Recruitment Tour (Quickdraw, Celeste, and Stareater)

Compassion appeared to disintegrate in the blink of an eye in response to the bolt of Whitespace being pointed at her. In reality, she had started going intangible in a cloud of stardust.

"I see Caius was not wrong about your temper," Compassion trailed. "I am not your adversary, mortal. Not unless you choose to harm the innocent. I am many abstract concepts made manifest - mercy, charity, kindness, comfort, and to a lesser degree, justice. Some call me the 'Matron of Change', the 'Matron of Virtue', and the 'Mother of Love'. Most call me 'Compassion'."

While she could elevate the spirits of the downtrodden who were willing to accept her comfort, Compassion couldn't force one into a calm state of mind. She had to rely on legitimate charm and persuasion to defuse the situation.

"In truth, your existence was known to me even before you became what you are...Astrid. I have many eyes watching this world for me," Compassion said. "A genius prodigy for your age, the discoverer of an extremely volatile source of energy - one that, in the wrong hands, could spell total destruction for humanity. I also know that the lives you ended when your powers were gained were completely by accident - had they been deliberate, this conversation would not be happening. I would have been forced to repay the lives lost that day with your own."

She raised her hands in a placating gesture, saying, "One of my own has also shown me your exploits since you have taken up your role as a hero. Your heroism on the Queen of the Atlantic, your selflessness at the Apollo Northern Key Manufacturing Plant. In both situations, I found your restraint and your sense of responsibility admirable. You could have easily swept either venue away, but you deliberately limited yourself, because doing so would risk the innocent. It is this sense of responsibility you feel that has prompted me to seek you out. I sense your heart and see that what evil lies within is suppressed by a blinding light within you. Would you hear my words?"

Stareater really didn't like being followed by strange people. If they tracked her down, it usually meant they were dangerous in some way. Not many people, even among the Empowered, could just appear out of thin air anywhere on the planet to speak to someone capable of circumnavigating the planet in a matter of hours under her own power. This reaction she had was one of practicality, a sheer fact of life that came with being someone so dangerous. When someone reached a certain level of power, namely the one she sat on, they usually made a habit of covering their asses in case somebody wanted them for something nefarious. And being who she was, Astrid didn't like the take such a chance.

She didn't have any knowledge of a "Matron of Virtue" or any of the mythological nonsense wizards got up to. The universe- This one, at least- Was strange and manifested in strange ways, but Astrid wasn't particularly interested in things like that, so she wasn't familiar with this.

"I don't know you," She warned, keeping Compassion right in front of her. Though, it was rather difficult to tell exactly where Stareater was looking with all that energy churning beneath her helmet. "So either you've been following me long enough to know about those things or you've just been looking for me. Either way, you had better choose your next words very carefully because I am not in the mood to take a chance right now." She seemed to relax just a little, but there was an obvious amount of tension radiating off of her.

"Stop moving," She demanded. "Don't try anything. Explain yourself."

"I know of you through one of my subordinates, Stareater," Compassion explained. "It is his duty. I rely on him to know when the forces of evil are on the move, and to keep me informed of likely candidates for my Knighthood to fight those very same forces of evil - candidates like yourself. If you must think of me as something in human terms, think of me as a goddess - even though that term would be inaccurate. I am not all-powerful. I am merely...an avatar. A representation of humanity's potential for good - including your own potential. For over eight millennia, I have watched humanity - seen it at its best, and at its worst."

Compassion's form betrayed no fear. She made no movement of her own - gravity had merely carried her down to the outcropping where Stareater was. Her eyes were those of kindness, understanding, hope.

"And having seen and fixated on humanity's negative aspects, there is another who would seek to conquer this world in the name of protecting humanity from itself. And unlike me, he would show no mercy to you, given the power you hold," Compassion stated. "To him, your destructive power would be something he would force into enforcing his ends, or - failing that - destroy it, along with you, for the mere sin of existence. To be anything but a normal human - in his eyes - makes you an abomination to be either corralled or destroyed. Perhaps you may believe me to be an alarmist, but I assure you: I speak the truth."

Hearing about that ship was something Stareater didn’t feel thrilled by. Her relationship with Rose was complicated, even before they became what they were now. Spending an eternity in a pale void where human connections didn’t exist did things to Astrid. Things that strangers had no right to know about. So yeah, Astrid and Rose didn’t really keep contact with one another, Astrid didn’t even know if she was alive anymore. It was… Difficult to keep such things in mind for someone in her position, to put it politely.

The lab where that machine had ran wild gave her a run for her money, no doubt about it, but she managed. It was more of a strategic challenge than anything. Still, she didn’t like someone spying on her that much. It implied other things were known. Other things that Astrid told herself only she knew.

And for that reason… She stood down a little more.

And what Compassion said wasn’t making her friendly, exactly, but she was describing a great threat. Something possibly world-threatening. A war, of a mystical sort, which was the kind of thing Stareater didn’t usually get involved with.

”If someone that powerful is planning to wipe humanity out, why haven’t you taken a chance to stop him?” She asked. ”You know him better than me. What do you want me to do about this? I’m not a sorcerer. If you’ve got the foresight to pinpoint me, of all people, you should have no trouble locating someone like him.”

"Locating him isn't the problem, Stareater. He's my brother, after all," Compassion said. "In ages past, we would take complementary roles. I comforted and tended to the sick, while he punished the evil. Then he withdrew from the world for millennia, while I remained to help. And when I saw him again, he was...changed. Zealous, assured that his methods would end all chaos in the world and lead it to a utopian future. He fails to see how his methods - devoid of regard for collateral damage - could backfire. In some ways, I see you as him - if you're willing to restrain your own power for the betterment of others, and to punish only the guilty...then maybe you could protect the innocents from him, as my Knighthood is sworn to do. And, perhaps, in encountering you - a teenager with such a strong moral code - he may find a bit of who he used to be."

Compassion had laid her cards on the table - in Astrid, she saw the brother of her own past. The being who punished evil and protected the innocent. And Astrid knew restraint, too. She knew temperance. And that's exactly what Compassion wanted from anyone she recruited.

"At present, until the innocent come to direct harm as a result of his and his minions' actions, there is a neutrality agreement between us. Until then, I will not war with my brother," Compassion further stated. "But I have the foresight to know that someone will come to harm if his response isn't tempered. At that point, the neutrality will be broken - and I'd like to have champions for the innocent when that happens. I won't force you to accept, but consider the following: he's interested in control, not destruction. But there are others who are. Are you aware of someone within your family tree called 'Alma Balke'? She is one such being."