Just a Phase [Worm]

The Unicorn · Aug 11, 2023

KingCrimson1081 said:
So then Piggot should have contacted the PRT equivalent department regarding Sophia and Emma's actions so as to properly run an investigation into them without bias.

No argument, but what they should do, and what they can get away with doing are two very different things.

Mr Zoat said:
In Britain, we have an independent body to do that for that exact reason.

There are arguments for and against but I'm not interested in talking about them, the point is organizations often handle their own internal investigations.

Mr.unlucky · Aug 11, 2023

KingCrimson1081 said:
Still being third or fourth priority would be a step up from how the PRT are doing things at priority level coverup. Besides as you said Taylor had already collected plenty of evidence herself so their could only be one or two cops assigned to the case and they would still accomplish more than what the PRT have done.

didn't all she had was a written record of what they did to her for two years? hospital record won't prove who did what but what happened to her.

KingCrimson1081 · Aug 11, 2023

Mr.unlucky said:
didn't all she had was a written record of what they did to her for two years? hospital record won't prove who did what but what happened to her.

A written record that included printed copies of hate emails to the point she had to change her school email a few times. Still she did go into detail about what they did to her and it would still be counted as evidence when she tells them who attacked her.

SlickRCBD · Aug 12, 2023

The Unicorn said:
And Taylor would stand up to leave, which would have them immediately change their tune.
We are not talking about a kid facing a biased school without any support, Taylor has significant power here and your trauma is all based on a time you had no power and does not apply to the scenario you are trying to force it into.

IIRC wasn't this after Danny had already signed her up against her will and they were discussing shipping her off to Boston whether she wanted to or not?
So she couldn't just leave any more than in chapter one of this story.

Mr.unlucky said:
didn't all she had was a written record of what they did to her for two years? hospital record won't prove who did what but what happened to her.

Which was probably already turned over to the PRT in the vein hopes they would prosecute.
So she has to get the cops to subpoena it from the PRT.

Mr Zoat said:
In Britain, we have an independent body to do that for that exact reason.

There is something similar in the Federal government.
The Office of the Inspector General (OIG). Each Department of the Executive Branch has an OIG for such investigations, and some agencies have their own OIG.
Presumably the PRT would fall under the umbrella of the Department of Justice (DoJ), so it would be the DOJ-OIG.
This is in addition to any internal affairs they might have, and many offices/bureaus do have an internal affairs.

RogueInquisitor · Aug 12, 2023

Changing topics, because the current line of discussion doesn't seem productive, what might Taylor do once she finds out the investogation has concluded with no charges or serious consequences for any of the Trio? I had a crazy thought she'll start withdrawing from everything that puts her in proximity to the other Wards as she no longer feels safe. She considers every other Ward a potential lethal threat to herself, and the PRT has clearly demonstrated that they don't consider attempted murder by a Ward worth doing anything about. Tours? "I no longer feel safe in this environment, and refuse to work." School? "I must withdraw, as I feel my life and safety are at risk, and the school is unable to correct this situation." Maybe put some pressure on the YG rep to arrange off-base housing for her. Sure, the odds her getting anything other than out of the tours are basically nil, and even ducking tour duty is a long shot, but it is more bureaucratic hassle she can create, and more ammunition for her allies in fhe YG.

The Unicorn · Aug 12, 2023

Mr.unlucky said:
didn't all she had was a written record of what they did to her for two years?

No, she also had a whole bunch of e-mails, also IIRC the school needed to assign her a new e-mail multiple times because of the hatemail that filled up her old acount.

However even just the written account is more than enough to get cops looking into what exactly Emma and Sophia are doing after the locker incident.

While without the locker getting cops to actually spend significant time looking into Taylor's account of multiple assaults and at least one robbery would be difficult(although not impossible if an adult was asking), the locker would make them actually take it seriously and look into things.

Once the cops start actually looking? Well if you believe dozens of kids who saw the bullying and don't actually like Emma and Sophia would risk jail time to protect the bullies then I don't know what world you live in, but it's not anything like the one I live in.

