Disclaimer: I own nothing but my original characters and works; all other characters and worlds belong to their respective owners. I'm just playing with them.
Betad by Priapus, Malcolm Tent, Old man of the mountain, Mike God of Lore, Beans
Guild of Gamers: The Card Master
Chapter 02: The PRT Testing
— Quest Section —
What should the Trio do?
Emma should try to mend her relationship with Charlie.Sophia should unmask to 'help' Charlie going forward.Madison should try to seduce him.Fuck it, go all in and go for all three. (66%)
– Charles 'Charlie' Barnes –
As we arrive, I'll admit that I am less than pleased to be here, and it shows on my face. The PRT pencil pusher who is waiting for us clearly sees it as well, as my father greets (… huh, the Deputy Director?) as Renick cheerfully welcomes us to the rig. Guess they really want a new Ward.
Look, it's not like I'm against the idea of being a hero. Hell, it was my plan the moment I got my powers. I can be a dick, but I'm not about to draw a swastika on my face and start lynching minorities for Kaiser, and I don't do drugs, so the Merchants are out. I'm neither Asian nor a bad boy, so that's out (I'm a fucking nerd, we can't be bad boys by definition). Being a solo villain is just asking to become a statistic or get forced into a gang, Uber and Leet give nerds a bad name, and who does that leave?
The Undersiders? I don't even know anything about them, beyond them being petty thieves, and while I can be petty, I don't want to be a petty anything. Emma isn't the only Barnes with an ego. Faultline? What do they even do? I know Greg told me at some point, but I rarely listen. I think they're mercs who only take jobs outside of the city. Not the worst, I guess, but they're the best of a bunch of bad options. I like money, but I'm also firmly white upper-middle class (even if Dad and Emma like to pretend we're just straight up upper-class). I've never really wanted for anything, because Dad's solution to being busy with work is giving me, Emma and Anne whatever we want. Who needs to spend time with your kids when you have money?
Of course, he spoils Emma even more than the rest of us, but that doesn't change the fact that I have more or less everything I want. College? A car? Unless I want a private yacht, I'm kinda set from having a fairly successful lawyer Dad.
So becoming a villain just to play merc isn't exactly an appealing option either. Being a rogue in Brockton Bay is just asking for trouble. I don't know how Parian is still alive, but maybe nobody cares enough to go after the doll girl. Even still, her shows get interrupted by villains semi-regularly. Mostly the Merchants, but I guess it's because her outfit hides her race, so the Empire and ABB don't know if she's worth trying to recruit by force for such a seemingly unimportant power when she could be any race under that mask.
Which leaves two options. Pretend I don't have powers and go about my life as usual, or go hero. And fuck pretending. I like my powers, so hero was my only real choice. Sure, being an indie hero is just as dangerous as being an indie villain or rogue, but at least there is support for independents that you can get through the PRT. I did look this stuff up. New Wave wasn't really a choice unless I wanted to unmask, but I've met half of New Wave through Dad's work since he works for the same law firm and goes to the same events as Brandish. I wouldn't say they're family friends or anything, but at the very least, they're family acquaintances, so asking them for advice could have worked. Sure, their advice might have just been 'join the Wards', but the point is that I would have liked the option rather than Dad just taking it out of my hands.
"And you must be Charles," Renick says, getting my attention as they finish the endless, boring adult stuff.
"Must be," I agree, getting an annoyed look from my Dad but Renick barely bats an eye at my tone or posture. I'm going to take a wild guess that I'm not the first pissy teenager he's had to deal with. "So, how does this sh- stuff work?"
"Power testing, you mean?" Renick asks easily, getting a nod. "Don't worry, it's an entirely painless process, though I'll admit it might get a little tedious as there are always concerns when it comes to biological masters."
"Wanna make sure I'm not Nilbog the Second?" I ask with a snort, getting a wry smile in return. "Fair enough."
"It was raised as a possible concern, along with the risks of diseases or other potential unforeseen threats," Renick agrees. "Follow me, I'll show you to the testing area."
