ACL: 16. Everything will be fine, fairy sure... (Patreon)

Chapter 16: Everything will be fine, fairy sure…

Brockton Bay, NH, USA
Tuesday, January 25, 2011
Type: Fairy

I had a problem.

I… I had no fucking clue who Dinah Alcott was. I knew that she had the power to discern probabilities. I knew that she would be kidnapped and drugged by Coil if I did nothing. I knew she was twelve.

I didn't know what she looked like. I didn't know which school she attended.

I'd have to get creative.

For starters, a basic Google search of "Alcott family, Brockton Bay" revealed that they weren't just any old family. They were a family of socialites. The father was the mayor's younger brother. I likely had the right family considering their daughter looked to be about the same age.

That… That changed things, though I wasn't sure how. Did Coil kidnap her initially because he wanted a hostage against the mayor then only later realize she had powers?

It was depressingly possible, which meant I'd have to be sneaky. I didn't want to give away that I knew about her power.

Maybe… Maybe approaching her school directly wasn't the best plan?

I'd already told Amy about Dinah. I said I'd approach her today to check things out, but the more I thought about it, the riskier it seemed. What exactly did I want out of the interaction anyway? For her to come with me? Where would I put her?

Give her to the PRT? I had no confidence in the PRT's ability to keep her safe considering the revolving door their jails seemed to be and talking to her parents would likely end in this exact scenario.

No… The more I considered it, the more apparent it became that I was being hasty. I had options. I had time. I didn't know precisely when Coil would act, but perhaps that in itself was the problem. Perhaps I was thinking about this all wrong.

I shook my head to clear it. I was jumping the gun, reaching for too much when I should be taking things step by step. Titania once told me that this was a problem common to many seers. They saw the outcome and tried to work backwards. That could work, but posed its own problems as I was finding out now.

Taking a deep breath, I tried to focus again.

First things first, I should try to identify her. After that, build a relationship. Then, when I could discern whether or not she had her power already, I could think about next steps.

To that end, I began to look for the best middle schools. I couldn't imagine the mayor's niece attending anything less after all. That left me with Lafayette Middle School, the direct precursor to Arcadia High. Unless the mayor's brother happened to be a devout Catholic, he probably sent his daughter to Lafayette.

"Welp, back to school, Blake," I whispered. "Shift, Galarian rapidash."

I took the now familiar form and darted off. Psychic power surged through my fetlocks as I galloped across the rooftops. I went out of my way to not break the sound barrier this time; I'd received an earful already and didn't want another.

If anything, the lack of a thunderclap in my wake did more to attract attention. Less fear, more awe.

'As it should be,' the pokemon in me whispered. I wanted to show off a bit but suppressed the urge to cut a tree in half on the way down. I doubted the school would admire my masterful Psycho Cuts.

Instead, I tossed my mane and cantered up to the nearest group of students. "Hey, how's it going?"

"Woah," one boy gasped. He was the poster ideal of a skater boy, torn jeans and backwards-facing cap and all. "What the hell are you?"

"A unicorn," I deadpanned. "Your childhood must have sucked."

"Hey, fuck you, sparkly horse."

"You're just jealous because my hair is fabulous."

"Oh my god, you're Menagerie, aren't you?" I heard his friend squeal. She was why I'd picked this group in particular. She was a skinny brunette with long hair.

"Yup. Nice to meet'cha, kid. What's your name?"

"Jessie. Can I pet you?"

I rolled my eyes, but lowered my head. "Sure, kid. Want a ride too?"

She squealed high enough to shatter glass. "Eeee! Y-You mean it?"

"I don't see why not. Short one though, okay? Just one lap around the quad."

"O-Okay."

I looked at the boy. "You want a ride too, kid?" I offered. It'd be pretty fucking creepy if I exclusively gave rides to brunette, tween girls after all. "Just slide on behind her."

"Wait, you can carry us both?"

"Kid, I could carry twenty of you with no problems if you'd all fit on my back somehow."

"Sweet! Let's go fast!"

I chuckled and started a brisk canter around the quad. It was honestly kind of fun. Wannabe swordmaster or not, there was a simple joy in making children smile. I rolled my eyes goodnaturedly when the boy, Max, dug his heels into my ribs. He wasn't anything close to strong enough to be a bother so I just did as he wished and sped up a bit.

I finished the circle and reared back on two legs for one last bit of excitement. By now, I'd gathered a great deal of attention to myself and even those who were about to leave with their parents were sticking around.

Perfect.

"Alright, brats, off," I said.

The girl brushed my mane, sending pleasing tingles down my spine. "Aww, one more lap?"

"Nope. I think other kids want a ride too."

"Damn…" the boy grumbled.

"Language."

"English!"

"Cheeky brat."

"Blegh!"

I looked out at the crowd. "Alright, who's next? Two per ride."

The children cheered as their parents realized this would likely take a while.

Fifteen minutes later, I dropped some chunky kid named Brian off at the curb and shifted back. I settled onto the grass and let out a large sigh. "Oof, you kids know how to tire a guy out, you know that?"

"Brian, he's calling you fat," one boy japed.

"Hey, fuck you, Kevin!"

"None of that," I said before things could get worse. "I need to rest a little bit. Give me a minute to catch my breath, okay?"

"Aww, are you already done? My friend wanted a ride," spoke a pretty blonde with shoulder-length hair and green eyes. She was very cute, but wore a tight-fitting dress that was almost certainly not designed for a middle schooler. A hint of her mother’s eye shadow and lipstick gave me the impression of a girl trying to grow up too fast.

"Missy, it's okay," the friend in question said. She was Dinah Alcott, a dead ringer for the family photos I’d seen online: Straight, brown hair, innocent looking face, and hadn't quite gotten rid of all her baby teeth yet.

Finally, my little PR stunt paid off. I dusted myself off. Minute was almost up anyway. "I don't mind. I'm ready when you are."

"R-Really, Mister Menagerie?"

"Sure, kid. And it's just Menagerie. What's your name?" I asked, mostly for propriety's sake. I was literally stalking this girl not half an hour ago after all…

"D-Dinah Alcott."

"Alright, give me a second. Shift, Galarian rapidash." I swapped out again and knelt so Dinah could clamber onto my back. I was about to take off; I wanted to talk to her alone, but Dinah spoke up.

"Wait, Menagerie!" She held out a hand to Missy. "Come on, let's go!"

Missy, thankfully, scrunched up her nose. It was honestly adorable to see. "Eh, you have fun, Din. A unicorn is a little… childish…"

"Oh, okay then…"

"Don't worry, Dinah, you're allowed to like different things. She can have her opinion, even if it's wrong."

"Hey!"

I laughed as I took Dinah on a slow walk. As I took her away from the crowd, the blonde niggled something at the back of my mind. Who did I know was twelve, had blonde hair in a short bob, an unexpectedly toned figure for a tween, wore lots of green, and absolutely loathed looking childish?

Was… Was that girl Vista?

I shook my head. No. That wasn't what was important right now. The last thing I needed was for the PRT to ride my ass about unmasking a Ward. That'd give them an actual reason to hound me instead of whatever bullshit Assault and Battery were doing.

We were off a ways now, far enough from casual eavesdroppers.

"Dinah?" I asked, my voice gentle. "How are you today?"

"I'm okay now," she said with an audible smile. "Thank you for visiting, Menagerie."

"Hmm? No need to thank me. It was just a spur of the moment thing," I told her.

"Your mane is so soft…"

"Thanks, I got it today."

"Hehe, how fast can you go?"

"Too fast for you to hold on to I'm afraid."

"Aww…"

"Dinah?"

"Yeah?"

"Are you safe? Not right now, do you feel safe at school?"

"Umm… Can you keep a secret?"

"Of course."

"I see numbers," she admitted quietly. "The teachers don't believe me but I see them when people ask me questions. They make my head hurt but the nurse says there's nothing wrong with me…"

"That's awful," I sympathized. I wanted to give her a hug but I had no hands. Instead, I slowed down a bit and wracked my brain for what I could remember about triggers. Amy's lectures had to be good for something after all. "Have you talked to your parents?"

I felt her sink into my back, almost slumping into a lying position. "Dad works late and mom likes to go out with friends. They're always busy…"

Indignant rage burned white hot in my chest. Their daughter triggered and the parents were too busy to even notice? Psychic power burst unrestrained from my fetlocks and slashed the ground, leaving noticeable grooves into the granite.

No, maybe she hadn't triggered yet? One final test.

"Dinah, sweetie, can you tell me the probability of Sabah giving me my costume this week?"

"99.438%," she said. She brought her hands to her mouth. "How did I know that?"

"Well, that answers that," I muttered. Dinah had no reason to know who Sabah was. She had powers.

I wasn't sure what to do. Long-term planning wasn't something I excelled at, one more reason I wouldn't have made a very good Champion. What good was kicking everyone's ass if I couldn't make Sinnoh prosper? Cynthia was by far the better option than me, and not just because she looked way better on magazine covers.

