I fell into bed the second I got home, after seeing Dinah returned, and slept for about ten hours, and even thought my dreams were troubled as ever, these days, I woke feeling more rested than I had in quite some time.
My first order of business was to check in on Dinah- a brief scrying spell found her lying asleep in a hospital bed, her mother in the chair beside her. Good.
My second, was to respond to one of the ten or twelve texts Tattletale had sent me- she wanted us to meet up again, apparently. Specifically, she was inviting me to the Undersider's base, although according to her doing so was actually Grue's idea.
I sighed.
I didn't really want to go. I had too much to do- I had to figure out what to do about Kaiser, for one, and during my search for Dinah I'd been neglecting my 'studies'- if that was what you'd call trying to cudgel useful information out of the maze of memories in my mind.
But if I was going to use the Undersiders to keep the city's criminal element contained, I probably was going to have to occasionally talk to them.
Even if it was probably going to be awkward, after my little... episode. That was something I should probably look in to, if I ever had any free time.
Right now I had other problems. Vampire problems. The bloodsucker had basically handed me Kaiser, and I needed to figure out why- more specifically, I needed to figure out the trap.
I could think of any number of ways that removing Kaiser and/or removing Max Anders could benefit such a creature. Taken at face value, it made sense that the Vampire would use me to do this. Our interests aligned, and I owed it.
But I couldn't allow myself to believe that things were that simple. Just because I couldn't immediately see a way that this 'favor' could be turned against me didn't mean there wasn't one, especially when dealing with an immortal monster- who knew how far into the future its plans stretched.
But I wanted Kaiser dead.
Whatever I did, I would have to be careful.
Today, though, I just wanted to take some time for myself. I'd been so devoted- obsessed, even- with saving Dinah, it was almost hard to remember what I'd been doing before I'd made rescuing her my mission. I needed a little bit of time to reset, refocus. Return to my studies. Hell, I'd just moved in to a new house, and I still needed to buy some furniture, appliances, supplies, and of course there was the ritual space in the basement that still needed work.
I'd lost all of my notes when I'd... left home. Recreating them would be time consuming. I needed more tools, ritual implements- everything, basically. And a massive occult library fully stocked with Hermetic texts, as long as I was wishing for things.
So, even though there was a large part of me that really wanted to immediately start working on a plan for Kaiser, I decided instead to take the day off.
Mostly.
I spent the morning relaxing- well, doing odd jobs around the house, after I had treated myself to breakfast out at a local diner that made some pretty decent scrambled eggs. After which, it was fairly natural to do a little shopping- kitchen towels, a kettle, food, and other such minor sundries.
I also finally answered Tattletale, agreeing to briefly meet up with the Undersiders that afternoon, as much as I didn't really want to.
First, I had lunch.
I was a little surprised when I got to the address Tattletale had given me only to find that it was a dusty old red brick factory in the Docks. She'd told me to go around to the side door, so I did, but only after carefully scrutinizing the place with various spells and esoteric senses.
Inside was just about what I would have expected, looking at the outside- an abandoned factory of some kind, full of old machinery under dusty canvas sheets. Grue and Tattletale were waiting for me, in costume. I hadn't bothered to wear a mask, and I sensed Grue's surprise when he noticed it as I walked over to them.
"This way," Grue said, in lieu of any greeting, leading me towards a metal spiral staircase in the corner of the room. Tattletale smirked when I gestured for her to go ahead of me, but didn't say anything.
Upstairs was entirely different- a nice living room type area, surprisingly well furnished. I hadn't expected them to have rugs. The couches, and gigantic television complete with huge speakers and various gaming consoles was a little more like it, currently in use by Regent, who was sitting on one of the couches with a controller in his hands, playing a game- on mute, it seemed.
They'd made some effort to clean up, obviously, judging by the slightly too-neat appearance, as well as a couple of candles scattered around.
"Scented candles?" I asked, sniffing the air. Vanilla. Regent laughed, and I noticed that he wasn't actually wearing a mask. In fact, both Grue and Tattletale were taking theirs off.
I knew what Tattletale looked like unmasked already, but Grue took me a little bit by surprise, for a couple of reasons, not the least of which was his jawline.
"Her idea," Grue muttered.
"It's called making a good impression," Tattletale said primly, glancing over at one of the fluttering flames. "And between Rachel's dogs and Regent's Eau de Gamer, this place kind of needed it."
"Hey!" Regent called over his shoulder. "Actually, eh, it's fair."
"Speaking of Rachel," I began.
"She won't be joining us," Grue said. "She, uh, still doesn't like you."
"Speaking of- what's that about?" Tattletale asked.
"I wish I knew," I sighed. Regent cackled- though, that might have been because of his game.
"Well, I wanted to arrange for you to get your share of Coil's money," Tattletale said, walking with me over to one of the couches, giving Regent- who simply kept gaming- a dirty look that he failed to register at all. "You said you had bills, after all. And then I think we need to talk a little. Things happened kind of fast."
"They did," I said. "And I'm sorry about that. It wasn't how I wanted things to happen. But I don't regret getting Dinah out of that place. Speaking of which, I trust she got home safely?"
I'd already checked, but they didn't need to know that.
"Yes," Grue said. "Her parents- it got a little... intense, for a bit, but then they took her to the hospital, so we left."
"Good," I said. Interestingly, I'd noticed that Tattletale had looked a little troubled, as Grue had been speaking, but when she saw me looking at her, she stood up from the couch.
"I forgot to offer you a drink," she said. "Tea, right?" And before I could answer, she walked off to the area's little kitchenette.
"Get me a can of that purple stuff!" Regent called after her, not taking his eyes off his game.
"So what happens now?" Grue asked, ignoring Regent.
"I'm not Coil," I told him. "I'm not going to be sending you on jobs, or giving you orders. Our arrangement is that I help you step into the power vacuum as the Empire 88 collapses, and you help me live in a city where the supervillains are criminals, instead of monsters."
"You really think you can beat them?" Grue asked.
"Absolutely," I told him, locking eyes with him for a moment, until Tattletale came back with a cup of tea. I took a cautious sip, and found that it was almost exactly how I liked it.
Show-off.
"A few final things," I said, taking another sip. "Just like I'm not asking you for help with the Empire, don't expect me to come help you fight the Protectorate or anything. If you need help with them in other ways, feel free to at least ask, although I can't promise anything. Just don't expect me to come fight them for you. But that only goes for the heroes- if you have villain trouble, especially if a new gang like the Elite are moving into this city, I will work with you to find a way to deal with it. Does that sound fair?"
"Fair enough," Grue said. "Honestly, I'm not convinced that we would even want you to help us out like that. No offense, but I don't think we want to be too strongly linked to you, given your... reputation."
"Good," I said. "Now, let's talk about my share of Coil's money."
We spent the next hour or so going through Coil's assets, mostly me working with Tattletale, since I'd asked her to help set me up with a fake ID, even though I think she knew I already had one. At least she didn't take it personally that I was trying to keep it- and its associated banking information- secret from her. Plus, a second ID could be useful to have in an emergency. I was already planning to rent a cheap apartment with it, as a backup safehouse. After we'd sorted all that out- though it was obviously going to take some more work, later- I left.
