Cardmaster Worm Part 2 (Patreon)

"This would be easier if I had an MRI or Amy's power," Myst muttered as he studied Sophia's card, looking for signs of wear and tear from repeatedly harvesting her power over the last twenty minutes. 'If it's damaged, I can't tell the difference,' he admitted as he let her card fade back into his deck and headed for the exit of the warehouse he'd borrowed. 'At least Alabaster's power seems to reset the damage it built up from repeated triggers. Probably just as well, I don't need the PRT complaining that I'm abusing their precious villains.' He opened the door then slipped out and used the padlock card on the door, replacing the lock that he'd removed to 'break' in.

'Sorry for borrowing your warehouse but it's fucking cold outside,' Myst thought as he started walking towards his next destination, trying to ignore the cold as best he could and stay moving so he wouldn't freeze. 'Okay, Alabaster's power fixed my knee and should keep me from getting ganked by a random idiot with a gun, assuming it doesn't instantly kill me, what do I need?'

'A quick and dirty method for killing Scion and the Endbringers? Yeah, that's more of a long term problem, same with the ability to jump dimensions so I can get home. What can I get today that will let me grab something more impressive later?'

Myst mentally ran through the various capes in the city as he started jogging, trying to figure out which capes he could trade with and which ones he was just going to make vanish if he got the chance. 'Coil, Hookwolf, Krieg and Oni Lee need to vanish or die, preferably while screaming, same with Victor unless I can figure out how to permanently break his power. I can probably trade Rune increased durability for a copy of her power, same with Vicky, if only because it would help her sister. Kid Win would probably be willing to trade a copy of his power for a copy of Squealer's power. I might be able to talk Dean into trading a copy of his power but there's a decent chance that he'd tell the PRT.'

'What does that leave, Undersiders, Circus, Uber and Leet? I need to figure out if the idiots staged their Grand Theft Auto Video where they beat up all those working girls, if it wasn't, they can rot in my deck unless they had something affecting their minds or something. Grue should be willing to trade a copy of his powers for help with his sister or a brute rating which means I'd be able to see in the dark. I should probably check Regent's power to see if it includes a defense against masters or just his family's powers. Bitch? Nothing I want, Tattletale? Nothing I'd want to deal with on a continual basis but it might be situationally useful.'

'What am I missing? The valkyrie knockoffs have to grow to have a brute rating, Aegis has a really shitty brute rating that basically makes him a chew toy and Lung is probably more trouble than he's worth right now,' he mused as he reached a section of the city that had people walking around.

'Faultline has some type of striker power that destroys things, Labyrinth can warp reality, Newter moves like a monkey on speed and has hallucinogenic body fluids, Gregor spits weird compounds and Shamrock is basically lucky. I could use a bit of luck even if it's just a combination of powers that simulate it and Newter's enhanced agility would be nice if I can ditch the rest of his powers.'

"They also have a club, which beats wandering around in the cold." Myst stopped walking when he spotted a pair of Asians in their early to mid twenties tagging a building with a can of spray paint. "Is there a reason you're spray painting the building?" he asked as he walked over.

"Because we fucking want to Farang khi nok," the man replied with a sneer.

"Is that supposed to mean something?" Myst asked as he walked closer to the two idiots that were wearing red jackets and green sweatshirts.

"Not my fault you're too stupid to know when you're being insulted," the man in his early twenties replied smugly.

Myst pulled the knife card he'd gotten from the previous goon out of his deck then turned it back into a knife and tossed it at the asshole's head as hard as he could, not particularly concerned if he killed the guy or just hurt him. He used the distraction to lunge at the other man, punch him in the neck and turn him into a card.

"Fuck!" the man cursed when the handle of the knife hit him in the wrist when he tried to block it.

Myst stepped forward, kicked the thug in the head with a roundhouse kick and turned him into a card. "I might not understand what you said but I can read the tone just fine," he muttered as he picked up the cards and the knife, less than amused by the idiots. He turned the knife back into a card then pulled their cash out as cards. 'Where the fuck did they get three grand?' he asked himself as he let the cards fade into his deck.

'It's probably protection money,' Myst decided after a couple of seconds, figuring that made the most sense unless they were selling drugs and he doubted they'd have kept the cash on them on the off chance that the police picked them up. He made it another block before a shady looking and overweight man in his late teens or early twenties walked over wearing a trenchcoat and a stupid looking raccoon mask. "Raccoon?"