SlickRCBD said:
IIRC wasn't this after Danny had already signed her up against her will and they were discussing shipping her off to Boston whether she wanted to or not?

I thought that was an omake where she actually got to have a say before they signed.
If it's after they signed? She still has considerable power, even if she decides to work within the law, although admittedly a lot less.

Ashley9469 · Aug 12, 2023

Nope. The Omake involved the conversation regarding her being transfered to Boston. The timeline goes, Taylor Triggers in Locker and phases through, Emma calls the ambulance, the Wards get pitched, and Taylor signs, then she is introduced, runs out when she sees Emma there, and they transfer her to Boston.

SlickRCBD · Aug 12, 2023

Ashley9469 said:
Nope. The Omake involved the conversation regarding her being transfered to Boston. The timeline goes, Taylor Triggers in Locker and phases through, Emma calls the ambulance, the Wards get pitched, and Taylor signs, then she is introduced, runs out when she sees Emma there, and they transfer her to Boston.

So she's already signed her life away, like joining the military. Gotcha.

The Unicorn · Aug 12, 2023

SlickRCBD said:
So she's already signed her life away, like joining the military. Gotcha.

Nope, not like joining the military. More like signing a modeling or record deal.
The thing is, as we see in the story, the PRT needs all Wards to be actively cooperating and while they (presumably) have means of punishing Wards that are doing things they aren't supposed to, they don't have any means of punishing Wards who aren't anxious to become superheroes.

RogueInquisitor · Aug 12, 2023

The Unicorn said:
Nope, not like joining the military. More like signing a modeling or record deal.
The thing is, as we see in the story, the PRT needs all Wards to be actively cooperating and while they (presumably) have means of punishing Wards that are doing things they aren't supposed to, they don't have any means of punishing Wards who aren't anxious to become superheroes.

They do have a lot more means of punishing uncooperative Wards once they have completed power testing. Their problem is that power testing cannot be compelled, and Taylor is steadfastly refusing to do any power testing. The saddest thing is that I can easily see the lesson the PRT learns from this is to push power testing before introducing a new Ward to the rest of the team.

Necrovore · Aug 12, 2023

Do remember during this circle jerk of doom and gloom that Brockton Bay is not an example of the way the Wards are handled in the rest of the country and that the primary purpose is to give young parahumans a safe place to explore their powers and learn how to use them while also giving them a method to go out and be a hero with out the risks associated with being an independent with no backup. They don't need them all to be active heroes simply keeping them from becoming villains is a win. Any push to be more active is done with the knowledge that parahumans feel the urge to use their powers and can't really just go about life ignoring them. If the power needs to be expressed, better it be done in a safe controlled matter.

BF110C4 · Aug 13, 2023

Necrovore said:
Do remember during this circle jerk of doom and gloom that Brockton Bay is not an example of the way the Wards are handled in the rest of the country and that the primary purpose is to give young parahumans a safe place to explore their powers and learn how to use them while also giving them a method to go out and be a hero with out the risks associated with being an independent with no backup. They don't need them all to be active heroes simply keeping them from becoming villains is a win. Any push to be more active is done with the knowledge that parahumans feel the urge to use their powers and can't really just go about life ignoring them. If the power needs to be expressed, better it be done in a safe controlled matter.

That said, in specific cases such as confrontational Breaker/Stranger combos who are inmune to all targeted Thinker powers, cannot be stopped by conventional barriers including people trying to physically restrain her, and where there's also a strong suspicion of her having a Thinker power of her own that makes impossible to surprise they would push her towards integration or restrain.

A 'with us or against us' mentality if you will, which to be fair Taylor got in an even greater measure and is very vocal about it. One that the Think Tank is actively encouraging out of either curiosity or fear.

No matter the department, no matter the crime statistics in the area, someone with Taylor's powers would have always been actively and aggressively recruited on very tight restrictions until they were absolutely certain she wasn't going to become a villain, and maybe not even then.

The Unicorn · Aug 13, 2023

RogueInquisitor said:
They do have a lot more means of punishing uncooperative Wards once they have completed power testing.

