Kintsugi Plays Fallen Hero: Rebirth

‣ …thinking it looked like a fake special effect. Was that because you thought it couldn't be real, so it didn't look real? Or...

 

> …thinking it looked like a fake special effect.

It didn't look real, you remember that much. The acid eating into the face, turning it glowing and green as the skin and flesh peeled away, revealing the skull beneath. It was horrible, and it was also not quite real. Not quite real, until the thud of the body falling to the ground jolted you out of your trance.

You'd like to think you didn't scream.

You'd like to think you showed nothing on your face as you pushed past Ortega and Steel, continuing upstairs, leaving the ruined mess behind.

That mess was someone you knew. Liked even.

And it doesn't matter. It never matters. Getting attached is stupid.

Walking upstairs is stupid too. But you have to. She's waiting for you.

Did they follow?

You think so. What choice did they have?

They were heroes, after all.

Why did you continue? Were you a hero too?

You remember the pressure increasing, your shields growing denser under the onslaught. You should have left. You should have run for it. Let the military bomb this place to hell.

Instead, you found the apartment calling to you.

And the door.

It was ajar…the sound of breathing was coming in there, the sound of the last thing alive in this building except you three.

You pushed it open….

> And Woke Up

Present Day

You lie in your bed for a moment, breathing hard, trying to remember where you are. When you are.

It's not seven years ago. It is now. And the alarm is beeping because you are running late.

You shut it off with a muttered curse, gathering the strength to move.

Rolling out of bed is harder than you imagined; your muscles ache and you are fairly certain you pulled something in your back. Maybe you are getting old—but you suspect that you have just let yourself go these last few years.

Or maybe you are too hard on yourself. You are alive, after all, and you can slide into your puppet and leave the pain behind for now.

You have a delivery to make.

Once you have made sure that your own body is taken care of as well you can manage, you leave yourself resting and healing on the bed and slip into your puppet. That way, your body can sleep without any more dreams catching you unaware.

Besides, Barbara's body is a comfortable shell compared to your own. No aching muscles. No abrasions or contusions. Just smooth muscles that move with a grace you remember from back when you were still a hero.

Young. Fit. Like a version of you remembered from a dream….

No. No dreams. You can feel the taste of them fading away, and you make your puppet stretch and breathe deeply to make you feel at home.

Make you feel grounded again. Real.

You're not a telepath now. You're safe. Physical. Intact. Touching your face, you keep breathing, closing your eyes. Your thoughts are dark. Empty. Nothing there.

You're safe.

Good. Shaking your head at your own silliness, you shake loose your tense muscles, promising yourself to go training again as soon as you have time. That sounds like just what you need right now, some sweat and aching muscles to ground you in the present.

Though you strive to have a balanced training regimen for Barbara, you tend to favor…

　‣ …boxing.
　‣ …aikido.
　‣ …jogging.

To aid in your decision making, I have procured three approximate visual references:



(yes i know those aren't aikido or boxing barbies, i'm doing the best i can)​

Spoiler: Show Stats

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are tired.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 9% / Anonymity: 91%
█▒██████████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48% (-5)
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 59% / Caution: 41%
███████████▒████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 40%
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martial artist Barbie has the best outfit.

 

Then it's decided! Once we're a supervillain, we'll have some words with Mattel about the lack of hakama in their catalogue.​

> …aikido.

If there is one thing you have learned, it's that sometimes you do need to be able to defend yourself. You can't count on having available weapons, and since you don't have access to your telepathic powers in this body, you simply have to defend yourself the old-fashioned way. Aikido gives you the means to deal with people who are far heavier and stronger than you are.

The world of villains is not a safe one…especially for a woman.

> Time to Get Going

It is too early to meet up with Dr. Mortum at Joes, but you don't want to delay handing over the targeting web. So, you set another meeting point in a dilapidated alley near the old industrial district.

