endbringer, meet gun

[peterxy]

...Very unseasonable rains can be seen in the distance from the shores of Acapulco.

The Brockton Bay Protectorate starts organizing volunteers to be transported or teletransported in batches to it. Heroes, rogues, villains, anyone's assistance is appreciated. A rendez-vous point is set for non-Protectorate capes wishing to volunteer, and Protectorate capes are informed of the situation via communication devices.

Comments

[thinkering]

"Sort of," says a bot.

"I can hear you," Lorica mutters.

"She'll come to the end of the code block in a minute and be right with you."

The minute elapses and Lorica looks up. "Hey. Did the bot help you?"

[mxglam]

"Hi, yes it did, and I know you could hear me but I didn't want to distract you if I was right."

[thinkering]

"Thanks. Got an email from Piggot about maybe having there be two of you? You can do that? They'll need separate powersets."

[mxglam]

"Oh, yeah, was gonna mention that, it was an idea I had. I don't know if I actually can but I mean, possibly? I can do arguably alive things in principle, just haven't been able to yet." Pause. "Well I mean I can do plants," they say, holding a potted cactus.

[thinkering]

"Do a flytrap."

[mxglam]

Done.

[thinkering]

Lorica finds a bit of popcorn, puts some in the flytrap.

[mxglam]

It behaves exactly as a flytrap would, because it is a flytrap. "Is this actually testing something or are you just having fun with plants?"

[thinkering]

"I'm checking to make sure it has living-thing behaviors. If it does there's no obvious reason you should be limited to inanimate objects, and it just closed its mouth. Plants are more like animals than like guns."

[mxglam]

"Yes, that is true. But like I said, when I triggered I made an actual person rescue me, so it shouldn't be in principle impossible. The difference really is in how much I can twist my own brain to expect something to exist."

[thinkering]

"Hmm. ...Make a fig."

[mxglam]

Flytrap: is replaced by fig.

Popcorn: falls down.

[thinkering]

"Fun gross fact, figs are in a symbiotic relationship with wasps. Can't ripen without wasp larvae. Enjoy your next fig newton. Let's see what's inside the fruit."

[mxglam]

"Um. Ew?"

The fig is now divided in two. It contains larvae.

"Ew," they repeat.

[thinkering]

"But hey, you got animals!"

[mxglam]

The larvae... act all larvae-like.

"I suppose I did," they say. "Hmm. I really don't want to make actual wasps because they are devil monsters though."

[thinkering]

"I mean, presumably you could control them. This could be a valid second powerset, the you with continuity with your vigilante persona can do the shaker-blaster-sorta-tinkery thing and the second you could do conjured plants and animals and go down publicly as a Master. If you can get them to behave. And appear simultaneously with yourself."

[mxglam]

"Hmm, I don't know if the other me could actually use my powers. I mean, if they could I could probably just up and take over the world and not need to worry about the Protectorate. I'd probably need to be around, so me and myself could never go out simultaneously but not on the same team."

[thinkering]

"They probably only want you to show up both at once for fundraisers and stuff, but that's not what I meant, what I mean is for you to get any good out of crafting an alternate powerset at all you need to be able to do a doppelganger."

[mxglam]

"Oh, yeah. Also, now that I'm thinking, behavior-wise it's probably easier to do an alternate me than a lot of things, since... well, I know what to expect myself to do."

[thinkering]

"Let's see it, then."

[mxglam]

"Alright." Close eyes.








...nothing happens.

[thinkering]

Well, as long as their eyes are closed -

"Hi, Extra Glam."

[mxglam]

Glam opens their eyes immediately in surprise.

And an extra Glam did appear there, if only for a flash, except it was after Lorica said the thing, not before.

"It worked?" Pause. "The fact that I'm this surprised means I wasn't doing it right."

[thinkering]

"It worked after I prompted you. Bot, lemme see a picture."

The bots throw up a capture of the brief appearance of an Extra Glam.