Houston is a major city in the United States, located in the state of Texas.
Role in the story
Houston was attacked by a part of the Slaughterhouse Nine-Thousand, including clones of Burnscar, Damsel of Distress, Nice Guy, Shatterbird and more.[1] Defiant successfully counters their attack, using technology of Toybox to fight them.[2][3]
PRT
Houston houses the third PRT department,[4] one of the top departments, and is focused on providing training.[5]
| Name | Description |
|---|---|
| Eidolon | Leader of the Protectorate in Houston. Member of the Triumvirate and one the most powerful capes in the world, with the ability to manifest a handful of powers at a time, with virtually no restrictions, automatically gaining whatever abilities he needs to face a given crisis.[6] |
| Exalt | Interim Protectorate leader after Eidolon.[7] A powerful aerokinetic, whose powers work optimally only once in a given, lengthy duration, with only limited avail otherwise.[8] |
| Dispatch | Exalt's second in command.[9] Can generate a closed bubble of accelerated time, trapping him and his target inside. Can then use his enhanced strength and durability in close confines to beat his opponent.[10] |
| Gentle Giant | Member of the Wards[11] and a Case 53. He resigns following the revelations of the Triumvirate’s involvement with Cauldron, joining the Irregulars.[12] |
- Hoyden is identified as the team captain of the Wards in Austin,[13] but is referred to as working under Dispatch.[14] Later, she refers to Houston as 'my city'.[15]
References
- ↑ “We need to decide who goes where,” Defiant said. “The first teleportation marked coordinates on Houston.”
Weaver spoke up, “I noted Shatterbirds and Burnscars leaving, some Damsels, bunch of others I didn’t catch, but they had weapons and I’m thinking Winter or Crimson. There were some I parsed as hostages, but it’s only in retrospect that I’m thinking they were Nice Guys.” - Excerpt from Interlude 26a - ↑ “I’m not saying we should abandon Houston,” Weaver said, before Hoyden could speak. “Defiant, can you postpone the collapse of this area?”
“Yes, but I don’t feel comfortable doing it,” he responded.
“I think you should,” she said. “Toybox left enough stuff behind. Use it. Stay behind, arm yourself, then throw everything but the kitchen sink at them. You remember how the scar formed in Brockton Bay?”
“Mm,” he said. “Tinker technology takes time to understand, to prepare. Too dangerous otherwise.”
“There’s a solution to that. I’ll point the way.”
Defiant hesitated.
Golem looked around the group, saw the expressions on faces, saw how even Hoyden had relaxed a fraction. Even the Dragon’s Tooth officers that accompanied them were a little more at ease. There were no answers in this situation, but there was a possibility. An option, vague as it was.
“Okay,” Defiant said. - Excerpt from Interlude 26a - ↑ They stood in silence, waiting for the other shoe to drop.
“We got him,” Weaver said. She raised a hand to her ear. “We got Jack. He’s down. Everyone report in.”
“Houston is safe,” Defiant reported. “Battered, but safe.” - Excerpt from Interlude 26b - ↑ The largest 65 cities in the United States host individual departments as of 2012. They are numbered accordingly, in order of decreasing size.
[...]
3 Houston - PRT Master Reference - ↑ The PRT is big, and being big, it has an awful lot of places to stow the more problematic capes. The top departments have individualized roles where they focus on a specific dimension of PRT activities, whether it's overall administration (New York), branding (LA), or training (Houston). - reddit comment by Wildbow.
- ↑ Eidolon – Member of the Triumvirate and head of the Houston branch of the Protectorate. Viewed by many as one of the most powerful capes in the world, can manifest a handful of powers at a time, with virtually no restrictions, automatically gaining whatever abilities he needs to face a given crisis. Wears a green-white costume with a hood, and a glow emanating from both hood and sleeves. - Cast
- ↑ “I found what Behemoth is after. Who can I talk to?”
Dispatch stepped out of the way, so the man in white with the starburst helm was free to act.
“Me,” the man in white said. “I’m Exalt. Interim leader.”
“The Texas Protectorate leader.”
“Houston Protectorate, yes.” - Excerpt from Crushed 24.4 - ↑ Exalt Powerful aerokinetic, powers worked optimally only once in a given, lengthy duration (sometimes hours, sometimes days), with limited aeroskinesis otherwise. - parahumanList, bolded edit by Wildbow.
- ↑ “Dispatch, the second in command of Houston.”
Prism at least had an apparent reason to dislike me, but Dispatch’s expression suggested he’d come to that conclusion all on his own. His costume was white, with steel points rising from his shoulders and either side of his brow. The mask that covered the upper half of his face was sculpted into a perpetual frown. I might not have given it a second thought, but his mouth… the frown left me little doubt he didn’t like me, right off the bat. - Excerpt from Drone 23.1 - ↑ Dispatch, vice-captain of the Houston Protectorate team, zipped over to a group of wounded with accelerated speed, only to seem to pause, as though he and his immediate surroundings were only video footage. Color and space distorted violently in an irregular area around him as he hung there, just an inch over the ground, one hand at his belt and another reaching for someone with intense burns.
A half-second later, the effect dissipated, and they were all moving. Dispatch was carrying one of the most wounded, gloves off and the sleeves of his costume pulled up, dried blood up to his elbows. Others were bandaged and sutured. His name, I knew, came from his ability to pick out targets in a fight, closing the distance to them and catching them in his temporal distortion effect. He’d have minutes or hours, however long it took the air within the effect to run out, to end the fight with his super strength, durability and the close confines of the bubble. To any observers, it appeared as though he’d won the fight in a heartbeat. Apparently the idea extended to medical care. - Excerpt from Crushed 24.3 - ↑ Gentle Giant – A monstrous member of the Wards in Houston. - Cast
- ↑ The Irregulars
Formed of a splinter group of ex-hero Case 53s and others, following the revelations of the Triumvirate’s involvement with Cauldron. The group does mercenary work, with a focus on doing good deeds more than on making money, and retains loose ties to the Protectorate and Wards.
[...]
- Gentle Giant – A tall cape exceeding even Gully in height, a case 53. - Cast (In Depth)
- ↑ “You may recognize some of the captains of the respective Wards teams. Jouster from New York, Vantage from Los Angeles, Tecton from Chicago and Hoyden from Austin. You know Clockblocker.” - Excerpt from Drone 23.1
- ↑ “She beat Alexandria,” Hoyden said, “He’s laughing because you’re putting down the girl who killed Alexandria.”
“Not a selling point,” Hoyden’s boss, Dispatch, cut in. - Excerpt from Drone 23.1 - ↑ “Everyone else is closer to New York,” Chevalier said. “But Houston…”
“We can call in favors,” Weaver said. “Moord Nag’s apparently on board, though we don’t know why. Cauldron’s on board. If we can get Tattletale in contact with them, that’s handled. But we can’t do that unless we leave.”
“That’s my city,” Hoyden said.
“I get that,” Weaver replied, “But we’re doing nothing constructive if we split up, and we’re definitely doing nothing constructive as long as we sit here.” - Excerpt from Interlude 26a
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