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Topic: Boudicca joining Protectorate ENE?

In: Boards ► Places ► America ► Brockton Bay Discussion (Public Board)

Bagrat (Original Poster) (Veteran Member) (The Guy in the Know)

Posted on October 12th, 2010:

One of my sources has heard rumblings that Boudicca, an indie hero in Providence (her thread is here) is joining the Protectorate ENE soon. Strangely enough, it appears the PRT did not put pressure on Boudicca to join. Apparently she made the decision herself, which is interesting because she’s been active in Providence for a few years now.

No word on when the PRT are going to make an official announcement, but this has the potential to shake things up in the Brockton Bay cape scene. There’s been a lot of speculation on how strong she gets when she really lets her power ramp up, and though she ultimately failed to stop Faultline and her merry band of mercs from absconding with Bad Canary on Sunday, that fight (see the full thread here) clearly demonstrated there’s strong synergy between her power and Assault’s, just like the synergy between Assault and Battery.

(Showing page 9 of 12)

► Chrome

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

I fail to see how it matters which pair up is better. The point is Boudicca + Assault = strong. Boudicca can use Assault to ramp up more easily, and Assault can then use kinetic energy from Boudicca to do batshit crazy things like he always does.

► XxVoid_CowboyxX

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

Alright, fine. Not trying to start an argument or anything…

► ZeeEnd

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

You can’t honestly think Boudicca could replace Battery?! Assault and Battery 4 life!

► Alathea

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

Okay, let’s stop the match up discussions and keep things on topic before I have to hand out infractions.

Discussions about which cape pairing is best should go in the Versus sub-forum (or perhaps the Cape Romance sub-forum, depending on your argument).

► Meteoric_Rise

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

boudicca went 0 to 60 after one weak slap from assault. scary shit

► Chrome

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@Meteoric_Rise’s comment does bring up a good question. OP made the point that Boudicca and Assault have synergy, and we see the event Meteoric_Rise is describing in several of the posted videos. Is that Boudicca’s cap, or could she have gotten even stronger in one hit if she and Assault had prepped more? If I’m understanding her power correctly (it’s a weird one), then could she punch Assault once or twice and reach the point where she recovers from any wound almost instantly? There’s a video on her info thread where she regrows an arm in under a minute (link is here, but be warned it’s liable to make you squick). Could she reach the point she regrows an arm in half a minute? Ten seconds? Less?

► ThrowingShade

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@ Chrome: yeah, prob 10 sec max

► DarkBear

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

holy cow that would be crazy to see like panacea level shit but just for her is there any update on when prt are doing announcement

► Brocktonite03

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@ DarkBear: Um, please use punctuation and capitalization. That was… painful. And no, there’s no word of official announcement beyond OP’s post. Not that I doubt him. He is The Guy in the Know, after all.

► OoberGooger

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

We’ve already got enough shit to deal with in BB. We don’t need a Brit on top of everything

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 … 9, 10, 12

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Topic: Meteor

In: Boards ► Places ► America ► Brockton Bay Discussion (Public Board)

White Fairy (Original Poster)

Posted on October 10th, 2010:

Okay, so I think I’m posting this in the right sub-forum? Meteor technically debuted in Providence, but it’s an open secret that Faultline’s Crew is based out of Brockton Bay, and sightings of a cape matching her description in the weeks are all out of Brockton Bay, so I’m pretty confident this is the right place to discuss her.

Before we dive into speculation about Meteor’s costume and powers, here are some important dates and reports I was able to scrounge together that give a timeline of appearances and context for discussion:

• September 27th: So there’s a reason why Palanquin, a Brockton Bay nightclub, has a sub-forum under this sub-forum. Link is here. Known members of FLC like Newter and Gregor the Snail have been frequently seen there, so people like to post about the place, particularly women claiming to have tried Newter’s, err, stuff. Anyway, some patrons at the club posted in that sub-forum that there was a surprise show on this night. Objects like jewelry, wallets, coins, that sort of thing all go flying up into the air and spinning around. Apparently the actually reflective stuff made for a cool show, based on the postings. The club’s staff apologized for everyone’s stuff getting mixed up, and at least one or two people reported seeing someone in a dark domino mask but no costume. Apparently this happened again later in the evening, but this time with other objects. Nobody seems to agree on what the objects were, since apparently all of the objects in this second wave were very reflective, but some common ones people were describing were CDs and silverware.

