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ADAPTATION (WORM ALT!POWER) [COMPLETE]

* Thread starter 6thfloormadness
* Start date Sep 21, 2016
* Tags taylor alt!power worm worm altpower

ADAPTATION (WORM ALT!POWER) [COMPLETE]

Created at Sep 21, 2016 Index progress Incomplete Watchers 2,390 Recent readers
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Summary: Hard to lose a fight if you can adapt to whatever they throw at you.

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* Chapter 1

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* Chapter 2

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* Epilogue

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* Familiar Adaptations

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* Post Epilogue Chapter/Author's Commentary

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6THFLOORMADNESS

SPOOPY

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #1

Summary: Hard to lose a fight if you can adapt to whatever they throw at you.

Table of Contents
Chapter 1 (Below)
Chapter 2
Chapter 3
Chapter 4
Chapter 5
Chapter 6
Chapter 7
Chapter 8
Chapter 9
Chapter 10
Chapter 11
Chapter 12
Chapter 13
Chapter 14
Chapter 15
De-canonized Epilogue
Epilogue
Familiar Adaptations
Post Epilogue Chapter/Author's Commentary

Note: Every time I post a new chapter someone inevitably asks the same thing so
let me establish this here and now to see if that stop it. No, Taylor will not
suddenly adapt the ability to turn back to normal or control how she looks. That
defeats the purpose of the story.

Omakes
Natural Conclusions
Family
No Sell
The Amy Dallon Show
The Last Line
A Very Enthusiastic Walk
Fighting an Endbringer
A Poem
Teamwork
ESCALATION!
Being Taylor Is Suffering For Everyone Else
Gloating

Chapter 1

As a kid I wanted to grow up to be Alexandria. If young me had found out I was
going to get powers in highschool she would have been ecstatic. It sucked that I
had gotten my powers on one of the worst days of my life but I could have dealt
with that if my powers weren’t so pathetic.

At first I hadn’t even realized I had gotten powers. Wasn’t like they had helped
me get out of the locker. It was only when I was laying in a hospital bed
afterwards and the nurse had commented that it was odd that I wasn’t dehydrated
or injured that I thought something might be off. I specifically remembered
cutting my hand on a protruding nail in the locker and yet there wasn’t a
scratch on me. I felt fine.

I had been let out of the hospital the next morning, perfectly healthy. Dad
hovered over me the entire day. I could understand why he was doing it but that
didn’t mean it wasn’t annoying. Testing to see if I had a healing power while
Dad was home was just no. With my luck he would have walked in on me while I was
cutting myself with a knife and he’d assume I was committing suicide after the
traumatic experience of being stuck in that locker for hours.

So I had waited till he had gone to work the next day to experiment. I had
determined that I could heal from knife wounds in a few seconds, it was kinda
cool to watch actually. I was also a bit stronger than I used to be, I could
lift up a corner of the couch and hold it until I got bored. I couldn’t fly,
though my scrapes knees healed quite nicely from the fall out of the tree. So
not only did I have a really weak Alexandria package (as PHO had nicknamed it)
but I didn’t even have the complete package.

I had actually spent the last several months debating with myself whether or not
I was even capable of being a hero. Once I had determined how weak my powers
were, I had gotten pretty depressed. If I had petitioned to join the Wards I
probably would have been laughed right out once they found out how little I was
capable of. On the other hand, what could I use my powers for besides heroing? I
didn’t have to worry about stubbing my toe in the middle of the night when I
went to use the bathroom but beyond that, I couldn’t think of a lot of
situations where having a body slightly better than normal would be useful.
Wasn’t like I could go into sports, they tested for parahuman abilities and even
one as weak as mine would probably come up positive.

After much back and forth arguing, I now found myself walking through the Docks,
in the middle of the night, looking for a crime to stop. I would probably still
be at home debating it if the girls at school hadn’t been such bitches on Friday
making me want to do something good I could be proud of. I had spent the weekend
getting my costume together. My costume was...well there was no sugarcoating it,
it was crap. Old pair of jeans, a t-shirt and a balaclava. I didn’t look like a
superhero, I looked like a gang member about to commit a crime. Most of my money
had gone into my belt and its various accouterments. I had a taser, pepper
spray, a miniature first aid kit (for criminals, wasn't like I was going to need
it), and some zip ties since I couldn’t afford handcuffs. I had debated wearing
a jacket (despite, oddly enough, the fact that I didn’t find it that cold out)
so I wouldn’t look so pathetic but decided against it since that would just give
people more surface area to grab in a fight. Practicality trumped looking good
when things got dangerous.

My wandering was interrupted by a commotion down the block. It was a group of
young guys, walking briskly towards an alleyway which was already inhabited by
more guys. The light wasn’t great but I was pretty sure they were all asian and
that could only mean one thing: they were ABB.

It’s not racist to assume that a group of young men, all of whom are Asian, that
are grouping up in the middle of the night in ABB territory are members of the
gang, right?

I crouched down and crept along, trying to get closer to the group to see if I
could overhear anything suspicious. I was reasonably certain I could win a
one-on-one fight with a normal person but I didn’t know how effective my healing
power would be if twenty different people took turns beating on me.

As I poked my head around the corner I noticed someone that made my breath catch
in my throat. Standing head and shoulders above everyone else was a large,
shirtless man in a metallic dragon mask.

