Massive Disaster 4-13 (Patreon)

Floor-to-ceiling windows caught New Abraham's twin suns like a prism, geometric shadows dancing across mahogany furniture that every person in the office knew cost more than most colonists made in a decade. The kinetic barriers hummed at a frequency just below hearing, but they still buzzed like mosquitos to Zedd’s ears, something he regretted about juicing himself up with the serum. He resisted the urge to sigh, knowing that it would break his attempt at seeming unbothered, but it really was more annoying than he’d like. How does Caleb live with this? He could only guess that it was because his mascot was around kinetic barriers far more often so he had grown used to it, while Zedd preferred… well, he did prefer to use his own proprietary tech in almost every situation. But who could blame him, really?It worked better and it looked better. Speaking of looking better…His gaze drifted over to the windows again, a slight smile growing on his face.

Over three years since he'd first set foot on this frontier rock. Three years, and the skyline at the furthest points of New Abraham had transformed from prefab modules into actual architecture, white-and-blue buildings rising like chrome fingers against the orange-tinted atmosphere. He couldn’t even see Providence from here, but he knew the city he called home looked even more stunning than anything New Abraham Central had.

Funny how money changes things.

Zedd shifted in the custom chair, leather creaking under his weight as he tracked the room's occupants with eyes that didn’t have to fake their boredom. Governor David Shen-Abraham sat across the polished conference table like he owned the air between them, which technically he did.

On paper, at least. 

Rich as sin or not, the man's fingers steepled, which meant he was already three moves ahead in whatever negotiation he thought they were having.

Behind Zedd's right shoulder, Hector stood motionless in his new “civilian” frame. Meant for day-to-day use where he didn’t have to worry about modulating his strength or walking around fully loaded with weaponry, the exoskeleton was sleek carbon fiber beneath a simple white t-shirt and dark trousers that made the whole thing somehow more unsettling. Like violence dressed up for a casual Friday. His optical sensors tracked each exit with mechanical precision, never quite focusing on any one person long enough to seem threatening but also never stopping either.

Kai occupied the mirror position on Zedd's left, black clothing making him blend into the shadows the morning light created. Silent as always, present as breathing.

The council was all arranged around the table in their usual configuration. Colonel Martinez sat ramrod straight in that Alliance-trained posture that screamed military even in civilian clothes, her eyes doing that little flinch thing whenever they landed on Hector's frame. It took a bit more effort than Zedd liked to keep himself from snorting at how uncomfortable she was. As if you don’t have a lot more to be worried about from me than a fucking cyborg of all things. The woman still had no idea how much he knew about her attempts to spy, even long after David gave up on it.Dr. Mehta leaned forward like she was dissecting the conversation for useful parts, fingers already twitching toward her datapad. Santos had her PR smile cranked to eleven, the kind that made Zedd's teeth ache with how sickly sweet it was. Dr. Patel hunched slightly over his notes, and Chen... Chen was doing that lawyer thing where he pretended to read documents while actually cataloging every word for future litigation.

"Look, David, we've got three game-changers here." Zedd let his hands gesture casually, the movement drawing eyes away from how Hector had shifted weight to his back foot. Always good to keep them watching the show instead of the security. "Prosthetics that interface directly with neural pathways, no lag, no rejection, full sensory feedback. Add on top of that Medigel-V that's already revolutionizing trauma care across human space, and then my new flash-cloning methods that can grow replacement organs in two days instead of two months."

Okaaaay, so maybe that last one was pushing it. Sure, you could get a basic organ like a liver or kidney in a couple days, but that required the kind of money and connections that got you into places like Ilium's specialty clinics. 

For everyone else stuck in the real galaxy, two months was optimistic.

Shen-Abraham leaned back, and there it was, that little light in his eyes that meant the credits were already dancing in his head. "You're right. The Terminus needs a medical center that isn't Alliance controlled or alien-maintained. Rapid treatment without hang-ups or issues for those that can afford it would skyrocket the population and signature of this colony."