• September 28th: Buried Treasure, a small boutique selling accessories on the BB Boardwalk (and basically right across from the Protectorate ENE HQ!) is robbed. Nobody was harmed, though property was damaged. The culprit? Apparently got a good look at them! This is notable because the theft was of the safe and registers, and the only description people gave was of somebody flying off with the safes and registers. This potentially lines up with Meteor’s MO (see power and costume discussion below). Also on this night, someone posted in this sub-forum about watching from their window as both of the ABB’s capes(!), Lung and Oni Lee, were attacked and beaten. The OP said it was too dark to make out any details but described something large and roughly cube shaped being thrown at Lung during the fight. It’s not confirmation, but that could have been a safe, which means it could have been Meteor. Timing of the attack according to the poster would line up with being not very long after the robbery of Buried Treasure.

• September 29th-October 8th: More postings (links here, here, and here) between these dates in the Palanquin sub-forum about more of these flying object shows. Descriptions of the objects line up with the second show on the 27th. Postings like this keep popping up with nobody knowing who is doing the shows, though some of the people claiming to have hung out with Newter on the ‘invite only’ balcony lounge the nights of the shows mention another teen who wore a silver scarf as a mask. Again, this lines up with Meteor’s MO (see below).

• October 10th: Bad Canary, a rogue who’s popular on the music scene, was being transported from her hometown of Providence to Boston to be held by the local PRT until her trial began later this year. FLC attack the convoy before it could get onto I-95, and a fight ensues. If you want the full description, then the main thread for that is on the Providence sub-forum. More specific to this thread, this is the first appearance of Meteor, though we don’t have video of her calling herself that until later that night (we’ll get to this in a second). Meteor is seen fighting Assault (a Protectorate ENE hero on loan for the transfer) and three local heroes from Providence: Rubicon, Riptide, and Boudicca. Based on reports and videos of the fighting, Meteor briefly encountered another prisoner on the transport that Boudicca refers to as ‘Loki’ but does not match known descriptions of the local villain of the same name, so it’s hard to say whether it was actually her. Later that evening, Meteor, Faultline, and Newter were recorded on video engaging Protectorate ENE hero Miss Militia in the ER at Brockton Bay General (though around here, we call it ‘Bayside’). The PRT had the hospital surrounded for hours, but from what I can tell, no arrests were made.

So! Here comes the real fun: Powers and costume!

• She’s a Tinker! Recordings of Meteor talking with Miss Militia in Bayside’s ER confirms this. Based on the October 10th fights and the previous dates I mentioned above, it seems her specialty is magnetism?

• Costume follows a black and silver scheme. Her costume is notably not tinkertech armor, but from what I’ve seen maybe 50% of Tinkers use actual armor, so it’s not exactly unexpected. She uses silver tinted goggles (tinkertech?) and a metallic silver scarf wrapped around the bottom half of her face. Silver vest, skirt, and boots over a black bodysuit of some kind. She was wearing a bandolier of knives in Providence but never drew any during the fight. She had a back-mounted container that was used to store and deploy the tiny spheres (more on those below) and hip-mounted containers that held the one larger orb used on Boudicca (again, more below).

• Her smaller spheres: Meteor is seen using a lot of smaller spheres that she directs with hand movements. These seem to move quite quickly and hit hard, as evidenced by her using them to break Riptide’s legs. Yes, this is based on what the hero was screaming at her, but just watch the video (backup link here). Those legs definitely look like they might be broken.

• The sphere used on Boudicca (links here and here): Meteor uses one sphere that appears to be larger, which is seen moving by itself from Meteor’s hip-mounted container and flying at Boudicca before releasing a gas/aerosol. Whatever it was left Boudicca blind and in pain long enough for FLC to retrieve Meteor and flee the scene.

• Her gloves: Meteor is seen directing the smaller spheres she uses in Providence by hand gestures, but the larger sphere used on Boudicca was not moved by hand gesture. During the confrontation at Bayside, we see examples for and against hand gesture control: Meteor gestures before all the PRT foam launchers are used for friendly fire, and Meteor gestures to turn a gun into liquid metal (holy shit, right?), but she notably does not use hand gestures to turn bullets flying at her teammates into liquid metal. This is only speculation, but I’m guessing she has some sort of equipment set up for reactive protection (the bullets, Boudicca getting ready to assault her, etc.) but uses hand gestures when she wants more direct control. Feel free to discuss below.