Slowly back away Taylor. Nice and quiet, no way can I take on a freaking dragon.

It was at that moment that I heard what it was Lung was saying. “…the children,
just shoot. Doesn’t matter your aim, just shoot. You see one lying on the
ground? Shoot the little bitch twice more to be sure. We give them no chances to
be clever or lucky, understand?”

I stopped in my tracks. Lung wants to kill kids? I knew he was a criminal
but...really?

Outnumbered or not, there was no way I could walk away from this. I wanted to be
a hero and what kind of hero would I be if I just let Lung and his gang murder
some children?

Wish I had a cell phone, I could call the professional heroes and let them know
what’s going on.

I made a promise to myself that if I made it out of this alive, the next thing I
was buying was a phone.

I straightened up and steeled my nerves. Stand tall Taylor, you don’t need to
win, just stall them long enough for the authorities notice the commotion.

“Hey!” I called out as I walked into the mouth of the alleyway. “As a hero I’m
ordering you all to disperse this instant.”

My voice didn’t quaver during that, go me!

Lung glanced over at me and snorted. With a casual wave of his hand a line of
fire arced through the air to strike me in the face.

I admit it, I screamed. Having my face lit on fire hurt. Didn’t help that the
mask I was wearing was also burning. I then proceeded to beat the fire out.

Punching myself in the face, I have reached a new low.

My face was sensitive to the touch and I was pretty sure my mask had melted onto
my skin in places, but I was otherwise okay. I was no longer in pain.

That probably just means the nerves in my face are damaged. My powers take a
couple seconds to deal with knife wounds, no way they’re healing burned skin
that quickly.

With the fire taken care of, I assumed a boxing stance and tried to look
nonchalant about getting attacked.

“That was your opportunity to run away with you tail between your legs, girl,”
Lung said as he walked through the crowd. “That you failed to do so speaks well
for your courage but reflects poorly on your intelligence.”

“I’m a hero,” I said without squeaking in fear. Man, I’m on fire tonight with
the speeches coming out smoothly...wow brain, did you really just go there?
“Heroes stand up to villains like you.”

Lung let out a deep, booming laugh. “Very well hero, put up a good enough fight
and I might let you live.”

As soon as the last word left his lips he leapt forward, faster than he should
rightly be able to move, and punched me square in the face. I felt my nose break
beneath his knuckles and I fell backwards, blood flowing down my face as I
landed on my butt.

“Pathetic,” Lung rumbled, looming over me like a muscular grim reaper. He pulled
back a leg and then swung it around to roundhouse kick me in the side of the
head.

I went from a sitting position to limply laying on the sidewalk. All I could
hear was blood pounding in my ears but I could feel it pooling beneath my face
and taste it in my mouth. My jaw refused to work and there as pain when I tried
to speak.

I was vaguely aware of Lung turning away from my fallen form and walking back to
talk towards his gang. I just focused on breathing and staying conscious.

Don’t pass out, I pass out and who knows what could happen. Stay awake, keep
breathing.

My vision wasn’t going cloudy so that was good and some of the pain was
beginning to fade.

Air goes in the lungs, hold, air is released. Repeat.

My hearing seemed to have returned to normal, I could make out multiple voices
though most of them didn’t appear to be speaking English so I didn’t know what
they were talking about. Might have been an argument but it was rather subdued,
probably because no one wanted to annoy Lung.

I became aware of an incredibly weird sensation, my nose was straightening
itself out and the bones were knitting themselves together.

My healing power can handle broken bones? Then why’d it take time to fix the
knife wounds when I was testing? I sighed in relief as the last of the pain in
my head disappeared. Maybe it just takes a bit of time to kick into effect.

I sat up and then rose to my feet with a minimum amount of shaking. Some of the
ABB members pointed at me.

This time Lung didn’t speak, he just launched a fireball at me.

When it exploded I was blown off my feet and landed in the street. Judging from
the cries of pain Lung had caught some of his own men in the blast. I doubted he
cared.

I surveyed the scene as I stood up. I could see several gang members frantically
pulling burning clothes off of themselves and stomping on it, a nearby telephone
pole had smoke trailing off of it, there was trash scattered all around that was
aflame, but I wasn’t on fire.

Did the force of the explosion put out the fire on me? I was at the epicenter of
it.

“You are rapidly going from pitiful to annoying,” Lung growled at me.

He strode up to me with a very clear sense of purpose and wrapped one of his
massive hands around my neck and began to squeeze. I tried to punching and
kicking at him, but as a waifish fifteen year old girl I just didn’t have the
strength necessary to hurt a cape of Lung’s caliber. I felt myself starting to
grow weak as my air supply was cut off...and then Lung eased his grip and I
could breathe. I took a few rapid gasps of air before he began choking me again.

And then, once again, Lung’s grip slackened and I was able to breathe. He
repeated this three more times before he growled and choke-slammed me into the
pavement. It hurt, but not nearly as much as I expected.

“Do you think to mock me by acting weak?!” Lung shouted. It took me a second to
realize that that was directed at me.

“I’m a hero,” I said as I pulled myself to my feet and assumed a fighting
stance. I was starting to feel a bit more confident since my healing power was
doing a good job of keeping up with the damage I was receiving. “I’m just trying
to stop a villain. Don’t have to beat you, just keep you here until the
Protectorate shows up.”

