a place to put it. I went over my options and plans as Blake left to seek out her friends for their goodbyes, and I got ready to leave.

I was still pondering when she got back, eyes teary again though in a much subtler way. "Alright…so how do we do this?"

Laughing, I held out a hand and Lucky dropped my book into it. Flipping it open, I grinned at her. "You're the only person who knows anything about this book, so try to keep it on the down low. It'll be worthwhile to have someone to talk this shit out with, and I have a LOT of books for you to read. For now, just close your eyes and brace yourself." She did, and I opened the book, selecting a passage about my room. Then I started to read.

January 24th, 2011 Collins Home, Brockton Bay, New Hampshire 7:00 PM EST- SP:138,500

We landed on my bed with a thump. I grimaced, the feeling of exiting Remnant much different than entering. I felt…stretched. Like I'd suddenly become much too big and there wasn't enough of me to reach the edges. Blake sat up, looking around the room in fascination. "This is…a new world?"

"Well, an old one, as far as I'm concerned," I laughed. "But for you, sure. Give me a minute to call and check in with a few people and I'll show you around, ok?"

She had found her way over to my bookshelves (I hadn't brought ALL of them with me) and nodded absently as she browsed. I enjoyed the backview for a minute before picking up my phone and checking my calls.

I hadn't been gone too long. It was Monday night, so I'd only really missed a day of school, and mom had called to get me out of it. I'd left my phone behind because it wouldn't get service in another dimension, so I was unsurprised to find a few missed calls. Picking the first caller, I hit the button, waiting for a bit as it rung through.

"Simon?" asked Kim's concerned voice as I picked up. "Oh my God, are you ok? I was getting pretty worried when I didn't hear from you, but when I tried to stop by your mom said you were out of town for some kind of emergency. Is everything alright?"

I let out a small sigh of relief that Kim was a compulsive philanthropist with very little free time, then pasted on a smile. "Hey Kim, I'm fine. Sorry I had to leave town to help out a family member. My Uncle on my dad's side owed some people some money. They started hassling him and his daughter. I went down to help but my cousin Blake decided to come stay with us for a while."

My kitten turned and arched an eyebrow at me, but I just held up a shushing finger to my lips. Kim let out a long sigh. "Ok, I'm glad you're alright. You didn't have to run off on your own though. I would have been happy to help my boyfriend with some thug smushing. So not the drama."

"Noted," I laughed. "I wasn't expecting any excitement. But it all worked out. I need to show Blake around tonight, but maybe tomorrow we can go out for dinner or something?"

There was a nervous pause. "Yeah, I'd like that. I wanted to talk to you actually. I was talking to my friend Monique. She said expecting you to be totally celibate until I'm ready is kind of unfair. I know you said you'd wait as long as I needed, but maybe…I could do it with my mouth? After dinner I mean. If you want."

Blake stuck out her tongue at me, rolling her eyes as she stuck a finger down her throat like she was making herself puke. I ignored her. "That sounds like a lot of fun," I told Kim hotly. "You don't have to if you don't want to, but I'd never say no to an offer like that from a girl like you."

"That sounds good ok thanks bye!" she said quickly, words jumbling as she hung up in a rush. I chuckled, looking up at Blake, who was frowning disapprovingly.

"What?" I said defensively. "You knew I was seeing someone."

She scowled harder. "Yes, but does she? Because I don't get that feeling. I know you have to do some questionable things-"

I held up a hand. "Kim is dating Nightfall. My hero persona is kind of melodramatic and edgy, but he's a good guy. Kim is part of that persona, and of his reputation. I like her, and I'm not pushing her to do anything. Plus, this isn't your world. You don't know how shit works here, so probably best to wait before you start judging."

She flinched, then sagged. "You're right," she admitted. "You brought me here to help with something earthshaking, not play your conscience. I knew that we'd be doing some things I wasn't going to like. Do you think you'll ever tell her?"

I nodded. "I've been working on a plan for that. Almost done. With my Semblance, I'm pretty close to it."

My plan involved blaming all of my villain activities on the Hyde Formula by claiming I took it back when I first read it out. I was going to claim my semblance gave me more control over Vagabond, and then convince Kim that my "other self" needed to maintain his life. It was a work in progress.

Going back to my phone, I dialed again, greeted by a much more lecherous voice. "Hi daddy, back from your trip already?"

"Back and better than ever, Bon-Bon, is Shego there?" I'd called the phone we'd set up in the base, but I hadn't been expecting Bonnie. As fun as she could be I needed an actual sitrep, and she wasn't the type to pay attention to the overall situation. I could practically hear the pout as she passed went and got Shego.

The bruiser answered casually, and with much less pent up lust. "Hey boss, back already?"

