* Taylor *
It had been a week, and now it was back to school after the suspension.
She hadn't been quite sure what to expect after the fight.
Nods and a lack of commentary were weird but welcome. Weirdly welcome? Welcomely weird?
Emma and Madison were nowhere to be seen, which was another way in which the morning was progressing a weird but pleasant way.
There was some residual ache in the joints, and she had the feeling she'd forgotten something. That was the annoying part - the feeling that you'd forgotten something nibbling away at you.
"Well well well, finally showed your true colors as a violent thug," said Julia, flanked by two girls Taylor couldn't recall the names of. Call them Frick and Frack for now, she decided.
"Hey, I'm talking to you!" said Julia as Taylor simply walked past.
Taylor just made a gesture as if there was some bug flitting about her ear. Were they really trying to physically intimidate her when she was four inches taller and in the best shape of her life?
"With that stick figure and that putrid face, you'd think she would just stay away," said Frack.
"Miss Danvers, Miss Oscar, Miss Meyers, Principal's Office."
Taylor blinked and half-turned to see who the adult in the hall was. Someone she didn't recognize.
"B-b-but, Mister Ermey!" began Julia, backing the hell off as if a venomous snake had just popped up instead of a severe-looking older guy.
"Are you backchatting me, Miss Danvers?" asked Mister Ermey, showing his teeth in a manner that only someone completely lacking in social awareness would call a smile.
"N-no-no sir?" asked Julia.
"Carry on, Miss Hebert," said Mister Ermey with a nod before returning his attention entirely to the three girls in front of him. "Was that a question, Miss Danvers? Do we need to schedule a hearing check with the school nurse? Hmmmm?"
Taylor took the hint for what it was and continued on, though she heard a lot of mumbling coming from the Replacement Trio before she turned a corner.
Interesting.
* Several Days Ago *
He'd had the worst day of his life. In a life where Worst Days were common enough that you could almost call them Tuesdays.
He'd spent years as a soldier in some of the worst battles since the advent of parahumans. Years being dropped into some of the worst hellholes this world could offer.
Then he'd become a Marine Drill Sergeant and it was his job to turn weak little pukes into Marines ready to take on jobs that would grind lesser men and women into a fine red paste.
Ronald Lee Ermey had been a little puke and troublemaker growing up, so he knew damn well what these kids were like - he'd been there himself after all. He'd gone through years of service until a medical retirement, but once a Marine always a Marine.
It had been a weird road since then. Running a bar (and brothel) in Okinawa until the local cops got antsy. Time in the Philipines until after the disruption caused by Leviathan. Back to the States and finding work as a PE Teacher and then Assistant Principal. Now he was here dealing with this crapfest.
Having been hired in the fallout of the mass firing and legal sh*tstorm going on, he felt that this place would actually provide a bit of a challenge before he finally hit retirement. Certainly the pay was better than his last stint as Assistant Principal, but they hired him to help clean up this mess so it pretty much had to be.
* Present *
Physical Education was normally something the PE Teacher could sit back and watch, understandable when they were tasked with watching over eight hours of students exercising.
This was apparently no longer the case.
Mister Tull looked both tired and as if he had all of one nerve left before he snapped.
When Beatrice tried to bodycheck Taylor during track, that nerve snapped.
Taylor, along with the rest of the class, watched as Mister Tull used just a few words and sheer presence to turn Beatrice Strauss into a sobbing wreck. Who was then sent to the showers to go clean up before her next class.
When Mister Tull turned his attention to the rest of the class, they practically leapt to continue running laps.
While most of them, Taylor and two others just being sweaty, were gasping for air, Mister Tull looked them all over with a cold gaze.
"There is a zero bullying policy in place now since Cynthia Blackwell was removed. None. Nada. Except for Miss Hebert you have all heard this over the past week, repeatedly. Miss Hebert, you are now aware of this change of policy. So no getting revenge on anyone for past wrongs. Those of you who seek to continue bullying some of your classmates keep in mind that we take this all damn seriously and WILL investigate. And if you want to take it out on Miss Hebert after school and off school grounds keep in mind that she's still standing and freaking lapped most of you! Miss Hebert, if you want to apply for the track team - we have openings."
Taylor nodded and mumbled an acknowledgement as she wasn't used to being in the spotlight much and her newfound confidence faltered momentarily.
Going into the shower, Taylor was aware of herself being scrutinized. Also aware of something else.
Everyone was getting out of her way, more so than ever. She wondered how much of this was because of Mister Tull's speech.