I did a little bit more shopping on my way home, picking up a few random household necessities I'd forgotten and then decided to take the rest of the night off from everything.
I was just cleaning up after dinner when my phone rang.
"Coil had a failsafe!" Tattletale practically shouted at me, the second I answered. "A dead man's switch! I only just found it. It was set to send out all the information he had on you to the Empire. They're sending a team to your house right now!"
"You mean-
"He had your PRT file, and the PRT knows were you lived!" Tattletale said.
Lived. Not live.
Lived.
Dad.
I dropped the phone- I heard Tattletale trying to say something else before the cheap burner smashed open on the floor behind me- and sprinted for my front door, pulling my coat on and jamming my feet into my shoes as fast as I could before running outside and slamming the door behind me, chanting a spell that lifted me into the sky.
Dad.
I was not going to let them do this.
I pushed down the sudden fear inside me, letting hot rage take its place.
Anyone who came to my father's house looking to harm me was going to regret it. But only briefly.
But even as I hurled myself through the night sky, chanting spell after spell to prepare, I forced myself to calm down. I needed to keep a level head- if for no other reason than I wasn't actually that experienced with flying like this. Typically, historically, it had been too dangerous- at least in my lifetimes. And accidentally crashing into something wouldn't do anyone any good. Also, I wasn't actually incredibly familiar with what the neighborhood looked like from above, so I needed to actually pay attention.
Or so I had thought.
Actually, once I had gotten to within a few blocks, it was easy to find. All I needed to do is follow the sound of gunfire and shouting.
The street was something like a warzone. At least a dozen E88 gangers had taken cover behind various cars and were currently trading shots with an outnumbered squad of maybe PRT troopers.
Hookwolf, in his gigantic metal form, was literally on my lawn, crouched low before suddenly leaping into the air to try to catch Dauntless, who was flying above him. I could also see two other Empire capes, Victor and Othala, at the end of the street- Victor was firing an extremely large rifle at the embattled PRT troopers, while Othala crouched behind him, both taking cover behind a car.
What the hell was going on here?
I didn't have time to figure it out. Diving towards the ground, I drew my wand and spoke a quick Enochian phrase, announcing my presence by hurling a fireball at a cluster of Empire soldiers.
Even as I did so, out of the corner of my eye, I saw Victor's head turn snap up suddenly as he searched the night sky above him.
And then I felt a sudden and intense pain as something slammed against my mental defenses. Something powerful. I screamed, nearly falling from the sky before gritting my teeth and steeling my will against the attempted intrusion.
And then, suddenly, it was over. I saw Victor's gun coming up, tracking toward me, and in the seconds before he fired I hurled a glass arrowhead from my pocket at the ground.
It shattered, and the rifle exploded in Victor's hands as he pulled the trigger.
Betrayal of the Burning Arrow- a most useful rote.
But Victor was already picking himself up, pulling a pair of pistols from their holsters- and I saw Othala's hand on his shoulder, and remembered that she was said to be able to make people invincible, or nearly so.
Fine, then.
Victor's first shots went wide, as the winds gathered around me and pulled me out of the way- my defensive spells at work, enhancing my speed and agility as I continued to dodge through the air. I answered with a spell of my own, but not at him. Instead, I summoned a blast of wind, lifting Othala into the air and hurling her backward- I wasn't sure if her invincibility also applied to herself, but either way it wasn't stopping me from simply pulling her away from Victor.
Instantly, Victor pulled a grenade from his harness and dropped it, diving away as smoke began to fill the air around him, but I could sense where he was, and I hurled lightning as he threw himself at Othala, grabbing her wrist just in time for the bolt to harmlessly scorch his costume. He scooped her up into his arms, and began to run- I could see, as they cleared the smoke, that she had evidently landed badly enough to seriously break one of her arms.
I let him run- as much as I wanted to go after him, my priority right now was my dad.
As I turned back to the fighting, I heard the familiar sound of Armsmaster's bike approaching. My fireball had helped turn the tide for the PRT- that, and the fact that Velocity had arrived, and was harrying the remaining un-powered E88 gangsters, most of whom were either down or fleeing. Now that I was closer, I could see that part of the front wall of my house had been partially torn open, and there were bodies on the lawn.
I touched down, on the sidewalk, watching as another blast from Dauntless' lance slammed Hookwolf to the ground, and I began to cast again, hurling a bolt of lightning at the monstrous metal wolf before me. It hit him just as he was gathering himself to leap, sending him sprawling as yet another blast from Dauntless hammered into him.
I took a step forward, mentally preparing my next spell, when suddenly in a blur Velocity was in front of me. I had just enough time to register the fact that he had a large tank on his back, connected by a hose to the device in his hands before the first blast of containment foam hit me square in the face and everything went dark.
I felt layer after layer of foam washing over me. I couldn't move. I'd reflexively closed my mouth- and eyes- and there was enough give that I could at least mumble a spell- I just had to figure out what.
There had to be a way out of this! Dammit, why couldn't I remember how to teleport?
My spell-enhanced senses detected Armsmaster approaching, leveling the back end of his Halberd at the lump of foam and jabbing it in, and I felt a sudden stinging sensation before everything went dark.
I was caught.
--
a/n: so, uh, yeah, that took longer to write than I wanted it to - and I'm not even necessarily 100% happy with the result, but hey, progress
anyway, enjoy Award ReplyReport178Behold!25/2/2025NewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Interlude 3.R New View contentBehold!impervious to your most powerful magnetic fieldsAward Recipient28/2/2025Add bookmark#426From where Robin was standing, it almost looked like Taylor Hebert was staring at him through the one-way mirror- to the point that he was almost tempted to move a little, just to see if her eyes would follow him. Not that he actually would, especially not with Miss Militia and Panopticon also in the room- he was still getting used to the name, so it was best to use it at all times, even in his own head, especially since the hero was so new he was still wearing a placeholder costume- a neutral gray bodysuit, with a generic mask.
There was just something about Taylor's stare that made him uneasy. Like she could actually see him.
She was sitting calmly in the interrogation room, dressed in standard-issue PRT prisoner clothing and her own glasses- after they'd been carefully checked- her hair still a little damp from the shower. The only thing she'd done since being brought into the room was briefly but thoroughly look around, as if checking for weakness before sitting quietly and staring calmly at the mirror for the last- he checked his watch, just to be sure- twenty or so minutes.
She did look calm. Too calm. It was actually making him a little nervous.
The door to the interrogation room opened, and Armsmaster finally walked in, carrying a thick file folder. Taylor Hebert glanced at him, and Robin saw a brief flicker of... something- relief?- cross her face. She leaned back in her chair, slouching a little.
"Hi," Taylor said. "So, before we start, I feel like I should warn you that it's not necessarily safe for you to be talking to me."
"This room is equipped with multiple countermeasures designed to instantly take you down if you attempt any hostile action," Armsmaster said. "I'm in no danger."