That lack of planning skills was biting me in the ass in this world too. I was the sort to go for the direct option. If I couldn't do that, or if there were no clear paths I couldn't just punch through, I tended to waffle back and forth, paralyzed by indecision.

Did I tell Dinah about Coil? Surely knowing the enemy would help her? But then again, she was not from my world. In my world, she would be finishing up school and getting ready to travel the world with a pokemon partner, challenging all comers. In this world… It'd be a hard sell to dump that kind of information on a twelve year old.

But… What if it'd help her? What if I could solve all of this simply by taking her to the PRT? For all that I disliked how regimented they were, they weren't evil nor stupid. They were my allies.

I couldn't decide.

Then, I had a genius idea: What if I didn't have to make the choice alone? What if I could consult a precog? Wasn't she straddling my back right now?

"Heal Pulse," I whispered. A gentle, pink glow suffused me and coursed through Dinah.

She let out a relieved sigh. "Woah, thanks, Menagerie. I didn't even know I needed that."

"Let me guess, a dull migraine that doesn't really go away because people keep asking you questions?"

"Uh-huh. How did you know?"

"Congratulations, Dinah, you've got powers," I said dryly. I simplified the details for her. "From what I understand, you can tell the probability of anything. You are what is called a thinker, someone who is good at gathering information."

"Oh! Is that why my head hurts sometimes?"

"Yeah, if you use them too much, powers can be draining. Thinkers often get headaches."

"Oh…"

"Dinah, do you mind if I ask you a quick question?"

"Will I get a heal after?"

"Heh, already bargaining with me. Good. And yes, I'd be happy to heal you. Now, what are the odds of me successfully protecting you if I don't tell you what's coming?"

"78%," she spoke instinctively. Then the words registered. "Eh? Protect me from what?"

I ignored her. "Next, what are the odds of me successfully protecting you if I do tell you what's coming?"

"81%. What? What's happening?"

I groaned. Three. Fucking. Percent. I was hoping for a clearer answer, but this would have to do. Any edge was an edge.

I'd stared down the gods of time and space and told them to shove off. Looking at it like that, three percent was downright luxurious.

We were almost done with our lap despite having walked noticeably slower.

"Dinah, listen closely," I said. "There is a man named Coil. He is a supervillain with thinker powers, kind of like you. He is going to try to kidnap you sometime in the future, though I don't know the exact details."

"H-He will? How?" I felt her tighten her grip. I was reminded again that this was no trainer nor ranger, hardened against the wilds. This was a pre-teen girl who lived in relative luxury all her life. Terror was a completely valid response and I loathed myself for putting her through this. "What's going on, Menagerie?"

"He can do two things at the same time and choose the outcome he likes best. Do you understand?"

"I-I think so?"

"Good, smart girl," I complimented. "I need you to be very careful from now on. Don't tell people about your headache. If you need help or healing, call me on PHO. In fact, send me a message anyway as soon as you get home and I'll give you my phone number. If you're ever in danger, call and I'll be right there."

"O-Okay."

"I need you to be strong, Dinah. Do your best not to use your power when other people ask questions and save your power. Every day, ask yourself if you'll be safe without calling me. Then if the numbers get low, call me."

"Okay."

"Promise me."

"I promise, Menagerie."

"Now how do you get home?"

"My cousin Rory is picking me up. Can I tell him?"

She pointed him out. Rory Christner, the mayor's son, was a tall, broad-shouldered man, likely two to four years my senior. He had biceps the size of Dinah's face, probably from a top-heavy sport like weightlifting or baseball. He was waiting while leaning on a silver Lexus.

"Do you trust your cousin? If you trust your family then go for it. I'm not here to control your life, just help you keep it safe," I told her.

She was silent for a moment. Then, in a shaken whisper, "It's more dangerous when I tell him…"

I blinked at that. I had to remember that she was young, not stupid. She was out of her depth, but she had a good head on her shoulders. "Good call, that was a clever move," I praised her. "I want you to keep asking yourself those kinds of questions from now on. Nothing else matters beyond your safety. Am I clear?"

"Yes, sir. But… Why would Rory knowing be bad?"

"Maybe because he would tell his dad and his parents? Who would then take you to the doctors? That would be the safe thing to do under normal circumstances, but you're not sick, not really, and that would mean other people can find out."

"I… I don't like this."

"I know, Dinah. Please be safe. And remember to find me online. Menagerie_Official, okay?"

"Okay. I will."

Then we were out of time. I could no longer avoid returning her to her cousin without seeming suspicious. I cantered up to his car. "Hey, you're Rory, right? Good to meet you."

"Menagerie? It's good to meet the rising hero."

"Nah, nothing like that, please. Dinah, would you like a Heal Pulse?"

"Yes, please."

"Wait, what's wrong with Dinah?" her cousin asked, worried. He lifted her by her armpits and set her on the ground. "Are you hurt anywhere?"

"Just a small headache," I interjected. I placed my snout over her brow. "Heal Pulse." A gentle pulse of pink light washed over her as she visibly relaxed. "There, all better."

"Are you sure, Dinah? We can go to the hospital if you still feel down."

She smiled up at him cheerily. Had I not known better, I would have been fooled too. "It's okay, Rory. I feel great. And thank you for the ride, Menagerie. I get to tell everyone I rode a unicorn!"

"You two took your time," came another voice. Missy had caught up to us. "What were you talking about?"

"Nothing," Dinah said, though it was a little too fast judging by not-Vista's narrowed eyes.

"Oh, really?"

"She was telling me you secretly wanted a ride," I winked conspiratorially at the petite brunette. "You shouldn't be ashamed of liking something, especially if they're childish."

"I don't want a unicorn ride!" she yelped, indignant.

I grinned. The best way to keep a child from prying was to put her on the defensive. "Are you sure? I have a few more minutes."

"No way, that's just childish. It's not like you're going fast or anything. And-And you're bubblegum pink!" she exclaimed, as if that color somehow murdered her puppy.

Dinah, sharp as a whip, picked up on what I was doing. "But, Missy, didn't you say you wanted to ride a dinosaur like Vista? You said it looked like fun, right?"

I almost felt bad for the way not-Vista started blushing. "Green dinosaurs are different!"

I arched an eyebrow. "A green dinosaur… with a giant pink flower on its neck?"

"… Shut up…"

"No shame in a ride."

"Hmph! Fine, but you better go fast!" I grinned and stooped down a little so Rory could put her on my back. "Hey! Rory!"

"Thanks for this," he said with a happy chuckle. "I know Missy. She tries to hide it, but she's thrilled."

"I'm not!"

"Bye, Missy! Bye, Menagerie! And thank you!" Dinah yelled as Rory got in his car and drove them off.

I had Vista on my back. Odd that this wasn't anything new anymore…

Then I got the devious idea to play with her head a bit. One of these days, she was liable to figure out I knew her identity and she'd probably space-warp my heart out of my ass for this, but… I wouldn't be Blake Isley if I left her alone.

I glanced back at her.

"So, shall we go?"

"Let's get this over with," she said, trying oh so hard not to seem excited."

"Of course, Missy. You know, you're very mature for your age," I said offhandedly. I smiled as I felt her sit up straight.

"Y-You think? I mean, of course I am. That's obvious."

"Yeah, I've seen other heroes who could learn a thing or two from you."

"Oh, who?"

She tried not to sound interested, but even if a Galarian rapidash wasn't suited for the mental side of the psychic arts, her curiosity was blatantly obvious. She practically preened like a parakeet on my back. I was all too happy to pop that bubble for her.

"Vista," I said simply. I felt her thighs tighten around my back as she froze in shock. "She's about your age, right?"

"Y-Yeah?"

"She's so immature, nothing like you, Missy."

"H-How so?"

"She hates spheal! I mean, come on, who hates spheal? What a little monster!"

"Vista's a great hero!" she cried, defending herself.

"And she's always trying to sound super grown up, like growing older is supposed to be some kind of achievement, you know? Don't get me wrong, she's a great girl, but I just wish she'd see that she's fine the way she is."

"There's nothing wrong with wanting to be treated like an adult!" She froze, realizing just what she said and how she'd sound. "I-I mean, Vista's the longest serving Ward, you know. Longer than Aegis, even! How is it fair that she gets treated like the team mascot when she's so much more experienced?"

"You really like her, huh?"

"She's my favorite hero."

"For good reasons, I'm sure," I soothed. "She's a very powerful shaker. In fact, I think that if we teamed up, we could probably take on any of the gangs easily."

"Really?"

"Of course," I said with a sagely nod. Never mind that I didn't really consider any of the gangs a threat in a straight fight. Even one of my old team members would treat the entirety of the Empire roster like the clown show they were. Still, no reason I couldn't give the girl a confidence boost. "I mean it. Vista's power is really awesome. You know what I think?"

"What?"