Whatever. Not having to deal with the usual level of high school abuse wasn't something she was going to worry about.
* Rianna Malkov *
She was big and Romanian, outweighing her fellow students by half-again. She was positioning herself to be the new Queen of the school with the fall of the Trio.
Rianna had thought the three were connected but hadn't been able to figure out what that connection was. Sophia the physical brute and enforcer. Madison the rumor-monger and hanger-on. Emma the leader and the one most worthy of respect as she had a proper appreciation of viciousness and how to play this game. The right word in the right place and a connection of some kind to an authority - this was how it was done. Let the Secret Police and monitors vanish your enemies for you.
Now she was pretty sure that the one with the connection had been Sophia Hess. Not a track team star who had no compunction against tripping or sabotaging her competition. No, she'd been a cape - turning to that shadow to escape being pinned by the Hebert worm. Not E88 due to skin color, not ABB for the same reason. Coil or Merchants? Maybe. Power matched the online information of the one called Shadow Stalker so that was most likely. It didn't matter as she was out of the game. Obviously she did not understand you kept your most dangerous weapon hidden away for when you needed it. The hidden weapon was kept hidden so that your enemies would not be prepared for it.
Rianna had gone back to watching and figuring out what buttons to push, what leverage to make and use.
Now, in the shower, she and the others were watching the stick. Taylor Hebert. Who was not quite a stick anymore.
"Steroids you think?" whisper-asked one of the nearby girls.
"No," muttered another.
Rianna almost snorted. Silly children. The Hebert girl showering nearby was merely showing some muscular development and was obviously learning to fight. Good. World was a harsh place and you had to claw and bite and fight to have a place in it. Hebert had been worm, but had learned. You had to adapt, was lesson of life.
Gymnast build. Not weightlifter. Not cape who could go from scrawny to muscled overnight. Not drug-induced, Rianna used a few periodically herself and knew what to look for.
No, if she found herself facing Hebert she would not go for a physical beatdown despite being almost four times the former-stick's size. She could still be attacked by, for example, planting drugs in her clothing. Going to one of the gang recruiters and voicing her concern that the Hebert girl was connected to one of the other gangs. Lots of ways to strike her down and Rianna was pretty sure she could do it without tipping off her own involvement to the girl in question. Reputation, planting evidence for law or gangs to come down on her, psychological attacks? Possible though first and third options had already been used by previous Queen of the school.
It might not be needed though. There were other paths to power without involving Hebert at all. So she merely nodded at the girl, skinny little thing that she still was, and got her own shower.
Nobody bothered her, with the physique of a proud Romanian survivor. Well, at least they never bothered her TWICE.
No, no need to go after Hebert. Emma Barnes, Sophia Hess, Madison Clements? Yes, those were valid targets. They had proven themselves not so invulnerable and toppling them from their position advanced her own.
Rianna Malkov smiled to herself as she finished her shower. Yes, those three were entirely valid targets.
* EDF Ceres Base *
"We've gotten the object. It's a repurposed torpedo from Yamato. We're going over the data."
Chief Admiral Nogura visibly perked up. "She survived?"
"Apparently if you reach the bottom of the Dimensional Sea, you can end up outside our own universe and into another," said Lieutenant Suzuki Kodai. "We're going over the data, but the top section there was flagged as high importance."
Chief Admiral Nogura took the tablet and quickly read the relevant sections. "I see. Interesting. Continue investigations of this data, I'll want to be informed as soon as we have solid data and feasibility of this. Bring the Gamilons in on this, they are the experts on building vessels to survive in that environment."
* Earth Bet *
Danny let himself into his house, moving through the familiar routine as he passed the unfamiliar cylinder and headed for the kitchen.
He was already opening a cabinet door when he stopped and turned to stare at the unfamiliar device.
There was a hum and a click and there was suddenly a woman in the cylinder, wearing a uniform that looked fairly nautical. Older than he was by perhaps a decade.
"Hologram?" asked Danny Hebert.
"Precisely," agreed the woman, snapping off a quick salute.
"Yamato?" asked Danny.
"Indeed," said Yamato.
"You're an artificial intelligence," said Danny. "I thought you were going to use a TV avatar."
"Plans change," admitted Yamato.
* PRT ENE HQ *
"Latoya Hess. Youngest sister of Sophia Hess. Tentative rating of Mover 4. Primary ability is a short-range teleport where she has to see the destination and it has to be within 100ft. Sound effect caused by air being displaced at both ends, sort of a clap-boom. As she is eight years old, it is suggested that she join the Wards at the new location her family is being relocated to - which is the Atlanta PRT area. Secondary abilities noted were a stealth ability activated while in shadow that causes her to blend in with the background, and the ability to stick to walls. So, Stranger-2 and the Mover-4 rating I just mentioned. She chose the name Shadowheart when she was initially given the name Nightcrawler - stated she thought that sounded like something you used as bait when fishing."
