2.5
rocketmce
Sentient horror game
- Joined
- Oct 24, 2019
- Messages
- 80
- Likes received
- 6,217
Taylor sat in the interrogation room, humming quietly to herself. There was a single table in the middle of the room, with chairs on either side and a lamp hanging from the ceiling. Classic interrogation room. She was willing to bet there was a one-way mirror somewhere too. She was hoping the Protectorate wouldn't take too long to the interview, as she did want to be home in time for dinner. That and she wanted to call her dad. Her dad would probably be worried about her.
She was brought out of her musings when the door to the room opened, and in stepped none other than Miss Militia, one of the only heroic capes in the protectorate that was allowed to use guns.
"I wonder if she can conjure up a cannon…" Alucard mused.
"Miss Militia, huh? I figured Armsmaster would want to conduct the interview." Taylor commented, ignoring Alucard.
The older woman nodded and sat in the chair across from Taylor, "Initially, he did, but he decided it would be better if I was the one to interview you instead. I have a particular insight into parahumans who's powers, in your own words, don't have a non-lethal option." she explained.
"It's because you can summon guns, right? You don't really have a choice either."
Miss Militia nodded, "To an extent, yes. I have managed to find a work-around, but I will admit that lethal options are much easier to come up with and use."
Taylor nodded, "Alright, fair enough. So, what do want to know?" she asked.
"Firstly, what's your name? The upper echelons of the PRT gave you the designation 'Rend' but I very much doubt it's what you had in mind."
"She's got that right. Seriously, who picks these names!?"
"Well… I've pretty much decided on Carmilla, one of the older Vampires in fiction. Since, well, my powers kinda fit the whole vampire shtick." Taylor explained.
Miss Militia tilted her head, "And I believe that's a perfect segue into my next question. What exactly are your powers? We have a guess that your a brute, and a striker and Master on top of that, but we don't have much else."
"Ah, yeah, that's uh… that's a bit complicated. I'm… kind of a little bit of everything. I guess you would probably have to classify me as a changer first and foremost, since I can increase and change my muscle mass, regenerate, and if I can ever figure out how to do it, I can even full-on shapeshift. I'm not strictly speaking a striker, given that my… well, I can turn people into those zombie things that you've been dealing with by biting them and draining them of blood. I… can't really control them, but-"
"Actually Tay-Tay, you can. You just need to know where they are. They're kinda stupid, but yes, you can sick 'em on someone."
"Ok, scratch that, I can control them, but only somewhat. And I need to know where they are, and presumably, I need line of sight."
Miss Militia raised an eyebrow, "Presumably?" she asked.
Taylor shrugged, "Like, up until I read the post on PHO detailing the aftermath of my… walk, I didn't even realize draining people of blood actually did that."
Miss Militia hummed, "Beyond that, I need to ask what exactly happened when you fought with the Empire Eighty-Eight. All we found was a… rather gruesome scene, with several of the corpses getting up and walking again, trying to assault the troopers and medics."
Taylor winced, "Yeah, that was… an accident. There was a shootout going on at the time, between the police and the Empire. I tried to disable the gang members, but, well…" she trailed off, muttering something under her breath.
Miss Militia leaned her elbows on the table, clasping her hands together, "What happened?"
"... I punched a guy's jaw off."
Miss Militia winced internally, "We found the body, though, compared to what else happened though, that seems like one of the tamer things you did."
Taylor shook her head, "Yeah, but… at that point, I hadn't done anything like that before, and I froze. I was still me when I did that. After that, the rest of them tried to kill me, beating me down with bats, pipes, and… well, at the time I knew I had regeneration, but I didn't know if it would be enough to keep me alive. I thought… I thought I might have died there. I know now that it wasn't anything close to being able to kill me, but… it was still terrifying. After that, well, I saw red, and I don't really remember all that much."
"Blood Rage is a thing. A wonderful, beautiful thing."
Miss Militia nodded, "Manslaughter in Self defense, then. Well, that at least makes clearing your name a fair bit easier. What about what happened with the Merchants? We're still working on digging up the wreckage from Squealer's vehicle, and we have yet to recover either her or Skidmark's bodies. I'm not sure if you're aware, but killing capes, aside from those with kill orders, is generally frowned upon, even in self-defense."
