Vowron

Threat Level: C

Destructiveness: B

Killability: B

---------------------------

Might: F

Survivability: C

Recovery: C

Mobility: F

Spark: A

----------------------------

Powers: His body produces near endless quantities of energy unlike anything found on Earth. Its spectrometer readers are inconsistent. However, it can power almost any machine with high efficiency. It’s unknown whether he’s a Fabricator or his family’s company creates all his tech, but they run flawlessly using his body’s natural energy. Watch out for his firearms and flying vehicles.

Classification: Projector/Fabricator*

Vowron hated the first week of using new equipment. It was doubly so for chest pieces. His new power modulator sat at the base of his sternum. The bottom edge grazed his solar plexus, causing skin to rub against metal whenever he kneeled. He took comfort in the fact that the four metal bands that expanded from the central piece didn’t move and chafe. One went over either shoulder, while the other two went horizontally over his ribs. They stretched as he breathed, expanding and contracting with his chest.

The central piece steadily drained the energy his body constantly produced. Even though the stores could power any of his larger vehicles for a day or two, the bar on his HoloScreen showed it was only half full. Wasted energy was a constant concern, and he took relief in the fact that he wouldn’t have to worry about it for a while.

The League and his fellow heroes considered the ever-increased energy production as an asset, but Vowron disagreed. It demanded regular upgrades to his arsenal. Storage wasn’t the only issue. Energy leaks or surges had fried too many devices when he needed them the most.

“We alright, troopers?!” Vowron exclaimed, putting on his cheeriest voice. As one of Europe’s top thirteen, he had an image to maintain. Self-pity and complaining would damage his reputation. The League’s PR team insisted he maintain his jovial personality for not just the public but heroes that ranked below him, too. “Arriving at the drop zone now! Get ready to jump.”

“You got it, boss,” Armourbuster II said. Vowron gritted his teeth as the young hero’s heavy armoured boots scraped against the transport’s metal floor. He hated babysitting new recruits, and especially legacy recruits. They were much too clumsy with their movements and often lacked control over their powers. “Say when.”

Vowron checked the screen over his piloting console. Armourbuster II, Midknight, and I-Skater stood along the vessel’s centre. He asked the League for more new blood or at least a couple of veterans with at least a couple of years of experience under their belt. Doctor Flux and his henchwomen had injured several assets and left Talon in critical condition. He was no joke.

Fabricators were unpredictable folk. Most of them fell into the Inventor sub-category, exhibiting exceptional skill and knowledge over their chosen field. They could often construct complex devices with greater speed and efficiency than individuals with several degrees in the field and military funding.

Technomancers were a significantly rarer variety of Fabricators. Academics still debated whether they better fit in the Mind category. However, their psychic abilities only affected tech, resulting in scholarly debates and research papers attempting to disprove others. Vowron personally disliked them because Technomancers were an Inventor’s or tech-reliant hero’s worst enemy. The most mediocre among them could take control of any tech within their power’s range and turn them against the user.

Vowron believed that Doctor Flux was the rarest and most dangerous of the Fabricator-category. Reports claimed his Technomancer abilities transcended that of others like him. Apparently, he didn’t just command tech he didn’t own, but befriended them, birthing loyal AI in machines without the circuitry for such existences.

The villains Inventory powers were even more worrying. He lacked specialties, but appeared to have reality-bending abilities. Vowron had personally taken apart Doctor Flux’s inventions. They lacked parts far beyond what felt possible by their current understanding of physics. Witnesses claimed the villain could start with a pair of roller blades, a motor, a handful of batteries, and wires, and end up with rocket-propelled skates. However, the completed product’s interiors failed to match the starting parts.

Official designation labelled Doctor Flux as a Technogogue. His power set made him the worst possible match for Vowron. Unfortunately, he was the only available and willing member of the Thirteen that believed the villain was a concerning enough threat to divert resources.

“Time to go,” Vowron said. He swiped a panel on the vessel’s console and the floor under the three junior heroes parted.

Armourbuster and I-Skater fell through the opening, but Midknight floated in place. Shadows spread from inside of her baggy clothes. They enveloped the young woman and solidified into full-plate armour made of darkness. Vowron watched her on the screen as she fell. Black wings spread from her shoulder blades. Their flapping slowed her fall and then she disappeared into the night.

Vowron whispered commands under his breath before initiating ejection procedures. The vehicle’s ceiling parted and his seat took to the sky. The cushioning wrapped around his body as the seat broke into several sections. Tentacle-like chords broke away from it and slotted into his chest pieces’ bands. Before Vowron knew it, he was on the ground, wearing a sleek suit with heavy greaves and gauntlets. A full-helmet would provide better protection, but Vowron only wore a visor. The PR team considered it vital for his brand.

“Blend in, Athena 6.” The vessel continued to hover overhead. It camouflaged almost perfectly with the cloudy night sky, but Vowron could feel his energy powering it. “Initiate surveillance mode. Use non-lethal force against all hostiles except Doctor Flux.”

The three junior heroes stood around Vowron, awaiting orders. Midknight’s wings had retracted into her armour and a tattered cape hung from her shoulders. Vowron struggled to tell where the fabric ended and darkness began. Despite the powerful gale, it didn’t flutter. I-Skate stood next to Midknight. He hovered three inches above the ground, her signature dark-blue sabre in hand. The edge glowed neon azure.

Behind the two of them stood Vowron’s biggest concern. Armourbuster II wore boots and gauntlets not too different from his. He had ensured it had no tech besides a defensive field powered by her abilities. Unlike him, she lacked the know-how to protect tech from a Technomancer’s influence.

