33

Volition 3.10

"I had the things you told us checked out. Thanks to your tip, we've dealt with a number of moles in our branch, and upgraded our security measures. I don't like how much information you keep from us, but I can appreciate help when it's given," said Piggot.

I hadn't been aware of how much progress they made on that front, as I wasn't keeping tabs on Piggot 24/7. The Coil moles I now had access to weren't aware of being exposed, so presumably Piggot had gone with the canonical strategy of feeding them false information, which meant they were no longer reliable for me.

Armsmaster was again to the side of her desk, while Aegis and Vista had been left to do whatever it is they needed to do on their own.

I stood with Araliac and Skitter in front of the director.

"I'm glad to hear that things worked out," I said.

"Consider this a thank you for your assistance," she said. Then she turned towards Araliac. "We are already aware of your identity. The PRT follows the unspoken rules wherever possible, but in your case you are still a minor and your legal guardians are the ones looking for you. We are obligated to assist them in this. Even if we tried to hide it for you, your family would soon identify you based on your power the way you're applying it now. Fortunately for you, due to some technicalities and loopholes with cape laws, once I have determined that your civilian identity is no longer missing, the PRT is not under any obligation to force you to go home."

Araliac gave me a glance before turning to respond to Piggot.

"Are you saying that you're going to help me stay independent?"

"I will not have my forces assist your family, but I will not stop them from trying to take you back either. They believe you were Mastered into running away, and there is little I can do to dissuade them otherwise…" Piggot gave me a pointed look.

"No, she wasn't Mastered. She teamed up with me by her own free will. I have no Master powers," I said.

The plan to drive a wedge between the PRT and Skitter was already largely successful. I had no need to continue provoking and scaring Piggot if she was taking such a surprisingly friendly approach to us. That would just make me look bad instead.

Piggot looked to Armsmaster, who stared at me and nodded slowly. What was up with that? I hadn't said anything that could—

I felt a sudden chill as I noticed Piggot's face turn dark. It had slipped my mind that my partnership with Agate and some things we could theoretically do would fall under the PRT's Master classification. I had thought so much about ways of gaining control over people lately that I kept thinking of myself as not having Master powers because I couldn't directly influence anyone, but forgot the other aspect of the classification that applied to control over projections and creatures, like the Siberian and Nilbog.

Did Armsmaster's algorithm detect a lie? But how could it? I hadn't even realized it myself when I said it. Or were they hoping I was a Master for some reason, and were disappointed when the lie detector showed a truth for my denial?

Piggot spoke up again, breaking me out of my speeding thoughts.

"Polychromic. Most Thinkers have a tendency to try and be the smartest person in the room. Some say it's the very reason they triggered with Thinker powers. And I'll admit, some Thinker powers can be very impressive, but high level Thinkers often overestimate themselves. They lose track of common sense. Being smarter doesn't mean wiser, and Thinkers often forget that," she said.

I was silent for a moment, trying to see where she was going with this.

"I won't say that you're acting unwisely. You would see it as an insult, and I'm hardly in a position to be condescending. You've told us about things that I don't have a good solution to either. But you told us these things and withheld other information for your own reasons, and I don't buy that it's just because you're afraid of this mysteriously Thinker more powerful than you finding out. I can only guess at your motivations, and your team motto is deeply concerning. For now, it seems that we're on the same side. The enemy of my enemy is my friend, as they say. However, if you take things too far, I'll have no choice but to react accordingly."

"What's wrong with our team motto? We're not threatening to kill anybody, just reminding people that life is precious," said Skitter.

"That you feel the need to explain yourself suggests otherwise," said Piggot. "Villains will see it as a threat regardless of how you spin it. If they think you're prepared to kill, they may up the ante on their own."

"I appreciate your concerns, Director. I don't agree, but I understand why you feel that way. Sometimes it takes a bit of unconventional thinking to break out of an impasse, which is what we have been in for the past couple of decades as villainy became the norm. I doubt we'll convince each other on this, but as you say the enemy of my enemy is my friend, so let's just leave it at that. Time will tell if our strategy is wise or not," I said.