Taylor chuckled a bit, her cheeks going red as she scratched the back of her head, "Yeah, that was… a bit of an accident, actually. I was out shopping at the thrift store when Skidmark tried to rob the place. I tried to get them to surrender, but… well, one of them shot me, Skidmark and Squealer drove off, and I ended up chasing after them. I managed to climb onto the vehicle and ended up fighting the two of them inside the cabin. I didn't even realize we were headed towards the docks until we were already driving off of it."
"And Squealers arm?" Miss Militia asked.
"That, ah, that was due to her arm being in my mouth before the thing exploded."
The protectorate cape took a deep breath, before sighing, "Alright, I think that's enough for those topics. I believe we should talk about your future, and, potentially, if you were willing to go through a rebrand -- you could keep the name Carmilla, as long as it hasn't already been taken -- you could join the Wards."
Taylor squirmed somewhat in her seat, "I… don't really think that would be a great idea."
Miss Militia raised an eyebrow, "Why not? We could provide you with recourses, training, support, and a myriad of other things. Including a proper costume."
"What's this about a costume? Sorry, I wasn't exactly listening."
"It's… well, there's a couple of problems with me joining. I don't eat, at least, not as normal people do. I drink blood instead. I'm not sure how long I can go without, as I've only had my powers for less than a week, but… I don't really know what happens if I stop. I could get weaker, I could starve, or I could go into a blood rage as I did with the Empire." Taylor explained.
"That, and PR is a bitch to deal with. Seriously, one guy we had tried to get Integra to tell me to wear pink. Pink!"
"Pink?" Taylor said aloud, causing Miss Militia's eyes to zero in on her.
"Pink?" The older hero asked.
Taylor cursed under her breath, "Not the time, Alucard." She said, before sighing and turning back to Miss Militia, "That's the other thing. I… kinda, talk to my power."
"You… talk, to your power. How so?"
Taylor nodded, "Yeah. There's a voice in my head. A chatty one, too, always providing commentary and advice. Sometimes it's helpful, other times…"
"Hey, I'll have you know I give great advice!... This place could really use a stripper pole."
"... not so helpful."
Miss Militia stared at Taylor for a good ten seconds before sighing, "Armsmaster theorized that you might be having auditory hallucinations. I suppose your power is responsible for that?"
Taylor winced, "Ish, yeah. He usually tries to get a response out of me, or makes comments about people around me."
"'He'?"
"Yeah, he. Sounds like a he, talks like a he, and thinks like a he."
Miss Militia raised an eyebrow, "Thinks?"
Taylor rolled her eyes, "Usually uses the head between his legs for thinking."
"Aww, I'll take that as a compliment."
Taylor frowned, "He is also fairly insufferable."
Miss Militia winced, "I'm sorry you have to go through that."
"Eh, it's not all that bad. He only ever thinks like that about people around me, not about me personally… probably because I threatened to jump off a cliff if he kept commenting on my lack of breasts."
"You threatened him by almost committing suicide?" she asked, a niggling worry crawling into the back of her head.
"I threatened to take away his entertainment is what I did." Taylor corrected.
"And I will admit, making comments like that about a minor is beneath me. I should've done better."
Taylor twisted her head to the side, "You're apologizing now of all times?"
Miss Militia sighed. Taylor was not the first unhinged cape she'd ever delt with, nor did she feel would be the last, but with her arguing with the voice in her head, getting anything done would be… problematic.
After getting Alucard to shut up for a second, Taylor turned back to Miss Militia, "Ok, well, what else did you want to know?" she asked.
"I believe that's most of the questions answered, but, I still want to ask you again if your sure you don't want to join the wards," she asked.
Taylor shrugged, "The free costume is very tempting, and… honestly if you give me a few days to think about it, I might even say yes. But, for now? I don't really want to join. That might change, but, well, like I said. You have a lot of restrictions, and while I will be working with you, I'd much rather sign up as an independent."
Miss Militia sighed, "Well, I suppose that's fair. Still, I do have a proposition for you. Director Piggot has okayed it, given that you seem sane enough, by cape standards at least. I would like to suggest you at least meet with the rest of the Wards, perhaps get to know them a bit. It might just change your mind."
