A/N: So, took me a little longer than expected to finish those last chapters, I think it's been two weeks already? More? Sorry about that.
Anyways, after this, I'll work on that new ff I started, it's called Arcane: Rule of Blood, but that one is NSFW so I'm not posting it here, hehe, then it's probably back to Will, so the next chapter probably won't take so long.
Also, after some thought, I kinda regret not killing Dinah's parents earlier in the fic, which would make her hate Coil even more, and they're turning out to be inconvenient right now. Thankfully, Endbringers are a thing!
I hope you guys enjoy the chapter.
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[QUERY]
Receiving the data package, she partitioned a fragment of her processing power to analyze the request, then quickly sent a reply through the network.
[NEGATIVE.STAND-BY]
[AGREEMENT] came the answer from the designated aggressor as it aborted its attack run again, its physical shell returning to a holding pattern on the ocean to conserve energy.
Breaking the connection, she halted most of her other tasks and re-routed the processing power towards peering into the future, observing a million possible results to adjust her goals before the Anomaly interfered again.
In the beginning, she had tried to use a prediction algorithm, but the constant revelation of new capabilities kept making her efforts obsolete, so she had given up and turned all her processing power towards future sight.
The worst was that she couldn't see the Anomaly, not entirely; it had some kind of passive defense against being observed along the timeline, and only the results of its actions could be observed.
She couldn't feel frustration, but the constant need to adapt and adjust all her preparations was coming extremely close, the future shifting in ways beyond what she could predict.
Even now, her timetable was delayed by another planetary rotation, the fourth one since categorizing the Anomaly as an object of interest.
She was also experiencing fluctuations in her efficiency and projected capabilities, as her constant need to adapt and counter the Anomaly caused her to overuse her energy reserves.
She had not been meant to function at peak efficiency for so long.
[QUERY] She sent through the network towards the nearest shard to the Anomaly, but Fusion Engine 3 failed to report, then she broadened the query's range, finally getting an answer.
[DATA] The Warrior Hub Administrator sent a package of direct observations from its host.
[PROPOSAL].
[DISAGREEMENT].
… [DATA] She grudgingly sent a part of the information she had already gathered, evidencing the breach of security on the network.
This time, there was a delay, almost a full second, but the answer still came. [DISAGREEMENT]
All her processes were halted for a tenth of a second as her physical body actually turned to glare at the Administrator's host; it seemed to have gone through a faulty deployment and gotten… attached.
Indeed, the termination of its host was extremely likely, but the projected amount of data acquired and the repercussions would be more than worth its sacrifice.
Finally, she felt the efforts of the Anomaly decreasing, its attention shifting towards more mundane tasks. Immediately, she started verifying all her efforts, many of which would need to be adjusted.
Through her power, she saw that at least some of her efforts had paid off, her short-term movements away from the Anomaly were still working, the parasite had left Boston and entered Brockton Bay, its host deciding to hide while preparing for a confrontation.
It was subpar, but the parasite should act as a fitting substitute for the unstable host slain by the Anomaly.
Then she proceeded to reanalyze the coming confrontation, adjusting to the new information, which hosts would be present, what would be the parameters, and the goals, compiling it all into [DATA] to send to Conflict Engine 2.
Finally, partitioning another percentage of her processing power, she started disrupting the planetary sensors turned her way, then used her telekinesis to draw in more of the debris orbiting the planet, taking care to choose defunct spacecraft, rocket platforms and other large satellites the host species had lost track of.
The security breach of the network hadn't been enough to require immediate action, but the higher alert level demanded she be ready, this was the most she could do within the bounds of her restrictions.
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Anakin stepped out of his meditation chamber and felt the cold morning air hitting him, the small metallic orb snapping shut with a 'hiss' behind him.
His meditation had been unrestful; something he couldn't truly sense had been attempting to breach his defense, to see into his future and change it.
He had also seen the city destroyed, the Force sending him visions of the buildings torn apart, water dripping from them and flowing through the streets.
