Broker
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Chapter 239
🕑 Added 2025-02-03 17:00:08 +0000 UTCAs the wind whipped past her, the booms of their acceleration washing past her glowing white armor. A pair of illusory white dragon wings flapping at her sides. Fancy. Sonya took a moment to re-familiarize herself with her body and her refined abilities. All of them had been condensed into new powers that made up a greater whole than the sum of their parts. First, of course, was Broker. It hadn’t changed much but she knew what it was now. It was the power that all Arbiter’s possessed in the past. The only difference between her and them was she didn’t have the ancient worldpact restraining what she could do with it. She wasn’t some lawbringer, after all.
The second was Deus Ex Machina, she knew it had some sort of higher function, she could feel it. However, that power seemed to still be out of her reach even in her new state. That or it was something passive that she didn’t fully understand. Deus Ex Machina was split into to sub abilities as well that made up the bulk of her powerset. Cybernetic Paragon was the first of those and it was comprised of all of her physical enhancements, technopathy, mental enhancements, everything. She wasn’t sure if it literally meant Paragon, but she felt like she could throw one mean punch now. The second was Will of the Architect which had a lot of her construct-based abilities baked in, including Hard Light, Augmented Reality, and Digital Storage.
Then there was Regalia of Sonya Chernovna. She flushed a little bit at the name and grinned to herself. Now that was a good feeling. A power all her own, not based on anything else other than her own legend. And the best part;
You’re grinning like a fool.
“I’m having the time of my life! Excuse me for being jolly!”
This feels so strange. We’re separate but together at the same time. I am… myself.
“That was the plan,” Sonya said with a shrug as they passed over yet another field. She did a quick barrel roll, laughing as her wings flapped. She allowed herself to dive into the instincts of the new power and was pleased to see many of the functions that were allotted to Visage of Titania were still there, just hers now. “Looks like I can turn just your voice on if I want to, we don’t have to be in full regalia to talk.”
Yes, I can see it. Benefits of being a will within an ability is that I know all the ins and outs.
“So it’s like Qilin’s Wisdom?”
Something like that. I think even I will still have to explore the full depths of the ability. And that's if you don’t keep cramming new functions into it, Ishtar said sardonically.
“Works for me,” Sonya laughed, “And I’m totally upgrading you.”
I am not a waifu in one of your stupid mobile games!
“Oh my god, did you just say waifu?” Sonya laughed.
It is… so good to have you back.
“Missed you too sis,” Sonya said with a chuckle. Her smile relaxed, “I’ll tell you everything that happened to me once this is all done. Got a lot to share and people to introduce you to. It’s hard to explain.”
I trust you, Ishtar said, So what kind of grand entrance are we going to make?
Sonya tilted her head, “Well I was thinking about it and I have just the thing. It’s very much my style after all,” she said and briefly explained what she had in mind.
You are… insufferable.
“You love it.”
You’re not really going to say that, are you?
“Of course I am!”
There was a pause and then laughter, genuine laughter in the back of Sonya’s mind. She felt the touch of Ishtar’s presence rumbling with mirth. Alright, this is your show, little sister. Go wild.
“Oh. I intend to,” she said and reached out with technopathy.
—
Amos threw on his jacket and zipped it up. The long rain-coat like garb was made entirely of the latest materials he’d created from a combination of metals and leathers acquired from dungeons. He slipped the respirator over his mouth and tugged the goggles on as well, throwing the hood up next. He turned for his gauntlets, heavy looking things with a whole litany of functions baked in and grabbed the first one.
“Babe!”
Amos pulled it on, “Almost ready!”
“What’s ‘AnSsupergmgmix1?”
Amos froze and spun around, darting down the short hall from his suit-up room to the control room in his lab. He slid to a stop, “What did you say?” he asked, pulling his respirator down and racing towards the computer where Colin sat. All of the screens had turned black except for one which had a loading bar on it. It had a single message on it.
<Uploading to all Drones: AnSsupergmgmix1>
He blinked, “No way. That’s our…”
<Loading Playlist>
“Amos?” Colin asked.
<Activating Speaker System>
Amos burst into laughter and threw his hood back, “She’s back!” he turned and picked his boyfriend up, spinning him around, “She’s BACK!”
—
Another compound fell.
Liberty felt the strength slowly leaving her body as each of the members of her cult were dealt with by whatever monstrous force was attacking it. There was only one left. One compound standing between her and defeat. She heaved out a breath as her arms fell to her sides, the sword in her hand was chipped and worn. She took a small amount of petty pleasure in knowing that she’d damaged Black Lotus’ students’ weapon beyond repair.
