Kintsugi Plays Fallen Hero: Retribution (ᘛ⁐̤ᕐᐷ …(^_^)…)

>so that fuckin sucked. let's just have it out in the open.

 

0/10. Would NOT recommend.​

> "That…was bad," I mumble. "Let's never do it again."

"That…was bad," you mumble. "Let's never do it again." Beneath you, Chen tries to catch his breath. Slow his racing heart.

It's not going well.

"What…happened." His voice sounds as rough as if he'd just chugged a quart of whiskey.

"You were…right." You shift slightly, just in time to dodge Spoon's tongue. Chen is not so lucky.

"Hey, good boy, down," he tries to fend off the worried greyhound. No luck, especially with one arm trapped beneath you. One of you must have screamed and woken him, and now he's dead set on making sure that you both are okay. The Rat King picks up on your exhaustion and intervenes to distract Spoon, who finally pads over to his bowl to see if it's magically refilled itself.

On the bright side, at least we got to introduce the Rat King to Spoon.​

"I feel like shit," you mumble, rolling off Chen and sitting up. He does the same. Neither of you can find your feet yet.

"You're not alone. Is this normal?" The look he gives you is sharp and nervous.

"No. Nothing about this was normal." You let out a sigh and rub your temples. "You were right. Someone had influenced you. Someone good. And when I tried to break it," you gesture weakly to the two of you. "This happened."

>

"Did you manage?" Focus on the task at hand. Collateral damage is acceptable. Even if it's himself.

"What do you think about Hollow Ground?"

"That Ortega might have a point…," he drifts off, wincing slightly. "Shit."

"Yeah. She's going to be insufferable." Be proven right. By Chen.

"Neither of us are going to tell her. Yet." He lets out a breath and gets to his feet. Unfairly steady feet, cybernetic legs sure are handy. He holds out a hand, and after a moment of hesitation, you take it. He hoists you up with little effort.

"Because whoever hacked your head once can do it again. If they realize the conditioning is broken." You steady yourself on the table. "And you can't risk Ortega giving it away."

"Not yet." He puts on some more tea, trying to not look as shaken as he feels. "I need to get my bearings first."

"That's probably smart." You sink down on one of the chairs, blinking away the headache. "Give your mind a few days to settle in, to heal. Just because the root cause is gone doesn't mean things just go away. You need to rest." You need to do the same. This took a lot out of you.

You both fall silent as Chen prepares the tea. Uncomfortably intimate, you've been inside his head now, and that is something neither of you can forget.

"So how does this change things?" you ask, an unusual question coming from you, but Chen is one of the people that you think can actually give you an answer.

"I don't know," he admits, turning back to you. "How do you feel?"

　‣ "Awkward," I admit. "Like I've seen things I shouldn't."
　‣ "Tired," I say, that's no lie. "My head hurts."
　‣ "Like I understand you better. If that makes sense."

Vibe check?​

Spoiler: Show Stats

CLASSIFIED

Subject: Anathema

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary.
Description: A tall mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short and styled curly dark brown hair.

Their sense of style is androgynous, secondhand streetwear, with many piercings in their ears, nose, and tongue. They have a short, scruffy beard and mustache.

Standard of Living: Josie is well-off.
Josie is living in a comfortable apartment.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

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

Telepathy
Strength of Mind: 60% (+10)
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 76%
███████████████▒████

Anathema
Anathema runs a criminal syndicate. They are a known killer.
Infamy: 51% / Obscurity: 49%
██████████▒█████████

Armored Suit
Anathema's suit is a shadow with a mirror for a face, revealing nothing. The cape conceals and obfuscates what's underneath.
In its left hand, the suit has a neutered colony of nanovores, functionally similar to having disintegration touch. The suit is also equipped with telepathic boosters and enhanced speed as well as jump-jets.