That was apparently the wrong thing to say as the next thing I knew I was bathed
in flame. It was a steady stream of fire, expanding outward like a cone from
Lung’s hand as it surrounded me. My nerves screamed at me as my skin burned. The
very air hurt my lungs when I inhaled, it had been heated so hotly.

Having faith in my power’s ability to heal me since it hadn’t failed yet, I
closed my eyes and counted to ten. By the time I opened them I was no longer in
pain. I glanced down at my hands and noticed that they looked different, shiny.
Like they were coated with a chemical.

Actually, there most definitely is a chemical on my hands. I could see it
bubbling in the fire that was still engulfing my body. My skin was unharmed
beneath it though. Did my powers make me secrete a chemical to deal with the
fire? Am I adapting to damage, not just healing from it?

I looked up from my hands and tried to see through the flames to where Lung was
standing. He was starting to gleam as the light reflected off of the scales that
were growing out of his skin which meant he was getting tougher, stronger.

I wonder how far I can take this...
Last edited: Dec 21, 2017
* 688

* 6thfloormadness
* Sep 21, 2016
* Reader mode

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6THFLOORMADNESS

SPOOPY

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #2

Chapter 2

Armsmaster drove down the streets at a fast, but not breakneck, speed. Reports
had started coming in that Lung was fighting someone in the docks. The most
likely culprits were the Empire 88. The Merchants, drug-addled as they were,
were at least smart enough to know they couldn’t beat Lung. The Empire had so
many capes that, combined with their racist view of Asians, meant they were
bound to make periodic attacks against the gang leader.

So it came as quite a surprise to Colin when he screeched around a corner and
saw Lung in the middle of the street, squaring off against Hellhound’s three
beasts. Actually, there as another figure in the street, and it wasn’t
Hellhound. It was a teenager, stick thin, with the burnt remains of clothing
barely hanging on her body and exposing parts of her anatomy. The girl seemed to
be the focus of Lung’s ire but he kept having to shift his attention to fight
off the dog monsters.

If Hellhound is here there’s a strong likelihood the rest of her group is
nearby. Regent can momentarily master my muscles and Grue has darkness creation.
Still haven’t figured out what Tattletale’s powers are, some kind of Thinker is
the most likely probability given the group’s timely escapes. Lung is a known
entity so that leaves the new girl as the biggest mystery.

“Armsmaster to Console. Lung is currently fighting Hellhound’s dogs at the
corner of Baker and Johnson. Undersiders are likely nearby but I don’t have a
visual. Unknown parahuman is also on scene, fighting Lung.”

“Roger that, Armsmaster,” said the nameless PRT employee on the other end.
“Velocity and Miss Militia are inbound to your location.

Armsmaster quickly parked his motorcycle and grabbed his halberd off of his
back. It unfolded with a snap and began humming with energy as it powered up.

“Stand down Lung!”

Lung glanced over at Armsmaster and gave a snort of disinterest and turned his
attention back towards the girl.

The dismissive attitude that Lung showed towards him annoyed Colin more than he
would ever admit to himself.

Lung breathed deep and exhaled a torrent fire. One of the dog’s scrambled out of
the way but the girl didn’t even attempt to dodge.

When Lung ran out of breath and the fire ceased, the girl remained standing in
the exact spot she had been, giggling.

“Is that the best you can do? I’ve gotten worse burns than that using a hair
straightener!”

Some kind of fire immunity so she might be a Breaker. A lot of fire based
Blasters tend to be resistant to heat but I haven’t seen her shoot anything at
Lung yet. Whatever the case, I don’t have to worry as much about Lung killing
her...unless he gets his hands on her but the dogs are doing a good job running
interference. Is she a new member of the Undersiders?

Armsmaster ran forward, while keeping an eye on the three dogs, and interposed
himself between Lung and the gang leader’s quarry. He brought his halberd up
into a guard position.

“I said, stand down Lung.”

The leader of the ABB didn’t answer, instead he barreled forward. Given that
Lung had already reached eight feet in height and was covered in hard scales, it
wasn’t a terrible tactic. If the half-dragon could shove past Armsmaster he
would be able to get his claws into the girl and kill her in short order.
Luckily, Colin had developed predictive combat software and had been studying
Lung extensively so he knew exactly what to do in response.

Armsmaster flipped his halberd around and, from the bottom of the pole, launched
a minor explosive charge. It had originally been included for quickly knocking
down doors or walls in the event that rapid entry to a room was required. In
this case, it served perfectly adequately in tripping Lung by blowing out his
kneecap.

Not that I would try that trick with anyone that wasn’t a Brute.

Lung got his good leg under him and tried to rise to his feet but this gave
Armsmaster the opportunity he had been waiting for. Stepping forward, he jabbed
the end of his halberd into Lung’s shoulder and injected a specialized designed
tranquilizer serum that Colin had developed with help from Dragon. It should
target specific areas of the brain to induce feelings of apathy and tiredness in
the subject. Theoretically, it was the perfect counter to Lung’s powers. It
would take a little bit of time to kick into effect however.