• Her hoverboard: Square shaped and looks complicated from what visuals were able to get of it from video of the Providence fight. Appears to be necessary for her to fly, hence ‘hoverboard,’ but there’s no clear propulsion method.

Okay, that’s all I’ve got for now. Go forth and discuss!

(Showing page 7 of 8)

► Ekul

Replied on October 11th, 2010:

@ White Fairy: I mean, sure, if Meteoric_Rise is Meteor, then she could in theory get herself verified, but why would she want to invite scrutiny on herself? She’s not a villain per se, but a mercenary is notably not a hero—or a rogue for that matter.

► RoyalJelly

Replied on October 11th, 2010:

@Meteoric_Rise: I was in the ER when those PRT asshats started shooting. This is my video upload of Meteor and MM talking. Thank you for stopping them from hurting someone! It’s pretty obvious from your conversation with MM that you were just there to get your injuries looked at. I hope you got taken care of somewhere.

► YelpyBeast

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

what does everyone think of her outfit? cute? functional?

@Meteoric_Rise: dunno if you remember me, but i suggested “blue steel.” i like what you went with in the end! tell newter we she hang again sometime!

► White Fairy (Original Poster)

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@Ekul: You say that like posting in the Meteor thread with a name containing “Meteor” isn’t inviting scrutiny? On top of that, Meteoric_Rise is responding as if they are Meteor, and I think that goes against the board rules.

@ RoyalJelly: Please don’t engage them…

► OoberGooger

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

[deleted]

User has been warned for this post. Do it again, and you’re banned, @OoberGooger. I shouldn’t need to remind any of you hate speech is against board rules. C’mon, everyone, there’s no need for this.

► ThrowingShade

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@ White Fairy: throwin out “what if”: would fl want her peeps using verified tags? just sayin

@YelpyBeast: both, duh, but i'm takin her shoppin for new boots stat

@OoberGooger: hey, fuck you! don't talk about her like that!

User received an infraction for this post. Please defending people from hate speech is a good thing, but please try to be civil about it.

► Meteoric_Rise

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@ RoyalJelly: yw. yeah, i got taken care of elsewhere. next time you see me, no damage. can't say more, sorry

@YelpyBeast: i admit i don’t remember your name, but yeah, you were on the balcony the night i joined up. newter joked i should go with “thrash” *shivers* no thanks, right? oh, and it’s kinda weird to toot my own horn, but i think both functional and cute. it's why i picked it, after all

@ThrowingShade: i swear, you’re gonna get us in trouble. and i know my paint job wasn’t great--no need to bring it up on pho…

@ White Fairy: i'm clearly not gonna convince you unless i do something that will get me in trouble, so i'm not bothering anymore. but as one last parting shot, maybe wait on yelpybeast to respond and confirm

► EvaGrimm

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

This is probably kinda weird, but I’m getting ideas for a capefic…

► YelpyBeast

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@Meteoric_Rise, @ThrowingShade: yes! i totally agree!

@ White Fairy: she’s the real deal! i watched her do her thing at palanquin, and nobody else would know that

@EvaGrimm: make sure you get her costume right!

► Taking_Back_Life

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@EvaGrimm: Meteor appears to be underage, so please don’t write something perverted…

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 … 7, 8

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Private messages from Panacea (Verified Cape) (New Wave):

Panacea: If you’re the real deal, then where did we meet?

Meteoric_Rise: while you were trying to light a cigarette on top of bayside. you haven’t been doing that again, have you?

Panacea: It is you!

Meteoric_Rise: you doubted?

Panacea: Kinda? You’d be surprised how many times I’ve seen people try to get in on the “ground floor” when a new cape appears. Not all capes bother with PHO, so they can fly under the radar for a while.

Meteoric_Rise: huh. never knew

Meteoric_Rise: so… what’s up?

Panacea: Well, part of it was I wanted to say thank you again. For… you know. Nobody else knows, so it’s kinda… liberating, I guess, to talk to someone who does.

Meteoric_Rise: makes sense. you're welcome, though shade did all the hard work. you can shoot her a pm if you want. throwingshade is her username

Panacea: I figured. You were going back and forth with her, so since you were the real Meteor, then she had to be the real Shade. I’ll send her a PM soon, thanks!

