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Death And What Comes After by BatRou-Dawg

Misc » Book X-overs Rated: M, English, Supernatural, Words: 57k+, Favs: 6, Follows: 10, Published: Jul 20, 2023 Updated: Jul 22, 2023

3Chapter 1

Dying is awful.

Dying while your family looks on is beyond that, and there was precisely nothing I could do about it.

The more I resisted the cold embrace of death, the faster it happened, just as I was thinking this my vision started to go dark, I just had time to look one last time at my current family before Death was there.

I could feel the wrongness of my situation just after this instant, or eternity, of unbeing that I equated with Death. I could feel my body, standing, the clothes that I was wearing, the familiar smell of the sea, with a small underlying of rust, mixed with the smell of people close to me. I could hear people starting to move away from me, some afraid, some wondering what was happening, the sound of weapons being clasped in surprise and caution. All of this happened in less than an interminable second, and all of it was wrong, I was supposed to be reborn as a baby, not appear somewhere in an adult body, the first rule was clear, and what was also clear was that I was in error, there was no such rule.

Still reeling from my premature death I was in no mood for my world once again being sent tumbling upside down, I accelerated my thinking process while sending instructions down my nerves for my eyelids to open, calling on the two inhuman entities that I called my friends for an impromptu war council.

" So what are your thoughts ?" I said in the void of my mind.

"HOME" came from the being of light that once was a continent sized machine.

"Yes it does smell like it… And you ?" I asked to the towering beast that was said to be a being of pure hate.

His "Meh… I was always curious to see this world..." confirmed that what is being said by frightened people and reality can be entirely different things, still if I was where I thought I was that meant one thing…

"We will have to…" I started to say

"...KILL DAD." only for my first friend in this mess to finish.

Of course the second one needed to add a "You are both pathetic..." before I reported my attention to the real world and slowed my thoughts to a more human level, as the impulse to open my eyes was still not at the halfway point of the relevant nerve.

My eyes opening at last, I could see that I was in the lobby of the Parahuman Response Team of Brockton Bay, it looking almost exactly the same as the last time I saw it. The only problem was that last I heard it had been destroyed by Behemoth, along with the rest of the city.

A quick look at my surroundings confirmed what I feared, which was a mixed blessing, on one hand I was not in a reality where all that I loved was in the process of being destroyed by monsters, on the other hand I may have a chance to prevent some bad things happening. That is, if I was right and this world conformed to what was described in a certain web novel. At least I didn't exist as a hero here, as a glance toward the souvenirs shop saw no action figure of myself.

I finally looked at the two agents approaching me, containment foam dispenser at the ready, the cute agent behind the counter had her arm near where the silent alarm was placed, at least if things were the same than I remembered, and the visiting people were divided between those that feared a fight and those that hoped for a fight, cellphones already starting to film the scene.

I took care to keep my stance non threatening as the tense agents started to ask what were my intentions.

"I… am a new parahuman, and I would like to speak with someone in charge of new parahumans." I said, putting a bit of hesitation in my answer.

"Alright, if that's the case please follow agent Hudson here." said the leader of the two, gesturing towards the cute agent that was behind the counter and was now starting to walk towards me.

"This way please." she said, pointing behind the two agents in full gear that were my previous interlocutors.

I did as she asked, hoping that my pockets were as empty as they felt, triggering the metal detectors on the way to an interview would be a bad thing.

She said nothing while we walked and I followed her example, not knowing if it was standard procedure to wait until being in a proper interview room, with all the recording equipment, or not.

In addition to walking I started the long and tedious work of mentally emulating the Shard that once gave me powers and I soon found myself before a choice, I could do it like I did the two previous times, slowly putting in place all the various bits and trinkets of the continent sized machine, or I could just use my perfect memory to make all of it click in place in one go.

Now it seems like an easy decision but I feared that doing yet another thing that was beyond human capacity like that would be taking another step on the road to inhumanity, as if having eaten and digested the souls of an uncountable number of beings previously didn't make me monstrous enough.

