Outsider Chronicles: Empress of Escalation

Isekai. A Genre I love to bits and one of the few that I would quite happily jump into with both feet. However, I don't care what kind of god killing powers I get out of it, finding myself as Taylor Hebert following a close encounter with the back of a locker is NOT what I had in mind!

And we're back. Nothing really to say here, so lets get started. Enjoy!

Chapter 2

The next morning, I woke up feeling surprisingly well rested considering I spent the night getting the snot beaten out of me in my mind. Issei's idea of training was to force me to fight non-stop while he and Ddraig shouted encouragement and advice. Apparently, Ddraig could take the improvements to my astral body from the exercise and apply them to my physical body, which was nice. Especially because he could apparently leave all the aches and pains behind.

I stretched luxuriously, then rolled out of bed and grabbed the dressing gown that was hanging from the back of my chair on my way to the bathroom. One visit to the toilet and teeth clean later, I headed downstairs in search of breakfast.

I found Dad in the kitchen, staring into a cup of coffee as if it held the secrets of the universe and looking like he hadn't slept a wink.

"Are you OK?" I asked, "You...don't look good."

Dad snorted.

"I haven't had a wink of sleep," he said, "To much to think about."

I winced.

"Sorry," I said.

Dad smiled a little weakly as I moved over to the fridge to start on breakfast.

"Don't worry, I can handle a few sleepless nights," he said.

Silence fell in the kitchen as I focused on cooking up bangers, bacon and eggs.

The silence remained right up until I finished cooking and we were eating. Admittedly, silence over breakfast wasn't that uncommon, but this one was different, more awkward. We had things we needed to discuss, but it didn't seem like either one of us was going to bring them up.

"Your not going back to Winslow," said Dad suddenly.

"What?"

Dad looked up from his plate and fixed me with a look.

"I read through those notes last night when I couldn't sleep," he said, "They really did all that?"

I winced and nodded.

"Yeah," I said, "And the staff never did anything, not when it was the popular girl and the track stars word against mine and no one would ever back me up."

Dad took a deep breath.

"Yeah, in that case, I have no issues with pulling you out," he said, "I refuse to leave you in that situation for a moment longer."

I nodded.

"No arguments here," I said, "Frankly, its probably for the best. I'm...not sure I could take much more without doing something they'd regret."

Dad nodded thoughtfully.

"Yes, with...that, I'm sure you could do some damage."

He glanced at my left hand.

"That wasn't a dream, was it?" he asked.

I shook my head and summoned the Boosted Gear. Dad sighed.

"I thought not, but I had to hope," he said, "I'm sorry Taylor. I know what it takes for a Parahuman to...Trigger I think the term is. You never should have had to go through that."

I smiled.

"Hey, I've already said its fine," I said, "We were both a mess and made bad decisions. You can't blame yourself for it."

Dad grunted and I could tell he wouldn't be stopping blaming himself anytime soon, but I decided not to say anything. Yet. I would if it got to bad again, but for now there was another elephant in the room to address.

"So, what can you do?" asked Dad, "I assume there's more to your power than just summoning a glove."

I remained quiet for a moment as I took a sip of tea, considering how best to put this.

"Basically, I can double my power every ten seconds," I said, deciding that the simplest response would work best.

Dad frowned.

"What do you mean?" he asked, "That sounds...a little wishy washy."

"Well, its pretty simple," I said, "Every ten seconds, my strength is doubled. Physical power, speed, durability and so on. I'm not sure about my limits yet, I'll need to do some practice for that."

I frowned as I examined the red gauntlet.

"Think of me as Lung without the transformation and a more exponential power up."

Dad stared at me.

"That...sounds a little excessive," he said, "Is that all it does?"

I grinned.
"Nope, it also contains the spirit of the Welsh Dragon Ddraig and its previous wielder," I said, "Oh, and I have this."

I clenched by fist.

BLADE!