"Meet with the local superpowered kiddies? What fun!"
Tayor considered the proposition, thinking of the pros and cons of doing it. Really, there weren't that many cons.
"Alright, I'm game for that."
She was brought out of her musings when the door to the room opened, and in stepped none other than Miss Militia, one of the only heroic capes in the protectorate that was allowed to use guns.
"I wonder if she can conjure up a cannon…" Alucard mused.
"Miss Militia, huh? I figured Armsmaster would want to conduct the interview." Taylor commented, ignoring Alucard.
The older woman nodded and sat in the chair across from Taylor, "Initially, he did, but he decided it would be better if I was the one to interview you instead. I have a particular insight into parahumans who's powers, in your own words, don't have a non-lethal option." she explained.
"It's because you can summon guns, right? You don't really have a choice either."
Miss Militia nodded, "To an extent, yes. I have managed to find a work-around, but I will admit that lethal options are much easier to come up with and use."
Taylor nodded, "Alright, fair enough. So, what do want to know?" she asked.
"Firstly, what's your name? The upper echelons of the PRT gave you the designation 'Rend' but I very much doubt it's what you had in mind."
"She's got that right. Seriously, who picks these names!?"
"Well… I've pretty much decided on Carmilla, one of the older Vampires in fiction. Since, well, my powers kinda fit the whole vampire shtick." Taylor explained.
Miss Militia tilted her head, "And I believe that's a perfect segue into my next question. What exactly are your powers? We have a guess that your a brute, and a striker and Master on top of that, but we don't have much else."
"Ah, yeah, that's uh… that's a bit complicated. I'm… kind of a little bit of everything. I guess you would probably have to classify me as a changer first and foremost, since I can increase and change my muscle mass, regenerate, and if I can ever figure out how to do it, I can even full-on shapeshift. I'm not strictly speaking a striker, given that my… well, I can turn people into those zombie things that you've been dealing with by biting them and draining them of blood. I… can't really control them, but-"
"Actually Tay-Tay, you can. You just need to know where they are. They're kinda stupid, but yes, you can sick 'em on someone."
"Ok, scratch that, I can control them, but only somewhat. And I need to know where they are, and presumably, I need line of sight."
Miss Militia raised an eyebrow, "Presumably?" she asked.
Taylor shrugged, "Like, up until I read the post on PHO detailing the aftermath of my… walk, I didn't even realize draining people of blood actually did that."
Miss Militia hummed, "Beyond that, I need to ask what exactly happened when you fought with the Empire Eighty-Eight. All we found was a… rather gruesome scene, with several of the corpses getting up and walking again, trying to assault the troopers and medics."
Taylor winced, "Yeah, that was… an accident. There was a shootout going on at the time, between the police and the Empire. I tried to disable the gang members, but, well…" she trailed off, muttering something under her breath.
Miss Militia leaned her elbows on the table, clasping her hands together, "What happened?"
"... I punched a guy's jaw off."
Miss Militia winced internally, "We found the body, though, compared to what else happened though, that seems like one of the tamer things you did."
Taylor shook her head, "Yeah, but… at that point, I hadn't done anything like that before, and I froze. I was still me when I did that. After that, the rest of them tried to kill me, beating me down with bats, pipes, and… well, at the time I knew I had regeneration, but I didn't know if it would be enough to keep me alive. I thought… I thought I might have died there. I know now that it wasn't anything close to being able to kill me, but… it was still terrifying. After that, well, I saw red, and I don't really remember all that much."
"Blood Rage is a thing. A wonderful, beautiful thing."
Miss Militia nodded, "Manslaughter in Self defense, then. Well, that at least makes clearing your name a fair bit easier. What about what happened with the Merchants? We're still working on digging up the wreckage from Squealer's vehicle, and we have yet to recover either her or Skidmark's bodies. I'm not sure if you're aware, but killing capes, aside from those with kill orders, is generally frowned upon, even in self-defense."