Armor Status
Need Repair: 5% / Fine: 95%
████████████████████

Leadership: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Psychological Profile
Arrogance: 23% / Anonymity: 77%
████▒███████████████
Ruthlessness: 36% / Empathy: 64%
███████▒████████████
Daring: 53% / Caution: 47%
██████████▒█████████

Back in the day, Sidestep was known as a vigilante working with the Rangers.

Main Puppet
Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: She is badly hurt, and with severe injuries.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Charge
Josie's Relationship with Ortega: Friend and ally.
Ortega's Connection with Josie: 78%
███████████████▒████

Ortega thinks Anathema has made some good points.

Barbara's Relationship with Ortega: Eternally flirting. Josie is using Barbara as a spy.
Ortega's Connection with Barbara: 52%
██████████▒█████████

Dr. Mortum
Barbara's Relationship with Dr. Mortum: friend.
Mortum's Connection with Barbara: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Lady Argent
Josie's Relationship with Lady Argent: Distant.
Lady Argent's Impression of Josie: 1%
▒███████████████████

Lady Argent respects Anathema's abilities.
Lady Argent's Interest in Anathema: 60%
████████████████████

Marshal Steel
Josie's Relationship with Steel: Confidante. He knows Josie still has their telepathic powers.
Steel's Connection with Josie: 72%
██████████████▒█████

Marshal Steel thinks Anathema needs to be brought in.

Herald
Josie's Relationship with Herald: Friends.
Herald's Connection with Josie: 67%
█████████████▒██████

Herald thinks Anathema is a villain.

Other Characters

 

Head ouchie :( true, not too personal, and helps give impression we're out of practice

 

Honestly, if being "in practice" means being prepared for that, I don't think it's even lying to say we're not.​

> "Tired," I say, that's no lie. "My head hurts."

"Tired," you say, and that's no lie. "My head hurts."

"So does mine." Chen frowns as he pours you both a cup. "This isn't something I'm used to."

"Me neither," you lie. "It'll feel better soon. Like a passing nightmare." You're not sure if there will be any lasting damage, but you hope not.

"I wish." He sits down, wrapping his hands around the mug as if it could warm them. "But this is reality." The look he gives you is filled with more than worry.

"If you've got some more bad news, you might as well come out and say it," you joke. "Right now is as good a time as any."

"I suppose you've got a point." He gives you a measured look.

"What? I was joking." There's a brief burst of panic through your veins, but there's no sense of hostility from him. Just hesitation.

"I was not," he sighs.

You take a sip but keep quiet, waiting for him to find the right words.

"You know when I told you I went looking for you…," he drifts off. This is a sore spot, but he's determined to poke it.

"Looked and stopped, you mean." The snap is automatic. Too much bitterness there to soften.

"I don't want a fight," he pleads. "Please. I'm trying to tell you something important."

"It's a reflex, sorry." You rub your aching head. "I'll behave. Just don't shut up halfway again."

"I won't, but this is hard." He takes a sip of tea, refusing to look at you. "I don't want to make things worse. I'm trying to do damage control."

"I'm sure you are." Your voice is steady as you continue. "But…"

　‣ "You stopped looking. I'd hate to think it was for no reason."
　‣ "You're hiding something."
　‣ "We both know I wasn't dead."

Looks like it's finally time to finish our conversation from more than six months ago. Or twice that long, depending how you count…​

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Subject: Anathema

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary.
Description: A tall mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short and styled curly dark brown hair.

Their sense of style is androgynous, secondhand streetwear, with many piercings in their ears, nose, and tongue. They have a short, scruffy beard and mustache.

Standard of Living: Josie is well-off.
Josie is living in a comfortable apartment.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

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

Telepathy
Strength of Mind: 60%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 76%
███████████████▒████

Anathema
Anathema runs a criminal syndicate. They are a known killer.
Infamy: 51% / Obscurity: 49%
██████████▒█████████

Armored Suit
Anathema's suit is a shadow with a mirror for a face, revealing nothing. The cape conceals and obfuscates what's underneath.
In its left hand, the suit has a neutered colony of nanovores, functionally similar to having disintegration touch. The suit is also equipped with telepathic boosters and enhanced speed as well as jump-jets.