Do they? Most methods of punishing a Ward they have rely on the assumption that the Ward wants to be part of the program.
They can't assign them boring/annoying tasks because nothing they'll assign would get done. They can't have them out in public because that risks the Ward revealing stuff they want kept secret, they can't take the Ward's money because the Ward isn't earning any they can affect.

Even grounding or similar punishments get problematic with the rules about hobbies we see taylor exploiting.

Necrovore said:
Do remember during this circle jerk of doom and gloom that Brockton Bay is not an example of the way the Wards are handled in the rest of the country and that the primary purpose is to give young parahumans a safe place to explore their powers and learn how to use them while also giving them a method to go out and be a hero with out the risks associated with being an independent with no backup.

Do remember we're talking about how Wards are handled in Boston in an AU, not canon.

Necrovore · Aug 13, 2023

The Unicorn said:
Do remember we're talking about how Wards are handled in Boston in an AU, not canon.

Yep, and there is no sign of the doom and gloom being talked about here. Reread the Interlude, it is a Protectorate member looking for ways to bring Phase to heel, not the PRT at this point. There is one mention of pressure from up top and no indication it is anything other then the pro-forma messages that would occur from wondering when the PR side of things can finally start marketing a new Ward. Boston director knows they don't have a leg to stand on at the moment and is giving her space.

The biggest indication that the PRT isn't as nefarious as everyone seems to be eager to believe? They don't know what to do. Now this may simply be an oversight by the author, but if the PRT was in the habit of abusing loopholes to force Wards in line and all the other various things they have been accused of these past...10? pages, they would already know the loopholes. They would be intentionally written in or at least well documented as a damn handbook or well known SOP for them to use to bring trouble cases in line. There would be no digging through the ruling to figure things out, it would be calling in legal and having them come in with an already existing list of options to run through and the only grunt work required being sorting through the options to see which one applies. The fact that they don't have that is a very good indicator that such behavior is not the way things are done.

What has been shown so far is not a case of an Evil organization looking to force everyone in line, and instead a lower level grunt who cannot conceive of why someone would oppose this great system.

The Unicorn · Aug 14, 2023

Necrovore said:
What has been shown so far is not a case of an Evil organization looking to force everyone in line, and instead a lower level grunt who cannot conceive of why someone would oppose this great system.

Yup, agreed. In this story, it seems very much like the PRT is stuck with Taylor just as much as she's stuck with them, and both would be very happy if there was a way to separate.

Nikas_Zekeval · Aug 14, 2023

The Unicorn said:
Yup, agreed. In this story, it seems very much like the PRT is stuck with Taylor just as much as she's stuck with them, and both would be very happy if there was a way to separate.

If they were? They'd would get Taylor off base housing, maybe with her nominal handler, Miss Not Appearing Yet in this Fic.

They wouldn't be pushing for Wards Lounge appearances. They wouldn't be trying to shove her in with the Wards from the word go. Armstrong certainly would not have done some non-consensual power testing by asking Watchdog to Think her way. And having given them a taste, he can't feed that bear without Taylor's active cooperation.

The Boston PRT is working on alot of "Assumptive close". It's a sales technique where salesman frames the conversation as if the customer had already decided to buy. Not saying "would you like to buy" but "When would you like to take delivery" for example.

However this glosses over Taylor's very real issues and criminal complaints against the Brockton PRT and getting an assumptive close push from Boston just places them as part of the coverup.

Armstrong talking to a lawyer to find loopholes in Taylor's "No Power Testing, No Ward" block? Shows he was not thinking in her interest, but his. He should have been talking to psychologists and hostage negotiators to lower the pressure and temperature, not turn it up with legal shenanigans. And again shows how Boston's assumptive close push is not just making Taylor less willing to join? But hurting them as well. Because even without Taylor's brutal honesty to her first question? How long can she be just a face in the Wards Lounge before people start asking when they are going to see her on the job? I'm waiting for her to show up with a strike sign.