With this thought I took the step, while I slowly sat in the comfortable chair of interview room number 3, the room where were interviewed the parahumans that were non hostiles and seeming to want to work with the PRT and Protectorate, yet were not deemed safe.

While I was musing this agent Hudson excused herself, mentioning forms to be acquired, so that I could fill them, leaving me alone with several cameras and I don't know how many microphones.

So I waited patiently, trying not to be too immobile, as was my default state, while appreciating the fact that whatever force was behind me being there saw fit to give me the same body that I had the first time around, without all the scars and with the various lost appendages. I also was clothed in my favorite clothes, navy blue t-shirt, white cargo pants, white shoes and white hoodie. With my blonde hair I looked just like a member of New Wave.

That could have explained the looks that I saw on the civilians - how I loathe calling them this, I too am a civilian, as every other hero not in the military damnit ! - and on agent Hudson face.

This started to make me think of what would happen on the Net, I imagined that there already was a thread about a lost son or something stupid like that. If only they knew…

Agent Hudson chose this moment to enter, a disturbingly thick packet of forms under her arm.

She took place on the other side of the table and started the interview by a really difficult question :

"Okay, we can start with your name. " she said, ready to put pen to paper, a would-be reassuring smile on her lips.

"Heeeh..." I hesitated, before thinking of a way out of lying, I could tell the truth ! Or at least a small part of it…

"The matter of my name is a bit difficult, you see I am not exactly sure of how I found myself in your lobby."

She frowned then with a "Sir, are you a parahuman ?"

"Yes, I'm a parahuman but things are a bit complex, we are on Earth Bet right ? In Brockton Bay ?"

Her "Yes, we are in Brockton Bay, Eath Bet. Are you from Earth Aleph ?" was accompanied by a real frown now.

I tried to take back control of the situation before it could slide into disaster.

"No I am not from Aleph, the situation is a bit more complex, I am from Bet but not this Bet… I don't know if I am clear..." I said, being careful not ask for her superior, or to mention Endbringers yet, I did not want to be declared a Simurgh bomb and put in quarantine.

"I think I understand, but please understand that if you're lying there would be legal repercussions, am I clear ?"

I responded by the affirmative and waited for her to continue.

"Alright, can you explain how you found yourself here ? And explain what you mean by another Earth Bet, for the records."

"Sadly I don't know how I found myself here, one moment I am there the next I'm here. As for where I come from, well, your lobby looks almost exactly like the one I remember, the hallways that we traversed are the same, this room is the same, and I have a feeling that if I were to step outside the city would be the same."

"And if I may, how did you know that you were not in your home dimension ?" she said, visibly skeptical.

"Well, for one you did not recognize me, your colleagues did not recognize me, the civilians didn't either, and my action figure was not on sale in the shop." I said, a bit petulantly.

"Okay, so you noticed all these things in the space of a few seconds, are you a thinker ?"

"Yes I am a thinker, I also have a high rating in almost all the other categories. Now what will happen to me ?"

"Admitting that I believe you, we will search for you, to confirm, or not, your claim of being from another Earth and if you say the truth we will provide with living accommodations until such a time that you can find work. For now I need to report to my superiors, please wait here." she said, smiling, but I could see the tell tale signs of anxiety and lying, seemed like I might be in troubles.

Damn but did I repress hard on what life was like in this universe, always assuming the worst of a situation and I prepared to deal with a serious lack of communication between people…

So I waited. I waited and used my mastery over the electromagnetic spectrum to listen to what was happening outside.

Radio calls for reinforcement, a secure cellphone call from the Director Piggot to Armsmaster, again for reinforcement, a call to Thomas Calvert… Come on Hudson ! You were so cute, why are you a spy ?!

Well at least it reminded me that I had to eliminate him too, in addition to Scion, and the Dragonslayers while I was at it... and jack Slash ! And… I killed this train of thought before I had a kill list long like my arm, and I still wasn't sure I would be free to move or if I would be a fugitive.

All the while I had kept an eye on the door, the infrared spectrum providing me with the view of a full team of agents in, I assumed, full gear taking place on both sides of the door, and two people preparing to enter.