Armor Status
Need Repair: 5% / Fine: 95%
████████████████████

Leadership: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Psychological Profile
Arrogance: 23% / Anonymity: 77%
████▒███████████████
Ruthlessness: 36% / Empathy: 64%
███████▒████████████
Daring: 53% / Caution: 47%
██████████▒█████████

Back in the day, Sidestep was known as a vigilante working with the Rangers.

Main Puppet
Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: She is badly hurt, and with severe injuries.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Charge
Josie's Relationship with Ortega: Friend and ally.
Ortega's Connection with Josie: 78%
███████████████▒████

Ortega thinks Anathema has made some good points.

Barbara's Relationship with Ortega: Eternally flirting. Josie is using Barbara as a spy.
Ortega's Connection with Barbara: 52%
██████████▒█████████

Dr. Mortum
Barbara's Relationship with Dr. Mortum: friend.
Mortum's Connection with Barbara: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Lady Argent
Josie's Relationship with Lady Argent: Distant.
Lady Argent's Impression of Josie: 1%
▒███████████████████

Lady Argent respects Anathema's abilities.
Lady Argent's Interest in Anathema: 60%
████████████████████

Marshal Steel
Josie's Relationship with Steel: Confidante. He knows Josie still has their telepathic powers.
Steel's Connection with Josie: 72%
██████████████▒█████

Marshal Steel thinks Anathema needs to be brought in.

Herald
Josie's Relationship with Herald: Friends.
Herald's Connection with Josie: 67%
█████████████▒██████

Herald thinks Anathema is a villain.

Other Characters

 

I want him to give some hints what he found, and I think reaction 3 is least likely to do it... but 2 seems too direct. Think I'm leaning 1?

... I'm also intrigued that he is, right here and now and freshly recovering from a mind control, more willing to return to the topic.

 

Spoiler: alt route info

in at least one route, ortega admitted she thought sidestep was a family member of HG, going vigilante to get out from under a criminal past. cannot wait to see if she passed that conspiracy theory along to chen.

 

> "You stopped looking. I'd hate to think it was for no reason."

"I'm sure you are, but you stopped looking." Your voice is steady as you continue. "I'd hate to think it was for no reason."

"Please. Don't." Chen looks down at his hands, but they betray none of the nervousness you can feel pooling at the back of his mind.

"Then tell me."

"Do you really think I would do that?" His eyes flash dark as he looks up at you. "Just abandon you if I had thought there was any hope?"

"Yes, we talked about that. Sacrifice pawns to win the game."

"This is real life, not chess."

"You stopped looking." Your words are hard. "Whatever you're saying doesn't change that."

"I obtained…pictures." He lets out a sigh, rubbing his face. "Classified. Highly classified. I assumed they were from the autopsy." He focuses on you. "Your autopsy."

"My…" You swallow hard. It doesn't feel like a lie; Chen believes what he's saying. Doctored? Real? They can't be real because then he would have seen your skin, your tattoos, would have known you weren't human. Another reason to stop looking, you suppose, but he's not looking at you like a thing; he's looking at you like a person. Like a human. Like someone he failed to save.

>

"At least that's what I assumed it was. You don't take that kind of picture in an operating theater trying to save someone's life. It looked like a morgue. Or a lab. No respect. The pictures looked like the real deal. The tests I ran on them backed it up. The damage from the fall was horrific…you looked dead. Opened up. I didn't think anyone could live through that." He's a little bit pale, looking at your face, trying not to think about the pictures, trying so hard. "And when you came back, I decided they must have been faked."

"You still have the pictures?" You're proud of how controlled you sound. Faked. Must have. It's not an act, what he feels right now. The guilt. The pain. He wouldn't feel that way if he knew the truth.

"No," he lies. "I destroyed them."

"Did you show Ortega?"

"No. That's why I burned them." A soft sigh, another pang of guilt. Secrets from his best friend. "I didn't want to make things worse. You know how…obsessive she can get. If she thought they had dragged your corpse away for experiments, she wouldn't have stopped looking for the people responsible."