Had the creator of those 'parahumans' finally noticed him?
Anakin had assumed that whatever being had created this experiment was long dead, but perhaps that had been premature, and this new hiding technique was proving itself formidable.
As Vader, he had hunted Jedi shadows all over the galaxy; he had also learned Sidious' own technique to hide his presence in the Force, but this was something different, a blank spot, like a stone thrown in the river of the Force; he could barely perceive it and only when in deep meditation.
The closest comparison he could make would be the ysalamiri, small lizards Admiral Thrawn had used to protect himself from Force users, the creatures able to create bubbles of space that repelled the Force.
His new adversary didn't feel exactly the same; instead of repelled, it felt like the Force simply… wouldn't approach, as if whatever this being was had been cut off, excised like a poisoned limb.
Still, if it thought an 'Endbringer' would be enough to stop him, it was sorely mistaken. Whatever the case, his padawan was 'gifted' with such power, and Anakin now had a test subject he was willing to study; he would not be denied his answers.
Looking at the half-open window, he caught his neighbor's orange cat frozen in the middle of trying to squeeze into his bedroom, its large head staring at him.
"No," he growled at the sithspawn. "Out, now."
The beast just continued to stare at him for a few seconds, then decided to ignore his orders and continue its efforts, so he used the Force to gently push it out and closed the window, ignoring its cries of protest; he'd not have it releasing hairs all over his equipment again.
When he heard the old woman had been relocated, Anakin hadn't thought it would be as his neighbor. The youngling would have enjoyed the result, but without her, he was not so attached.
"Ah," Marissa said as he left his bedroom. "Morning… I… I made breakfast?"
Anakin spared her a look. She had been wise not to escape him, not that she could while he was only in meditation, but she hadn't even tried, deciding to fulfil her part of the deal.
Without a word, he glanced down at the plate she was offering. When was the last time he had eaten?
With some surprise, Anakin realized he hadn't eaten anything since Dinah had been wounded; he hadn't slept either, needing the time in meditation to fully center himself and using the Force as a substitute.
Unfortunately, although he was nowhere near his limit, no Jedi or Sith could function indefinitely with only the Force, at least not normally, even he was still made of crude matter and needed sustenance.
In truth, it wasn't that he had decided to forsake eating, but without the youngling to remind him, he had simply forgotten; decades of consuming food through the nutrient chamber of his suit had taken its toll.
Eating had been a chore, painful and unpleasant thanks to his wounds, one that he had long since automated through his suit's interface, and the habit was… difficult to break without a reminder.
"I'm sorry, I just thought…" Marissa winced, pulling her arm back.
Her feelings were clear for him to sense: guilt, shame, a small amount of hope, quickly getting crushed under her growing fear, perhaps her most prevalent feeling.
Fear, but not of what he would do to her —although there was some of that too— no, most of her fear was of what she had become, of being unable to ever atone for it, of having crossed a line she could never return.
Almost unwilling, he stopped her, taking the plate from her hand. "Your effort is… appreciated."
After the meeting the previous day, Anakin was no longer feeling as… antagonistic towards the woman. She wasn't guiltless; however, it was no longer a struggle to stop himself from crushing her.
His anger hadn't fully abated, but it would be sheer hypocrisy to continue punishing her when her failings were so much lesser than his own.
Anakin ate quietly, the silence stretching between them for a few minutes until she broke it again.
"How…" she started to say, then swallowed hard, glancing at some of his equipment spread around the room with trepidation, both of her hands squeezing her empty mug of coffee for comfort. "You said you'd study my power… How are you going to do it?"
"Sit," he ordered, finishing his plate and putting it aside. "There will be no need for any equipment."
Putting the mug aside, Marissa took a deep breath, then kneeled in front of him, fear and determination fighting against each other inside her mind.
Crossing his legs, Anakin got into a meditative position and released the hold he kept on his presence, the Force flooding the house with the weight of his power.