As we walk, he does a good job of explaining how things will be done and gives us a brief tour of the Rig itself. I'll admit, I've always been curious about what the inside looks like. They do do proper tours on weekends, but I've never been that curious. He offhandedly mentions that the Wards are based out of the PRT ENE Headquarters, which is newer than the Rig. I get the feeling he knows that I'm not sold on the Wards.
I'll admit one thing, however. Today was worth it for exactly one reason.
"Ah, Miss Militia. You're early," Renick greets the uniformed heroine as her eyes crinkle in her signature style, her flag bandana hiding her smile. God damn does she fill those army fatigues.
"I was already on base, and it's a nice break from the console," Miss Militia explains easily, a green and black pistol at her waist. Greg likes to powerscale and theorycraft with Capes' powers, and insists that she's the strongest in Brockton Bay because she could spam nukes. I pointed out that it wouldn't be much of a spam if she died in the first blast, and that Vista could theoretically contain the explosion. Not that I cared that much, or knew Vista's power well enough to say that for certain. I just like poking holes in his arguments.
Oh fuck. I'm gonna have to listen to him explain how he'd use my power so much better than I could. Greg is convinced that if he had any cape's power, he'd be able to powergame it Triumvirate level. I think he'd die in an hour. Not even to a villain or anything, I think he'd manage to kill himself regardless of the power he got. That said, I did add an island to the Bay and turn my sister into a frog in the first five minutes, so maybe I shouldn't judge too hard.
"So, I take it you're our test subject for the day?" Miss Militia asks me with a playful look. She has showing her expression with just her eyes and posture down to an art form.
"That's me," I agree, not hiding my nerves as much as I'd want to.
"Don't worry, we'll be gentle," Miss Militia chuckles. "They're ready for us, mostly. Just waiting for our expert to arrive."
"Brandish messaged to tell us that Panacea would be late. Her time is as valuable as always," Renick agrees. Huh, they're bringing in Panacea? They must be worried about me- well, Dad did tell them I turned Anne into a frog. They kept Anne overnight, but she didn't mention Pan-Pan coming in to look at her. "Mr Barnes, you'll be coming with me as it is PRT policy to keep civilians out of the testing rooms. This should be entirely safe for Charlie, of course, but we try to minimise the risks involved."
"Of course," Dad agrees, going off with the Deputy Director to do boring lawyer stuff and probably sell my soul to the PRT. As much as he claimed that we were just coming to test things, I know he has his heart set on me becoming a Ward and worse, Mom agrees. I'm not sure why he's so set on it, but Mom just thinks that it'll be safer than any other way. I mean, she's not wrong, but it means the PRT has me by the balls since technically they only need my parents to agree, not me. Sure, I could refuse or go rogue but it makes things worse for me if I'm technically a Ward and do something like that. It gives them a lot of legal leeway over me and you'd think my lawyer dad would help me avoid the government fucking me legally but here we are.
"This way, Charlie," Miss Militia says, gesturing for me to follow her into the large mostly empty room. "Now, I believe your powers take the form of cards?"
Nodding, I click my fingers and summon my entire deck minus one land card that is currently in play.
"Yeah. It's uhh, why I fucked up with the whole island thing. I thought they were just some cards I'd forgotten about when I first got them because I have a lot of cards in my room, even some Earth Aleph imports. Then- poof, giant wizard tower in the bay," I admit with a sheepish laugh, rubbing my neck. Look, I know I fucked up with that one but I woke up to them on my floor and just picked one up and then whoops, tower.
"Ah yes, your… I think you called it Mystic Sanctuary in the initial interview?" Miss Militia asks, gesturing for me to take a seat as some textbook cliche labcoats rush over. Am I being paranoid for wondering why they all seem to be fairly attractive women? Maybe it's the lawyer blood in me, but I know even Dad has a female coworker do interviews because men are more likely to slip up and say more than they meant to when pretty girls are involved. "We haven't been able to enter the main tower on the island, but you'll be happy to know that there were no major consequences for the island's appearance."
"Yeah, that's its name. I can't summon the card back or dismiss it like I can my spells or monster cards. Or, if there is a way, I haven't worked it out yet," I admit with another sheepish smile. "It grants me a constant supply of Blue Mana and empowers my Blue spells, which at the moment are all I have access to."
