Amelia, Worm AU [Complete]

[pheonix89]

Not necessarily. You could attach explosives to him, and set them to go off if anyone teleports in. Pantheon would see that using Dinah, and not make an attempt.

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That would require you know how Pantheon's teleport works, and relies on you winning a Tinker-off against Pantheon. Also relies on Pantheon not just grabbing the entire Imperial Family and informing the CUI that they can have their leadership back in exchange for the kidnappees.

Mercenaries. Hired through several deniable intermediaries. Tattletale will be able to see through it, but that doesn't necessarily mean that they can prove it to the international community.

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Where do you expect to find mercs who will risk Pantheon going after them? Also, you can't use someone as leverage without admitting you have them, so deniablity isn't a thing.

Valefor made a mistake: he could not be reasoned with or negotiated with. If Pantheon surrendered, he wouldn't be happy unless all of them died screaming. Whereas, the CUI would be perfectly happy to sign a peace treaty after invading the country where the CUI refugees were brought assuring the safety of their citizens and getting a handful of reasonable trade concessions.

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And the odds of Pantheon going back on the deal the MINUTE they have the kidnappee back, releasing the evidence, and daring anyone to expect them to hold to a treaty created through hostage-taking are QUITE high, while the odds of anyone objecting are near zero.

 

[Alterego9]

I'm confused. What circumstance would cause the CUI troops to suddenly leave the cities?

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Bees.

 

[TanaNari]

Amelia, Ch 224- Melanie


"I'm not getting paid nearly enough," I muttered. Atropos had finally arrived, in full costume, with a travel pack that was pretty much an oversized six legged suitcase. Literal legs, it trotted near her like an obedient dog. Along with her were three others. Eki and Victoria, I recognized. The young man that could have been Latino or Mediterranean in ancestry, I had never seen before. All were, of course, also in their armors.


"I dunno," the tall blond in front of me smirked. "I'd say you're making bank right now. Two mil a portal? All five of you? That's two hundred grand per job, and each job can be done in a few hours for basically no risk. No one ever paid me that kind of money. One guy did try to hire me for a job that paid almost as good a while ago. I inquired as to what company made such a generous offer, but for some reason he had come down with a sudden case of knocked the fuck out. Later we had a conversation but we got too busy talking about my family life. Like how my mother was just made a senior partner at her lawfirm, and how I planned to celebrate my seventeenth birthday. We forgot all about his job offer in the excitement."


"You're making all of that up," the remarkably good looking young man insisted. Now that he was closer, I noted his armor was one of the rather bland and generic battle armors that Pantheon mass produces for the Protectorate. He probably doesn't have an abusable power type, I decided.


"Nope, all true," Victoria smiled cheerfully. "I may have embellished a little bit at the end. The conversation was pretty one sided, seeing as his jaw was wired shut. Other than that, all true. But I digress. We were talking about Faultline's career, not mine." Is this girl taking notes from Tattletale? Or she could even be Tattletale. I knew who she was suppose to be, but a little bit of Blasto's cloning and some body shaping with their bullshit powers... couldn't rule out anything.


"Miss Dallon?" I asked, trying to get her attention focused, though I knew she was doing this on purpose.


"Wow," Vicky replied. "So you do remember me!"


"It's hard not to," I answered as noncommittally as possible. "Victoria Dallon, recently brought back from the dead with a brand new powerset. One that makes your old one look boring by comparison."


"How is making villains drop to their knees and weep in front of me a boring power?" she retorted. "Sure, maybe I got better powers now, but you can't call my old set the least bit boring. Maybe it's just because you were too smart to start trouble in the same city as me?"


Tattletale clone, I would bet money on it. "Or Armsmaster," I replied.


"Oh god!" she exclaimed. "Best gossip ever!"


"What?" Atropos asked with the kind of familiar confidence that led me to believe they'd done something similar before. The man, who I still hadn't put a name to, was less assured. A new recruit, I decided. Wonder what kind of top tier power this one has. I didn't put too much concern into it. Power follows power, after all, and Pantheon had absurd amounts of power. Besides, I was more concerned with Tattle-two-point-oh.


