Furcate

<infobox> <title source="name"><default>Furcate</default></title>

<image source="Image"></image> <image source="image"></image> <group><header>Basic Information</header> <label>Civilian Name</label> <label>Aliases</label> <label>Gender</label><default>Unknown</default> <label>Death</label> <label>Age</label><default>Unknown</default> <label>Post-timeskip</label> <label>Ward start</label> <label>Relations</label> <label>Family</label></group> <group><header>Professional Status</header> <label>Occupation</label> <label>Classification</label> <label>Unique Features</label> <label>Alignment</label>

<label>Status</label><format>

{{{status}}}

</format>

<label>Location</label> <label>Teams</label> <label>Previous Team(s)</label> <label>Base of Operations</label></group> <group><header>First Appearance</header> <label>Worm Debut</label> <label>Ward Debut</label></group> </infobox> Kay, known publicly as Furcate, is a young member of Team Reach.

Personality

Kay was a young kid with a grandmother's taste in sweets. She seemed initially shy and somewhat defensive about her transition.<ref name="9.x 2">Do you have a preferred pronoun?” Tristan asked, voice quiet.

“Hm?” Furcate asked. Her entire posture was immediately more defensive.

“Sorry if I’m totally wrong. I was listening to see what they said, but they dodged around it.”

“They,” Furcate said, guarded. They looked over at the group, then added, “I’m saving the ‘she’ for when I feel done.”

“You know if I have a shot with any of the guys on the team? Figurehead?”

The tension in Furcate’s neck and shoulders relaxed. The response was a head shake. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.x II</ref> However, Kay seemed to be comfortable partying and dancing with others.<ref>What followed was a roller coaster ride with no stopping or option to get off, a series of scenes that was soon blurred around the edges, as Tristan drank.

Kay danced with abandon, with boys and girls, and when nobody else was dancing, they continued on their own. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.x II</ref> She cared deeply about her teammates' well-being.<ref name="9.x 1" />

Kay had a semi-objective diagnostic system where she would work out who would stay after using her power. The criteria were based on physical well being, then mental well-being, and the progression of her transition.<ref>"health, mind/emotion, girl." allegedly said by Wildbow on Cauldron Discord server and the IRC</ref> A tiebreaker exists based on the aforementioned candy.<ref name="9.z 1">“We all need something to fall back to,” K said. “When we lose track of ourselves. If we run into a tie and we’re supposed to decide among ourselves, we have a fourth number we track. Physical health, mental health, girl-ness, and the tiebreaker.”

“The candy?”

“Reminds me of the woman who raised me,” K said, sucking on the candy “If I ever don’t like it or I don’t feel reminded of those days, I’m not me.” - Excerpt from Interlude 9.z II</ref> With her second chance Furcate expanded her ratings system.<ref name=reunion>“Hey, Azúcar,” Tristan said. He was still making bottles. The group around him had shifted.

I looked up.

Tristan was paying attention to a girl in a cat mask, ears sweeping back along the sides of the head, gauntlets on.

“Hey, ass,” was the response.

“Uh, Capricorn,” I said. “Careful. Remember what they said.”

You’ll only hurt yourself.

“It’s okay,” Azúcar said. “I’m a little bit further along. Normal rules for the Flock don’t apply. I can cheat it.”
[...]
“You look good,” Tristan said.

“I feel good,” she said. “Nine-six-ten-five.”

“You changed it.”

“Dying necessitates change,” she said, looking down the hall in the direction of the fighting. What we were supposed to fight past and through. They’d be setting up. “But you’d know that, wouldn’t you? False deaths? Impermanent deaths?”

“Yeah. Guess so,” Tristan said. “Good to see you. Glad the numbers are so good.”

“Only going to get better,” she said. “I’d say it’s good to see you too, but…”[...]“…only a little good.”
[...]
Byron filled the bottle with water. He stood straight to hand it over, and she wrapped him in a hug. He hugged her back.

I didn’t try to listen in on their conversation, but they were speaking at a volume above murmurs, below whispers, and it was impossible to turn my ears off.

“Moonsong?”

“Alive and well, last I heard. With this whole thing, though-”

“Don’t be such a downer.”

“We broke up.”

“Still being a downer,” she said. “But that’s good. Good she’s alive. She was- she was trying. Good you broke up.”