"At the moment?" someone asks, almost to themselves, as several of the lab coats share looks. "You mean you think you'll get more cards?"
"Well, yeah?" I admit, surprised that they seem so surprised. "I can tell that I'm going to get more cards, I just haven't worked out the fine details of it all just yet."
Feat Achieved: Take part in PRT Power Testing (two Blue MTG cards).
[Ghostform] - Spell
Effects: Enchants up to two targets with incorporeal
"Picking locks is for beginners."
[Arcane Flight] - Spell
Effects: Enchants a target with flying and grants a minor increase to their attack and defence.
'The Tolarian Academies are known for their magical research, powerful sorcerers, and accidental destruction of ecosystems.'
As two more cards appear out of thin air, we all pause before I calmly grab them both and add them to the small collection in my hands.
"Never mind, worked it out," I say smugly, before pausing. God damn it, don't say more than you need to just because Miss Militia fills her fatigues well.
– Hannah/Hana (Miss Militia) –
Charlie's powers coming in the form of cards might make some people take him less seriously. It was childish and nerdy, but… she knew Myrddin. She knew just how powerful the self-proclaimed Wizard truly was, and as she listened to Charlie reluctantly explaining each of his cards, she had a feeling she was looking at the second coming of the Wizard of Chicago.
Trumps were rare, likely the rarest type of cape, though she didn't have the exact numbers. Self-trumps were rarer, and almost always major league players. Capes that could grow and potentially endlessly scale. Charlie's 'spells' were, by themselves, enough to make him a genuine threat with seven different effects at his call.
Arcane Flight and Ghostform, his two 'enchantments', allowed him to grant temporary powers to himself or others. Similar to Othala, but without her much smaller time limit. It was the first thing they tested, though she didn't let him test them on himself, instead having one of the researchers be the subject.
Charlie's explanations were dead-on. Arcane Flight gave the target a pair of blue ethereal and incorporeal wings that allowed free flight. The speed wasn't great, but flight was always an in-demand power because it enhances battle strategies by adding the y-axis to them. The ability to grant flight to anyone was incredible and would have warranted recruiting him alone.
Ghostform, again, did exactly what he claimed. It granted up to two targets controllable intangibility. She had him use it on her for this one, and freely moved through solid walls as if they weren't there at all. She didn't fall through the floor, only passing through objects she wanted to. In addition, projectiles would pass harmlessly through her body and the body of the researcher, who had been the second target.
It took a while to get used to, but in a practice spar, she was able to allow the (admittedly sloppy) punch of the researcher to pass through her body before reforming and grappling them, only for them to turn intangible and move out of her grasp. With some practice, she was even able to keep her entire body, except her hands, intangible so she could punch (or shoot) freely while other attacks went clean through her. The combat and utility benefits of this 'enchantment' could not be overstated.
So, when he admitted that there wasn't a duration, the entire room went silent. Charlie explained, boasting a little as teenage boys were wont to do, that as long as he had enough 'mana' he could keep them up forever. He explained how he had a pool that refilled, and that his 'lands' such as the Mystic Sanctuary, supplied him with more. At his current level, he could maintain Ghostform and Arcane Flight and have enough left to summon some of his creatures or use his more offense-based spells.
Charmed Sleep worked the same way, placing the target into a deep sleep that wouldn't end unless Charlie cancelled the spell or ran out of mana. They were able to wake the test subject with a shot of adrenaline, but in the field it would not be easy to wake someone that Charlie put out of commission. 'So Tiny', again, worked the same way, shrinking the target down until they could fit in the palm of her hand.
Each of these powers would have been enough to make a decent hero. Charlie had all of them and more, with the promise of only growing further and further.
Which made her all the more worried that he wasn't happy to be here. She saw it in his eyes the moment she spotted him. It was a tale as old as the Ward Program itself, a teenager with powers being forced to sign up by a worried or ambitious parent. She wasn't sure which Alan Barnes was yet, but Charlie was not pleased to be volunteered to the Wards. In any other case, she'd follow protocol and leave that to Armsmaster as he didn't like people stepping on his toes and the Wards were his responsibility, but…
Armsmaster had a… distaste for Trumps, which everyone had seen in his demeanour and treatment of Dauntless. He was also not a very social person. Dealing with someone like Charlie, with his power and potential, would need a level of delicacy that she was simply not sure Armsmaster possessed.