Victoria's grin widened into something just a little less malicious, but not less infuriating, than the real Tattletale's. "Turns out, Faultline here had a crush on Armsmaster." God damn it.


"Really?" Atropos laughed.


"Can we just get to the point?" I insisted, trying very hard to sound more bored and less annoyed. "There's no point in talking about the dead."


"Oh, right, knew we forgot something," Victoria responded. "Well, the bosses agreed that your point about needing security was a good one. So we're here to provide security for our half of this equation."


What? "What?" I asked. "Your half is an Endslayer. What does she need protected from?"


"That's what I said," the blond sighed. "But they were pretty insistent that we go along. I tried to argue with them, but they wouldn't listen. My sister and her fiancee are like the most overprotective parents ever."


"Hey, I got the cameras," Eki replied as she held up a bag. "Do you think eight extra memory sticks will be enough?"


I looked at her, and back toward Victoria. "Cameras?"


"We gotta make sure we document any incidents, right?"


"So how many boring places do we have to go through before Milan?" Eki asked.


I raised an eyebrow. "Hey, if I have to go anyway, I might as well try to make the best out of a bad situation," Victoria added. "Plus since we have an Italian speaker on the team anyway..."


"I'm looking forward to England, myself," the young man added.


"Just because you think British accents are hot," Eki teased, jabbing him lightly with her elbow. He blushed slightly. Well, he won't have any trouble finding girls who'll appreciate the attention, I added internally.


"Just remember that if my sister has to cure anyone's herpes, she will tell me, and I will tell everyone else," Victoria practically sang.


"You spend way too much time around Zach," Eki said dryly.


"Not my fault the only good shooter game involving the CUI pretty much requires co-op mode," she replied. "Would you rather I have the shitty AI soldiers run the chain gun mounted on the back of the Puma? Sure as hell ain't gonna play with those creepy fucks online. I swear to god, if another nasally pimple infested thirteen year old asks me to send pictures of my tits, I will use my power to find a way to kill the internet forever."


This is hell, I decided. This is Tattletale's revenge for outsmarting her and making money off of this in spite of all her efforts to make that impossible. Well played, bitch. Well fucking played. "Are you going to introduce me to the new guy?" I asked, hoping to change the subject.


"Oh, right, where are my manners?" Victoria smiled. "This is Janus. He'll be our chauffeur for this event."


"Good to meet you, ma'am," he smiled and extended his hand. I accepted it, expecting a handshake. Instead he lifted it up and gave my fingers a light kiss. Really laying on the charm there, huh kid? I smiled back. He's a little too effeminate for my tastes, but if I'm not careful I'll need a crowbar to pry Emily off.


"Charmed," I answered. "So, I know the powers the others bring to the table. What are you capable of?"


"Long range teleportation," he answered. "I can teleport things to myself, or I can choose a location anywhere on the planet and send them there instead. Pantheon bought an abandoned oil platform a couple miles off into the ocean that I can put trouble makers, and a hospital to send civilians if we need to."


"That is quite an ability," I responded. Screw the crowbar, I'm going to give Emily some champagne and my finest tips for dealing with men. "So, how much are they paying you? I could use an extra hand around here." I of course expected to be turned down, but it opened the dialogue for the future.


Atropos laughed. "I remember when you were trying to recruit me."


"And if you had accepted, we could charge a hundred times as much for these gateways and no one would bat an eye before paying up," I pointed out. "We could have all been billionaires in a couple years."


"True," she agreed. "But instead, I get to be an Endslayer. One of the most talked about badasses on the planet. And now a member of the Japanese Imperial family. You should have seen the look on my parents faces when they found out about that."


"And laid," Victoria added. "You get that a lot, too."


One of the wings from Atropos' costume snapped out. Victoria was knocked back several feet. Remarkably, she back flipped a couple times and landed feet first on the wall, then dropped to the ground, standing.


"You let her hit you!?" Eki declared in shock.


"If I didn't, she'd have plotted something even worse. Probably got her girlfriend to help, and that's a fight I would lose so hard," Victoria replied. "Anti precog battle armor is such bullshit."