"Making New Abraham a neutral ground for medical tourism sounding more and more like a good idea, right?" Zedd kept his tone light, like they were discussing weather patterns instead of fundamentally restructuring the colony's entire economic base.

"What it’s sounding like is trillions in revenue, hundreds of thousands of jobs created, and much more to come." Shen-Abraham was not exactly a simple man, but when you placed an opportunity in front of him, Zedd would bet half his company the man would never move backwards.

Colonel Martinez shifted in her chair, face already twitching in a way that told everyone in the room where she stood on this idea. "What about security clearances? Some of these procedures... they might risk us... censure."

There it is. The Alliance conditioning showing through bright and clear. For someone who lived in the Terminus, the woman was always worried about regulations and approved procedures when the point of the region was that you could literally make your own rules. Who gives a shit about red tape from a planet so many light years away?

Dr. Mehta pulled his attention away from Martinez as she leaned forward, eagerness written clear across her face. "The infrastructure requirements alone... we'd need to expand the medical quarter in size by 400%."

Santos' stylus tapped against her datapad in that nervous rhythm she probably didn't know she did. "Media positioning is crucial on this one. We'd have to get out in front of it."

Chen finally looked up from his legal documents, expression carefully neutral. "Liability frameworks need complete restructuring, though, and as the Colonel said, censure is an issue."

Zedd waved a hand dismissively, the gesture calculated to seem more casual than it was. "Yeah, we can do all that. On my part, I'm already running the biocompatibility matrices to make sure that everything I do is safe across the entire human genome." He checked the time on his watch, the movement drawing attention to the expensive piece. "Should have the preliminary results by Thursday."

Standing required the kind of fluid motion that reminded everyone in the room exactly what kind of enhancements he was selling. Hector and Kai pivoted with mechanical precision, no verbal communication needed. They'd done this dance enough times.

"Medical hub is entirely the plan, then. I'm glad you all agree." The smile that accompanied the words had just enough edge to make it clear that agreement had never really been optional. "Just make sure you keep the Alliance out of my labs and we're good."

The exit was clean, no fumbling with doors or awkward goodbyes. Just three figures moving in perfect sync toward the elevator, leaving behind a room full of people who'd just realized they'd agreed to something much bigger than they'd walked in expecting.

Classic.

Kai had the V-Coupe purring before they even hit the parking structure, that beautiful machine responding to his touch like it was built for it. Which, considering the modifications Zedd had made to the controls, it basically was. The leather seats still had that new car smell mixing with gun oil and the standard scent that followed Hector around these days; machine lubricant and controlled violence.

Zedd slid into the passenger seat, sunglasses already perched as the colony's morning traffic blurred past. "So that went well."

"Boss, hate to interrupt your day, but we've got some interpersonal dynamics brewing back home that need your attention." ADAM's voice filled the car through speakers that probably cost more than most people's entire sound systems.

"Define 'dynamics.'" Because with ADAM, that could mean anything from actual firefights to someone using the wrong coffee mug.

"Your enhanced kiddos are having growing pains. Pedro's showing off, the twins are bickering about coordination, and Beacon's getting frustrated that nobody listens to his field command when Major Victory's around."

"Predictable." Kai's single word from the driver's seat carried more analysis than most people managed in paragraphs.

"Yeah, figured this was coming." Team dynamics were like chemical reactions. Put enough volatile elements in close proximity and eventually something was going to explode. "ADAM, pull the reports. Let's see how bad it actually is."

Hector's voice rumbled from the back seat, his frame making the space feel smaller. "Could always slap em around. Remind them who's in charge. Worked before."

Zedd couldn't help the laugh that escaped. "Christ, Hector. They're your teammates."

"Yeah. Still idiots though."

Can't really argue with that.