Taylor chuckled a bit, her cheeks going red as she scratched the back of her head, "Yeah, that was… a bit of an accident, actually. I was out shopping at the thrift store when Skidmark tried to rob the place. I tried to get them to surrender, but… well, one of them shot me, Skidmark and Squealer drove off, and I ended up chasing after them. I managed to climb onto the vehicle and ended up fighting the two of them inside the cabin. I didn't even realize we were headed towards the docks until we were already driving off of it."
"And Squealers arm?" Miss Militia asked.
"That, ah, that was due to her arm being in my mouth before the thing exploded."
The protectorate cape took a deep breath, before sighing, "Alright, I think that's enough for those topics. I believe we should talk about your future, and, potentially, if you were willing to go through a rebrand -- you could keep the name Carmilla, as long as it hasn't already been taken -- you could join the Wards."
Taylor squirmed somewhat in her seat, "I… don't really think that would be a great idea."
Miss Militia raised an eyebrow, "Why not? We could provide you with recourses, training, support, and a myriad of other things. Including a proper costume."
"What's this about a costume? Sorry, I wasn't exactly listening."
"It's… well, there's a couple of problems with me joining. I don't eat, at least, not as normal people do. I drink blood instead. I'm not sure how long I can go without, as I've only had my powers for less than a week, but… I don't really know what happens if I stop. I could get weaker, I could starve, or I could go into a blood rage as I did with the Empire." Taylor explained.
"That, and PR is a bitch to deal with. Seriously, one guy we had tried to get Integra to tell me to wear pink. Pink!"
"Pink?" Taylor said aloud, causing Miss Militia's eyes to zero in on her.
"Pink?" The older hero asked.
Taylor cursed under her breath, "Not the time, Alucard." She said, before sighing and turning back to Miss Militia, "That's the other thing. I… kinda, talk to my power."
"You… talk, to your power. How so?"
Taylor nodded, "Yeah. There's a voice in my head. A chatty one, too, always providing commentary and advice. Sometimes it's helpful, other times…"
"Hey, I'll have you know I give great advice!... This place could really use a stripper pole."
"... not so helpful."
Miss Militia stared at Taylor for a good ten seconds before sighing, "Armsmaster theorized that you might be having auditory hallucinations. I suppose your power is responsible for that?"
Taylor winced, "Ish, yeah. He usually tries to get a response out of me, or makes comments about people around me."
"'He'?"
"Yeah, he. Sounds like a he, talks like a he, and thinks like a he."
Miss Militia raised an eyebrow, "Thinks?"
Taylor rolled her eyes, "Usually uses the head between his legs for thinking."
"Aww, I'll take that as a compliment."
Taylor frowned, "He is also fairly insufferable."
Miss Militia winced, "I'm sorry you have to go through that."
"Eh, it's not all that bad. He only ever thinks like that about people around me, not about me personally… probably because I threatened to jump off a cliff if he kept commenting on my lack of breasts."
"You threatened him by almost committing suicide?" she asked, a niggling worry crawling into the back of her head.
"I threatened to take away his entertainment is what I did." Taylor corrected.
"And I will admit, making comments like that about a minor is beneath me. I should've done better."
Taylor twisted her head to the side, "You're apologizing now of all times?"
Miss Militia sighed. Taylor was not the first unhinged cape she'd ever delt with, nor did she feel would be the last, but with her arguing with the voice in her head, getting anything done would be… problematic.
After getting Alucard to shut up for a second, Taylor turned back to Miss Militia, "Ok, well, what else did you want to know?" she asked.
"I believe that's most of the questions answered, but, I still want to ask you again if your sure you don't want to join the wards," she asked.
Taylor shrugged, "The free costume is very tempting, and… honestly if you give me a few days to think about it, I might even say yes. But, for now? I don't really want to join. That might change, but, well, like I said. You have a lot of restrictions, and while I will be working with you, I'd much rather sign up as an independent."
Miss Militia sighed, "Well, I suppose that's fair. Still, I do have a proposition for you. Director Piggot has okayed it, given that you seem sane enough, by cape standards at least. I would like to suggest you at least meet with the rest of the Wards, perhaps get to know them a bit. It might just change your mind."
"Meet with the local superpowered kiddies? What fun!"
Tayor considered the proposition, thinking of the pros and cons of doing it. Really, there weren't that many cons.
"Alright, I'm game for that."
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