“Tristan kept one of your old lemon drop candies as a, I think it was a reminder,” Byron said, voice low. “Always got its spot in his belt pouch. He only cleared it out recently, a week ago, but it’s with his stuff.”
[...]
“Oh.”

“Do you, um, still like those?”

“Still being a downer,” she said. “You should be careful what questions you ask if the answers would trouble you.[...] And don’t worry. I’d love a lemon drop right now.”

“Do you remember why they were important?”

“Don’t pick apart your happiness, Capricorn,” she said. She punched his arm lightly - Excerpt from Dying 15.3</ref> She's very happy to be alive.<ref>Dying 15.6</ref>

Relationships

"Mom"

Women who raised Kay, she still thought of her fondly.<ref name="9.z 1"/> Not explicitly stated to be her mother.

Tristan and Byron Vera

Kay got on well with both of the Vera twins. She gave a piece of candy and a hug to Byron following a busy week for Team Reach.<ref name="9.x 1">Kay nodded.

“Okay,” Byron said. He swallowed hard, then nodded.

Kay approached, until they stood behind him. “Open.”

“Wha-” Byron started. A hard object was pressed between his teeth.

One of Kay’s old lady lemon candies, that tasted like menthol, citrus, and ass. Kay’s favorite.

Just as he was coming around to the idea that this too could be masochistic, he felt Kay’s arms around his shoulders. A hug from behind, Kay’s face smushed against the side of his head. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.x II</ref> Byron noted when Kay settled on a duplicate with a low mental health score, prepared to comfort her if need be.<ref>Two?

Byron tapped his head.

Mental. Emotional. He’d keep an eye out for Kay, some shitty candy and a hug ready if Kay seemed low. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref>

Kay and Tristan were close, with Kay comforting him following Byron's supposed death.<ref>Furcate bodily collided with Tristan. Their arms wrapped around him in a hug. Again, as it had with Figurehead’s half-hug of support, the armor prevented Tristan from feeling the body contact.

Furcate moved their mask, pulling it so it sat sideways. The side of their head pressed against Tristan’s.

“I’m so sorry,” Furcate whispered. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.z II</ref> Tristan considered her an ally, though not someone he could open up with.<ref>Furcate stood off to the side, staring.

That hurt. It threw him.

He couldn’t tell Furcate, he realized. They’d never been someone he could really talk with, but they’d been an ally. He couldn’t tell Nate. He couldn’t tell anyone. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.z II</ref> Nevertheless, Tristan almost confessed to Kay before stopping himself, afraid of hurting her.<ref>What was he supposed to say? Any words he uttered, any proof he gave, it would be as good as sealing his own fate, and it would devastate K.

Could he hurt them that badly?

Irrationally, he knew the right thing to do, but with the small sorts of pain he would inflict so clear in front of his face, looking at him with worry, he couldn’t bring himself to say it any more clearly. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.z II</ref> He had a affectionate nickname for Kay, azúcar, meaning sugar.<ref>[A18 12:34:44] Cap: Furcate –azúcar- you were one of my favorite
[A18 12:35:17] Cap: those days were some of my best and some of my worst
[A18 12:36:11] Cap: you were some of the best parts of the best days
[...]
[A18 12:42:12] Moonsong: I’ll let the others know you said it. [...] Tristan. - Excerpt from Glow-worm P.2


Tristan clapped a hand onto Furcate’s shoulder. “You good, azúcar?”

Furcate nodded. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref><ref name=reunion/>

Moonsong

Due to Moonsong's prejudices, Furcate's relationship with her was strained. Tristan called Moonsong out for "[making] Furcate more miserable than anyone"; at one point, Tristan noticed Kay crying once after talking to Brianna.<ref>[A18 12:11:47] Cap: a thinly veiled outline of furcates many problems

[A18 12:11:56] Cap: you couldn’t resist saying you didn’t like them

[A18 12:11:23] Moonsong: Are you done?

[A18 12:12:13] Cap: you made furcate more miserable than anyone

[A18 12:12:26] Moonsong: Apparently not

[A18 12:12:29] Cap: you never once tried to understand them just like you never once tried to understand me - Excerpt from Glow-worm P.2</ref><ref>Tristan could only think about Furcate, sitting on stairs outside, back to the windows, wiping at their face. It had been after Brianna had said something to them. He wasn’t sure Byron got it, despite having seen. That, or that Byron hadn’t wanted to get it. Willful ignorance. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref> Kay disliked Brianna and was generally distrustful of her.<ref>He had to move his head to see Furcate’s mask. “Two huh? I don’t want to pry, but-”

“You can pry,” Furcate said. They looked back. “So long as it’s you, and not you and Moonsong together.”