Dad jolted back with a yelp as Ascalon's blade shot out of the Boosted Gear. Apparently, the Holy Sword had been a part of the Sacred Gear for so long it was now permanently bound to it, which was nice. I was kinda interested to see what it'd do to Lung.

"This is Ascalon," I said as I pulled the blade fully out of the Gauntlet, "The sword wielded by Saint George in his legend. It still bares the trait of Dragon Slayer and is extremely effective against Draconic beings."

I looked back at Dad, who was looking at me like I'd lost my mind.

"Um, that sounds...interesting?" he said.

"I don't think he believes you kid," said Ddraig, nearly making Dad jump out of his skin at the sudden voice apparently issuing from the back of my hand.

"Well, to be fair, it is pretty out there," I said as Ascalon vanished back into the Sacred Gear.

"Then why tell him?" asked Ddraig, "You didn't have to mention me, Issei or Ascalon."

"True, but I didn't want to lie to him, even by omission," I said.

"Taylor, who is that?" said Dad, sounding more than a little worried now.

"I told you, his names Ddraig," I said, "I don't suppose theres any way to let him meet you face to face?"

"I don't normally do this, but yes," said Ddraig, "Just touch the Boosted Gear and I'll bring the two of you inside."

"Right ho," I said as I held out my hand to Dad, "Well?"

Dad looked between me and my hand.

"Taylor, are you sure about this?" he asked.

I grinned and nodded.

"Yep, I've met Ddraig face to face," I said, "I guarantee hes not a Master or anything. Or if he is, hes so powerful that it probably doesn't matter anyway."

"Oh, that makes me feel so much better," muttered Dad, "Alright, fine. Lets see this 'Dragon' then."

He took my hand and the gem lit up brightly. I felt the table between us vanish and, when the light faded, we were in the white space that was the inside of the Sacred Gear. Dad blinked as he slowly looked around.

"What the...where are we?" he asked.

"This is the inside of the Boosted Gear," I said, "And this is Ddraig."

I pointed straight up as the vast, red wall behind me shifted and lowered his head so he could see us. Dad followed my finger and paled. Considering that Ddraig made Behemoth look small, I can't blame him.

Ddraig lowered his head enough that it was just above mine and looked Dad up and down.

"Greetings Danny Hebert," he rumbled in the softest voice he was capable of, which was still deep enough to feel in your bones, "I am the Red Dragon Emperor, Y Ddraig Goch, more commonly known as Ddraig."

Dad's mouth flapped for a moment as he tried to properly register what his eyes were telling him and muster a response to a being his brain was no doubt telling him couldn't possibly exist.

"N-nice to meet you?" he eventually managed to squeak out, "I, um…"

He shot a helpless look my way. I grinned.

"Like I said, Dragon," I said.

"That you did," he said weakly, "Um, you mentioned a previous wielder as well?"

"That'd be me," said Issei from where he was sat at one of the benches, unnoticed next to Ddraigs ever intimidating presence, "Sup."

"And you are?" asked Dad.

Issei grinned.

"Issei Hyodou, previous Red Dragon Emperor, Harem King, Devil King Asmodeus and Taylor's teacher!"

I raised an eyebrow.

"You never told me you were the Asmodeus," I said.

Issei shrugged.

"It wasn't relevant," he said.

"Harem King?" asked Dad, looking like he wanted to punch Issei.

The Devil didn't look worried and held up his hands.

"Hey, don't get to worked up, I don't intend to do anything to Taylor but teach her how to fight," he said, "I've done my loving and I'm dead anyway, so there's nothing for you to worry about."

Dad glared at Issei for a moment longer, then turned back to me.

"So, what now?" he asked.

"I'm not about to go out and start punching idiots on the street if that's what your worried about," I said, "Yet. The Boosted Gear potentially puts me on the same level as the Triumvirate, but if it takes me half an hour to reach a level of strength where I can actually do anything, its not very useful."

"Plus, unless she can actually use it, all that power goes to waste," said Issei, "Thats why I'm teaching her how to fight, along with some other tricks."