The arrival of their 'specialist' paused the testing, as Miss Militia greeted the three heroines as they entered. Brandish remained as severe as ever, but Glory Girl and Panacea were whispering before Glory Girl spoke up.
"You're Charlie, right? I've seen you before," Vicky greeted, getting Charlie's attention. Ah, right, Alan Barnes was a lawyer at the same firm. She'd seen that in the report but she didn't know how acquainted with New Wave he'd be.
"Yup, that's me," Charlie greeted, a little put off by how close Vicky had flown to him. He was the quiet type, and Victoria was the poster girl for extroverts. "Hello again. I wasn't sure you'd remember me. It's not like we ever talked."
"You kinda stand out, in a good way!" Victoria reassured him. "Not many people have hair that red, so you and your sister are memorable. It's natural, right?"
"Uhh, yeah," Charlie admitted, giving her a look that screamed 'help' as Vicky continued.
"Victoria," Brandish spoke up before Hannah could do anything. "The message said he had biological summons you wanted testing?"
"That's correct. Thank you for coming, Panacea. I'm aware of how busy you tend to be," Miss Militia said gratefully. She might not like dealing with Brandish, but she genuinely liked the young healer, and felt guilty at how much workload the PRT added to her plate sometimes.
"It's fine," Amy mumbled. "What do you need me to do?"
Making her decision, she turned to Charlie and asked him to use Charmed Sleep again to make the most out of having Panacea on hand. Panacea could learn more from a touch than some of their top-tier scanners could hope to find.
Charlie's spells did have a 'cooldown', going to what he called the Card Graveyard after being used, but they returned in short order. Around five minutes. Panacea stepped forward, touching the arm of the sleeping woman and confirming that Charlie's power was effectively forcing them into a deep, almost comatose slumber, but that Amy could undo it. As she did so, Charlie confirmed that she'd sent the card to the graveyard by negating the effect.
Brandish didn't look impressed, until So Tiny came out and shrunk a five-foot tall woman to five inches tall. Ignoring Glory Girl's jokes, Amy reached down and touched the tiny woman gently, careful not to squish her. Despite her tired expression, Hannah watched a hint of interest appear on her face as Amy, almost frustratedly, admitted that she couldn't undo this. There just wasn't enough biomass for her to work with, and that, to her power, this was just a totally normal thing.
There wasn't something she could undo; her power just saw a five-inch-tall woman and went 'yup, all looks right here'.
"Now, please use Frogify, Charlie," Miss Militia encouraged, watching him summon the card. He never had to search for the right card, always summoning the exact one he wanted.
Once more, Hannah watched as Panacea's eyes widened at the sight of a full-grown woman shrinking down to the size of a common garden frog, ribbeting and trying to jump away because… well, she thought she was a frog. This change was both physical and mental, leaving the victim unaware that they were human at all.
"You're a witch!" Glory Girl accused playfully, getting a smirk from Charlie as Panacea approached at her urging and touched the frog.
"I- my power can't find anything. As far as it can tell, this is just a regular frog. Weird species, maybe, larger than any you'd find around here but beyond that? Utterly mundane, no poison or diseases," Amy admitted, brows furrowing and her tiredness slowly evaporating. "Her brain is… well, smooth. If you showed me this without me seeing the transformation, I'd wonder why you were having me waste time on a regular frog."
Stepping back, Amy watched as Charlie cancelled the spell and the woman grew back to full size. As Amy checked her over for side effects, finding none, the researcher explained that she could remember her time as a frog but at the time she'd genuinely believed that it had been her real body.
"I wonder if it'd work on me," Vicky asked curiously, getting a look from Brandish. "Oh, come on. Amy just said that it was safe. Capes have Corona Pollentia, so I wonder if my froggy self would have it or if I'd just lose my powers while I was transformed. It's important to know, right?"
The squabbling 'argument' that broke out ended as fast as it began, with Brandish giving permission for it to be used on Vicky. If only because she suspected that Vicky would have Charlie do it later out of sheer curiosity and it would be better to do it here where Amy and the PRT were waiting in the wings.