　‣ I stare at him in horror. He knew. And did nothing. If he had…
　‣ "What gave you the right to make that call?" I say angrily.
　‣ "So, you made the call for her," I say with a resigned sigh.
　‣ "And you're telling me now. Why?" I ask suspiciously.

Spoiler: Show Stats

CLASSIFIED

Subject: Anathema

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary.
Description: A tall mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short and styled curly dark brown hair.

Their sense of style is androgynous, secondhand streetwear, with many piercings in their ears, nose, and tongue. They have a short, scruffy beard and mustache.

Standard of Living: Josie is well-off.
Josie is living in a comfortable apartment.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

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

Telepathy
Strength of Mind: 60%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 76%
███████████████▒████

Anathema
Anathema runs a criminal syndicate. They are a known killer.
Infamy: 51% / Obscurity: 49%
██████████▒█████████

Armored Suit
Anathema's suit is a shadow with a mirror for a face, revealing nothing. The cape conceals and obfuscates what's underneath.
In its left hand, the suit has a neutered colony of nanovores, functionally similar to having disintegration touch. The suit is also equipped with telepathic boosters and enhanced speed as well as jump-jets.

Armor Status
Need Repair: 5% / Fine: 95%
████████████████████

Leadership: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Psychological Profile
Arrogance: 23% / Anonymity: 77%
████▒███████████████
Ruthlessness: 36% / Empathy: 64%
███████▒████████████
Daring: 53% / Caution: 47%
██████████▒█████████

Back in the day, Sidestep was known as a vigilante working with the Rangers.

Main Puppet
Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: She is badly hurt, and with severe injuries.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Charge
Josie's Relationship with Ortega: Friend and ally.
Ortega's Connection with Josie: 78%
███████████████▒████

Ortega thinks Anathema has made some good points.

Barbara's Relationship with Ortega: Eternally flirting. Josie is using Barbara as a spy.
Ortega's Connection with Barbara: 52%
██████████▒█████████

Dr. Mortum
Barbara's Relationship with Dr. Mortum: friend.
Mortum's Connection with Barbara: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Lady Argent
Josie's Relationship with Lady Argent: Distant.
Lady Argent's Impression of Josie: 1%
▒███████████████████

Lady Argent respects Anathema's abilities.
Lady Argent's Interest in Anathema: 60%
████████████████████

Marshal Steel
Josie's Relationship with Steel: Confidante. He knows Josie still has their telepathic powers.
Steel's Connection with Josie: 69% (-3)
█████████████▒██████

Marshal Steel thinks Anathema needs to be brought in.

Herald
Josie's Relationship with Herald: Friends.
Herald's Connection with Josie: 67%
█████████████▒██████

Herald thinks Anathema is a villain.

Other Characters

 

>sus. sus. why does he think we need to know this if he thought he was sent deepfakes. and why is this unlocked now that we've lifted his HG gag order.

 

> "And you're telling me now. Why?" I ask suspiciously.

"And you're telling me now. Why?" You sigh, leaning back in the chair as you watch him. There was no need to let you know this. Chen must have known that you'd keep asking questions. Uncomfortable ones. There must be another reason.

"Because you deserve to know." A soft sigh. "I'm not proud of what happened."

"So, you want me to do what? Condemn you? Blame you? Absolve you? It won't change anything."

"I know. And I don't regret what I did. Julia wasn't in any shape to deal with that." He rubs his forehead, not looking at you. "It would have destroyed her. No," he adds quietly, "she would have destroyed herself."

"So, you stopped looking because it was the smart thing to do." You grimace in pain. To know it had been so close. That maybe things could have turned out differently.

"I'm sorry." He means it. You can feel the regret on his shoulders like a heavy blanket. "I made the wrong call, and you suffered for it. If I had known you were still alive, I would have…"

　‣ "You heard me back then. I saw the memory."
　‣ "Can't turn back time," I say with a sigh.
　‣ "I'm not even sure I really was alive," I admit.