The rage had dwindled, each blow forcing it out of her as her sister just kept coming. Those golden flames from the other brat seemed to catch and spread rather than grow weaker. She flicked her eyes towards the dark haired girl, sitting off near the edge of the battlefield with her legs crossed and her fists pressed together. Just sitting there while Harbinger does the work, cocky little… she trailed off in her thoughts as she looked towards the gathered crowd.
Handmaiden was there, her arms crossed as she watched the fight. Her maid gown dancing a bit in the wind that had grown increasingly fierce as things wound down and that strange, mighty presence from earlier faded. Not far from Handmaiden was the red haired woman she’d fought in Seattle, Evergreen. She stood with a grin on her face and head tilted slightly to the right. Liberty met her eyes and Evergreen pressed her lips out and waggled her eyebrows in a taunt.
Bitch.
“Guildmaster Bluestar is here!” someone shouted.
Another one?
She whipped her head towards the side opposite the pair and saw a woman in blue robes walk out, her brown hair fluttering around her. A dour looking boy stood at her left, slipping a pair of knives into slots on the back of his belt. At her right was a man in a black hood and leathers carrying a bow in one hand, he was grinning ear to ear and talking lightly with another man in a plague doctor’s mask. With them was another face that hammered home everything.
Pence. The muscular member of her Round Table. The man who could move anywhere and escape any obstacle with powers over direction and momentum, was bound tightly by a strange black creature made of some foul ink-like substance. It’s mad eyes were watching him, its head bounding about around his to observe from every angle.
Where are Kant and Phillip?
“It’s over, Liberty.”
She turned her head towards Harbinger with a snarl, “You think it’s-”
THUMP
What?
The little voices of her followers, their thoughts, they vanished in an instant. The last compound was gone. She looked down at her shaky hands, her muscles had thinned down to the light muscle of a common athlete. Her fingers looked stretched and worn, what little armor remained on her body felt heavy. So heavy. She wheezed out a breath as a knee buckled beneath her and she fell. Both knees finally touching the ground. She felt hot. Tired. How long had it been since she felt tired?
The crunch of boots approached through the torn battlefield and she looked up into her sister’s blue eyes. The gold flames licked against her shoulders and her hammer was lowered to her side. There was no anger there. No hatred. Just… no. No no no. Don’t you look at me like that. Don’t you dare look at me like that! She clenched her teeth as a croaking sound escaped her dry throat, but all she could feel was her heart collapsing under her sister’s cold, indifferent gaze.
“You’ll die for your crimes,” Harbinger said, “But it won’t be on a battlefield. You thought you were above the world, well now the world is going to judge you, Liberty,” she said and raised her finger to her ear, “Liberty has been secured.”
—
Otis raced past the other heroes as they finished securing the last remnants of the cult. The bodies of heroes, villains, cultists, and pandora soldiers were scattered everywhere. He launched himself into the air once he had enough space, calling on the power he’d discovered in the camp dungeon to give himself flight. He didn’t care if the heroes saw him fly anymore, it wasn’t necessary to hide it. He’d just wipe all their memories once he finished with his task.
<”Liberty has been secured.”>
Otis’ eyes went wide, Already? Wait- who is that? That isn’t Crusader! That’s the little sister! Ishtar’s bratty little spy! Of course! She set it up to make her home-grown hero look good! I still have time. I told the news crew to keep their reporting on a delay just in case anything happened. I just have to-
KRAK-OOOM!
The bolt of lightning struck him square in the back, sending him hurtling back towards the ground. He hadn’t sensed it coming at all. He bounced once off the dirt as a few nobody heroes came running over, shouting his name. He snarled and got to his feet only for something cold to dig into his side. He looked down and saw a puddle of blackness vanish into the ground as a boot drove into his nose. He was forced to his feet by the impact, staggering backwards as blood splattered from his quickly healing nose.
“You little!” he snarled as the woman with gray hair he had taken to task earlier in her first attempted assassination stood before him, lighting sparkling on her body.
She grinned, “Sup!”
He called up his sword again, “Out of my way, villain!” he shouted.
“Nope!” she snickered and vanished when he lunged at her, turning into lightning and darting across the bodies on the ground, “Not letting you touch me either! Learned my lesson!”
SNKT
Another knife dug into his thigh, he spun and swung down at the ground as that shadow vanished again. Something burned in his blood and his regeneration raced to push out whatever poison was spreading through his veins. If I switch to Immunity I won’t have all my stats capped, he thought as he turned around. Delaying me, again!
KRAK-
There!
THOOOM!
He spun and raised his sword as another bolt of lighting raced towards him horizontally, streaking across the field. A shadow raced up his arm and yanked before he could lock in his block. He wrenched himself free only for the hot might of a true bolt of lightning to crash into his chest. Otis was lifted off the ground and sent flying back, crashing into a crowd of soldiers and heroes who quickly gathered to his side.