It wasn't a physical thing; he wasn't pushing any of his anger into the Force, nor was he asking for it to do anything. The house didn't shake, and the lights didn't flicker, but deep in the core of her being, the small piece of the Force present in every living creature, Marissa still felt it, an overwhelming sense of standing in front of something greater.
Unable to stop herself, she closed her eyes, her heartbeat accelerating as her soul, her very essence stared at him like a child would a predator.
In the Force, Anakin still perceived himself as a maelstrom of fire, shadow, and blood, all his memories… A million deeds he had done as Vader still acting as fuel to feed that fire.
But the spot of light in his core was growing, a thin line extending out of it towards the city; his training bond kept isolated from the influence of the Dark Side, but still acting as a support, feeding him power to resist.
Marissa's presence in the Force was small, almost insignificant as she rested in the palm of his hand, easily crushed if he so wished. Instead, he leaned closer, his intent focusing on the source of her power.
For a long moment, it escaped him, the presence hidden by the same technique that was used by his newest opponent, but, as he delved deeper, he could still feel it, if only slightly.
It felt distant, its influence coming from a connection he could barely perceive, more than just space separating Marissa from the source of her power.
Anakin tried to touch it, but even his control and power slipped, the Force failing to take direct hold of the source, seeming to slide right off it like water on a stone.
Frustration built in his mind; his first instinct, honed from the last few decades, was to use brute force, to refuse to accept failure; he knew he was strong enough for it, but he also knew it would kill the girl, and he was no longer the Emperor's right hand.
"What is it?" Marissa asked, opening one eye to stare at him, able to feel a portion of his frustration.
Anakin didn't immediately answer, instead shifting his focus away from the source and towards the connection itself, the Force answering with ease. "Your power, activate it."
Marissa obeyed, head starting to gather between her fingers, the process growing for a few seconds before a small sun, no bigger than a finger, was born between her hands. "Like this?"
"Indeed," with that, Anakin felt the connection opening, power being sent through it, but, more importantly, he felt it was mechanical in nature, not a Force power or even some form of Sith Alchemy, but a machine mimicking a fraction of it.
He still could not touch the source, but he could feel the power flowing through the connection, just as he could fight against Vista's own control of space or interact with the powers of others.
The source of parahumans was hidden, but that protection did not extend to the resulting phenomena, the parahuman, or even that which was around it, which meant he could still affect it without killing the girl, even if he'd have to do it indirectly.
For a moment, he tried to trace the power, but it only took him a second to realize it wasn't coming from the planet, nor was it connected to any ship in the system.
In Marissa's hand, her sun grew to the size of her hand; the majority of the heat contained between her hands, but some of it still escaped, starting to affect the rest of the house.
Anakin probed at the orb of plasma, knowing that he could disrupt it, slowly drain the heat away, or just snuff it out with a thought, then he continued to study the connection.
"Enough," he finally said after nearly an hour. "Disperse your power, I have much to consider."
With a thought from Marissa, the orb seemed to collapse inwards, both heat and plasma disappearing as if they were never there, she was left sweating, her breathing coming hard. "Did… you find anything?"
"Yes," he simply said while uncrossing his legs, then he considered her exhaustion. "Could you have maintained the star for longer?"
Anakin didn't feel any physical exhaustion coming from her, but her emotions were raw, as if she had been under tension for a long time, like a soldier constantly waiting for an attack that never came.
Her power's influence on her mind also felt vastly different from the youngling, Dinah's power seemed active, constantly trying to influence her, Marissa's seemed… placid, almost unresponsive.
"The problem wasn't maintaining it," Marissa said, adjusting her clearly numb legs and wiping cold sweat from her forehead. "My power wants to be used; it wants to expand. Keeping it controlled is what makes it hard."
"Your companions, did they have the same problems?"
Marissa finally got up, seeming to consider his question. "Not… Exactly? Most of us felt good using our powers, you know, we wanted to use them more, but everyone had limits, things like cooldowns or casting time. Some of the others also felt tired and hungry if they used their powers too much."