"I think that she puts herself at a disadvantage by insisting she gets treated like an adult. Or even like Aegis. That only brings her age into focus when she should be letting her power and experience do the talking for her, you know? It's the fools who keep yapping; the really responsible ones? The ones who know what they're about? They shut up and get the job done."

"Yeah…"

"I think you're like that. You saw your friend wanted a ride so you made sure she got it, right?"

"R-Right," she said. I could practically feel the heat of her blush.

"That's how I wish Vista would be. No griping about being a little girl, just doing what she needs to do to become a better hero."

As requested, we finished our lap swiftly. She got off and walked off with a thoughtful look on her face. I hoped what advice I had could be helpful for her. She reminded me a little of Jasmine, the young steel mistress who inherited her gym abruptly after her father's passing. She tried so hard to live up to her father's legacy, to be the unbreakable iron pillar that supports Olivine, that she seldom had time for herself.

I stuck around for a few more minutes. After several rides and a handful of Heal Pulses thrown out here and there, it was time for me to leave.

As I left, I checked my phone to find a text message from Sabah.

Sabah: Hey, Menagerie, great news! I have your costume. Call me back when you get a chance, okay?

I raised a brow at that. That was… fast. I'd only seen her on Friday. Even if her professors were letting her substitute this for classwork, four days to turn out a full suit of armor seemed a little unbelievable. Just how many hours was she working?

She was sleeping… right?

Concerned, I dialed her number.

"Sabah?" I asked.

"Hey, Menagerie, guess what?"

"I read your text. You have my armor?"

"Yup!"

"How? It's only been four days. You're sleeping, right?"

"Well, yeah. Don't worry, I'm taking care of myself."

"How'd you get this done so fast then?"

"Parian," she said simply. "You said I could give her some of the silk you made me, so I did. She also said you don't need to apologize by the way. Water under the bridge."

"Huh. So Parian helped you put it all together?"

"Yeah. I compiled all the materials, but assembly was all her. She said it's proof that she doesn't hold a grudge, okay? So don't stress about surprising her."

"Okay, thanks for putting in a good word for me, Sabah."

"No problem. Want to come pick it up?"

"If you're not too busy," I told her. "I don't want you to put off other work just so you can teach me how to put my clothes on."

"I'd be happy to help, Menagerie. Can I take some pictures?"

I let out a shocked gasp. "Sabah! While I dress? Pervert!"

"Shut up! It's for my portfolio, you jerk. Besides, I like women."

"Yeah, I know. You start stuttering around Crystal."

"I do not."

"Right…"

"I don't!"

"Much convinced. Very serious."

"Ugh, whatever. Come by anytime, jerk."

"Love you! Mwah!" The call cut out. I turned to a passing old man. "Can you believe some people?"

X

I found myself outside Wyatt Hall in only a few minutes. The university wasn't too far away from Lafayette Middle. Being around 4:30, there were plenty of people still milling about.

"Shit, is that Menagerie?" one college boy said to his friends as he saw me stroll by. He raised his voice. "Dude, I got crabs, can you fix it?"

I stopped. I had time. I could afford to amuse myself a little bit. I looked him over, made a Heal Pulse in my hand, pretended to scan him, then stared deeply at the orb. Then, in the most serious voice I could, I said, "Oh… Oh dear…"

"What?"

"I'm sorry, man. The magic ball says it's terminal."

"Oh, shit, for real?"

"Yeah, what's your name?"

"Duncan. Man, what do I have? Can I go to Panacea?"

"No, Duncan. I'm so sorry."

"What? What's going on?"

"It's good that you called out. Better to know early on, right? You at least have some time."

The four boys looked genuinely nervous now, as did most people watching. "What? What do I have?"

"It's terminal. I'm sorry, Duncan. There's no cure for what you have. Not me. Not Panacea. Not anyone."

"Come on, dude, don't play around."

"Who says I'm playing? I never joke about healing," I said solemnly. I closed my fist and made the Heal Pulse wink out. Turning, I started to walk away. "Enjoy the time you've got, Duncan. There's no cure for stupid."

It took them a solid eight seconds to realize what I'd done.

"Holy shit, dude! Man, Duncan got played!!!" one of the boys laughed, shoving their friend. "Hahahahaha, shit's gold!"

"Hey, fuck you guys! Fuck you, Menagerie!"

I chuckled and flipped him off as I headed inside. "Shift, mimikyu."

I shrank down to a deceptive two feet in height. Deceptive, because most of my height came from my costume. There was nothing in the "head" of the pikachu sack. Instead, my eyes were level with two eye holes cut into the chest area. A wooden tail carved into the familiar lightning bolt shape was held directly by my shadow.

I froze as the new personality hit me.

"Oh…" I muttered, "so this is what crippling anxiety feels like…"

There… There was nothing wrong with a mimikyu, at least physically. It was a ghost type no different than a gastly or duskull. But, but I knew that should anyone peer under the sack, I'd have a hell of a time trying not to curse them to death.

I shuddered in fear. I… I felt so alone in here. It was cold and dark. Even my own aura… the Distortion never felt so close, even as a litwick. It was like I was drowning in a marsh of my own self-loathing.

None of this was real. I knew that. But that didn't matter in the moment. I shivered as I stood on shaky legs. I took a step that felt like it was weighed down by a mountain of my own insecurities. It pressed down on me like a physical weight, a presence I couldn't shake.

"Please," the pikachu mask whispered into the void, "please, won't someone love me?"

I couldn't. I broke. I shifted back. To be a mimikyu was to suffer.

I knelt in the middle of the building lobby, trying to catch my breath. Slowly, I tensed and untensed my muscles, trying to will the residual self-loathing away. I took a trembling breath and got to my feet.

"Well, that was… unpleasant…." I walked up to Sabah's workshop and decided to give this whole shifting thing another try. After mimikyu, I wanted something a little more mechanical, a little more rigid… "Shift, iron valiant!"

A gallade. This was a gallade, but experimented on and altered for the sole purpose of becoming the strongest psychic in the world. With some small satisfaction, I let out a cruel laugh as I remembered the way the scientist who made the original iron valiant was cut down.

He sought to create the strongest psychic in the world, a futile endeavor at the best of times, but forgot the simple truth every psychic grew up learning: Emotions were strength.

True of aura masters. True of psychics. True of pokemon.

In the end, iron valiant was a failure and transitioned to a fairy type. I allowed the memory to focus me. I was not the valiant. I was more than an experiment designed to kill and kill and kill without mercy.

I was Blake Isley, the Paragon of Arceus.

As a robot, as a creation, the valiant was done. It had no mission any longer now that it was out of the future. The "paradox" of its existence demanded that it seek a new purpose, so I'd give it one, a kinder one more in line with the chivalrous knight it was based on.

I stood in front of Sabah's door and gave it a polite knock.

"Menagerie? Sorry, come on in," Sabah called through the door. I searched through the communications module implanted in my wetware hard drive and sent off a direct message to one Anne Barnes. I had promised her to call the next time I was on campus and as the iron valiant, I could not forget.

I stepped into the room. The center of the room was occupied by a wheeled armor stand. On it was my crimson armor. Sabah was taking some pictures of it while on the rack. "Designation: Menagerie. Salutations."

"Why are you talki-Oh my god… Menagerie… Why are you a robot?" she asked with a patient smile.

“This is the world now. Logged on. Plugged in. All the time."

"Right…"

"Sabah Connor. Come with me if you want to live."

"You know, I've never been a huge fan of the Terminator series."

"Designation: Sabah. Discovery: Lack of fun," I droned, voice hollow and echoing with mechanical power. “Treatment options: Nonexistent. Condition: Terminal. Offered: Condolences.”

"Okay, did you really turn into a robot or did you get a costume somewhere else?"

"I am the iron valiant. Your clothes. Give them to me. Now."

She let out a long-suffering sigh. "Okay, not funny anymore. Turn back, you big lug." I obliged and poked her tummy. "Eep! Menagerie!"

"You. Are. No. Fun," I said, punctuating each word with another poke.

"You just have terrible taste in movies," she pouted.

"Oh? What's a good classic then?"

"Toy Story. Duh."

"Huh. Fine. Fair enough. That's a good one."

"Exactly. Admit my tastes are superior. I am a designer after all."

I fell into a flourishing bow. "I am in awe of your profound wisdom, Sabah Azimi."

She giggled and yanked me by the arm towards a curtained off section of the room. "Get changed, you flirt. There's a domino mask you can use instead of that ridiculous helmet."

"Fine, fine."

I came out in my shirt, jeans, and a domino mask. She then had me change out of that too so I could put on the silk undershirt and pants. She was initially going for a full body undersuit but apparently decided against it when she realized this would be easier to wear. From there, it took a solid ten minutes for Sabah to teach me to put on my armor.

I finally slid the faceplate down and looked at my armorer. "This feels awesome, Sabah!"