"Yeah, it was a quick trip. So, catch me up, what's happened since I left?" I needed to know what was happening on the streets before I took Blake out. No way was I risking taking her into a firefight. As a former terrorist from a death world, Blake wouldn't hold back at all in a battle, and a lot of the capes around here were squishy as hell compared to her.

She hummed. "Well, with Coil gone and Squealer with us Skidmark has tried to expand, taking potshots at low value ABB and E88 stashes. Hasn't been going very well for him. Lung has been consolidating, Kaiser has a bounty out for you, though it's a small one, and…" she trailed off. "Ok, this is just a rumor, but I wanted you to know about it as early as possible. People are saying the Butcher is in town."

I hissed. "Fuck, really?" That wasn't good. The Butcher was a kind of parasitic possession Cape. Whoever killed the Butcher became the Butcher, and they got all the memories and powers of the previous Butchers, and there had been like almost ten of them. The Butcher was the WORST enemy for someone like me. Strong and nasty and someone I absolutely could not kill. If I got possessed I wasn't sure I could ever get that fucking thing out. "Just the Butcher, or the Teeth?"

The Butcher rolled with a whole group of insane capes called The Teeth, and they were just as scary, if a little less serious for me in particular. She just blew out a breath. "Fuck if I know. I've been asking around, but nothing definitive yet. I'll hit up Faultline's place, see if she's heard anything."

"Alright. Stay safe." I told her solemnly. "And take Bonnie with you. I think she's feeling pent up."

Shego burst out laughing. "Boss, if you don't bend that girl over in the next twenty four hours I'm worried she'll start humping my leg. But sure, I'll take her out and get her drunk. That should help." She hung up before I could respond, still laughing.

Blake snickered. "That's your crack team?" she asked me with a grin. "They sound efficient."

"Shego is a beast in combat," I told her bluntly. "Pretty sure she could take you, and she doesn't have Aura. Squealer can build a car that does basically anything. And Bonnie…I like Bonnie. She's fun and crazy and driven. Plus the sex is phenomenal. I'm planning to introduce her to you. She's subby with me but she can be a hardcore bitch, and I think she'd love to play with you."

She sputtered, face flushing, but didn't actually say no, which I thought was a good sign. Meanwhile , I read my books back out, setting my shelves up where they'd been before, and then consulted my books. "Alright, so I have an idea of what I need. I've got to get some weapons, and that means I need the skills to use them. I have an Unarmed Combat technique, but I'm looking for something more specific."

The Land was where I'd gotten that skill, and it had others. I flipped through a few of the books, searching for a very specific reference, and then grinned as I found it.

[Sufficient point total! B-class Skill Book. Shadow Skimming. A book that instructs the bearer on the small blades technique of the Gloom Elves of the Whisperwood. Extremely high physical requirements.]

[Sufficient point total! B-class short blade. Kanshou. One of a matched set of short blades that when used together, can be manipulated over distance. Kanshou's extremely sharp edges can cut through nearly anything.]

[Sufficient point total! B-class short blade. Bakuya. One of a matched set of short blades that when used together, can be manipulated over distance. Bakuya's extremely sharp edges can cut through nearly anything.]

I grinned as the paired blades came into existence, a curved set of short swords or long knives that would be perfect for what I needed. When I tried to learn the technique though, the book informed me I needed Small Blades before I could use it. So I was forced to read out a damned Small Blades skill book for another hundred.

Just to make sure she didn't feel left out, my final purchase was for a Spear skill for Blake. There was another prestige book I could get from the series that taught a leopard beastkin based spear technique, and they didn't have a kusari skill book anyway. She seemed flattered when I told her about it.

Reading everything away, I made a note to start my training in Small Blades tomorrow. For tonight, I was home, and I had to make sure my mom knew what the story was in case Kim came over. I turned to Blake. "So, now that all that is out of the way, I thought I could introduce you to my mother. You want to meet her?"

Thinking about how much I wanted her to introduce me to her own mother made me run my eyes over her body hotly, but she didn't notice, too busy freaking out a little. "I…your mother? That's…are you sure? It's so fast."

"You think that's fast, I don't have anywhere else for you to sleep," I told her with a laugh. "We officially live together."

I could have put her up at the base, but I'd decided that despite working with Vagabond, Blake would have a separate normal identity to keep separate from her cape life. The Unwritten Rules protected everyone, even extradimensional cat girls. Even if people noticed (and let's face it, I'd need to get her some premium disguise gear to hide that industrial caboose of hers, nevermind the cat ears) they couldn't actually do shit about it without getting hunted down and killed.

Of course, that hadn't worked out so well for new wave, so maybe some caution was warranted. I was sure I could find some kind of shapeshifting artifact.

I continued pondering it as I led Blake downstairs. Sure enough, my mom was home, actually cooking for once. Stroganoff. She startled as I entered the kitchen. "Simon! You're home. And you brought company."