And it is more that driving Taylor further from being a Ward, having a conscript being forced on the team is already doing nasty stuff to the team cohesion of the Wards that want to be there.

But the adults can't get through their heads that Taylor doesn't want to join the Wards to be a hero, because to her the Wards are not heroes. To misquote Westley, "No good, I've known too many Wards." And the PRT and Protectorate in Boston pushing against her on this is tarnishing any hero cred they had with her too.

The Unicorn · Aug 14, 2023

Nikas_Zekeval said:
If they were? They'd would get Taylor off base housing, maybe with her nominal handler, Miss Not Appearing Yet in this Fic.

They can't do that. They may not want the headache of dealing with a teenager who doesn't want to be there, but that doesn't mean they can ignore their responsibilities, or the requirements of the Wards program.

They wouldn't be pushing for Wards Lounge appearances.

THey aren't. Some specific idiots did that and got their boss on their case for being idiots.

Nikas_Zekeval · Aug 15, 2023

The Unicorn said:
They can't do that. They may not want the headache of dealing with a teenager who doesn't want to be there, but that doesn't mean they can ignore their responsibilities, or the requirements of the Wards program.

The Wards aren't a boarding school. They have to house her, nothing requires them to do it in the Wards section of their HQ. The Youth Guard can make a solid case that only offering an on base housing option is detrimental to her ability to have a normal non-cape civilian life. And everything in the Wards is allegedly voluntary.

THey aren't. Some specific idiots did that and got their boss on their case for being idiots.

The Legalese Interlude and Loophole 2.3 where he personally sprung it on Taylor made it clear that Director Armstrong went to Legal asking for something they could push Taylor into as a Ward that didn't require power testing first. It was shifty enough that Taylor's Youth Guard rep was willing to challenge it, but she decided to save their efforts for future fights.

The Interlude also makes it clear he brought Taylor to Watchdog's attention with a priority request.

And Armstrong kept refering to the Boston Wards as "her (Taylor's) fellow Wards". Referring to them as Taylor's peers, even mentally thinking of how to get Taylor to reach out to "the other Wards." All Assumptive Close sale language. Problem being while those trying to sell a Wards membership have bought into it, their customer hasn't and finds their presumption insulting.

SotF · Aug 15, 2023

Nikas_Zekeval said:
The Wards aren't a boarding school. They have to house her, nothing requires them to do it in the Wards section of their HQ. The Youth Guard can make a solid case that only offering an on base housing option is detrimental to her ability to have a normal non-cape civilian life. And everything in the Wards is allegedly voluntary.

The Legalese Interlude and Loophole 2.3 where he personally sprung it on Taylor made it clear that Director Armstrong went to Legal asking for something they could push Taylor into as a Ward that didn't require power testing first. It was shifty enough that Taylor's Youth Guard rep was willing to challenge it, but she decided to save their efforts for future fights.

The Interlude also makes it clear he brought Taylor to Watchdog's attention with a priority request.

And Armstrong kept refering to the Boston Wards as "her (Taylor's) fellow Wards". Referring to them as Taylor's peers, even mentally thinking of how to get Taylor to reach out to "the other Wards." All Assumptive Close sale language. Problem being while those trying to sell a Wards membership have bought into it, their customer hasn't and finds their presumption insulting.

They'd also need things there because they'd need to handle schooling because that's something that would destroy the local PRT and Wards pretty quickly...

Necrovore · Aug 15, 2023

Nikas_Zekeval said:
The Wards aren't a boarding school. They have to house her, nothing requires them to do it in the Wards section of their HQ. The Youth Guard can make a solid case that only offering an on base housing option is detrimental to her ability to have a normal non-cape civilian life. And everything in the Wards is allegedly voluntary.

The Legalese Interlude and Loophole 2.3 where he personally sprung it on Taylor made it clear that Director Armstrong went to Legal asking for something they could push Taylor into as a Ward that didn't require power testing first. It was shifty enough that Taylor's Youth Guard rep was willing to challenge it, but she decided to save their efforts for future fights.