The result?
A flying, golden frog that had a shield and could hit with far more force than its tiny body suggested. It played nicely into Charlie's next card, Capture Sphere, as the flying brick that was Victoria Dallon zoomed around the testing area in a froggy panic. With a flash of his card, a blue sphere engulfed Glory Frog, who smashed into the containment with fury and panic. With a slow gesture, he brought the sphere down to their level and then undid the spell, leaving an embarrassed but grinning Glory Girl inside it.
Before Charlie could dismiss the sphere, Glory Girl told him not to and attempted to break free of the blue translucent orb herself with… no effect. Her fists smashed against it helplessly, blows that could topple buildings, not even making the sphere budge. Hannah saw the very moment when Glory Girl took this as a challenge, going berserk inside the orb as Brandish's expression went from unimpressed to… curious.
The sphere remained unmoving, unbothered by the berserker inside. When Glory Girl finally gave up, pouting and panting slightly, Charlie dismissed the orb with a flourish and a click of his fingers. He had some showmanship to him, but that may be due to the multiple women he was attracted to being in the room with him.
"Man, that is some bull-"
"Victoria," Brandish cut in, getting a sheepish grin from Vicky.
"Unfair. It's unfair," Vicky corrected. "Do you think you could stick Hookwolf in it?"
"I mean, probably?" Charlie admitted, clearly wanting to boast but trying to hold back. "The card just says 'target'."
"How many of these things do you even have?" Vicky continued, seeing the collection of cards in his hands.
"Seven spells, three monsters. One spell left to test, since we did two before you arrived," Charlie explained, and Hannah had to stop herself from reacting as he pulled out the card that she was most interested in… and wanted Brandish to see the least. "So, Dismiss next then the summons?"
"Of course," Hannah agreed. "Since this requires an effect, we'll start with me."
New Wave were allies, and they relied on Panacea too much to throw them out after requesting their presence and now that he'd mentioned it, she couldn't really change plans. It was the plan to do the spells first, after all.
Drawing her gun, Charlie used Dismiss and no matter what her expectations had been, she couldn't deny the moment of shock as her gun just… vanished from her hand and refused to come back. The effect didn't last long, barely a minute, but that was sixty seconds where she was powerless. Sixty seconds of being a normal woman instead of a dangerous cape.
In a fight? That wasn't just powerful. It was disastrous.
And now Brandish knew about it. If she needed any further proof of how interested Brandish was, it came immediately as Brandish volunteered to be next. The result, once the cooldown was finished, was the exact same. Brandish tried to summon her weapons and take her ball form.
And as his card claimed.
'There is nothing you can do that Charlie cannot simply deny.'
Charlie had a 'one-minute no powers for you' period every five minutes. Or, put into better words. He could turn off someone's powers for twenty percent of any fight since the cooldown started upon cast, so he only had to wait four minutes to get it back. Would it work on Lung? Would it force Hookwolf out of his metal form? Just how far did this simple card go?
Glory Girl was next, both pouting and amused as her forcefield disappeared and she was left with the strength and the flight capabilities… of a normal teenage girl. If Charlie went villain, he could kill almost any flier with this. All he had to do was say 'no' to their flying and laugh as they fell and hit the ground long before they got their cooldowns back.
"So, monster cards next?" Charlie asked, as if he hadn't just shown a power that every gang would kill to have on their side.
"Yes, that would be for the best," Hannah agreed, wanting to move on. Dismiss would absolutely be tested more going forward, but not with Brandish looming with that intrigued expression. "How are you on 'mana'?"
"Eh," Charlie helpfully said. "With no active spells or monsters, my recharge and Mystic Sanctuary are keeping on top of what I'm using today since we are only testing one at a time and have to wait for the cooldown. So, uh, how is Panacea going to check them? Because I'm not sure she can touch two of them."
"Are they dangerous?" Glory Girl asked, moving slightly in front of her sister.
"Not to anyone I don't want them to be, but like… one is just a ghost. You can't touch a ghost. I guess she could touch the ragged cloak and chains it possesses, but I don't know how much she'll get from it. Oh, and the other I was worried about is made of water," Charlie explained with a shrug. "At least the last one is just a bird."