Panacea: Out of curiosity, why don’t you get contact the mods about getting the verified tag?

Meteoric_Rise: faultline. i dunno if she caught wind of me making a pho handle or what, but she pulled me aside the morning after you and i met and made it abundantly clear she would skin me alive if i did that.

Panacea: Don’t worry, I’d fix you up. Least I could do.

Meteoric_Rise: thanks lol. i'll be sure to send you a message the moment i'm all muscle and bones

Meteoric_Rise: hey, aren’t you supposed to be in school or whatever?

Panacea: Aren’t you?

Meteoric_Rise: point, but i'm not a white hat, goody-goody two-shoes

Panacea: I’m not either.

*

Topic: Menagerie, the best animal show in town!

In: Boards ► Places ► America ► Philadelphia Discussion (Public Board)

Thunder_Dee (Original Poster)

Posted on June 16th, 2010:

Nobody’s made a thread yet for the Philadelphia Zoo’s latest attraction, so let’s fix that. And for the unaware: No, I’m not talking about an animal—at least not all of the time. I’m talking about Menagerie, the newest rogue in Philly! Like most capes, he’s reluctant to go into detail about his powers, but we do know some things from his first shows at the zoo. First, he can control nearby animals. No idea how many or what his range is, but he guided four exotic birds through some aerial stunts over a stunned crowed before joining in with them. No, you didn’t read that wrong. See, the second thing we know is he can transform into animals! So far he’s changed into a toucan, a tiger, and a tapir (so cute!).

The schedule for Menagerie’s shows can be found on the Zoo’s website here. There’s a promotional video showing a bit of Menagerie in action on that same website. Just click on the “Meet Menagerie” link on the side or click here.

(Showing page 88 of 88)

► elusivetruth

Replied on October 11th, 2010:

Just saw Menagerie for the first time! He was just as amazing as I expected from the videos. He transformed into a rhino—a rhino!

► Meteoric_Rise

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@elusivetruth: a rhino? really? not doubting you, just wondering how he didn’t break the stage. or was his show elsewhere in the park? the promo videos on the website only show him on that one stage.

► MonsterMan

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@Meteoric_Rise: Really. I’ve got season passes saw Menagerie do a rhino show back in August. If you’re planning to visit and watch, then be sure to come sooner than later. Zoo will be closing for the Winter on November 5th.

► Meteoric_Rise

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@ MonsterMan: ty!

End of Page. 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 … 87, 88

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Private messages from Panacea (Verified Cape) (New Wave):

Meteoric_Rise: you were not kidding about needing to eat a lot. i swear i'm gonna explode i'm eating so much

Panacea: Sorry. You had some body fat I could use (please don’t take that the wrong way!), but not that much. To be honest, I had to break down your gallbladder and appendix for materials to make your reproductive system.

Meteoric_Rise: what

Panacea: Don’t worry, you don’t need those! Totally optional organs, really!

Meteoric_Rise: not that

Meteoric_Rise: just…

Panacea: ?

Meteoric_Rise: i just never thought about it. having kids. i mean, i thought there was no way i could, um, do it? like, have sex with a woman

Meteoric_Rise: sorry, didn’t mean to vanish like that. just had to think on all of that. still not sure what to think. did i scare you off?

*

Topic: Meteor

In: Boards ► Places ► America ► Brockton Bay Discussion (Public Board)

White Fairy (Original Poster)

(Showing page 9 of 9)

► OoberGooger

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

[deleted]

User has been banned for this post. I warned you.

► They_Call_Me_El_Chupanibre

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

Wtf? Setting aside for the moment your apparent desire to get banned, what is with the allegations of Meteor being transgender? I mean, sure, I guess she’s kind of androgynously built if you squint hard enough, but you don’t see people claiming Hellhound is trans despite being built like a brick shithouse.

Edit: Yup, called it. Ban hammer deployed.

► The_U&L_Show

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

Hey @Meteoric_Rise, would you be interested in collaborating on a project? We’d pay, obviously. We can discuss details in PM.

► Meteoric_Rise

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@The_U&L_Show:

nope. i don’t even need to ask fl to know she’d shoot it down. besides, the er at bayside was packed on sunday because of you two (gta, really? i don’t even play games, and i know that’s a dumb one to emulate), which made it tough to get my arm fixed up

► White Fairy (Original Poster)

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@Ekul: See? This is why letting Meteoric_Rise persist is a problem.