The Interlude also makes it clear he brought Taylor to Watchdog's attention with a priority request.

And Armstrong kept refering to the Boston Wards as "her (Taylor's) fellow Wards". Referring to them as Taylor's peers, even mentally thinking of how to get Taylor to reach out to "the other Wards." All Assumptive Close sale language. Problem being while those trying to sell a Wards membership have bought into it, their customer hasn't and finds their presumption insulting.

Remember that Taylor is both a Ward and a ward, Danny signed over the rights and Armstrong felt it necessary with how negligent Danny was in taking care of Taylor. They have more responsibility to take care of Taylor and see to her safety then the would a Ward who has other guardians to see to their health and well-being. Offsite housing is less safe then onsite because they can't secure the surroundings as thoroughly. It also shows a weakness in Taylor's choice to avoid power testing as it leaves the loophole that onsite may be required until they know there is no aspect of her power that puts her at risk of revealing herself unintentionally.

The request to Watchdog was to verify the effects of a noticed power interaction that affected the Wards in his care. He would have been remiss in his role as director if he didn't look into the power interactions that could have a negative impact on the safety and welfare of Wards in his care. This can also go back to the housing bit as he has basically just discovered an aspect of Taylor's power that actually makes her identity easier to discover then usual as she might be revealed just walking down the street if a thinker were to notice the interference caused by the random pedestrian.

As for the Assumptive Close language...it isn't applicable here as the deal is actually already closed. He isn't trying to convince Taylor to join the Wards, she is already in the Wards signed over by her father. He is merely trying to get Taylor to open up to others so she has a chance to see that not everyone is like her bullies. As a director of a Ward it could be seen as pushy, but as she is also a ward seeing that she reconnects to people to have a chance to overcome her trauma is actually part of the PRT's responsibilities.

SotF · Aug 15, 2023

Necrovore said:
Remember that Taylor is both a Ward and a ward, Danny signed over the rights and Armstrong felt it necessary with how negligent Danny was in taking care of Taylor. They have more responsibility to take care of Taylor and see to her safety then the would a Ward who has other guardians to see to their health and well-being. Offsite housing is less safe then onsite because they can't secure the surroundings as thoroughly. It also shows a weakness in Taylor's choice to avoid power testing as it leaves the loophole that onsite may be required until they know there is no aspect of her power that puts her at risk of revealing herself unintentionally.

The request to Watchdog was to verify the effects of a noticed power interaction that affected the Wards in his care. He would have been remiss in his role as director if he didn't look into the power interactions that could have a negative impact on the safety and welfare of Wards in his care. This can also go back to the housing bit as he has basically just discovered an aspect of Taylor's power that actually makes her identity easier to discover then usual as she might be revealed just walking down the street if a thinker were to notice the interference caused by the random pedestrian.

As for the Assumptive Close language...it isn't applicable here as the deal is actually already closed. He isn't trying to convince Taylor to join the Wards, she is already in the Wards signed over by her father. He is merely trying to get Taylor to open up to others so she has a chance to see that not everyone is like her bullies. As a director of a Ward it could be seen as pushy, but as she is also a ward seeing that she reconnects to people to have a chance to overcome her trauma is actually part of the PRT's responsibilities.

The issue comes with the fact that Armstrong is also liable to end up in Federal Prison for not sending Taylor to school...him not doing so is a, potential, felony offense there with prison time for him and everyone with authority over her who did not comply with the education laws for a minor there.

Necrovore · Aug 15, 2023

SotF said:
The issue comes with the fact that Armstrong is also liable to end up in Federal Prison for not sending Taylor to school...him not doing so is a, potential, felony offense there with prison time for him and everyone with authority over her who did not comply with the education laws for a minor there.

Uh...she is in school? Are you mixing up stories?