Armsmaster stepped back and twirled his halberd around in his hands like a
cheerleader baton. Personally, Colin thought it was a waste of energy but
repeated studies (both from the PRT’s PR department and personal favors from
Dragon) had shown that people thought the motion gave him an air of authority
and professionalism.

“Ma’am, are you alright?” Armsmaster asked the girl behind him while Lung
struggled to his feet.

“I’m fine. Lung tried punching me, kicking me, choking me, and burning me. I
healed right through it all. Hurt at first but I got used to it.” The girl
paused. “Is it bad that I’m a little disappointed you showed up? I’m curious
what he had left to try on me.”

Colin resisted the urge to chastise the girl. She sounded new to her powers and
was probably eager to test her limits. He remembered what it had been like when
he was still learning about his speciality and he wanted to tinker all the time.

“That’s a discussion for another time, I think.”

Lung shook his head back and forth, clearly attempting to fight off the effects
of the tranquilizer.

A sharp whistle cut through the air and when of the dogs lunged forward and
slammed in Lung’s back. The gang leader stumbled forward and Colin slammed his
halberd straight into Lung’s sternum.

This was a careful balancing act. They needed to hurt Lung enough to keep him
off balance so the sedative could kick in but not so much that the pain kept him
awake. With his combat software Armsmaster was confident he could manage that on
his own but with Hellhound’s dogs here all the information being provided to him
was more-or-less useless.

On the other hand, the dogs seemed to be waiting for something.

Just what kind of Thinker is Tattletale? Could she know not to hurt Lung too
badly and is relaying that to Hellhound?

Lung swayed where he stood. He took a step forward to steady himself but then
his head lulled and he fell face forward onto the pavement. Colin could already
see the scales retracting.

Suddenly, the three dogs bolted from their positions on the street. They climbed
their way up a nearby building until they reached the roof. Colin could make out
the Undersiders climbing onto the backs of the beasts before they monsters leapt
out of sight.

“So what were those things?”

Colin turned back to look at the regenerator. Now that there wasn’t a fight
going on he could appraise her in a bit more detail.

After giving her a once-over glance Colin kept his eyes firmly above her
shoulders. The girl’s clothes had been threadbare when he arrived, now they were
nonexistent. She had more soot on her body than she did cotton. Her face was
covered in splotches that indicated she had been wearing a mask of some
synthetic material that had melted onto her skin. Whatever hair she had had
before was simply gone. Colin had thought her skin had a strange sheen to it,
but he didn’t want to look down to confirm that.

“Those dogs belonged to a criminal known as Hellhound. She is part of a small
group of parahumans known as the Undersiders.”

“Wonder why they helped me fight Lung,” the girl wondered aloud while she tapped
her chin.

“Are you a villain?” Colin asked as he activated his lie detection software.

“What? No, I’m a hero! Or I’m planning on being one anyway.”

TRUTH flashed across the HUD of Colin’s visor.

“You’re telling the truth.” Colin relaxed his grip on his halberd. Just because
she had been an enemy of Lung didn’t automatically mean she wasn’t a criminal
but now he had confirmation. “Excuse me a moment while I secure Lung.”

Armsmaster walked over to where he had left his motorcycle and pulled out a
different halberd. This new one was less of hassle to refill the containment
foam in so when given the option, he used that instead of his standard halberd.

After spraying Lung with a liberal amount of foam, Colin turned back to the new
girl, making sure to keep his gaze locked on her forehead to prevent it from
wandering.

“Do you have a name miss?”

“Ta-oh wait you mean a cape name,” the girl frowned. “No, I don’t. This is only
my first night out.”

TRUTH

Seriously? Are new Triggers getting stupider or am I getting that old? “Your
first night out and you got in a fight with Lung?”

The girl chuckled, it was a nervous laugh. “When I left the house tonight I had
no idea I could heal this much. It took a couple seconds to heal from small
knicks from a knife when I first discovered I had powers. Taunting Lung was the
stupidest thing I’ve ever done. Only reason I did it was because I heard him
telling his gang to shoot kids.”

TRUTH

“He was probably referring to the Undersiders. Rumor is they robbed one of his
casinos a few weeks ago. Would explain why they helped you out against him.”

“Oh.”

The conversation stalled out. Colin wasn’t sure where to go from here so he
settled for a safe conversation topic.

“Have you considered joining the Wards?”

“Not really. Like I said, before tonight I thought my power was pretty weak, too
weak to be a hero.” The girl’s voice got a lot quieter. “Only reason I went out
tonight was because I was tired of not having anything good in my life. Thought
if I stopped a mugging or something I’d have something I could be proud of.”

TRUTH

The girl made a motion as if to run her fingers through her hair but then got a
look of confusion on her face as her hand found only air. Using both hands, she
began patting her scalp. Colin saw the girl’s expression morph into what could
only be described as terror.

“MY HAIR!”

Colin winced. He had heard victims of gunshot wounds scream quieter.

“Ohbadisit? ItfeelslikeIhavenothingthere!” The girl shrieked a second time. “My
clothes!”

I am so not equipped to deal with this. Actually…

“Armsmaster to Console.”

“Go ahead Armsmaster.”

“Lung is unconscious. I’d bring him in but then I wouldn’t have room for a new
parahuman, temporary designation...Voorhees. She needs a set of clothes to
wear.”