► ThrowingShade

Replied on October 12th, 2010:

@ White Fairy: can’t take a hint, can you?

@Meteoric_Rise: i'm asking fl. you'd be cute as shit dressed up as princess peach or something haha

*

Private messages from The_U&L_Show:

The_U&L_Show: You’re certain we can’t convince you?

Meteoric_Rise: shade asked fl anyway, and she said (she told me to quote her), “tell them the amount it would cost to offset the loss to our reputation is more than they could ever dream of paying”

The_U&L_Show: Goddammit. Well, at least you are the real deal…

Meteoric_Rise: i guess she said the same thing to you before?

The_U&L_Show: Yeah. Don’t want to talk about it.

The_U&L_Show: Dammit, and we were really hoping to do a collab piece next, but the Eight shot us down too.

Meteoric_Rise: the eight?

The_U&L_Show: Just ask around about them or something. Sorry, but I need to get back to work, since we’re not hashing out details. Best of luck with your shit.

Meteoric_Rise: same to you, i guess

*

Private messages from Panacea (Verified Cape) (New Wave):

Panacea: No, no. I just couldn’t respond straight away. Vicky’s been giving me side eye.

Meteoric_Rise: why? also, do you know who the “eight” are? u&l just tried to get me to do a joint thing and mentioned the eight shot them down, but i dunno who that is

Panacea: Sister stuff. And yeah, I’ve heard of them. They’re a group of capes who have been traveling the country doing D&D “quests.” I think the right term is they’re LARPing?

Panacea: Anyway, apparently there’s not actually eight of them, which makes it kinda funny they insist on being called that. Last I heard they were in Chicago. Probably want to fight Myrddin or something.

Meteoric_Rise: huh. okay. weird.

Panacea: Congratulations. You have summed up the majority opinion on the Eight in just three words.

Meteoric_Rise: lol, ty. i don’t think i've ever heard of a group of capes just touring the country. are there others?

Panacea: None that I know of, but if there were, they might be mentioned in the info thread on the eight? I’d link it for you, but I can’t remember where it is off hand, since they travel a lot. Maybe check out the Chicago sub-forum, since they were just there?

Meteoric_Rise: i wasn’t that interested, tbh, but maybe i'll check it out later.

Panacea: Sure. What’re you up to this late, anyway?

Meteoric_Rise: in case you’ve forgotten, i live at a nightclub lol. i'm just hangin out with newter and shade

Meteoric_Rise: what about you? what has you burning the candle at both ends?

Panacea: Couldn’t sleep, so I drove over to the hospital to work a few cases.

Meteoric_Rise: i see. well, i'll let you go then, dr. panacea

Panacea: Ugh. Please don’t.

Meteoric_Rise: fine, fine. i'll stick with dr. amy then

Panacea: Incorrigible. Night…

It wasn’t until Faultline and I stepped into the Fugly Bob’s that I realized just how wise my decision to add goggles to my costume was. Sure, the idea of protecting my eyes from dirt, rocks, and so on sounds good on paper, but the practicality of having obscuring eyewear was made much more apparent when the aroma of fresh burgers hit my nose. I would have had a fit if I had to sit through this meeting without getting to enjoy a burger… and fries… and a dri—oh, I suppose I could have enjoyed a drink anyway through careful straw management. But in any case, I was pleased the goggles were an established part of my costume as of Providence, seeing as my mouth was literally watering after a few seconds exposure to one of Brockton Bay’s sole redeeming features.

“Oh man, I’m gonna destroy my meal,” I muttered, my thoughts already racing through what kind of burger I might want. A classic? A mushroom and swiss? Did they sell bison burgers here? I had never managed to get my hands on one in Brooklyn, and everyone said they were sinfully good.

“Please stay focused, Meteor,” Faultline replied, her tone equal parts exasperation and resignation.

“What, I’m hungry,” I totally did not whine. I tore my eyes away from where I had already been eying the menu to look at Faultline, and only then did I notice that a good chunk of the burger shack was looking at us.

