“Okay.  I’ll have this memorized by the end of the week.”

“I expect you will.  That brings us to more mundane matters.  You’ll be enrolled full-time at Arcadia High School.  It’s close to the Wards headquarters, and your teachers have been informed about your special nature.

Alright, looks like the map I was given not having the school was based on speculation by Ridprime due to the path Leviathan took on the map.

I’m afraid there’s no easy answers as far as your appearance and how the rest of the student body will react to you.”

Yeeah, metal skin isn’t exactly conducive to a secret identity.

Weld looked down at his hands.  His body, from skin to hair to bone, was all metal and alloys of varying types.  “I’ve dealt with it before, I’ll manage.”

“We can’t enroll you in the co-op program, as your absence would be noted, and would draw attention to others who are using the co-op program to mask their attendance in the Wards.

Unfortunate. 

It won’t be easy, attending high school full-time, keeping up with your coursework and leading the team in your off hours.”

Yeah, this sounds like a lot of work.

“It’s fine.  I don’t have to sleep much, anyways, so it’s good to keep busy.”

…fair enough.

…I’ve been using the phrase “I suppose” a lot over the last few posts, haven’t I.

“Their leader has made overtures to us, offering cooperation in helping us regain control of the city.  We have refused her for the time being.  If she approaches you, you are in no way, shape or form permitted to agree to any deals.”

Hm, interesting. I suppose Purity does just want a good, intact place for Aster to grow up.

“Noted.  Let’s see…  Coil, powers unknown.

Shame, honestly. I would’ve liked to see how they’d classify what he does.

The Travelers have high ratings on their powers, but their crimes are low end, pretty much.  There’s the Undersiders… three Master classifications in one team.”

Huh. I suppose Regent and Bitch fall under Master too.

It’s interesting that the PRT doesn’t seem to be aware of Taylor leaving the Undersiders yet. I mean, sure, they haven’t seen much of the Undersiders since the attack, unless there’s been another time skip, but they at least have reason to suspect that might be the case, even if they can’t necessarily share that reason with Weld.

“So a big priority will be safeguarding incoming supplies from relief efforts, protecting key areas of the city so it can recuperate from the disaster.”

“Yes, for the time being.”

Makes sense.

“Let’s see, the next group is… Fenrir’s Chosen?”

Okay, this one I don’t remember hearing about before. Are they new?

Fenrir is a name heavily tied to the apocalypse (specifically the Norse apocalypse, Ragnarok), and that’s exactly what the Endbringer attack was for the city. An apocalypse.

“One of two major offshoots of the Aryan villain group, Empire Eighty-Eight, which fell apart after the death of their leader, Kaiser.  

Oh, it’s one of the E44s… did Hookwolf nab control over that and change his name, or was there another wolf villain around?

Fenrir’s Chosen are led by Hookwolf.  Violent, utterly merciless, and reveling in the current chaos.”

Ah, well, half right. Didn’t change his name.

But yeah, a wolf taking charge after an apocalypse? The Norse allusion makes loads of sense.

“So they’ve got, what, a following of homeless?”

“Brockton Bay doesn’t, or didn’t,  have many that you could strictly call homeless, as there were so many abandoned buildings to squat in.  When the Endbringer attacked, he chose the area with many of these buildings.”

He did ruin a lot of the Docks.

“I think I remember, yeah.  The area where the fight started didn’t exactly look upscale.”

“The sad irony of this is that the defending parahumans protected that area, while other locations were leveled by the tidal waves.  That area, known to locals as the Docks, was not under the control of any organized crime or villain organization even before the attack.

Because of the events of Arcs 1, 4 and 5… leaving it open for the Merchants. Damn it.

After the battle’s conclusion, it was swiftly occupied by the Merchants and growing numbers of their followers, and is now one of the areas with reliable shelter.

…I mean, at least they’re doing that much. They’re still pieces of shit, though.

Not entirely, but more than many.  By the time our local heroes were finished with search, rescue and minimizing damage, their number of followers had reached a critical mass.  In the past several days, they’ve begun attacking the city infrastructure, the airport, grocery stores, malls and they’ve repeatedly seized medical supplies and food as they come in.”

I see. Thus the need for the guards around the supply helicopter in 8.8.

“Context.  They’ve become a rallying point, representatives and leaders for those on the lowest rungs of society.  Too many civilians who were the have-nots think allying with the Merchants is a way to become the haves.

Hm. So they’re growing… maybe they’re even going to end up being the ones to take the Alternative Beep Boops’ place at the Docks?

People that were angry, disenfranchised or both have gravitated towards the group, are seeking to overturn the social order.”

Of all the groups to rise to power in the wake of the Endbringer attack…