"Raccoon Lord, Defender of the Docks!" the man corrected. "Are you a villain?"

"Not currently, why?" Myst asked, wondering if he was being pranked or if the idiot had gotten killed before he made it into the story because he'd annoyed someone.

"You're wearing a bandana like an outlaw in an old western," the man replied, ready to summon his trusty attack raccoon if he tried anything.

"It's cold and I lost a bet, never bet with a redhead, they don't have souls," Myst complained.

"What?" the man asked, wondering what the guy was talking about.

"There's a girl, twenty dollars, naked pictures and a lot of alcohol on the line, so if you don't mind, I'm going to finish the bet before someone decides to kill me," Myst told him then started walking again.

"Rock on!" the man stated with a hearty laugh and a grin then turned and headed into an alley with a spring to his steps.

'I guess they weren't joking about capes being insane,' Myst mused as he continued walking in what should be the general direction of the market and Faultline's club, making a mental note to get a scooter or a bike when he had a chance. He made it another two blocks before a man dressed like a security guard without a vest blocked his way.

"You need to leave," the man told Myst.

"Why?" Myst asked, fairly sure he'd have heard sirens or shouts if there was an actual problem.

"Cause you look like you're up to mischief," the man said as he stepped forward aggressively.

"Are you a cop?" Myst asked as he studied the clean shaven man that was a couple of inches shorter than him that looked like he was trying to make himself taller.

"I'm one of the enforcers, that means you need to leave," he replied.

Myst glanced around without taking his eyes off the asshole to make sure someone wasn't trying to sneak up behind him. "Last I checked and correct me if I'm wrong but you're don't work for the government and this is a public street, that means you can fuck off or you can show me some official identification that proves that you have a right to redirect pedestrians."

"You're obviously planning on causing trouble, if you don't leave, accidents happen," he replied smugly as he raised his nightstick.

"In other words, you're not law enforcement," Myst stated. "Right, I've had a long fucking day and I'm hungry, walk away."

"Or what?" the man asked with a smirk, looking for an excuse to beat the shit out of the guy.

"Or I'm going to walk around you and you'll probably do something stupid like grab me, which I will take as assault, at which point I'm allowed to defend myself," Myst replied with a smile that didn't reach his eyes.

The man laughed. "My word against yours, they're not going to believe you, leave."

"Whatever," Myst replied as he took a step to go around the man, causing the man to step in front of him. "Fuck it. If you're going to ignore the law and jump straight to harassment, it's a free country, I might have to throw a couple of insults your way."

"You wouldn't be the first," the man replied with a shrug.

Myst pulled the card he'd placed one of the swastika tattoos on out of his deck and used it on the man's chest, just low enough that a long sleeved shirt would cover it, wanting to make sure the police had a reason to believe him over the idiot. "Cool. Can I call you Ralph? You look like a Ralph, or maybe a Phil or maybe you're a Morty. Maybe you're a Henry or maybe your bitch ass whore of a mother was too drunk to name you something sane, either way, you're a pathetic piece of shit with delusions of importance. Is that enough for you to take a swing at me?"

"Not in public," the man replied, looking less amused than a couple of seconds ago.

"Meh, can't say I didn't try," Myst replied then turned and headed for the nearest alley. "I'll just walk around you, no worries."

"It's not that easy," the man replied, eyes narrowing as he followed Myst, planning on beating the shit out of him once he wasn't on camera and he had some backup.

Myst waited until they'd walked into the alley and were out of sight then spun around and decked the man as hard as he could, sending him crashing into the wall with a dazed look on his face. He slammed his fist into the man's ribs, causing several to crack, then reached out and turned him into a card before he could scream. 'Fucking idiot,' he thought as he continued walking down the alley, not particularly surprised when he spotted another enforcer coming from the opposite end of the alley.

He pulled the man's baton out of his card as a card then let the enforcer's card fade into his deck, more than a bit annoyed that he had to deal with their stupidity. 'I really need an actual mask or a shave and a different jacket.'

"We're going to have to make an example out of you," the other enforcer said as he walked closer.