Dad looked between us, then sighed.

"Well, I suppose thats something," he said, "I don't suppose I could convince you to join the Wards, could I?"

"I'm not a Parahuman, so no," I said.

Dad raised an eyebrow.

"Really?" he asked in deadpan, "You have powers and yet your not a Parahuman?"

"Parahumans are defined as Humans with preternatural abilities and identified by certain structures in their brains," I said, "Structures I lack. Right Ddraig?"

"Right you are kid," rumbled the Dragon, "You did have one of them, but I don't like sharing my host with anything, so I removed it."

Dad goggled at the Dragon, who was now lounging back and picking his teeth with the tip of a talon, then sighed again.

"Well, I had to ask," he said, "Alright, fine, I know better than to try to stop you. However, I want to know before you go out, understand?"

I beamed.

"Understood," I said, "Don't worry Dad, I have no intention of getting myself killed anytime soon and I certainly don't intend to make you worry more than I have to."

Dad snorted.

"Taylor, your my Daughter," he said, "Even with a Dragon as backup, I'll always worry about you."

My smile increased to almost painful levels and I jumped forwards to hug Dad.

"Thanks Dad," I whispered.

I had no doubt that there was still work to do, but it was nice to know that our relationship could only improve from here.

Three days later, morning dawned bright and early with me and Dad driving down to Winslow. He was going to shout and Blackwell and get my transcripts while I was going to grab some of the last things that were left in my gym locker. There wasn't much, but I wasn't willing to leave ANYTHING behind in that hellhole. Plus, I wouldn't put it past whatever crazy ROB gifted me with Ddraig to leave something in my Locker that would serve as a powerup later and I really wasn't willing to leave that potential plot point laying around if I could help it.

"Are you sure you want to do this Taylor?" asked Dad as he pulled up into the carpark outside of Winslow.

"I think I have to," I said, staring up at the school that had been the bane of my existence for the past two years.

Seeing it brought up some...interesting feelings. Despite the fact that I was still very much Taylor and my past self was remarkably similar to me, despite being male and from the opposite side of the pond, the fact remained that we were still two different people from two very different worlds. At our cores, we were the same and had similar enough personalities, likes and dislikes that I wouldn't trigger any M/S alarms, but our experiences made us different. As a result, the visceral reaction of fear and hate I probably should have felt upon seeing the hated school.

To be honest, I was actually glad for it. With any luck, the additional memories and the perspective they brought would let me get through this whole experience without trying to blow something up. Hopefully. If not, Ddraig could keep me from doing anything I regret.

I took a deep breath and followed Dad into the school, ignoring the looks I was getting from the students. I did note a couple of the Trio's minions scuttle away with their phones out though, so I was probably going to get ambushed later.

"I'm going to get my stuff," I said, "I really don't want to deal with Blackwell right now."

Dad glanced at me, then looked around with a raised eyebrow.

"Are you sure?" he asked.

"I can handle it," I said with a grin, "And if worst comes to worse...I've got more than a few tricks up my sleeve."

I held up my left hand. Dad glanced at it and sighed.

"Alright, but be careful," he said.

I nodded and headed off down the hall towards the gym, noting a few more toadies ducking out of sight with their phones in hand.

"I think you'll have to face those girls soon enough kid," said Ddraig, "Can you manage it without snapping?"

I took a deep breath.

"Probably," I muttered, "Especially with you here to back me up."

I smiled slightly at the soft warmth that radiated from my hand.

I managed to make it to my gym locker unmolested and retrieved my PE kit, change of clothes spare pencil case and glasses that I kept in there. For some reason, my gym locker wasn't targeted as often as my normal one, likely because the girls coach was a frankly huge woman with biceps the size of my waist and a take no shit attitude who wouldn't think twice about kicking Sophia off the track team if she ever caught the bully doing anything untoward. Honestly, it was only because she was terrifying to everyone that prevented the old me from trying to get her to help, even just by being present.