She sent me a beaming smile. "Does it pinch anywhere? Or get tight?"

"No, the measurements you had were perfect."

"Good. Now, do you remember how to put everything on?"

"Yeah, but will it always take so long?"

"No. That's why I had Parian make the plates directly stitched to the fabric." She handed me an honest-to-Arceus pamphlet. "Here, this has a list of all the steps. I recommend you practice putting on and taking it off. It's designed with modern clasps and zippers to make dressing possible with one person, but it's still going to take some practice."

"Huh. I guess I never thought about what it took to actually wear full plate like this."

"Well you should be grateful. Medieval knights were lucky if a squire could dress them in twenty minutes. I only took ten and I was teaching you at the same time."

"Got it. Does it all collapse somewhere?"

"Of course!" She pulled open a drawer and picked out a large, brown backpack. It looked a bit like something a traveler would wear, made of rugged leather and thick clasps. The seams were reinforced with tiny scales, remnants of the armor materials no doubt. "You can put it all in here. There's enough space for your armor if you pack it right. And a few extra pockets just in case too."

I took her by the hands. "Thank you," I said sincerely. "Really, this is all amazing."

"W-Well go on, move around in it. You should get used to the motions while you still have it on. Then we'll take it off and put it back on just so I know you can do it."

"Woah, is that Menagerie?" I heard behind me. Turning, I found Anne Barnes, the redhead from the Palanquin.

"Hello, Anne. Have you met Sabah? She is my very talented armorer and tailor," I said, introducing them both. "Sabah, this is Anne Barnes. We met at the Palanquin."

"The club?" she asked, one delicate eyebrow raised.

"Is there any other?"

"I didn't take you for the clubbing type."

"I'm not. I had other reasons for being there."

"He had to see Faultline about something," Anne said. I frowned behind my faceplate. She… wasn't all that good at keeping quiet. Or maybe she didn't understand that information could be dangerous as a cape. It wasn't that I didn't trust Sabah, but the less who knew I had dealings with mercenaries, the better. "So, turn around, Menagerie, let's see your new suit."

I obliged. "Anne, please don't spread information about me around, no matter how innocent it seems. Some things are best left unsaid."

"What did you do there?" Sabah asked. "I'm curious now."

"I went there to heal someone who turned out to be a friend," I said vaguely. I was starting to regret calling Anne over. Then again, I figured I'd give Sabah some business while I had the chance. "Anne, didn't you say you wanted to commission something from Sabah?"

"Oh! Right!" The redhead was suddenly in front of the Arabic girl, far more energetic now that she wasn't being crowded by some drunk idiot. "My kid sister's birthday is coming up and I wanted to ask you if you'd weave something special for her."

"I told her I gave you some of my silk and she could pay you for some creations. Feel free to charge her out the nose," I said dryly.

"Hey! No friends discount?"

"Nope. Girl's gotta eat and I need to practice getting in and out of this suit. I'll leave you ladies to haggle on the price."

I made a tactical retreat back into the curtain as I heard them begin to talk shop. This Emma, whoever she was, was a lucky gal. Anne seemed a bit absentminded, but she clearly cared for her sister, going as far as to request a 100% silk jacket.

My eyes briefly boggled at the price tag Sabah dropped. $20 for the rush job. $70 for exclusivity of materials. $35 for a custom dye. $120 for Sabah's design services. $245 in total, and that was Sabah being merciful apparently. Generally, the markup on clothing averaged double the wholesale price and went up from there.

There was some complaint about the quoted price for Sabah's design work, Anne claimed she was untested, but a quick flip through her portfolio put that to rest.

Meanwhile, I timed myself on my phone to see how quickly I could put on and take off my armor. Forty-five minutes later, I could dress myself in three minutes and take my armor off in one. Compared to medieval garb, this was downright miraculous. I especially loved how I could wear the silk undershirt over my street clothes if I wanted, though it'd probably get unreasonably hot in the summer.

I strutted out of Wyatt Hall in my armor, feeling like a million bucks. It was a little heavy, but I looked amazing in it. No one could possibly mistake me as anything but a hero now. No more people wondering if I was a gang banger or random biker. No more cops randomly stopping me to check if I'd parked my bike in the right place.

Nope. Menagerie had his official drip.

I took a picture of myself and posted it as my new PHO profile picture: "New armor, same Menagerie. Thanks again to Sabah for your wonderful work!"

While I was on, I quickly flipped through my DMs. Some were proposals for my healing services. Others were questions about my pokemon that most definitely didn't fit the forum guidelines. There was even a question asking if I'd visit for some kid's birthday party. I ignored them all for the moment.

I noticed that someone who could only be Dinah already reached out to me. An account that was only an hour old named xXUnicornLoverXx could only be one person.

xXUnicornLoverXx: Menagerie?

Menagerie_Official: Hey, is this Dinah? Like your username.

xXUnicornLoverXx: Thanks. Umm… What now?

Menagerie_Official: For starters, [here] is my phone number. Call me if the numbers ever start to fall, okay?

xXUnicornLoverXx: Okay. Thank you. I didn't tell Rory anything. I want to, but I want to trust my power. They get worse when he knows.

Menagerie_Official: I'm going to do a bit of digging on my own and get help. Don't worry, Coil won't touch you.

I did my best to reassure the young thinker before logging off. A moment later, I received a text from her asking me to confirm my number. I sent her back a selfie and began to plot.

First things first, I had to talk to Amy. No matter what some nutjobs on PHO liked to think, I wasn't a plant; I was as green as they came when it came to cape culture and investigative work and this wasn't a problem I couldn't punch my way out of… for the moment.

I dialed her number, but no response.

I dialed again. Nothing.

Frustrated, I texted: Ames, if you don't pick up, I'm telling Victoria you're pregnant.

That did it. not two minutes later, she texted back: Don't you fucking dare!!!

Menagerie: Oh, good. You're here. Calling now.

"Yo, Amy, how're things?" I asked with an audible grin.

"What. Do. You. Want?" she growled. "Do you know how swamped we are right now? Either get your ass in the hospital or fuck off and let me work!"

"Okay, sorry, geez. I do feel a little bad, but remember that girl I was meeting?"

"Oh, right… Sorry, sometimes I forget you actually do useful things sometimes."

"Rude."

"Whatever. Now what'd you find out?"

"She has powers for sure. Thinker. Exact same power as I saw her having. She's a target."

I heard her take a deep breath. "Okay, now what? PRT?"

"No. According to her power, her chances don't improve when she tells anyone."

"And you only know because you're a bullshit precog on top of all your other bullshit."

"Bingo."

"Now what?"

"I was kinda hoping you'd help," I said hesitantly. "Can you put me in touch with Lady Photon?"

"Aunt Sarah? Yeah, I can do that. Let me text you her number. She's a stay-at-home mom so she should be available. How long do we have?"

"I don't know. It doesn't look like a kidnapping attempt is imminent, but the longer we sit around with our thumbs up our asses, the more time Coil has to figure out we're on to him."

"Agreed. Keep me posted?"

"Of course. Good night, Amy."

"Yeah, night."

A few minutes later, I received a text from Amy telling me that Lady Photon would expect a call. She wanted me to arrange a time for us to meet face to face. Alternatively, she also offered me the chance to drop by her house tonight.

I decided to meet her now. I didn't know what exactly Lady Photon might be able to do to help me, but I figured it was better for her to have as much information as possible. A minute later, I teleported to her neighborhood as a gardevoir before shifting back.

The Pelham house was about as "American dream" as I could imagine. Two stories, white picket fence, expansive porch with a manicured garden. I was honestly feeling a little jealous. If I ever got a third chance at life, I hoped I'd get to see what childhood was like on this side of the tracks. Being an orphan both lives was honestly pretty rough.

Still, I couldn't begrudge Crystal and Eric their good fortune. They at least tried to be heroes and give back.

I knocked on the door and met Sarah Pelham for the second time. It was obvious to see where her kids got their good looks.

"Hello? Menagerie?" she asked, a little unsure given my new armor.

"That's me," I said, holding out a hand. "Thank you for seeing me, Lady Photon."

"Yes, well, you sounded urgent and Amy has nothing but good things to say about you. Please, come in."

I followed her into the living room and took a seat on a plush sofa. I frowned skeptically, "Amy? Good things?"

"Well… Maybe not explicitly, but she's always so animated when she talks about you. It's very rare for her to make a friend."

"Yeah, we're going out now. I asked her out today in fact. She said yes but looked kind of constipated so I'm not sure what that was about," I told her. Anything to needle Amy a bit.

"Oh! How wonderful! You two do look cute together. Now where are my manners? Would you like something to drink? Can you drink?" she asked, waving vaguely at my armored form.

I slid the faceplate down. "Ah, yeah. Sabah installed a hidden clasp so I could partially remove my faceplate. Water please."

She slid a glass towards me. "So, what's this about? Amy seemed very concerned and insisted that this was about hero work. I take it there is some reason you've chosen to come here instead of the Protectorate?"