“You’re up,” Vowron told her, pointing at the heavy metal door. She hesitantly stepped up, pressed her wrists together. Armourbuster II cupped her hands and pointed them towards the door. “Midknight, I-Skate, prepare to charge. I’ll provide cover.”

When Vowron raised his hand towards the sky, he sensed a drone break away from Athena-Six. His gauntlet hummed, and it shot into his hands, transforming into a heavy firearm mid-flight.

A golden beam lanced past Vowron. It missed the metal door, striking the wall next to it. Shards of concrete burst from the impact point and the surface visibly charred. The exposed half of Armourbuster II’s face had twisted into an ugly grimace. Her pearly whites shone through her parted mouth and the rest of her shuddered. Before Vowron could reprimand her for poor targeting, Armourbuster II moved the beam closer to the door. Cracks spread through the walls, but it didn’t fall.

The vault-like door’s hinge warped. Armourbuster II’s beam made little noise, but Vowron was sure everyone in the building’s upper levels felt the vibrations.

I hate working with newbies.

A wire connected the firearm to his gauntlet.Energy flowed from his chestpiece, bypassing the network and into the weapon. It hummed to life. He fired at the door and the shot finished what Armourbuster II’s beam had started. The second it came away from the hinges and fell, Midknight and I-Skate sprinted into the building. Vowron changed the firearm’s mode and followed them.

Vowron’s chest plate flickered with golden light. The bullets that struck it shattered and fell to the floor. Dust filled the air, clouding his vision. However, his visor tracked movement across multiple spectrums. Vowron fired low-power projectiles, forcing them back into cover. Midknight charged at them with a short spear made of shadows. I-Skate used her saber to slice Fabricator-made weapons to pieces.

Please don’t kill anyone. I can’t be arsed with the paperwork.

“Stay behind me,” Vowron told Armourbuster II as she followed him through the doorway. Her eyes glowed with the same light as her golden beam, and two fist-sized spheres floated above each of her palms.

Besides Armourbuster II, Vowron worried about I-Skater the most. She sped between Doctor Flux’s Assistants, skating on air. Projectiles bent around her and melee attacks changed trajectory seconds before making contact. Vowron didn’t understand her powers since she didn’t control air or energy, as most assumed. The League categorised I-Skater as a Mover, but he was sure she was more than that. Her unique power and martial prowess made her desirable to the organisation, but her lack of restraint worried Vowron.

Athena-Six sent him an image. Assistants sped out of the ground floor, pushing boxes bigger than them into bulky transports. He instructed the vessel to initiate suppressive fire before returning his attention to the ongoing fight in front of him.

A towering Assistant twice as tall as Vowron charged onto the floor. Midknight charged at her, thrusting her weapon. The strands of shadow dancing around the spear tightened into a tight spiral. Midknight thrust it at the muscled Assistant’s knee, but a blur swept the young hero off her feet and out of sight.

When I-Skater chased after them, several Assistants jumped out of cover, blocking her path. Much to Vowron’s disappointment, she sliced a path through them, taking off limbs as she moved. If Doctor Flux’s Assistants died to a hero’s hands, the media circus would enrage the rest of the Thirteen. Then they’d be up his arse.

Vowron turned up his gun’s power. The rate of fire suffered, but his projectiles knocked Assistants off their feet, sending them crashing into walls and furniture and clearing I-Skater’s path. She followed Midknight out of sight, leaving Armourbuster II and him to deal with the giant.

“They’re here to slow us down,” Vowron told his teams through the comms. “Knock them down and get to the labs as soon as possible.”

This is such a shit show.

When his projectiles did nothing to slow the giant Assistant’s, Vowron turned up his weapon’s power. Instead of attempting to knock down his opponent, he shot the floor. Blowing holes in it, tripped the Assistant. She staggered and fell but rose moments later. The interruption gave Armourbuster II to unleash her attack.

Much to Vowron’s relief, the beam didn’t miss. It blew through the giant Assistant, removing her left arm at the shoulder and the leg at her knee. The beam destroyed two pillars and broke through the floor. The Assistant fell through and screams sounded all around them. Vowron had no choice but to retreat and drag Armourbuster II back with him.

“Oh, no!” She gasped as the building shook.

“Tower, we need immediate assistance!” Vowron exclaimed. “We need Overhealer and further rescue operations down here immediately.”

Rescue services en-route!

Overhealer contacted. Awaiting response.

“Midknight! I-Skater! Report.”

“I’ve lost I-Skater,” Midknight said through the comms. Her voice sounded strained. “I’m pinned. My leg is broken.”

“Can you get yourself out?” Vowron asked.

“Not without bleeding out.”

“I’m on my way.”

The building continued to tremble. Armourbuster II fled to the roof, but Vowron sped onwards. He turned the gun’s power setting down and diverted energy to his boots. Every stride propelled him forwards faster and took him further. He followed the blipping on his HoloLens towards Midknight’s location.

When Assistants popped up in his path, Vowron shot them in the limbs or knocked them into falling debris. He punched a couple of them in the face, too. A minor increase in energy input added a concussive effect to them. He was almost at Midknight when Athena-Six sent its surveillance feed to his HoloLens.

Vowron’s heart dropped. I-Skater wasn’t buried under rubble, as he had worried. Instead, the feed showed her helping the Assistants carry giant boxes and crates into armoured trucks.

She’s a traitor.