Janus had the good sense to look embarrassed by the display. "Sorry, ma'am," he shrugged sheepishly. "I do appreciate the offer, but I'm not the sort that's really concerned with money. If I was, I'd have just continued living the good life as the child of a supervillain mob boss."


"Well, I had to try," I responded. Okay, Emily, ball is entirely in your court now.


=================

A/N- I had fun with this chapter. I also nearly missed a continuity error with jokes involving Dragon by forgetting that Armsmaster is thought to be dead.

 

[Student of Zelretch]

... Japanesse royal family?​

 

[tEN]

Huh. Victoria COULD theoretically be a Lisa clone.

/me adds notes to "what if it's all a supervillain mind control plot" file.

 

[Sheaman3773]

This is hell, I decided. This is Tattletale's revenge for outsmarting her and making money off of this in spite of all her efforts to make that impossible. Well played, bitch. Well fucking played.

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XD Good to see the feelings flow both ways.

Screw the crowbar, I'm going to give Emily some champaign and my finest tips for dealing with men.

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Wow, how shallo--

Okay, Emily, ball is entirely in your court now.

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...why? Why, Faultline, why must you try to use a honey pot? lol

Mm, for a more serious comment, people's sense of humor, while quite funny, do seem to...mesh too well, almost. The styles overlap very strongly. Yes, some of it is repeatedly handwaved with "you've been spending too much time with ____," but it is a little bit odd that so many people have the same sense of humor. Just throwing that out there.

 

[Snake/Eater]

there are other problem countries besides the C.U.I.,there's the Survivors of Disestablished nations like Russia,Finland,India and other places,some cannot leave because they are considered a danger to the world,some stay because they love their country and because they cant leave the memories(or bodies) of their loved behind and then there is the Jackels who see a chance to to forge a new nation out the chaos or kill for shits and giggles,then they hear news the U.N. have created a new nation for a team of capes,that give them reasonable cause to be pissed,so now Pantheon has thousands of faceless enemies,waiting to be united under one banner for REVENGE. they don't want a new world or a second chance for themselves,they would want their old world back.and they don't care if the rest of world has burn for it.

 

[Divabot]

there are other problem countries besides the C.U.I.,there's the Survivors of Disestablished nations like Russia,Finland,India and other places,some cannot leave because they are considered a danger to the world,some stay because they love their country and because they cant leave the memories(or bodies) of their loved behind and then there is the Jackels who see a chance to to forge a new nation out the chaos or kill for shits and giggles,then they hear news the U.N. have created a new nation for a team of capes,that give them reasonable cause to be pissed,so now Pantheon has thousands of faceless enemies,waiting to be united under one banner for REVENGE. they don't want a new world or a second chance for themselves,they would want their old world back.and they don't care if the rest of world has burn for it.

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True. But, given this group just obliterated India and that was considered acceptable collateral damage, I'd expect even the really pissed-off ones would pause for a moment's thought.

 

[rick1497]

"True," she agreed. "But instead, I get to be an Endslayer. One of the most talked about badasses on the planet. And now a member of the Japanese Imperial family. You should have seen the look on my parents faces when they found out about that.

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When did Atropos become a member of the Japanese Imperial family? Did I miss something?

 

[Lantalia]

True. But, given this group just obliterated India and that was considered acceptable collateral damage, I'd expect even the really pissed-off ones would pause for a moment's thought.

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Point of order, Ziz vaped India, which was going to happen whether they 'killed' her or not.

 

[Slayer Anderson]

When did Atropos become a member of the Japanese Imperial family? Did I miss something?

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She basically convinced Pantheon to give Japan another Japan, one with all its islands and that squeaky clean new-car smell to boot.

I'm...not really surprised. Granted, it's probably a political move too, since Japan is probably agreeing to come under Pantheon's Federated Monarchy. This way they can claim a member of their Royal family is part of *the* Royal Family, of the Planet(s).

 

[cyberswordsmen]

When did Atropos become a member of the Japanese Imperial family? Did I miss something?

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For that matter since when does she have parents?