"Let's start with the bird," Hannah said, seeing Amy perk up before scowling slightly at her words. Vicky blinked at his description, but her words were cut off as Charlie made his move.
"Got it," Charlie agreed as he clicked his fingers and summoned the needed card. "Come forth, Foul Watcher."
With a blue flash, the card vanished and resting on Charlie's outstretched arm was a jet-black raven… with far too many eyes.
"This is Foul Watcher, a Nightmare Bird with Flying, Surveil and Delirium," Charlie explained, stroking the feathers on the top of the head. "It has low attack and defence, but it's mostly a scout unit anyway."
"You have a Lovecraftian bird?" Vicky asked, sounding far too amused.
"I did mention Delirium, right?" Charlie asked in amusement. "Fortunately, it doesn't seem to actually drive people mad but hey, that's why we are here, right?"
"Correct. Panacea, if you'd please," Hannah started, not being able to finish her sentence before Amy moved forward and placed a finger on the wing of the bird. Everyone watched as Amy's eyes widened and then closed, going entirely unresponsive for a moment before Vicky elbowed her.
"Sorry, it's- well, its body is unique despite appearing like a bird. I've never seen anything like its insides. They are definitely not just regular organs," Amy admitted. "No diseases or anything openly dangerous except for the fact that it has teeth. Lots of teeth."
As if to confirm her words, the Foul Watcher let out an almost mocking caw and opened its sharp beak far wider than she would have thought possible to expose the rows of fang-like teeth.
"You should see what its vision looks like," Charlie muttered. "Surveil means I can see through its eyes, and it has a lot of eyes."
"Yeah, the two that are… well, where eyes are supposed to be, are normal. Ish. Normalish. The rest? I couldn't even begin to guess at how they function."
"He sees far more than human eyes, that's for sure. I think he might be able to see invisible things but well, I've not run into any Strangers so I haven't exactly had a chance to test that theory," Charlie admitted.
"What is the range of your control of it?" one of the researchers asked.
"Honestly, I have no idea. City-wide, at least. Since he looks like a regular bird, I summoned him to test that, and he could go to the other side of the city without disrupting my ability to see through his eyes or command him," Charlie admitted. Hannah could see his reasoning, but the fact that he'd sent something with a 'Delirium' effect into the city only made her more determined to make sure he didn't go rogue or decide he was better off on his own. "Next?"
"The water one," Amy said before Hannah could answer, and she paused before nodding. She saw no reason not to, as Charlie called the next card into his hand.
"Answer my call, Floodhound," Charlie declared, the card flashing as water poured forth before taking the shape of a basset hound with glowing white eyes, panting and waggling its watery tail. Despite being made of pure liquid, it didn't seem to leave much water behind as it moved over to Charlie for him to pat its head, the water shifting and then reforming. "Floodhound is an Elemental with decent defence, but low attack. Its speciality is tracking, with the Investigate skill. The card text says as much. 'The thief doubled back twice, doused herself with perfume, crossed the ocean, and still woke up with her pursuer close on her heels'. Once it has a scent, it'll never stop tracking its prey, no matter where they go."
Panacea moved forward, placing her hand on the dog before she blinked and sighed.
"It's water. My power doesn't even register that I'm touching something alive. I might as well have dipped my finger in a glass of water," Amy admitted, looking a bit disappointed. The Floodhound panted happily before licking her face, leaving a trail of water up her cheek.
Charlie paused before the Foul Watcher flew from his arm and landed on Panacea's shoulder, letting out another menacing, mocking sound. Despite having an eldritch bird cawing in her ear, Panacea brightened up as her hand rose to touch it. Even still, she petted the Floodhound as Vicky moved to do the same.
"Who's a good boy?" Vicky asked, going to play with it, before her hands went clean through, since she was clearly expecting more resistance. Instead of fussing the watery dog, she instead put her hand clean through its neck and the head fell off and splashed against the ground, turning into a puddle. "Oh fuck, I was just-"
"I can't believe Glory Girl killed my dog," Charlie said mournfully, Vicky going to speak before she paused and sighed as he snorted, watching the water travel back into the paws of the Floodhound as the head reformed. "You should have seen the first time I tried throwing a ball for him. He tried to catch it and the ball just… went through him."
