Parahumans vs. EVOs

The one thing I was certain of was that Ruth had been right; there was a profound difference between her powers... our powers, and those of the parahumans. Our powers were really all the same ability; we warped reality in small or big ways. We were limited only in the form that manipulation took. Each of us was granted a single form that our power took, although some forms had many more ways they could be used than others. I was almost certain that some of us had powers that were practically useless while others had massively useful abilities.

My power was just less restrictive than others.

Copying Carpenter's powers had been simple because my brain was less restricted than hers had been. I could potentially do almost anything, but I needed to know how to do it. Getting that information from her brain was part of what my power let me do, and if I could see the structure that let us change reality, then I could see what it did, and how it was used. That would make it easier for me to use a power even better than the original owner, who likely had to use trial and error.

Carpenter's ability had been painful; I doubted that she used it very often unless she had a real reason to do so because it would have hurt enough not to me a casual thing. But I could see the flaws in the design, and while it might sting some for me, it would be like being tapped on the arm compared to being hit by a sledge hammer. I could see how to use the power, and I could potentially do it better than she could.

But looking into Leet's brain was like looking into a piece of Tinkertech. I could see part of the structure, but just the tiniest little bit. It was like those deep sea fish, the ones with a tentacle with the glowing light on the end. The light was tiny, but in the darkness behind there was an enormous mouth full of teeth, and a monstrous shape lurking in the darkness. To a tiny fish it would have looked like the end of the world, and likely it would be.

***

Looking at Leet's power, I'd essentially been trying to figure out how his power had worked, and then recreate it from scratch. It was possible that I'd be able to do it eventually, but it was likely always going to hurt. If I'd been able to see through the Veil, I'd still be left trying to figure out how whatever was on the other side managed the power and then trying to figure out how to replicate it.

Looking at people like me was like being handed an answer to a complex math problem. Figuring out a parahuman power would be like figuring out the answer myself with a third of the problem done. I could do it, but it was always going to hurt.

***

Every parahuman power was unique; no one healed in exactly the same way or shot fire in the same way. But Ruth, her father and grandfather all had exactly the same power. That meant that our people... mutants, evolved humans, whatever you wanted to call them could and did duplicate abilities. When I got the chance I'd confirm it by checking for decapitations and brain cases over the past fifty years. I suspected that Mirtis was just the last in a long line of people like me.

***

Power