"I wasn't threatening you," Taylor said, her eyes briefly flicking to the security camera on the ceiling. Armsmaster glared- Robin couldn't actually see his eyes, but he could just tell.
"This is Armsmaster, commencing preliminary interview with the villainous Parahuman known as Elementalist," Armsmaster said. "It is... 7:02 PM, April 24th, 2011. For the record, the subject has been informed of her right to have legal counsel present."
"I waived it," Taylor said. "Also, I'm going by Decima now. For the record."
"Perhaps you don't fully understand the amount of trouble you're in," Armsmaster said, after a moment of irritated silence. "The fact is that we have evidence that could see you convinced of multiple counts of Homicide with a Parahuman Power. You're looking at many years in a maximum security facility, at the very least. Given your various activities, more extreme options may even be on the table."
Taylor raised her eyebrows, but said nothing.
"Or," Armsmaster continued, "you can cooperate with us." He picked up the folder, opening it. "We retrieved some of your possessions. You'd be amazed what we can learn from documents like these. Let's start with the languages." As he spoke, he began laying down pieces of paper on the table in front of Taylor, one after the other, each one revealing a page of text, slightly fuzzy from being scanned and reprinted.
"Latin. Greek. Hebrew. Arabic. Sanskrit. And a half-dozen European languages, often in archaic forms: French, German, Italian, Russian, Spanish. Egyptian hieroglyphs, astrological and alchemical symbols, star charts- and that's just what we've been able to identify. Handwriting analysis suggests as many as eight to ten different people wrote these." Armsmaster paused, dramatically- maybe it was working, because Taylor actually seemed a little taken aback. "We know you're not working alone. What I also know is that everything about this screams 'cult'."
Panopticon muttered something angrily under his breath.
"What I know, and you need to understand is that the people who have recruited you- whoever they are- are not your friends. They are using you. Setting you against the Empire Eighty-Eight for their own benefit," Armsmaster continued. "But if you help us, give us information on whomever has been talking to you, the PRT and the Protectorate are willing to offer you a chance. A chance to become a real hero. It won't be easy. There will be consequences for the things that you've done. But if you work for it, you can and will earn yourself a spot in the Wards, and later the Protectorate."
"You're trying to recruit me?" Taylor asked. "Really? That's a bold move, considering you people are the ones who've been practically torturing me for the past year and a half. Or did you think I didn't know about Shadow Stalker?"
Robin winced. Behind her, she heard Panopticon muttering angrily again, before Miss Militia whispered something to him. None of them had been happy when they'd found Taylor's journals, and all the other evidence those records had led them to of all the things Sophia had been doing, but Panopticon had naturally taken it the worst- except for maybe Triumph and the Wards. The fallout from that debacle was ongoing, and promised to only get uglier.
"Shadow Stalker is no longer a Ward in this Department," Armsmaster said. "Her actions were totally unsanctioned, and completely unknown to us. Once we discovered proof of her activities-"
"Proof?" Taylor scoffed. "Do you honestly expect me to believe none of you were capable of figuring out what she was? Or did you just not care about the fact that you were taking a schoolyard bully and making her basically untouchable?"
"Once we discovered proof of her activities, we took appropriate action," Armsmaster said. "We have also drafted a legal settlement that would provide you with a very generous compensation package."
"Well in that case, I guess everything's forgiven," Taylor said wryly. "I'm not taking any deal. Not that I could. You see-" she leaned forward, continuing in a loud stage whisper- "there is nobody helping me. I work alone."
"You expect me to believe that you wrote all this yourself?" Armsmaster tapped the pile of papers.
"'Gallia est omnis divisa in partes tres, quarum unam incolunt Belgae, aliam Aquitani, tertiam qui ipsorum lingua Celtae, nostra Galli appellantur. Hi omnes lingua, institutis, legibus inter se differunt.'" Taylor said.
She smirked at Armsmaster. Robin stared.
"What?" Miss Militia asked.
"That's the beginning of the Commentaries on the Gallic Wars," Robin said. "Uh, by Julius Caesar. In Latin."
"No?" Taylor asked. "What about 'mēnin aeide thea ēlēiadeō Akhilēos oulomenēn, hē muri' Akhaiois alge' ethēke'- or if you don't like that; 'Hwæt! wē Gār-Dena in gēar-dagum þēod-cyninga þrym gefrūnon, hū ðā æþelingas ellen fremedon.'"
"Beowulf," Robin muttered. "And- Akhileos, that's Achilles, so presumably the Iliad."
"You see?" Panopticon said urgently. "That's not- that's not normal."
"I'm starting to think he has a point," Robin agreed.
"You have to let me talk to her," Panopticon said. "Let me talk to her now."
"Panopticon, you're the one who wanted us to see 'what she was like'," Miss Militia- Hannah- said. "You agreed with Armsmaster that the best way to do that was to let him speak to her."
"He promised me he could get her to take the deal," Panopticon said. "Doesn't really look like he can deliver, does it? Or maybe he cares more about being the one to bring her in than he does about keeping his word."
"That's not fair," Miss Militia said. Panopticon just scoffed.
"Nobody's helping me," Taylor was saying. "And I'm absolutely not going to be joining the Wards."
"You'd prefer prison?" Armsmaster said. "I am trying to help you, but you need to work with me if you want to avoid spending the next few decades locked away in a secure facility."
"There's no prison you can build that can hold me," Taylor said.
"You'd be amazed at how many current occupants of the Birdcage have made similar claims," Armsmaster said. "None of them have escaped yet."
"Son of a bitch!" Panopticon snapped, bolting for the door.
"Incrementum ex Certamine," Taylor said, with a crooked smile.
"Stop!" Miss Militia called, but he was already pulling it open. She followed him, throwing Robin a glare as she ran past. He shrugged. He didn't exactly feel good about they way they'd captured Taylor Hebert, with Hookwolf right there, but orders were orders- and anyway they'd only gotten the chance because Panopticon had seen the E88 raid coming in time. So as far as he was concerned, if Panopticon wanted this stopped, there were multiple very good reasons why Robin shouldn't get in the way of that.
Speaking of which-
"This is over!" Panopticon burst into the interrogation room, causing both the inhabitants to abruptly turn to look at him.
"Panopticon-" Armsmaster protested, rising from his chair.
"No," Panopticon said. "You just threatened my daughter with the Birdcage, which means that this interview is over. Get out. And don't come back until you've gotten us a lawyer."
Armsmaster stared silently at him for a moment, and then stomped out of the room, Panopticon- Danny Hebert- barely moving aside to let him pass. He stood there, fists clenching and un-clenching for a moment, before moving to the table and taking Armsmaster's chair.
"Hi, dad," Taylor said.
"Taylor," Danny said, and then stopped, looking like he was at a complete loss for words.
"When did it happen?" Taylor asked, softly. "When I...?"
"Yes," Danny said, looking down at the scattered papers in front of him.
"I'm sorry," Taylor said. "I didn't mean... I was just angry. I didn't want... this."