“Miss Militia is enroute to your location in a helicopter. Could Voorhees ride
in that?”

“Stand by.” Armsmaster turned towards the girl who was frantically moving her
arms in various patterns as she attempted to figure out the best way to cover
herself. Colin made sure that his head was pointed upwards so she wouldn’t think
he was peaking. “Miss Militia will be arriving shortly in a helicopter. They’ll
have blankets of some kind for you to cover yourself with. Would you like to
ride back with her to the PRT building? We have plenty of extra clothes there
you can wear.”

“Y-yea, that sounds like a good idea. I don’t think I should walk home stark
naked.”

TRUTH

“Armsmaster to Console, that is a go for Voorhees riding in the helicopter.”

“10-4.”

The girl seemed to be have settled on how to cover herself and was now paying
attention to what Colin had said. “...did you just make up a cape name for me?”

“Oh, needed a name for the paperwork I’ll have to fill out later. It’s just
temporary, don’t worry.”

“Okay.”

The two parahumans stood in awkward silence. Colin kept an eye on Lung while the
girl seemed to shrink in on herself. When the noise of an approaching helicopter
could be heard she headed over to an alley, presumably because she didn’t want
to flash any more people than necessary.

When the helicopter touched down on the road, Miss Militia hopped out along with
two PRT troopers. Colin’s second-in-command approached him while the troopers
took positions next to Lung’s fallen form.

“I was told you met a new parahuman we’d be taking back to the PRT building?”

TRUTH

Damn it. Forgot to turn that off.

“Yes, she’s back there.” Colin jerked his thumb over his shoulder in the
direction of the alleyway while deactivating his lie detector with a flick of
his eyes. “Her clothes were destroyed in the fight so she’s hiding. I hope we
have something in the chopper to lend her?”

Miss Militia’s brow furrowed as she thought about it. “Should have some
fire-proof blankets.”

“I shall leave her in your capable hands then.”
Last edited: Oct 13, 2016
* 680

* 6thfloormadness
* Sep 21, 2016
* Reader mode

Threadmarks

LEANANSIDHE

UNSEELIE COURT

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #3

Crawler's power? Interesting. I look forward to more. Also, where does the name
Voorhees come from? Mythological reference? Pop culture?
* 12

EOTYRANNUS

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #4

> Leanansidhe said:
> Crawler's power? Interesting. I look forward to more. Also, where does the
> name Voorhees come from? Mythological reference? Pop culture?
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Jason Vorhees, from the Friday the 13th movies, IIRC?
* 42

Threadmarks Chapter 3
Threadmarks

6THFLOORMADNESS

SPOOPY

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #5

Chapter 3

In the movies, whenever someone is given a blanket by paramedics or whoever,
they always drape it over the person’s shoulders. Miss Militia did the same
thing to me when she approached with a blanket she had grabbed from the
helicopter. It may have been the correct call when someone needed heat or
comforting, but I needed coverage. I didn’t want to have a big section down my
front exposed so I quickly readjusted the blanket around me like a towel or a
toga. Once I was satisfied that my modesty was protected, I looked at Miss
Militia.

“So...what happens now?”

“Well first we get you checked out a doctor to make sure you’re okay.”

I shrugged. “I feel fine but if you insist.”

Miss Militia paused. “You’re not in pain?”

I held up a hand and wiggled my fingers to show off. “Nope, I was hurt pretty
badly earlier but I healed through it and then body started making this greasy
chemical that protected me from Lung’s fire.” I frowned as I examined my hand.
“I think I’m still producing the stuff, wonder how I make it stop.”

I wiped my hand on the blanket and examined my palm. Still greasy. I wiped it on
the blanket again and then looked at it. Man, how much of the stuff is on me? I
started vigorously wringing my hand back and forth in the blanket. I was doing
it so hard and fast I half expected to start a fire from the friction. And
wouldn’t that be ironic? I finally looked at my hand.

“Why won’t it stop? I’m not on fire anymore, I don’t need you!” I screamed at my
hand.

“Alright, calm down,” Miss Militia said placatingly. “Take a breath.”

Realizing that my screaming probably wasn’t helping the situation, I did what I
was told.

“Now,” the hero said gently. “There are a number of very intelligent doctors
working for the PRT, as well as plenty of Tinkers and Thinkers. I’m sure one of
them will be able to help you figure out how your powers work if you wanted to
ride back with me.”

“What? No, I need to get home soon before my dad wakes up. Plus, I need to go to
sleep soon because I have school in the morning…” I looked at my hands, covered
in chemicals like they were there was no way I could go to school without being
outed as a parahuman.

Maybe I could wear gloves?

Miss Militia didn’t say anything. I got the feeling she already knew where both
my mind and this conversation were going to end up and was willing to let me
work it out for myself rather than push me along.

That still leaves the problem of my hair. I sniffled at the loss of my beloved
curls. Any hat I wore could easily be stolen off my head and we aren’t supposed
to wear hats in school anyway…

I sighed.

“Alright,” I said meekly. “I’ll come with you.”

Miss Militia let out a warm chuckle. “There’s no need to sound you’re being sent
to prison, we aren’t going to arrest you.”