“Moonsong has your back, Furcate,” Coiffure said.

“She cares about you,” Byron added.

Furcate shrugged. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref>

Following Furcate's death during Gold Morning, Moonsong stated that she had respected Furcate, despite their tense relationship.<ref name="GW P.2 2">Furcate decided to fight on that monumental day and that says so much when not everyone was brave enough to do that. Furcate was wild and tortured and beautiful. They were a handful and yet they rewarded us with ten positive things for every negative we had to overcome. I’d like to think they got something out of putting up with us in much the same way.

I want what I say here to be honest. I did not get along with Furcate the vast majority of the time. Furcate did not get along with me. I still respected them immensely. They said one word for every thousand the rest of us said and yet they could convey so much in their actions. I keep saying those things, using math like ‘ten times over’, but it’s so very Furcate. They overflowed, they swelled. The cup runneth over. I look back and I’m dazed by how much of a place they found in my heart and my thoughts. - Excerpt from Glow-worm P.2</ref> Moonsong alleges she held and comforted Furcate as she died, but she nevertheless misgendered her even after her death.<ref name="GW P.2">[A18 12:16:39] Moonsong: I didn’t like furcate. I did love and respect him as a teammate.
[A18 12:16:51] Moonsong: I damn well held him at the end. For a long time. I talked to him the entire time. - Excerpt from Glow-worm P.2</ref> With Kay's revival Moonsong has improved somewhat.<ref>“Well, I can tell you I’ve been there. Not as intense as what you got as far as… picking up on what others were saying around me. But it doesn’t feel like thought control now. I used to be homophobic. I’m… better, I guess. I think it’s a weird thing to do, but I can roll with it. An old teammate resurfaced, came back from the dead, actually, and reminded me-” - Excerpt from Interlude 17.z II</ref>

Appearance

Furcate generally wore a cat-themed costume featuring a cat-eared mask and various chain links, as well as clawed gauntlets that she could use for attacking.<ref>Another person Byron couldn’t identify, hadn’t seen in marketing. Newer, maybe. Lean, skinny, and fidgety. Her mask was like a cat’s, with ears that were worked into the side, sweeping back. Chain links ran down the black-bodysuit-covered neck and draped over the shoulders and over a flat chest. More chain decoration extended down the hands to oversized claw-gauntlets, which dangled from the elbow, leaving her hands free.
[...]
The newer member was introduced as Furcate. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.x II</ref> Due to her power, her costume regularly changes; on one occasion, Furcate had a duplicate who wore long-bladed gloves and a narrower mask that resembled a fox.<ref name="9.y 1">Each of the two Furcates was different, one of them resembling the original, the other with an arm free of the sling, a costume of a different cut.

Tristan climbed to his feet as Furcate started swiping and slashing at Paris with their claws. They were nimble, but it was an ordinary human nimbleness, nothing augmented.

[...]

Furcate split again. Unlike their usual gauntlets, this Furcate had gloves that extended to the elbow, with five long blades each, their mask narrow like a fox’s. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref>

Abilities and Powers

Furcate is a specialized duplicator that can create one to three instances of herself, who each act independently of the others.<ref>Furcate was used to fighting alone or as… a pair or a trio, a quartet if they felt like pushing themselves. Coiffure needed to reach out, and Tristan worked best with battlefields he could exploit, and he was limited in what he could do when any changes he made to footing could hamper either of the others. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref> They have slightly different personalities and physical differences that can provide other benefits based on the separation.<ref name="9.y 1" /> A minor drawback is an imperfect memory, accurate in the broad strokes but she can mess up with some details.<ref>Teaspoon - Does Furcate retain the memories of the two others?

Wildbow - No, tsp, but close enough it doesn't screw up her day much. - Discord Convo,Archived on Spacebattles</ref> They seem to have some degree of shared awareness.<ref name="II19.d"/>

When separated the Furcates need to decide who 'stays' and who 'goes', possibly meaning they draw down on their reserves for remaining separated and not choosing a possible Furcate to 'substantiate'.<ref>“It changed based on our relationship to each other,” Tristan said. “I did- I did something.”

“No. That was your power, and powers can be cruel.”

“I- it’s my fault.”