"I know," Danny said. "I just- seeing you walk out that door... I knew that I had failed you. That I was never going to see you again, and I- well-"
"And then you joined the Protectorate," Taylor said, shaking her head in amazement.
"I had to find you," Danny replied, leaning forward and sliding his hand across the table toward Taylor. Robin winced- the raw emotion on the man's face in that moment made him feel... not great, to be spying on this moment.
Armsmaster and Miss Militia, who had both walked back into the room, didn't seem to notice.
For a moment, neither spoke. But Taylor didn't take her father's hand.
"You shouldn't let them call you that," Taylor said, with a sort of forced lightness in her voice. "The Panopticon was a design for a prison, dad. It's not a good name."
"I'll make them change it," Danny said, slumping back in his chair. "Taylor-"
"I'm not joining the Wards," Taylor said.
"Taylor, you are in real trouble here," Danny said. "Why can't you understand that! You've been arrested! You're a supervillain! And you are being offered a way out- a way out for both of us. You need to take it."
"I can't," Taylor said. "And I don't want to."
"Taylor!"
"Dad, these people don't stand for anything," Taylor said. "Look at how they caught me- by letting Hookwolf- Hookwolf!- run free. They've never done anything to make this city- this world- a better place. They can't. They're not allowed to, and they don't even know it."
"Taylor, you have killed people," Danny said.
"Nazis," Taylor corrected him firmly.
"That doesn't make it legal!" Danny snapped. "If you don't let me help you, you are going to go to prison!"
"I can't be here, dad," Taylor said. "I don't expect you to understand this, but believe me when I tell you that prison would be safer for me than this place. I'm sorry. I'm sorry that I can't be the Taylor that you want me to be- the Taylor you deserve. But this is my life now. There is no going back for me."
"Why are you doing this?" Danny whispered.
"You wouldn't believe me if I told you," Taylor said. She glanced at the mirror- right at Robin. "I think I'd like to go back to my cell now."
"Taylor, we can fix this-" Danny tried.
"We can't," Taylor said. "You can't. I'm sorry. I wish I knew what I could say to help you understand that- to help you find some sort of peace. I love you, dad. I just can't be here."
"Taylor, please."
"Some things are going to happen," Taylor said. "It's not safe for me to tell you what, but just remember that it's okay, and it's not your fault."
"Don't do this," Danny pleaded.
"I don't have any choice," Taylor said. "Don't worry about me going to prison, dad. The truth is, we're all already there."
--
a/n: surprise?
Feel like this one might be a bit controversial, but, uh, yeah.
It may be a bit of an odd choice to have this scene technically be observed from someone else's perspective, but I mostly stand by it.
Anyway, yeah, Danny has powers- perception based powers- QA really wants to watch Taylor because she had a tap into Taylor's mind and saw the first moments of her Awakening and WTF type powers.
And that's the end of Arc 3*
Enjoy!
*almost
edit: this update brought to by: whatever classics I could find on my bookshelf
editedit: forgot to mention, but 'incrementum ex certamine', meaning 'growth through conflict' is the motto of the Hermetic House Tytalus, one of the Order of Hermes' founding houses**- who are very big into the whole 'whatever doesn't kill me makes me stronger' thing.
**Have I really talked about how the Order of Hermes is divided up into various houses based on different philosophies/magical styles etc?Last edited: 23/3/2025 Award ReplyReport208Behold!28/2/2025NewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks 01001110 01010111 01001111 New View contentBehold!impervious to your most powerful magnetic fieldsAward Recipient28/2/2025Add bookmark#427FROM: 66B121T/01001101 "Intelligence Analyst/Supervisor, EarthBet Sector 1.4.3.1.5/WATCHER"
TO: 84B011/01010100 "White Suit/Regional Manager, EarthBet Sector 1.4.3.1.5"
SUBJECT: POTENTIAL REALITY CRIME\REPORT BET-11-04-24-ENE-DELTA-RHO
Sir,
Automated monitoring systems scraping local law enforcement agency "Parahuman Response Team East-North-East" ("PRT-ENE") databases have flagged probable Reality Deviant ("RD") activity.
Report Follows:
POTENTIAL REALITY CRIME DETECTED
*This Report was Automatically Generated : 2011-04-24 19:23:12:56*
ORIGIN: eB\DATASCRAPE\Sector 1.4.3.1.5.2.27\"Brockton Bay"\PRT-ENE CASE FILES
FLAGGED FILES:
PRT-ENE Internal Casefile: "ELEMENTALIST"
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Known Activity\(ALL)
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Suspected_Activities.docx
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Encounters\03-02-2011_LOG.docx
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Journal1.pdf
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Journal2.pdf
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Journal3.pdf
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Interview1.mp4
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Encounters\Cell_3_Security_04/24/2011.mp4
AUTOMATIC ANALYSIS RESULTS...
>ALERT: PROBABLE REALITY DEVIANT
>>KNOWN DEVIANT PRACTICES FLAGGED
>>>SUBJECT GROUP "Order of Hermes" : MATCH
ESCALATING FOR REVIEWClick to expand...
Analysis & Review of available evidence strongly indicates that we are dealing with an active RD, albeit one that the locals have mistakenly classified as a Parahuman 'villain'. Nevertheless, evidence clearly shows that the RD has demonstrated methods and practices that match our records of known Superstitionist cultic organization "Order of Hermes".
Please advise as to desired response action.
--
FROM: 84B011/01010100 "White Suit/Regional Manager, EarthBet Sector 1.4.3.1.5"
TO: 66B1431W/01001101 "Intelligence Analyst/Supervisor, EarthBet Sector 1.4.3.1.5/WATCHER"
SUBJECT: POTENTIAL REALITY CRIME\REPORT BET-11-04-24-ENE-DELTA-RHO
AUTHORIZATION CODE: [X][X][X][X][X][X][X][X][X][X] CONFIRMED
Analysis confirmed.
Creation of a Temporary Field Amalgam is authorized. Contigency 2 Protocol response is authorized, under the following special conditions:
-Field deployment of NWO assets is authorized, within the limits set forth by standard EarthBet Restricted Deployment Protocol.
-Use of Apparatus, Devices, Procedures, and all other Enlightened techniques is authorized, within the limits set forth by standard EarthBet Restricted Deployment Protocol.
-Multi-Convention deployment is not currently authorized.
-Preemptive neutralization of local Tinker-type Parahumans is not currently authorized.
Upon confirmation of Primary Target's RD status, proceed with either Contingency 3, 4 or 1, based on locally assessed probability of success.
**SHOCKWAVE CLAUSE**
Proceed to Contingency 5 Deployment under any of the following conditions:
-Observed Article 3 Violation within operational area (Brockton Bay).
-Hostile Action against field assets by Primary Target resulting in death or injury to field assets.
-Distribution of prescribed data by Primary Target to EarthBet USGOV-Sponsored RD/Parahuman or RD/Parahuman-adjacent organization(s) ("Protectorate" "Parahuman Response Team") or any similar agency.
-Confirmation of Primary Target attempts to recruit/suborn local Protectorate or PRT assets.
