Amelia, Ch 257- Rune
Well, Debs, you wanted a fresh start. I was packed in line with a couple hundred other people. Most of them, I was unhappy to realize, were colored. If I was being generous, one in ten of them could be considered white. Fuck it, that just means there won't be much of the Gesellschaft or their various other offshoots on Avalon. Empire Eighty Eight might be shattered and broken, but there were plenty of others. My power was too distinctive to rebrand myself, so my options were to join another Nazi group, be marked for death by the kinds of psychos who could make it happen even in the colonies, or never use my powers again.
None of those were going to happen. After that bitch Shatterbird gutted me, and I narrowly escaped when Othala was captured. Fuck, I couldn't go back to Hookwolf after that. Victor would have killed me. And by the time I figured out where Purity could be found, Pantheon had taken down Fenrir's Chosen and publically announced they'd do the same to the Pure. Maybe I couldn't have gone for another group, but I wasn't about to risk a third close call. And I couldn't just not use my powers. I went through hell to get them in the first place. They were too much a part of me.
There were at least a couple hundred booths around the entrance to the dimensional gateway, with red lights above them. Every so often, someone would leave a booth and it would turn green. A pair of those M4s stood at the entrance to our line. There were others scattered about, keeping guard in other areas. Including a second, much shorter line where people were going through without visiting a booth. I tried to make sense of who was getting the fast path, but eventually gave up. They each had a plastic card that they held up, and that was the end of the similarities.
Eventually it came my turn. The security robot pointed me toward the nearest, only open, booth. A couple others became vacant after I started my walk. One was closer, but now wasn't the time to try to cut in line. Even discounting the nightmare of trying to fight that lesbo bug girl on her home soil, those supersoldiers could trade a lot of punishment, and the whole area was built of that freaky tree. My power didn't work on living things, so I'd be functionally unarmed. I pulled my overlarge suitcase with me, trying my best to make it look like it wasn't my power doing the work.
I entered my booth, and the wall behind me sealed. More of that damn plant. Has to be automated, no way she's maintaining control over every last piece of this place like that. Right? The thought that she might be able to, the way her girlfriend could with the bugs, made me think twice about this. In front of me was a touch screen with a bunch of panels. Select Language: English was first on the list, at least. Followed by a bunch others written in other languages. I was pretty sure I recognized Spanish and German, not that I knew how to speak either. I tapped the English option.
"Welcome to the Avalon interactive immigration system," a pleasant female voice spoke. I almost thought it was a real interviewer for a second, it was that convincing. "Please be aware that this conversation is being analyzed by tinker tech. Lying at any point during the interview will be detected, and result in rejection of your immigration request. If this is acceptable, please say 'yes'. If it is unacceptable, please say 'no' and you will be allowed to leave the facility of your volition."
They're using tinker lie detectors?. Okay, you can do this. "Yes," I replied.
"Very well," the voice agreed. "Please state your full legal name followed by the name you wish to be addressed as for this interview."
"Deborah Leanna Miller," I answered. "Call me 'Dee'."
"Very well, Dee," the voice responded. "Please fill out the following form by touching the panel and answering the question. If you wish to change an answer or feel the system placed the wrong information, simply press the panel again and state the correct answer." The screen changed, with a list of various details. Age, height, sex, a bunch of stuff in terms of medical history that I could skip, the whole song and dance. Nothing I hadn't filled out at the DMV before.
"Are you certain all information on this form is correct?" the voice asked.
"Yes," I replied.
"Are you immigrating as part of a group, a single family, or alone?"
"Alone," I answered.
"Understood," the voice answered. "Do you have talents you believe will be of particular use to the colonies, including parahuman abilities? You may answer 'no' if you do not wish to use those talents."
I thought about it. Do I want to go in with my powers as leverage? It might result in a better offer than some random placement. Higher paying job, at least. But it made me more visible. The whole point in starting a new life is starting a new life. "No," I replied.
"Are you certain of that answer?" the computer asked.
"I'm certain," I replied. Not really, but this is one of the ones I'm allowed to lie about.
"I understand," the voice answered. "Do you have a criminal record?"
Lucky me, I could answer that one honestly. "No," I replied.
"Do you intend to commit criminal acts after obtaining Avalonian citizenship?"
"No," also true. Did not need bug girl feeding me to cockroaches, or whatever the standard punishment was on their planet. I saw what she was willing to do in a fight, and really didn't want to press my luck.
"Are you currently a member of a government, military, police, criminal, or parahuman organization? If so, please state the nature and name of the organization or organizations. Note that this will not necessarily result in a refusal of citizenship."