"Before I tell you, do you mind if I check for bugs?"

"There are none, but fine. If it makes you feel better, go ahead."

"Shift, iron valiant," I said. It was a cyborg designed to hunt and kill in a future version of a world that was, in its present, already decades more advanced than Earth-Bet; surely it'd have a few scanners for mechanical traps and weapons to augment its psychic abilities.

The complete emotional void that was this mechanized gallade took hold, but the change was more manageable this time. My vision became tinted in red as I activated my scanners. It was an unnerving experience.

I knew nothing about robots, or tech more broadly if I was being truthful. I could read a user guide and follow basic commands, but that was about the extent of my knowledge. That forced me to rely on the iron valiant's internal processors and memory banks to do the heavy lifting.

What was a bug? What did recording devices look like in these primitive times?

I didn't have a fucking clue. I did however have a cyborg that did know. It tracked every incoming and outgoing signal in the house and cataloged them by type of signal, frequency, and a dozen other metrics that probably meant more to someone more savvy than I.

Two things stood out to me. I floated the coffee table, drinks and all.

"Menagerie?"

"Sorry, but when did you get this table? New?"

"Umm, yes? It's something Neil had custom made. We thought it went well with the rug."

I pointed to one of three screws. "There's a signal coming from the middle one."

"What signal? That's just a sc-"

I telekinetically peeled it out to reveal a cavity inside the table leg. It had been hollowed out, replaced with some kind of listening device.

"You're being spied on. It's not on, but if I had to guess, specific words related to your hero work will trigger it. You should make a note to arrest the carpenter. I also recommend you be more careful about what else you bring into your house from now on."

Her eyes hardened. "I will. Thank you, Menagerie. Are there any other bugs?"

"Let's see."

I walked around the room looking for more but found only one other behind the TV. I shut them down and gave them to her. She could conduct her own investigation. After that, I switched back before waiting a minute and shifting to gardevoir.

"That looks very similar to the other one. 'Iron valiant' you called it? I think you're going to make Armsmaster jealous."

"He's right to be," I said smugly. "There is nothing a pokemon can't do."

I took in a deep breath and drank in her emotions. There was concern there, and that tasted a little oily and sour, but there was also resolve too. Love for her family, particularly her little boy. Peace of mind knowing her house was bug-free. It was like a warm hug and I allowed myself to luxuriate in the feel of home. Sarah Pelham was a beautiful woman, inside and out.

"What are you doing now?"

"Hmm? Oh, sorry. This form is an empath. I'm trying to see if there is anyone around who noticed that two bugs just went offline."

"And?"

I stretched out my senses and felt the world ripple around me. "There's an old woman baking a pie next door."

"Mrs. Rustkin. She's a good friend."

"A pair of teenagers sucking each other off two doors that-a-way."

"Pass. Not interested. Anyone we want to know about?"

"Sorry, not exactly an exact science. Give me a second… No. We're clear."

She breathed an audible sigh of relief. "Good. I'll be having words with my husband," she growled. "What exactly did you say you needed?"

"Right," I nodded solemnly. I shifted back and mentally apologized to Manpower. It sounded like I'd gotten him in the doghouse unintentionally. "On top of everything you saw, I am a precog and I've received a warning via power that a girl triggered. She also received precog powers and we've both independently confirmed that she will become a target for Coil soon."

That made her sit up straight. "Coil? He's a nobody."

"He wants you to think he's a nobody. If I had to guess, both bugs were his plants."

"You'd better start from the beginning, Menagerie. You're also a precog on top of your changer powers?"

"My pokemon come with a lot of different powers. One of them lets me see into the future while focusing on an individual. I looked into a friend's future and found that she'd come into conflict with Coil. In the future, Coil 'acquires' a twelve year old precog by the name of Dinah Alcott. He drugs her to the gills and keeps her in his base somewhere, presumably to use her power."

"And what are his powers? Does he have any or is he just well-connected?"

"Coil's power lets him split the timeline. When he encounters a crossroad, he can go both ways then collapse one timeline to accept the outcome that favors him more. It's powerful, but even better with Dinah."

"Dinah. The mayor's niece. What can she do?"

"She can answer a question by giving you a probability. I asked her to check if someone would kidnap her. I also asked her if her odds improve after we tell Rory, her cousin, and the rest of her family. She didn't, which means they got worse instead. I'm confused about that. Could Coil be a socialite? Someone in the mayor's administration?"

Sarah Pelham's face morphed through several expressions in quick order. Shock. Worry. Knowledge. "That's… a possibility… It's a good thing you came to me. It's possible that Coil has connections to the mayor, yes."

A part of me wanted to press her on what she knew, but I didn't bother. In the end, whatever leak she thought the mayor's administration had, I could probably leave it to her. Or rather, it didn't matter compared to catching Coil himself. If we could remove him, his network would hopefully die out on its own.

"Right, what now? I want to take Coil out as soon as I can. I'm confident I can take his entire organization in a fight if it comes to that, but he seems hard to pin down. Think I should tell the PRT?"

"No… There is some possibility that the leak near the Alcotts is related to the PRT. There are several people in the mayor's administration who work closely with them," she said carefully.

"Fine. No PRT. I could use some backup when it comes time to nail him to the wall. If he can pick the better of two timelines, we'll just have to hit him from both possible directions."

"That makes sense," she hummed in thought. "What exactly did you tell Dinah?"

"Everything. I told her she's in danger."

"You told a twelve year old that she's in mortal peril," she stared reproachfully. "You think she's going to be able to live with that?"

I shrugged. "I thought the same thing so before that, I asked her whether my chances of helping her improve if she had all the details. They did, so she knows."

"I… Fine. It's a bit late to scold you over decisions already made. What have you done to help her moving forward?"

"She has my number on speed-dial and many of my forms can teleport. Even the ones that can’t are very fast. If Coil makes a play for Dinah, I'll be able to support her in seconds."

"That's good. I'm glad."

"What? Did you think I'd leave her with nothing? Just drop a bomb on her and say 'good luck?'"

"Hah, I'm a mother, Menagerie. It's my job to worry."

"Right, well, she'll have backup from me, but I can't watch her 24/7. I even told her to trigger her own powers to keep herself safe. Every morning, she is to ask herself if she'll be safe without needing to call me. If the percentages ever dip, she'll let me know so I know to be ready."

“And you’ll skip school that day to avoid Arcadia’s faraday cage.”

“That’s the idea.”

"A small percentage just means it's unlikely, not that it's impossible," she warned. "How do you know Coil won't catch her power off guard? He might be able to act in an unexpected way, especially given his own power."

"You're right. Why I'm here, really. The way I see it, the best thing we can do at the moment is to layer as many protections on Dinah as we can. I'm only one person."

"Hmm… Yes, that could work. I'll pull Crystal off patrols. She's been complaining that it eats up a lot of time from university. She can go ahead and babysit Dinah after school. On paper, she'll be tutoring Dinah, but she can take time for her own studies. I don't think Coil will move if he knows a hero is watching her."

There was something uniquely amusing about Lady Photon still thinking about her daughter's studies. Photon Mom indeed… "And she should be mostly safe at school."

"Correct, but just in case, she will have my own number if something unexpected happens during one of her safe days and you’re in school. Worst case scenario, I'll have Carol pull Vicky and Amy from school while giving chase. I take it at least one of them knows who you are?"

"Haha, yeah… Identities are kind of a pain, huh?"

"That they are. They're unfortunately necessary however. I'm sure one of my nieces will get you in that case."

"Okay, so Dinah's fine for most of the day. Does Crystal have any night classes?"

"No, not that I know of. Don't worry about that. I'll have a word with my sister and organize something. You don't have to watch her yourself 24/7."

"Yeah… Thank you, Lady Photon."

She sighed and downed her glass of water. I had the distinct impression that she'd have preferred something stronger. "Sorry, was there anything else you wanted?"

"Yeah… What are we going to tell Crystal?"

"Nothing besides that Dinah should be watched. She'll understand; she's a big girl."

"Right… That's probably a good thing. She can't spill anything if she doesn't know to begin with. Mind if I scan the rest of your house for bugs? Just to be safe?"

"Please do. Carol might want the same as well."

I shifted back into iron valiant and went around looking for unusual energy signatures. In the end, I found four more bugs, one in the master bedroom, one in Crystal's room, one in Eric's room, and the last in the dining room. It was almost impressive how thoroughly her house had been bugged and I made a note to be more careful in the future concerning my own hideouts.

"This has been frankly extremely disturbing."

"Now you know."

"Yes, I can sleep a little easier tonight. Thank you, Menagerie."

I was about to head out when I had an idea. I only had a few more hours of the fairy type. Who knew when I'd get this chance again?

"Lady Photon, do you mind if I use Future Sight on you?"

"Your precog ability?"

"Yeah. It helps if I have a psychic imprint of someone to work from."