Nikas_Zekeval · Aug 15, 2023

Necrovore said:
Remember that Taylor is both a Ward and a ward, Danny signed over the rights and Armstrong felt it necessary with how negligent Danny was in taking care of Taylor. They have more responsibility to take care of Taylor and see to her safety then the would a Ward who has other guardians to see to their health and well-being. Offsite housing is less safe then onsite because they can't secure the surroundings as thoroughly. It also shows a weakness in Taylor's choice to avoid power testing as it leaves the loophole that onsite may be required until they know there is no aspect of her power that puts her at risk of revealing herself unintentionally.

And the Youth Guard counters that they are ghettoising Taylor by forcing her to live in the Wards quarters. "Having her live a normal life is important your honor, and offering my Client only quarters within a Ward's base restricts her ability to socialize with peers outside of the local Wards. Which is already an issue with how they moved her out of her home town."

The request to Watchdog was to verify the effects of a noticed power interaction that affected the Wards in his care. He would have been remiss in his role as director if he didn't look into the power interactions that could have a negative impact on the safety and welfare of Wards in his care. This can also go back to the housing bit as he has basically just discovered an aspect of Taylor's power that actually makes her identity easier to discover then usual as she might be revealed just walking down the street if a thinker were to notice the interference caused by the random pedestrian.

No, the text makes it clear Armstrong's fascination with studying powers was the driving force. And when he suspected Taylor had a Trump power, relatively rare, he couldn't resist the temptation. It wasn't any alturism, it was his own impaitence and curisoity that had him send that request. Which is why I have zero sympathy for him catching grief from Watchdog in not being able to provide more info.

As for the Assumptive Close language...it isn't applicable here as the deal is actually already closed. He isn't trying to convince Taylor to join the Wards, she is already in the Wards signed over by her father. He is merely trying to get Taylor to open up to others so she has a chance to see that not everyone is like her bullies. As a director of a Ward it could be seen as pushy, but as she is also a ward seeing that she reconnects to people to have a chance to overcome her trauma is actually part of the PRT's responsibilities.

Fine, make her Father fill her duties as a Ward. His signing as this fic is showing means between Jack and Shit when it comes to Taylor actually being a Ward, rather than just having her name on the roster. To quote Ender's Game, "For officers we need volunteers." As Taylor herself says, she was conscripted, and unlike a military the Protectorate lacks a legal mechanisim for forcing a non-criminal conscript to comply.

So it is still very much a sale, they need Taylor to buy into the program, but as long as they keep covering up and ignoring the situation in Brockton she will continue to consider the Wards, PRT, and Protectorate tainted, and Emma and Sophia the true faces of the Wards.

Necrovore · Aug 15, 2023

Nikas_Zekeval said:
And the Youth Guard counters that they are ghettoising Taylor by forcing her to live in the Wards quarters. "Having her live a normal life is important your honor, and offering my Client only quarters within a Ward's base restricts her ability to socialize with peers outside of the local Wards. Which is already an issue with how they moved her out of her home town."

Except the Youth Guard seems to agree that on base is the safest place for her and part of the initial agreement for her joining.

FirstSelector said:
"I… what?" Danny asked, and Kamil couldn't help but feel bad about the sudden pain and confusion in his voice. He had given those forms to Danny, specifically. But Taylor's well-being came first, no matter how upsetting it was to her father.

"You signed the forms, didn't you?" Jim asked. "You wanted Taylor to live here on base and be afforded the maximum protection of the PRT, and that meant making them her legal guardians."

Nikas_Zekeval said:
No, the text makes it clear Armstrong's fascination with studying powers was the driving force. And when he suspected Taylor had a Trump power, relatively rare, he couldn't resist the temptation. It wasn't any alturism, it was his own impaitence and curisoity that had him send that request. Which is why I have zero sympathy for him catching grief from Watchdog in not being able to provide more info.

It does say worrying as well, but I'll agree his interest in powers probably motivates him a bit more then it should here. I don't see where he caught any grief from Watchdog though, it seems they were able to give a report just fine and it resulted in other branches being the ones pressuring him to get Phase to be an active member of the Wards?

FirstSelector said:
But the fascinating and worrying part of Taylor's power, and the reason that Kamil was increasingly interested in understanding it, was that she was a Trump. After both Hunch and Roulette confessed that their power did not work on Taylor, Kamil had sent in a priority request to Watchdog. Their response had everyone on edge: Taylor was invisible or otherwise immune to every targeted Thinker power they could test.