The lakehouse materialized through morning, all clean lines and environmental integration as Kai pulled the skycar into the garage entrance. The workshop lights adjusted automatically as they entered, each one dimming on slowly but with no hesitation, adjusted to not risk a flashbang to his eyes.As soon as the car doors closed behind them, ANGEL’s voice sounded out.

"Welcome home, father. All costume prototypes are prepared for field testing." Pride colored ANGEL’s voice as she greeted him, the raw satisfaction she got from completed projects clear and bright in every single syllable she spoke. "Biometric integration was successful across all designs."

Zedd nodded quietly as he took in said designs, eyes roaming across the nine costumed mannequins that stood at the far edge of his main lab space. Each costume was designed and tailored for maximum appeal and effect, not just to the body but to the abilities of the persons using them, materials and design elements chosen to show off as much as they did show out.

"They're gonna love this." And they would, because everyone loved new toys.

– o – o – o – o – o – o – o –

The observation deck wrapped around the lakehouse's upper level, providing clear sightlines to the training area below. Late afternoon sunlight caught the water just right, turning everything golden and somehow more real than reality had any right to be. Zedd settled against the railing, enhanced vision automatically tracking multiple targets as his team went through their paces.

Dev materialized beside him with that particular talent for showing up exactly when expected, caf in hand and steam rising in the cool afternoon air. "Started early today."

"They're motivated." Which was underselling it, considering Pedro was currently web-swinging between obstacles with the kind of raw joy and excitableness you’d expect from someone at least half his age.

Caleb arrived still in his Major Victory gear, helmet tucked under one arm and that Boy Scout energy radiating off him even after a full morning patrol. The shield on his back caught the light, freshly polished because of course it was.

A few seconds after him, Kira slouched up in a wrinkled black N7 hoodie that had seen better days, or possibly better weeks. "So we're doing the whole proud papa watching his kids thing?"

"Something like that."

Below them, Pedro's new suit responded to every neural impulse with fluid precision, the mechanical arms emerging from his back to grip surfaces while his hands remained free for web-shooting. The kid had adapted to the neural interface faster than any of Zedd's projections, which either meant the projections were conservative or Pedro was exceptional. Probably both.

"Waldos are responding to neural impulses. Kid's adapting faster than projected." Technical analysis helped distance from the weird pride thing trying to bubble up. No room for that. This was science, not sentiment.

"He's showing off again." Dev's observation carried fond exasperation.

"But he's staying in formation this time. That's progress." Caleb managed to make it sound like both praise and gentle correction, which was probably why people actually listened to him.

Ana's red psionic blasts painted the air like abstract art, each manifestation more controlled than the last. The psi-amp crown caught sunlight, its crystalline structure seeming to pulse in rhythm with her thoughts.

– – – – – – – –– – – – – – – –– – – – – – – –– – – – – – – –

Three hours ago in the lab, ANGEL running diagnostics while Ana sat perfectly still in the medical chair...

"The neural interface should provide significant enhancement to her psionic output while filtering the inherent density problems." ANGEL's voice had been clinical, professional, but the Navi had barely been able to hide the excitement underneath.

Zedd turned the crown over in his hands, watching light refract through its surface. "True, Ana’s psionic manifestations are... aggressive. Too dense, yet at the same time to focused. This should spread the energy out, make it more controllable."

"And the color change from purple to red?" ADAM's curiosity bled through the speakers, his face popping up on a screen “Wouldn’t have anything to do with you preselecting her code-name, right dad-boss?”

"ADAM… it’s more of a side effect of the filtration process." He shrugged his shoulders slow, doing his best to seem casual.  "Red makes her stand out more anyway."

– – – – – – – –– – – – – – – –– – – – – – – –– – – – – – – –

Back in the present, Toni's BASTION armor responded to every command with military precision, additional modular systems clicking into place as she switched between offensive and defensive configurations. Marilyn's flight suit traced her movements through the air, improved conductivity turning her into a living storm system. Scot's tactical visor painted targeting data across his vision, threat analysis algorithms learning his patterns and adapting in real-time.