-Confirmation of existence of RD cell.
-Confirmation of existence of M or N class RD targets in operational area.
Upon activation of SHOCKWAVE clause, apply the following amendments to operating protocols:
-Lethal force is authorized.
-Standard EarthBet Restricted Deployment Protocol restrictions are rescinded. Full Multi-Convention deployment is authorized. Please see attached files ("Assets\NWO", "Assets\ITX", "Assets\PRO", "Assets\SYN", "Assets\VEN") for details.
-Neutralization of Primary Target is authorized.
-Neutralization of any/all local Parahuman-class RD targets determined to be allied with Primary Target or otherwise interfering with operation is authorized.
-Neutralization of any/all other non-Parahuman-class Reality Deviants discovered in operational area is authorized.
-Unrestricted memory pruning/witness sanitization procedures are authorized.
-Neutraliation of any/all Un-Enlightened targets allied with Primary Target, or as otherwise necessary to complete the operation is authorized.
****
Sterilize all evidence, including all local agency and public records of operation prior to official completion of operation.
Priority One Reminder: Neutralization of any and all Tinker-type Parahumans known to have observed operations of any Apparatus, Enhancement, Device, Procedure, or other Hypertechnological object or similar is mandatory, as is sterilization of any and all associated records.
Message Ends.
So, uhhh, things are about to get real (here come the Men in Black).
So I'm just gonna... explain what's happening, for the non Mage people who may still be reading this. Hopefully you all read some info posts and remember what the Technocracy is.
1-
FROM: 66B121T/01001101 "Intelligence Analyst/Supervisor, EarthBet Sector 1.4.3.1.5/WATCHER"
TO: 84B011/01010100 "White Suit/Regional Manager, EarthBet Sector 1.4.3.1.5"
SUBJECT: POTENTIAL REALITY CRIME\REPORT BET-11-04-24-ENE-DELTA-RHO
IIRC (I wrote this months ago) most of this doesn't mean anything specific, although the Sector 1.4.etc etc was supposed to be like a location code (so like Earth B, North America, USA, New England, Brockton or some such)
Intelligence Analyst/Supervisor and White Suit/Regional Manager are both ranks/positions in the NWO (New World Order), which is part of the dreaded Technocracy.
edit: oh, and Technocrats all get binary and/or hex sequences are permanent identifiers in the Technocratic system, so that's what that's about
2-
Automated monitoring systems scraping local law enforcement agency "Parahuman Response Team East-North-East" ("PRT-ENE") databases have flagged probable Reality Deviant ("RD") activity.
Report Follows:
'Reality Deviant' is what the Technocracy calls non-Technocracy Mages.
3-
POTENTIAL REALITY CRIME DETECTED
*This Report was Automatically Generated : 2011-04-24 19:23:12:56*
ORIGIN: eB\DATASCRAPE\Sector 1.4.3.1.5.2.27\"Brockton Bay"\PRT-ENE CASE FILES
FLAGGED FILES:
PRT-ENE Internal Casefile: "ELEMENTALIST"
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Known Activity\(ALL)
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Suspected_Activities.docx
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Encounters\03-02-2011_LOG.docx
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Journal1.pdf
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Journal2.pdf
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Journal3.pdf
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Evidence\Interview1.mp4
RECORD... PRT-ENE File Elementalist\Encounters\Cell_3_Security_04/24/2011.mp4
AUTOMATIC ANALYSIS RESULTS...
>ALERT: PROBABLE REALITY DEVIANT
>>KNOWN DEVIANT PRACTICES FLAGGED
>>>SUBJECT GROUP "Order of Hermes" : MATCH
ESCALATING FOR REVIEW
So, the Technocracy has programs automatically monitoring (among other things) the PRT computer systems, and one of those programs scanned all their info on Taylor and came to the conclusion that she was an Order of Hermes mage.
4-
Creation of a Temporary Field Amalgam is authorized. Contigency 2 Protocol response is authorized, under the following special conditions:
-Field deployment of NWO assets is authorized, within the limits set forth by standard EarthBet Restricted Deployment Protocol.
-Use of Apparatus, Devices, Procedures, and all other Enlightened techniques is authorized, within the limits set forth by standard EarthBet Restricted Deployment Protocol.
-Multi-Convention deployment is not currently authorized.
-Preemptive neutralization of local Tinker-type Parahumans is not currently authorized.
Upon confirmation of Primary Target's RD status, proceed with either Contingency 3, 4 or 1, based on locally assessed probability of success.
An Amalgam is a group of Technocratic operatives (the equivalent Traditions term would be a Cabal).
Apparatus, Device, Procedure and Enlightened techniques are referring to various types of 'Enlightened Science' (technomagick), basically gadgets and spells.
The Technocracy has various Contingencies for dealing with mages, which are
-Contingency 1: Assassination - just kill the Mage
-Contingency 2: Observation - observe the Mage and find their Sanctum/Chantry
-Contingency 3: Infiltration - try to infiltrate said Sanctum/Chantry/etc
-Contingency 4: Abduction - abduct the Mage, probably for re-education into a loyal Techocracy agent
-Contingecy 5: Known as the 'Shockwave' Contingency, is the 'screw it, kill everything' option, usually involving killer cyborgs
(edit: no, I don't know why they're in this order either)
so, therefor:
5-
**SHOCKWAVE CLAUSE**
Proceed to Contingency 5 Deployment under any of the following conditions:
-Observed Article 3 Violation within operational area (Brockton Bay).
-Hostile Action against field assets by Primary Target resulting in death or injury to field assets.
-Distribution of prescribed data by Primary Target to EarthBet USGOV-Sponsored RD/Parahuman or RD/Parahuman-adjacent organization(s) ("Protectorate" "Parahuman Response Team") or any similar agency.
-Confirmation of Primary Target attempts to recruit/suborn local Protectorate or PRT assets.
-Confirmation of existence of RD cell.
-Confirmation of existence of M or N class RD targets in operational area.
This is the 'Shockwave clause', ie: the circumstances under which the agents hunting Taylor may go to Contingency 5. Primary Target is obviously Taylor. RD stands for Reality Deviant, and M/N class RD would be a Marauder or Nephandus (I feel like the Technocracy maybe would have better terms for this but also I couldn't really find good ones?)
'Article 3' is from the Precepts of Damian, the Technocracy's mission statement, basically, and is the one about not letting people summon weird crap to earth- so an 'observed article 3 violation' is my jargon for 'if you see someone summoning unspeakable horrors' type thing
6-
Upon activation of SHOCKWAVE clause, apply the following amendments to operating protocols:
-Lethal force is authorized.
-Standard EarthBet Restricted Deployment Protocol restrictions are rescinded. Full Multi-Convention deployment is authorized. Please see attached files ("Assets\NWO", "Assets\ITX", "Assets\PRO", "Assets\SYN", "Assets\VEN") for details.
-Neutralization of Primary Target is authorized.
-Neutralization of any/all local Parahuman-class RD targets determined to be allied with Primary Target or otherwise interfering with operation is authorized.
