9 (Interlude; Valkyrie)

Ward
Interlude 9
Date posted	20 October 2018
Link	Interlude 9 II
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Chapter List

9 (Interlude; Valkyrie) is the nineteenth chapter and forth interlude of Gleaming. Valkyrie and her ‘Flock’ of resurrected parahumans deal with a world-killing airgun, put down a dog with superpowers, fight warlords, locates the people lost during the portal incident. Yet a bigger threat looms.

Plot

A week in the life of Valkyrie and her Flock.

In the valley Valkyrie gets ready, gathers her team and heads up the tower. The team deals with wave upon wave of autonomous drones, making their way up the tower into Space before they reach the top. There they find a man at the mercy of his power forced to continually create. The builder is killed and Valkyrie collects him and the Flock begins dismantling the power. Valkyrie gets a call from her superiors turns down a chance to go after the simurgh.

She then deals with a distorted region of space in a backwater world. It turns out that the parahuman responsible is actually a para-canine. Valkyrie comforts the animal and snaps it's neck.

Next is war on the warlords squatting in Africa, battles in a poison landscape. Someone figured out how to force new triggers. The mission is successful and Valkyrie collects a spirit for interrogation. Is confronted by Crystal who views her power as wrong and has Ciara have a conversation she's had dozens of times before. Then she gets to wash the poison off.

A few days later after dealing with such threats as a breaker assassin and more craziness Valkyrie finds the people stranded by the Portal Sabotage.

Major Events

• Ciara's shades are being resurrected.
• World ending threats are routinely prevented.
• Animals are getting superpowers.
• The Wardens manage to get Ciara away from the frontlines.

Characters

The Wardens Valkyrie The Shades Glines, the Switch-Thrower Waggish, Twelfth of the Fabricators Dialback Mushroom Leadletter Esclavage, the Rack Knallen Thirty-Eight, the Eye Gobsmack Goose Down Zappatore, the Underminer Yonder, the Gatherer Diaspora Mudstreaked Mad Bomber The Man Who Stands Atop Eidolon Machinavelli The Flock Milk Birdcage-outcast Skull-face Cleo (Naja Haje) Voltrage (Third Execution) Edgeless (Forward Facing) Chevalier Legend The Allies The Wounded Man The Threats The Towerbuilder Tinker 15 The Tyrant Kings European mercenaries The Solemn Child Messenger PRTCJ Laserdream Other officer The Stranded Riley Rinke Unnamed thinker Five Wardens officers Jessica Yamada Civilian refugees Mentioned Scion Vikare The Scholar The Simurgh

Trivia

• Valkyrie's ghosts confirmed as retaining personality.
• Shard-possessed towerbuilder is based on older description of a Tinker 15
• Powers interfacing with animals are not unknown, but the non-primary species directly manifesting powers is another thing entirely.