The doctor sounded far too eager to begin working on it when you called her earlier. Besides, the little cluster of telepathic rat brains is getting restless without its 'body,' and you are sure that this had something to do with your recent nightmares.

You know that dreams can't hurt you, but there are things you would rather remained forgotten.

Sorry, readers. You must be a level 4 friend to unlock Josie's tragic backstory, and we all know they don't do friends.​

You shake your head, pushing down the memories, as you approach the designated meeting point. Perhaps it's the surroundings that brought them up again. The alley has an acrid, chemical smell coming from the nearby industries, and the dusty window of the abandoned storefront reflects nothing but shadows.

It's a desolate place to meet up, but it's one that's easily accessible and still private enough. The stench discourages anybody lingering—most likely the reason the store was abandoned in the first place.

This is not the place you want to be. Hiding in a puppet body. Meeting in dirty alleys. But you are not ready yet to take your place on the scene. Not yet.

Running your finger across the window, you look deep into your puppet's eyes. Are they any different now from when she was walking around, living her own life? Would anybody who knew her back then recognize that there is another intelligence lurking inside?

It doesn't really matter.

She has nobody left that could care. You are quite alike that way. Maybe…

Maybe you were too deep in your own thoughts. Maybe you were too used to relying on your telepathy. Maybe you just got sloppy.

It doesn't really matter.

What matters is that as you look away from the reflection of your own eyes in the window, you catch sight of Dr. Mortum there behind you. Holding a gun.

It is aimed at you.

With your hands in the air, you try to control the emotions threatening to bleed through.

"Now, ma chérie, do you mind explaining how you've managed to procure this lovely little trinket right after Psychopathor so handily got himself taken in by the Special Directive?"

The kiss of the gun is cold as it brushes the back of your head. It's not the first time this has happened, and your first reaction is to…

　‣ …try to talk myself out of it.
　‣ …make a move for the gun.
　‣ …leave my puppet and try to possess Dr. Mortum.

I don't know, do we mind explaining?​

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are tired.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 9% / Anonymity: 91%
█▒██████████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48%
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 59% / Caution: 41%
███████████▒████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 40%
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> We can explain!

 

Barbara can explain!​

> …try to talk myself out of this.

Taking a moment to swallow because your mouth is suddenly dry, you try to decide what to tell Dr. Mortum. Do you risk telling her some variant of the truth, letting her know that you knew how to get the Special Directive involved? Should you just tell her that it is none of her business and hope she won't get mad and decide to pull the trigger?

Maybe you should just deflect. She knows you are an intermediary for your anonymous boss, so how would you know how they did things?

It's a tough choice, but you have very little time to make it.

　‣ I tell the truth.
　‣ I say it's none of her business.
　‣ I say that I can't tell her.
　‣ I flirt and distract.

Do we admit we had the Special Directive on speed dial? Refuse to answer or remind her we're just the messenger? …Roll to seduce??​

Spoiler: Show Stats

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are tired.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 9% / Anonymity: 91%
█▒██████████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48%
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 54% / Caution: 46% (+5)
██████████▒█████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 40%
████████████████████

 

....I kinda want to see what flirt and distract does. I don't think we should give her the truth, and 'none of your business' or 'can't tell you' seem like bad options for someone holding a gun to your head

 

Maybe flirting and distracting will come with a lie option...?

 

> I flirt and distract.

You should have known that Dr. Mortum would start to feel uneasy sooner or later. She's a woman used to outthinking any problem, and here she is, confronted with a set of events that she could not predict. Or perhaps it is better said that you are a person who she could not predict.

Perhaps that is why she is interested in you.

"Well, ma chérie, I am waiting. Why did the Special Directive show up?" The gun does not waver, and neither does Dr. Mortum's gaze.

"You do know that I have more contacts than only you, my dear doctor?" You meet her eyes in the mirror, allowing yourself to smile a little.

"Really?" Your smile and apparent relaxation causes some of her tension to melt away. "And here I was starting to feel special." The last is delivered with a theatric little sigh.