Nodding, I debated what to tell her, and then made up some story about Blake needing to lie low from an abusive boyfriend. It was close to true, and my mom was instantly sympathetic, promising to keep up the story of her being my cousin and inviting her in for dinner. I smiled at how easily she agreed. I was pretty sure if my psyche portions were hereditary Nightfall mostly came from my mom's side, with her having established most of my heroic tendencies. As for my dad…the less said the better. I just hoped I didn't hear from him anytime soon.

January 25th, 2011 Collins Home, Brockton Bay, New Hampshire 10:00 AM EST- SP:108,600

I didn't go to school the next day. I had a date scheduled with Kim later in the evening, but before that, I'd decided to spend some time training with my new weapons. Or rather, training my new skill, because I couldn't find any weapons that could safely clash with Kanshou and Bakuya head on.

Blake, who was highly trained with a blade, had agreed to practice with me, so we'd been putting my new skill through its paces for a few hours when the call came in from Shego. "Hey boss. I got in touch with Faultline. We go back, so it didn't take much to get a meeting. She wants to discuss the Butcher situation. Since you took out Coil, she considers you part of the local ecosystem, and she'd rather talk to you than Lung or Kaiser."

She paused for a second after saying that last bit, as if she was worried about what to say. "There's something else. Dr. Drakken is missing. I went to check in on him last night after we talked. I know you don't know him, but he's been through a lot with me, and he's kind of like the goofy big brother I already have and really didn't want."

"I'll look into it," I assured her. I didn't know much about Drakken except that he wasn't a tinker. Despite his lack of cape powers, he was genuinely brilliant, and had collaborated with several powerful villains (not to mention Uber and Leet, who I didn't really count as anything except a giant pain in the ass). There were a lot of people in town I wouldn't want getting access to a brain like Drakken's.

"You want to go to a club?" I asked Blake as I hung up the phone. "I've got a meeting with a local mercenary. She's got some information on someone dangerous who just came to town, and I want to know everything I need to know to stay the fuck out of his way."

She snorted at that. "Aren't you supposed to be some kind of ultimate badass who plans to take on world ending supermonsters? You're afraid of some random guy?"

"This 'random guy' is the Butcher," I snorted. "He's less a person and more of a possessing entity. If you kill the Butcher you become the Butcher, and you spend the rest of your life with the souls of a half dozen former hosts in your head. And the Butcher has access to all their powers, so NOT killing him isn't an option if he's trying to kill you."

Blake flinched. "That's…that sucks. Ok, yeah I get why you would be afraid. If you killed him…"

"I'd be stuck with all of them for eternity," I agreed. "Since I can never die. That would be bad, both for me and for literally everyone else. I'm the last person who should ever fuck with the Butcher."

Deciding the topic was a bit grim, she shrugged. "You mentioned a club right? What should I wear? You're going in your villain costume right? If I come with you I need to wear something that will disguise me."

I considered it for a minute. She needed gear, that was true. Snagging a comic book codex off a shelf, I flipped through, finding a page and showing it to her. "How about that?"

"It's a little skimpy," she said with a blush. "My ass is going to make that downright indecent. I do like the mask though." She tracked the short green kimono with her fingers, seeming to enjoy the design. The mask she mentioned, belonging to a villainess named Cheshire, was a cat themed porcelain number with smooth lines.

Checking on it, I could actually read out the whole outfit as one D-class item. The kimono, mask, and sai it came with were all E-class, or peak of normal craftsmanship, but it also came with some poisons and a few throwing weapons. Theoretically if I wanted them all individually it would be more than just a hundred, so the knowledge that paying more could give me sets was something to file away for later at least.

The point about her ass was obviously still a problem, but honestly, less of one than I thought. Blake slipped into the bathroom to change then came back and with the short kimono…well, I honestly didn't even recognize her.

Not because it his her ass in any way, but because the colossal wobble wagon hiking up that skimpy green kimono was so blatant outside a pair of pants that it looked at least twice the size. I knew it was an optical illusion, but it did kind of solve the problem. It was like how some really busty girls looked flatter in a shirt. This costume was like the ass version of a pushup bra.

"You know, we did have plans," Blake said poutily as I stared. I sighed, then planted my entire open palm flat out across her left ass cheek with a thunderous crack, hard enough to cause her aura to flare up.

She glared at me and I just winked back. "Ok, now I'm done. We can go."

"Fine," she snorted. "But if you weren't dressed like a homeless person in that stupid hat I'd never let you take me outside in this. I feel like a five lien whore. I can't believe people in your world wear things like this."

I scooped her up in a princess carry, stepping out the window and landing smoothly before pushing off, leaping to the nearest roof. "That would be more cutting if your teammate didn't basically walk around in a belt and assless chaps. Those shorts Yang wears barely exist." I didn't bother to hide how much I enjoyed that fact, and Blake didn't mind.