“No, I just…I thought my powers sucked, I could barely heal myself from little
knife wounds at first. Then I find out I can get in a fight with freaking Lung
and walk away unharmed. Suddenly, my stupid power doesn’t seem so stupid. I was
looking forward to going home and figuring it out. If someone else figures it
out…” I trailed off, not sure how to articulate what it was I was feeling.

“Then you won’t feel as special. You don’t want someone else knowing your power
better than you do because it’s your power.”

“Yes!” I paused as I thought about it. “Does that make me selfish?”

“Not at all,” Miss Militia said, reassuringly. “It makes you normal.”

I snorted. “I stood there while Lung tried and failed to kill me, multiple time.
Normal has gone out the window.”

“Fair enough. Now then, you say you’re not in pain, can you feel the patches on
your face? I think they’re where you mask melted.”

~Adaptation~

The ride back to the PRT building was uncomfortable. Not because of anything
anyone had done, Miss Militia and the PRT guys in the chopper were nothing but
polite. It was uncomfortable because I realized I had no options.

When I had first discovered I was a parahuman I had dismissed the whole cape
scene as a possibility because I thought my powers were too weak. At some point
during the aftermath of the fight with Lung I had realized that I could go be a
legitimate hero and I had been excited about it.

Now there’s only one possibility, I thought sullenly. Join the Wards.

It wasn’t that I hated the Wards, though I was worried it would just be high
school with superpowers, I hated the fact that the choice was taken out of my
hands.

Not like I could join New Wave and get them to fix my powers...wait a second. I
could totally do that! Panacea is a healer, if my powers are misbehaving she
should be able to make them go back to normal!

I was a little worried that if she did something my powers would go back to
being weak but that could be worth it if my skin stopped looking as greasy as a
burger from Fugly Bob’s.

Wonder if she could regrow my hair?

Then again, joining New Wave would require unmasking and if my powers went back
to being weak that was the last thing I wanted. Plus, that would probably make
things difficult for Dad.

I wasn’t happy with the idea of joining New Wave, I might decide to stick with
the Wards after all, but I did like the fact that I knew I had options now.

No matter which team I join they’re probably going to want to talk to Dad.

That was a conversation I was not looking forward to. It was hard enough talking
to Dad about normal day-to-day stuff. Talking to him about the fact that I was a
parahuman and had gotten in a fight with the leader of the ABB? I can’t even
imagine how that would go.

Dad’s still at home asleep right now. I’m going to have to call and wake him up
and tell him to come down to pick me up.

I put my head in my hands.

I really was not looking forward to this.

~Adaptation~

“You fought LUNG!?”

I tried not to flinch as Dad yelled at me. To be fair, fighting Lung was a
pretty dumb thing to do for the vast majority of people.

I was then engulfed in another bone crushing hug.

When Dad had first come into the conference room and seen the state I was in he
had immediately rushed forward and held me for a good minute. Seeing me without
my hair and wearing PRT provided clothes would certainly cause his mind to leap
to the worst possible scenario. But my fighting Lung was beyond the pale for
even him to imagine. Thus: the second hug.

“I was so worried about you when I realized you went out,” Dad whispered to me.
“And now you’re telling me you did the most dangerous thing anyone in this city
can do.”

I could only nod in his embrace.

“I was a wreck after losing your mother, I don’t think I could survive losing
you too.”

That was not something I had expected to hear. Sure, on an intellectual level I
knew that Dad cared about me but it was obvious he had trouble showing it.
Between Mom dying and me being a teenage girl, Dad had a lot of trouble
connecting with me though it wasn’t all his fault. I hadn’t told him about the
situation at school because I liked that fact that home was a place I didn’t
have to think about that. And after the locker Dad had tried to get more
involved but I had been so depressed because I hadn’t liked my power that I had
barely noticed his attempts. Hearing the emotion in his voice as he talked about
his fear of me dying, that was a wake up call.

“I’m so-sorry Dad, I ju-just wanted to do the right thing. I couldn’t walk
away.” I was able to keep myself from breaking into tears, but just barely.

“Indeed Mr. Hebert. Your daughter’s powers seemed to be a good counter to Lung.
She was able to heal through any damage he did and her body starting
manufacturing the grease to combat his fire.”

Dad and I jumped in surprise. Seems we had both forgotten Miss Militia was in
the room with us.

“So, uh, she fought Lung?” Dad asked as we retook our seats.

I wasn’t entirely sure because of the scarf, but I think Miss Militia was
smiling as she spoke. “Indeed, she was able to keep him busy long enough for
Armsmaster to subdue and capture him. Without her, the gang leader might still
be out on the street.”

“Oh, well that’s good.”

Dad seemed torn between wanting to be proud of me for stopping a dangerous
criminal and horrified that his only child had fought someone that could beat
the entire local Protectorate team. Personally, I was feeling the same thing
right along with him. Fighting Lung with what I thought my power had been was
stupid.

“Speaking of the grease,” Dad said as he looked at his now stained shirt from
where my hands and face had made contact. “Any chance of figuring out how to
turn it off?”

“Taylor tells me she has no control over it. Her body only started making it in
response to the fire so it might go away on its own but if that turns out to not
be the case we’ll contact New Wave in the morning and ask Panacea to take a
look.”

“Oh, well that’s good.” Dad paused, apparently realizing he had repeated
himself. “Sorry, I just-I’m not sure what to say in this situation.”