With that done, I headed back through the halls towards my other locker and found myself walking slower and slower until I finally reached it. I stood in front of the metal door, staring at the lock while a number of conflicting emotions rose in me. In that moment, the differences between who I was before and the me that went into the Locker came into stark relief. I could feel the old me starting to panic as the Locker loomed in front of me, but the other part, the older part, was still calm, although I could feel the righteous anger that any decent person would feel in the face of a heinous act. The end result was a confusing mess of emotions that had me rooted to the spot, staring at the Locker with a rather odd look on my face.

Unfortunately, before I could get my head around how I felt, a familiar and hated voice distracted me.

"Well, look who it is," said Emma's voice.

I sighed and turned around. The Trio stood there in a familiar formation that looked casual but served to prevent me from making an escape. At any other time, the sight of them would have me cringing back in my hoodie, but now, with the benefit of a god damn Dragon on par with Gods in my left hand and the memories of someone who knew why they treated me like they did, the three girls seemed...less than threatening. Honestly, looking at them here, I almost pitted them. Well, Emma at least. Sophia was a stone cold psychopath and, judging from the memories, Madison was most likely just doing it to stay at the top of the heap. There was nothing personal there, just business.

That was...honestly kinda sad.

"I'm surprised to see you back so soon Taylor," said Emma, "I would have thought you'd still be curled up in bed crying."

I stared at her for a moment, then sighed and shook my head.

"Thats low Emma, even for you," I said, making the three bullies pause.

"What was that Hebert?" growled Sophia.

I ignored the Ward as I kept my gaze on Emma.

"That little 'prank' nearly killed me you know," I said, "If I had been found any later, I would have almost certainly died of sepsis. Hell, if it hadn't been for Panacea, I'd probably still be in hospital tripping balls on a cocktail of drugs just to keep me alive."

Madison flinched slightly at that, but I didn't take my eyes of Emma, who looked slightly shocked, although whether that was because I wasn't cringing or my blunt admission I'd nearly popped my clogs, I don't know. I sighed and shook my head.

"You know, I thought that maybe, just maybe, I could figure out what I did to make you turn on me and everything could go back to normal," I said, "But now...I guess the Emma I knew died a long time ago. I'm done pining for her and I'm done putting up with you three."

I turned away.

"You're gonna run like a little bitch then?" sneered Sophia.

I paused and glanced back at the bully.

"...You know what?" I said after a moment, "Yes. Yes, I'm going to run away. I'm getting out of here, away from you. You've chased me away, done me in. You won, I lost. And somehow I know that my life is going to be far better without you in it, which is the greatest gift you have ever given me. You've kicked me when I was down and made me feel worthless, but now I'm done with you. I'm not going to watch you waste your life, trying to ruin mine anymore. I'd say it's been a pleasure, but it hasn't. Not ever. And you won, congratulations. You're an awful human being. Goodbye."

I brushed past Emma and walked away, then stepped to the side to avoid Sophia's lunge. I'd been training with Issei for a grand total of four days, and no, time did not pass differently in my mind, but if there was one thing that Issei was good at, it was knowing exactly how to draw the best out of people. He didn't bother teaching me Kata's or anything fancy, instead he taught me how to read the battlefield, extend my perception and win any fight I happened to enter. I wasn't anywhere close to being good enough to match even a fraction of a single percentage of Issei's frankly insane level of skill (it was blatantly obvious that he wasn't even trying, despite the fact that I never even got close to touching the guy unless he let me), but he knew exactly how much of that skill to use to push me to improve at a pace that was actually rather scary.

Considering all that, a stupid girl with an overly inflated opinion of herself who I'd become intermately familiar with in an attempt to avoid her was frankly easy to avoid. I shoved her gently as she went past, making her stumble a short distance before regaining her balance and spinning around to glare at me.

"You really want to do this?" I asked, "Cus I guarantee it won't go well for you."

"Why, because your so tough?" growled Sophia, "Please, your just a little rat Hebert! I would have thought that the Locker would have shown you your place!"