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Subject: Anathema

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary.
Description: A tall mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short and styled curly dark brown hair.

Their sense of style is androgynous, secondhand streetwear, with many piercings in their ears, nose, and tongue. They have a short, scruffy beard and mustache.

Standard of Living: Josie is well-off.
Josie is living in a comfortable apartment.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

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

Telepathy
Strength of Mind: 60%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 76%
███████████████▒████

Anathema
Anathema runs a criminal syndicate. They are a known killer.
Infamy: 51% / Obscurity: 49%
██████████▒█████████

Armored Suit
Anathema's suit is a shadow with a mirror for a face, revealing nothing. The cape conceals and obfuscates what's underneath.
In its left hand, the suit has a neutered colony of nanovores, functionally similar to having disintegration touch. The suit is also equipped with telepathic boosters and enhanced speed as well as jump-jets.

Armor Status
Need Repair: 5% / Fine: 95%
████████████████████

Leadership: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Psychological Profile
Arrogance: 23% / Anonymity: 77%
████▒███████████████
Ruthlessness: 36% / Empathy: 64%
███████▒████████████
Daring: 53% / Caution: 47%
██████████▒█████████

Back in the day, Sidestep was known as a vigilante working with the Rangers.

Main Puppet
Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: She is badly hurt, and with severe injuries.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Charge
Josie's Relationship with Ortega: Friend and ally.
Ortega's Connection with Josie: 78%
███████████████▒████

Ortega thinks Anathema has made some good points.

Barbara's Relationship with Ortega: Eternally flirting. Josie is using Barbara as a spy.
Ortega's Connection with Barbara: 52%
██████████▒█████████

Dr. Mortum
Barbara's Relationship with Dr. Mortum: friend.
Mortum's Connection with Barbara: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Lady Argent
Josie's Relationship with Lady Argent: Distant.
Lady Argent's Impression of Josie: 1%
▒███████████████████

Lady Argent respects Anathema's abilities.
Lady Argent's Interest in Anathema: 60%
████████████████████

Marshal Steel
Josie's Relationship with Steel: Confidante. He knows Josie still has their telepathic powers.
Steel's Connection with Josie: 69%
█████████████▒██████

Marshal Steel thinks Anathema needs to be brought in.

Herald
Josie's Relationship with Herald: Friends.
Herald's Connection with Josie: 67%
█████████████▒██████

Herald thinks Anathema is a villain.

Other Characters

 

....Hey so fun thing occurs to me, is it possible Chen saw our [various signs of Not Quite Human] there... and thought it was done, retroactively, to our corpse? I still don't know how much Josie's assumptions how people would react / what people already know is accurate vs like... reasons pushed on everyone in their position to keep them from ever reaching out to other people.

Undecided on reply! 3 feels a little too close to "not sure I was human / not sure I am" for me to think we'd admit it, even here and now. 2 feels... more neutral?
(And unlikely to reveal there's someone Boosted who got time travel out of it)

 

Checking in: anyone have a leaning on this one?

 

2, I don't know that we're close enough with chen to admit 3

 

> "Can't turn back time," I say with a sigh.

"Can't turn back time." You can feel your face twitch, too many bad memories. Too many implications slowly catching up with you.

"That doesn't mean that I can't have regrets." Chen looks like a man that carries around enough of them already.

"Don't we all." Maybe you're cynical, but regret never changed anything. Sure, maybe things would have turned out differently, and maybe they wouldn't have. Maybe they would have been worse. If he had learned what you were and returned you to your owners.

"I wish I could have done something. But I didn't know." He breaks off with a sigh. "I would never have guessed."

"Guessed?" you ask, feeling a chill creep down your spine. Exactly what is he talking about? Thinking about? Hidden thoughts like rats in the walls. He can't mean…can he?

"The truth," he offers, leaving it for you to fill in the blanks.