"You do have a strange way of showing it." You point at the reflection of the gun in the mirror, causing her to look down at it, a little embarrassed chuckle escaping her lips.

"Oh, the gun?" She raises it slightly, looking as if she hadn't noticed it until now.

"Yes, the gun," you reply, completely deadpan.

"Sorry, force of habit, ma chérie." She puts it back in its holster, smoothing down her jacket before she looks up again. "What do you say? Shall we forget all about this regrettable incident?"

"Shall we knock off a few grand off the price?" you counter.

"I think we shall not—not unless you want substandard goods."

　‣ I want the best.
　‣ My employer wants the best.

It's fine guys, she probably just forgot the gun was equipped? All a misunderstanding.​

Spoiler: Show Stats

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are tired.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 9% / Anonymity: 91%
█▒██████████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48%
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 54% / Caution: 46%
██████████▒█████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 49% (+9)
█████████▒██████████

 

Hrm. I don't think we want her thinking of Barbie as her own active villain at this point. Unless 'I want the best' is the 'do it for Me, who's been flirting with you and cares about the result' response?

 

FWIW, in this case we really are just choosing between those two lines; there's no particular angle attached to either. So you can judge for yourselves how you think they'll go over.

 

We came here to make a delivery, not announce the all-new Villain Barbie.​

> My employer wants the best.

"My employer wants the best. You know that." It is so easy to think of Josie as a separate entity sometimes; the charade you run is starting to feel very real.

"Ah, your mysterious boss. When do I get to meet them?" Dr. Mortum gives you a curious look. She has been asking questions about who you are working for since day one.

"Maybe you should be glad that you haven't. I doubt they would have been happy had you pointed a gun at them."

You evade like always because honestly, you are not sure if she could be trusted to that extent. Is she a hireling or an ally? Or maybe even a future rival? Only time will tell.

"That is a good point," she acquiesces with a chuckle, unaware of your thoughts. "Are you planning to let me live that down sometime in the future?"

"Maybe. If you keep your schedule." You reach into your pocket, pulling out the cylinder containing the targeting web. In this body, you can't feel anything from it other than its weight. It's a bit disconcerting, being head blind: you doubt you ever will get used to it.

"Speaking of which…" Dr. Mortum pauses briefly as she puts the cylinder into her pocket after quickly checking it. "When can I expect the last payment?"

"I told you, you get it when the project is complete. Not before." You push your hands into your pockets, trying to add up how much you still need. Not as much as you had feared: it should be doable if everything remains on schedule.

"What is this, ma chérie, don't you trust me?" Her arms fly out in a gesture of hurt innocence.

"Let's just say that I trust money as a motivation." You smile a little to take the sting out of the comment.

"That is fair," she admits. "Just make sure that you have the right amount ready to transfer once I am done. I don't haggle."

"My boss is not stingy," you assure.

"Really?" An eyebrow is raised, a faint smile playing on her lips. "What was all that about before, then?"

"That was for me," you lie because it fits the act you play. A little bit of greed to make you human and add a few layers of obfuscation between you and your 'boss.' "A bit of hazard pay, considering you being a bit trigger happy."

"Again, my apologies." The bow is slight, but perfectly executed. "Perhaps I can offer you dinner as compensation once our business transaction is done?"

　‣ "I would be delighted to."
　‣ "We will see…"
　‣ "I'm sorry, but no."

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are tired.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 9% / Anonymity: 91%
█▒██████████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48%
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 54% / Caution: 46%
██████████▒█████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 49%
█████████▒██████████

 

Always leave them wanting more (ie, middle option)

 

The flirting will continue until the plan is successful

 

little did they suspect that all along, our plan was to steal............their hearts

 

The good doctor appreciates a challenge, after all.​

> "We will see…"

"We will see," you say, your smile kept carefully neutral. You don't want to either encourage her too much, or blow her off so hard her emotions get in the way of your work. Besides, you are not sure how you feel either; getting involved too much with people can be just as risky as it can be gainful.