I tilted my head on one side.

"My place?" I asked, "And where would that be?"

Sophia sneered.

"In the dirt, with the rest of the useless worms," she said, "Your weak Hebert, always will be, so don't you dare act like a big shot!"

I stared at her for a moment, before my lips slowly curled into a grin.

"Weak, am I?"

Sophia faulted slightly and took half a step back before catching herself. I guess that she must have good instincts, either due to experience fighting or due to some side effects of being a Parahuman.

"I guess that means that your strong, right?"

Sophia drew herself up, apparently shoving down the fear that came from facing off with an angry Dragon.

"Damn right," she sneered.

I stared at her for a moment longer, then snorted and turned away.

"Then I think I'll take that as a complement," I said.

"Eh?!"

"If being strong means treating people like crap, I'd rather be weak," I said, "Besides, its not so bad to be weak. It just means you can work with other weak people until your strong enough to stand on your own."

I glanced back at Sophia and grinned at the stumped expression on her face.

"Later bitches, hope you choke on that self righteousness," I said, before pausing and glancing back at Madison, "Oh, and Madison? I suggest you take a good hard look at yourself. I don't believe for a moment that you have any actual malice directed towards me, but that doesn't change the fact that you idiots nearly killed me. I got lucky, the next girl might not."

I guess I must have really stumped them because this time I managed to leave unmolested.

"Are you OK?" asked Ddraig.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I muttered."

"Hmm…"

"Hey Taylor, wait up!"

I twitched violently at the familiar voice. Greg Veder, my own personal annoyance, a boy who my old self sympathised with to a degree...and the boy who had stood back and watched me get shoved into the Locker without doing anything and then didn't come forwards as a witness during the initial investigation despite the fact he was under the impression we were friends and may have a crush on me. Needless to say, I wasn't exactly his biggest fan right now. I sped up in an attempt to get away. It didn't work.

"That was awesome Taylor!" he gushed as he matched my speed, "You really showed those bitches…"

"Shut up and fuck of Greg," I growled, "I'm not in the mood."

Grag faulted slightly, a betrayed look on his face.

"Wha...but Taylor…"

I growled and stopped, spinning around to face the geek and shoving a finger in his face.

"Alright you, listen up," I snapped, "We're not friends. At best, we're acquaintances who occasionally talk and work together."

Greg took a step back, a look of hurt on his face.

"But…"

"I don't blame you for not getting involved with most of the bullshit those three idiots put me through," I said, "But I know you were there at the Locker and yet the cops said that there were no witnesses. Tell me Greg, what kind of friend leaves someone in a situation like that?"

I ignored his flinch as I turned on my heel and walked away, this time making it to the doors without interruptions. I paused just outside and took a deep breath.

"Taylor…"

"I'll be fine," I muttered as I scrubbed at my face, "I'm done with this place now. I won't be coming back."

I shook myself off, forced a smile and headed over to where Dad was waiting by his truck with a sheaf of paper and an angry look.

"You OK kiddo?" he asked.

"Yeah, I'm fine," I said, "Lets...lets just go home."

Dad eyed me for a moment, then nodded and opened the truck door. I climbed in and closed my eyes. I was so done with Winslow, now it was time to get started on the rest of my life.

And done. Well, that was more of a pain than I was expecting. It was surprisingly hard to get the right tone for the confrontations. You might be able to guess where I'm going with them.

I'm sure that I'll get some grief for having Taylor spill everything to Danny, but I generally prefer Danny's who actually help Taylor. He won't have a big role, but it will be there.

The dissonance between the two sides of Taylor won't be a big thing for long, its just because of the differences caused by their experiences and the fact that, even without the usual drama that comes with this sort of thing, theres still a certain amount of time needed for the two sets of memories to fully integrate.

And with that, I'm done. Don't forget to leave a review on the way out!

EDIT! Since GlassedGamer came up with a much better speech than I did, I added it to the chapter with his permission. Thanks man!