"You saw the tattoos, didn't you?" Your whole body has tensed up, instinctive reaction, fight or flight. "On the autopsy pictures."

"It wasn't an autopsy, was it?" He doesn't move a muscle, just sits there, watching you.

"Surgery." You grimace, avoiding the truth hovering between you. "Did it look that bad?"

"You looked dead. It wasn't just the pictures. There was a recording too, they…" Harsh words, but his anger isn't aimed at you. "The way they treated you. No respect."

　‣ "I'm a thing. I was being repaired." I'm in control.
　‣ "Respect?" I laugh. "I'm not a person."
　‣ "They wouldn't let me die," I sigh. "I don't know why."

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Subject: Anathema

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary.
Description: A tall mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short and styled curly dark brown hair.

Their sense of style is androgynous, secondhand streetwear, with many piercings in their ears, nose, and tongue. They have a short, scruffy beard and mustache.

Standard of Living: Josie is well-off.
Josie is living in a comfortable apartment.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

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

Telepathy
Strength of Mind: 60%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 76%
███████████████▒████

Anathema
Anathema runs a criminal syndicate. They are a known killer.
Infamy: 51% / Obscurity: 49%
██████████▒█████████

Armored Suit
Anathema's suit is a shadow with a mirror for a face, revealing nothing. The cape conceals and obfuscates what's underneath.
In its left hand, the suit has a neutered colony of nanovores, functionally similar to having disintegration touch. The suit is also equipped with telepathic boosters and enhanced speed as well as jump-jets.

Armor Status
Need Repair: 5% / Fine: 95%
████████████████████

Leadership: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Psychological Profile
Arrogance: 23% / Anonymity: 77%
████▒███████████████
Ruthlessness: 36% / Empathy: 64%
███████▒████████████
Daring: 53% / Caution: 47%
██████████▒█████████

Back in the day, Sidestep was known as a vigilante working with the Rangers.

Main Puppet
Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: She is badly hurt, and with severe injuries.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Charge
Josie's Relationship with Ortega: Friend and ally.
Ortega's Connection with Josie: 78%
███████████████▒████

Ortega thinks Anathema has made some good points.

Barbara's Relationship with Ortega: Eternally flirting. Josie is using Barbara as a spy.
Ortega's Connection with Barbara: 52%
██████████▒█████████

Dr. Mortum
Barbara's Relationship with Dr. Mortum: friend.
Mortum's Connection with Barbara: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Lady Argent
Josie's Relationship with Lady Argent: Distant.
Lady Argent's Impression of Josie: 1%
▒███████████████████

Lady Argent respects Anathema's abilities.
Lady Argent's Interest in Anathema: 60%
████████████████████

Marshal Steel
Josie's Relationship with Steel: Confidante. He knows Josie still has their telepathic powers.
Steel's Connection with Josie: 69%
█████████████▒██████

Marshal Steel thinks Anathema needs to be brought in.

Herald
Josie's Relationship with Herald: Friends.
Herald's Connection with Josie: 67%
█████████████▒██████

Herald thinks Anathema is a villain.

Other Characters

 

He's still not spelling it out, and I don't think we want to be the first to. That sorta rules out 1 and 2 for me

3 follows off his comment that we looked dead, and possibly implies that they did this to us retroactively

 

Let's not poke the elephant in the room.​

> "They wouldn't let me die," I sigh. "I don't know why."

"They wouldn't let me die." You sigh, rubbing your face. So tired. "I don't know why. Most Re-Genes get recycled for less."

…Well okay, so much for not being the first to say it.​

"Recycled?" Chen's eyes go wide, and he's looking at you in a new light. Adding things up. "Is that what I think it is?"

"Probably. You don't keep broken tools around. You take whatever spare parts from them you can and then throw them in the trash. Recycle them if you want to be environmentally conscious." Save some money.

"That's horrifying," but he believes you. He really does. "And that happened a lot?"

"Especially at the start. The first year after decanting is…" Your face twitches. "Volatile. And since we're medical waste, they can't just dump us in the ground somewhere. The boost drugs. Even if things go bad, there might be useful bits they can use."