“No. Sometimes the powers do this. Sometimes I don’t get any good Furcates for weeks on end.” - Excerpt from Interlude 9.z II</ref>

Tactics

Very fond of flanking with the person she trusts implicitly.<ref>As the darts started getting flung in their direction, they swapped back and forth, closing the distance, forcing Paris to retreat further. Furcate flanked, because they loved flanking. Coiffure moved out to the other side, her hair creating limbs she could move on, chains and whip noisy against the concrete of the dock.

Paris stopped being quite so conservative with the darts. He threw them out in messy ways, toward Furcate, who split into two, toward Coiffure. They were lower velocity, landing in clumps, but the resulting sprays were violent and harder to work around. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref>

History

Background

Given Furcate's master power, she had a trigger that likely involved some form of isolation.

The Timeskip

She joined Team Reach not too long before Capricorn.<ref>Tristan approached the group, all smiles, shaking hands. There was a brief demonstration of his power. The newer member was introduced as Furcate. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.x II</ref> Kay got on well with both of the Vera twins; they attended a party for young heroes.<ref>“Got someone who can vouch for you?” a heavyset, twenty-something guy asked.

“Kay,” Tristan said.

The guy twisted around in his chair, opening the door and leaning in. “Kay?”

There was a pause. Then Kay appeared at the door, wearing skinny jeans and a top so small Byron suspected they’d have trouble breathing.

“Hi,” Kay said. They held the door open. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.x II</ref> She was one of the capes targeted by the villain Paris, and later helped confront Paris with the rest of Team Reach.<ref>“We found that asshole Paris,” Figurehead said. “He went after Furcate once, after Long John twice, and he got Reconciliation from Haven a second time, just a week ago. This is an all hands on deck thing.” - Excerpt from Interlude 9.x II</ref> She was later at the fake mission that Reach planned in order to free Byron.<ref>“Go go go!” Figurehead hissed the words. The entire group, Steamwheel excepted, ran down the slope and along the shadowy area where the fence-mounted lights didn’t reach. They reached the fence, and Coiffure cut the fence with her hair. - Excerpt from Interlude 9.z II</ref>

Gold Morning

Furcate chose to stay and fight during Gold Morning.<ref name="GW P.2 2" /> Moonsong kept her company as they died.<ref name="GW P.2" />

Post-Time Bubble Pop

Furcate was sent to reinforce the assault on Teachers base, having been resurrected by Valkyrie and becoming a member of her Flock. She met with Capricorn brothers there. She was handling her resurrection better than most, still had not completely forgiven Tristan and was happy to reunite with Byron.<ref name=reunion/>

The Ice Breaks

She was seen with Moonsong and The Shepherds during the fight with Fortuna's titans.<ref name="II19.5">Infrared 19.5</ref>

Furcate assisted Shepherds in removing the Nemean Titan from the battlefield. Her clones were spared from following through with a suicide attack by Sveta.<ref name="II19.d">Infrared 19.d</ref>

One of Furcate clones was killed by Skadi, while Shepherds were evacuating a civilian squad from the Shardspace.<ref name="II19.e">Infrared 19.e</ref>

Trivia

• The word 'furcate' is an archaic version of 'fork' or 'branch'.
• Kay initially used they/them pronouns, intending to begin using she/her pronouns further on in her transition.<ref name="9.x 2" />
  • The Youth Guard had stepped in to ensure that they were treated well.<ref>“I…” Mr. Vaughn said. “Find myself in a difficult position. On a certain level, I very much agree. Where I’m leery is that we have had attention from the Youth Guard. Gender freedom, freedom of expression, sexuality- they are touchy subjects.” - Excerpt from Interlude 9.y II</ref>
  • Following their resurrection Furcate was comfortable with being called "her".
• Dedicated fans have created a rap for Furcate.<ref>Glow-Worm Rap Battle: Furcate's Return</ref>

References

<references/>

Site Navigation

Team Reach
Leader	Mr. Vaughn
Members	Capricorn Red {{#switch: former	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Capricorn Blue {{#switch: former	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Moonsong {{#switch: former	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Tribute {{#switch: former	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Figurehead {{#switch: former	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Boundless {{#switch: unknown	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Steamwheel {{#switch: unknown	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Coiffure {{#switch: deceased	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }} • Furcate {{#switch: former	deceased=†	noncanon=≠	former=‡	unknown=*	#DEFAULT= }}