“It’s quite all right, very few parents handle their children becoming
parahumans very smoothly.”

Dad drummed his fingers against his knee. “Alright, so we wait to see if Taylor
goes back to normal in the morning and if not, give you a call. Anything else
that needs to be done?”

“Well that sort of depends on Taylor here,” Miss Militia said, looking at me.

“It does?” I asked.

The super heroine nodded. “While I think the Wards are the best option and that
you should give serious consideration to joining, you aren’t required to and we
can’t force you. If you do want to join, or at least think about it, there is
some paperwork I can give you to take home that explains a lot of what would be
involved in that. How much you’d be paid, hours you’d work, what would be
expected of you in school, what sorts of criminals you’d be expected to help
stop, what sorts of criminals you’d be expected to run away from. That sort of
thing.”

“Oh, well it wouldn’t hurt to look into it, at least. Right Dad?”

Dad look at me with a worried frown on his face. “I’m not sure I’m comfortable
with the thought of you running around fighting crime, but you are right. We
need to look at what your options are before making a decision.”

“Very well, I shall go collect the paperwork,” Miss Militia said as she stood
up. “We’ve got your contact information and-” Miss Militia withdrew a card from
her pocket. “Here’s mine. Once I return you two are free to head home. If either
have you have any questions or concerns, please, do not hesitate to call me.”

After Miss Militia had left the room, Dad turned to look at me. “So...she seems
nice.”

“Yea,” I agreed. “She wasn’t pushy or anything.”

“Taylor,” my Dad said quietly. “Is this what you want? To join the Wards?”

“I don’t know,” I answered honestly. “I want to be a hero. I want to do
something good, something I can look back on and be proud of. Maybe that means
joining the Wards.” I shrugged. “Maybe it means joining New Wave.”

My father sighed. “I realize it’s probably a pipe dream given that you’re a cape
in Brockton Bay, but I just want you to be safe Taylor.”

I smiled. “Don’t worry Dad. Whatever we decided on, even if I do get hurt, I’m a
quick healer.”

~Adaptation~

The shower I had taken when we’d gotten home last night had helped cut down on
the grease but only for a few minutes. So I had resigned myself to making a mess
of my sheets while I slept. Waking up this morning, I now knew what it felt like
to be a fast-food burrito. I was wrapped in a blanket that had absorbed so much
grease it was probably more liquid than solid at this point.

I climbed out of bed and made my way over to the mirror I had in my room.
Staring back was a thin girl with a too-wide mouth, a bald head, and skin that
had a tell-tale shine of grease on it. In other words: me.

I couldn’t decide whether to feel depressed that I was now as ugly as the girls
at school always said I was, or happy that my power had turned out to not suck.

My internal debate was interrupted by a knock on the door.

“Taylor, are you awake in there? I heard movement, wanted to check if things are
back to normal...you know, relatively speaking”

“No, I’m still a greasy mess. We’ll have to give Miss Militia a call, see if she
knows anyone that can fix me.”

“Alright, go ahead and get dressed. I’ll ring her up while I make breakfast.”

“Thanks Dad.”

I searched through my dresser for a set of clothes that I didn’t care about
until I realized that that was everything I owned. The stuff that I had enjoyed
wearing had long since been ruined by various ‘accidents’ at school. Everything
still in my dresser was now old, ratty, and worn.

Grabbing a random pair of jeans and a shirt, I got dressed and headed down the
stairs.

I entered the kitchen just as Dad was hanging up the phone.

“What’s the news?” I asked.

Dad put a plate of scrambled eggs on the table in front of me. “Miss Militia
said we should head over the to PRT building. She’ll have Panacea meet us there
as well as Armsmaster. Between the two of them, she says they should at least
have an idea on where to go from there if they can’t fix you...not that you
aren’t fine the way you are! I just-”

“Dad,” I interrupted before he dug himself any deeper. “I know what you mean,
relax, it’s fine.”

He nodded, embarrassed. “Sorry, I’m trying to be understanding but this is all
so new to me I keep worrying that I’m going to put my foot in my mouth.”

“It’s alright, really,” I said as I started eating. “It’s not like I’m going to
burst into tears just because of a random comment.”

“Thanks,” Dad said as he walked up next to me. He leaned down and kissed the top
of my head and then immediately started gagging. He grabbed his nearly empty
coffee cup and gargled the last of the drink before spitting it in the sink.

“Are you okay Dad? I’m not poisonous am I?” I tried to make it sound like a joke
but my voice was clearly strained.

“Bleh,” my father said as he wiped his mouth on his sleeve. “Well I can’t say I
know what most kinds of poisons taste like but what say we get a move on just in
case? I didn’t swallow any of it so I should be safe to for the drive, at
least.”

“Yea, let’s do that,” I said as I quickly shoveled the last of my breakfast in
my mouth.
Last edited: Oct 13, 2016
* 658

* 6thfloormadness
* Sep 21, 2016
* Reader mode

Threadmarks

ORMUSTHEZEEBRA

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #6

Gotta say adaptive powers are probably some of my favourites, I'm definitely
interested in seeing where this goes. Watched.
* 27

ARGENT

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #7

This is interesting and I don't think I have every seen a story bedside some one
shots with Taylor having Crawler's power. You did a good job with Armsmaster
being bad with people without the going over board. The fight scene flowed
nicely too.