“Good. You’ve arrived,” said a man wearing a midnight blue tinkertech helmet exposing a cleanly cut beard. Beside him stood a boy who was at minimum a half head taller than me and also wearing a tinkertech helmet, though his was silver and full face. The few people in the store who weren’t staring at us were staring at them, but that was understandable. The two of them moved towards us with purpose, and even though their gait didn’t suggest they were planning to attack, I nevertheless began reviewing my internal catalog of all the metal in the area. A lot of the big stuff was equipment in the back, but I would only go for that if absolutely necessary, since Faultline would frown on the excessive property damage. Besides, I had plenty of options at my disposal nearby. Napkin dispensers and, my favorite, coins in pockets and wallets were immediately on hand.

“As promised,” Faultline retorted, and though she kept her tone professional, I could almost imagine her drawling the words.

“Indeed. Let’s keep this short. The boots, if you would?”

An indignant noise escaped me, and Faultline’s eye twitched. “Meteor.”

“But I’m hungry!” I replied. Again, I was very much so not whining. I was just… expressing a necessary correction to priorities.

Gallant chuckled before commenting, “I must confess I’m interested in some food as well.”

Armsmaster grunted after a moment’s pause. “Faultline?”

“I was planning to let Meteor get food while we were here anyway—” Oh. Whoops. “—but I suppose we could join you.”

Armsmaster nodded in response and looked so mechanical doing it that I began to sincerely question whether he was, in fact, a robot created by a Tinker and not just a Tinker wearing a suit of armor. This pondering did not in any way stop me from releasing a whoop of excitement before rushing over towards the counter. The people there had all been watching the interaction between the white hats and us and were standing in what might generously be considered a line but was really more of a loose arrangement of people. Some of them visibly jumped when they noticed me rushing over, which only further added to the disorganization.

“Yo!” I cheerfully said, waving. “Are you folks in line, or…?”

Several people hastily backed away from the area, and the rest looked to them before more sedately moving aside.

“Sweet, thanks!” I cheered before promptly stepping up to the counter. The guy at the register was looking a bit sweaty, which was odd, but I guess he could have just been back by the grills. Those were hot, right? “I’ll take the Crazy Fugly combo with a larg— oh shit, you sell tater tots?! Fuck yeah, with a large tater tots. Wait, can you make them loaded?” I was grinning like a mad woman by that point, but nobody could see that with my scarf still pulled up, so whatever. Sweaty guy nodded rapidly, and yeah, my grin got much wider. “Excellent! Load ‘em up, then I also want a second large order of loaded tots and a large chocolate milkshake!”

“W-Will that complete your order?” the employee nervously asked.

“For now,” I confirmed with a nod. “I’ll get some more to-go later, ‘kay?”

“Okay. Um, c-can I have a n-name for your order?”

Aw. I guess I’m not that well known yet. Still, the promise of the coming food was enough to keep my good mood afloat. “Meteor!” I answered as I pulled out a twenty dollar bill and slapped it down. “That covers it, yeah? I’ll take my change in coins.”

“Wow,” Gallant spoke up from behind me. I had felt him approaching, so I didn’t jump. “That’s… a surprising amount of food for a girl your size.”

I didn’t want to get Panacea in trouble by saying anything that might implicate her helping me—even if her helping me wasn’t reason enough, she seemed alright when we chatted over PHO—so instead I turned to him and replied, “Well I was dieting until recently, but my doctor told me, um, I was overdoing it and needed to stop for now.” A lie, but close enough to the truth I should be able to remember it.

“I… see.”

The guy at the counter started to set my change on the counter only to squeak when they floated out of his hand and began to float around me in a lazy ring of coins. Faultline and Armsmaster were walking over now, apparently having been discussing something quietly between themselves, and Faultline crossed her arms when she saw the coins. I pouted and directed them into the back pocket of my jeans. Spoilsport.

“Do you think…” Gallant started to speak up before pausing.

“Think what?” I asked, genuinely confused.

“No, never mind,” he responded, sounding strange as he turned to the counter to order. “I’m sure your doctor can handle it.”

I chuckled, thinking of my last message to my ‘doctor.’ I would have to let ‘Doctor Amy’ know what Gallant had said. I bet she would get a laugh out of it too.

Gallant finished up his order, and Faultline and Armsmaster followed after. I gave the older hero a bewildered look when he only ordered a black coffee. Who the hell goes to a burger joint and orders a black coffee? I thought, but I was distracted from further musing by a different employee handing over a tray packed with all the food I had ordered along with an empty cup.