-Neutralization of any/all other non-Parahuman-class Reality Deviants discovered in operational area is authorized.
-Unrestricted memory pruning/witness sanitization procedures are authorized.
-Neutraliation of any/all Un-Enlightened targets allied with Primary Target, or as otherwise necessary to complete the operation is authorized.
****
This is then the new operating procedueres if the Shockwave clause is activated, ie kill all things and potentially get help from the other Conventions (subgroups of the Technocracy- the New World Order/NWO, Iteration X/ITX, Progentors/PRO, Syndicate/SYN, and Void Engineers/VEN). Iteration X is the one with the killer cyborgs.
7-
Priority One Reminder: Neutralization of any and all Tinker-type Parahumans known to have observed operations of any Apparatus, Enhancement, Device, Procedure, or other Hypertechnological object or similar is mandatory, as is sterilization of any and all associated records.
This is the standard reminder to any Technocrat going to Earth Bet: DO NOT LET A TINKER GET THEIR HANDS ON YOUR STUFF. If a Tinker even sees you in action, kill them and get rid of the evidence.
Hopefully this was helpful
enjoy!
edit: lol I literally just realised I had the PRT internal files referring to Decima when the previous update established that they didn't know that she was using that name- that's what I get for not double checking, oops
I sat on the cot in my F-Type Containment Cell, and seethed.
I kept going over it in my head- the circumstances of my capture. The sheer, unbelievable betrayal of it. The fact that the authorities in this place- the so-called 'heroes' of this city- had decided that capturing a murderous super-powered neo-nazi was less important than capturing me.
So much of what I thought I'd gotten past- all my feelings of betrayal, abandonment, and awful, helpless rage against a system that was at best indifferently cruel to my well-being... it all came back.
And it was worse now- as much as it had hurt me at the time, as brutal as Blackwell and every other Winslow teacher's callousness had felt, I now had enough emotional distance from it, if only just, to be able to know that this was so much worse.
They sprayed me with containment foam while I was fighting Hookwolf!
I had come home to save my father- not knowing that he evidently hadn't needed it- and they had turned on me. I knew I was a criminal. I had broken the law. I had done things that were, at best, morally grey. I had taken lives. But this- this wasn't that. Many of my actions had been morally questionable. I knew it. I accepted it. But not this- not trying to save my dad.
And I was being punished for it! Because these people who dared to call themselves heroes had betrayed me and captured me and dared to interrogate me.
The fact that it was easier to think about all the ways in which I wanted to make these people pay than it was to deal with the fact that my father was now one of them- because of me!- was probably not a good sign. Then again, given everything that had happened to me today, and over the past few months, I was probably doing as well as could be expected.
I hoped so, at least.
Introspection aside, I really did need to get out of here. Even if somehow the Technocracy was not present in this reality- a chance I was absolutely not going to take- I still wasn't about to let these people imprison me.
By now, opening my awareness to detect electronic devices around me was so familiar that it bordered on automatic. Practically meditative.
I'd been warned that the cell would flood with foam if I seemed to be trying anything, and my captors, when they had put me in here, had hinted that there were other countermeasures as well.
I had considered simply trying to blast my way out the second I'd woken up- they'd already dissolved the foam on me, not to mention taken my belongings and my clothes, but I had decided that waiting until they'd lowered their guard a little would be better. That, and I'd wanted to find out a bit more about what they knew.
That had been before I'd found out that my father was here. After that, I'd known that I had to stay. I had needed to talk to him, and I didn't regret it, even if it hadn't really gone the way I'd wanted. Not that I actually knew what I'd wanted, there. But what had happened to dad was my fault. I still didn't really know how people gained powers- not really, but it seemed pretty obvious that the event that had triggered it for him had been me, walking out on him.
As guilty and strange as that made me feel, I also had a twinge of regret- regret that I hadn't been close enough to detect it. Regret that I hadn't been able to watch. Ignoring everything else, it was the closest I'd ever been to something like that, and I still did want to know more about the entire process.
That wasn't a very Taylor Hebert thought... but no matter what I did, I could never be just Taylor again. That was over. I just had to hope that I had been able to convince my father of that. But somehow, I didn't think I had. I didn't think there was anything I could say that would.
I thought that he might be chasing after me until he died, or I did.
I didn't know how to help him. All I could do now was help myself.
The walls of this cell were practically buzzing with power to my enhanced senses. I didn't waste any time trying to figure out what any of it did. Instead, I got to work preparing the spells that would get me out of here.
Hopefully these people weren't smart enough to put me in a cell with a purely mechanical trap- that might be harder to detect. But if there was, I would deal with it. The truth was, they had defeated themselves the second they let me regain consciousness. The second they let me think.
They had put me in a cage. They had taken my tools. They were guarding and watching me. But I had my knowledge, and I had my voice, and I had my will, and I would not be imprisoned. Not like this. Not by them.
I began to speak quietly under my breath.
"Stop talking," a slightly static-y voice came over the intercom.
"I'm praying," I lied, not looking up at the camera. "Or do you want to tell my lawyer that you wouldn't even let me pray?"
There was a pause. Out of the same mixture of spite and showmanship that had led me to start reciting various classical texts to Armsmaster's face, I started the Lord's Prayer- in Latin.
"You don't pray," this time it was dad's voice.
"I've never been in PRT jail before," I said. "I'm having all sorts of new experiences these days."
I actually had been raised religious more often than not, although I didn't think that anyone would accept my claims of being 55% Catholic- not to mention that the church itself presumably wouldn't count past lives. Mostly I was just hoping that they wouldn't flood the room with containment foam.
"Taylor, please just talk to me," he tried.
"Pater noster, qui es in cælis," I began again, loudly running through the entire prayer in Latin before crossing myself with a sarcastic flair, talking loudly and ignoring my actual father's other attempt to respond.
I didn't really like doing this too him, but it wasn't like he was letting me out of here either, so he could endure a little irritation.
First task- disarm the countermeasures. But I would have to get them all at once, which meant that this spell would need to be big, and given my current circumstances, that meant that it would take time. And there were a number of spells I still needed to cast, first- like extending my senses across as much of the area as I could.
Speaking a little bit more quietly, this time, and trying not to obviously move my lips, I began my spell again. Slowly- excruciatingly slowly, when I was constantly expecting the door to my cell to slide open and reveal a man in a dark suit and mirrored sunglasses- I murmured phrase after Enochian phrase.
Enochian wasn't enough, on its own, not working like this- without tools. I needed implements! Even being able to draw a sigil would have helped. But I did not- would not- could not give up. All of my spells were ultimately driven by the power of my will. If I didn't have the tools, I would have to apply more power.
Finally, over two hours later, I was ready. I whispered the last few words of Enochian, and my spell was finished. And suddenly all of the electronic devices concealed in the walls of my cell lost power- including the cameras, and whatever else they were using to monitor me, which meant that I was now on the clock.
But all of that power had to go somewhere. Specifically, now, it had to go into the door's locking mechanisms, drawn there by the intricate work of my spell, as the energies were moved, transformed, and channeled into the wall, surrounding the door- in the form of heat.