Hence, there was a renewed push from the other directors to get the girl into power testing. A very vigorous push.

Nikas_Zekeval said:
Fine, make her Father fill her duties as a Ward. His signing as this fic is showing means between Jack and Shit when it comes to Taylor actually being a Ward, rather than just having her name on the roster. To quote Ender's Game, "For officers we need volunteers." As Taylor herself says, she was conscripted, and unlike a military the Protectorate lacks a legal mechanisim for forcing a non-criminal conscript to comply.

So it is still very much a sale, they need Taylor to buy into the program, but as long as they keep covering up and ignoring the situation in Brockton she will continue to consider the Wards, PRT, and Protectorate tainted, and Emma and Sophia the true faces of the Wards.

My bit here was just contesting the Assumptive Close description, nothing more. Ward isn't a voluntary position like you keep alluding to as it is dealing with minors unable to make those decisions and the lack of ways to force compliance are there because it is not meant to be a military group. It is a safe place for damaged kids to learn about their dangerous abilities as safely as possible.

FirstSelector said:
While the others offered the beleaguered Mr. Hebert their own goodbyes, Kamil turned his attention to Taylor. Leaving her isolated was not an option; she would eventually grow sick of the PRT and flee in the night, and with no support network, she would be forced into villainy. But she seemed determined to keep the PRT at arm's length, viewing all of their overtures with suspicion.

Kamil couldn't say he blamed her, in all honesty, but he yet held out hope that if she would just spend some time around the other Wards, Taylor would realize that they were the furthest thing from being forced to socialize. Or that Gauss really did worry about her. She deserved much better than the hand she had been dealt, if only Kamil could convince her to pick up her cards.

This isn't the military trying to force an asset to work for them, this is the legal guardians of a ward (not Ward) trying to find a way to help while fully understanding the deck is very much stacked against them.

RogueInquisitor · Aug 15, 2023

Necrovore said:
Except the Youth Guard seems to agree that on base is the safest place for her and part of the initial agreement for her joining.

The Youth Guard agrees that having the PRT be her legal guardian is in her best interest, especially with Danny in a different city and state. That doesn't mean that Taylor has to be housed on-base. The obvious alternative is to have her live with the agent who is actually listed as her guardian, though it remains to be seen if Taylor would actually call that an improvement.

Necrovore said:
It does say worrying as well, but I'll agree his interest in powers probably motivates him a bit more then it should here.

He's acting on information from 2 of his Wards. He has evidence of a less-than-ideal power interaction, and if he had to defend the decision, seeing how broad that interaction is could be a reasonable precaution. It's still scummy, no doubt about it, but not enough on its own to be clearly a punishable violation.

KingCrimson1081 · Sep 20, 2023

I know it is late to bring this up and this topic in general died months ago but I finally stumbled across First's comment about how Taylor would have been willing to join the Wards if it was just Sophia:

As for the interlude, you're forgetting a key fact — Emma's status as a Ward is the primary reason Taylor is in the position she is. Sophia she could have handled, especially since Taylor's power makes it impossible for Sophia to abuse her further, and Piggot could have given Taylor the right assurances to stay. But being on a team with Emma would be a bridge too far.

It can be found in the reviews of chapter 4 on Ao3.

But in regards to what the comment says it is an interesting look into Taylor's mentality since it shows how her power despite helping her in the moment does nothing to help her underling issues of nonphysical trauma.

KingCrimson1081 · Oct 25, 2023

Omake: Failed to Send

Ampere: Taylor did you get my message the other day? I know what I did was wrong and I can't express how sorry I am. Please call me back.

Your message could not be delivered due to access control restrictions.

Ampere: Hey Taylor I know you don't want to hear from me and I get that but your dad has been worried about you came to my house about it too. I know I fucked up but please don't let that ruin things with your dad.

Your message could not be delivered due to access control restrictions.