“Here, let me take that to a table for you,” Gallant said, swooping in before I could so much as start to lift it.

I blinked and looked to Faultline as he started off with my food, and she remarked, “You’re fine. Don’t eat anything until I scan it.”

Okay, I’ll admit I whined that time. But I could hardly be blamed for that when I had a mouth watering, piping hot feast just waiting for me to dig into it. I grumbled as I took the cup Gallant had left behind and stomp—I mean, with no visible irritation whatsoever moved over to the fountain machine and filled my cup with coke. Gallant had already returned to the counter to get his food, and the three of them joined me at the table in short order once the remainder of the food—and the coffee, ick—was provided. Faultline took the seat next to me and set about using a tinkertech device to scan for food tampering while I struggled to stop myself from bouncing with excitement.

“Okay, Meteor, you can…” Faultline started to say but stopped, since I had already yanked my scarf down and started stuffing loaded tots in my face.

Omigod, these are sooo goooood, I thought as the flavors mingled in my mouth. The tots were perfectly crisp, which neatly counterbalanced the oozy texture of the nacho cheese and the chunky consistency of the chili. Any of the three individual flavors alone would have been excellent, but together?

“Meteor.”

“Hm?” I turned to look at her. I swallowed the mouthful of tots I had been chewing then asked, “What’s up?”

“Armsmaster asked you if you would be interested in a tech exchange,” she said, and I didn’t miss the significance in her voice. We had rehearsed what questions we might encounter during the exchange, and the likelihood of the Tinkers across the table asking tinkertech related things was an obvious possibility.

“I’m certain we could come to an agreeable fee,” Armsmaster carefully added, his voice low. I could appreciate why. It was probably a big PR hit for the heroes having lunch with mercenaries in a public place, even more so if somebody leaked a picture of us returning boots that people in the know would recognize as belonging to Dauntless. And by if somebody leaked, I really meant when, seeing as Aisha was here in the crowd in plainclothes for the express purpose of getting such a photo. Faultline was devious like that, and the flip-side of that PR would be good for us. See, prospective employers? Even the protectorate has to turn to us to recover their gear.

Not that it went down that way, but hey, they don’t know that.

“Not interested, sorry,” I remarked with a shrug as I popped the last of that order of tots into my mouth, savoring the flavor while turning my attention to the massive box containing my triple-stacked burger. “Trade secret.”

Gallant had removed the bottom portion of his helmet in order to eat, but even so, I almost missed it when his lips quirked into a frown just before he brought his burger to his face and took a bite. Armsmaster took a sip of his coffee before replying, “That is… unfortunate. On a related note, have you considered—”

“I hope you’re not about to try to poach someone from my crew in front of me, Armsmaster.”

“I am obligated to ask,” the man stiffly countered.

“And I am obligated to not give you the finger,” I cheekily replied, earning me a choking sound from Gallant as a piece of his burger went down the wrong pipe, a tightening of the thin line Armsmaster’s lips had become, and a minute sigh from Faultline. “What? You said I couldn’t give him the finger, not that I couldn’t tell him I couldn’t give him the finger.”

“I apologize, Armsmaster,” Faultline said, her tone carefully neutral. “Gregor would have been my preferred choice for this meeting, but your director specifically requested her. I presume because she wanted you to give your pitch.”

“She’s saying I’m a crude bitch who speaks what’s on her mind,” I said to Gallant in a Shakespearean aside. “She’s not wrong.”

“Yes, well—”

“Hey, Gallant,” I interrupted, not giving Armsmaster a chance to process. But then, that was the plan. “Wanna go flying? We could go to a junkyard and look for parts!”

“I, uh…” The teen’s head tilted ever so slightly towards Armsmaster. “We weren’t supposed to bring ge—”

“It’s not here, duh. I can summon it! Cool as fuck, right? So c’mon, I can finish my food while we fly, then I’ll pick up some more when I bring you back. It’ll be fun!”

“Meteor,” Faultline sternly interjected. Yikes. If I hadn’t known it was part of the act, I would have legitimately thought she was mad.

“Fiiine,” I acquiesced, letting my head flop backwards a bit to stare at the ceiling and sell the show. “I can wait.” I waited all of a second before pulling my head back up and grabbing my burger to take a bite. “Hughly scheet, dhish eesh gooooo,” I muttered around a mouthful of food, only partially acting. It was that good. The crew had gotten me some food from here my first night at Palanquin, but it was so much better fresh.