I raised a hand to shield my eyes as the wall outlining the door to my cell began to glow red- I could feel the heat radiating off of it, smell the burning plastic from inside the wall.
My next spell, in contrast to the intricate and complex work I had just done, was sloppy, crude, even brutal- a raw blast of frigid air (and kinetic force) that smashed the now weakened door loose from its frame and into the hallway, leaping over the melted spot.
Thanks to my sensory range-expanding spell, I already knew where the nearest stairwell was, and I sprinted towards it. The hallway was lined with identical cell doors, and there didn't seem to be anything else on this level, so all I could do was charge around the corner ahead of me, and I'd have a straight shot to the emergency stairs.
I felt the elevator descending. Felt Parahumans and non-Parahumans inside.
I turned the corner- the door was in sight. I hit it hard, casting another spell on the run that smashed into it with a blast of kinetic force, and I was running up the stairs. I wasn't sure what basement level I was on, but I just needed to get above ground- I needed a window, or even an exterior wall.
Alarms were sounding as I sprinted up the stairs, breathing raggedly as I fought to keep running- I needed to exercise better; I should have taken up jogging weeks ago- until I saw the sign for the ground floor. Panting, I hauled myself up the stairs, pausing to take a few deep breaths, before shakily chanting another spell to blast this door open. I took three steps into the hallway and skidded to a halt, slipping and falling- Armsmaster was coming for me, I could sense his suit as he charged through the hall toward me. I looked around frantically- a door! I blasted it open as I hauled myself to my feet and staggered into the office, looking around for a window- there!
I hurled a spell at it- alarmingly weak, probably due to the fact that I was gasping for breath as I tried to cast, and the glass shattered and blew out, and I practically hurled myself through, tumbling to the ground in an alley outside of the PRT building. Cool night air hit me like a slap in the face, reinvigorating me somewhat, and I pulled myself to my feet.
One last spell, and I was gone- hurling into the night sky in barely controlled flight.
I was free.
And right now, all I wanted to do was go home and sleep.
---
a/n: this chapter kicked my ass, and I'm still not really happy with it, but I wanted to just push through the writer's block and get something out.
Hopefully, Taylor smashing her way out of the PRT building doesn't feel too easy, but I felt like they were a) unprepared to contain her and b) kind of counting on the idea that between Armsmaster and her dad, she would flip and join up. IDK, ymmv, etc.
Ideally, it will not be a month until the next update.
I was exhausted- physically, mentally, emotionally, maybe even spiritually. I wanted nothing more than to collapse into a bed and sleep for the next ten to fifteen hours. Too much had happened, and even though I'd successfully escaped custody, I still felt defeated.
A part of my life had just come to an end. A threshold had been crossed. There was no going back.
First, though, I needed to look to my defenses.
The PRT had confiscated everything, down to my clothes. Which meant that I had just lost most of the tools I had spent so much time and effort gathering. Bad. But not crippling. When I arrived home, I had had a moment of terror when I realized that I didn't have my keys with me- I had no idea how the PRT or anyone might go about tracing them to this place, but I wouldn't put it past them. Between that, and my sheer tiredness, it took me three tries to correctly cast a simple spell that would flip the latch on one of the windows so that I could open it from the outside and climb in, but I finally managed it, at the cost of a splitting headache on top of everything else.
Thankfully, both my keys and my wallet were lying on the side table by the front door- I had run out of the house so fast that I'd simply forgotten to grab either, just as I had dropped the burner phone that Tattletale had called me on, leaving it lying broken in the hallway, the screen badly cracked.
Had I been carrying anything else that could lead them to this place? I didn't think so, but I wasn't sure. Nor had I sensed anything on me that would have let them track my location.
Did that mean I was safe?
Trying to shake off my exhaustion, I staggered down to my basement/ritual space. Even if the loss of my best tools made it only a marginal improvement over just working in my living room, it was still at least something.
Gritting my teeth, I managed another spell- by sheer force of will, as much as anything else.
I was so tired.
But I couldn't detect any Parahumans anywhere near me. It wasn't enough- but it was what I could do, now.
Maybe they were coming for me. Right now, I needed to sleep.
I staggered upstairs, pulled off my clothes, crawled into bed and slept for the next nine hours.
I woke up the next day, and the PRT hadn't stormed my house, which was at least something.
The first thing that I did- after eating, showering, cramming everything I'd been wearing into the laundry, and so on- was get a new phone. I'd bought a number of burners, so it was just a matter of unboxing and charging, and then the slightly more annoying task of re-entering numbers from memory.
I texted Tattletale, thanking her for her warning- it wasn't her fault that it had all gone wrong- and letting her know that I was not in jail. She didn't seem to think that the PRT had tracked me, but I didn't tell her about my dad. Although, given that she seemed to have inherited at least some of Coil's agents in the PRT, it was likely that she actually knew already. Either way, it wasn't any of her business.
That done, I sat down and started trying to make plans.
It was difficult. I was frustrated. It felt like I was experiencing setback after setback. I still hadn't even found a cray, like I'd been meaning to for what felt like years. Events were outpacing me. I needed to regain the initiative here.
That said, my first priority would have to be yet more study- specifically focusing my attention on the Ars Materiae, which I had previously neglected. But I was going to need those skills, both to bolster my own protections and also to recover my tools from the PRT.
Another priority, obviously, was Kaiser. Max Anders. I had a debt to pay there- more than one.
He had sent his men to my house. To my father's house!
Victor, as well. I still didn't know exactly what his powers were, or what he had been trying to do, but I was certain that he was the one who had attempted to invade my mind. Just the thought of it filled me with equal parts fury and terror, to the point that I had to work to prevent myself from reliving the experience of feeling his attack smash into my mental defenses.
That would have to be answered, and soon.
But perhaps I had grown, a little, over these past months. As tempting as it was to charge forth and renew my war on the Empire... I needed to rest. To prepare. To study, and to recover my implements.
And so, I retrieved a fresh notebook, and went down to my basement, and began the arduous process of prying the necessary spells from the shifting chaos of my memories.
--
a/n: Short update this time, which I feel a little bad about after a long hiatus- as I mentioned in the thread, I was ill for about a month- but a) I do think that Taylor/the story needs to take a breath here, rather than running out to do more; and more importantly b) I just wanted to start to regain some momentum on actually writing this- I've found that sometimes for me it's better to post something short than struggle to write something long, if that makes sense.
Anyway, yeah, not much to say about it. Taylor resolves here to start studying the Matter sphere, because having Matter 2 would let her fix spells to objects, as well as combine with Correspondence to allow her to teleport objects (ie: recover all of her possessions from the PRT), both of which are incredibly useful to her right now.
Anyway, yeah, enjoy and also apologies for the very brief update. Award ReplyReport172Behold!23/5/2025NewAdd bookmarkView discussionThreadmarks Adept 4.3 New View contentBehold!impervious to your most powerful magnetic fieldsAward Recipient22/7/2025 Awarded ×1Add bookmark#575My next few days- weeks- passed in a frenzy of exhausting research. If that was the correct term for the now-familiar effort of trying to cudgel enough details from my kaleidoscope of memories to be able to formulate a coherent mystical praxis.