Ampere: What's up Tay! Saw you on PHO and I wanted to congratulate you on your first cape fight. I remember my first I almost pissed myself but don't tell anyone that

. Anyways how are things in Boston I noticed they haven't said anything about new Ward over there I hope everything is okay, please call me.

Your message could not be delivered due to access control restrictions.

Ampere: Taylor my girl how are things? Me I've been better the other Wards are still upset cus of the Youth Guard

. Maybe you can lay off a bit? I know it sucks that Piggot won't do anything about what me and Sophia did but please don't take it out on the rest of the Wards. I have been doing what I can but the others aren't really happy with what you have been doing in Boston.

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Ampere: So things have been busy in Brockton recently if you haven't heard. We got a new gang the Undersiders or something they have been going around hitting the other gangs and running away and they are pretty good at it. Sophia doesn't like them cus their leader Grue's power messes with hers and they keep escaping due to their Tinker. But don't worry there is a plan to deal with the Undersiders we just need to work out a few more details with the rest of the Wards. I'll keep you updated on how that goes

.

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Ampere: I messed up but what else is new. We were so close but then everything went wrong so fast and it is all my fault. I talked them into it it was my idea from the start now Chris and Dean are. Sorry I shouldn't be bothering you with this.

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Ampere: Taylor.

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Ampere: Please.

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Ampere: Please pick up.

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UNKNOWN NUMBER: Hey Taylor! Know you haven't heard from me in a while but things got very busy in Brockton for awhile there. But things are good now better than good great even. Got a new phone in case you were wondering though this one isn't have the Wards apps but my new friend Riley was able to get me access she is so smart just like you and she is excited to meet you. Ditched the Wards it was painful letting go but the Protectorate was just holding me back you know, keeping me from you and all that. They ment well but they just didn't get us we are sisters and it was a mistake to ever stay apart from each other. Anyways me and my new friends are coming to visit you in Boston isn't that exciting! We are an hour or so out and I know that is short notice but everyone wants it to be surprise you know and who doesn't like surprises. Can't wait for you to meet everyone I am sure you will get along much better with them than the Wards I promise you that, and guess what Riley even promised that she will make sure we will never be apart ever again isn't that exciting!

A.N: Whelp it's almost Halloween so I thought that this was appropriate. Tried to use regular texting format and swapped to an unhinged rant for the last message there hopefully it came out alright. Anyways let me know what you all think and happy Halloween.

Also FirstSelector got a new omake.

Nikas_Zekeval · Oct 25, 2023

Well that escalated from sad to terrifying rather quickly.

KingCrimson1081 · Oct 25, 2023

Nikas_Zekeval said:
Well that escalated from sad to terrifying rather quickly.

Just imagine Taylor's reaction to getting that last message out of nowhere.

Besides that yeah the flip was rather sudden but I was aiming for horror and thought it would be appropriate. Even came up with a background for what happened between the last few messages and the last one even had a villain name for Emma.

WindCall12 · Oct 25, 2023

Nikas_Zekeval said:
Well that escalated from sad to terrifying rather quickly.

Tay: Wait so I get paid loads of money if I kill you?

Emma: Yup

Tay: Sweet! Business AND pleasure.

Later

Tay drops the severed heads of Jack, Bonesaw and Emma on Armstrongs table.

Tay: SO when do I get my money?

Armstrong: They go into your trust and you will get it when you turn 18

Tay: FUCK!

Armstrong: Language.

Just a Phase [Worm]

Well worn.

Getting out there.

Experienced.

none

Getting sticky.

Well worn.

Getting sticky.

none

Well worn.

Getting sticky.

Not too sore, are you?

Know what you're doing yet?

Well worn.

Not too sore, are you?

Well worn.

Know what you're doing yet?

Well worn.

Know what you're doing yet?

And Away We Go!

Not too sore, are you?

And Away We Go!

Not too sore, are you?

Know what you're doing yet?

Not too sore, are you?

Getting sticky.

Experienced.

Experienced.

Know what you're doing yet?

Experienced.

Well worn.

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