"Trust me, I'm well aware of Yang's openness with her body, she masturbates in the common area when she's drunk," my kitten rolled her eyes. "But that's hardly the norm."
"Cinder, Emerald, Glynda," I listed bluntly. "Nora has a heart shaped boob window on her top, and plenty of boob to see through it. Huntresses aren't shy about how they dress." I paused. "Actually you dress pretty provocatively too. Not super skimpy though, I just realized the garters and stuff is all layers."

She blushed. "My parents were political leaders," she admitted. "I was expected to dress modestly. When I ran away I wanted to rebel, but showing lots of skin still makes me a little uncomfortable. Weirdly, this doesn't bother me. Mostly because of the mask. I feel like I'm a completely different person when I'm wearing it."

"Trust me, I get that," I laughed. "I wouldn't be caught dead in this awful hat without my mask on."

We chatted like that for a while, enjoying each other's company, and if my hands wandered a bit under her short kimono then she didn't seem to mind. Finally, we reached Faultline's place, and I set Blake down, making sure to tell her to use her codename (we'd just gone with the same one as the villain who used her costume) and we headed inside.

Faultline's club was deserted this early, of course. I noticed the bartender cleaning a glass, watching me closely, and a few staff members I didn't recognize, but for the most part there was almost no one around.

Almost. Gregor the Snail was there, as hideous as ever and just as urbane, giving me a disturbing yet friendly smile from his spot next to the case 53 Newter. A figure in a fireproof red suit was recognizable as Spitfire, while the blonde with the green mask was clearly Labyrinth based on the design.

They were all seated around a table, headed by a dark haired woman in a welder's mask. When she noticed me, she gave a deep nod, but her head turned to take in Blake immediately after, and based on the tension in her shoulders she wasn't pleased I'd brought a surprise guest.

"Vagabond," she said as we approached. "So glad you could make it. Who is your friend?"

"This is Cheshire," I told her bluntly. "She's with me. I appreciate you having me, but I don't know you that well. I hope you don't mind me bringing backup. Especially given how pissed off Skidmark is with me these days."

Her shoulders relaxed, a chuckle rolling out of her. "Fair enough. You certainly did some damage to his operations. I don't think any of us really knew how integral Squealer was to his movements. I suspect he wanted it that way. Now that he's down his prized tinker, he's been having a much tougher time staying relevant."

Blake and I were offered chairs across from her, and we took our seats. "So, Shego told me you had news about the Butcher? You've been looking into his presence here. I think we can all agree he's a problem, so I figured we could work together to stop him."

"And what does stopping him look like?" asked Faultline suspiciously. "Because I don't know how strong you are, but I don't want any new powers ending up in the hands of that fucking menace. If you're delusional enough to think I'll help you kill the butcher, you can get your ass up and leave right now. Shego said you were planning to avoid him."

"I was," I admitted. "But did she tell you about Drakken being missing? I mean, it might be a coincidence, or it might not. But if someone is planning to migrate Butcher into his head, that needs to be stopped." I'd considered the possible uses someone might have for Drakken, and while the inventions were a big one, there was another pretty ominous possibility. Possession.

Tinkertech was unreliable, but if the Butcher had access to a mind like Drakken's, not to mention what I was sure were at least one or two powers that could be used to make items, if not outright Tinker abilities, the Teeth would become a MUCH bigger threat.

She froze. "I…I hadn't considered that. But why wait until now?"

"Coil," I said without hesitation. "The Butcher is a frontline combatant mostly. I'm sure there's other powers in there, but they're a blunt instrument, at least for now. Coil was the perfect counter to someone like that."

"I'd say you shouldn't have killed him," she said wryly. "But I hated that insufferable ass. You're right though. Drakken as the Butcher would be a colossal threat. I'm not sure a Tinker Butcher would be too big of an issue given how the fugues work, but Drakken? He's nearly a Tinker level inventor, even if he tends to be a bit flighty. But if the Teeth had him they'd have already made the transfer. There's someone else playing games here."

I hadn't considered that. Tricking Drakken into making the kill would have been pretty simple. No reason to take him. In fact, leaving him hidden as the Butcher solidified control would have been the smart call. So the Teeth weren't the ones who had done it. Was I on the wrong track? Was Drakken vanishing really a coincidence?

Posing the question to Faultline, I felt a bit better when she shrugged. "Too soon to tell. It's something to be wary of at least. Still, with Coil gone, Drakken missing, and the Teeth in town, I think we need to be a bit more proactive."

I was confused, but Gregor looked enlightened. "You mean you're calling a conclave?"

"We need more information," she agreed. "So that's our best move." She nodded to me gratefully. "Thanks for sharing that. I can give you the rest of my info at the meeting, since we're going to have to go over it there anyway. Oh, I suppose you're new on the scene, so you might not know what I'm talking about. Tell me Vagabond, have you ever heard of Somer's Rock?"