It was something I'd become all-too familiar with, and it certainly wasn't getting any less frustrating. The experience of having memory without knowledge was almost horrific- to know, to remember that I had once been capable of something, but to be unable to remember how to replicate it now. It felt like madness. More than once, I found myself wondering if my entire Awakened experience had been a prolonged period of Quiet. Because nothing helped the mind focus like a healthy dose of existential terror.
Slowly, painstakingly, I pulled the details of the Ars Materiae from my own mind, or at least the parts that I urgently needed, though it was difficult to only recover exactly what I needed and nothing else. I ended up filling several notebooks full of alchemical theory, which I had no intention whatsoever of pursuing any time soon- simply far too much effort to set up the lab and source supplies.
All of that effort, and in the end I failed.
At least in my primary goal of attempting to recover all the things that the PRT had taken from me- my tools especially.
The spells involved were fairly simple variations on the techniques I had used on Coil, but with the added complication of translocating a physical object, rather than energy. Similar- but different.
But when I was finally ready, and began casting the spell to locate my wand so that I could retrieve it, the spell failed. As if the wand no longer existed- or as if it was no longer where I could access it.
Which meant one of three things: either the spell had simply not been powerful enough, the wand was somewhere beyond the spell's reach, or something had blocked it.
And I knew what that meant. What it had to mean.
They were here. The Technocracy had come for me.
Even if I technically couldn't rule out the idea that the PRT had somehow foiled my spell- I still knew so little about Parahumans and what they could do, that it was hard to say what was possible- I still had to prepare for the worst.
My first thought was to run. I was alone against an incredibly powerful adversary- one that had already defeated me, in more than one past life. One that knew what I was, knew my tricks and methods. Knew very, very well how to kill Hermetics. They'd been winning those fights for centuries.
Two things stopped me. One was the fact that I had nowhere to go. I'd lived in this city my entire life. I had no allies to turn to, no House to help me relocate, no Chantry I could join.
On the other hand, I had to face the fact that I had essentially nothing left here. Was this house worth staying for? Were the Undersiders? The idea was absurd. Nothing was keeping me here- nothing. Not now.
But I'd have even less if I left. A new city would be full of unknowns- I couldn't pretend that my past-life memories would be any help there. Not in this world of Parahumans.
The second reason followed from that- this was a Parahuman world, not a Technocratic one- the sheer existence of Tinkers was more than evidence enough that the Technocracy's grip on the Consensus had slipped. This was an entirely new battlefield. A world almost entirely without the scourge of Paradox.
We hadn't had it this good since- honestly, even my memories didn't really go that far back.
This was a chance to stand and fight. Not just for the sake of spitting in the eye of my most hated enemy, but also because that meant a chance to actually get some information. If the Technocracy was here on Earth Bet, then they had to know what or where Bet was. And that could mean-
I might actually have a chance go home.
I had barely let myself think about the possibility that the world I remembered- the world of the Order, and the Traditions- might be out there, somewhere. That I could find my way back to it- see Doissetep again, for the first time- and Horizon. Find out what had happened on Mus- visions of the Fors Collegis Mercuris in flames were still a regular feature in my nightmares.
There might even be people, alive, who had known me before.
I had been so alone.
That was worth fighting for.
Blindly hurling myself into the Umbra in some mad search had seemed too suicidal to contemplate, especially as I was. I would need to study and prepare far more before I was willing to try that. But if the Technocracy was moving to and from Earth Bet... that opened up a lot of possibilities.
And it would feel good to stand and fight.
I had my pride, after all.
My first priority was obviously to prepare my defenses, starting with establishing proper wards surrounding my house, something that took an irritating amount of time- mostly finding places to carve the appropriate symbols. Still obviously worth it, even if the results were still inferior to the protections of really any Chantry, and would have to be renewed in mere months.
My other major project was trying to locate Victor. Unfortunately, my extremely brief encounter with him- in a mask, no less- wasn't doing me any favors there, especially working without my usual tools, all of which made the process of finding him much slower and more frustrating than it could have been, especially since I was still spying on Kaiser during that time.
Lastly, of course, I was also working to try to acquire or create new tools- a new wand, if nothing else. Once again, it felt like for every step I took forward, I was knocked two steps back. But I wasn't about to give up. I'd walked harder roads than this.
And, finally, my spying on Kaiser paid off. I was watching him one night, not expecting anything interesting to happen, but just because I'd become fed up with my slow progress at my various other tasks. I also didn't like to watch him at home, as it usually meant seeing too much of him either psychologically brutalizing his son, or- ugh- carrying on with one or both of the Valkyrie twins. Not things I wanted to see.
But this evening, he was simply relaxing with a drink in his study, making various work- as in Medhall- related phone calls... until finally, he finished with that business, and made one final call- to 'James'- aka Krieg. Ordering him to set up a rally, later in the week. Kaiser would be addressing his empire.
And that gave me so many ideas.
The next morning I got a call from Tattletale.
"Hey, boss," she said, chirpily. I grunted. "So, you know how Coil had a bunch of moles in the PRT? So, reading between the lines, it seems like Armsmaster is feeling pretty humiliated at how easily you smashed your way out of there the other night- kudos, by the way- and he wants a big win. And he's also been working on this super-tranquilizer that he thinks might be able to knock out Lung, if he doses him quickly enough. So I was thinking maybe we could, y'know, quietly help him make that happen. Coil also had moles in the ABB, after all. But only if you don't have some other plan for Lung- or Armsmaster, I guess."
"No," I said. "No plans. Actually, that sounds... very useful. Go for it. But know that I might not be available to help you if you get into an actual fight with Lung, or anyone else, in the next few days. I've got some other business I need to deal with."
"Ooh, mysterious," Tattletale teased. "Good luck with Kaiser, then." She paused, and when she continued the mocking edge in her voice was gone. "And... I'm guessing you don't want to talk- not to me- about the whole... 'Panopticon' thing, but-"
"I don't," I said, hearing her sigh as I ended the call. I had way to much to deal with right now to even think about thinking about that.
Like finally bringing down the Empire, once and for all.
--
a/n: I aten't dead
So, if you're reading this and thinking 'this should probably have been the second half of 4.2', you're probably right.
Likewise, if you're thinking 'this is a bit nothing, given how long it's been since the last update', you're also probably right.
mea culpa, life, etc
but I hope you enjoy it anyway
(I'd like to promise that updates will be regular-ish now, but I feel like that's just asking for trouble- though it is my intention, at least)
edit: so when I was writing this for some reason I had it in my brain that in order to establish a Correspondence 2 'protect against scrying' ward on her house, she would want/need Matter 2 to 'lock' the ward in place, but now I think I was misremembering something about traveling wards. I'll try to remember what I was doing there (I wrote part of this, uh, some weeks ago) and maybe change it mildly later.
edit2: can't sleep, describing things:
the Ars Materiae is the Matter Sphere, which she now has at 2