It might have low attack power, but how did you fight water? Guns wouldn't do anything to him, nor would most weapons that regular criminals had access to if they could just reform at will.
Watching as Glory Girl let out a sigh of relief, the guilt leaving her face as she elbowed Charlie before 'roughhousing' with the Floodhound, since even if she sent it flying, the water just reformed. It seemed to be able to hold its form if it wanted to, the water tension rising and making it much harder to 'burst', but for the most part, it just didn't seem to care if it was disrupted.
"One last one," Charlie said, stretching and checking his watch. "This one is a little weird, because it can only exist in the air. It also summons a storm when I summon it. Err, sorry about the thunderstorm in our neighbourhood last Wednesday," Charlie mumbled. "Rise, Stormbound Geist."
As he said, the room rumbled with thunder as thick black stormclouds formed at the top of the large room, and lightning sparked inside them as the rattling of chains began. It was audible even over the sound of thunder, as a grey, tattered cloak began to descend from the cloud, wrapped with chains and wielding what seemed to be a lantern that was drawing in the lightning. The torn, dark cloak held form as if someone was wearing it, but was clearly empty as she could see clean through in some places thanks to the torn state.
"This is Stormbound Geist, a Spirit with Flying and Undying. It has good attack and defence, able to attack with lightning," Charlie explained as the geist hovered above. "Undying means it can't be killed as it just reforms upon being destroyed, but maybe you could get rid of it by dispersing the clouds? But as you can see, it's chained to the clouds and can't actually descend to the ground. Not sure what Panacea can do for this one."
"I'd rather not go into a stormcloud, if it's all the same. Plus, there's nothing for me to touch," Amy admitted, looking up at the rattling chains. "I was going to suggest trying to touch the chains but… they're metal, and my brain caught up with the fact that metal conducts electricity."
"Maybe I could get you a piece of the cloak?" Vicky asked, frowning as she looked up. "I can take it."
As if to challenge that fact, lightning struck and hit the geist, its form flowing with power before the energy was drained into the chains, moving into the lantern.
"No," Brandish responded simply.
They did eventually get a piece of the cloth, with Brandish cutting some off with one of her thrown blades. They were disappointed and yet entirely unsurprised when Amy explained that it was… just some ragged cloth. She couldn't deny that she was unsettled when Amy admitted she could detect both ancient blood and other pieces of human remains in the cloth, especially with the geist floating above them, chains rattling, and thunder rumbling.
"So, that's my current deck," Charlie admitted, stretching lazily. Damn it. The moment he said 'current', Brandish and Panacea both straightened up. Glory Girl was too busy playing with Floodhound to notice, but the other two understood his meaning and Brandish noticed the lack of surprise on the researchers' faces.
She wasn't looking forward to telling the Director that they likely had competition, when Charlie was already probably not thrilled about being signed up.
— Quest Section —
How should Charlie approach his current situation?
Give the Ward program an honest chance, working with the PRT until they give him a reason not to. (White)Acceptance. This isn't what he wanted, but life rarely is. All he can do is make the most of his current situation. (Green)Play along, for now, and see how things go. He doesn't have to tell them all the cards he gets, right? (Blue).Make things difficult for them. Sure, Daddy dearest might have signed him up, but that doesn't mean he has to play along and become one of their show ponies. (Red)Focus on growing stronger, no matter what. Power is everything, no matter what they claim. It's why they want him so bad, after all. Get strong enough to do whatever he damn well pleases. (Black)
Author's Note: I thought long and hard (like thirty seconds) about how to balance counter powers. My decisions was fuck balancing, Charlie can do what he wants. Mostly because the idea of the villains of BB having to deal with MonoBlue 'lol no' powers is extremely amusing to me.
Lung when the hero he's trying to fight just keeps resetting the fight, so there's no conflict to escalate to. If Charmed Sleep and Capture Sphere can tap Nicol Bolas and literal Gods, it can tap Leviathan.
Basically, I'm treating this more like a celestial fic where balance is optional and usually not welcome.
Written: 25/01/2026