January 26th, 2011 Collins Home, Brockton Bay, New Hampshire 6:00 PM EST- SP:108,700

After my meeting with Faultline, where I was invited to attend a villain conclave, I realized that I was going to have to start doing a better job with separating my identities. No one knew me well enough for my disappearance to be significant in regards to Nightfall and Vagabond vanishing at once, especially because Nightfall had been absent for a while beforehand, but that would change.

So, in order to make sure I wouldn't run into any trouble, I decided to start separating myself out ahead of time. I let Vagabond out to spend time in the base (having sex with Shego) and come out for a few quick smash and grabs, then headed to school with Blake in tow.

While Cheshire was associated with Vagabond, I'd already told Kim that Blake was my cousin, so I had to introduce her, and school was the easiest way to get it done.

After releasing my Id, though, I found I wasn't quite so irritated at the thought of spending the day among my classmates. Remnant had been a lot of fun, but it had also been stressful. I kind of enjoyed the chance to just relax when I wasn't in so much danger.

By the time we got to lunch, Blake was pretty much perfectly acclimated. Well, she was antisocial and didn't talk much, but that was what she was like in Beacon too, so I wasn't too thrown. The day flew by, with Ron taking a shine to Blake and trying desperately (and unsuccessfully) to get her attention, and when school ended I sent her ahead to the base to meet up with Vagabond.

Once she was gone, I caught up with Kim. "Hey," I said cheerfully as I put an arm around her shoulder. "Thanks for being so cool about helping Blake adjust. It can be tough being in a new place."

"So not the drama," she assured me. "Being the new kid sucks. But listen, before we do the whole date thing later, I was hoping we might get in a quick patrol. We haven't gone out in a while, and I kind of miss the action." Her voice was hopeful, and her eyes shone with an almost shimmering luminescence as her bottom lip jutted out.

I rolled my eyes fondly, snorting at the expression. "The famous Possible puppy dog pout. Ron curses it frequently, and I can see why. Sure, I wouldn't mind a patrol. Do you have your costume?"

Squealing excitedly, she bounced in place, clapping her hands, before grabbing her backpack and opening it up. Pulling away, she darted into a nearby bathroom. Stepping behind a wall, I pulled out my book, reading out my Nightfall costume and retreating into the shadows somewhat so I wouldn't be seen.

Kim emerged in her discount ninja outfit, noticing me in the alley and following me in. "Alright, so where should we go?"

"Hey, why don't we call Vicky?" I suggested. "You guys seemed to hit it off when you met, and she knows the territory. I'm sure she can help us find some trouble to get into." With New Wave being a veteran team and Vicky being an experienced heroine, I was sure she'd be able to guide us to some people who needed help.

My girlfriend brightened. "That's a great idea. Maybe she could bring Laserdream or Shielder with her! Not to mention having high profile heroes with us might help us establish our creds a bit."

Pulling out her phone, she punched in a number. When Vicky picked up, she gave her our location and invited her down to join us on patrol. The blonde was enthusiastic about the invite, though she wasn't able to bring anyone else. Mostly she seemed excited to work with other people her own age. I realized that aside from the Wards occasionally, Vicky probably didn't have a chance to patrol with anyone outside her immediate family.

I expected a bit of a wait for her to show up, but within about five minutes I saw a blinding spot of light like a moving star blaze across the sky, the heroine landing in front of us gracefully as she plummeted from above.

Laughing at the spectacle, we greeted her warmly. Vicky knew who I was, obviously, having met me in my civilian guise just before a villain attack, but as per the Unwritten Rules she defaulted to cape names. "Nightfall, Lenore, good to see you two. So, you were hoping for a crime fighting tour of this toxic dumpster fire we call a city?"

Kim was basically bouncing with excitement. "YES! Lets go beat up some nazis? Are there nazis to beat up?"

Vicky smirked at her. "Sweetheart, this isBbrockton. There are ALWAYS nazis to beat up."

"Weirdly positive take on the omnipresent racism," I said wryly. "But I guess I can't really argue it. Do a quick circuit around the city for us? You fly way faster than I can glide or jump, so you can do recon super fast."

She nodded confidently and then streaked away, managing to circle the city in about ten minutes and return before we even started getting impatient. "Found something! Night and Fog are hitting a Jewelry Store downtown. You guys need a lift?" I blinked at how convenient it was having a high speed flyer. I definitely needed to get a power like that for a member of my team.

"Take Lenore," I said casually. "If I know where we're going I should be able to keep up. My straight line acceleration isn't bad."

When she nodded, I reached into myself and flipped on my aura, amplifying my strength and speed. Without waiting, I pushed off the ground, my boots propelling me into the air explosively as I sailed up onto the edge of a building, pushing off in the direction Vicky had indicated. I heard a whoop of excitement and saw a flash as she and Kim blazed past me, and I grinned as I pushed off, beginning my rooftop sprint.