"But they kept you alive. Fixed you up."

"Not as good as new," you laugh, because what else can you do? "Didn't bother with the niceties. As you saw." Made it worse, in fact. Maybe that's why they kept you alive. Can't punish the dead.

"I didn't want to believe it when I saw it," he admits. "I didn't tell anybody else. Not even Ortega. I thought it was a plant to make me stop looking."

　‣ "Makes sense." Bitter. "Why look for a fake?"
　‣ "And then you started to add up the facts." Logical.
　‣ "You did," I point out. "It worked."

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Subject: Anathema

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary.
Description: A tall mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short and styled curly dark brown hair.

Their sense of style is androgynous, secondhand streetwear, with many piercings in their ears, nose, and tongue. They have a short, scruffy beard and mustache.

Standard of Living: Josie is well-off.
Josie is living in a comfortable apartment.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

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

Telepathy
Strength of Mind: 60%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 76%
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Anathema
Anathema runs a criminal syndicate. They are a known killer.
Infamy: 51% / Obscurity: 49%
██████████▒█████████

Armored Suit
Anathema's suit is a shadow with a mirror for a face, revealing nothing. The cape conceals and obfuscates what's underneath.
In its left hand, the suit has a neutered colony of nanovores, functionally similar to having disintegration touch. The suit is also equipped with telepathic boosters and enhanced speed as well as jump-jets.

Armor Status
Need Repair: 5% / Fine: 95%
████████████████████

Leadership: 66%
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Psychological Profile
Arrogance: 23% / Anonymity: 77%
████▒███████████████
Ruthlessness: 36% / Empathy: 64%
███████▒████████████
Daring: 53% / Caution: 47%
██████████▒█████████

Back in the day, Sidestep was known as a vigilante working with the Rangers.

Main Puppet
Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: She is badly hurt, and with severe injuries.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Charge
Josie's Relationship with Ortega: Friend and ally.
Ortega's Connection with Josie: 78%
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Ortega thinks Anathema has made some good points.

Barbara's Relationship with Ortega: Eternally flirting. Josie is using Barbara as a spy.
Ortega's Connection with Barbara: 52%
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Dr. Mortum
Barbara's Relationship with Dr. Mortum: friend.
Mortum's Connection with Barbara: 66%
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Lady Argent
Josie's Relationship with Lady Argent: Distant.
Lady Argent's Impression of Josie: 1%
▒███████████████████

Lady Argent respects Anathema's abilities.
Lady Argent's Interest in Anathema: 60%
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Marshal Steel
Josie's Relationship with Steel: Confidante. He knows Josie still has their telepathic powers.
Steel's Connection with Josie: 69%
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Marshal Steel thinks Anathema needs to be brought in.

Herald
Josie's Relationship with Herald: Friends.
Herald's Connection with Josie: 67%
█████████████▒██████

Herald thinks Anathema is a villain.

Other Characters

 

Bonus post: For no reason whatsoever, here's the first time we spoke to Chen after the Heartbreak incident.

 

Torn between 1 and 3, both different sorts of bitter

 

3, I think, but I'm not married to the choice.

 

if xenforo could handle emoji, I'd put an upside-down smiley here​

> "You did," I point out. "It worked."

"You did," you point out. "It worked."

"That wasn't why…" Chen drifts off, and you can feel him second-guessing himself. Was that the reason? He thought you were dead, but would he have tried harder if you were…

"It's okay," you say cynically. "I know I'm not human."

"Just give me a minute." He looks down at the tea, sipping it thoughtfully. Letting the silence grow between you. Though his mind is anything but—you can feel it buzzing. Too many directions to go. "I assume you're not blue because you're an infiltration model?"

"They call us cuckoos." Your mouth twitches. So this is how he's dealing with it. Filling in the blanks. "Look normal with our clothes on, but without—well, you saw the tattoos."