Interesting, remembering the Travelers, Anakin knew the amount of energy required for their powers was far above what a human body could produce, particularly if the source was mechanical in nature; there was no reason they should get physically tired if the energy didn't come from them.
Was it a fault in the process or an inbuilt restriction?
"Prepare yourself, we will continue tonight."
"... Alright," Marissa said, then stared up at him. "There's… something else you should know…"
"Hesitation does you no credit, speak."
"We… didn't exactly get our powers the usual way," Marissa said, then looked around the room as if afraid someone else would be watching. "I don't really know how to explain, there was this briefcase…"
"Stop. Perhaps you should start at the beginning."
Marissa took a deep breath, then she sat down on the sofa, swallowed, and started talking. "We, I mean the Travelers, weren't really from Earth Bet. Everything started when…"
The Travelers' history was… informative. He already suspected parahumans were created by someone; the existence of such vials only confirmed it, but it still gave him many questions.
As far as he knew, the distribution of powers seemed to be working as intended, trauma leading to an awakening that provided power, but only served to reinforce said trauma… Were the vials an early experiment, or was there another faction trying to subvert it?
Regardless, Anakin had other things to do.
Hours later, he stood in his workshop, Marissa behind him, while his holoprojector showed a man in a suit, the hologram only an approximation built from images of a cellphone camera.
"...It's not gonna be easy," the man said, staring at a clipboard. "Or cheap, you're asking for a lot of materials, as well as custom work from several of our members."
"Monetary compensation will not be a problem," Anakin said, ignoring the wince from Zhang Li, the Lieutenant in charge of the ABB's finances.
"It's not about the money. Well, not just about the money," the Toybox representative shook his head. "In actuality, Toybox isn't a powerhouse; we survive by being good enough to be valuable by the average cape, but insignificant enough to be ignored by more powerful organizations.
"The amount and quality of equipment you're asking for would raise a lot of eyebrows, and right now, you're not exactly a low-profile client, Mr. Anakin. More than that, having two members of our organization cooperating with you and in the same city is more than we're willing to risk, no matter the offer."
Anakin just stared at the image… even now, weeks after he arrived on the planet, he still kept forgetting how frustrating it was that people could refuse him, that they even dared.
"I will rescind my request for tinkering in cooperation, as well as most of the items from Cranial's catalogue. Would Dodge take on my proposed project as a commission?"
After the discoveries he made this morning, being able to study Dodge's pocket dimensions was more important than Cranial's brain devices. Anakin had far less experience with different dimensions than he did with the human brain.
He suspected, and the Force seemed to agree, that examples of a parahuman's dimensional technology could greatly help him trace their source.
"Ah… well," the representative hesitated, and Anakin had the impression the man would much rather it was the other way around; it seems Dodge was apprehensive about working with him. "I believe he'll accept the commission, yes. There's still the matter of the other equipment you ordered; we're only willing to provide you with 40% of it."
The materials were not essential, items like coolants, high-quality circuitry, and advanced alloys whose production would take him weeks and provide only stepping stones to more advanced technology.
"That is acceptable."
The representative seemed to relax at his words, a smile returning to his face. "Great, we'll have everything ready in four days," then he looked around the workshop. "Would you like it delivered to this location?"
"Not entirely, the two pocket dimensions will be delivered here as soon as possible. My man will provide you with a new address for the rest of the materials and the commission when it's ready."
"Alright, we appreciate the business." With a quick bow, the representative turned off his phone, the hologram flickering before turning back into a representation of the city.
"You expect another raid from the PRT?" Asked Tae-Soo, already suspecting the reason for giving them a new delivery location.
"Not from the PRT," Anakin said, getting up from his chair to stare towards the protectorate base in the middle of the Bay. "The future isn't set, the Force only stirs with the possibility, but we will still prepare for the one you call 'Leviathan'."
He had been willing to wait, to let things calm down and allow the girl time to spend with her parents, but with this new vision, he was starting to consider if it was time to retrieve his padawan.
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If you like this story, you can read ahead on my P.A.T.R.E.O.N.
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