After thinking over the possibilities of what my powers were, I'd come to a realization. Aura was a very obvious thing, and keeping it active in both forms would be too obvious. People had seen Vagabond heal, so my best bet was to keep my Aura active as Nightfall, which would both give me more power and prevent me from being injured enough to show off my Extremis.

Not to mention the Burning Sun Blast, which I could also keep in my back pocket as Vagabond, giving me a villain alternative to the plasma pistol, which was notably a Nightfall original. I was still on the fence about Kanshou and Bakuya, but I was leaning towards letting Nightfall use them, if only because I was more likely to avoid too much unnecessary bloodshed in this identity.

Still, cranking my Aura in the form combined with my boots meant I was able to cross massive areas in an incredibly short time. I actually had to adjust my gait, because if I pushed off too hard the extra hang time slowed me down.

After perfecting a long, low leap between rooves, my speed improved noticeably, and by the time Vicky and Kim set down on a rooftop about twenty miles from our starting point, I had ALMOST caught up the flying cape. Almost. Still, she was unbearably smug when I landed, and even without saying anything I could tell she was gloating.

Kim, meanwhile, just looked kind of nauseous. "That…was interesting," she choked out. "But maybe let's not ever do it again."

Vicky laughed sheepishly. "Sorry. Ames hates it too, but it really is SO convenient."

"Alright, so catch me up on this, which ones are Night and Fog again?" I asked as I stepped to the edge of the roof. "I don't really keep track of nazi supercriminals." Except Fenja and Menja. In my current state I found them pretty distasteful, being nazis and all, but with my Id intact I'd often watch their videos at any opportunity. Being well built attractive women who could grow to several stories in height checked a lot of boxes for my lustier side.

Vicky grimaced. "They're nasty. Fog, as you might guess from his name, turns into fog. But its alive and it hurts to be inside it. Doesn't do much to me, but Lenore and you should be careful. Night has some kind of weird breaker power that lets her shapeshift when no one is looking at her. No one is sure what she turns into, but it has a lot of legs and it's really hard to hurt. She heals as soon as she becomes visible again too."

"You are likely to be eaten by a Grue," I said distractedly. Kim groaned and Vicky looked confused.

"Huh?" said the pretty blonde. "What's that?"

Kim shook her head. "A Grue is a fictional monster that only attacks in the dark when you can't see it." At my surprised look, she shrugged. " Ron got really into Zorc when we were kids and made me try it. I didn't see the appeal, but the Grue was consistently annoying enough that I still remember it."

"Closet nerd huh?" I asked with a chuckle. "Your secret is safe with me. Anyway, I'll deal with Night. This Aura is a built in shield so I should be safe enough from the Fog, and I have some weapons for dealing with big monsters, as long as she can heal."

Reaching behind me, I withdrew a pair of blades, one white and one red, and enjoyed the reaction of fascination from the girls. Kanshou and Bakuya were gorgeous weapons, and with my current Small Blades level, I could handle them well enough. It also occurred to me that Shadow Skimming would be a perfect martial art for Nightfall, fire and darkness had little to do with each other, so it would provide yet another layer between my identities.

Of course, I'd need to be careful with them. While Kanshou and Bakuya were fairly innocuous in their home reality, they were notable for being able to cut through almost anything. More than even their ability to alter course midair, that was probably the most alarming thing about them. I needed to make sure not to swing them at anything I wasn't trying to amputate.

Night, fortunately, apparently healed all damage when she turned back from…whatever she was, so I didn't have to be as careful.

My timing was pretty solid as a shattering sound split the air, and a bank of fog spilled out of the jewelry store in question. The fog surged and roiled like a living thing (which I guess it was) and spilled out over the sidewalk. Faintly, I could hear the scrabbling of many legs from within the mist, and I prepared myself to attack.

"Vicky, you take Lenore inside to check on the employees. I'll pin these two down. Night can't use her power without Fog to obscure her, so he'll have to stick around." There wasn't much for them to do in this fight, honestly, and I didn't want an ally running around obfuscating fog with me while I was swinging a pair of ultra sharp blades.

I expected some argument, but professional Vicky was clearly used to following orders, and offered Kim a piggy back. My girlfriend hesitated, clearly still scarred from the flight over, but eventually nodded and climbed on. Vicky, deciding to be nice this time, floated them down over the fog bank slowly.

Meanwhile, I stepped off the building, landing soundlessly at the bottom, boots absorbing the fall. Then, knowing sneaking up on living fog seemed unlikely, I strode out into the street to confront the two nazi capes. Well, I had to admit, rest day or not, it was nice to be back in the field doing some good.