"Well then, ma chérie, I bid you adieu for now." And with those words, the two of you part ways.

You feel like you're probably going to smell of this place for a week.

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are tired.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 9% / Anonymity: 91%
█▒██████████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48%
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 54% / Caution: 46%
██████████▒█████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 49%
█████████▒██████████

That concludes Chapter 2! If Dr. Mortum keeps her deadline, we'll get our first look at the fruits of our labors in two weeks. And we'll get our first look at the next chapter as soon as I can post it because I am h y p e for chapters 3 and 4​

 

One Week Later

A week later, you have completed step three and gotten Mortum's payment ready for delivery. It has been hard work and it left you with a grueling headache, but if she plans to keep the deadline, you had better be prepared to deliver. The good doctor might be curious enough about the applications of your idea to accept the job, but expertise doesn't come cheap.

Luckily, you are not one of the hapless criminals who need to go out and rob a bank to procure what you need; you have other, subtler methods.

The world of telepathic crime is a lot less dramatic than one might think. Companies or banks handling vast amounts of cash tend to have scramblers in place, or their own security teams to detect mental intrusions.

When someone wants to rob a bank, things have not changed much over the decades. The simplest path is still to physically approach with guns and explosives, and be ready to deal with the consequences. Consequences you are less than fond of.

That is why you…

　‣ …stick to skimming.
　‣ …embezzle the rich.

Where has our money come from these last few years? Do we scrape funds together bit by bit through untraceable petty theft, or track down suitable targets among the rich and powerful?​

Spoiler: Show Stats

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are rested.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 9% / Anonymity: 91%
█▒██████████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48%
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 54% / Caution: 46%
██████████▒█████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 49%
█████████▒██████████

 

embezzle the rich! embezzle the rich!!

 

Of course we eat the rich; what do you take us for?​

> …embezzle the rich.

You have these powers; it would be stupid not to use them. And thus you spend your time lurking downtown, scanning for the rich and powerful. Once you have located a suitable target, you break into people's minds instead of their homes, clearing out their savings as surely as if you had cracked a safe.

Do you feel bad about ruining someone? Sometimes, perhaps. But spend enough time in somebody's head, and you quickly learn to despise them. People don't get rich by being nice, and in Los Diablos, rules are for suckers. They are the kind of prey you prefer, the ones with far too many things to hide. Gambling. Mistresses. Embezzlement. Drugs. Murder.

You slide in and out again, leaving them with self-doubts and fears, unable to admit that they have lost money without exposing the dirtier parts of their lives. It's not a perfect system, but it works well enough for now.

Sometimes you worry a little about what would happen if someone decided to investigate one of these incidents, but so far, you have been lucky. You hope to stay that way.

Pretty soon, it won't matter anymore. Nothing will. For now, you just have to stay calm. Cool. Collected. Make sure you don't make any mistakes. Or take stupid risks. Like with Lady Argent. Maybe you should have been more patient. Maybe you should have figured out another way to steal the nanovores entirely.

But…

　‣ …I was impatient.
　‣ …I wanted to see if I could possess her.
　‣ …I couldn't see any other way.

Spoiler: Show Stats

CLASSIFIED

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary
Description: An average mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short, neat curly dark brown hair.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

Physical Status
Stamina: You are rested.
Willpower: You feel calm.
Injuries: You are fine, with no significant wounds.

Telepathy

Strength of Mind: 50%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 62%
████████████▒███████

Standard of Living: You are comfortable.

Psychological Profile

Infamy: 0% / Obscurity: 100%
████████████████████
Arrogance: 27% (+18) / Anonymity: 73%
█████▒██████████████
Ruthlessness: 52% / Empathy: 48%
██████████▒█████████
Daring: 54% / Caution: 46%
██████████▒█████████

Main Puppet

Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: Fine.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties, with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Barbara's relationship with Dr. Mortum: flirting.
Mortum and Barbara: 49%
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