"Is there something in the fucking water or were you using one of Leet's inventions as a nightlight? You're maybe five eight and a hundred and sixty pounds if you don't count the gut and you're threatening a random stranger that has at least four inches on you with a stick, this isn't going to end well," Myst warned him.

The enforcer frowned and pulled a gun out of his jacket when he realized that his partner wasn't walking into the alley. "Where is Ben?!"

Myst sighed when he noticed the man hadn't flipped the safety off and wasn't thinking things through. "Behind you," he told him as he summoned the other enforcer's card to his hand and placed him on the man's shoulders when he twisted enough that the gun wasn't pointed at him. He lunged forward as the man collapsed because of the unexpected weight and tagged both of the enforcers, turning them into cards.

Myst stole the expensive looking sunglasses from the second enforcer's card and his scarf then swapped the scarf for the handkerchief and headed back the way he came. 'I'd turn you over to the cops but they wouldn't care, no evidence and all that shit.'

Myst did his best to ignore the other enforcer he spotted after walking a block and a half closer to the Palanquin, willing to leave him alone as long as he wasn't trying to beat the shit out of random people because they felt like it.

0o0o0

Myst made his way over to the side entrance where he could see Gregor, a bit unnerved by the man's strangely translucent skin. "I don't want any trouble, I'm a cape and I might be able to fix your biology."

Gregor studied Myst for a couple of seconds, trying to figure out if he was serious or if he was messing with him. "We've asked Panacea, she can't make heads or tails of our biology, what makes you think you can?"

"Different powers," Myst replied as he pulled one of the cash cards out of his deck and turned the card back into money. "Tell you what, if I can't help, I'll pay you for your time. If I can help, you can give me an introduction to Faultline and I'll call it even."

"I can't promise anything more than an introduction," Gregor warned him.

"That's fine," Myst replied as he held his gloved hand out. "I just need a promise that you'll try, I have a feeling she'll be curious which means she'll be more likely to help dig up a couple of phone numbers."

"You're doing this for a couple of numbers?" Gregor asked.

"I like helping people and she has contacts that I don't. I could spend hours or days trying to track people down that she probably has on speed dial," Myst explained.

Gregor nodded. "What do I have to do?"

"Call anyone you need as a witness and touch my hand," Myst replied, trying to make him feel comfortable about the whole thing.

"They'd argue against trusting an unknown parahuman and delay things unnecessarily," Gregor told him as he reached out and touched Myst's hand.

Myst turned Gregor into a card, creating a Gregor the Snail card, not seeing a reason to actually explain how his power worked. He smiled as he pulled Gregor's durability out as a separate card, glad that he wouldn't have to deal with the rest of his power. He pulled the physical changes out as a separate card, causing the picture on Gregor's card to change into a normal if slightly overweight human with brown hair and pale skin. He glanced at the mention of Amnesia on the card. 'Sorry, it's not worth Contessa showing up because I tripped one of her paths.' He pulled Gregor's chemical creation power out as a separate card and read the description, slightly annoyed that it specified creating the chemicals in his stomach. 'It was a long shot anyway.'

Myst merged Gregor's card with one of the ‘physical reset’ power cards he'd pulled out of Alabaster that contained his powers, figuring it would revert the physical changes or at least most of them. 'Let's see if this works before someone notices that he's gone.' He turned Gregor back into a human and watched the man quickly change back into an obese monster for all of four seconds before he shifted back to his more humanlike appearance and stayed that way. "You're going to want a mirror."

Gregor stared down at his normal looking arms in disbelief. "How the hell?!"

"I'm a trump," Myst replied with a grin. "Is that enough to get a meeting with Faultline?"

"Should be," Gregor assured him with a wide grin as he grabbed his walkie-talkie off his belt. He pushed the button to talk. "This is Gregor, there's a cape at the side door that fixed my appearance and wants a meeting with Faultline."

"I'll get Faultline," Shamrock told him as she headed for Mel's office.

"Thank you," Gregor replied, looking forward to seeing a mirror for the first time that he could remember. He took his finger off the button. "I have to ask, what are your powers?"

"There's some power manipulation involved, more than that, I'd rather not say but I'm not a master, if that makes you feel better," Myst told him.

Gregor turned and spit on the ground, the translucent green fluid glowing slightly before evaporating. “I still have my powers.”