"That makes no sense," he sighs. "Why the tattoos? It makes it harder to do your job. I saw you in the summer; it must have been hell. Not even short sleeves?"

"It makes every kind of sense if you think about it." And he does. Adding up the facts, watching your face and the semblance of a smile upon it.

"Oh. I guess they didn't want you to think you were human. Makes it harder to run away too."

"We're not supposed to be capable of running away," you scoff. So close yet so far away. "This is for the Farm. For the training. They can't have us look too human, even if we're not blue."

"Isn't that the point?"

"Not if they raise us to be tools. They need people to treat us like things." You're angry now because you didn't understand it at first. Not until the second time around when you knew what the outside world was like and that not all humans were cruel. "We needed to look like things. Act like things. So they could treat us like we were. It might be a surprise to you, but some people see something humanoid, and they don't want to hurt it."

"It's not surprising to me," he admits. "Sounds like basic military training from the other end. You need to break people to make them ready to kill. Dehumanize the enemy. Make orders more important than conscience."

　‣ "Maybe you do get it," I admit.
　‣ "You felt like my handlers," I sigh. "I hated you back then."
　‣ "We're messed up," I smile. "We're so messed up."

Spoiler: Show Stats (no change)

CLASSIFIED

Subject: Anathema

Secret Identity: Josie Jacobs
Gender: Non-binary.
Description: A tall mixed person in their thirties with brown eyes and short and styled curly dark brown hair.

Their sense of style is androgynous, secondhand streetwear, with many piercings in their ears, nose, and tongue. They have a short, scruffy beard and mustache.

Standard of Living: Josie is well-off.
Josie is living in a comfortable apartment.

Josie Jacobs is a seasoned, tech-savvy tactician.

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

Telepathy
Strength of Mind: 60%
████████████████████
Subtle Manipulations: 76%
███████████████▒████

Anathema
Anathema runs a criminal syndicate. They are a known killer.
Infamy: 51% / Obscurity: 49%
██████████▒█████████

Armored Suit
Anathema's suit is a shadow with a mirror for a face, revealing nothing. The cape conceals and obfuscates what's underneath.
In its left hand, the suit has a neutered colony of nanovores, functionally similar to having disintegration touch. The suit is also equipped with telepathic boosters and enhanced speed as well as jump-jets.

Armor Status
Need Repair: 5% / Fine: 95%
████████████████████

Leadership: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Psychological Profile
Arrogance: 23% / Anonymity: 77%
████▒███████████████
Ruthlessness: 36% / Empathy: 64%
███████▒████████████
Daring: 53% / Caution: 47%
██████████▒█████████

Back in the day, Sidestep was known as a vigilante working with the Rangers.

Main Puppet
Name: Barbara
Puppet Status: She is badly hurt, and with severe injuries.
Description: A tall white woman in her twenties with blue eyes and long straight blond hair.

Allies and Enemies

Charge
Josie's Relationship with Ortega: Friend and ally.
Ortega's Connection with Josie: 78%
███████████████▒████

Ortega thinks Anathema has made some good points.

Barbara's Relationship with Ortega: Eternally flirting. Josie is using Barbara as a spy.
Ortega's Connection with Barbara: 52%
██████████▒█████████

Dr. Mortum
Barbara's Relationship with Dr. Mortum: friend.
Mortum's Connection with Barbara: 66%
█████████████▒██████

Lady Argent
Josie's Relationship with Lady Argent: Distant.
Lady Argent's Impression of Josie: 1%
▒███████████████████

Lady Argent respects Anathema's abilities.
Lady Argent's Interest in Anathema: 60%
████████████████████

Marshal Steel
Josie's Relationship with Steel: Confidante. He knows Josie still has their telepathic powers.
Steel's Connection with Josie: 69%
█████████████▒██████

Marshal Steel thinks Anathema needs to be brought in.

Herald
Josie's Relationship with Herald: Friends.
Herald's Connection with Josie: 67%
█████████████▒██████

Herald thinks Anathema is a villain.

Other Characters