"Focus on the target sequence, Pedro. Style points don't count in real combat." Scot's voice carried through the morning air, patient but firm.

"Who says I can't have both?" Pedro's response came between web-shots, half-laughing and half-whooping as he swung around at speeds that nearly made him a blur to human eyes.

Ana's concentration painted itself across her features as she tested the crown's limits, purple energy shifting to red with each careful manifestation. The control was remarkable, especially considering her previous outputs had been more sledgehammer than scalpel.

"Neural interface filtered out her issues with density and the instability of her psionics,” he muttered aloud, which was just like he expected honestly. “She's got three times the output with actual precision now." God, he loved it when tech worked like it should. The best feeling in the world, honestly.

"Mmmm... you think you could do something like that for a biotic bestie?" Kira's blue eyes narrowed his way, his old friend biting her lip as her interest peaked higher than the mountains in Arkadia IV’s northernmost city.

"...Maybe." The maybe was more honest than he normally was, especially considering he’d never even touched biotics and the closest he came was messing around with Eezo-psi as a stopgap to making elerium. Who am I kidding? Zedd rolled his eyes at the forced humility. I could figure it out in a couple days, maybe a week at most. Eezo-based tech was far from his field of expertise, especially as he’d avoided the stuff for years, but it really wasn’t the hardest thing to understand.

Below them, Scot attempted to coordinate the team through a complex maneuver, his tactical instincts sound but his commands falling on selectively deaf ears. The respect gap showed in every delayed response, every questioning glance toward Caleb before following through.

"He's got good tactical instincts, but they're not following his lead." Statement of fact, not judgment. Team dynamics were chemical reactions, predictable if you knew the elements involved.

"They respect Caleb's experience. Beacon's still proving himself." Dev's analysis cut straight to the heart of it.

"I should step back more during training. Let him establish authority." Guilt colored Caleb's words, his growing boy still the little softie he always had been deep down. 

Patrick moved through obstacles designed to challenge baseline humans like they were made of tissue paper, but every motion had that careful control that screamed of holding back. Big man afraid of making everyone else look small.

"Alloy's holding back too much. He's afraid of showing everyone up." The frown pulled at Zedd's features before he could stop it. "Think my lecture about thinking of himself too much hit a bit too hard?"

"Man's a good listener. Hard habit to break,” Dev answered back.

Patrick's voice rumbled across the training ground. "Taking point on breach."

"Big man, stop with the hand-holding." Hector's voice cut through the comm system, voice as cold as ever but not wrong either.

"Others need to keep up." Patrick's response was terse and stubborn, the big man operating on what he was sure of by the way he spoke. “Not to be left behind.”

"Their problem, not yours." And that was Hector in a nutshell. Brutal honesty wrapped in carbon fiber and casual menace.

The team began moving in actual coordination, Pedro's web-lines guided by Ana's psionic targeting to create impossible approach angles. Toni's BASTION armor channeled electricity as Marilyn fed power directly into the systems, turning defensive positions into offensive opportunities. Mateo's speed created perfect positioning for Charlie's sniper shots, the twins operating like opposite sides of the same coin.

"Heads up, laying down web barriers in three... two..." Pedro's callout came clear and confident as he launched himself into the air and did just that.

"Got it, one!" Ana's response followed smoothly, red energy painting targeting solutions through the air.

"BASTION systems locked, ready to advance behind cover." Toni, as usual, tried to sound professional, but the girl was half-giggling as she operated her mech.

"Keep that rhythm." Scot's command landed this time, the team actually responding as they worked in tandem better than they had in weeks.

The afternoon light caught them mid-maneuver, nine people moving like a perfect machine, all the parts working in tandem to show off more than each one could possibly manage on their own. He already knew they could work well enough with Caleb leading the charge, but now that Scot was showing his own… even better.

Zedd felt the grin spread across his face before he could stop it, genuine satisfaction breaking through the careful control. "Now, that's what I'm talking about."