"Go on. Take a seat. I admit I'm curious about this."

"Okay, one sec. Shift, gardevoir."

"Really, are those two forms related? One looks like a cyborg and the other is…"

"Very feminine," I said with a laugh. "I know what I look like. Did you know I asked out Amy like this?"

"You did?"

"Yup. Rose and everything. There's a video of it. Please feel free to mock her relentlessly."

"No mercy, huh?"

"None whatsoever. She deserves it, trust me." I held out my hand as I explained. "Okay, take my hand. I'm going to take a bit of what makes you, you. Kind of an emotional imprint of the woman called Lady Photon. Then, I'm going to use that to find the Lady Photon of the future and ask her for some advice."

"Me of the future, huh? That's definitely the strangest precog power I've ever heard of." Still, she placed her hand in mine. I noticed that her hands were surprisingly coarse. Not rough per se, but she'd been in a few scraps in her day.

I took Lady Photon's hands in mine. Physical contact made it all feel so much deeper, more, than I was used to. I could feel everything that made Sarah Pelham the woman she was, from the love she had for her children to the jagged, barely covered emotional scars that made up her trigger event.

The people of this world had no real exposure to powerful telepaths so her mind was an open book to me. In it, I could sense her concern for Dinah, as both a mother and a hero, and an earnest desire to help, to do what was right.

I smiled as I took it all in. Sarah Pelham was strong, as a mother ought to be, as a hero ought to be. But she was only human; there was a hint of selfishness too. She also had a desire to matter, to revisit the glory days of New Wave when their movement threatened to set the world on fire.

I didn't begrudge her that.

I breathed deep and took in a part of her, a psychic imprint of the woman called Sarah Pelham. And then, I reached out.

"Future Sight," I whispered.

Psychic aura surrounded me and I saw Lady Photon take a startled step back. A ring of power that looked superficially similar to a magic circle wreathed my body.

When I tried this the first time as a delphox, I stared into the fire. The connection I forged between myself and future-Emily was frail and weak. Now, it felt different. I didn't know if this was because of my experience or because Sarah Pelham was a more self-actualized person than Emily, but I found the connection easier to forge.

'Hello?' I spoke into the bond. 'Lady Photon?'

'Who are you? How are yo-Menagerie? Is that you?'

'Sorry to alarm you. I take it you've heard my telepathy before then?'

She sounded sardonic. There was a dry undercurrent in her voice that I couldn't quite place. 'You could say that. You're supposed to be in Nigeria. I had no idea your range was so wide. Did you need something?'

'Well… I'm not the Menagerie of your time.'

'Ah. Precogs. You know, I've always wondered. If you hear what I say and change the future, will I cease to exist?'

I scoffed. 'Don't be silly, Lady Photon. You represent a single alternate timeline. Granted, one that is most likely to happen without this conversation, but still just one among many. Every decision of every living thing is a crossroad with infinite permutations, the combination of which make for an even larger set of potential timelines. You don't cease to exist, I just deviate from meeting you, if that makes any sense.'

'It does, but you know you can call me Sarah, right?'

'I don't know actually. I've only met you in my own time twice now.'

'Well, I've met you quite often so Sarah is fine. Now, what did you want to hear?'

'For starters, everything about Coil and Dinah. How does this mess turn out?'

I felt her let out the mental equivalent of a deep sigh. It was a weird, staggering wave of frustrated resignation that coursed through the bond. I didn't like it; it tasted bitter. 'Oh. That. Buckle down, kiddo.'

'Kiddo?'

'I know what I said. Look, you know Coil's power?'

'Timeline manipulation? Pick the better of two choices?'

'Yup, that's it. We took him down but not without a lot of losses. You did something. I don't know exactly what, but you were able to isolate his base to an abandoned endbringer shelter. It's the one about a block away from the Forsberg Gallery if that'll save you some work.'

'Thanks, that helps a lot. What else? What do you mean losses?'

'We found Coil's base and told the Protectorate. We divided the teams into three. Armsmaster and I covered two exits while you made your own entrance with a digging pokemon. But He wasn't there. He received forewarning somehow and evacuated, leaving a bomb that collapsed four city blocks.'

'You're fucking with me.'

'I wish I was. It gets worse I'm afraid. I only survived thanks to Vicky taking the blow and you finding us in the collapse. Neil almost lost an arm if it wasn't for you and Amy. The Protectorate contingent wasn't as lucky. Armsmaster, Militia, and Dauntless died. He took the assault on his base as the chance to nab Dinah, killing her parents and Triumph who had been left to guard her. If… If it had been a day earlier, that would have been Crystal,' she whispered. I could taste her anger and frustration even as the connection slowly wore itself out.

'How do I stop him then? You said we won eventually, right?'

'The collapse was the opportunity Tattletale needed to break out from under Coil's thumb.'

'Hold on. Tattletale? The Undersider?'

'Yes. It turns out that she was forced to be a villain at gunpoint and had been working to subvert her boss.'

'And… Is she trustworthy?' I asked skeptically. The girl I'd met the other night was… Well, had I been a less patient man, she would have sorely regretted the encounter. I couldn't imagine working with her. Then again, I worked with Zinnia. Apocalyptic crises made for strange bedfellows.

Sarah seemed to share my opinion if the derisive snort was any clue. 'Her? Trustworthy? God, no. But… She is a powerful thinker and exceedingly useful when she wants to be. She's also shortsighted, impulsive, prideful, and immature. I don't think she's as evil as Coil, but I also don't have any delusions that she's on the side of angels either. If you give her a common cause, she'll help.'

'I'm not sure I want to bother.'

'Then don't. After I tell you everything, you shouldn't need her anyway. Where was I? Right, the bomb. After the collapse, Tattletale joined us in exchange for your direct protection. You agreed on the contingency that she found Dinah. She tried to secure some "supplementary funds" from Coil's defunct accounts first, but you… got angry.

'I still don't know what you said to her, but you dragged her into a closet. Five minutes later, she was the most docile villain I've ever seen. Any ideas?'

'I typically don't like threatening people, but… Yeah, I can see me losing it for that. I have some options.'

'I'm a little curious now.'

'Well, how scary I am really depends on you. Do you believe in souls?'

'I'm not particularly religious, sorry.'

'Then don't worry about it. Anyway, we found Coil?'

'You did. Once Tattletale shaped up, it only took you a day to locate him.'

I felt her hesitate. So great was her reservation that the bond almost snapped like a recoiling spring. 'Sarah?'

'You killed him,' she whispered. 'You were so angry when he took Dinah that you didn't even check with the rest of us before going after him alone. He was getting ready to leave the city with her and a core of his best mercenaries, start over somewhere else, somewhere without you. With the Protectorate shattered, there wasn't anyone to stop you. You killed him.'

'How? Sarah, I need to know.'

'I don't know. You came back in the middle of the night, left Dinah in my care, and headed for the PRT with a flash drive containing all of his files. It was only a week later that the rest of us found out.

'Coil is Thomas Calvert. In his civilian identity, he is a PRT consultant and a veteran of the Elisburg Incident. That's how he was so well-informed; he had a direct line to the director. You and Tattletale spent days combing through the PRT personnel for spies.'

I didn't know what to say to that. It wasn't the first time I'd killed before, not even close, but I liked to think of myself as a man of restraint. Disciplined if not necessarily peace-loving.

But… But it was always my family holding me back from becoming like the lunatics I fought. How many times did Luca and I beat each other senseless until I was too tired to be angry? How many times did Titania drag my mind into her own until I could think clearly again?

Without them…

'This is good to hear,' I told her. 'I know his name. Tell me everything you know about Thomas Calvert. Where does he live? What does he look like? The more I know, the faster I can end this mess.'

'You're not going to go kill him off, are you?'

'You disapprove?'

She let out an exasperated sigh. 'I'm not sure how I feel. On one hand, you're a child, my nieces' age. The toughest decision you should be making is whether you can procrastinate on your homework another day, not weighing the lives of heroes and villains.

'On the other hand… On the other hand, you're not a child. I know that. You lead like a veteran. You speak and think and strategize like someone with decades of experience. You… I'm proud of you, you know that? I mean, I'm not your mother, but I am. I'm proud to know someone like you is a hero. I just wish you didn't have to be the one dealing with this.'

'But I am,' I reminded her gently. 'I am Menagerie because I chose this path. Please help me keep Dinah Safe.'

She was silent for a long while. Then, something came through the bond. Emotions. Memories. An image of a thin, almost gaunt, black man with neatly cropped hair taken from a newspaper obituary. Thomas Calvert.

'Okay. His address is 1332 Highland Lane.'

I committed the face and address to memory. She glossed over it, but I didn't miss that his base blowing up would result in the collapse of four city blocks. How many hundreds died besides the heroes?

No. I had the power to prevent all of this. I wouldn't forget that face.

'And Dinah? We got her back, right?'