After a polite dismissal, we left the meeting and on our way out we saw a group of reporters and a large crowd of people still outside the entrance to the building. I pulled Araliac aside and whispered.

"Piggot has already made her stance clear. I think it's a good idea to use this opportunity to announce it on your own terms, rather than letting New Wave announce their version of the story first."

"Huh? But…I haven't been to the hospital for days. I don't really want to go either. What if the public doesn't like that?"

"It's okay. I've got your back. This is what you should say…"

O O O

Back at Piggot's office, Agate stayed behind for a short while.

"I knew it was too good to be true. So he's a Master after all?" Piggot said with frustration.

"Not…exactly," said Armsmaster.

"What? But you nodded. That was the signal we agreed on."

"It's strange. I got a lie for Panacea was not Mastered, and a truth for her joining of her own free will, as well as Polychromic not having Master powers. This indicates that Polychromic believes Panacea was Mastered by somebody else at some point. If she went to Polychromic of her own free will, then this would suggest that either she escaped a previous Master effect somehow, possibly with Polychromic's assistance, or that Polychromic used another cape to Master Panacea after she joined him to guarantee her loyalty."

"Both are plausible, although…" Piggot trailed off pensively.

"If Panacea had been Mastered and then saved by Polychromic, it would explain why she would suddenly team up with him, and her sudden change in attitude. That kind of trauma could easily make someone more willing to fight instead of simply being a healer. But it raises the question of why Polychromic didn't warn us about this other Master. Even if the Master was already defeated, Polychromic should have known that explaining things to us would make us less suspicious of him having Mastered Panacea himself," said Armsmaster.

"I think there's a simpler explanation. In your scenario, why would Panacea run away from home, and refuse to go back? Even if Polychromic saved her, mere gratitude wouldn't make a teenager decide to fight her own family to escape and join her savior."

"Are you implying that her own family had her Mastered? I'm not sure that's a simpler explanation. Why would her family get someone to Master her?"

Piggot gave Armsmaster a slight smirk. "Oh but it is. You're neglecting a little detail. There is a Master among the Dallons."

Armsmaster had no visible response for a few seconds. "Oh," he said, finally. "Glory Girl."

"Exactly. Her aura is officially classified as Shaker, but only because we try not to assign human-influencing heroes Master ratings. If she was the culprit, then everything fits. Polychromic never mentioned it because he, or Panacea, is trying to protect Glory Girl's reputation."

O O O

After making adequate preparation, we stepped out of the building amid a swathe of camera flashes.

I raised my voice and shouted. "People of Brockton Bay! We have officially registered as this city's new independent hero team! We look forward to working with the PRT and Protectorate to fight crime! But first, Araliac has an announcement to make."

I gestured towards her with my arm and stepped back to let her take the front.

The reporters hustled, all trying to fight their way to the centre.

Araliac's armored helmet split and retracted on its own to reveal her face.

"Before I joined Team CRUCIBLE, my cape name was Panacea," she said.

The crowd immediately went wild with shouts and whispers and questions.

I raised a hand and shouted with invisible amplification from Agate, stunning the crowd into silence. "Let her speak!"

"People knew me as the miracle healer. The girl who could cure cancer and regrow lost limbs. But healing isn't the only thing I can do. I can do a lot more than that. I want to do more than that. In New Wave, I—I was never allowed to do more than heal. I've healed…thousands of people over the past two years, but I think…that I can make an even bigger impact. There is a saying. An ounce of prevention is better than a pound of cure. As Panacea, I've always been curing. But now, with Team CRUCIBLE, as Araliac, I can be part of the prevention! I will fight with my new team to root out the crimes that are the source of injury, starvation, disease and drug abuse! Please continue to support me."

After that, the reporters started asking questions, but we simply flew into the air and away. We had to get out of there before New Wave found out and confronted us.

O O O