January 26th, 2011 Collins Home, Brockton Bay, New Hampshire 7:00 PM EST- SP:108,900

I entered the fod eagerly, ready to really throw down. I had my Aura active, so I wasn't worried about revealing my healing, and I was ready to cut some motherfuckers. Since the Grue chick and fog boy were both in no danger from Kanshou and Bakuya, I was free to really test out my Small Blades skill.

"Little hero," hissed a sibilant voice in the fog (or Fog I guess). "How brave to face me in this place. Not brave enough, though. Wearing that mask and all that armor. I wonder what you are under all that protection." The whisper in my ear followed me into the mist, but I didn't attack. It wasn't time. The voice bounced too much, they wanted me to spook and attack the air like an idiot. With Aura active and my mithril shirt on, I wasn't worried about damage, best to wait.

"Well, I'm not a Nazi," I said cheerfully. "So that makes me an objectively better person than you. You do know everyone hates you right? Seriously, it's cartoonish how despised you people are."

There was a roar from my left and something hit me hard enough to stagger a fucking bear. Luckily I had Aura up and it bounced off, just crunching my feet into the rock. I snarled, whirling, and my blades flashed. I felt something catch, only for a second, and a clink sounded as something fell to the ground, getting a hiss or pain from Night as she retreated. I listened for the movement, following up, blades flashing as I tore into her.

I lopped off a bunch of what I was pretty sure were some kind of insectoid legs, but she just seemed to soak the damage. I didn't know what exactly she was, but I was finding it deeply unpleasant to deal with.

"Beast!" she hissed angrily. "You would wield steel against a woman? What sort of man are you?"

I shrugged. "That's an incredibly reductive way of looking at things. I believe all Nazis are worthy of being stabbed, regardless of gender. Of course, I'd prefer not to get your lunatic blood all over my weapons, treasures that they are, but needs must where the devil drives and all that. Which is over you by the way. The devil drives over you. And he's going to back up a few times."

My shit talking admittedly wasn't quite as colorful without Vagabond riding shotgun, but even Nightfall could agree that Nazis deserved to be insulted, and Ego Simon was just as mechanically capable of mockery, even without the sadistic glee that our Id seemed to take in verbally humiliating others.

Whatever the case, my insults seemed to work just fine. Night was furious, and the many legged unseen monster fell upon me, sharpened legs raining down and bouncing off my Aura as she tried to pincushion me. For every few attacks I took a leg, but whatever the fuck she was seemed to have quite a few of them, because no matter how hard I dug in she never seemed to slow down.

Snarling, I tried charging he, pushing off in a long, low leap with my boots, blades flashing in front of me. I slammed into (and then subsequently slid off of) what kind of felt like a mix between a pufferfish, an air bag, and a greased up pig. My Aura flickered as dozens of legs clashed with the shield and I growled in frustration. "Jesus, what even ARE you?"

The Fog retreated, revealing, for a split second, a statuesque blond woman in a dominatrix outfit and high heels, before it closed back around her, presumably healing all her wounds like Vicky had warned me.

Then, suddenly…the Fog vanished. I was standing alone in the middle of the street, blades bared, waiting for an attack. Vicky and Kim sped out of the Jewelry Store worriedly, but both sighed in relief when they saw I was alright. I was too busy spinning in circles trying to figure out what was going on?"

"Where are they?" I demanded. "I was winning,"

Lucky, who had been watching nearby and was still invisible, meowed quietly in my ear. I grimaced. A teleporter. Fog had covered their exit, condensing most of his body into physical form, then teleporting out with Night before the Fog had cleared. From what Lucky had seen, he'd sacrificed all his hair to leave behind the cloud that had obscured them, though at least he couldn't do such a thing again if I faced him a second time.

Vicky frowned, blasting off to circle the neighborhood before landing with a shake of her head. "They're gone. Did you see anything at all?"

I relayed what Lucky had told me in my own words. "I thought I caught sight of someone through the Fog. A figure in a big cloak and mantle kind of a plague doctor mask and some hooked metal bits that looked like feathers."

Holding up a hand, Vicky held a hand to her ear. I realized she was wearing some kind of earbud, and when she pressed it, she opened up a line to the PRT's monitoring department. Describing what "I'd" seen, she waited a minute, then closed her eyes. "Shit." At our curious look, she elaborated. "Virago. A strong mover and a member of the Saltykovkoya Bratva. They're usually active in Alaska."

"They must have shown up to fill the power vacuum left by Coil's disappearance," I noted with a sigh. "And are now working with the Empire. Lovely. How many capes are in this Bratva organization?"

She relayed the question to her earbud. Closing her eyes at the answer, she responded. "Six. There are six of them, and they're not weak."
I cursed mentally. That was bad. I'd just learned the hard way that not all cape powers could be countered by brute force. Night was a literal nightmare to fight, being basically unkillable and incredibly annoying. Or at least, annoying to me. To anyone else she would be deadly. Which meant I needed more people on my side. One cape, regardless of strength, couldn't do everything. There was a reason even Alexandria operated in a team.