'You did. You and Tattletale. She used Dinah's safety to secure a plea deal and even managed to haggle my sister into representing her.'

'Brandish? She doesn't seem to be the most… flexible, morally, I mean.'

'Yup. Surprised me too. I think there's more to it but she wouldn't tell me. Dinah was sedated and drugged, but you and Amy were able to flush her system.'

'Good. Any final bits of advice on dealing with Coil?'

'Take him down quickly. He still needs to sleep. Then, find a way to disable his bomb. I recommend Dragon.'

'How do I get in contact with Dragon?'

'Armsmaster. The PRT might be Calvert's sock puppet, but I doubt he has a backdoor into Armsmaster's personal network. Find a way to contact him privately. It's not the only way to contact Dragon, but it is the easiest.'

'Got it. Anything else?'

'No, I trust you. I just want you to be able to live with yourself, whatever you decide. Can you do that for me?'

I rolled my eyes fondly. 'No wonder people call you Photon Mom.'

'You know, with the way things are going, you might be one of three people who can actually call me that,' she teased back.

'Wait what?'

'What?'

'What do you mean?'

'Who knows?'

'You! You do!'

'Well, this is just one possibility after all. Don't worry about it.'

'You suck.'

'Yes, of course. Anything else you wanted to know?'

'That depends on you. What should I know?' I asked. There wasn't too much time left. The connection was more robust than when I'd tried this as a delphox, but I could feel it starting to fray. After all, how could I know what to watch for? 'Tell me what you think I ought to know going forward.'

'Well in that case, I want you to mark the date: February 24.'

'Why? What's that date?'

'Simurgh. The Simurgh hits Canberra, Australia. I don't know if you knowing will somehow make her decide to go somewhere else, maybe even target somewhere earlier to mess with you, but that's what happened.'

'Well… Fuck.'

'Yes, that's an apt response.'

'I have a month to grow stronger…'

'Maybe. You have a month before the endbringer battle, but less time than that. Two villain teams are going to head to Brockton. Are you still in January?'

'Yeah. Who's showing?'

'Heartbreaker. Not him directly, but at least two of his sons. I don't know why they show, but they do. The PRT analysts thought there might have been a runaway child of Heartbreaker hiding out in the city. Sorry, I don't know more.'

'Well, fuck… Any idea on their powers?'

'No, sorry. It stands to reason that they're all masters involving human emotion or perception and that they can use this ability to track people, but I don't really know more.'

'Shit, thanks for the heads up. Who's the other villain?'

'Villains,' she corrected. 'The Travelers. They're trouble. They are a nomadic group that showed up in 2009. They have at least five members and are led by a mover named Trickster. He, Sundancer, Ballistic, and Genesis were looking for you and Amy.'

'Me?'

'Yes. They showed up just as the ABB and Empire were fighting, burned Fenja's leg off in a miniature sun, gunned down Oni Lee, and forced a ceasefire. They said they had a fifth member who could use your help and offered to help defeat the gangs if you healed her.'

'I… That's… They thought that was the best way to get my attention?'

She laughed. I could feel our connection fray. 'You'd be surprised. That's about as polite as villains get. I've seen villains who have tried to hold the hospital hostage to get my niece to help them. Never works, but they're not too bright.'

'Right. Fair enough. You said they're nomadic? There should be plenty of information on them right? Any clue what the fifth member wants?'

'Healing. Beyond that? Nothing, sorry. I'm still in the middle of this myself. It's only March here.'

I blinked in surprise. That might be why our connection was so much stronger this time. Instead of jumping years, I'd jumped months. 'Ah, thanks. I think time's up though. I'm running out of juice.'

'Okay. Coil is Calvert. You know where his house and base is. Bomb. Heartbreaker. Travelers. Simurgh. February 24. Remember, Menagerie.'

'Yes, I remember. Thank you so much, Lady Photon.'

'Sarah.'

'Sarah, then. Thank you.'

'You're welcome.'

The connection cut off and I found myself opening my eyes to the Pelham living room. I blinked a few times to orient myself. "Whew, that was a trip."

"Menagerie?" I heard next to me. "Are you alright?"

Lounging on the couch next to me was Eric Pelham, Shielder. He was flipping through the channel as he eyed me sideways. He must have arrived sometime during my trance.

"Hey, Shielder, right?"

"Eric, man. Not in costume. Mom said you were doing some hocus pocus thinker stuff and I should keep an eye on you. You done?"

"I… Yeah… Just a bit of a weird trip."

He shrugged. "Thinkers. Every one of you are weird."

I timed out and swapped back into my armor. "Met a lot of us?"

"Enough to know you're all weird. Sweet armor though. Fresh off the rack, huh?"

"Yup. Sabah does good work."

Just then, Sarah Pelham walked in from the kitchen with an apron over her outfit. "Oh, Menagerie, you're back from dreamland. I didn't know when you'd be done so I decided to start making dinner."

"I am. Hell of a trip."

"Language, young man. Don't think I won't wash your mouth out."

"I can teleport."

"You can try."

"Mom, can we please not baby random heroes?" her son groaned.

"Fine, spoil my fun. Would you like to stay for dinner? Crystal should be home in a few minutes and Neil is already upstairs taking a shower."

I checked the clock. 7:12 PM. Late enough that Mrs. Wells wouldn't have anything else for me. My stomach growled at the wonderful smell coming from the kitchen.

"Ah… If you don't mind?"

"Of course not, son," I heard behind me.

I turned around and saw Neil Pelham, Manpower, in the flesh. He was… big. He stood at a huge seven feet tall, with shoulders wider than my pauldrons and biceps as thick as my head. He had wavy brown hair only now seeing a touch of gray.

"Wow, you're tall…"

"Heh, I get that a lot." He held out his hand. "Neil Pelham. It's a pleasure, Menagerie. I hear you've been doing a lot of good work."

"Likewise, Neil. Is Eric going to be as tall as you one day?"

"He might, but probably not. I was always tall, but I gained a few inches when I got my powers." He reached out to ruffle his son's hair. "Sorry, squirt."

"Dad!" he whined.

"It ain't all it's cracked up to be. I needed to personally install every door in the house and I still hit my head sometimes. Had to modify my truck too."

The three of us sat around on the couch, chatting about our days and waiting for the food. Neil was a down to earth man who, surprisingly enough, worked as a project manager for the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission.

It caught me by surprise because of how normal it sounded. you saw a seven foot tall guy with more muscle than a bull and you thought maybe construction foreman or something, not… guy who made water run.

"Brockton's finest flygirl has landed~" I heard at the same time as the door swung open. A second later, Crystal Pelham flew in, upside down and arms crossed over her head as if lying down.

"Fly rightside up, you show off," Eric muttered.

"Welcome home, sweetie," Neil greeted.

She was about to kiss her dad on the cheek, noticed me, then froze. "Umm… Who are you?"

"'Brockton's finest flygirl,' huh?" I said in lieu of a greeting. "Someone's got a high opinion of herself."

"Menagerie?"

"One and only."

"Oh my god, Sabah finished your armor!"

"She did."

"Well, get up, give me a twirl!"

I laughed and acquiesced. "Alright, don't rush me, flygirl."

She coughed awkwardly. "Can you please pretend you didn't hear me say that?"

"Nope. It's going in my little box of blackmail material alongside all the crap I have on Amy."

"Ugh, rude. Blackmailed. In my own house. In front of my dad and baby brother."

"Who's a baby?" Eric grouched.

"You are, freshie."

"Am not."

"Am too."

"Am not."

"Am too. You wanna prove me wrong?" She flung a finger at me dramatically. "Fight! Defend your sister's honor!"

Eric stared at me, then at his sister. Then, in the most deadpan voice, he said, "Pistols at dawn?"

I rolled my eyes. The two reminded me a lot of May and Max Maple. May could be a mature young lady. Powerful, and with a good eye for tactics too, but throw her in with her brother and all that maturity seemed to wash off like paint.

"Pistols at dawn," I confirmed. "I'll have to buy a gun. How do I do that?"

"Ah, yes, funding the local arms trade. Like a true hero."

"Truly, the most heroic of endeavors. How else will the local economy support itself?"

"Get me one too?"

Neil grabbed both of us by the shoulder. "Nope. Enough of that. I think dinner's ready, you two."

The Pelham dining room was about as normal as could be. It was sunny, with calming white and tan furniture. One wall was made of exposed brick and a large, decorative plate hung off it. It almost looked too normal considering who lived here. Then again, perhaps I was projecting my expectations.

I somehow doubted Sarah would want me to talk about Coil or any other cape business while her children were here, but I still felt the need to scan for bugs. It wasn't often I had iron valiant after all.

"Sarah?"

"Yes, Menagerie?"

"Mind if I run a scan?"

She looked confused for a moment before her eyes hardened. "Sure. Go ahead."

"Thanks, will only be a minute. Shift, iron valiant."

"Woah, that's sick," Eric gasped. "You can turn into a robot?"