“Yeah, can’t remove your power, just the mutation it caused,” Myst explained, not wanting to actually explain that he'd basically used Alabaster's power to cheat.

“Still better than anything we’ve tried before,” Gregor assured him. “In most cases we actually would like to keep our powers, we would just like to be human again.”

"Completely understandable," Myst agreed as he double checked the durability card for issues. 'Might as well, I can always drop it,' he mused as he used the card on himself. 'This would be easier if I had some type of display or character sheet.'

0o0o0

Faultline studied the man that was working his way through a steak, a touch surprised that the man wasn't bothering with a mask. "I'm a bit surprised that you unmasked."

Myst finished the bite of steak he'd been working on and looked at the woman that was wearing a welding mask and something that blended a martial arts outfit with riot gear and a dress that seemed to work for the woman. "It's a good steak and as long as you don't take pictures of my face, I don't really care if you know what I look like."

"I wasn't planning on taking pictures," Faultline assured him, wondering if he was a changer or if he was powerful enough that he didn't care. "Gregor said that you needed a couple of phone numbers, can I get your name and who you're looking for?"

"I'm Myst and I need a way to get in touch with the Travelers, they should be in or near Boston but I'm not sure where and I don't have any contacts with the police or with the criminal element which makes tracking them down rather problematic."

"I don't have a number for the Travelers but Accord should have the information if they're in Boston, of course dealing with Accord is risky which means I'm going to have to ask for more information," Faultline admitted, unwilling to waste Accord's time if she could avoid it as he had a tendency to have people shot and or killed for wasting his time.

"I have a friend that is a precog. One of the Travelers is basically a case fifty three without the memory loss, unfortunately she's unstable, growing worse and extremely dangerous. If I don't change things the girl will end up going on a rampage and killing a lot of people in the Bay because Accord sends her to the Bay to get help from Coil."

"How is Coil supposed to help?" Faultline asked, wondering if he knew what Coil's power was.

"He can simulate two different timelines then basically pick the 'timeline' that he wants to experience and his power puppets him through it, that means he can test various cures that would normally be risky," Myst explained. "I'd appreciate it if you didn't share information about his power or that I know about his power, I'd rather not get shot. Dealing with a save scumming sociopath is a pain in the ass."

"Your precog friend?" Faultline asked.

"Yes and the less information you know about that, the better," Myst assured her. "I should be able to cure Noelle the same way I cured Gregor, I just need to be able to find her before they get sent to Coil, he has no intention of actually fixing her problems and she'll fixate on him being able to cure her because she's unstable."

Faultline considered the information he'd provided and decided that it was enough to interest Accord or one of Accord's minions. "Do you think you can cure the rest of the case fifty threes?"

"I don't know," Myst admitted. "There's a decent chance but powers are weird. I'm willing to try, assuming they can get to the bay."

Faultline nodded. "I've called in a favor to have Panacea show up and check Gregor's health and to act like a lie detector, assuming everything checks out, I'll call Accord and arrange a meeting or at least a phone call."

"That's fair," Myst agreed and went back to eating his steak.

"Was there anything else you needed?" Faultline asked, feeling like she owed him a bit more than two phone numbers if everything proved above board.

Myst finished his bite. "Do you know if Uber and Leet's Grand Theft Auto video was staged or are they actually that screwed up?"

"They paid a couple of girls to take a fall and used hard light holograms for most of the girls where the video give an up close view, the rest were part of the ABB and trying to stop them from ripping off the ABB so it wasn't quite as bad as it looked. I'm not saying they're decent people but they're not stupid enough to cut their throats by going on a rampage against the city's hookers, they like using them," Faultline explained.

"Makes sense," Myst replied, figuring someone would have killed them if they'd actually beat the girls up. "Do you have their number?" he asked, hoping he could set up a meeting so he could get a copy of Leet's power. "I wouldn't mind hiring Leet to make a couple of things."

"Your funeral, his tech has a nasty tendency to explode but I'll grab his number if everything checks out with Gregor's health."

"Thanks," Myst told her as she turned and left. 'I wonder if stealing his power would reset his list, it's worth a try and might keep them on their best behavior if they think I can reset things again,' he mused as he worked on eating his steak, wanting everything finished by the time Panacea got there.