"No," I answered.
"Have you ever been a member of a government, military, police, criminal, or parahuman organization? If so, please state the organization or organizations."
Fuck. I glanced back at the door.
"If you wish to terminate your interview, you are free to do so," the voice informed me. "You will be required to complete the interview before being granted recognition as an Avalon citizen. Note that criminal history does not necessarily forbid you from Avalon citizenship."
"Yes," I reluctantly admitted. "Criminal. Empire Eighty Eight, Fenrir's Chosen."
"Names recognized," the voice replied. "Defunct North American neo-Nazi organizations. Commonly employed parahumans. Initializing special interview protocols. Eighty seven percent likely your parahuman identity is known as Rune. Is this correct?"
Well, fuck me. "Yes," I admitted.
"You are wanted in relation to robbery, assault with a parahuman ability, resisting arrest, destruction of property." God damn everything tinker related. "You are recognized as Striker two, Shaker seven. You are disqualified from Avalonian citizenship unless you are granted political asylum. You are qualified to request political asylum. Would you like to apply for political asylum?"
What? "What?"
"You are disqualified from-"
"No, I heard you," I interrupted. Impressively enough, the voice quieted. "What do you mean political asylum?"
"You are recognized as being recruited into a villain organization while under the age of sixteen. You are not known to have committed murder or any sexual crimes. You have honestly stated an intent not to continue criminal activity. As such you may be granted political asylum. Your criminal record will be sealed, and punishment waived so long as you answer a number of special questions and refrain from committing any further crimes. In addition, as a formerly criminal parahuman, your cape identity will be made part of your sealed legal record. If you commit crimes in the future, your identity may be made public and full punishment for all past crimes be enacted according to Avalonian law. Is this understood and acceptable?"
"Depends," I replied. "What happens if I say no?"
"Then you will be asked if you have committed crimes of murder or sexual abuse," the voice continued. "If you have, you will be detained and given to the appropriate officials for prosecution. If not, you will not be granted asylum and shall be released back to your current home nation."
Screw it. "Guess I'll try for the asylum, then. Ask away."
"Have you ever committed or aided in a crime which resulted in the death, mutilation, or deliberate torture of another person? Be aware that members of other races, or Case 53s, are still people."
"No," I answered. I was always sheltered from the worst parts of E88 and Fenrir's Chosen. They kept most of us female capes away from the uglier sides of the business, using us for the more direct combat missions only. I'd seen plenty of death, but only in the battles with the Slaughterhouse Nine or Leviathan. I could safely tell the truth on this one.
"Have you committed or aided in the crimes of rape, pedophilia, forced prostitution, or any form of forced labor or slavery?"
"No," I answered.
"You are recognized as having a power which can greatly improve colonization efforts. Are you willing to use your powers for this purpose? Be aware, you will be paid fairly for your efforts and, in fact, will be allowed to choose from all interested employers."
"If I say no, does that mean I won't be accepted?" I asked.
"Not directly," the computer answered. "However, you will need to find a colony willing to sponsor your asylum and allow you to settle in their region. As criminal history is a valid cause for refusal of citizenship, you will need to convince them to offer you an exemption."
"What kind of pay are we talking?" I asked. Couldn't hurt to find out.
"Highest power identified as shaker rating seven," it started. "Average rate for comparable rankings, two hundred and fifty thousand American dollars a year. Powers recognized as unusually valuable for construction purposes. Likely final offer, three to four hundred thousand per year."
I blinked. Fuck. I might have made that much in all three years I worked for Kaiser. "Well, sounds like you have a deal. What happens now?"
"Geographical location preference waived. Language preference waived. Political affiliation preference waived. Application final, political asylum flag noted. Parahuman rankings noted. Special value traits noted. You shall be noti- initial offer made."
"Already?" I asked. That was less than ten seconds.
"Yes, would you like to speak with the possible sponsor?"
"Uh... sure," I agreed. This is the strangest fucking job interview on the planet.
The screen changed, and a woman's face appeared. "Good afternoon, Rune. Let me introduce myself. I'm Dragon."
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A/N- Given that Rune can move several tons of material per second, she'd be worth her weight in gold for construction purposes.
And Dragon might not be in charge of her own micronation, but she she usually gets what she asks for.
that most of it involves the Schrodinger's Zach theory and the highlander thing...haven't they tried at least waking him up? IF there was a less corny cover of "Who Wants To Live Forever" i would play it because it adds a lot of subtext in the chapter with Emma and Zach.(i'm not going play the song because i'm afraid the moderators would actually ban me for using corny 80's music as a torture device)