> 6thfloormadness said:
> “I shall leave her in your capable hands then.”
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

The smartest move that Armsmaster ever made.
Last edited: Sep 21, 2016
* 48

TTESTAGR

JOY

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #8

Jason. From the Friday the 13th movies.
* 28

INSOMNIUS

SLEEPLESS

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #9

I really hope this is Crawler's power. Taylor Munchkinning that power would be
something to see. Admittedly, it looks like this version is really slow.

Did she do any exercising at all in the intervening months? Because I could see
her power vastly improving her physical abilities but as she didn't realize that
it let her adapt until she fought Lung, I'm doubting it. Which then brings up
the question of why she wouldn't if she wanted to be a hero.
* 12

LEANANSIDHE

UNSEELIE COURT

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #10

> ttestagr said:
> Jason. From the Friday the 13th movies.
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Okay, not a movie I've ever seen but I have heard of it. Why did Armsmaster give
Taylor the name of a murderer from a movie?
* 1

TTESTAGR

JOY

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #11

> Leanansidhe said:
> Okay, not a movie I've ever seen but I have heard of it. Why did Armsmaster
> give Taylor the name of a murderer from a movie?
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Because Jason shrugs off just about any damage people try to do to him in later
movies.
* 36

LEANANSIDHE

UNSEELIE COURT

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #12

> ttestagr said:
> Because Jason shrugs off just about any damage people try to do to him in
> later movies.
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Okay, that makes sense. Thanks for informing me. Still not a very Ward friendly
name though. However, they (PRT, Protectorate, Youth Guard) will probably change
it if Taylor joins the Wards so that likely won't matter much.
* 6

WETAPUNGA

GOD OF UGLY THINGS

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #13

Crawler Taylor

Oh very much followed
* 4

USERID70

SENIOR TUBE TECHNICIAN

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #14

> Insomnius said:
> Did she do any exercising at all in the intervening months? Because I could
> see her power vastly improving her physical abilities but as she didn't
> realize that it let her adapt until she fought Lung, I'm doubting it.
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Depending on how her powers work it might counter any work she tries.
* 4

TWEI

HIDING IN THE SNUGGLENEST

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #15

Well, this is definitely watched, at least. Adaptive powers are definitely neat.
* 4

KITTIUS

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #16

Interesting start! I look forward to seeing where this goes.
* 4

KAZINIUS

LEFT OUT OF THE DECK

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #17

well one of the main problems with crawlers power, apart from the obvious
physical changes.
Is he stopped being affected by emotions, he literally became immune to sadness,
hence why he had no morals.

It will be interesting to see if this happens to Taylor.
* 16

SCAPHEAP

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #18

> Leanansidhe said:
> Okay, not a movie I've ever seen but I have heard of it. Why did Armsmaster
> give Taylor the name of a murderer from a movie?
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Also Jason's mask was melted into his face after part 7 and Taylor well...
* 17

STEWART92

WHAT A YEAR.

Adviser (CrW)
* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #19

Liking this! Let's hope she doesn't get drowned for too long!

Her cape name will get changed to Gil..

*tries to ignore Levi staring at a calendar*
* 10

CURVED_SW0RD

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #20

Meat from the meat dimension? Yes please!
* 8

BLUEHELIX

ONE LIFE, TO SAVE THEM ALL

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #21

I have such hype for this. I'm glad you made a new thread for this. I wonder
what happnes when she fights an endbringer.
* 3

STEWART92

WHAT A YEAR.

Adviser (CrW)
* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #22

> BlueHelix said:
> I have such hype for this. I'm glad you made a new thread for this. I wonder
> what happnes when she fights an endbringer.
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Levi = High pressure resistant and anti-drowning
Behemoth= God like Taylor
Simurgh = ...Juggernaut helmet skull?
* 19

LOSTGAMER64

RELEVANT JOKE FROM: CURRENT YEAR

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #23

> 6thfloormadness said:
> It was at that moment that I heard what it was Lung was saying. “…the
> children, just shoot. Doesn’t matter your aim, just shoot. You see one lying
> on the ground? Shoot the little bitch twice more to be sure. We give them no
> chances to be clever or lucky, understand?”
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

If this hasn't become a meme already in making it one now.

Edit: This is the first story I've seen where Taylor goes bald in the first
three chapters. You sir, are a madman.
Last edited: Sep 21, 2016
* 20

TWEI

HIDING IN THE SNUGGLENEST

* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #24

> Lostgamer64 said:
> If this hasn't become a meme already in making it one now.
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

It's a trope. Or a black hole of canon, I suppose. :V

EDIT: Amusingly, in one of the two fics I'm really working on at least
moderately seriously (the other being Defiant), she does hear everything else he
says. She just immediately forgets about everything else out of murderous rage
after that.
Last edited: Sep 21, 2016
* 11

STEWART92

WHAT A YEAR.

Adviser (CrW)
* Sep 21, 2016

*
* #25

> Lostgamer64 said:
> If this hasn't become a meme already in making it one now.
> Click to expand...
> Click to shrink...

Hows this? It's a rush job I admit

Spoiler

Still, happens almost every fic XD
* 69

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