A possible future...

Blocking out some possible storylines, but nothing yet set in stone. Next chapter will proably be up next week.

****

"So, what are we making?" Leet asked. "For dinner, i mean?"

"Don't know Bro, the bank account..." Uber shook his head. "Not many people care about a stream when we got our own Endbringer..."

"Orb Weaver isn't any Endbringer," Leet said. "He's just a cape with a gimmick."

"So if he showed up here, you'd tell him that?"

"Fuck no. Alexandria's also a cape with a gimmick. I ain't stupid."

"Good." The two paused, then turned to see, sitting in Uber's man-chair, a skinny girl everyone knew.

The Investigator. Or Taylor Hebert, since she wasn't wearing her mask, it was sitting in her lap. Of course, if she was here, Uber thought, she damned well knew their names.

The Investigator that Orb Weaver had almost torn the city apart rescuing.

"How the fuck did you get in here?" Leet said. "I have--"

"Locks and puzzles, but they're mostly based on games," The skinny as fuck Thinker said. "You need to be more unpredictable."

"Why the fuck are you here, to arrest us?" Leet asked.

Uber tensed as she tossed a small bundle at him. He picked it up and...

The fuck? there were twenties and fifties in there.

"Is that sufficient for a consulting fee?"

"Fuck dude, that looks like.." Leet stared at it.

"Yeah, yeah it is," Uber said, not wanting Leet to reveal how low they were on funds. "What do you want?"

"First of all, lets be honest. you can't pull your old games because the PRT no longer has to deal with the Empire. Coil is laying low and Lung... Well, I have to admit, doing a comedy bit about Kyushu on the very anniversary of its death... But the Empire did pay well for that game, however, now they're gone..."

"Yeah, yeah, we fucked up." The girl looked like a twig, fuck she had a cane, but... Uber wasn't even tempted. The Master from the factory, Kaiser and the E88, goddamned Leviathan? She'd probably kick their ass and if she didn't, half the people in the Bay would be lining up...

"And of course, there is Leet's problem with Tinkering. Tell me, Leet, when you first started, your shows were more... shall we say, all audiences, but that didn't last long, did it."

"Look, I didn't fucking know the Kirby Bot was going to go berserk." Uber grabbed Leet by the arm, because Leet was getting pissed. That had been their golden ticket, running rich parties and then the fucking robot, which had worked perfectly, sent four kids to the ER...

"No. You didn't. You build things, some of them even impress Armsmaster, for all that your work can be slipshod, and yet... you cannot repeat it. Miracles, one time, and every time you narrow your abilities..."

"How... did you search this place?"

"I studied you. First scouted by the Protectorate, then failure after failure... Usually when you try to do the same thing..."

Uber blinked. Leet never talked--"How did..."

"As I said, I studied you, I've been bedridden for a while."

Thinker Five my Ass, Uber thought, remembering the PHO debates.

"So, what do you want?" Leet asked.

"If you accept my retainer, you will avoid committing crimes. Understand you are still wanted. I have no ability to change that. You will work with me on some...projects."

"Like what?"

"Questions." she paused. "Questions about how my power operates, how we relate to our powers. Do our powers have their own, independent desires..."

"How does that..."

"I'm going to poke your power with a stick, Leet, and see what happens. We're going to do unusual things, things you have never seen before..."

"And you're the only one doing this?"

Uber wanted to smack Leet, because that sounded like a fucking threat.

"No. I have a partner."

"Indeed, the Little Detective does..." Uber turned... slowly. He knew what he was going to see... yep, there in the doorway to the kitchen was a writhing, shifting mass of hatred and every nightmare he'd ever had. "I do look forward to our... association."

Uber Swallowed.