I of course made no move to betray my lack of surprise at said two people entering the room, but I didn't refrain from smiling when one the two was none other than Miss Militia, I always liked her, the other being deputy director Renick. So good cop and good cop, my chances were looking good. And what do I hear on the waves ? Armsmaster talking to Miss Militia, saying that he is monitoring the situation, okay… not so good then.

After the respective salutations and presentations we started the interrogation.

It was all rather boring until Miss Militia asked for Armsmaster if I had a relation with New Wave, so I answered the truth as I knew it.

"Yes, I am the twin brother of Glory Girl, my parents are Brandish and Flashbang." I almost made a mistake here, answering with their real names when they specifically mentioned the name of the team, which could be to my advantage, or not. That's it, I'm becoming paranoid, well played Worm-verse.

Aaand I forgot to mention Panacea, as she was not part of the team where I came from, oh well…

"Okay, would you agree to a DNA test to confirm it ?" asked Renick.

"Yes but only if you don't mention it to New Wave, if what I say is true, and it is, I'd prefer to tell them myself, in a place and time of my choosing, not by a call from one of your agent or yourself. No offense."

"None taken, I cannot agree with your conditions right now but I don't think it will pose a problem, granted that you do not keep this information hidden too long, assuming it's true." he said, a reassuring smile on his face, before continuing.

"You said you were a hero in the wards right ? Have you at any moment been in contact with a the Simurgh ?"

I could only answer truthfully with a flat "Yes, several times."

It was not the thing to say judging by their reactions, like a sudden tenseness…

So I continued " Please, I was a Ward, it was an Endbringer, there's nothing more to it. And if you ask me why a Ward was fighting an Endbringer I would question the fact that you had an Endbringer problem."

They looked quickly at each other before Miss Militia spoke

"Can you tell us what were your PRT threat ratings in your home dimension ? I am curious what mastery of the electromagnetic spectrum entails." changing the subject completely.

"Must I ? I mean I can tell you but it would be quicker to just put "yes" in each category." I said with what I hoped was a disarming smile.

It turned out that Miss Militia was not so easily distracted, and was better at smiling than me, even with only her eyes apparent, so I started to speak.

"I'll do better, I will tell you what they are now, there's been a bit of change along the way to here."

"Yes those other "stops" that you refuse to speak about." said Renick.

"Yes and like I told you they are not really relevant, that I'm here is all that matter I think."

"There is also the matter of if you represent a danger for the population to consider also, but please tell us what you think your threat rating would be like right now." he said with a not so friendly smile.

"Okay, but please keep in mind that I'm not a specialist so there can be a difference of a point or two, and I will be happy to test them when safe." I replied with a friendly smile, before starting.

"So, mover nine, I can be virtually anywhere on Earth in under a second. Shaker nine or more, I can wipe out an US state from the map. We will not test this one." They looked torn between disbelief and fear of my saying being the truth, nonetheless, I continued

"Brute two, but could be higher, not really a power just that I'm really good at fighting. Breaker, well, I can become intangible. Master, well I was wrong, it's not a yes to all categories, I am no master." They did not breath in relief, and again did not seem to believe me.

"Tinker, I need to test it but I think you can put it at nine or more." I could hear Armsmaster starting to tell something to Miss Militia but I did not wait, as I was not supposed to listen in on a secure radio communication.

"Blaster nine, I have all the lasers. Thinker… well… hehe… It's kind of embarrassing but it's my strongest suit." I said, while rubbing the back of my head. In part to try to defuse the soon to be explosion, and in part because I was truly embarrassed. I could see that they started to realize the threat that I posed, I could hear a "shit!" coming from Armsmaster before he switched to another frequency, and a stronger encryption, all in vain as I could listen in as easily than before.

Before anyone could do something drastic I continued speaking.

"I am truly sorry, I should have mentioned it in the first interview but it totally slipped my mind, you can classify me at nine or more, except on the social side of things, I can tell when someone is lying or afraid, things like that but not more, I am utterly rubbish at predicting people, if you couldn't tell."

Renick looked like he had bitten something sour but Miss Militia looked neutral and asked me to continue, so I did.