"Something like that. Excuse me while I run the scan."

"Sarah? What's he doing?" Neil asked.

"He's looking for bugs, just in case any of you brought anything home."

"What bugs?"

She reached up on top of the fridge and pulled out the small recording device that I extracted earlier. "This, husband dear, was in the coffee table leg. Menagerie came to talk to me about hero work and wanted to be sure. I thought he was being paranoid but humored him. Turns out he wasn't."

"Wait, the coffee table?"

"Yes, the one you got from that one boutique furniture store."

"Ah… I'll look into it?"

"Got one more," I interrupted them. I didn't want to start a marital spat and I definitely didn't want to be here for it either. "Truck outside. It's attached to the bottom of your glove compartment. Same setup as this one. Triggers on certain phrases. Passes along conversations. Parasites off of your car battery to stay active."

"That's…" he slumped. "I'll get the wrench…"

"No way, we're being spied on?" Eric looked around. "For how long? Is there anything in my room?"

"No," I answered him. "I already did a full scan of the house. Nothing on you or Crystal either."

"Oh, phew. Thanks for that."

"No problem." Then, just to fuck with him, I said, "You should probably delete some of your porn though. You have way more of it than you can possibly hope to need."

"I don't watch porn, you ass!"

I made for the door so I could help Neil extract the recording device without damaging it. "Of course not. Tell your mother that."

He turned around to see the glassy smile frozen on his mother's face. "Oh, you fucking asshole…"

Once identified, removing it was a simple affair. The elder Pelhams talked for a bit and I gleaned that they would leave both recording devices to Armsmaster for investigation.

After that, we finally gathered around the dinner table for food. I sat down across from Neil and Sarah and between Crystal and Eric. Dinner ended up being loaded baked potatoes with a salad made of baby spinach and berry tomatoes.

"Thank you for the food," I told Sarah sincerely. It was similar to what I ate in the orphanage, baked potatoes were simple enough that even children could be enlisted to help, but I'd never gotten free reign over the bacon and cheese like this because Mark and I tended to wait for all the little ones to grab their shares first. I placed a steaming forkful of buttery goodness in my mouth. "It's delicious."

"Glad you like it. I made plenty so feel free to grab seconds. Neil eats at least four of these."

"Hey, I'm a big man with a big stomach," her husband defended, comically rubbing his tummy like a snorlax. "So, Menagerie, how tough is that costume? Is it actual armor or is it for the image?"

"Definitely armor." I pulled off a gauntlet and passed it around. Easy, since a lot of it was just attached via velcro and zippers. "The scales are bulletproof. Unless you've got an anti-material rifle in your pocket, you're not breaking it. The silk underlayer is stab-proof and also resists high temperature changes thanks to it coming from a snom."

"What's a snom?"

"Cute little moth larva with ice powers."

Eric got a hold of it. "Sweet. It feels super soft inside. Can I try to blast it?"

"Eric," his mom said reproachfully.

"I don't mind," I told them. "I think even Crystal would have to put in some serious effort to harm the scales."

"No powers at the table."

"Fair." I took my gauntlet back. "But yeah, Sabah really did a wonderful job. I even gave her a bunch of silk to work with as payment."

Crystal laughed. "Yeah, the whole university knows. She's swamped in preorders by the way. She was trying to decide whether she wants to strangle you or kiss you."

"Kissing, yes. Breathplay, maybe later."

"Menagerie!" Sarah barked as Eric choked back laughter.

"Sorry, sorry, I have a horrible sense of humor. But yeah. Sabah. Awesome tailor. Glad she's getting noticed."

"Anyway, you said your silk had defensive properties?"

"Yup. Stronger than Kevlar. Noticeably stronger."

"Do you think we can commission something?"

I shrugged. "Probably? Sabah gave some silk to Parian as thanks for helping her put my armor together. That's how she got it done so fast. Parian didn't like me just finding her on the Boardwalk, but she might be open to commissions more discreetly if you reach out over PHO."

"I might do that. Anything to make us safer."

Eric lathered some sour cream on his potato. "Cool, silk costumes. So I've been wondering…"

"Yes?"

"When you asked out my cousin, is the weird white and green thing a boy or a girl?"

I laughed. "A gardevoir? Male."

"Huh… You know, PHO blew up because of you."

Neil raised an eyebrow. "What'd he do?"

"He asked Amy out. In the school cafeteria. Got on one knee, pulled out a rose, gave her a box of churros."

"Huh. You go, kid."

I groaned. "Has anyone pointed out that the rose was yellow?"

Eric looked confused. "Why would that matter? I don't think anyone has."

"Because yellow roses symbolize friendship."

"Yeah, I don't think PHO's that sophisticated. Pretty sure they're still wondering if gardevoir has a penis."

"Of course they are. Show them a teleporting telepath with enough power to shit out black holes and they wonder if it has a dick."

"Wait what?"

"Gardevoirs can teleport. You saw me do it, right?"

"Nonono, go back to the black hole bit. What?"

I smiled with just a few too many teeth. "What? Who said anything about black holes? Not me. No sir."

"After seeing a supersonic fire dog, I'm not sure if you're joking or not and this scares me."

Crystal laughed. "I'm pretty sure he's joking. Say, can you turn into that ice dino thing I rode last time? Rolling into the drive-thru was hilarious."

"I can't at the moment, and not just because I'd wreck your house. I have a theme I can transform into that limits my options a bit. Today, it's fairies."

"What part of the metal robot was a fairy?"

I shrugged. "There's a dragon that's basically a ball of slime. The ice dino you saw is also a 'rock type.' A lot of my pokemon don't really look like you'd expect from their types."

"Huh… Weird… What about the ice fox then? You gave the university a snow day when you showed up."

"That's an ice type obviously. And also fairy so I can turn into that."

"How is a fox a fairy?"

"The same way that the t-rex I made my scales from is a dragon."

"You know that makes no sense right?"

"To you. It makes perfect sense to my power," I said with a laugh. The way she scrunched her nose in confusion was really cute. I couldn't explain aura to her even if I tried. How did one explain the soul anyway? Even in my old world, that was one force that people still tried to understand, hundreds of years of study later.

Crystal took a drink of water. "Okay, go back to asking out my cousin. Does Amy know that the rose is supposed to be about friendship?"

"No. We're going on a date this Saturday and I'm going to break her heart in front of everyone at the Boardwalk… Of course she knows. She's the one who insisted we do this whole fake-dating thing."

"Wait what? Explain to me why you two decided to do this?"

"Long story short? Amy wanted Vicky to stop introducing her to random jocks so she found a date on her own and got me to agree to go out with her in costume."

"And the whole performance?"

I laughed. "If she's going to make me hang with her on Saturday, I reserve the right to have my fun."

"You two…" she sighed explosively. "I don't know if I should laugh or cry. As long as you both know where you stand with each other, I guess it's fine."

"Yeah. Anyway, what do you study, Crystal? I've seen you on campus a lot but I don't think it ever came up."

"Accounting and business management. I know, super boring, right?"

"Honestly? Yeah. I thought your life would be more exciting."

"Well sorry to burst your bubble, buster. What do you do out of costume then?"

I thought about it. I… I worked out and… helped run an animal shelter… "Huh… Now that you mention it, my life is pretty boring too…"

"Hah! See?"

"Fair enough. I'm sorry for having unusual expectations."

I didn't realize how late it'd gotten. We started eating sometime near 7:30 and talked for a good two and a half hours. Eventually, things shifted from lighthearted topics to more serious matters. Neil and Sarah told us three young'uns about some of the bad old days. They talked about what it was like to compete with the Teeth and how the Slaughterhouse came and went.

Sarah told us about how the New Wave movement got started during this time. She wanted to prove to people that there were heroes out there who could and would hold themselves accountable. She wanted to change the system that allowed villains to avoid responsibility simply by taking off a mask.

It failed, obviously. It failed with the passing of Fleur, but I couldn't help but admire her for it. They were much the same thoughts as my own after all. In the pokemon world, there were no masks. That world had more integrity, more dignity, than Earth-Bet. I had a feeling she would have been a great pokemon trainer in a different life.

By the time we finished, it was nearing 10 PM. By mutual agreement, Sarah, Neil, and I decided to broach the topic of hero work next time. Truthfully, I'd left them with a mystery in the recording devices. On my end, I wanted to do a bit of thinking.

I could go after Coil. Right now. I hadn't told Sarah anything about what her future self revealed to me. But if I did, I had no answer for the myriad of failsafes Coil supposedly had, definitely nothing for the bomb.

No. I had to decide how I wanted to approach Coil. I'd need to find Dragon, enlist her help, and perhaps even consider approaching Tattletale for her help in shutting down any other failsafes he had. I also had to prepare myself for the arrival of Heartbreaker's children and the Travelers.

With much on my mind, I thanked the Pelhams for a wonderful dinner and bid them goodbye.