Which meant I needed to start expanding my operations a bit. It also meant that my current point value was going to be needed sooner than expected. I could make up the difference over time, but I'd been rethinking some of my ideas for Endbringer counters. I was still planning to work on countering Leviathan, but Desolate Land would require not just the actual item to learn it, but another item to alter the function of the teaching item to make sure it would transfer right, and the other item would probably also be A class.

I'd been looking at something a little more direct, namely a water attributed treasure from a cultivation novel I'd read called "I have a Cultivation World" called the Sea Stabilizing Pearl. It basically took forceful control of water within its range. Combined with the Madra Engine I'd been looking at (which drained lifespan to create qi) I should be able to landlock Leviathan, and it would turn the ocean itself into a weapon in case of a Behemoth attack.

"S-Nightfall?" said a far off voice. I shook off my reverie, noticing Kim staring up at me in concern. "Are you alright? There's no shame in them getting away. It happens to everyone."

"She's right," added Vicky kindly. "Villains escape, it's what they do. You'll get them next time. Although, this might have gone different with a bit more backup." She bit her lip. "Would you…maybe be interested in meeting my team?"

I paused, really thinking about it. I didn't really trust the PRT or Pretectorate, not even as Nightfall, but New Wave did their best with a bad situation. I'd just been thinking about needing backup. I could create a villain organization (or Vagabond could), but a hero team would be more noticeable. Joining New Wave was hardly a bad idea, and when I glanced at Kim, I saw her eyes shining in excitement at the idea.

With the Bratva in town joining forces with the Nazis, we were a couple italians short of an axis power free for all, and the city was going to get even more dangerous than it used to be. Even if I gave her powers, Kim was going to be at risk, and having an invincible flying cheerleader watching her back would make me feel way better.

"I think I'd like that," I said after a minute. "We both would. You going to introduce us to your mom?"

She snorted. "God no. Your whole aesthetic is a bit too dark for mom. She can be weird about that kind of stuff. Aunt Sarah is way more open minded. I'm sure you know all about her though, she's super popular in the bay."

Especially with teenage guys. I'd been a big fan for most of my life, though my interest was far less sexual without Vagabond to rev me up. Lady Photon was absolutely breathtaking, and there was a reason the called her Photon Mom (or Photon MILF if you were in less polite company). I'd had a poster up over my bed for most of my formative years. But I decided saying so would be a little crass, so I just assured her that I knew who she meant.

"That's amazing!" she gushed. "Oh my God, I never get to bring cape friends home. Do you guys want to come over for dinner tomorrow? I can have Aunt Sarah and Uncle Neil cook, Crystal and Eric can come, I can even invite Amy!"

She was practically rolling around in the air like a happy puppy, and I felt a slight ping off my snowdrop where her aura was deflected. I just laughed. Glancing at Kim, I got an enthusiastic nod. "Sure, we could do dinner. We'll both wear domino masks. More polite dinnerwear but enough to nominally disguise us, ok?"

I suspected Vagabond would be annoyed about a potential team up, but also happy to drool over Lady Photon and Laserdream. As long as I merged with him before the dinner it should be fine.

Giddy about having new friends over (and honestly didn't that make it so clear how lonely VIcky's cape life was) she blurred away, leaving me alone with Kim. I turned to find her staring off after the blonde, dazed by the encounter. She hadn't been quite so out of it last time, and it took me a second to realize she had probably caught some of Glory Girl's aura.

I considered telling her about it, but since there was nothing she could do, it would only drive a wedge between them. It wasn't doing any harm. It wasn't like long term exposure had affected her sister in any negative way. Panacea was a world class healer, so presumably she'd have noticed if there were any real long term consequences and mentioned it to someone.

"You feeling ok?" I asked her after she'd had a second to calm down. She jumped when I spoke, like I'd surprised her.

Her head whipped around, and I knew if I could have seen her face she'd be blushing. "Oh, yeah! Right, sorry. I just realized I don't have anything to wear. To dinner. With NEW WAVE! Oh my god this is so the drama! I need to call Monique." She turned and bolted away headed back the way we'd come, presumably to my house.

I just chuckled to myself. As I followed her, I considered what kind of power would work best for her with her current abilities. Thinking back, I settled on the spider abilities I'd looked at before choosing the Heart. Superhuman strength and reflexes on top of what she had now, and a danger sense. A perfect combination. Now I just had to figure out the right time to give it to her. For tonight though Vagabond would be insisting on recombining immediately. Kim had intimated oral sex, and there was no way he would miss that. I had to admit, I was looking forward to it myself.

As usual pat-reon has the advance chapters at that site /malcolmtent hope everyone enjoys.