"Striker 5 or more, I can roughly be equated to a light-saber from Star Wars, given time I could cut, or rather melt, anything. Changer two, I can manipulate light to form holograms or become invisible, and that lead to stranger 2 or a bit more. As for trump, nope, nothing." I finished.

I also stopped listening on the radio waves, I wanted the surprise. Just as I was thinking that Renick spoke.

"The director is currently consulting with PRT thinkers to ascertain whether you are a threat or not, meanwhile I ask to be patient and not leave this room, we will stay here with you for the time being."

Then it was the turn of Miss Militia to speak.

"Can you develop on your thinker powers, please ?" she asked while smiling.

"Well, I can monitor basically all the electromagnetic spectrum, I can think fast, faster than any human or computer, have an advanced understanding of computer science, a more than encyclopedic knowledge of science, medical sciences included, and I cannot seem to forget anything." I said on a bored tone, without surprise I saw a peculiar interest in her eyes at the mention of my perfect memory.

She almost said something but Renick interrupted whatever she wanted to say with a question of his own.

"I will be frank, do you have any weak points ?" It was probably a question from his higher up, but whatever I answered the truth.

"Yes, for one I need to breathe so if the judgement come to be in my favor I'll ask for a gasmask. I also need to sleep, I can go weeks without I think but I still need rest. Going with the question of breathing, I also need to eat. And of course many powers work on me, I know for a fact that Alexandria could hurt me, Jack Slash, assuming that you have him or someone like him is kind of my nemesis. Miss Militia here can hurt me as long as she uses bullets provided by her power."

It looked like they were taking mental notes, and Miss Militia asked me the question that I feel was the most important of this little interrogation.

"What is your level of famliarity with the members of the Protectorate East Nort East ? And with the Protectorate as a whole ?" she said with the utmost seriousness. It seemed that someone finally connected the dots of my story, I lying was not realistic at this point, and more important I did not want to lie to her. So here we go.

"I know the name of each hero that can be seen on the big poster, in the shop."

Miss Militia only looked straight into my eyes and I returned her stare, while Renick started to say something but stopped when understanding dawned on his face, then he spoke.

"You understand that this is a serious matter ?"

"Please, you must understand that all that I said was the truth, so when I say that I am a veteran hero it means that I am a veteran hero, even if I look barely sixteen, I do hero work since I'm two."

"Okay, okay." he said, smiling.

I could only pinch the bridge of my nose, they visibly were not taking me seriously on this matter, if the light crinkle around the eyes of Miss Militia was to be believed.

"Okay, for the last time, I triggered when I was just two years old when I was mauled half to death by an attack dog, courtesy of some nazy fuck." I said more than a little bit annoyed.

Renick looked serious again, while Miss Militia wasdeadlyserious, I guess that it reminded her of something bad.

"I'm sorry if it brought back some unpleasant memories. " I said to her, and I continued my story.

"So there you have a little kid, a toddler really, that suddenly can fly, shoot laser beams from his eyes and more importantly become invisible while going anywhere in the city in the blink of an eye, and you have a mini would be hero that is in serious need of a cadre of professionnals to learn how to live with powers." I almost ranted, before continuing more sedately

"I also was a little shit, still is if I were to be honest. Which is why that the powers-that-decide can put a kill order on my head that would not stop me doing heroics."

Their reaction was to smile for one and frown for the other. The frowning one looked not convinced, and said as much.

"If there was a kill order on you you would not retaliate on attacks by the PRT and the Protectorate ?"

"Of course that I would retaliate, it's just that it would humiliating rather than dangerous, I think a nice pink would be a nice change from the black of the PRT cars." I said with a smile.

Miss Militia continued to smile and after a moment Renick too smiled, at least a little.

And then we waited. And waited. And waited some more.

Until Renick announced that I was tentatively cleared to start working with the Protectorate, on a probation of a sort until they were sure that I was not a potential villain.

I must confess that I breathed a sigh of relief, before Miss Militia took my hand and shook it, welcoming me in the ranks.

Chapter 951 - death and what comes aftrr