“Otis! Hero Otis! Are you okay?”
He pulled himself free of their hands as they helped him up, “I’m fine! Nothing can kill me!” he shouted and raised his sword, “Certainly not some villains!”
I’m being watched by them now, I could make them forget, but doing it so often… he ground his teeth, I still need to get back to the place where Liberty is.
He shifted a foot back and the woman snickered, floating above the ground a few dozen meters away. She was glowing with electricity as a shadowy form rose up at her left, dark eye staring at him from behind a cowl as violet blades extended from nothing.
“Thinking of running?” the supervillain Kerauna asked.
“The mistress has made her intentions for you plain,” the supervillain Blackrazor hissed.
Otis narrowed his eyes as murmurs rose up among the heroes behind him.
“I heard some people saying things, but does Otis really have a rivalry with Ishtar?”
“What happened between them?”
“She’s taken an interest in him and nobody’s seen her since she dragged him off earlier.”
“They fought, you don’t think…?”
“He won’t run from this, will he? If he can fight Ishtar then…”
Otis pressed his lips together, looking between the two supervillains as they stood, waiting for him to make a move. Dragging things out just like their boss. He frowned, it seemed like he was going to have to overdo it today after all. He needed to make good on his threat to Ishtar. He liked the plan he’d come up with. He raised his hand and called up his menu, reaching for the cheat tab. Just need to switch out one of my stats for Anonymous for a few moments. He thought when something reached his ears.
He blinked, Piano? No, pipe organ?
The pipe organ burst out from every direction, the sound of drums accompanying it and the hum of string instruments. Then came the brass section. It swelled and swelled and swelled as he looked around, trying to find the source of the strange music. Some sort of ability? Who on earth would-
“Uh…” one of the faceless heroes behind him said, “...why do I hear boss music?”
And then, there was light.
The sky bloomed with a pink glow as a disk formed above everything, a symbol taking shape within it, that of an all seeing eye that flickered and crackled before becoming solid and stable. He looked up and cracked his neck, his glowing eyes narrowing. You’re already here then. Come back for more? You think you can just take my glory from me?
“HA HA HA HA HA HA HA!”
Hundreds, thousands of panels of hard light formed in the sky and raced towards the ground, slamming into it and stacking on top of one another. They formed panels and steps as they rose higher and higher into the sky to meet with a gleaming form that stood at the top. A suit of illustrious white armor and gleaming white helm. A pair of ethereal draconic wings stretching out on either side, not directly attached but clearly part of the ensemble. Around it, a dozen marble skinned figures with wings hung in the air with golden swords in their hands.
“Otis!”
The voice was lyrical, the cruel rasp that once accompanied it replaced with something otherworldly that echoed in his chest. There was a whimsy to the laughter that followed as the distant figure spread out her arms in greeting, clawed gauntlets curling into fists. The eye above grew brighter as the flying soldiers raised their swords at attention. Her wings flared before vanishing and she landed on the top step. The music swelled until a new song began, a merry ditty on an electric piano.
Ishtar presented herself in all her glory as Otis ground his teeth.
“This isn’t even my final form!”
Comments
Matthew A Elliott
I had "Ready to Die" by Andrew MK in my head at the time.
Hekyll
For some reason my mind read "Merry ditty" and "electric piano" and somehow thought of Sans from undertale
Christoph Lüddecke
You truly are an amazing author. I just subscribed today and devoured the additional chapters. Thank you for this amazing story! Keep it up!!
Wintermelody
Thanks for the Chapter
Ant1h3ld
It's obviously "One Winged Angel" and every Sephiroth Chant is replaced by Chernovna. ...they won't associate Sonya with Ishtar thanks to the Clark Kenting that causes them to ignore the fact they have the exact same color scheme as well.
Matthew A Elliott
That's very true!
Matthew A Elliott
I didn't find anything that really fit, but generally speaking: Dark Souls/Demon Souls music is a good example.
StSteve
I like to imagine it's similar to Raphael's boss music from Baldurs Gate 3.
Brandon Lydick
Is the music Sonya's playing real music? If so can I have linky?
Ant1h3ld
I think, the fact that she is the Broker and *will* gather more abilities that she'll integrate into her body – which will change her "form" – is truth enough.
Matthew A Elliott
The real question is, would that be considered a Lie since she doesn't know for certain if she'll get a new form?
Matthew A Elliott
Oh shit... you might be right that would hit so much better. Hoho
Ant1h3ld
Maybe change the last line to "This isn't even my final form." Really hammer it in that Ishtar will grow and grow and grow. ...and it's the more iconic line.