"She already sounds more well-adjusted than Shadow Stalker," offered Assault.
"She's eight. She's mostly interested in a quiet place to do her homework and financial aid for her family."
"She already sounds a lot more well-adjusted than Shadow Stalker," concluded Assault.
Director Piggot took a sip of her coffee, made a face, then stuck it in a Tinkertech recycling bin. "Well, that's Atlanta's gain then. Shadow Stalker and her family stopped being our problem and we'll just have to deal with local issues."
Armsmaster looked up from where he'd been tapping on a tablet. "Word from New York and Boston branches. Two capes unaccounted for from their own jurisdiction and to keep an eye out for. Voltess from Boston, electrokinetic. Black female, age 23, 5'4", thin build. Independent hero. Breaker 3, Blaster 3, Mover 3. Power is ability to tap into and redirect existing electrical fields and transform into 'living lightning' for brief periods. Last appearance was Tuesday when she met with PRT forces to coordinate with a sting operation. Reported over the radio that she saw something and was investigating five minutes after beginning the operation. Was very reliable prior to disappearance."
"So, possibly dead or captured by villains," said Director Piggot. "Have her likeness and equipment details passed around in case a patrol gets any leads. The New York one?"
Armsmaster swiped left on his tablet to bring up the details. "Bing Bang. Minor villain but one of those with a code of honor and noted for showing up for the last Endbringer attack despite his age. Hispanic male, age 12. 5'5", extremely thin. Blaster 3 - can sing a short-range sonic attack that damages material in accordance with their density. The more dense and inflexible the material - the greater the damage. Was running from PRT forces when they heard him scream after ducking into an alley. PRT found one of his shoes, no other trace of individual."
Director Piggot raised an eyebrow. "So, something or someone got him?"
"That was the conclusion at the time," agreed Armsmaster. "Analysis of the audio record indicates that Bing Bang was terrified and prior analysis of behavior indicated that the villain was not likely to have staged this himself. Prior thefts were all food related, and costume being mostly Dollar Store materials indicate villain was likely living on the streets and trying to support himself. PRT orders were to apprehend and attempt recruitment/rebranding."
"That the two were that close in build and height might indicate a pattern," pointed out Miss Militia.
"Short and thin isn't much of a pattern to go by," pointed out Assault. "Also: Independents vanish all the time."
"That brings us to this," said Armsmaster, pressing something on his tablet. "On the 4th the events with Shadow Stalker outing herself. Her victim was seen as a potential Trigger and Stalker proclaimed her a cape during their altercation."
"It's been a little over a week," noted Director Piggot. "Any indication she's a parahuman?"
Armsmaster hesitated slightly, then nodded. "Analysis of physical performance on morning runs has shown a curve outside what was expected. At first, it was a jog of one-half mile. It became a full run of one mile three days in. At this point she is faster than three-quarters of our troopers and showing faster recovery and stamina than the same group."
There was a pop as Assault stretched out in his seated position. "So, her cape power is assumed to be physical improvement?"
"One of the new teachers at Winslow is a retired agent. Alice Murphy. Her reports on the student body seems to indicate a dozen potential Trigger Events a week. She flagged Hebert as showing signs of accelerated physical development," said Armsmaster. "Accelerated healing without full regeneration was her conclusion. Brute 0. Of more interest was that she was flagged as a potential Tinker."
"Explain," directed Director Piggot.
"Purchases of such things as a soldering rod, electronics parts, and various tools at the Lord's Market. Such activities are monitored by ourselves and the major gangs as these are normal signs of a new Tinker." Armsmaster frowned at something on his tablet.
"Something wrong?" asked Director Piggot.
"This level of monitoring is highly irregular and certainly skirts the issue of the Unwritten Rules if not violates it directly," noted Armsmaster. "Dragon has registered a protest, and I admit I'm not entirely comfortable with it myself."
"Have to admit, I'm with Armsy on this," agreed Assault. "Why this level of spycraft? Not that there isn't a fair amount of this anyway."
"This does not leave this room," said Director Piggot. When the others all finished agreeing, she continued. "Word up from the Chief Director's office. SOMETHING lit a fire under them. They've been asking about any fresh triggers, and stressed this is a high priority that the ThinkTank has gotten stirred up about. Something about 'battleship gray' and a 'bright light burning away all before it' and 'big guns and bigger guts' but you know what precogs are like. Vague at the best of times."