 

[evildice]

Point of order, Ziz vaped India, which was going to happen whether they 'killed' her or not.

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Well, Ziz + Phir Se, but your point stands that it had very little to do with Pantheon's actions.

It wasn't going to happen anyway -- Behemoth only called in sick due to Pantheon -- but neither was it Pantheon's fault.

For that matter since when does she have parents?

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In canon her issue was having too many parents, not too few.

 

[BlackBulletOfSeven]

Russia is gone in the Wormverse,if there are any survivors they are in worse conditions then the setting of that game Metro 2033.it's implied that any surviving Remnants are under constant assault from parahumans like THE SLEEPER, Finland is gone thanks to the Simurgh,to even say that is your a Finn is dangerous to your health.

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WOG on Russia in Worm.
http://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/worm-quotes-and-wog-repository.294448/#post-14300958

Also, iirc, Wildbow is saving The Sleeper for the sequel.

 

[moontheir4]

Considering that we know of at least one person who could replace Lily's half of the portal process, I'm surprised that Lisa hasn't done more to keep Faultline's team on retainer. Something like an exclusive contract to provide security for Avalon or something like that. A nice cushy job with the primary benefit of keeping the Mercs from hiring their services out to a third party.

For that matter since when does she have parents?

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In canon her issue was having too many parents, not too few.

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What the immature alien said. In canon she was caught up in a three-way custody battle between her mother, father, and the surrogate that actually gave birth to her. Though I got the impression that none of them interested in Lily as they were just having custody of her.

"She came from a broken home," Miss Militia supplied the information instead. "She bounced between her mother, her father and the surrogate mother who had attempted to renege on the deal they'd made and keep her. With the number of times she changed between them and moved, I can't imagine she has strong ties to the idea of 'home'. Even within the Wards… New York has five small teams, and she moved between them as she changed residences."

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[Snake/Eater]

True. But, given this group just obliterated India and that was considered acceptable collateral damage, I'd expect even the really pissed-off ones would pause for a moment's thought.

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Breathes there the man with soul so dead, Who never to himself hath said, This is my own, my native land. there no enemy more dangerous or brave(or idiotic from some points of view.) then a patriot. all they need is the fire of inspiration to give them a cause to unite.or some really really shady guys in trench coats with money,guns and powers in a bottle,Cauldron isn't the only ones who have access to dead shards,after all they weren't responsible for the vials Noelle and her friends got.some of these people lost family unknowingly to Cauldron and famine,disease and human greed and cruelty because they were expendable.they have lost hope,but they wont be afraid to die(partly because of good old fashion brainwashing).

 

[Sheaman3773]

What the immature alien said. In canon she was caught up in a three-way custody battle between her mother, father, and the surrogate that actually gave birth to her. Though I got the impression that none of them interested in Lily as they were just having custody of her.

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...what? Where was this said?

 

[Slayer Anderson]

Hey...quick, really, really off-topic question.

How do you do invisi-text? It's not for this thread, it's for...

<.<

>.>

...something else.

 

[Helpless Kitten]

What the immature alien said. In canon she was caught up in a three-way custody battle between her mother, father, and the surrogate that actually gave birth to her. Though I got the impression that none of them interested in Lily as they were just having custody of her.

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Then Japan was like, "Surprise! She's ours now bitches!"

 

[Myriad]

Haha, awesome chapter. I love Faultline's suspicion that Victoria is actually a modified Tattletale clone.

Also...

"Would you rather I have the shitty AI soldiers run the chain gun mounted on the back of the Puma?"

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Why is it called a Puma? I'm pretty sure that it doesn't look like a cat... it probably looks more like a pig of some kind.

 

[gustyeagle]

Hey...quick, really, really off-topic question.

How do you do invisi-text? It's not for this thread, it's for...

<.<

>.>

...something else.

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This
(COLOR=transparent) (/COLOR)
with square brackets

 

[thatavidreader]

Ugh, time and time again you keep reminding us how utterly loathesome Victoria is in the setting. Most others, even Bonesaw, has had their time in the light to try to endear themselves. But Victoria has, even at the best of times, been portrayed as the embodiment of arrogance and entitlement that felt not a shred of regret for any of her past actions. She literally runs away from her past when even remotely confronted by the fact that her aura permanently mindfucked her entire family, rather than face up to it and show the smallest bit of remorse.