“Getting back to other matters then. My crew and I deeply apologize for putting the Protectorate and PRT in a bad position on Sunday. We would like to find a way to make that up to you and would be willing to cut you a discount on any jobs for which you may require third party assistance.”

“Noted,” Armsmaster grunted. “I’ll pass word up to Director Piggot. If that was all, then Gallant and I have other matters that require tending to.”

“Always in such a rush, but I suppose this is Brockton Bay. Very well then. Please do pass along our offer. Come along, Meteor.”

“Whaaa?” I said with wide-eyes before hastily swallowing the bite of burger in my mouth. “But take-homesies!”

“Later,” she drawled in response. I scowled and started to wrap up my half-eaten burger. At least I had a second order of tots to tide me over as well.

“Bye!” I waved cheerfully once all my food was packed up. “It was nice meeting you or whatever!”

Gallant coughed, but Armsmaster’s expression didn’t shift in the slightest. Faultline and I took our trays up to the front to get bags, then we made our way to the side door with the eyes of most of the restaurant still following us as we left. I had to actively repress the urge to preen under the attention. It was kind of nice to be in costume—well, kinda in costume—while not on the job. Once we stepped outside, we angled towards the getaway car we had left in place early this morning, and I popped open the doors as we approached.

“Let’s go,” Faultline said as I settled into the passenger seat.

“Aye aye, boss!” I replied with a grin before rapidly lifting the car into the sky. I felt Gallant and Armsmaster’s helmets reach the door of the restaurant, so I paused long enough to lower the window and call out, “Catch you later!” before zooming off.

“So I think that went well,” I said conversationally as I steered us towards the Trainyards up north. There were no traffic cameras or PRT presence up there, so even though it carried a slight risk of drawing the ABB’s attention, it was the easiest way to make a clean getaway.

“It was passable,” she retorted as she fooled with a device designed to kill off any outgoing signals on the off chance the PRT had placed trackers on every vehicle nearby. Like the device she had used earlier in Fugly Bob’s and the comms system we used in Providence, it was tinkertech, and I was sure she had paid a pretty penny for it. With all the nonsense Tinkers could do, I could see why she would want people to think we had one on staff. Hell, it would probably be a good idea to actually get one on the crew, since Aisha’s power apparently worked well enough for maintenance but didn’t afford her enough time to actually build anything of substance. “You made those coins move earlier, but you were supposed to not do anything to suggest you had ‘equipment’ on you.”

“Whoops.” I winced. Her ire earlier abruptly made a lot more sense. “That’s my bad… Won’t happen again.”

“See that it doesn’t,” she replied, but there was no heat in her words. Only a minor screw up then. That was good. She removed her welder’s mask and said, “Okay. We’re clean. Set us down in that alley on your two.”

I pulled up a mental picture of an analog clock to double check myself then moved us down to the empty alley she had indicated while tugging my goggles up and off and unwrapping my scarf from my neck. Despite dropping us down rapidly to avoid prying eyes, I hastily put on the brakes—so to speak—before setting us down on the ground. Faultline started up the car then smoothly pulled out of the alley and into the street. One person halfway down the block was lounging on the stairs leading up to a ratty apartment building, but if they had noticed us flying through the sky, then they were doing an admirable job of feigning non-interest.

“So,” Melanie suddenly said, “Masuyo spoke with Gregor and I last night. She said you approved her working for Gregor.”

I had been halfway through retrieving my burger and paused in unwrapping it. “Yeah. She’s cool or whatever.”

She made a noncommittal noise but said nothing further, so I turned my attention back to my burger and gave into the ravenous hunger that I swore would consume me from within if I didn’t eat something pronto. Neither of us said anything, and without the radio on to fill the silence, I felt just a hair bit self-conscious about how I sounded while eating and tried to tone it down a bit. I finally finished off the last few bits of tots not too long after, but despite the exorbitant amount of food I had just consumed, I still felt hungry. I glanced out the window forlornly only for my eyes to widen when they spied familiar golden arches.

“Um, Melanie?”

“Yes, June?”

“Take-homesies?”

Her lips quirked upwards just a hair. “I suppose ‘later’ is a bit of an open-ended promise,” she remarked, and I cheered as she diverted towards the McDonald’s.