"Still strikes me as odd and potentially dangerous if the level of scrutiny becomes known," said Armsmaster.
"If her power is 'accelerated self-improvement' then it makes even less sense," noted Battery. "She'll hit physical limits without some other power. Do we at least have a tentative codename to hide this under?"
Director Piggot nodded. "One of the things coming out of the ThinkTank actually. Codename of the Hebert girl will be 'Harmony' until we get a better name. We'll also need to keep an eye out for other fresh triggers as Harmony might be a red herring and it is someone else in this geographic area that is the actual one we're looking for."
* Taylor *
"What is THAT?" asked Danny Hebert.
"It's an exo-suit. Looks kind of 'Bubblegum Crisis' to be honest," said the mechanical woman, pointing at the various lines. "This is her flight pack. Anti-grav boosted by thrusters, the wing-shapes extend for maneuverability and stability. The helmet has a full head's up display of course. It's based on an old Special Forces armored space suit that has full environmental coverage with some self-repair capability. Of course, there's also some stealth functions but that can be knocked offline pretty easily so don't count on it if you enter combat."
"Okay," said Danny Hebert. "How about I change the question. Who are you?"
"Oh, I'm Yamato. This is a basic female-shaped automata," said the smooth-metal-skinned and featureless mannequin. "Easiest way to interact other than holograms is operating something like this remotely. It'll do while I work on a better model."
"What's 'Bubblegum Crisis'?" asked Taylor.
"A very very old series that was rebooted two or three times including once by the Gamilon," said Yamato. "You wanted something that looked suitably heroic and so I looked through TV series and other source materials for something with an appropriate appearance. I liked the 2305 reboot, Hood had a part in that one."
"Red white and blue?" asked Taylor.
"My data on the old American Empire indicated a preference for that sort of color scheme amongst its heroic fictional characters. Was I wrong?" Yamato co*cked her head in a curious fashion.
"There's no room for my hair," noted Taylor.
"You'll have to pin it up," said Yamato. "This armor also requires a skinsuit worn underneath, but it has the advantage that you can swap loadouts very quickly for different missions. There are modular hookups here in the shoulders and along the back."
"This isn't like the armor I saw in that training bay," noted Taylor.
"Of course not. That's full space combat armor," said Yamato. "You'd land on a roof in one of those and leave craters behind. Likewise, we couldn't field the crab-walker except in a major firefight without collateral damage."
"A 'crab'?" asked Danny.
"Search & Rescue vehicle added to fleet vehicles in 2317," answered Yamato. "Also used extensively as a deep-space repair vehicle. Modular approach to trade out for various functions."
"You make use of modular parts a lot," noted Danny.
"Human technology tends to make one machine to do one type of thing," explained Yamato. "Space-based societies go through a modular phase, due to resource management. One engine with a co*ckpit and environmental support which can be used for a variety of tasks by swapping things out. Then, when the resource bottleneck is solved, they either continue that approach or return to specialized equipment."
"And one of the extraterrestrial races your Earth contacted was in that phase?" asked Danny, checking one of the swappable arm connections.
"Yes, and they are very very good at it," said Yamato, smiling a bit. "It was nice to both run into a non-humanoid race and to have a First Contact that didn't involve anyone shooting anyone else."
"I'd imagine so... 'non-humanoid'?" asked Danny, curious.
"Molluscoids," answered Yamato. "Planet has shallow oceans, extensive swamps."
"Ah," said Danny. "First chance you get, you need to upgrade your appearance."
"Yes, before I go to this 'Power Motor Approval' place, I need to manufacture a remote drone more in keeping with human aesthetics," admitted Yamato.
"That used car place on Power Road?" asked Danny.
"Upgrading an existing vehicle is a lot easier than building from scratch," said Yamato. "I've seen what you've got parked in the driveway."
"Well, it's a bit battered and old..." hedged Danny.
"If by that you mean 'ready to fall apart in a strong wind' or 'a few potholes away from leaving a trail of parts behind you' then I would certainly agree," said Yamato.
"Why can't you just upgrade my truck?" asked Danny.
"Because you need something to drive in the meantime," said Yamato. "Back to Taylor's exo-suit."
"Maybe my hair could go into one of those pockets?" asked Taylor.
"People are always leaving hair behind them," said Yamato. "It's one of the complaints from the various shipgirls I've met. Long hairs left behind in all the places you don't want them."
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