Here again, she actually seems proud of the effects of her previous powers. I can just taste the bile welling up my throat right now.

I resent how her new power happens to be useful enough that she has become integral to the team. Otherwise I'd have held out hope that she would return to her glass-like state that she deserves.

 

[Slayer Anderson]

This
[COLOR=transparent) (/COLOR]
with square brackets.

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Thank you. Have a free Internet on me sometime.

 

[Snake/Eater]

Then Japan was like, "Surprise! She's ours now bitches!"

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would they try some Game of thrones-esque shenanigans by trying to takeover Avalon(it needs a cheesy anthem omake)

 

[BlackBulletOfSeven]

But Victoria has, even at the best of times, been portrayed as the embodiment of arrogance and entitlement that felt not a shred of regret for any of her past actions.

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If you have a problem with arrogant characters that's fine, but you should learn to read the social cues. Tana has written her in a way that I really don't see many people complaining. She's arrogant, she has a right to be, as does everyone in Pantheon. They are quite literally, the biggest badasses on the planet.

She literally runs away from her past when even remotely confronted by the fact that her aura permanently mindfucked her entire family, rather than face up to it and show the smallest bit of remorse.

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Wow, it's almost like she's a teenage girl who has fears and a personality. Also, not exactly her fault that her power did that. She can't really turn it off, its either "love me!" Or "Fear my wrath!" and one of those was better than the other.

Here again, she actually seems proud of the effects of her previous powers. I can just taste the bile welling up my throat right now

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Ya know, if you had the ability to literally make your enemies cower in fear by looking at them funny, you'd feel pretty awesome as well.

I resent how her power new power happens to be useful enough that she has become integral to the team. Otherwise I'd have held out hope that she would return to her glass-like setting that she deserve.

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Ok now I'm just convinced that you just for whatever reason don't somehow see that this Vicky is much more likeable than canon. Literally, since she got back, has she done anything deserving death by acid? No. In fact, taking down Baal was redeeming enough, literally the only thing I don't recall seeing is her confronting people on her old aura. Which I don't see for awhile. Avoiding a problem is a very human thing to do.

 

[Snake/Eater]

Here another song for this new chapter,Ten Years After's "I'd Love To Change The World" as covered by Jetta.because what happens when you have change the world...does anyone know..and it fits with my earlier topic. i wish more people made more Worm playlists.

Spoiler: I'd Love To Change The World

 

[pheonix89]

Breathes there the man with soul so dead, Who never to himself hath said, This is my own, my native land. there no enemy more dangerous or brave(or idiotic from some points of view.) then a patriot. all they need is the fire of inspiration to give them a cause to unite.or some really really shady guys in trench coats with money,guns and powers in a bottle,Cauldron isn't the only ones who have access to dead shards,after all they weren't responsible for the vials Noelle and her friends got.some of these people lost family unknowingly to Cauldron and famine,disease and human greed and cruelty because they were expendable.they have lost hope,but they wont be afraid to die(partly because of good old fashion brainwashing).

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Um, no? Cauldron is the only group with meaningful access to dead shards - they build their base over Eden.

 

[Snake/Eater]

Um, no? Cauldron is the only group with meaningful access to dead shards - they build their base over Eden.

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some people like Skidmark get it from a 4th hand source.

 

[Volkogluk]

WOG on Russia in Worm.
http://forums.spacebattles.com/threads/worm-quotes-and-wog-repository.294448/#post-14300958

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From that description, change the Elitnaya's members skin color to black, hair color to white, give them pointy ears, and they would feel right home in Menzoberanzan.
I mean, that sounds like a fucked up organization. CUI level of fucked up.

 

[Snake/Eater]

From that description, change the Elitnaya's members skin color to black, hair color to white, give them pointy ears, and they would feel right home in Menzoberanzan.
I mean, that sounds like a fucked up organization. CUI level of fucked up.

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are they even still alive?